Pharmaceuticals News and Research

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Research Roundup: Lowering malpractice costs; Advance care planning limitations; Consumers review their own health care

Annals of Internal Medicine: Liability Claims And Costs Before And After Implementation Of A Medical Error Disclosure Program - This study focused on a "disclosure-with-offer program" launched by the University of Michigan Health System (UMHS) in 2001. "After full implementation of a disclosure-with-offer program, the average monthly rate of new claims decreased from 7.03 to 4.52 per 100,000 patient encounters.

21 Aug 2010

'Rotten eggs' gas inside knee joint protects against inflammation

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a gas more commonly associated with the smell of 'rotten eggs' and blocked drains. However, it has now been shown to be present naturally in our bodies and reside in knee joint synovial fluid, the protective fluid found in the cavities of joints that reduces friction between the cartilage of joints during movement. Synovial fluid H2S may play a role in reducing inflammation in joints.

21 Aug 2010

FDA extends review on Acetadote for non-acetaminophen acute liver failure

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended its review of the supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for the use of Acetadote® (acetylcysteine) Injection in patients with non-acetaminophen acute liver failure.

21 Aug 2010

Protalex initiates dosing in multicenter PRTX-100 Phase 1b clinical study in RA

Protalex, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in developing a class of biopharmaceutical drugs for treating autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, today announced the dosing of the first patient in a multicenter Phase 1b clinical study of PRTX-100 in adult patients with active Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). The study is being conducted in South Africa.

20 Aug 2010

Anchor Therapeutics announces initial closing of $10 million Series B financing

Anchor Therapeutics today announced an initial closing of $10 million in a Series B financing. The investment is being led by current investors TVM Capital, HealthCare Ventures and the Novartis Option Fund. The company is in continuing discussions with additional investors interested in joining the Series B. Anchor Therapeutics is focused on developing peptide drug candidates, called pepducins, that modulate G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), particularly those historically difficult to target using standard pharmaceutical approaches.

20 Aug 2010

Cyprotex launches new in vitro toxicology service

Cyprotex PLC, the preclinical ADME Tox services company, today announces the launch of its new in vitro toxicology service, branded as Cyprotox(R). Supporting the new service is an additional 90 square metres of laboratory space at Cyprotex's Macclesfield, UK facility housing the latest technology in multi-parametric automated fluorescent imaging and cellular analysis. This gives Cyprotex's Macclesfield site the same in vitro toxicology capabilities as those of Apredica (Watertown, MA, USA), which Cyprotex acquired on 6 August 2010.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 20 Aug 2010

Tasigna receives approval for chronic myeloid leukemia in Canada

Tasigna (nilotinib) capsules have been approved with conditions in Canada as a new therapy for patients with CML, in the chronic phase (first phase) of the disease. Patients must be resistant to or intolerant of at least one prior therapy, including (Pr)Gleevec (imatinib mesylate), an established standard of care.

20 Aug 2010

JCI to pay $188 million for fraudulently obtaining confidential information of Hemispherx

Johannesburg Consolidated Investments Limited, a South African-based investment and finance company, was recently ordered to pay $188 million to Hemispherx Biopharma Inc. a biopharmaceutical company, for fraudulently obtaining confidential and proprietary information.

20 Aug 2010

Medicare Part D cost estimate drops 41%: PCMA

The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) issued the following statement on research cited by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that found the most recent 10-year cost estimate for Medicare Part D came in at $373 billion, a 41 percent drop from the initial cost estimate of $634 billion for 2004-2013

20 Aug 2010

Ohio appeals court reinstates claim that diet drug Redux should not have been marketed

An Ohio Federal Court of Appeals ruling issued yesterday is reinstating the late victim's claim that the recalled diet drug Redux (commonly called fen-phen) linked to her death should never have been marketed to the American people by Wyeth due in part to its pre-approval concerns about potentially lethal side effects.

20 Aug 2010

Cerulean Pharma to assemble scientific experts at ACS National Meeting symposium

Cerulean Pharma Inc., a leader in designing and developing nanopharmaceuticals, today announced it will assemble a group of leading scientific experts at the American Chemical Society's ("ACS") 240th National Meeting & Exposition for a three-day thought leadership summit on the advancement of nanotechnology in the pharmaceutical and diagnostic industries.

20 Aug 2010

Knopp Neurosciences enters $345 million worldwide licensing agreement with Biogen Idec

A Pittsburgh start-up company that received an early investment from one of Pennsylvania's most dynamic resources has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement to help find the cure for Lou Gehrig's disease, or ALS, Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Austin Burke announced today.

