Eliminating Pathogenic Cells to Treat Disease (Adam Freund & Remi Laberge, Arda Therapeutics)

Adam Freund (CEO) and Remi Laberge (CTO) are the founders of Arda Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing novel therapies that selectively eliminate harmful cell populations driving chronic diseases. In this episode, they discuss their innovative approach to treating conditions like idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis by identifying and removing specific cell types that cause tissue damage, rather than trying to modify cellular behavior through traditional drug approaches.

The Finer Details:

• The concept of pathogenic cells as drivers of chronic disease
• How single-cell RNA sequencing enables precise identification of harmful cell populations
• Arda's approach to developing targeted antibody therapeutics
• Advantages of cell elimination versus pathway modification
• The potential for intermittent dosing to improve patient quality of life
• Future applications in aging and age-related diseases

Quotes: 

"Cells make up tissues. Tissues make up organisms... If you have the right cell at the right place, everything looks good. If you have the wrong cell at the wrong place, doing the wrong thing, the tissue will decay."

"We position our strategy as an alternative to traditional pathway targeting... changing cell behavior by blocking a single node could be quite challenging."

"This is game changer for the patient experience. If we're successful, our drug will be administered once a quarter, once every six months. But during that time, this patient feels like he is not a patient. He doesn't take a drug, he's not under treatment, and doesn't have the side effect of taking those drugs."

"We think that cell depletion is a broadly applicable strategy across many chronic diseases, including potentially aging itself one day."

"In 10 years from now... we will know precisely which cells to eliminate. Now, will we be allowed to do it in an otherwise healthy patient? That's a different type of question."