Author: Aisha Abdullah, PhD

Quantum computing has the potential to revolutionize how new drugs are developed. With the ability to take on challenges too complex for traditional computers, the process is able to accelerate every stage of drug discovery, from target identification and candidate optimization to clinical development. Three companies founded and led by women are harnessing the power of quantum computing to develop the next generation of precise, inexpensive, and cost-effective therapies. What makes quantum computing so exciting? Quantum computing is a field of computer science based on quantum mechanics, the science that explores the behavior of light and matter at an atomic…

A rare genetic respiratory disease affecting the tiny structures in the lungs that filter air is the target of promising new gene therapies delivered directly to the lungs via an inhaler. Two women-led companies are at the forefront of developing these novel mRNA drugs to fight primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), a potentially debilitating disease that makes patients vulnerable to severe infections and organ damage. Both ReCode Therapeutics, led by co-founder and CEO Dr. Shehnaaz Suliman, and Translate Bio, founded by Dr. Jeannie T. Lee and recently acquired by pharmaceutical giant Sanofi in 2021, have targeted mRNA-based treatments for PCD in…

Advanced neuroimaging techniques that can detect disease-linked proteins in the brain could be the key to quickly and accurately diagnosing and treating post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), a disorder affecting roughly 6 percent of the population. Helmed by co-founder and CEO Dr. Jennifer Perusini, Neurovation Labs is a biotech company that aims to use neuroimaging to diagnose PTSD by targeting a brain protein closely linked to memory formation and trauma. The company’s work builds on Perusini’s graduate research in rats. In her earlier studies, she found that after experiencing traumatic stressors, lab rats develop a trauma-like behavior response and produce more…