Advancing Medical Research
Foundations of Science
Using ‘Omics to Understand the Rise in Breast Cancers Among Young Asians
Asian women, compared to their counterparts in western countries, are diagnosed with breast cancer at earlier ages and face a worse prognosis.
In an effort to better understand this patient population, scientists from Pfizer and Samsung Medical Center (SMC) in Seoul, Korea, have embarked on a multi-phase project to do multi-omic profiling of the tumors of some 187 younger Korean breast cancer patients.…
Unlocking the Secrets of a Protein “Superfamily"
Large families can be complex. And while you may know some of its members individually, you can’t really gain a true understanding of their relationships and dynamics without considering the group in its totality.
Such is the case for solute carrier (SLC) transporters, a “superfamily” of some 400 proteins found in our cell membranes responsible for shuttling nutrients, neurotransmitters, medicines and other…
Matching Drugs to Diseases: Advances in Targeting JAKs Leading to New Autoimmune Therapies
Janus kinases (JAKs) named after Janus, the Roman two-faced god of duality, are enzymes with two “faces,” or domains, that play a key role in signal transduction of cytokines, the molecular messengers that trigger the inflammatory and immune responses. Scientific discoveries related to JAKs in recent years have led to novel treatments for…
A Drug Safety Scientist Inspired by the Migrant Farmers of California
Sometimes it only takes one inspiring educator to set you on your career path. As an undergrad at UC Davis in the late 1970s, Jon Cook had a charismatic professor who sparked his interest in the field of toxicology, which studies the safety effects of drugs and chemicals on living organisms.
“This guy…
Using DNA ‘Barcodes’ in the Search for New Drugs
Inside the Toxicology Lab: From Guardians of the Genome to Bottleneck Breakers and Beyond
When it comes to creating new medicines, the stories that most often reach the public are the discoveries of new biological pathways or novel compounds. But in the nearly decade-long journey a medicine takes to get from the lab to patients, drug safety studies are an integral, though often behind-the-scenes, part of the process. We recently spoke with Pfizer scientists who work in various areas of toxicology to…
How Quantum Physics and AI is Disrupting Drug Discovery & Development
Thanks to a recent strategic research collaboration with XtalPi, a U.S.-China pharmaceutical tech company, Pfizer scientists are performing crystal structure prediction in a matter of days. Pioneered by a group of quantum physicists from MIT, the XtalPi technology leverages artificial intelligence and cloud computing to perform these complex equations.
The Goldilocks of the Elements: Why Iron Levels Have to Be ‘Just Right’
Iron is an essential part of the biologic operating manual for organisms from single-celled bacteria up to complex human beings. But iron also has a dark side: Because of its capacity to turn molecules into free radicals that can damage cell membranes and DNA, too much iron can be as dangerous as too little.
What an Artificial Eating Machine Can Teach Us About Medications
The old saying “you are what you eat” may not be strictly accurate, but like many a timeworn adage, it holds a kernel of truth. For example, while eating a high-fat diet may not necessarily make people fat, the amount and type of fat in their diets still influences their overall health. When people think about the relationship between eating and health, however, they rarely consider how their dietary habits could…