How to Unblock the Drug Development Pipeline

24th June 2025
Posted by: Coco Goto-Colverson
Category: Bioinformatics

Bioinformatic analysis plays a pivotal role in the drug development pipeline. In today’s highly competitive pharmaceutical and biopharma landscape, speed and efficiency are vital to succeed in the race to deliver new therapies. This article will demonstrate how incorporating bioinformatics into drug development pipelines boosts their speed and efficiency, by transforming how decisions are made at every stage of development.

What is Bioinformatics?

Put simply, bioinformatics is the science of analysing, interpreting and integrating biological data using a mix of computing science, biological knowledge, and statistical research methods. Moreover, it is a key component in fields such as genetics and molecular biology, where researchers work with vast datasets to uncover insights about gene function, disease mechanisms, and therapeutic targets. However, the complexity of these datasets often leads to blockages in the drug development pipeline, as the sheer volume and intricacy of the data delays analysis and decision-making.

Key Applications of Bioinformatics in Drug Development

Understanding how genes function – Bioinformatics helps researchers explore gene expression, regulation, and interaction, shedding light on the biological mechanisms behind health and disease.
Identifying disease-causing mutations – Advanced genomic analysis allows for the detection of genetic variations linked to specific conditions, supporting early diagnosis and targeted intervention.
Discovering novel drug targets – By analysing biological pathways and molecular interactions, bioinformatics pinpoints potential targets for therapeutic intervention.
Personalising treatment strategies – Patient-specific data can be used to tailor medicines, improving treatment outcomes and reducing adverse effects.
Speed up research through automating data analysis – Bioinformatics tools can process and interpret vast datasets quickly, dramatically speeding up discovery and reducing manual workloads.

The Drug Development Pipeline Problem

Despite recent technological and medical advances, significant challenges remain. A major challenge is the failure rate in drug development. Approximately 70% of drugs fail Phase 2 clinical trials and only 4% of drugs reach the market. So, while the drug development industry offers high rewards for successful drugs, drug development is high-risk and extremely costly (the development process, including failures, can cost companies billions). It is therefore unsurprising that drug development is fiercely competitive, making a quick and efficient drug development pipeline vital for success.

This is where Fios Genomics can assist. Our team of specialised bioinformaticians provides support and insights from the preclinical stage of drug development through to late stage clinical trials. For example, in the preclinical stage our data mining service can support target identification, while our Target Triage service helps you make data-driven decisions about which targets to proceed with and which to cease investment in. These are just two of our services that can make your drug development pipeline quicker and more successful, saving you time while helping you avoid costly clinical trial failures.

In the drug development process, making informed decisions early on can significantly impact the success rate of your compounds. However, it can be difficult pinpointing the data insights to base decisions on, due to the massive amounts of data (of various types) the drug development pipeline produces.

Key Challenges

In fact, even well-resourced R&D teams often face significant challenges uncovering data insights, including:

Data volumes exceeding in-house computational resources
Limited in-house bioinformatics expertise
Outdated or incompatible tools and platforms
Difficulty integrating different data types for analysis
Difficulty translating complex data into strategic decisions

These challenges can lead to further issues, such as:

Overall delays across the drug development pipeline
Missed opportunities to identify key drug targets or biomarkers
Increased risk of costly clinical trial failures

However, by working with the expert bioinformaticians at Fios Genomics, you can address all of these challenges and optimise your drug development pipeline to operate more efficiently and effectively.

How Fios Genomics Can Help Unblock the Pipeline

Our large, expert team of bioinformaticians, equipped with the latest bioinformatics tools, can conduct high-quality, custom data analyses tailored to the specific needs of your research. Our bioinformaticians have backgrounds in biology and expertise across different fields from genetics to virology. This means they understand the data they are analysing and can recognise the subtleties within it that are meaningful to your research. This allows us to produce robust analysis reports full of insights uncovered specifically to drive your research to the next stage, so you can move swiftly along the drug development pipeline.

These data analysis reports are also interactive, allowing you to explore our data visualisations for a deeper understanding of the valuable insights uncovered. Additionally, all data visualisations can be downloaded as PNGs or PDFs for easy inclusion in presentations or posters.

What You Can Expect When Working with Fios Genomics

When you partner with Fios Genomics, you gain more than just data analysis—you gain a team dedicated to supporting your research every step of the way. Here’s what we guarantee:

Dedicated Bioinformatician

A dedicated bioinformatician with expertise relevant to you research will be assigned to your analysis project. Backed by an experienced team, they will curate your data, apply the most appropriate statistical approaches, and provide clear biological interpretation of the results.

Interactive Data Analysis Report

You’ll receive a fully searchable, interactive data analysis report featuring high-quality (and downloadable) visualisations. Each report is internally peer-reviewed and includes detailed analysis methods and results—particularly useful if you plan to publish your findings.

Post-Report Follow-Up

After your report is delivered, we’ll arrange a review call with your dedicated bioinformatician. This gives you the opportunity to ask questions, clarify findings, and gain deeper insight into the data.

Dedicated Project Manager

Throughout the entire project, your dedicated Project Manager will ensure everything runs smoothly. They act as your single point of contact, streamlining communication and coordination.

Large-Capacity Computing

Finally, when you work with Fios Genomics, you also benefit from our high-capacity computing infrastructure and secure data storage. We keep all raw data, processed outputs, and reports safe and accessible, so you never lose sight of your project’s progress.

Benefits of Outsourcing to Fios Genomics

Reduced pressure and stress on in-house teams
Fresh expert perspective and cutting-edge tools brought to each project
Robust quality control
Reproducible results (detailed analysis methods are included in our reports)
A faster, more efficient and more economical drug development pipeline

So, are you ready to speed up your drug development pipeline? Partner with Fios Genomics to turn omics complexity into clarity – without the bottleneck. Gain a strategic ally in the race to bring safe, effective therapies to the market. From early discovery to late-stage trials, Fios Genomics offers a comprehensive range of bioinformatics services supporting a wide array of research areas across the drug development pipeline. Contact us today using the form below. Our bioinformatics specialists will be happy to discuss your project and detail how we can help.

Author: Coco Goto-Colverson, Marketing Intern, Fios Genomics
Reviewed by Fios Genomics bioinformatics experts to ensure accuracy