Drug Discovery News and Research

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The drug discovery process begins with recognizing a disease or clinical condition in which there is a lack of adequate medical treatment. Once a potential drug has been identified, pre-clinical research can begin. This process includes several stages; the first of which involves identifying and validating the prospective drug’s target through assay development, high throughput screening, hit identification and finally, lead optimization. Once the pre-clinical process is complete, the newly synthesized drug candidate is selected for future clinical development.

Modulating PN aggregase pathway may offer hope for Alzheimer’s disease

Proteostasis Therapeutics announced today that modulating a key Proteostasis Network (PN) pathway may offer a novel approach to Alzheimer’s disease, a finding that was published in the journal Cell by its scientific founders Andrew Dillin, Ph.D., and Jeffery Kelly, Ph.D. The publication describes how regulation of an aggregase pathway reduced the neurodegenerative effects of beta amyloid aggregates that are a hallmark of the disease.

16 Dec 2009

Cellular Dynamics International launches iCell Cardiomyocytes

Cellular Dynamics International (CDI) today announced the commercial launch of iCell(TM) Cardiomyocytes for use in testing of new drug candidates by the pharmaceutical industry.

16 Dec 2009

IDBS included in recent research report from Gartner

IDBS, the leading worldwide provider of research data management and analytics solutions to R&D organizations, today announced that it has been included in a recent research report from Gartner, "Who's Who in Interactive Visualization for BI," by James Richardson, published November 13, 2009.

15 Dec 2009

Bio-Quant becomes wholly-owned subsidiary of NexMed

NexMed, Inc., a developer of products based on the NexACT® technology, today announced the closing of its acquisition of Bio-Quant, Inc., a privately-held leading research organization for in vitro and in vivo contract drug discovery and pre-clinical development services, headquartered in San Diego, CA. Upon closing, Bio-Quant became a wholly-owned subsidiary of NexMed.

15 Dec 2009

Winners of the 2010 ASBMB-Merck Award

James A. Wells, professor and chairman of the department pharmaceutical chemistry at the University of California, San Francisco, and director of UCSF's small molecule discovery center, has been named the winner of the 2010 American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology-Merck Award for his pioneering studies in the field of protein engineering.

11 Dec 2009

Targacept commences TC-5619 Phase 2 study of cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia

Targacept, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of drugs known as NNR TherapeuticsTM, today announced that it has initiated a Phase 2 clinical proof of concept trial of TC-5619 in cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia.

10 Dec 2009

YM BioSciences announces results of collaborative antibody development program

YM BioSciences Inc., today announced the first results of a collaborative program between YM and the National Research Council of Canada's Biotechnology Research Institute (NRC-BRI). Utilizing YM's IntelliMab(TM) technology, the program is designed to generate novel antibodies that target cell surface receptors associated with cancer, uniquely optimized to produce efficacy with reduced toxicities.

10 Dec 2009

Eli Lilly provides financial guidance for 2010

At its annual meeting today with the investment community, Eli Lilly and Company highlighted how its innovation-based strategy will enable it to better serve patients and compete effectively in a challenging health care environment. The company also detailed the progress being made in its labs and across its five new business units on an expanding pipeline of innovative molecules and marketed medicines, and provided investors with the company's financial guidance for 2010.

10 Dec 2009

Second pivotal Phase 3 trial to evaluate investigational Lp-PLA2 inhibitor darapladib initiated

Attached is a press release issued earlier this morning by GlaxoSmithKline, announcing that GSK has initiated its second pivotal Phase 3 trial to evaluate the efficacy of long-term treatment with the investigational Lp-PLA2 inhibitor darapladib in men and women with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

10 Dec 2009

Pharma IQ to organize Anti-Infectives Summit in Philadelphia

Organized by Pharma IQ, a division of IQPC, the Anti-Infectives Summit will be held January 25-27, 2010 in Philadelphia, PA (www.anti-infectivesummit.com). This forum explores recent advances within anti-infective drug discovery and development, and is geared towards Chief Scientific Officers and Scientists working in microbiology, immunology, infectious diseases, medicinal chemistry and drug development.

From IQPC Ltd 10 Dec 2009

Recruitment complete in Oxagen's OC000459 IIb clinical trial for asthma

Oxagen Limited, a drug discovery and development company specializing in inflammation, today announced that the recruitment for its double blind, randomised, placebo controlled Phase IIb clinical trial in asthma with OC000459, its lead oral CRTH2 (DP2) antagonist, has now been completed.

9 Dec 2009

Pfizer, Crown Bioscience team up to research and develop novel therapeutics for Asian cancers

Pfizer (PFE) and Crown Bioscience, Inc. (Crown) announced today that they have entered into a collaboration to research and develop novel therapeutics for Asian cancers. Specific treatments for Asian cancers represent an important unmet medical need as well as a significant market opportunity.

9 Dec 2009

Scientists identify new potential drug for treating acute myeloid leukaemia

EUREKA project E! 3172 NKSTIM has produced a new potential drug to stimulate cancer patients' own 'natural killer' cells to attack and eliminate cancer cells; currently undergoing clinical testing in patients with leukaemia or myeloma.

8 Dec 2009

Eli Lilly to pay Applied NeuroSolutions $250,000 for renewal of their collaboration

Applied NeuroSolutions, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on the development of products for the early diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease ("AD"), today announced that Eli Lilly and Company has agreed to a one-year renewal of its drug discovery collaboration. Lilly will pay $250,000 to Applied NeuroSolutions for the one-year collaboration renewal.

8 Dec 2009

Eidogen-Sertanty licenses its TIP technology for FDA's National Center for Toxicological Research

Eidogen-Sertanty, Inc., a San Diego-based computational drug discovery solutions provider, announced today they have licensed their Target Informatics Platform (TIP) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR).

8 Dec 2009

Tranzyme Pharma and Bristol-Myers Squibb sign collaboration agreement

Tranzyme Pharma today announced that it has entered into a strategic collaboration agreement with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company to discover, develop and commercialize novel macrocyclic compounds directed against targets of interest to Bristol-Myers Squibb.

8 Dec 2009

New pharmacology textbook released by Elsevier

Elsevier, the world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, proudly announces the early success and rapid acceptance of its recently released Pharmacology and Therapeutics: Principles to Practice, an innovative new pharmacology textbook designed to better meet the needs of today's residents and practitioners.

8 Dec 2009

Non-clinical data of CK-2017357 presented by Cytokinetics

Cytokinetics, Incorporated announced today that both a poster and an oral presentation summarizing non-clinical data regarding CK-2017357, a novel fast skeletal troponin activator, were presented at the 5th Cachexia Conference, organized by the Society on Cachexia and Wasting Disorders, being held December 5-8, 2009 in Barcelona, Spain.

8 Dec 2009

Cyntellect and Boston University sign research collaboration agreement

Cyntellect, Inc., a privately-held life sciences company commercializing products to advance life science and stem cell research, biopharmaceutical production, and drug discovery, today announced it has entered into a research collaboration agreement with the Boston University School of Medicine.

8 Dec 2009

RCT licensee Dyax receives approval from the FDA for KALBITOR

RCT licensee Dyax Corp. has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for KALBITOR® (ecallantide) for the treatment of acute attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) in patients 16 years of age and older.

7 Dec 2009