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USPTO grants HemoShear patent for human cell-based surrogate systems

HemoShear LLC, a biotechnology research company and leading developer of human cell-based surrogate systems for discovery and assessment of new drug compounds, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted it patent no. 7,811,782 entitled "Use of An In Vitro Hemodynamic Endothelial/Smooth Muscle Cell Co-Culture Model to Identify New Therapeutic Targets for Vascular Disease."

13 Oct 2010

Prosensa receives £7.5M milestone payment in GSK2402968 Phase IIa trial for DMD

Prosensa, the Dutch biopharmaceutical company focusing on RNA modulating therapeutics, has announced that it received a £7.5m milestone payment from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as a result of achieving a data milestone in its Phase IIa open label extension trial of GSK2402968 (PRO051), being developed to treat Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) under its agreement with GSK. The milestone payment was based upon achievement of a successful safety review, with no serious safety signals observed.

13 Oct 2010

Kennedy Krieger Institute launches phase II clinical trial to investigate Revatio for DMD treatment

Kennedy Krieger Institute announced today the launch of a first‐of‐its‐kind, phase II clinical trial to investigate a treatment for heart disease in individuals with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).

13 Oct 2010

FDA approves Vivitrol for treatment of opioid-dependent patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Vivitrol to treat and prevent relapse after patients with opioid dependence have undergone detoxification treatment.

13 Oct 2010

NCKU develops novel stem cell therapy for heart repair

Assistant Prof. Patrick C. H. Hsieh of Institute of Nanotechnology and Microsystems Engineering, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Tainan, Taiwan, has led a research team of myocardial regeneration to conduct an experiment on pigs and has proved that by combining self-assembling peptide nanofiber hydrogel with autologous bone marrow stem cell, myocardial protection after acute myocardial infarction, vascular regeneration and heart functions can be improved.

12 Oct 2010

Behavioral management and preventive medication can combat migraine: Research

The combination of preventive medication and behavioral changes offered significant relief for 77 percent of the individuals enrolled in a study aimed at combating frequent, disabling migraine headaches, according to new Ohio University research published this week in the British Medical Journal.

12 Oct 2010

Varian and Stanford scientists receive $3.6M NIH grant to develop advanced imaging technology

Scientists from Stanford University and from the Ginzton Technology Center at Varian Medical Systems have jointly received a $3.6 million five-year research grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop advanced imaging technology for improving the quality of CT images for patients with metal objects in their bodies such as hip implants and dental fillings.

11 Oct 2010

Genentech initiates GDC-0449 Phase II clinical trial in BCC patients

Curis, Inc. a drug development company seeking to develop next generation targeted small molecule drug candidates for cancer treatment, today announced that its collaborator Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, has initiated a Phase II clinical trial of GDC-0449, an orally-administered small molecule Hedgehog Pathway Inhibitor, as a single-agent therapy for patients with operable basal cell carcinoma (BCC).

11 Oct 2010

NIH selects Neil Chi for 2010 New Innovator Award

The National Institutes of Health has chosen Neil Chi, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine in the division of cardiology at the University of California, San Diego, as one of its 2010 NIH Director's New Innovator Award recipients.

11 Oct 2010

Yoga decreases anxiety in childhood cancer patients and their parents

A new study reports that yoga can reduce the stress of cancer diagnosis and treatment experienced by childhood cancer patients and their parents. The findings were published in the September/October 2010 edition of Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing, published by the Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses (APHON).

11 Oct 2010

FDA designates NeuRx Diaphragm Pacing System as HUD device for ALS patients

Synapse Biomedical Inc. announces today that they have received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designation of the NeuRx Diaphragm Pacing System (DPS) as a Humanitarian Use Device (HUD) for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients with a stimulatable diaphragm who are experiencing chronic hypoventilation and has now submitted for Humanitarian Device Exemption (HDE) approval.

11 Oct 2010

Scientists identify molecular mechanism of muscle stem cell differentiation

Under normal circumstances, adult stem cells reside in muscle tissue, where they can differentiate into a number of different cell types. After an injury (or even a tough workout), muscles are inflamed as cells and molecules flood the area to control damage and begin repairs. When called upon to replace muscle tissue damaged by injury or genetic disease, some muscle stem cells differentiate, becoming new muscle cells, while others make more stem cells. At Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham), a team of scientists led by Pier Lorenzo Puri, M.D., Ph.D., recently uncovered the molecular messengers that translate inflammatory signals into the genetic changes that tell muscle stem cells to differentiate.

11 Oct 2010

Correcting vitamin D deficiency before orthopedic surgery improves patient outcome: Study

Almost 50 percent of patients undergoing orthopedic surgery have vitamin D deficiency that should be corrected before surgery to improve patient outcomes, based on a study by researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City. Vitamin D is essential for bone healing and muscle function and is critical for a patient's recovery. The study appears in the October issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.

8 Oct 2010

Clinical study data on Natural S-equol supplement presented at NAMS Annual Meeting

Four clinical studies that add to the evidence about the use of a new nutritional supplement containing the whole soy germ-based ingredient Natural S-equol to improve health were presented at the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) Annual Meeting.

8 Oct 2010

Orthopaedic surgeons offer safety tips for marathon runners

On the brink of Chicago's popular marathon, 45,000 marathon runners from all 50 states and more than 100 countries will turn corners and pick up their pace for the big race in October.

8 Oct 2010

Study finds boosting mitochondria may delay onset of Parkinson's disease

In a study that sheds new light on the causes of Parkinson's disease, researchers report that brain cells in Parkinson's patients abandon their energy-producing machinery, the mitochondria. A shutdown in fuel can have devastating effects on brain cells, which consume roughly 20 percent of the body's energy despite making up only 2 percent of body weight.

8 Oct 2010

Two-day symposium marks an extraordinary decade for Brown Institute for Brain Science

Just as intense concentration allows a sharp mind to perform at its peak, a research institute that concentrates pre-eminent scientists from 11 academic departments can push back the frontiers of knowledge in a complex research area: the human brain.

8 Oct 2010

Researchers explain nano-topographical responsiveness of stem cells

Many scientists aspire to take control over the stem cell differentiation process, so that we can grow organs and implants perfectly matched to each patient in the future. Now research in the Journal of Tissue Engineering, published by SAGE-Hindawi, explains how engineering the topography on which stem cells grow, and the mechanical forces working on them, can be as powerful an agent for change as their chemical environment.

8 Oct 2010

Inviragen, PharmaJet awarded NIAID contract to develop needle-free, easy to administer dengue vaccine

Inviragen and PharmaJet announced the award of a five year, $15.5 million dollar contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, to advance the development of a needle-free, easy to administer dengue vaccine. The award will fund preclinical studies, regulatory filings, manufacturing and clinical testing of Inviragen's tetravalent dengue vaccine, DENVax delivered with PharmaJet's convenient needle-free injection device.

8 Oct 2010

Matchmaker function may help cardiologists understand the natural repair process after heart attacks

Heart muscle cells do not normally replicate in adult tissue, but multiply with abandoned during development. This is why the loss of heart muscle after a heart attack is so dire-you can't grow enough new heart muscle to make up for the loss.

8 Oct 2010