Having sold their successful topical dermatology program, Fresh Tracks wanted to pivot their business into autoimmune disease, meaning a complete rebrand from Brickell Bio and rebuilding their pipeline from scratch with limited financial resources.
With no assets in autoimmune diseases, Fresh Tracks wanted to identify first-in-class molecules, select the right indications, build preclinical models, and map out a full clinical development path, and they needed to do it quickly.
“Our team was tied up running Phase III on our lead asset, so we didn’t have the internal bandwidth to build our new pipeline at the speed we needed. We were looking for someone who could bring the same expertise as an in-house scientific team and really hit the ground running.”
Andy Sklawer, President and CEO of Fresh Tracks
Fresh Tracks came to Scitaris through a direct referral from a trusted industry peer who had been impressed by Scitaris’ work on their previous acquisition.
“Another company touted Scitaris as instrumental to the success of their recent acquisition. It was a glowing recommendation.”
Andy Sklawer, President and CEO of Fresh Tracks
The team was equally impressed after meeting Scitaris directly, quickly recognizing the fit between what Scitaris could offer and what the engagement demanded. As Andy Sklawer, president and CEO of Fresh Tracks, put it: “Seeing how Scitaris approached their work, the process, the depth of their capabilities, the way they iterate—they would have had to try really hard for us not to choose them.”
“They were geniuses. Scitaris had a level of scientific expertise you don’t come across often in this industry; we felt they had the skillset to act as our internal VC arm, which is really what we needed for this to work.”
Aron Aizenstat, Vice President of Development and Operations at Fresh Tracks
Given Fresh Tracks’ requirements, Scitaris provided a combined service engagement spanning asset search and evaluation, preclinical and clinical development strategy, and investor communication.
Scitaris conducted a systematic search for novel molecules targeting autoimmune diseases, using its AI-powered analytics platform to fine-tune search criteria (including biological rationale, competitive landscape, development feasibility, and commercial potential) to Fresh Tracks’ scientific and strategic priorities.
After kicking off with an executive alignment meeting to ensure the search was built around exactly what Fresh Tracks needed, Scitaris drew on their proprietary database of more than 100,000 new molecular entities to narrow down the field to the strongest candidates.
Scitaris held weekly asset review calls, fielded additional discussions when needed to keep things on track, and sought continuous feedback from Fresh Tracks.
“It wasn’t a case of handing over a brief and waiting for a report. It was regular meetings, ad hoc calls, and constant iteration. It was as close to having an internal team as you can get with an external partner.”
Aron Aizenstat, Vice President of Development and Operations at Fresh Tracks
Recommendations were delivered in data-heavy presentations based on extensive evidence collected from diverse, trusted sources. These were summarized in one clear slide that outlined key risks and opportunities and could be digested at a glance. As described by Andy Sklawer:
“Three years on and I still remember their slides vividly. They’d have these massive, ultra-detailed decks with every recommendation grounded in pages of hard data, and one summary page that made everything completely clear.”
After executing the recommended in-licensing deals, Fresh Tracks continued the partnership with Scitaris into the next stage, given how deeply embedded Scitaris already was in the science and strategic direction of the acquired programs.
On the preclinical side, Scitaris used its systematic search process to identify and prioritize indications, screening candidates against target biology and narrowing to a shortlist through a deep, structured analysis of scientific rationale and development feasibility. Once finalized, Scitaris defined the preclinical development strategy, including appropriate models and study design.
Moving to the clinic, Scitaris designed a first-in-human study for the lead program that combined both healthy volunteers and patients, structured to produce a patient readout within a timeframe that would resonate with the market and investors.
The Scitaris team also built out Fresh Tracks’ Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), running a fast, targeted search to identify academic candidates based on scientific background and fit for an industry-driven program. Beyond the SAB, Scitaris identified and introduced a KOL for the lead asset’s target, who contributed to preclinical research and later drove the company’s R&D Day presentation.
Due to Scitaris’ deep involvement and knowledge of the program, Fresh Tracks brought on a member of the Scitaris team as VP of Translational Medicine, and they became instrumental in shaping the narrative and positioning of the assets.
