Hat tip to b YMB

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kmall
Posts: 753
Joined: Thu Mar 21, 2019 3:57 pm

Re: Hat tip to b YMB

Post by kmall » Fri Dec 09, 2022 5:59 am

"Oligonucleotides are complex and we’ve spent over a decade working out the challenges of manufacturing imetelstat. A recent challenge for manufacturers of oligonucleotides is demand. The COVID-19 pandemic created a sizeable increase in the demand of oligonucleotide therapies such as the mRNA vaccines. Manufacturers had to invest in their facilities to increase capacity and ability to scale. The investments these manufacturers have made have the potential to benefit anyone developing oligonucleotides including Geron." -Dr. John Scarlett - CEO, Geron Corporation

ST Pharma employees are closely watching ASH this year, including:

Yang ji Seo - ST PHARM Marketing & BD / Bio & Oligonucleotide CDMO

This is the first year that we've seen an ST Pharma employee publicly acknowledge Geron's contributions at ASH. -Kmall

biopearl123
Posts: 1665
Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2018 5:13 pm

Re: Hat tip to b YMB

Post by biopearl123 » Fri Dec 09, 2022 7:08 am

Kmall, this is getting exciting. I, in the interest of total transparency, maybe more of a confession, did not know that the m-RNA COVID vaccine was an oligo. Dr. Scarlett’s comments are interesting in that he hints that economies of scale will be realized in manufacturing which could be hidden benefit of COVID if there could be such a thing, translating to lower production costs and increased FDA scrutiny (finding fixable problems early). If I remember correctly, it was your detective work that led us to the understanding that the actual manufacturing of Imetelstat probably takes place in South Korea at ST pharma. That took some digging and intuiting on your part as Geron was pretty opaque about manufacturing. You also highlighted GMP designation and FDA blessings bestowed on this expanded facility. We are fortunate to have this information. I didn’t quite get how we know that Yang ji Seo publicly acknowledged Geron’s contributions at ASH, could you elaborate on that? I can see the oblique reference in the other direction with Dr. Scarlett in a very indirect way acknowledging this high quality production facility. We should have a PR Sunday night or Monday to summarize the ASH presentations. The oral presentations (15 minutes) allow for information to be presented beyond what is in the abstracts. Hopefully that means bone marrow data. Thank you as always for all your contributions to this board. I hope you will have plenty to write about in the coming month. Best Wishes, bp

kmall
Posts: 753
Joined: Thu Mar 21, 2019 3:57 pm

Re: Hat tip to b YMB

Post by kmall » Fri Dec 09, 2022 7:41 am

Actually, it was DDD on the YMB who refreshed the ST Pharma info in September 2021, after expansion plans for their Oligonucleotide facility were made public. I did recall that Janssen was producing Imetelstat in South Korea for the P2 Clinical Trials, but for the life of me couldn't remember the name of their manufacturer. Kudos to him for bringing it to our attention after 3yrs.

As far as Yang ji Seo is concerned:

https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/feed/up ... /reactions

If you look closely, you'll also notice Jeremiah Gibbons on this list........

Jeremiah Gibbons - Manager, US Special Compliance & Asset Protection at Monsanto Company - Bayer Crop Sciences

I find it rather intriguing that a Bayer employee finds his way onto this short list. Not quite sure if it amounts to anything just yet, but his Asset Protection title and Dr. Rizo at Vividion as President and Head of R&D, while retaining a "consultant" position at Geron, just may be giving us a clue as to who a potential partner may be. Still tea leaves at the moment. -Kmall

biopearl123
Posts: 1665
Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2018 5:13 pm

Re: Hat tip to b YMB

Post by biopearl123 » Fri Dec 09, 2022 1:54 pm

You are right it was DDD. Thank you DDD! And thanks for the context and connection to Yang ji Seo.

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