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Autoimmune epilepsy diagnostics: an interview with Dr. Joseph J. Higgins, Medical Director, Neurology, Athena Diagnostics, a business of Quest Diagnostics

Epilepsy is a group of neurological disorders often characterized by seizures and cognitive impairment due to electrical disturbances in the brain.

From Quest Diagnostics 14 May 2014

Carbohydrate-binding proteins fill in gaps in immune defenses

Our bodies produce a family of proteins that recognize and kill bacteria whose carbohydrate coatings resemble those of our own cells too closely, scientists have discovered.

13 May 2014

Inovio Pharmaceuticals reports total revenue of $2.4 million for first quarter 2014

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2014.

12 May 2014

Experimental antibody temporarily halts progression of neuroblastoma in children

Tumors shrank or disappeared and disease progression was temporarily halted in 15 children with advanced neuroblastoma enrolled in a safety study of an experimental antibody produced at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

9 May 2014

Researchers create universal flu vaccine

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch are working to create a universal flu vaccine - one that could eliminate the need for an annual flu shot.

8 May 2014

UCB announces results from PRECiSE clinical trial of Cimzia in patients with Crohn's disease

UCB announced today results from the PRECiSE 3 7-year open label extension clinical trial of Cimzia (certolizumab pegol), the longest continuous trial of an anti-TNF therapy evaluating long-term safety in Crohn's disease.

6 May 2014

Covagen begins COVA322 Phase Ib/IIa study to treat patients with rheumatoid and psoriatic arthritis

Covagen today announced it has initiated a Phase Ib/IIa study with COVA322, a bispecific TNF/IL-17A inhibitor.

6 May 2014

Possible link between aggressive prostate cancer and vitamin D deficiency

Vitamin D deficiency was an indicator of aggressive prostate cancer and spread of the disease in European-American and African-American men who underwent their first prostate biopsy because of abnormal prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and/or digital rectal examination (DRE) test results, according to a study published in Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

1 May 2014

Noninvasive technique detects prostate cancer using an electronic nose

We may soon be able to make easy and early diagnoses of prostate cancer by smell. Investigators in Finland have established that a novel noninvasive technique can detect prostate cancer using an electronic nose. In a proof of principle study, the eNose successfully discriminated between prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) by "sniffing" urine headspace (the space directly above the urine sample). Results using the eNose are comparable to testing prostate specific antigen (PSA), reports the Journal of Urology.

1 May 2014

Inflammation has ‘etiologic link’ with prostate cancer

Chronic inflammation of prostate tissue is strongly associated with subsequent development of prostate cancer, show results of a US observational study.

28 Apr 2014

Agenus enters into agreement with Merck for development of therapeutic antibodies

Agenus Inc. announced today that the company has entered into a collaboration and license agreement with Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, through a subsidiary, for the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies to immune checkpoints for the treatment of cancer. Under the terms of the agreement, Agenus will discover and optimize fully human antibodies against two undisclosed Merck checkpoint targets using the 4-Antibody Retrocyte Display® platform.

28 Apr 2014

New data from EMD Serono's multiple sclerosis portfolio to be presented at the 66th AAN Annual Meeting

EMD Serono, Inc., a subsidiary of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, announced today that new data from the company's multiple sclerosis (MS) portfolio will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 66th Annual Meeting, taking place from April 26 – May 3, in Philadelphia, PA.

26 Apr 2014

TSRI scientists discover new HIV target

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) working with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) has discovered a new vulnerable site on the HIV virus. The newly identified site can be attacked by human antibodies in a way that neutralizes the infectivity of a wide variety of HIV strains.

25 Apr 2014

Researchers develop first size-based form of chromatography using nanodot technology

Using nanodot technology, Berkeley Lab researchers have demonstrated the first size-based form of chromatography that can be used to study the membranes of living cells.

23 Apr 2014

New hypothesis about emergence of Parkinson's disease

The cause of neuronal death in Parkinson's disease is still unknown, but a new study proposes that neurons may be mistaken for foreign invaders and killed by the person's own immune system, similar to the way autoimmune diseases like type I diabetes, celiac disease, and multiple sclerosis attack the body's cells.

21 Apr 2014

Genmab/GSK receive FDA sBLA approval for Arzerra in combination with chlorambucil for treatment of CLL

GlaxoSmithKline plc and Genmab A/S announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a Supplemental Biologic License Application (sBLA) for the use of Arzerra® (ofatumumab), a CD20-directed cytolytic monoclonal antibody, in combination with chlorambucil for the treatment of previously untreated patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) for whom fludarabine-based therapy is considered inappropriate.

21 Apr 2014

Men with chronic inflammation in non-cancerous prostate tissue may have nearly twice risk of prostate cancer

Men who show signs of chronic inflammation in non-cancerous prostate tissue may have nearly twice the risk of actually having prostate cancer than those with no inflammation, according to results of a new study led by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.

18 Apr 2014

Study: Chronic inflammation associated with aggressive prostate cancer

The presence of chronic inflammation in benign prostate tissue was associated with high-grade, or aggressive, prostate cancer, and this association was found even in those with low prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

18 Apr 2014

Study shows R9-caPep compound blocks PCNA actions in neuroblastoma cells

Neuroblastoma is one of the deadliest childhood cancers, accounting for 15 percent of pediatric cancer deaths. For patients with high-risk neuroblastomas, the five-year survival rate is 40 to 50 percent even with the most rigorous treatments available today.

17 Apr 2014

NICE recommends FIRMAGON for treating advanced hormone-dependent prostate cancer in adults with spinal metastases

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) today issued its Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) recommending FIRMAGON (degarelix) as an option for treating advanced hormone-dependent prostate cancer, only in adults with spinal metastases who present with signs or symptoms of spinal cord compression.

16 Apr 2014