CPHI Milan Speaker Spotlight: The microbiome and investing in future therapies

In the run-up to CPHI Milan, we sit down with some of the experts and thought-leaders speaking at this year’s conference.  

1.    There is a buzz around LODAAT at this year’s CPHI and specifically about your investments in rare disease orphan drugs, biosimilars, and innovative molecules. What’s all the attention about?

I’m glad you asked. LODAAT has always been a quiet leader in the field of US generics, nutraceuticals, and OTC. Our mandate has always been the health and wellness for all humankind and we realised that the only way to really reach this ambitious goal is to think outside the box, so we created a new entity, LIFE SCIENCES ADVISORS or LSA that invests in high value molecules, novel therapies, biosimilars – MABS and ADCs – as well as rare disease and orphan drugs. We now have over 69 molecules in our portfolio. 

Our goal is to work with visionary partners and out-license these molecules to all regions of the world, especially sovereign nations that want to be the leaders in their healthcare infrastructure. LSA is investing up to $500M of our own funds and financing out-license partners. It’s really a visionary approach but we believe that we can make a difference in all therapeutics, especially in oncology, immunology, healthy aging, and of course the microbiome. 

2.    Please could you give a brief overview of the role of the microbiome when addressing people’s health and in the development of medicines?

The gut microbiome has been considered the “second brain” because of its links to many different areas of the body including the brain, skin, even the liver.  Each person has over 100 million bacteria in the gut, the intricacies of the different bacteria are not only complex, but also a nascent area of research. The microbiome has a fascinating ability to influence all areas of health. 

Though there are many unknowns in how bacteria interact within the gut, what we do know for certain is that a healthy community of microbes is essential for human health, and these microbes are fuelled by complex polysaccharides derived primarily from plant fibre. Most populations do not consume enough fibre to feed our gut and when we neglect to provide sufficient fibre to the gut or alter the microbiome with antibiotics and other therapeutics, we increase the likelihood of unwellness such as inflammation, IBD, Crohn’s disease etc. This area of research and development for new therapeutics is a huge market opportunity and LODAAT is at the forefront.

3.    How could the microbiome be used when developing future therapies, such as orphan drugs for rare diseases?

An unhealthy microbiome will show symptoms that are common in many orphan and rare diseases, and new future therapies can be used alongside ingredients and dietary supplements. According to recent research, at least 5–10% of rare diseases are linked to an unhealthy gut microbiome. TYK2 inhibitors are an example of this kind of innovative approach to handling autoimmune disease. LODAAT’s investment arm is proud of our research and ongoing investments in this arena.

You have to remember that in the microbiome, what is healthy for a 20-year old, may not be healthy for an 80-year old. When we consider health, we often want to “revert” our bodies to our younger selves… the gut microbiome is one area where younger does not equal healthier! In fact, having a gut that stays the same, i.e. stays the way it was when we were young, is actually an indication of poor health. Future therapies that want to address longevity and creating longer healthier lives need to address this point.

4.    How is this field being developed, how are companies shifting their focus to more innovative therapies? 

One shift is the that the healthcare and pharmaceutical community is trending towards holistic medicine, and this includes tackling inflammation from multiple angles. The is a shift towards new innovations and therapies in the field of immunology in disease such as lupus, psoriatic arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. Another example is in oncology. When you have a healthy microbiome, immunotherapies have been shown to be more effective in treating different cancers and providing patients with a stronger likelihood of recovery.  

5.    The investment landscape has been changing, influenced by changes in legislation, what impact could this have on the development of more niche therapies?

You have to remember that new legislation is making it easier to get regulatory approvals, which is great, however, the capital needs are still daunting. Twhere LSA can come in. What LSA provides is a combination of a robust and full range of molecules and the capital to finance our partners. This gives our partners the ability to derisk by using our capital while getting the high value IP and increasing their revenue and net profits.  

6.    What are investors looking for now when it comes to future therapies? 

One area we are looking at is personalised medicine and innovative IP such as ADCs, CAR T-cell and gene therapies. Personalised medicine especially has been a talking point for years, but now we are at a stage where individual therapies can be made for each person, or at least a subset of a defined group. How great it would be for a medicine to be tailored to your specific body rhythm, your blood flow, your cell count? This can also be directly related to an individual’s microbiota as each person’s microbiome is inherently unique.  

7.    Can you talk more about your investment strategy?

The LODAAT team is really excited about our rich product portfolio of innovation, biosimilars, rare disease, and orphan drugs. LIFE SCIENCES ADVISORS was created to invest in cutting-edge oncology and immunology including TYK2 inhibitors. Our clinical trial funding for novels is moving full speed ahead with 10 pipeline drugs and with over 60 biosimilars our IP portfolio is robust. Pharma is at a golden age- one where health and wellness will reach all humankind.  

8.    How can events like CPHI help companies to determine which avenues they want to pursue, and how best to do this? 

CPHI is a fantastic platform bringing all parts of the pharma ecosystem together, showcasing new processes as well as tried and true commercial ideas. LODAAT is at the cutting-edge of innovation bringing all the ideas showcased at CPHI together: generics, nutraceuticals, biosimilars, and novel RX. Here at CPHI we constantly meet new and existing partners who want to expand their portfolio and want to help their populations and nations build out a really state-of-the-art pharmaceutical infrastructure.  

9.    What are you most looking forward to at CPHI Milan this year? 

We are really excited for CPHI this year because of the enthusiasm around our LSA model, our meetings with new and existing partners, and the global network that shares the same excitement and forward vision to improve and change the pharma landscape. LSA’s mandate is to take the next bold step and to go beyond. With a holistic approach, personalised medicine and high value molecules, combined with our private credit platform, we know we are going to make this CPHI Milan a rousing success.  

CPHI Milan takes place October 8-10 at the historic Fiera Milano and there's still time to register! Click here to find out more.