Power to the Patients

Isn’t it crazy to think that half of FDA-approved small molecule drugs have roots in nature? But José Trevejo, Chief Medical Officer at Enveda, says the opportunity now is not to romanticize that history, but to make it usable at modern speed. In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li speaks with José about AI-assisted drug discovery, mass spectrometry, ENV-294 and why the real bottleneck in biotech may no longer be finding molecules. It may be scaling the trials to test them. By combining ancient healing stories with high-throughput technology, researchers now identify these candidates in hours rather than years. This clinical acceleration is rewriting the early-stage discovery playbook.

Platinum chemotherapy is the backbone of ovarian cancer treatment. But for far too many patients, it eventually stops working. In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with Thomas Zindrick, CEO and President of Genelux Corporation, to discuss Olvi-Vec, platinum resensitization, and why oncolytic virus therapy could give clinicians a new way to work with existing cancer treatments. Platinum resistance is one of the hardest questions to solve in clinical oncology, but some answers are beginning to emerge.

Most people still think gout is a lifestyle condition caused primarily by diet. But this belief is a big reason patients have been underserved for decades. In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with James Mackay, CEO and co-founder of Crystalys Therapeutics, to explore what gout patients really need. They unpack what went wrong with Zurampic, why Dotinurad’s profile gives Crystalys Therapeutics a reason to come back to gout and how better trial design could finally move the field beyond old assumptions. For decades, gout has often been framed as a disease caused by lifestyle choices. This episode reframes the conversation entirely.

Learn about clinical trial design for small molecule therapies using biomarkers in Alzheimer's research and AI in drug development. Brandon Li talks with Sacha Schermerhorn, Founder and CEO of Babylon Biosciences. They discuss why the industry needs to rethink disease pathology, how to recruit elite talent out of retirement, and the role of fine-tuned AI models in predicting clinical outcomes for patients.

Dr. Aaron Koenig, Chief Medical Officer at Delix Therapeutics, sheds light on a new class of medicines designed to promote neuroplasticity without the hallucinogenic effects associated with psychedelics. On this episode of Power to the Patients, Koenig explains to host Brandon Li how neuroplasticogens could provide scalable treatments for depression and other serious brain disorders, why separating plasticity from psychedelic experiences matters for clinical development, and how emerging biomarkers such as qEEG may help measure brain changes in patients. The conversation spans scientific rationale, clinical challenges, and long term potential of plasticity-based therapeutics in psychiatry and neurology.

Postpartum depression treatment advances with psychedelic therapy. Greg Mayes of Reunion Neuroscience discusses luvesilocin drug development. This episode explores how shorter-acting psilocybin analogs offer new hope for mothers. Greg highlights the success of the RECONNECT study and the path to FDA breakthrough designation.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, host Brandon Li sits down with Ken Kramer, PhD, Vice President and Head of Neuropsychiatry Medical Affairs at Bristol Myers Squibb, to explore why psychiatry has lagged behind other therapeutic areas and what’s finally changing. Kramer explains how decades of reliance on dopamine-based antipsychotics shaped treatment, and why new mechanisms like muscarinic agonism are opening the door to safer, more effective options for patients with schizophrenia.

