Central Nervous System News and Research

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Biovail provides update on its Phase III program with pimavanserin for Parkinson’s disease psychosis

Biovail Corporation today provided an update on its Phase III program with pimavanserin for Parkinson’s disease psychosis (PDP), which is being pursued in collaboration with ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. Following the announcement on September 1st of disappointing top-line results from the first Phase III PDP trial, Biovail and ACADIA remain committed to the successful development of pimavanserin and have established a development strategy that they believe will strengthen the PDP program.

7 Oct 2009

AVANIR's STAR trial Phase III data to be presented at the World Congress on Controversies in Neurology

AVANIR Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced it will present detailed data from the Phase III confirmatory STAR trial in the treatment of pseudobulbar affect (PBA) at the 3rd World Congress on Controversies in Neurology (CONy) in Prague, Czech Republic on October 8 - 11, 2009 and the American Neurological Association (ANA) 134th Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD on October 11 - 14, 2009.

6 Oct 2009

Update from ACADIA Pharmaceuticals regarding its Phase III program with pimavanserin

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ACAD), a biopharmaceutical company utilizing innovative technology to fuel drug discovery and clinical development of novel treatments for central nervous system disorders, today provided an update on its Phase III program with pimavanserin for Parkinson’s disease psychosis (PDP), which is being pursued in collaboration with Biovail Laboratories International SRL (“Biovail”), a subsidiary of Biovail Corporation.

6 Oct 2009

NIMH awards SRI International a $6.3M contract for study of ligands for brain imaging research

SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development organization, announced today that it has been awarded a $6.3 million contract by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to conduct preclinical safety studies of promising novel ligands that will be used for brain imaging research and clinical applications.

6 Oct 2009

NIH awards Galenea a Challenge Grant for developing predictive in vivo models of cognition

Galenea Corp., a fully-integrated CNS drug discovery company, announced today that it has been awarded an NIH Challenge Grant in Health and Science Research (RC1) as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). This two-year grant from the National Institute of Mental Health addresses the specific topic of "Screening Approaches to Identify Pharmacologic Treatments for Mental Disorders" within the challenge area of Translational Science.

6 Oct 2009

Successful auction sale of five drug program intellectual properties

Joseph F. Finn, Jr., C.P.A. ("Finn"), announced today that there was a successful auction sale of five drug program intellectual properties on September 30, 2009.

5 Oct 2009

Breast milk should not be stored and fed later

The levels of the components in breast milk change every 24 hours in response to the needs of the baby. A new study published in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience shows, for example, how this milk could help newborn babies to sleep.

3 Oct 2009

Todd Cancer Institute granted approval for constructing proton therapy center

The Todd Cancer Institute (TCI) at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center (LBMMC) and Miller Children’s Hospital (MCH) today announced it has been granted approval to proceed with the architecture and engineering for its proton therapy center, becoming one of only 13 centers in the country currently planning for a compact unit.

1 Oct 2009

UCF research team develops miniature diagnostic tool kit for dementia

With the risk of developing dementia growing at an alarming pace, a University of Central Florida research team is working with the Boston University School of Medicine to develop a miniature diagnostic toolkit in the hopes of stimulating earlier detection and treatment.

1 Oct 2009

Tβ4 therapy in EAE mice improves neurological functional recovery

REGENERX BIOPHARMACEUTICALS, INC. (NYSE Amex:RGN) announced today that researchers at the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, Michigan, demonstrated for the first time that Tβ4 treatment of EAE (experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis – an animal model for multiple sclerosis) significantly improves neurological functional recovery.

30 Sep 2009

University scientists achieve breakthrough in brain research

Chaos brews in the brains of newborns: the nerve cells are still bound only loosely to each other. Under the leadership of Academy Research Fellow Sari Lauri, a team of researchers at the University of Helsinki has been studying for years how a neural network capable of processing information effectively is created out of chaos. The team has now found a new kind of mechanism that adjusts the functional development of nerve cell contacts.

30 Sep 2009

Research study sheds light on mechanisms of pain alteration in infancy and adolescence

Scientists at Georgia State University have uncovered the mechanisms of how pain in infancy alters how the brain processes pain in adulthood.

26 Sep 2009

StemCells pushing forward its SC Proven cell culture product business

StemCells, Inc. (NASDAQ:STEM) today announced organizational initiatives focused on growing its specialty SC Proven® cell culture product business and advancing the development and commercialization of its central nervous system (CNS) cell-based assay platforms for use in drug screening and drug development. These initiatives reflect the Company’s ongoing integration of the operations acquired from Stem Cell Sciences (SCS) Plc in April, and include new personnel appointments and a realignment of activities within the Company’s Cambridge, UK and Palo Alto, California locations.

23 Sep 2009

StemCells to take part in international networking event

StemCells, Inc. (NASDAQ:STEM) announced today its participation in the 2009 World Stem Cell Summit to be held September 21 – 23 in Baltimore, Maryland.

22 Sep 2009

KYPHON Cement Delivery System from Medtronic

Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE:MDT), today announced the full U.S. launch of the KYPHON Cement Delivery System (CDS), adding an innovative bone cement delivery option to its extensive KYPHON Balloon Kyphoplasty product portfolio for the treatment of vertebral compression fractures (VCFs).

22 Sep 2009

Rexahn and Teva sign license and stock purchase agreements

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE Amex: RNN), a clinical stage pharmaceutical company commercializing potential best in class oncology and central nervous system (CNS) therapeutics, today announced that it has closed on its previously announced licensing and stock purchase agreements with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, a top 20 pharmaceutical company, for the development of its novel anti-cancer compound, RX-3117. RX-3117 is a small molecule, new chemical entity (NCE), nucleoside compound that has an anti-metabolite mechanism of action, and has therapeutic potential in a broad range of cancers including colon, lung and pancreatic cancer.

22 Sep 2009

Blood vessels around the brain now converted into production/delivery systems

The blood brain barrier is generally considered an obstacle to delivering therapies from the bloodstream to the brain. However, University of Iowa researchers have discovered a way to turn the blood vessels surrounding brain cells into a production and delivery system for getting therapeutic molecules directly into brain cells.

22 Sep 2009

Investigative drug hampers the survival of non-Hodgkin lymphoma cells

An investigative drug deprived non-Hodgkin lymphoma cells of their ability to survive too long and multiply too fast, according to an early study published recently in the journal Experimental Hematology.

22 Sep 2009

Alcoholism may be dependent on IL-1 polymorphisms: Study

Cytokines are small proteins secreted by cells that serve as molecular messengers between cells. Pro-inflammatory cytokines - which function in the immune system - may be involved in alcohol dependence (AD). A study of three polymorphisms of the interleukin-1 gene complex (IL-1) and one of the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) has found that IL-1 may directly contribute to AD among Spanish Caucasian males.

21 Sep 2009

'Sara's Story' chronicles a woman's recovery from an acute stroke

In May, 2004, Tim received the news that his 42-year-old wife Sara had suffered an acute stroke. With three children still at home and the oldest child heading off to Iraq to serve in his first tour of duty, Tim's family and church rallied to support the family.

19 Sep 2009