The Readout Loud

Jonathan Wosen discusses biotech layoffs, while Alexis Borisy and Zach Weinberg talk about their biotech incubator Curie.Bio. The podcast also covers Pfizer's leadership change and a new side effect of the diabetes drug Ozempic.

Guests Brittany Trang and Rachel Cohrs Zhang discuss AI in drug development, Medicare coverage for GLP-1 drugs, H5N1 bird flu outbreak, and proposals for obesity drug coverage in Washington, with insights on the first presidential debate's healthcare topics.

STAT reporter Jason Mast discusses Fauci's memoir 'On Call' and Alnylam's trial data. They analyze biotech market trends for the year. Fauci's interactions with Presidents, concerns about science politicization, and the unique journey to access his book are highlighted.

STAT's Nicholas Florko joins to explain what it means to be a reporter writing about the commercial determinants of health. Hint: Florko's most recent stories focus on weed, vapes, and raw milk. And instead of being chained to a desk, he often drives around to convenience stores and buy bad stuff — all in the name of good journalism. But first, co-hosts Adam Feuerstein and Allison DeAngelis chat about Pfizer's Duchenne gene therapy setback, the likely approval of a new treatment for Alzheimer's disease, and Bob Langer's most recent startup.

STAT colleague Meghana Keshavan dissects Lykos Therapeutics' meeting with FDA. Topics include challenges in FDA approval for psychedelic therapy, Novartis's acquisition of Morphosis, ASCO conference reflections, and FDA advisory panel vote against MDMA for PTSD.

We preview some of the research that will be presented at The American Society of Clinical Oncology conference in Chicago. We also discuss the latest news in the health and life sciences, including a milestone in lung disease R&D and a Duchenne muscular dystrophy confirmatory trial failure.  To read more about Merus' combination therapy, go here; For more on Johnson & Johnson's mixed data, click here; For more on Nippon Shinyaku's Duchenne drug trial failure, go here; To read more on Insmed's bronchiectasis treatment, click here; To sign up for STAT's ASCO newsletter, click here.

STAT's Rachel Cohrs Zhang discusses BIO layoffs and industry changes, while Eric Boodman explores coercion of Black women with sickle cell disease into sterilization. Topics include BioTech's management shake-up, clinical trial diversity consulting, upcoming legislative initiatives, and the importance of informed consent in healthcare.

Casey Ross, AI correspondent and Pulitzer finalist, discusses AI-centered drug discovery with NVIDIA and Isomorphic Labs at STAT's Breakthrough Summit West. Other topics include obesity drug data from Roche, Novartis' acquisition of MorphoSys, and the AI revolutionizing drug discovery.

This week on "The Readout LOUD," STAT senior infectious diseases reporter Helen Branswell walks us through ongoing H5N1 outbreak in the U.S. and issues with monitoring the spread. And in a bit of shameless self-promotion, we’ll talk to our colleagues Bob Herman and Casey Ross about being named Pulitzer finalists in investigative reporting for their reporting on United Healthcare’s use of algorithms in coverage decisions. We'll hear what’s happened since their explosive work was published last year.

The removal of small amounts of brain tissue from desperately ill patients, done as part of a Mount Sinai research project, triggered alarm bells at the Food and Drug Administration and has raised broader questions about the scientific and ethical justification for live-brain research. Journalist and STAT contributor Katherine Eban joins “The Readout LOUD” podcast to discuss the results of a two-year investigation. We also discuss Novartis’ effort to acquire MorphoSys, and the latest news on Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster obesity drugs with Elaine Chen, the newest member of STAT’s biotech reporting team.