“Scitaris knew our data and our models better than almost anyone on our team. They would join external BD calls, talk to potential partners and investors, and communicate the science in a way that got everybody on board.”
Andy Sklawer, President and CEO of Fresh Tracks
Throughout the engagement, Scitaris maintained constant, transparent communication with the Fresh Tracks team, making sure the ‘why’ behind every recommendation was fully expounded. Aron Aizenstat, vice president of development and operations at Fresh Tracks, noted:
“It can be like pulling teeth to get consultants to show how they arrived at recommendations. If anything, Scitaris overshared, giving us complete visibility into everything behind their reasoning.”
“They were always available; I don’t think they ever took more than 30 minutes to respond. It’s hard to find that level of trust in an employee, let alone a consultant.”
Aron Aizenstat, Vice President of Development and Operations at Fresh Tracks
The visibility, availability, and reassurance that everything was being handled with complete diligence and competence by Scitaris gave the Fresh Tracks leadership team everything they needed to make critical decisions quickly and confidently. Andy Sklawer noted:
“Knowing we had a highly competent, trustworthy team looking at everything with a fine-tooth comb freed us up to focus on running the business.”
2 years
from a blank slate to a whole new pipeline
2
new asset classes attracting interest from big pharma
Working with Scitaris, within two years, Fresh Tracks:
“As a direct result of the work with Scitaris, within two years we had two new asset classes that both generated interest from big pharma.”
Andy Sklawer, President and CEO of Fresh Tracks
“We effectively reinvented the whole company, and Scitaris was absolutely instrumental in that.”
Aron Aizenstat, Vice President of Development and Operations at Fresh Tracks
Scitaris’ scientific rigor, transparency, and meticulous, data-driven processes were pivotal to Fresh Tracks’ success, allowing them to move decisively to rebuild their pipeline and successfully reinvent the company in a short period of time.
“If I was starting a biotech company, without a doubt, they would be one of the first calls I’d make.”
Aron Aizenstat, Vice President of Development and Operations at Fresh Tracks
Facing a high-stakes decision in your drug development strategy? Let us help you get it right.
Timelines depend on the starting point, but Fresh Tracks went from no autoimmune assets to two novel asset classes within two years of partnering with Scitaris. This encompassed the in-licensing of 2 assets with first-in-class potential, a full indication strategy, preclinical and clinical development roadmaps, and investor communications that attracted big pharma interest.
Scitaris runs a systematic, AI-assisted asset search and evaluation across a proprietary database of 100,000+ novel molecular entities, screening candidates against biological rationale, competitive landscape, development feasibility, and commercial potential as part of its broader portfolio management work. The process narrows a broad universe of options down to a shortlist grounded in evidence, then subjects those candidates to deep scientific review before any recommendation is made.
Fresh Tracks described working with Scitaris as less like an external consultancy and more like having an in-house team: Scitaris took ownership of decisions, remained available across time zones, and operated with full transparency, sharing the data and reasoning behind every recommendation rather than working as a black box. Due to Scitaris’ in-depth knowledge of the programs’ science and data, Fresh Tracks brought a member of the Scitaris team on as VP of Translational Medicine, where they went on to help shape the narrative and positioning of the company’s assets.
Scitaris runs a systematic indication search as part of its preclinical R&D strategy work: screening candidate indications against the asset’s target biology, then narrowing to a shortlist through structured evaluation of scientific rationale and development feasibility, followed by deeper analysis on the indications that pass. The result is a ranked, evidence-backed set of indication options built to support confident board and investor conversations. As a final step, a development strategy is outlined to fit the client organization’s financial and timeline constraints.
As part of its clinical development strategy work, Scitaris designed a first-in-human study for Fresh Tracks’ lead program that combined both healthy volunteers and patients. This was structured specifically to produce a patient readout within a timeframe that would resonate with the market and investors, balancing scientific rigor with the commercial reality of a small biotech needing timely proof points.
