Balancing speed, scientific rigour and translation in biologic drug discovery
In biotechnology, speed is important, but progress does not come from moving quickly for its own sake. It comes from asking the right scientific questions, generating reliable evidence and allowing new data to challenge established assumptions.
This balance shapes the work of Dr Yuankai, Vice President of Antibody Discovery and Development at Twain Therapeutics.
In this edition of NSG Bio’s Inside the Lab series, Dr Yuankai shares how the team approaches early-stage drug discovery, what it takes to build an effective research operation and why the right laboratory environment matters to a growing biotechnology company.
Turning biological insight into better medicines
Twain Therapeutics is focused on developing innovative biologic medicines for diseases where significant unmet medical needs remain.
The company’s goal is to translate strong biological insights into differentiated therapeutic approaches with a clear scientific rationale and the potential to create meaningful clinical impact.
Dr Yuankai explains that the team’s motivation comes from years of experience across drug discovery and development. This experience has revealed both the progress achieved by modern medicine and the important gaps that still remain.
The possibility of applying deep scientific expertise to difficult biological problems, and ultimately creating better medicines for patients, continues to drive the team forward.
More than an interesting molecule
“Successful drug discovery requires much more than generating an interesting molecule.”
For Twain Therapeutics, promising science must be considered in the wider context of how it can eventually become a practical medicine.
Its approach connects biology, molecular design, experimental validation and future development considerations from an early stage. This creates an iterative research process in which the team learns from emerging data, tests its assumptions and continually refines its direction.
Inside the laboratory, the team is advancing early research and development activities, generating experimental data, evaluating therapeutic concepts and progressing promising research programmes.
At this stage, meaningful progress means producing reproducible results, deepening scientific understanding and making well-informed decisions about what should happen next.
Balancing speed with scientific rigour
One of Dr Yuankai’s most important lessons has been learning how to balance scientific rigour with the need to move efficiently.
Not every experiment produces the expected answer. The more important question is whether it generates evidence that can meaningfully guide the next decision.
This has reinforced the value of selecting informative experiments, challenging assumptions early and maintaining clear priorities as new data emerge. It also requires strong communication and an adaptable team, particularly in a field where research directions can change quickly.
Among Twain Therapeutics’ proudest achievements is the scientific team and research operation it has built. Together, they can move ideas towards experimentally validated opportunities while maintaining scientific quality, operational efficiency and close collaboration.
Keeping the team focused on science
For a growing biotechnology company, establishing and managing a laboratory can place considerable demands on time, capital and internal resources.
At NSG Bio, Twain Therapeutics has been able to establish and operate its laboratory without building every element of its infrastructure from the ground up.
Access to well-maintained facilities, shared resources and responsive operational support has helped reduce setup time and keep the team’s scientific work moving. The flexibility of the NSG Bio team has also helped Twain Therapeutics address practical laboratory requirements as they arise.
For Dr Yuankai and his team, this means spending more time on science, team development and research progression, and less time managing facilities and routine laboratory operations.
Building from Singapore
Twain Therapeutics also sees Singapore as a strong environment for building a science-led company.
The country brings together scientific talent, research institutions, biotechnology infrastructure and connectivity across the Asia-Pacific region. Its growing biotechnology ecosystem also provides opportunities to recruit talent, develop collaborations and connect with partners internationally.
This combination of capabilities and connections supports the company as it develops its scientific programmes and prepares for future growth.
Twain Therapeutics’ next priority is to continue maturing its research and development programmes towards the next stage of translation and development.
As the company grows, access to experienced scientific and development expertise, high-quality external partners and a strong biotechnology network will remain important.
Dr Yuankai’s perspective captures a fundamental reality of drug discovery: innovation requires curiosity, rigorous experimentation, continuous learning and the discipline to translate promising ideas into medicines that could meaningfully improve patients’ lives.
Learn more about Twain Therapeutics.