Day One

• Defining core investment checklists used by generalist biotech VCs to assess microbiome opportunities, enabling alignment of narratives with decision drivers
• Diagnosing causes of investor skepticism following early company failures to reposition data packages, risk profiles, and timelines for renewed confidence
• Attracting non-specialist venture investors by translating complex biology into clear value propositions and commercial milestones to expand the capital pool

• Addressing fermentation, stabilization and scale-up challenges for non-traditional bacterial taxa to ensure consistent large-scale therapeutic manufacturing
• Designing processes for multi-strain consortia with robust quality control frameworks to manage complexity, variability and production costs effectively
• Implementing early manufacturing strategies aligned with clinical development to avoid delays and ensure readiness for late-stage trials

As the microbiome community comes together, this dedicated networking session gives you the chance to reconnect with peers and build valuable new relationships. Through structured 3-minute introductions, you will meet fellow attendees across clinical, CMC, and commercial teams driving microbiome programs forward.

• Presenting recent Seres clinical trial insights demonstrating successful translation into previously inaccessible biology and disease targets unlocked by microbiome therapeutics
• Leveraging high-quality multi-omic clinical datasets and reverse translational approaches to develop novel LBP designs and microbiome-based biomarkers
• Applying clinical learnings to support early phase proof-of-concept success and build compelling evidence packages for potential collaborator engagement

• Examining the tension between marketing-driven claims and robust clinical evidence to define what kind of science-led company you want to be in the microbiome ecosystem
• Leveraging proprietary R&D and clinical data as long-term competitive differentiators to stand out as the microbiome space becomes increasingly crowded with marketing-focused competitors
• Integrating microbiome products alongside conventional healthcare approaches to transition from natural health consumers toward evidence-based recommendations by mainstream healthcare providers

• Presenting clinical results from Salspera’s microbiome therapeutic program to counter pharma skepticism and demonstrate evidence-based proof of concept in targeted disease indications
• Examining strategic business development decisions including therapeutic area prioritization and partnership models to share learnings on building commercially viable microbiome programs
• Leveraging clinical success to identify and connect with potential strategic partners, investors, and industry players to accelerate Salspera’s next phase of development

Pharma skepticism towards microbiome therapeutics, driven by past clinical failures and difficulty distinguishing robust science, has delayed partnership engagement until Phase II data. This workshop outlines how to package mechanistic insight and early clinical evidence to meet pharma expectations and unlock earlier, higher-quality partnering conversations.

Workshop highlights:

• Structuring differentiated mechanism-of-action narratives using immune, metabolic, and microbial pathways to position programs in language that resonates with pharma decision-makers.
• Aligning early clinical study design with pharma-preferred endpoints and indications to generate signals that support future regulatory and commercial success
• Positioning Phase I, translational, and biomarker datasets strategically to maintain engagement and credibility despite limited late-stage outcome data availability
• Demonstrating scientific validation across heterogeneous microbiome approaches to clearly separate high-quality programs from lower-confidence competitors in crowded pipelines

Explore cutting-edge microbiome research and program insights from biopharma leaders, scientists, and innovators in this interactive poster session focused on advancing LBPs, FMTs, and translational progress.

• Establishing clear pathways to regulatory approval through comparisons to existing products and demonstrated improvements in efficacy and safety to satisfy investor due diligence
• Addressing unmet therapeutic needs while showing likelihood of success to build investor confidence in achieving viable returns on capital deployed
• Communicating manufacturing scalability and cost of goods considerations for complex live bacterial production systems to address investor concerns about production feasibility

• Presenting early clinical data from STARFISH UC trials to validate safety, efficacy signals, and differentiation versus FMT and single-strain therapies
• Demonstrating mechanism of action of rationally designed microbial consortia to drive targeted anti-inflammatory pathways and improve engraftment consistency
• Leveraging translational biomarkers and patient stratification strategies to optimize responder identification and enhance clinical trial design success rates

• Presenting clinical results from Metagen’s phase one two IBD program to demonstrate how Japanese donor microbiota composition drives therapeutic efficacy in ulcerative colitis
• Analyzing gut microbiota dynamics before and after FMT to identify essential species driving microbiome modification and inform more targeted therapeutic delivery strategies
• Applying patient-donor matching strategies and microbiome analytical insights to address heterogeneity challenges and support clinical translation across inflammatory bowel disease and oncology indications