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Weight-based taribavirin reduces anemia, increases sustained virologic response

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and 50 other centers found that weight-based dosing of taribavirin reduces rates of anemia while increasing sustained virologic response (SVR) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (HCV). Full details of this study are available in the October issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD).

23 Sep 2010

Mother’s miracle surgery for cancer - body cut in half

Janis Ollson, 31 became the first patient to survive a rare bone cancer which required her body to be cut in half. When she was pregnant with her second child doctors assumed her intense back pain was just a typical symptom of pregnancy. But soon she was diagnosed with a bone cancer called sarcoma that was untreatable by chemotherapy or radiation.

23 Sep 2010

FDA approves Gilenya capsules for reducing MS relapses

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Gilenya capsules (fingolimod) to reduce relapses and delay disability progression in patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS).

22 Sep 2010

Boehringer Ingelheim to present linagliptin Phase III data at 46th EASD

New Phase III data found that investigational linagliptin therapy resulted in significant reductions in blood sugar as measured by hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) when compared to placebo, both when added to sulfonylurea (SU) in inadequately controlled type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients, and when administered as monotherapy in T2D patients for whom metformin is inappropriate.

22 Sep 2010

Biomatrica launches DNAgard Blood and DNAstable Blood sample stabilization products

Biomatrica Inc., the leader in room temperature biological sample stabilization, today announced the release of DNAgard® Blood and DNAstable® Blood.

22 Sep 2010

G-CSF compound may activate virus, increases risk of infection: Research

Research conducted at Oregon Health & Science University's Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute may spur debate about the risks associated with administering a specific compound in some forms of bone-marrow transplantation. The research is published in the current edition of Cell Host and Microbe.

22 Sep 2010

Titan completes enrollment in Probuphine Phase 3 study for opioid addiction

Titan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that patient enrollment is now complete in the confirmatory, Phase 3 clinical study of Probuphine for the treatment of opioid addiction. This placebo and active controlled Phase 3 study is being conducted at 20 sites in the United States and the results are expected in the second quarter of 2011, about three months ahead of the original schedule.

22 Sep 2010

Study finds certain MRI sequences as accurate methods of assessing stent stenosis

Researchers have found that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be sufficient for the routine surveillance of some great vessel (primary blood vessels [e.g., aorta and vena cavae]) stents that are commonly used to treat congenital heart defects (a defect in the structure of the heart and great vessels that is present at birth) in children and young adults, according to a study in the October issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology (www.ajronline.org). MRI is a noninvasive medical test that helps physicians diagnose and treat medical conditions.

22 Sep 2010

Researchers investigate performance levels of resident and staff physicians

Research on the quality of US resident physician performance levels has often been limited by lack of a comparison group or strict focus on specific diseases and geographical areas. In order to gain insight on differences in quality of care provided by resident physicians versus staff physicians, Boston Medical Center and Palo Alto Medical Foundation researchers investigated performance of physicians in 33,900 hospital-based outpatient visits throughout the US.

22 Sep 2010

Telomere length associated with higher rate of relapse and lower overall survival in aplastic anemia patients

Among patients receiving immunosuppressive therapy for severe aplastic anemia (a condition in which the bone marrow is unable to produce blood cells), the length of telomeres (chromosome markers of biological aging) was not related to the response to treatment but was associated with a higher rate of relapse (return to low blood cell counts) and lower overall survival, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of JAMA.

22 Sep 2010

Study finds no benefit from self-management counseling in patients with heart failure

Patients with mild to moderate heart failure who received educational materials and self-management counseling in an attempt to improve adherence to medical advice did not have a reduced rate of death or hospitalization compared to patients who received educational materials alone, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of JAMA.

22 Sep 2010

Newborn Coalition praises SACHDNC's Critical Congenital Heart Disease universal screening recommendation

In a historic vote on September 17, 2010, the Secretary's Advisory Committee for Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children (SACHDNC) unanimously agreed to recommend the addition of screening for Critical Cyanotic Congenital Heart Disease to the core panel for universal screening of all newborns in the United States.

