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AbbVie reports results from venetoclax Phase 2 clinical trial in AML at ASH 2014

AbbVie presented during an oral presentation at the American Society of Hematology's 56th Annual Meeting new results from a Phase 2 study of investigational compound venetoclax (ABT-199/GDC-0199) in patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). AML is an aggressive and deadly type of blood cancer, in which the body produces too many of a specific type of white blood cell (myeloblast), which can crowd out healthy blood cells.

8 Dec 2014

Novel targeted therapies and treatment combinations for leukemia

Recognizing that leukemia cannot be conquered with a "one-size-fits-all" approach, researchers are pursuing novel targeted therapies and combinations of existing treatment regimens with new agents for patient populations with historically poor prognoses, according to data presented today during the 56th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

7 Dec 2014

Breakthrough therapy shows promise in resistant forms of Hodgkin lymphoma

A therapy that liberates the immune system to attack cancer cells drove Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) into complete or partial remission in fully 87 percent of patients with resistant forms of the disease who participated in an early-phase clinical trial, investigators at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and partnering institutions report in a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine and simultaneously presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology in San Francisco.

7 Dec 2014

Emerging strategies to boost healthy RBCs may reduce burden of anemia linked to blood disorders

Emerging treatment approaches may reduce the burden of anemia associated with blood disorders by enhancing production of healthy red blood cells, according to data presented today at the 56th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

7 Dec 2014

OIST Graduate University joins The Brain/MINDS Project in Japan

Governments the world over are now focusing their efforts in research towards mapping the brain to understand its secrets. America has The BRAIN Initiative and Europe, The Human Brain Project. Japan's counterpart is called The Brain/MINDS Project which aims to map the brain at various scales of detail and function over the next ten years. The maps that result from this research would subsequently be used for the development of neurotechnologies and for disease studies. The Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University has become one of 17 institutions in Japan to be awarded a grant by the government to conduct this research.

7 Dec 2014

Nivolumab drug highly effective for Hodgkin's lymphoma

A phase I clinical trial of nivolumab found that the immune-boosting drug is a highly effective therapy for Hodgkin's lymphoma. The multi-institution study, led by Mayo Clinic, indicated that the drug was safe and led to an 87 percent response rate in patients who had failed on other treatments.

7 Dec 2014

Study shows link between cardiac abnormalities, sudden unexpected death in epilepsy

Groundbreaking findings describing the link between cardiac abnormalities and sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) will be presented at the American Epilepsy Society's Annual Meeting in December.

7 Dec 2014

Study provides insights into genetic underpinnings of childhood epilepsies

Technological advances in genetic analysis have uncovered changes in single genes that account for a surprising number of infantile and early-childhood epilepsies. Though some of the affected genes have been identified, the physical manifestations of these alterations remain largely uncharacterized.

7 Dec 2014

Researchers reveal that genetic mutations may cause more cases of ALS

Genetic mutations may cause more cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) than scientists previously had realized, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The scientists also showed that the number of mutated genes influences the age when the fatal paralyzing disorder first appears.

7 Dec 2014

IMBRUVICA demonstrates anti-tumor activity against multiple myeloma in Phase II study

New IMBRUVICA (ibrutinib) Phase II data announced here today by Pharmacyclics, Inc) during the 56th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting suggests that IMBRUVICA demonstrates anti-tumor activity both as a single-agent and as combination therapy in heavily pre-treated patients with relapsed or relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM).

7 Dec 2014

Novel treatments show safe responses in patients with relapsed, treatment-resistant blood cancers

Novel treatments that harness the body's own immune cells to attack cancer cells demonstrate safe and durable responses in patients with relapsed and treatment-resistant blood cancers, according to data presented today at the 56th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

7 Dec 2014

Scientists suspect role of mini-chromosomes in cancers, diseases caused by gene mutations

Cancers are due to genetic aberrations in certain cells that gain the ability to divide indefinitely. This proliferation of sick cells generates tumors, which gradually invade healthy tissue. Therefore, current therapies essentially seek to destroy cancer cells to stop their proliferation. Through high-throughput genetic sequencing of glioblastoma cells, one of the most deadly brain tumors, a team of geneticists from the University of Geneva's (UNIGE) Faculty of Medicine discovered that some of these mutations are caused by supplemental extrachromosomal DNA fragments, called double minutes, which enable cancer cells to better adapt to their environment and therefore better resist to treatments meant to destroy them.

