Drug Metabolism News and Research

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Changing drug therapy can help breast cancer patients get full benefit of tamoxifen treatment

26 Mar 2010

Changing drug therapy can help breast cancer patients get full benefit of Tamoxifen

Recently published research has shown that some breast cancer patients taking tamoxifen may not be getting the full benefit of their treatment because they have also been taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), prescribed drugs that inhibit the effect of an important enzyme. Now researchers have developed a strategy for overcoming this problem, the seventh European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC7) in Barcelona will hear today (Wednesday).

25 Mar 2010

LSUHSC: Differences in drug metabolism can lead to differences in the effectiveness of candidate drug

Research led by Wayne L. Backes, PhD, Professor of Pharmacology and Associate Dean for Research at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine, has found that drug metabolism depends not only upon which enzymes are present in an individual, but also how they interact, and that can be the difference in whether a drug is safely eliminated from the body or is converted into a toxic or carcinogenic byproduct.

18 Mar 2010

Bayer's bioequivalence study comparing Adalat XL to Mylan-Nifedipine Extended Release flawed, says Mylan

Mylan today reported that it has identified multiple flaws within a purported bioequivalence study sponsored by Bayer Inc. of Canada. The study compared Bayer's antihypertensive Adalat(R) XL(R) tablets, 60 mg, marketed in Canada, to Mylan's approved generic version, Mylan-Nifedipine Extended Release tablets, 60 mg, marketed in Canada.

10 Mar 2010

European Journal of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics to be published by Springer

Starting in 2010, Springer will publish the European Journal of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics. All aspects of drug delivery and bioavailability are covered in the journal, which was previously published by the Swiss publisher M-decine & Hygi-ne. The journal was founded in 1975 by the late Professor Achille Benakis at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and through the years gathered a loyal community of authors and readers.

3 Mar 2010

AB SCIEX acquires liquid chromatography business of Eksigent Technologies

AB SCIEX, a global leader in life science analytical technologies, today announced that it has acquired the liquid chromatography business of Eksigent Technologies. This acquisition significantly strengthens AB SCIEX’s position in liquid chromatography, which is a key technology used frequently in a broad range of life science applications such as protein biomarker research, drug discovery and basic research.

16 Feb 2010

Scientists develop straightforward technique to find ethnic origin of stem cells

An international team of scientists led by researchers at The Scripps Research Institute has developed a straightforward technique to determine the ethnic origin of stem cells.

30 Dec 2009

Over twenty new drug metabolism assays launched by Absorption Systems

Absorption Systems, a leader in drug safety and ADMET (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and toxicity) testing, today announced the introduction of a more complete series of drug metabolism assays designed to support the pharmaceutical R&D process, from early-stage discovery through late-stage clinical development.

2 Dec 2009

ImmunoGen to present IMGN901 clinical data at AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference

ImmunoGen, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company that develops targeted anticancer therapeutics, announced today that several ImmunoGen poster presentations will be made at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics to be held in Boston, MA, on November 15-19, 2009.

10 Nov 2009

IPIT uses Affymetrix’s DMET Plus biomarker panel to expand the PGENI

Affymetrix, Inc. announced today that the Institute for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy (IPIT) at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill is using the company’s DMET™ Plus biomarker panel to expand the Pharmacogenetics for Every Nation Initiative (PGENI).

28 Oct 2009

Physicians' recognize benefits of genetic testing; say formal education required to put it into practice

Medco Health Solutions, Inc.(NYSE: MHS) and the American Medical Association (AMA) today announced the findings of a national benchmark survey on physicians' acceptance, use and education regarding pharmacogenomic testing.

23 Oct 2009

NIH awards fund to Kaiser Permanente and UCSF for genetic epidemiology research

The Kaiser Permanente Research Program on Genes, Environment, and Health (RPGEH) and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) have been awarded $24.8 million over two years by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to create a new resource for studying disease, health, and aging.

13 Oct 2009

New drug test promises to yield quick and effective response for cancer therapy

A group of scientists from Hamburg may have taken a big step towards more effective cancer drug development, Europe's largest cancer congress, ECCO 15 - ESMO 34 [1], heard today (Wednesday 23 September). Dr Ilona Schonn, Director of Cell Culture Research at Indivumed GmbH, told the conference that they had developed a preclinical drug test platform that would enable researchers to analyse tumour tissue for individual patient drug responses on the molecular level.

23 Sep 2009

Innovative way for culturing liver cells improves drug toxicity screening

A team led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers has developed an innovative way to culture liver cells for drug toxicity screening. In a report to be published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that has been released online, the investigators describe how liver cells grown in a high-oxygen environment and in a culture medium free of animal-derived serum quickly begin to function as they do within the liver.

2 Sep 2009

Researchers model 3D structures of proteins that control human clock

In an Early Edition issue of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on April 9, 2009, the researchers report that they have been able to determine the molecular structure of a plant photolyase protein that is surprisingly similar to two cryptochrome proteins that control the "master clock" in humans and other mammals.

12 Apr 2009

New technique for creating authentic embryonic stem cells from rats

Stem Cell Sciences plc has announced that pioneering research describing a technique for creating authentic embryonic stem (ES) cells from rats has been published in the prestigious peer-reviewed journal, Cell.

30 Dec 2008

Previously unknown regulatory step during HIV replication provides potential new target for HIV/AIDS therapy

A previously unknown regulatory step during human immunodeficiency (HIV) replication provides a potentially valuable new target for HIV/AIDS therapy, report researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

16 Nov 2008

Clinical Data secures European patent for key multi-drug resistance gene

Clinical Data, Inc. has announced that the European Patent Office has granted Patent No. 1232260 to Bernried, Germany-based Epidauros Biotechnologie AG, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Clinical Data, relating to the use of a genetic variant, or biomarker, of the gene MDR1 (also known as ABCB1), which encodes P-glycoprotein (PGP).

26 Jun 2008

Nanoparticles trigger built-in cell-death signal to overcome drug resistance

One of the most vexing problems in treating cancer is the propensity of tumors to develop resistance to a wide range of anticancer drugs. Over 70 percent of ovarian cancer patients, for example, have drug-resistant tumors at the time of their initial diagnosis, and virtually all patients who relapse have drug-resistant tumors.

15 Jun 2008

Review of supplement use among US cancer patients

Many of the 10 million cancer patients in the US are taking nutritional supplements, but an accurate assessment of the frequency is not well appreciated.

24 Mar 2008