20 Aug 2010

CMS: Seniors will see modest increase in Medicare drug premiums but improved benefits

The Associated Press: "Seniors will see a modest increase in their Medicare prescription premiums next year but benefits will also improve, federal health officials said Wednesday. The average monthly premium charged by Medicare drug plans for standard coverage will rise to an estimated $30 in 2011, an increase of $1 over 2010..." But, the AP notes that "Medicare prescription plans vary widely in costs and benefits.

20 Aug 2010

SRI and Taiho collaborate to advance clinical development of TAS-108 breast cancer program

SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development organization, announced today that it has assumed responsibility for further clinical development of the TAS-108 breast cancer program, in cooperation with Taiho Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., a leading Japanese pharmaceutical company. Further clinical development will focus on the lead compound's registration for the treatment of tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitor-resistant breast cancers.

20 Aug 2010

Quark Pharmaceuticals announces option agreement with Novartis for QPI-1002 siRNA drug

Silence Therapeutics plc, a leading international RNAi therapeutics company, is pleased to note that its partner, Quark Pharmaceuticals, Inc., has announced the grant of an option to Novartis to obtain an exclusive worldwide license to develop and commercialise QPI-1002, a p53 temporary inhibitor siRNA drug which incorporates Silence's AtuRNAi technology.

20 Aug 2010

Bioniche provides update on Urocidin clinical development program for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Bioniche Life Sciences Inc., a research-based, technology driven Canadian biopharmaceutical company, today provided an update on the clinical development program for its proprietary product for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer - Urocidin.

20 Aug 2010

Fenwal's new software release for Autopheresis-C system receives FDA 510(k) clearance

Fenwal, Inc., a global medical technology company focused on improving blood collection, separation, safety and availability, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Fenwal 510(k) clearance to market a new software release for its Autopheresis-C® system. Blood and plasma centers worldwide use the Autopheresis-C system to collect plasma from donors.

20 Aug 2010

FDA grants Acceleron's ACE-031 orphan designation for treatment of DMD

Acceleron Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics that modulate the growth of cells and tissues including muscle, bone, fat, red blood cells and the vasculature, today announced the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted orphan designation for ACE-031 for the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), a fatal neuromuscular disease in which patients experience a progressive loss of muscle mass and strength. ACE-031 is an investigational protein therapeutic being developed to increase muscle mass and strength.

20 Aug 2010

Trius Therapeutics second quarter 2010 revenue increases to $2.1 million

Trius Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative antibiotics for serious, life-threatening infections, announced today its financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2010.

20 Aug 2010

Novartis sales representatives increase calls to healthcare providers by 7%: SDI report

In the first 6 months of 2010, according to SDI, calls made by Novartis sales representatives to physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants increased 7% compared with the last 6 months of 2009.

19 Aug 2010

Pharmaceuticals News and Research

Research Roundup: Lowering malpractice costs; Advance care planning limitations; Consumers review their own health care

'Rotten eggs' gas inside knee joint protects against inflammation

FDA extends review on Acetadote for non-acetaminophen acute liver failure

Protalex initiates dosing in multicenter PRTX-100 Phase 1b clinical study in RA

Anchor Therapeutics announces initial closing of $10 million Series B financing

Cyprotex launches new in vitro toxicology service

Tasigna receives approval for chronic myeloid leukemia in Canada

JCI to pay $188 million for fraudulently obtaining confidential information of Hemispherx

Medicare Part D cost estimate drops 41%: PCMA

Ohio appeals court reinstates claim that diet drug Redux should not have been marketed

Cerulean Pharma to assemble scientific experts at ACS National Meeting symposium

Knopp Neurosciences enters $345 million worldwide licensing agreement with Biogen Idec

CMS: Seniors will see modest increase in Medicare drug premiums but improved benefits

SRI and Taiho collaborate to advance clinical development of TAS-108 breast cancer program

Quark Pharmaceuticals announces option agreement with Novartis for QPI-1002 siRNA drug

Bioniche provides update on Urocidin clinical development program for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Fenwal's new software release for Autopheresis-C system receives FDA 510(k) clearance

FDA grants Acceleron's ACE-031 orphan designation for treatment of DMD

Trius Therapeutics second quarter 2010 revenue increases to $2.1 million

Novartis sales representatives increase calls to healthcare providers by 7%: SDI report

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