22 Sep 2010

ART closes new $8.5 million venture financing round

Arterial Remodeling Technologies ("ART") announced today that it has closed on a new venture financing round of $8.5 million from existing investors Matignon Technologies and Amundi Private Equity Funds, along with new investor InnoBio Fund managed by CDC Entreprises. Total investment in the Company is now $17 million.

22 Sep 2010

AACR to host fourth International Conference on Molecular Diagnostics

The American Association for Cancer Research will host its Fourth AACR International Conference on Molecular Diagnostics in Cancer Therapeutic Development from Sept. 27-30, 2010, at the Sheraton Denver Downtown in Denver, Colo.

22 Sep 2010

FDA guides Apricus Bio on RayVa's approvability for Raynaud's syndrome secondary to scleroderma

Apricus Biosciences, backed by a revenue-generating CRO business and seeking to leverage its multi-route NexACT® drug delivery technology and internal pipeline through out-licensing partnerships, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has provided guidance on the clinical requirements for assessing the approvability of RayVa for the treatment of Raynaud's syndrome secondary to scleroderma.

22 Sep 2010

Masimo's noninvasive SpMet provides measurements comparable to invasive methemoglobin testing

Masimo announced today that a new clinical study published in Anesthesia & Analgesia demonstrates that Masimo noninvasive and continuous methemoglobin (SpMet®) measurements provide a high degree of agreement in measurements with corresponding laboratory values of methemoglobin obtained by invasive methemoglobin testing. In addition, the authors concluded that SpMet could facilitate early diagnosis and treatment of methemoglobinemia during high-risk procedures.

22 Sep 2010

JHS conference focuses on future research directions to eliminate health disparities

The tenth anniversary of the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) will be observed on Sept. 23-24 in Jackson, Mississippi. The JHS is the largest study in history to investigate genetic factors that affect high blood pressure, heart and lung disease, stroke, diabetes, and other important diseases in African-Americans.

22 Sep 2010

ARRA's legacies may solve challenges related to health, energy and environment

The presidents of six leading research universities and two higher-education associations joined Vice President Joe Biden and White House science advisor Dr. John Holdren this morning to discuss the scientific research and related activities that have been made possible by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

22 Sep 2010

Novartis' SOM230 reduces cortisol levels in Cushing's disease patients

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation announced today that the results of a Phase III study of SOM230 (pasireotide) showed a reduction in cortisol levels in patients with Cushing's disease, a condition in which a benign (non-cancerous) pituitary tumor causes the adrenal glands to produce excess cortisol and can be fatal. Results will be presented at the 14th Congress of the European Neuroendocrine Association (ENEA).

22 Sep 2010

Catheter ablation benefits atrial fibrillation patients younger than 45

Patients under age 45 had fewer major complications than older patients and comparable improvement after a medical procedure to treat irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia, in a study reported in Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology, an American Heart Association journal.

22 Sep 2010

Blood News and Research

Weight-based taribavirin reduces anemia, increases sustained virologic response

Mother’s miracle surgery for cancer - body cut in half

FDA approves Gilenya capsules for reducing MS relapses

Boehringer Ingelheim to present linagliptin Phase III data at 46th EASD

Biomatrica launches DNAgard Blood and DNAstable Blood sample stabilization products

G-CSF compound may activate virus, increases risk of infection: Research

Titan completes enrollment in Probuphine Phase 3 study for opioid addiction

Study finds certain MRI sequences as accurate methods of assessing stent stenosis

Researchers investigate performance levels of resident and staff physicians

Telomere length associated with higher rate of relapse and lower overall survival in aplastic anemia patients

Study finds no benefit from self-management counseling in patients with heart failure

Newborn Coalition praises SACHDNC's Critical Congenital Heart Disease universal screening recommendation

ART closes new $8.5 million venture financing round

AACR to host fourth International Conference on Molecular Diagnostics

FDA guides Apricus Bio on RayVa's approvability for Raynaud's syndrome secondary to scleroderma

Masimo's noninvasive SpMet provides measurements comparable to invasive methemoglobin testing

JHS conference focuses on future research directions to eliminate health disparities

ARRA's legacies may solve challenges related to health, energy and environment

Novartis' SOM230 reduces cortisol levels in Cushing's disease patients

Catheter ablation benefits atrial fibrillation patients younger than 45

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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