Metabolite News and Research

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Metabolites are the intermediates and products of metabolism. The term ''metabolite'' is usually restricted to small molecules.

Biosynthetic polyphenol may improve cognitive function in Alzheimer's disease patients

Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers have succeeded in developing a biosynthetic polyphenol that improves cognitive function in mice with Alzheimer's disease (AD). The findings, published in a recent issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, provide insight in determining the feasibility of biosynthetic polyphenols as a possible therapy for AD in humans, a progressive neurodegenerative disease for which there is currently no cure.

2 May 2012

S-equol effective in reducing menopausal hot flashes, muscle and joint pain among U.S. women

A dose of 10 milligrams (mg) daily of S-equol delivered via a newly developed fermented soy germ-based nutritional supplement is as effective as a standard dose of soy isoflavones at reducing hot flash frequency significantly and is even more effective for relieving muscle and joint pain, according to a peer-reviewed study in US postmenopausal women published in the June Journal of Women's Health, available now as a Fast Track article online ahead of print.

25 Apr 2012

Gabapentin drug helps people to quit cannabis

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have found clinical evidence that the drug gabapentin, currently on the market to treat neuropathic pain and epilepsy, helps people to quit smoking marijuana.

24 Apr 2012

Soldiers, farmers can have common chronic exposure to nerve impacting chemicals

Soldiers in war zones and farmers tending their fields can have in common chronic exposure to chemicals that impact their nerves.

19 Apr 2012

Aristolochic acid exposure leads to kidney failure and UUC

Aristolochic acid (AA), a component of a plant used in herbal remedies since ancient times, leads to kidney failure and upper urinary tract cancer (UUC) in individuals exposed to the toxin.

10 Apr 2012

UI receives three grants to hasten discovery of new TB therapeutics

Forty-five years. That's how long it's been since the last drug - rifampin - hit the market to treat tuberculosis, an infection that affects nearly one third of the world's population and causes 1.8 million deaths annually. The University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy has received three new federally-funded grants to hasten the discovery of new therapeutic treatments.

23 Mar 2012

Circadian rhythms control production of metabolites

By analyzing the hundreds of metabolic products present in the liver, researchers with the UC Irvine Center for Epigenetics & Metabolism have discovered that circadian rhythms - our own body clock - greatly control the production of such key building blocks as amino acids, carbohydrates and lipids.

20 Mar 2012

Concert commences dosing in CTP-499 Phase 2 clinical trial for diabetic nephropathy

Concert Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced the initiation of dosing in a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating CTP-499, an investigational drug for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy, the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the US.

5 Mar 2012

Berg Diagnostics achieves CLIA certificate of accreditation

Berg Diagnostics, a Boston-based molecular diagnostics company has received Massachusetts Clinical Laboratory Licensure and Certificate of Registration from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment (CLIA).

2 Mar 2012

Study finds genetic variants that elevate risk for skin lesions in people exposed to arsenic

One of the first large-scale genomic studies conducted in a developing country has discovered genetic variants that elevate the risk for skin lesions in people chronically exposed to arsenic. Genetic changes found near the enzyme for metabolizing the chemical into a less toxic form can significantly increase an individual's risk for developing arsenic-related disease.

26 Feb 2012

Kowa announces data of LIVALO vs. Crestor on pharmacodynamics of warfarin

Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. today announced data assessing the effect of LIVALO (pitavastatin) compared with Crestor (rosuvastatin) on steady-state pharmacodynamics (PD) of warfarin by measuring international normalized ratio (INR) in healthy adult subjects.

14 Feb 2012

Researcher have identified thirty one regions of genome associated with circulating metabolites

In a study to the genetic variance of human metabolism, researchers have identified thirty one regions of the genome that were associated with levels of circulating metabolites, i.e., small molecules that take part in various chemical reactions of human body.

30 Jan 2012

Scientists use metabolomics to discover DMS linked with neuropathic pain

Millions of people worldwide suffer from a type of chronic pain called neuropathic pain, which is triggered by nerve damage. Precisely how this pain persists has been a mystery, and current treatments are largely ineffective. But a team led by scientists from The Scripps Research Institute, using a new approach known as metabolomics, has now discovered a major clue: dimethylsphingosine (DMS), a small-molecule byproduct of cellular membranes in the nervous system.

23 Jan 2012

Aspirin may benefit HIV-infected women at risk of cervical cancer

Research conducted by NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center global health investigators and cancer specialists in New York, Qatar and Haiti suggests that aspirin should be evaluated for its ability to prevent development of cervical cancer in HIV-infected women.

19 Jan 2012

Workers in newly renovated office buildings may receive higher doses of PFCs

In a first-of-its-kind study, scientists are reporting that the indoor air in offices is an important source of worker exposure to potentially toxic substances released by carpeting, furniture, paint and other items. Their report, which documents a link between levels of these so-called polyfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in office air and in the blood of workers, appears in ACS' journal Environmental Science & Technology.

19 Jan 2012

New genetic signature could cause bile duct cancer

Investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center have identified a new genetic signature associated with bile duct cancer, a usually deadly tumor for which effective treatment currently is limited.

19 Jan 2012

Effects of allopregnanolone in women with severe pre-menstrual syndrome

Sensitivity to allopregnanolone, a hormone that occurs naturally in the body after ovulation and during pregnancy, changes during the course of the menstrual cycle and is different in women with severe pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS) compared with women without PMS complaints. This has been shown by Erika Timby in her doctoral dissertation recently defended at Umeå University, Sweden.

22 Dec 2011

Scientists identify A2bAR as possible new therapeutic target against atherosclerosis

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have identified for the first time the A2b adenosine receptor (A2bAR) as a possible new therapeutic target against atherosclerosis resulting from a diet high in fat and cholesterol.

13 Dec 2011

ZIOPHARM receives European patent allowance for palifosfamide to treat cancer

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. announced today that it has received an allowance from the European Patent Office for Patent Application No. 05 821 125.1, entitled "Salts of Isophosphoramide mustard and analogs thereof as anti-tumor agents" with claims directed to pharmaceutical compositions of a novel DNA cross-linker, including palifosfamide and their use in treating cancer.

7 Dec 2011

Concert to initiate CTP-499 Phase 2 diabetic nephropathy clinical trial in 2012

Concert Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced data from a Phase 1 clinical trial of CTP-499, a novel agent for the potential treatment of diabetic nephropathy.

14 Nov 2011