Drugs News and Research

RSS

Scientists 'tinker' with HIV drug chemistry hoping to reduce costs

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, founded by former President Bill Clinton, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.K. government, has hired former pharmaceutical company scientists "to tinker with the chemistry used to synthesize a key [HIV] drug, tenofovir" in an effort to reduce "the cost of manufacturing," the Wall Street Journal reports.

13 May 2011

Supreme Court of Canada opens hearings on safe drug injection facility

The Supreme Court of Canada on Thursday began hearing the Canadian government's case against Insite, a Vancouver-based legal injection site where people can obtain clean needles and syringes to inject their own drugs under a nurse's supervision, the Canadian Press reports. Proponents of the program say it "prevents overdose deaths, reduces the spread of HIV and hepatitis, and curbs crime and open drug use".

13 May 2011

Medical Facilities first quarter revenue increases to $51.7 million

Medical Facilities Corporation, today reported its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2011.

13 May 2011

PCR testing for B. burgdorferi bacteria in joint fluid may confirm Lyme arthritis diagnosis

New research shows that polymerase chain reaction testing for Borrelia burgdorferi DNA—the spirochetal bacteria transmitted by deer ticks—in joint fluid may confirm the diagnosis of Lyme arthritis, but is not a reliable indicator for active joint infection in patients whose arthritis persists after antibiotic therapy. Findings of this study are published in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology.

13 May 2011

Researchers uncover unexpected role of estrogen receptors in brain inflammation

Researchers have uncovered an unexpected role for estrogen receptors in the brain in keeping inflammation under control. The findings reported in the May 13 issue of the Cell Press journal Cell may have important implications for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and many other neurodegenerative diseases.

13 May 2011

Tips for fighting drug-resistant superbugs

Superbug CRKP is just the latest in emerging strains of drug-resistant bacteria. While new drugs to combat these stealthy microbes like MRSA and CRKP remain in development what can we do to prevent catching and spreading these dangerous bugs?.

13 May 2011

UCSD scientists discover steroid hormone that inhibits brain inflammation

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered a steroid hormone that inhibits inflammation in the brain. The findings, to be published in the May 13 issue of the journal Cell, have implications for understanding the exaggerated inflammatory responses that are characteristic features of numerous neurodegenerative diseases.

13 May 2011

Rethink praises Ontario's decision to provide breast cancer patients with access to Herceptin

Today, Rethink Breast Cancer (Rethink) applauds the Ontario government's decision to provide breast cancer patients with tumours less than or equal to 1 cm access to the revolutionary drug Herceptin under the new Evidence Building Program.

13 May 2011

Gene manipulation can improve survival rates during sepsis infection

Sepsis is a major killer in hospital intensive care units. Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have found that manipulating a genetic factor that can launch or throttle the body's defenses can improve survival rates during bacterial infection.

13 May 2011

TFAH applauds HHS for new strategic approach to prevent viral hepatitis

The Trust for America's Health applauds the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for unveiling a new strategic approach to dealing with the silent epidemic of viral hepatitis today.

13 May 2011

Early antiretroviral treatment can halt HIV spread in couples

A research study led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has made a major discovery in the effort to halt the spread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

13 May 2011

Scientists discover enzyme that controls K-Ras gene responsible for lung cancer growth

Cancer Research UK scientists have discovered that an enzyme called C-Raf controls a hugely important gene responsible for the development of lung cancer, according to research published in Cancer Discovery.

13 May 2011

Longer looks: Conservatives vs. liberals on Medicare - who's winning?

What you really need to know is that Tuesday was a great day in court for supporters of the Care Act and a very tough one for its opponents. That dynamic could easily change within the next six weeks or so when the 11th Circuit, the 6th Circuit, and the 3rd Circuit also hold their oral arguments on Care Act appeals. Either way, we are one step closer to the end of all of this, and you can bet that the justices were paying attention up the road a bit from Richmond.

13 May 2011

Nearly one third of the miners on a synthetic form of cannabis

New research has revealed that a synthetic form of cannabis is being consumed and has shown up in one in ten West Australian mine workers’ urine samples. The state's ChemCentre provides forensic testing for police and the State Coroner. They have been given the contract on an increasing basis by private companies in mining regions to test their workers for the substance, known as Kronic.

12 May 2011

Researchers help explain why smart drugs are not effective in some cancer patients

Some of the most effective and expensive cancer drugs, dubbed "smart drugs" for their ability to stop tumors by targeting key drivers of cancer cell growth, are not effective in some patients. In two related studies, Yale School of Medicine researchers examined one such driver, the EGF receptor, and found that a decoy receptor might be limiting the amount of drug that gets to the intended target.

12 May 2011

ETI finalizes proprietary progesterone formulations for Traumatic Brain Injury

Encore Therapeutics, Inc. today reported finalizing its proprietary phospholipid nanoemulsion formulation of progesterone.

12 May 2011

Chemical engineer builds working models of human tissues for disease research

Shelly Peyton, a chemical engineer at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is building working models of human bone, breast, liver and artery tissues to see how cells behave when they are affected by a disease such as cancer.

12 May 2011

New clinical data affirms safety profile of PolyMedix's PMX-30063 in treatment of Staph infections

PolyMedix, Inc., an emerging biotechnology company focused on developing new therapeutic drugs to treat life-threatening infectious diseases and acute cardiovascular disorders, presented new clinical and pre-clinical data related to the safety and efficacy of its novel, lead defensin-mimetic antibiotic, PMX-30063.

12 May 2011

New organocatalyst now available for drug development industry

A new "organocatalyst" developed at Oregon State University is now available for commercial use. Produced by an Albany, Ore., pharmaceutical company, it should make new drug development around the world less costly, more efficient and more environmentally friendly.

12 May 2011

CrystalGenomics receives draft CSR for CG400549 Phase I MAD study in Staph infections

CrystalGenomics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company with 3 clinical stage candidates, has announced today that the draft Clinical Study Report from CG400549's Phase I Multiple Ascending Dose Study has just been received.

12 May 2011