Dec. 11, 2023

Ep. 39: Finding Small Molecule Drugs Encoded in DNA with Jason Park

Ep. 39: Finding Small Molecule Drugs Encoded in DNA with Jason Park

In this episode, VibeCast host Ray Dogum speaks with Jason Park, Co-Founder and CEO of Empress Therapeutics, about Finding Small Molecule Drugs Encoded in DNA. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Key Moments:

00:00:00 - Introduction                    

00:01:01 - Jason's Journey into Biotech                    

00:03:14 - Mission of Empress Therapeutics                    

00:03:49 - Small Molecules vs. Biologics                    

00:09:13 - Empress' Approach to Small Molecule Discovery 

00:16:20 -  Company Progression and Fundraising Journey 

00:19:31 -  Leveraging Nature's Chemistry

00:21:58 -  Partnerships and Accessing a Pool of Medicines

00:24:14 - Value Inflection Points and Clinical Trials                    

00:33:16 - The Opportunity of AI in Biotech                    

Guest Bio: Jason Park, PhD, is CEO and co-founder of Empress Therapeutics. He is also an Operating Partner at Flagship Pioneering and was a member of the founding team of Sonata Therapeutics, where he served as COO. Prior to joining Flagship in 2015, Jason was a core member of the Boston Consulting Group’s Health Care and Technology practices, operating out of BCG’s New York, Mumbai, and Paris offices. His projects include multiple large life science M&A opportunities and the design and implementation of a new funding model for a multinational Global Health organization focused on innovative technologies and interventions. Previously. Jason was a director at any early-stage biotech start-up focused on targeted drug delivery as well as the co-founder of an internet advertising firm. Jason earned a Ph.D., M.S., and B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Yale University where his research focused on the use of nanotechnology for immunomodulatory purposes and culminated in the invention of and clinical use of a nanoparticle drug delivery platform. He is the author of multiple patents, book chapters, and over a dozen peer-reviewed papers in journals like Nature and Cell. Guest Links: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-park-8a3216a/ Empress Therapeutics Twitter: https://twitter.com/Empress_Tx Empress Therapeutics Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/empresstx/ Empress Therapeutics Website: https://www.empresstx.com/ About VibeCast VibeCast is our weekly informational podcast and content series exploring the hottest topics in drug development and Web3 with some of the dynamic people that make up the Vibe community. VibeCast is a collection of long-form and short-form video content intended to help our community learn about the current opportunities and challenges in biotech fundraising and community engagement innovation. Guests include biotech founders, regulatory experts, drug development executives, blockchain technologists, web3 community builders, patient community advocates, and many other Vibe Bio community members seeking to accelerate the development of breakthrough treatments. Follow Vibe Bio's Socials: https://twitter.com/VibeBio https://www.linkedin.com/company/vibe-bio/ https://www.instagram.com/vibebiotechnology/ https://www.tiktok.com/@vibebio https://www.facebook.com/VibeBiotechnology/ Disclaimer: VibeCast is intended to be used for educational and entertainment purposes, and no information or opinions shared constitute advice or services. While guests are invited to listen, listeners acknowledge they are not being provided professional advice from the podcast or the guests. The podcast is for private non-commercial use and the statements of our guests reflect their personal views only and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any agency, organization, or company that they work for or are affiliated with.