This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” is with Goutham Narla, chief scientific officer for WARF Therapeutics and founder of Rappta Therapeutics.
This program of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation is focused on developing and ultimately commercializing new medicines based on UW-Madison research.
“That’s really meant to take a very exciting biological target, and to develop a drug, go through all the pre-clinical studies and then partner that with industry or venture in order to then clinically develop it,” Narla said.
He joined WARF in April, taking over for former WARF Therapeutics leader Jon Young. Narla’s background as a physician-scientist includes his work as a professor at the University of Michigan, and as an entrepreneur advancing new ways to treat cancer.
“My role here is to very carefully and thoroughly credential targets, meaning they’re biologically appropriate to drug, and then work with our team … to develop the best modality to target it,” Narla said. “So is it an inhibitor we want … is it an activator, is it a large-molecule antibody, is it a small-molecule drug, and leverage the contract research organizations that we work with.”
The discussion explores the technical process of identifying promising therapy targets, as well as the hurdles these therapeutic prospects must clear to go to market.
Meanwhile, Narla highlights his work with drug development firm Rappta Therapeutics. The business was ultimately acquired by New Jersey-based pharmaceutical company Merck, which will be developing its treatment for patients with certain forms of endometrial cancer and lung cancer.
Narla also emphasizes the concrete impact on patients from WARF’s drug development efforts.
“That’s where we feel our value-add is, take the amazing discoveries from campus, take expertise that we have at WARF plus externally, and leverage that at those targets that were discovered on campus to then translate them to drugs that will go into patients suffering from disease,” he said.
Listen to the podcast below, sponsored by UW-Madison:
