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Inadequate asthma control is present in 26% to 45% of children, says review

Asthma is the commonest chronic disease in children and a major reason for admissions to hospital, yet inadequate asthma control is present in 26% to 45% of children, states a review http://www.cmaj.ca/embargo/cmaj071638.pdf in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) www.cmaj.ca.

23 Nov 2009

Receptos raises $25 million through Series A financing

Receptos, Inc., a privately held biopharmaceutical company, announced the closing of a two-tranche $25 million Series A financing. The company is focused on identifying and developing best- and first-in-class GPCR therapeutic candidates through information-driven drug discovery, including GPCR structure. Investors include ARCH Venture Partners, Flagship Ventures, Lilly Ventures and Venrock.

23 Nov 2009

Human Genome Sciences commences patient dosing in its HGS1029 inhibitor trial

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. and Aegera Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that HGS has initiated dosing in a Phase 1 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and tolerability of its lead IAP inhibitor, HGS1029, as monotherapy in patients with advanced lymphoid tumors.

23 Nov 2009

Raptor Pharmaceutical announces results of NGX426 clinical trial

Raptor Pharmaceutical Corp. today announced the presentation of clinical trial data on NGX426, the Company's orally administered, non-opioid, AMPA/kainate receptor antagonist, at the 12th International Conference on the Mechanisms and Treatment of Neuropathic Pain, held on November 20-21 in San Francisco.

23 Nov 2009

New Drug Application for ticagrelor submitted to the FDA

AstraZeneca today announced it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for ticagrelor, an investigational oral antiplatelet treatment for the reduction of major adverse cardiac events in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

23 Nov 2009

Bacteria help in preventing inflammation after skin injury

On the skin's surface, bacteria are abundant, diverse and constant, but inflammation is undesirable. Research at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine now shows that the normal bacteria living on the skin surface trigger a pathway that prevents excessive inflammation after injury.

22 Nov 2009

Discovery holds promise in fighting cancer, AIDS and autoimmune disorders

21 Nov 2009

Carvedilol in combination with ACE inhibitors may benefit cardiac patients

In a new study, researchers report that a class of heart medications called beta-blockers can have a helpful, or harmful, effect on the heart, depending on their molecular activity.

21 Nov 2009

FISH technology accurate in measuring the HER-2 receptor in human breast tumors

The debate on how to select patients who will respond best to costly drug treatments for aggressive breast cancer now favors fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to measure the HER-2 receptor found in human breast tumors, according to a leading pathologist presenting at the Association for Molecular Pathology annual meeting.

20 Nov 2009

Ligand Pharmaceuticals' SARM LGD-4033 study data presented at the Gerontology Society of America meeting

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced that data from a preclinical study on its selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) LGD-4033 was featured in a poster presentation at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Gerontology Society of America in Atlanta. LGD-4033 exhibited desirable in vivo efficacy on skeletal muscle and bone measurements in animal models of male hypogonadism and postmenopausal osteoporosis.

20 Nov 2009

VerifyNow System, a rapid platelet function assessment platform, evaluated at AHA's Scientific Sessions

Accumetrics, Inc., developer of the VerifyNow System, the first point-of-care method for measuring platelet reactivity, announces that its market-leading VerifyNow P2Y12 Test was one of multiple methods evaluated in the POPular study, which was presented during a Late Breaking Clinical Trials session at the American Heart Association's annual Scientific Sessions.

20 Nov 2009

Direct link between insulin and core body temperature discovered

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have discovered a direct link between insulin-a hormone long associated with metabolism and metabolic disorders such as diabetes-and core body temperature. While much research has been conducted on insulin since its discovery in the 1920s, this is the first time the hormone has been connected to the fundamental process of temperature regulation.

20 Nov 2009

Altair Therapeutics initiates its IL-4 receptor alpha inhibitor bronchoprovocation phase 2 trial

Altair Therapeutics, Inc., a privately-held, biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for respiratory diseases, today announced the commencement of its IL-4 receptor alpha inhibitor bronchoprovocation trial. Study AIR645-CS2 is a phase 2, multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to assess the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of inhaled AIR645 in suppressing the asthmatic response in subjects with mild asthma. Results are expected in the third quarter of 2010.

19 Nov 2009

Genetic identity of cellular receptor for the immune system's first-response antibody discovered

Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) have uncovered the genetic identity of a cellular receptor for the immune system's first-response antibody, a discovery that sheds new light on infection control and immune disorders. The discovery is such a crucial part of immunology that UAB researchers, in conjunction with Japanese researchers, are asking that the gene linked to this antibody receptor be renamed to better describe its role in early immune responses.

19 Nov 2009

Breastcancer.org opposes proposed new guidelines for mammograms

"The recommendation to change breast screening is a huge step backwards," says Dr. Marisa Weiss, a leading breast oncologist and founder and president of Breastcancer.org.

19 Nov 2009

Findings suggest athletes abuse non-approved therapeutic compounds for performance enhancing effects

Researchers from the German Sport University Cologne in Germany found that non-steroidal and tissue-selective anabolic agents such as Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs) are being sold on the black market for their performance enhancing qualities.

19 Nov 2009

Why avian flu virus has not caused a pandemic?

Bird flu viruses would have to make at least two simultaneous genetic mutations before they could be transmitted readily from human to human, according to research published today in PLoS ONE.

19 Nov 2009

New biomarkers can predict patients' response to certain drugs

Recent advances in cancer therapeutics have led to the discovery of biomarkers that can predict patient response to certain drugs. Screening for mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGRF) prior to non-small cell lung cancer treatment, for example, has been shown to indentify patients who are likely to respond to treatment with erlontinib. This maximizes the drug's impact, and spares patients who are not likely to benefit from being subjected to potentially debilitating side effects.

19 Nov 2009

Publicly released report cards do not appear to improve hospitals' performance, says new study

An analysis of quality of cardiac care following the public release of data on measures of care at hospitals in Ontario, Canada, did not result in significant systemwide improvement in hospitals' performance on most quality of care indicators, according to a study to be published in the December 2 issue of JAMA. The study is being released early online because of its presentation at an American Heart Association scientific conference.

19 Nov 2009

New mathematical model may hasten drug development for Parkinson's Disease

Australian scientists have significantly advanced our understanding of dopamine release from nerve cells, findings that should speed the development of more effective drugs for treating Parkinson's Disease.

19 Nov 2009