Asthma News and Research

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Asthma is a common inflammatory disease affecting the airways that leads to shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing. Symptoms range from mild to severe but are generally manageable with appropriate treatment.

New target may promote development of novel therapies for chronic sinusitis

A protein known to stimulate blood vessel growth has now been found to be responsible for the cell overgrowth in the development of polyps that characterize one of the most severe forms of sinusitis, a study by Johns Hopkins researchers suggests. The finding gives scientists a new target for developing novel therapies to treat this form of the disease, which typically resists all current treatments.

23 Nov 2009

Pennsylvania Department of Health commences H1N1 vaccination to members of priority groups

The Department of Health today began providing free H1N1 flu shots to members of priority groups that did not have previous access to the vaccine.

21 Nov 2009

Ligand Pharmaceuticals' SARM LGD-4033 study data presented at the Gerontology Society of America meeting

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced that data from a preclinical study on its selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) LGD-4033 was featured in a poster presentation at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Gerontology Society of America in Atlanta. LGD-4033 exhibited desirable in vivo efficacy on skeletal muscle and bone measurements in animal models of male hypogonadism and postmenopausal osteoporosis.

20 Nov 2009

Discovery of Th22 cells may help in developing effective therapies for chronic skin and respiratory diseases

The newly discovered Th22 cells are a previously unknown subset of T helper cells. T helper cells are white blood cells that help activate other immune cells when the body is infected by viruses or bacteria. At the same time they help the body to tolerate own tissue and to prevent or curb inflammation.

20 Nov 2009

Sugar-coated polymer may offer a new solution for allergy and asthma

Scientists at Johns Hopkins and their colleagues have developed sugar-coated polymer strands that selectively kill off cells involved in triggering aggressive allergy and asthma attacks. Their advance is a significant step toward crafting pharmaceuticals to fight these often life-endangering conditions in a new way.

20 Nov 2009

Data from second positive pivotal study of PSD502 for treatment of PE presented

At the annual meeting of the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA), Inc. in San Diego, Sciele Pharma, Inc., a Shionogi Company and Plethora Solutions Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Plethora Solutions Holdings PLC ("Plethora")., today presented data from its second positive pivotal study of PSD502 for the treatment of premature ejaculation (PE).

20 Nov 2009

High prevalence of asthma among children with H1N1

A new study on pediatric H1N1 influenza admissions has found that asthma is a significant risk factor for severe disease in children with pandemic H1N1 compared with the seasonal flu.

19 Nov 2009

Ligand Pharmaceuticals receives $2 million in milestone payments from N. V. Organon

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated announced today that it has received $2 million in milestone payments from N. V. Organon, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., stemming from its research collaboration that is due to expire at the end of December.

19 Nov 2009

Altair Therapeutics initiates its IL-4 receptor alpha inhibitor bronchoprovocation phase 2 trial

Altair Therapeutics, Inc., a privately-held, biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for respiratory diseases, today announced the commencement of its IL-4 receptor alpha inhibitor bronchoprovocation trial. Study AIR645-CS2 is a phase 2, multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to assess the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of inhaled AIR645 in suppressing the asthmatic response in subjects with mild asthma. Results are expected in the third quarter of 2010.

19 Nov 2009

Positive results from Sciele Pharma's second pivotal study of PSD502 for the treatment of PE

At the annual meeting of the Sexual Medicine Society of North America, Inc. in San Diego, Sciele Pharma, Inc., a Shionogi Company, and Plethora Solutions Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Plethora Solutions Holdings PLC, today presented data from its second positive pivotal study of PSD502 for the treatment of premature ejaculation (PE).

19 Nov 2009

Political commitment to include health care coverage for smoking cessation needed

Massachusetts today announced extraordinary results from its aggressive efforts to help Medicaid beneficiaries quit smoking by providing easy access to coverage for smoking cessation medication and counseling.

19 Nov 2009

'Model' tobacco cessation program reduces smoking rate by 26%

A "model" tobacco cessation benefit offered to Massachusetts' Medicaid participants has produced an astounding 26% drop in smoking rates in only two and a half years, and has already been linked to decreases in heart attacks, hospitalizations for asthma and COPD, and a significant decrease in birth complications.