Explore how variant functionalization is driving the future of mechanism-driven medicines as host Brandon interviews Jason Coloma, CEO of Maze Therapeutics, on Power to the Patients. Jason explains why most gene-disease associations fail to become therapies, how APOL1-mediated kidney disease reveals the power of precision nephrology, and what it actually takes to build an integrated genetics-to-drug-discovery platform.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, host Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Ken Sharlin, neurologist, researcher, and clinical trial investigator, to explore how precision medicine, functional neurology, and emerging technologies are redefining what’s possible in neurodegenerative disease care. Dr. Sharlin challenges the traditional disease-centered model and shares why restoring biological balance - rather than simply managing symptoms, may unlock new pathways for prevention, reversal, and personalized treatment in conditions like MS, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, host Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Jacob Jacobsen, neuroscientist and CEO of Evecxia Therapeutics, to challenge some of psychiatry’s most deeply held assumptions. Dr. Seld explains why clinical novelty, not mechanistic novelty, is what truly matters to patients, and how amplifying serotonin synthesis may offer a safer, more scalable path forward for treating depression and OCD.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, host Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Lara Shirikjian, Medical Director at CenExel, to explore why operational excellence, not just innovation, drives progress in psychiatric drug development. Drawing on more than two decades of experience in schizophrenia and CNS research, Dr. Shirikjian explains how protocol mastery, direct sponsor communication, and community trust are essential to running high-performing research sites and advancing meaningful psychiatric treatments.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li and Sonia Prashar, Founder and CEO of AIM Trials, sit down to discuss how hybrid and decentralized clinical trial models are reshaping mental health research. Sonia shares how her personal experience with postpartum depression inspired a mission to reduce patient burden, expand access, and improve data quality, while challenging stigma and outdated research assumptions along the way.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Craig Erickson, Research Director and Research Endowed Professor at Cincinnati Children’s and Chief Medical Advisor at Spinogenix, to explore how synaptic restoration is revolutionizing treatment for Fragile X, autism, ALS, Alzheimer's, and schizophrenia. From his decades of clinical experience and pioneering work at Spinogenix, Dr. Erickson shares the science behind restoring brain connectivity, the bold early results that surprised even experts, and why this approach could transform outcomes for patients with devastating neurological disorders.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Laxminarayan Bhat, Founder and CEO of Reviva Pharmaceuticals, to explore groundbreaking developments in schizophrenia treatment. Dr. Bhat shares insights on his company's innovative drug that shows promising results with fewer side effects and better patient adherence than existing treatments. Discover how their unique approach to targeting serotonin-dopamine signaling, combined with reduced off-target effects, could transform the lives of millions living with schizophrenia. Learn about the challenges and triumphs of developing psychiatric medications, the role of biomarkers in treatment, and the future of precision psychiatry.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Gabriel Vargas, Chief Medical Officer at CuraSen Therapeutics, to explore how targeting the adrenergic system could offer both symptomatic relief and disease-modifying potential for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and depression. From his two decades developing breakthrough therapies in neurology and psychiatry, including the migraine treatment Erenumab, Dr. Vargas breaks down translational medicine, challenges the amyloid hypothesis, and reveals why shorter clinical trials may be missing the bigger picture.

What if inflammation was the key to unlocking treatments for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Long COVID? In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with Cuong Do, CEO of BioVie, to explore the fascinating intersection of these seemingly unrelated conditions. From diving into medical research at the age of 14 to leading groundbreaking clinical trials, Cuong shares invaluable insights on biotech innovation, trial design, and navigating today's challenging funding landscape. Tune in to discover how a single molecule's unique ability to cross the blood-brain barrier could potentially transform treatment for millions of patients.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li sits down with Dr. Chris Witowski, CEO and Co-Founder of Psilera, to explore the fascinating intersection of psychedelics and neurodegeneration. Discover how non-hallucinogenic compounds could revolutionize treatments for conditions like frontotemporal dementia, why traditional psychedelics may have overlooked neurodegenerative applications, and the future of neuroplasticity-based therapies. From biomarker development to innovative drug delivery systems, this conversation offers deep insights into an emerging frontier in neuroscience that could transform patient care beyond traditional psychiatric applications.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li and Dr. Palumbo, Chief Medical Officer at BioVie Pharma, explore the evolving landscape of neuroscience research, the critical differences between big pharma and biotech approaches, and promising new pathways for treating conditions like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Whether you're a researcher, clinician, or industry professional, this conversation offers a fascinating look at how inflammation-focused treatments and systems biology could revolutionize neurological disease treatment.

What if you could learn the secrets behind one of psychiatry's most significant breakthroughs in decades? In this episode of Power to the Patients, host Brandon Li sits down with Steve Brannan, Chief Medical Officer of Karuna Therapeutics, to explore the art of clinical trial excellence, the future of precision psychiatry, and the untold story behind developing the first new-mechanism schizophrenia drug in decades. Whether you're a researcher, clinician, or industry professional, this conversation reveals invaluable insights about trial methodology, site relationships, and the delicate balance between speed and quality in drug development. Tune in to discover why clinical operations excellence might be the most underappreciated factor in successful psychiatric drug development.

In this episode of Power to the Patients, Brandon Li speaks with Dr. Anantha Shekhar, Senior Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences and Dean of the School of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Shekhar shares how his early experiences with a family member’s schizophrenia inspired a lifelong mission to bridge neuroscience, psychiatry, and translational research. They explore how psychiatry and neurology are rapidly converging, why the future of mental health treatment lies in understanding brain circuits and plasticity, and what AI, precision medicine, and synthetic biology might mean for the next generation of therapies. Dr. Shekhar also reflects on his pioneering work developing xanomeline—the first novel mechanism of action for schizophrenia in over 70 years—and offers hard-won lessons on trial design, translational gaps, and maintaining scientific rigor in a complex field. A fascinating conversation on the science—and the humanity—behind reshaping how we understand and treat the brain.