Preclinical News and Research

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Biomira files NDA for novel inhibitor of hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha

Biomira Inc. has announced that it has submitted an investigational new drug (IND) application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for PX-478. PX-478 has been shown in preclinical studies to inhibit hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1 alpha, a protein that controls the transcription of a number of genes whose products are important for tumor growth and survival.

4 Jul 2007

New genetic test advances detection and diagnosis of muscular dystrophy

A new genetic test targeting the most common types of muscular dystrophy--those caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene--is far quicker with greater accuracy and sensitivity than existing tests.

28 Jun 2007

Bayer and Onyx submit supplemental NDA for Nexavar

Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and Onyx Pharmaceuticals have announced that a Supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for Nexavar (sorafenib) tablets has been submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer. Nexavar is currently approved in more than 50 countries for the treatment of advanced kidney cancer.

28 Jun 2007

Amphinase molecule from frog could provide first drug treatment for brain tumours

A synthetic version of a molecule found in the egg cells of the Northern Leopard frog (Rana pipiens) could provide the world with the first drug treatment for brain tumours.

27 Jun 2007

Vaccine for human cytomegalovirus

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences have patented a strategy for developing a human vaccine to prevent against Human Cytomegalovirus (hCMV) infection and disease.

23 Jun 2007

Toronto at forefront of stem cell technology

A $20-million deal announced to license Canadian stem cell technology in the U.S. underscores the Toronto area's global leadership in stem cell research.

23 Jun 2007

Arpida receives FDA approval to initiate Phase II trial with intravenous iclaprim

Arpida Ltd. has announced that it has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for a Phase II trial with intravenous iclaprim in the treatment of patients with hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) or healthcare-associated pneumonia (HCAP) suspected or confirmed to be due to Gram-positive pathogens.

23 Jun 2007

Anacor finds novel mechanism for lead anti-fungal drug, AN2690

Anacor Pharmaceuticals, a privately held pharmaceutical company, has announced that the journal Science will publish results of research that details how AN2690, the company's lead clinical candidate, kills fungal cells by interfering with synthesis of a specific protein required for fungal growth.

23 Jun 2007

PepTcell vaccine could provide immunity against all strains of influenza virus

Previously undisclosed pre-clinical data showing how a new flu vaccine has the potential to protect against all strains of influenza, including pandemic and annual, was presented by PepTcell, at the 2007 Options for the Control of Influenza VI (Options) Conference, in Toronto, Canada.

20 Jun 2007

Reports of abnormal behaviour sends Tamiflu back to the drawing board

The manufacturers of the bird flu drug Tamiflu are about to repeat basic research and clinical trials on the high profile influenza drug.

20 Jun 2007

Newer breast cancer drug may protect heart

By uncovering how one breast cancer drug protects the heart and another does not, Duke University Medical Center researchers believe they may have opened up a new way to screen drugs for possible heart-related side effects and to develop new drugs.

16 Jun 2007

What causes Alzheimer's disease?

Researchers tied the accumulation of the toxic brain protein beta-amyloid to Alzheimer's disease, according to a study reported at the 54th Annual Meeting of SNM, the world's largest society for molecular imaging and nuclear medicine professionals.

5 Jun 2007

World's first PET/MR images of the human brain

The world's first PET/MR images of the human brain, taken simultaneously by positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and magnetic resonance (MR), debuted during the 54th Annual Meeting of SNM, the world's largest society for molecular imaging and nuclear medicine professionals, June 2-6 in Washington, D.C.

From Siemens Healthineers 5 Jun 2007

Nanoparticle delivery of insulin gene to fight juvenile diabetes developed

A safer method to deliver the insulin gene to diabetes patients using nanoparticles, was presented at the 10th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene Therapy (ASGT) in Seattle.

3 Jun 2007

Novel preclinical gene therapy approach for treating Niemann-Pick disease

Genzyme Corp. has announced the publication of a new study in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences describing a novel preclinical gene therapy approach for treating Niemann-Pick disease.

24 May 2007

Targeted nanoparticles offer promising techniques for cancer treatment

Researchers in the laboratory of Mark E. Davis at the California Institute of Technology have been using small interfering RNA (siRNA), sometimes known as silencing RNA, to "silence" specific genes that are implicated in certain malignancies.

22 May 2007

Nanomedicine opens the way for nerve cell regeneration

The ability to regenerate nerve cells in the body could reduce the effects of trauma and disease in a dramatic way.

22 May 2007

Oncolytic viruses deliver a knockout punch to cancers

New scientific evidence is helping to build a compelling case for oncolytic viruses as a first-line and adjunctive treatment for many cancers.

11 May 2007

Bristol-Myers Squibb collaborates with Isis Pharmaceuticals

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and Isis Pharmaceuticals have announced a collaboration to discover, develop and commercialize novel antisense drugs targeting proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin 9 (PCSK9) for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.

10 May 2007

New vaccine breakthrough for respiratory syncytial virus

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection is a widespread infant illness that has been linked to asthma and can be deadly but may be curable by the development of this new vaccine technology by the Sir Albert Sakzewski Virus Research Centre and The University of Queensland's Faculty of Biological and Chemical Sciences.

9 May 2007