19 Nov 2009

New report finds positive association between phthalate exposure and ADHD symptoms

Phthalates are important components of many consumer products, including toys, cleaning materials, plastics, and personal care items. Studies to date on phthalates have been inconsistent, with some linking exposure to these chemicals to hormone disruptions, birth defects, asthma, and reproductive problems, while others have found no significant association between exposure and adverse effects.

19 Nov 2009

People with egg allergy can have H1N1 flu vaccine in graded doses

As flu season got underway this fall, Dr. Catherine Monteleone, an allergist, noticed that her office started to receive an unusually high number of calls from people with egg allergy. They previously had avoided flu vaccines because of their sensitivity to eggs. This year, with all the attention being paid to the novel H1N1 influenza, those patients want to be protected against flu, and they contacted her to find out if they are candidates for inoculation.

19 Nov 2009

New certification standard for cleaning products aims for reducing allergens and polluting agents

The growing asthma & allergy friendly(TM) Certification Program announced today that it has developed and adopted a certification standard and testing protocol for Non-Disinfecting Hard Surface Spray Cleaning Products. The asthma & allergy friendly(TM) Certification Program - administered by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) in partnership with the international research organization, Allergy Standards Limited (ASL) - is an independent, non-exclusive certification program created to scientifically test and identify consumer products that are more suitable for people with asthma and allergies.

18 Nov 2009

Previous flu infections can reduce the severity of H1N1

Researchers at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have found that previous influenza infections may provide at least some level of immunity to the H1N1 "swine" flu. "The question we asked was, "Is the swine flu more like the seasonal flu or like a totally new strain of influenza where there would be no immunity?," said Alessandro Sette, Ph.D., an internationally recognized vaccine expert and director of the La Jolla Institute's Center for Infectious Disease.

18 Nov 2009

Non-clinical data from Cytokinetics' smooth muscle contractility program presented

Cytokinetics, Incorporated announced today that three abstracts summarizing non-clinical data regarding its smooth muscle contractility program were presented at the 2009 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association in Orlando, Florida.

17 Nov 2009

Th22 cell to control inflammation in body to help fight off infection discovered

A new type of immune cell that can be out of control in certain chronic inflammatory diseases, worsening the symptoms of conditions like psoriasis and asthma, is described for the first time in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

17 Nov 2009

Elsevier to publish official journal of ACAAI

Elsevier is pleased to announce that beginning with Volume 104 (2010) it will assume publication of the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, the official journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (ACAAI).

17 Nov 2009

Addrenex Pharmaceuticals to be acquired by Sciele Pharma

Sciele Pharma, Inc., a U.S.-based group company of Shionogi & Co., Ltd. and Addrenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately-held U.S. pharmaceutical company specializing in developing drugs that regulate the adrenergic system, today announced that Sciele has agreed to acquire Addrenex.

16 Nov 2009

Asthma News and Research

Further Reading

New target may promote development of novel therapies for chronic sinusitis

Pennsylvania Department of Health commences H1N1 vaccination to members of priority groups

Ligand Pharmaceuticals' SARM LGD-4033 study data presented at the Gerontology Society of America meeting

Discovery of Th22 cells may help in developing effective therapies for chronic skin and respiratory diseases

Sugar-coated polymer may offer a new solution for allergy and asthma

Data from second positive pivotal study of PSD502 for treatment of PE presented

High prevalence of asthma among children with H1N1

Ligand Pharmaceuticals receives $2 million in milestone payments from N. V. Organon

Altair Therapeutics initiates its IL-4 receptor alpha inhibitor bronchoprovocation phase 2 trial

Positive results from Sciele Pharma's second pivotal study of PSD502 for the treatment of PE

Political commitment to include health care coverage for smoking cessation needed

'Model' tobacco cessation program reduces smoking rate by 26%

New report finds positive association between phthalate exposure and ADHD symptoms

People with egg allergy can have H1N1 flu vaccine in graded doses

New certification standard for cleaning products aims for reducing allergens and polluting agents

Previous flu infections can reduce the severity of H1N1

Non-clinical data from Cytokinetics' smooth muscle contractility program presented

Th22 cell to control inflammation in body to help fight off infection discovered

Elsevier to publish official journal of ACAAI

Addrenex Pharmaceuticals to be acquired by Sciele Pharma

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

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