6 Dec 2014

Study sheds light on common psychosocial barriers affecting HPV vaccination in Puerto Rico

Young Puerto Rican women and their mothers know little about the human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer, according to researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health.

6 Dec 2014

BRI signs license agreement with SOBI for Kineret (anakinra)

Baylor Research Institute, the research arm of the Baylor Scott & White Health, announced that it has signed an agreement with Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (Sobi) to non-exclusively license Baylor's patents pertaining to the treatment of Systemic Onset Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (SJIA or SOJIA) using interleukin-1 (IL-1) beta antagonists.

6 Dec 2014

Genetics may play major role in Lou Gehrig's disease, study reveals

Genetics may play a larger role in causing Lou Gehrig's disease than previously believed, potentially accounting for more than one-third of all cases, according to one of the most comprehensive genetic studies to date of patients who suffer from the condition also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

6 Dec 2014

FDA Advisory Committee votes in favor of Actavis' ceftazidime-avibactam

Actavis plc today announced that the Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee convened by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has voted to recommend approval of Actavis' New Drug Application (NDA) for ceftazidime-avibactam, an investigational antibiotic being developed to treat hospitalized patients when limited or no treatment options are available for complicated intra-abdominal infections (cIAI) (in combination with metronidazole) and complicated urinary tract infections (cUTI) (including acute pyelonephritis) caused by Gram-negative pathogens.

5 Dec 2014

Pharmacyclics launches informCLL registry to explore natural history of CLL patients

Pharmacyclics, Inc. today announced the launch of informCLL, a large, observational, prospective registry that will explore the natural history of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), examine how IMBRUVICA (ibrutinib) and other approved targeted therapies are being used to treat patients with CLL, and provide a comparison to treatments using conventional chemoimmunotherapy (CIT).

5 Dec 2014

Risk of developing obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease starts in pregnancy

The risk of developing type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease is affected by exposures in the uterus. Researchers at Lund University in Sweden are now calling for updated guidelines in light of research evidence from the past decades.

5 Dec 2014

CNF names Elizabeth A. Thiele as winner of 2014 Infantile Spasms Heroes Award

Today the Child Neurology Foundation, named Elizabeth A. Thiele, MD, PhD, as its 2014 Infantile Spasms (IS) Heroes Award winner to help kick off IS Awareness Week (December 5-11, 2014). The IS Heroes Award was established in 2010 by CNF, www.childneurologyfoundation.org, to recognize a deserving healthcare professional for making a positive difference in the life of a child with infantile spasms.

5 Dec 2014

Most parents interested in newborn genomic testing, study reveals

A study published this week in Genetics in Medicine is the first to explore new parents' attitudes toward newborn genomic testing. The findings suggest that if newborn genomic testing becomes available, there would be robust interest among new parents, regardless of their demographic background.

5 Dec 2014

Genetic News and Research

AbbVie reports results from venetoclax Phase 2 clinical trial in AML at ASH 2014

Novel targeted therapies and treatment combinations for leukemia

Breakthrough therapy shows promise in resistant forms of Hodgkin lymphoma

Emerging strategies to boost healthy RBCs may reduce burden of anemia linked to blood disorders

OIST Graduate University joins The Brain/MINDS Project in Japan

Nivolumab drug highly effective for Hodgkin's lymphoma

Study shows link between cardiac abnormalities, sudden unexpected death in epilepsy

Study provides insights into genetic underpinnings of childhood epilepsies

Researchers reveal that genetic mutations may cause more cases of ALS

IMBRUVICA demonstrates anti-tumor activity against multiple myeloma in Phase II study

Novel treatments show safe responses in patients with relapsed, treatment-resistant blood cancers

Scientists suspect role of mini-chromosomes in cancers, diseases caused by gene mutations

Study sheds light on common psychosocial barriers affecting HPV vaccination in Puerto Rico

BRI signs license agreement with SOBI for Kineret (anakinra)

Genetics may play major role in Lou Gehrig's disease, study reveals

FDA Advisory Committee votes in favor of Actavis' ceftazidime-avibactam

Pharmacyclics launches informCLL registry to explore natural history of CLL patients

Risk of developing obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease starts in pregnancy

CNF names Elizabeth A. Thiele as winner of 2014 Infantile Spasms Heroes Award

Most parents interested in newborn genomic testing, study reveals

Sequencing & Genomics: Elevating Science and Healthcare eBook

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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