23andMe Licenses Antibody It Developed From its Genetic Database To Spanish Firm Almirall (bloomberg.com) 30
23andMe has licensed an antibody it developed from its genetic database to treat inflammatory diseases to Spanish drugmaker Almirall SA. "The deal, announced by Almirall in a filing with Spanish regulators on Thursday, marks the first time that 23andMe has licensed a drug compound that it has developed itself," reports Bloomberg. From the report: Leveraging its genetic data to develop drugs has become an increasingly important part of 23andMe's business. More than 10 million customers have taken its DNA tests, and that trove of data can help illuminate new drug targets to treat disease. Previously, the company had made a deal to share its data and collaborate on drug development with U.K. drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline Plc, which took a $300 million stake in the company in 2018. But this is the first time it has licensed a compound it has developed in-house.
The compound belongs to a class of large-molecule drugs designed to target a single protein in the body, what's known as a bispecific monoclonal antibody. That antibody is designed to block signals from a family of proteins known as IL-36 cytokine that is associated with many autoimmune and inflammatory conditions, such as lupus and Crohn's disease. 23andMe was most interested in the antibody's effectiveness to treat severe forms of psoriasis. The company put the drug compound through animal testing but it will still need to undergo clinical trials in humans.
The compound belongs to a class of large-molecule drugs designed to target a single protein in the body, what's known as a bispecific monoclonal antibody. That antibody is designed to block signals from a family of proteins known as IL-36 cytokine that is associated with many autoimmune and inflammatory conditions, such as lupus and Crohn's disease. 23andMe was most interested in the antibody's effectiveness to treat severe forms of psoriasis. The company put the drug compound through animal testing but it will still need to undergo clinical trials in humans.
I wonder why (Score:4, Interesting)
"23andMe was most interested in the antibody's effectiveness to treat severe forms of psoriasis. "
Does the CEO suffer from that ailment or is it just the most profitable?
5 million worldwide cases of Lupus and Crohn's disease
125 million cases of psoriasis
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JIDF will be by in a few minutes... (Score:4, Interesting)
Waiting for the obvious (Score:1)
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I read this comment and got cancer. (Score:2)
Looking at US business morals, everything you can buy there probably DOES cause cancer. ^^
IL-36 Cytokine (Score:2)
Sounds like a Russian plane
made by Ilyushin
Corporate Evolution In Action (Score:3, Insightful)
They used to say, "If you're not paying for the product, you ARE the product". Now, evidently, you can be in both positions simultaneously.
Welcome to a brave new reality where you pay for the privilege of having a map of the very fabric of your body monetized by the corporate world and sold to the highest bidder.
Re:Corporate Evolution In Action (Score:5, Insightful)
New drug benefitting humanity, only 5 posts so far, with three bitching about profit-seeking.
It's a new drug, brought into existence by seeking money. This doesn't happen without it. Enjoy your 1930s medicine.
The choice isn't between new expensige drugs and new cheap ones. The choice is between new expensive drugs and no drugs.
Just like new iPhones and no iPhones.
Just like new HDTVs and small TVs or none.
Just like new video games constantly and none.
"I hate capitalism!" he thumbed into his iPhone, then took a bite of a pristine 50 cent apple in the middle of winter.
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Pity that:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/1... [nytimes.com]
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You would think that the people who supplied their genome would have gotten a cut. That would be classic capitalism.
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Yeah, call me when you can't afford it... (Score:1)
... and yo're dying from it.
And no, it was not brought into life by profit seeking. It was brought into life *despite* profit seeking. Profit is the part of the income, that you didn't return anything for. As opposed to what yu *earned*. The for-profit ideal state is equal to literal stealing, except your victims give you their money by themselves, without you even moving a pinkie.
The only reason for-profit organizations do anything at all, is because they are forced to, to make more money.
As that is all th
Re: Corporate Evolution In Action (Score:1)
FDA made 23andMe stick to genealogy at first (Score:2)
It was marketed initially as "discover your heritage." I saw that as a smallish total addressable market. Then creating more FUD, "discover what could be wrong with your genes." Bigger TAM.
Wikipedia's article implies that 23andMe initially stuck to the smaller genealogy market on purpose after having received a cease-and-desist from the United States Food and Drug Administration and counterparts in the several states [wikipedia.org]. It was waiting for the FDA to approve the 23andMe saliva swab as a diagnostic device for the bigger health market, which began to happen in fourth quarter 2015.
if we develop life saving /improving products or services based upon the aggregate data that you, dear customers, PAID to give us, we'll return a fractional divend of profits to you.
A payment for use of the data in developing medical diagnostic devices could have already been incorporated in the pric
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It's a new drug, brought into existence by seeking money. This doesn't happen without it.
Actually, most medical research is done by academic researchers. This isn't a big secret or anything, a quick search will point you to this fact. I have no other point than this, so don't read too much into it.
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Apparently you're unaware that most of the drugs patented by pharmaceutical companies are developed wholly or in part using taxpayer dollars, often through universities, then monetized for private profit.
Drug research good (Score:2)
I hope to see a new treatment for inflammatory diseases. Even if [gasp] money changes hands as part of the research effort.
Only if we actuay benefit from it. (Score:2)
Yeah, thar money changed hands SPECIFICALLY so most people can not benefit from it. Including dying children, unless they pay that ransom.
So seriously, fuck you and your selfish neo-libertarian psychopath mindset.
Your thinking is the cause of half the harm ever commited.
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The thing you want for free doesn't exist yet. Maybe it never will. If someone can make money by creating it, that makes it more likely they will go to the trouble of trying. If it works out and helps people, then everyone gets it for free a few years later after the patent expires.
Preventing the profit prevents (most of) the research. That kills everyone the research would otherwise have saved. Why do you want people to suffer and die? Seems monsterous.
Not seeing how this could be a bad thing (Score:2)
I don't find it a "bad" thing.... (Score:2)
But more, just surprising... because I hadn't realized the companies like 23 and Me were actively researching new drugs as a part of their business model.
It makes some sense, if you consider they've got so much genetic information at their disposal. But it does make one wonder if we're asking for repeats of the Henrietta Lacks situation, if it turns out the gene information they collected from one or a very limited number of individuals winds up the "key" to a future drug discovery. What's the chance they'l
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Probably around 0%.
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I also don't see much of a moral imperative to do so: the contribution of the individuals in question was rather small... and they already agreed to submit it.
Reminder: 23andMe is snake oil. (Score:2, Insightful)
If you don't tell them you're the same person, you will get different results from them each time.
This is true for all such companies.
Since a key part of the sequencing is still jigsawing together small bits of DNA based on overlaps. Which is untrustworthy, due to the many, many repetitions in the DNA that make unrelated sequences look like they belong together.
Try it yourself. It's as fun as Google Translating back and forth through foreign laguages. Except you pay a lot of money each time.
I didn't use them but... (Score:3)
...I'd submit that if they derived the data for this from information from their customers, their customers are entitled to a share of the revenue.
I mean, these customers PAID to have the test done. It might be different if 23 had paid for the data then they could be more free use it any way they wanted.