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Arthur H. Rubenstein to receive the Abraham Flexner Award

Arthur H. Rubenstein, MBBCh, Executive Vice President of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System, and Dean, School of Medicine, will receive the Abraham Flexner Award for Distinguished Service to Medical Education from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).

6 Nov 2009

Amgen announces the results for Phase 3 PRIME '203' trial of Vectibix

Amgen today announced that the Phase 3 PRIME "203" trial evaluating Vectibix® (panitumumab) administered in combination with FOLFOX (an oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy) as a first-line treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) failed to meet a secondary endpoint of overall survival.

5 Nov 2009

New therapeutic approach targets cancer cells, not normal cells

The ultimate goal in cancer research, a treatment that kills cancer cells whilst leaving healthy cells untouched, is brought nearer by the success of a new therapeutic approach. The potential therapy, published in BioMed Central's open access journal Breast Cancer Research, targets proliferation of cancer, but not normal, cells.

5 Nov 2009

Tetracycline-like compound raises hope for treatment of spinal muscular atrophy

A chemical cousin of the common antibiotic tetracycline might be useful in treating spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a currently incurable disease that is the leading genetic cause of death in infants. This is the finding of a research collaboration involving Adrian Krainer, Ph.D., of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and scientists from Paratek Pharmaceuticals and Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science.

5 Nov 2009

USPTO awards Peregrine Pharmaceuticals patent for anti-viral uses of phosphatidylserine targeting antibodies

Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued U.S. Patent Number 7,611,704, which includes broad claims covering anti-viral uses of phosphatidylserine (PS)-targeting antibodies including Peregrine's lead clinical compound, bavituximab. PS is a unique marker exposed on the surface of virally infected cells that can be targeted to treat a broad spectrum of virus infections.

5 Nov 2009

Researchers use fruit fly model for diabetes research

As rates of obesity, diabetes, and related disorders have reached epidemic proportions in the US in recent years, scientists are working from many angles to pinpoint the causes and contributing factors involved in this public health crisis. While sedentary lifestyles and diets high in sugar and fat contribute significantly to the rise in diabetes rates, genetic factors may make some people more vulnerable than others to developing diabetes.

4 Nov 2009

Leprosy: Man's persistent companion

For thousands of years an undesirable and persistent companion has been travelling with man wherever he goes. Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium that causes leprosy, has only one known natural host - mankind.

4 Nov 2009

Sigma-Aldrich, Polyplus-transfection sign licensing agreement to manufacture ZNA oligonucleotides

Sigma-Aldrich today announced a worldwide licensing agreement with Polyplus-transfection (Strasbourg, France) to manufacture and commercialize Zip Nucleic Acid (ZNA(TM)) oligonucleotides, a new technology that provides solutions for increased affinity for nucleic acids.

3 Nov 2009

Scientists discover two genes that can lead to aggressive leukaemia

Two genes, each one of which is known to cause cancer on its own, together can lead to aggressive leukaemia. This is the conclusion from new research carried out on gene-modified mice at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. The discovery has surprised scientists, and may lead to new treatments.

3 Nov 2009

Texas State University researchers to evaluate the effects of ALKA-V6 on animal organisms

Texas State University and Orizon Research Institute announced the signing of an agreement today that will permit University Researchers to continue efforts through in vivo testing to further determine the potential and effectiveness of ALKA-V6, a compound which has shown remarkable ability to kill cancer cells and inhibit the HIV virus in laboratory experiments.

3 Nov 2009

Two cancer-causing genes together can lead to aggressive leukaemia

3 Nov 2009

Individuals who had experienced trauma exposure in both childhood and adulthood likely to develop PTSD

Individuals who experience both childhood adversity and traumatic events in adulthood appear more likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder than those exposed to only one of these types of incidents, according to a report in the November issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In addition, the risk was further increased in individuals with a certain genetic mutation.

3 Nov 2009

Phase 1 study of STX107 for Fragile X syndrome begins

NIH-supported scientists at Seaside Therapeutics in Cambridge, Mass., are beginning a clinical trial of a potential medication designed to correct a central neurochemical defect underlying Fragile X syndrome, the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability. There has to date been no medication that could alter the disorder's neurologic abnormalities. The study will evaluate safety, tolerability, and optimal dosage in healthy volunteers.

3 Nov 2009

Mechanical force switches T cell from disease-scanning to disease-fighting mode

The immune system's T cells have the unique responsibilities of being both jury and executioner. They examine other cells for signs of disease, including cancers or infections, and, if such evidence is found, rid them from the body. Precisely how T cells shift so swiftly from one role to another, however, has been a mystery.

3 Nov 2009

Brain disorder that causes early dementia is highly hereditary: Study

New research shows that a rare brain disorder that causes early dementia is highly hereditary. The study is published in the November 3, 2009, issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

3 Nov 2009

Cancer Cell publishes a paper on ARIAD Pharmaceuticals' Pan-BCR-ABL inhibitor

ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the scientific journal, Cancer Cell, has published a comprehensive paper describing the design and preclinical characterization of AP24534, ARIAD’s investigational, multi-targeted kinase inhibitor.

3 Nov 2009

NIH awards $2 million grant for sickle cell disease research

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago will use a $2 million federal grant to investigate why patients with sickle cell disease experience chronic pain -- and to develop drugs to treat it.

2 Nov 2009

Avila Therapeutics presents preclinical study data of its AVL-181 HCV protease inhibitor

Avila Therapeutics™, Inc., a biotechnology company developing novel covalent drugs that treat diseases through protein silencing, presented results of preclinical studies on its highly selective, small molecule Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) protease inhibitor, AVL-181. Avila showed that AVL-181 promoted complete viral clearance in vitro when used at clinically-relevant concentrations in combination with other HCV therapies.

2 Nov 2009

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals presents new data from its transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis program

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today that it presented new pre-clinical research findings from its transthyretin (TTR)-mediated amyloidosis (ATTR) program at the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (“The Liver Meeting”).

2 Nov 2009

Scientists discover gene that controls the metabolism of fat

Scientists at the University of Bonn have discovered a previously unknown fruit fly gene that controls the metabolism of fat. Larvae in which this gene is defective lose their entire fat reserves.

2 Nov 2009