Small Molecules News and Research

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Evotec to acquire DeveloGen

Evotec AG today announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire DeveloGen, a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery of novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment of metabolic and endocrine disorders, for up to €14m in shares plus performance-related deferred payments (earn-out).

15 Jul 2010

Promising study may lead to potential new therapeutics for women facing triple-negative breast cancer

Using a small molecule decoy, investigators funded by the Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation have managed to block protein interactions and induce epigenetic reprogramming in human and mouse breast cancer cells, essentially changing the gene expression of breast cancer cells to behave in a more normal manner.

9 Jul 2010

Calithera Biosciences completes Series A financing totaling $40M

Calithera Biosciences, a company developing novel oncology therapeutics, today announced the completion of a Series A financing totaling $40 million. Morgenthaler Ventures led the financing with U.S. Venture Partners, Advanced Technology Ventures, Delphi Ventures and Mission Bay Capital also participating in the round. The capital will be used to support the company's pioneering efforts to develop activators of caspases, the proteases that promote apoptotic cell death, for the treatment of cancer and other proliferative diseases.

8 Jul 2010

Selvita, Orion collaborate to develop and commercialize SEL103 Alzheimer’s disease program

Selvita sp. z o.o., from Krakow, Poland and Orion Corporation from Espoo, Finland (ORNBV) today announced that they have entered into a global collaboration to jointly develop and commercialize SEL103, Selvita's proprietary program for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive disorders. Selvita will be responsible for early research on the program and Orion will take over the pre-clinical and clinical development as well as further commercialization.

8 Jul 2010

Florida Biomedical Research Program awards $2M in grants to Scripps Research Institute scientists

The Florida Biomedical Research Program has awarded $2 million in biomedical research grants to three scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute.

1 Jul 2010

Metabolex, Sanofi-Aventis sign global license deal to develop GPR119 for type 2 diabetes treatment

Metabolex and Sanofi-Aventis announced today that they have entered into a global license and development agreement for the research, development, manufacture and commercialization of small molecules that modulate the G-protein coupled receptor 119 (GPR119), a receptor in the gut and pancreas that interacts with bioactive lipids to stimulate glucose-dependent incretin and insulin secretion.

30 Jun 2010

Overview of scientific research on medical technology to combat anthrax threat

The 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States are fostering development of a new generation of vaccines, antibiotics, and other medications to protect people against the potentially deadly bacteria in any future bioterrorist incident. That's the conclusion of a sweeping overview of scientific research on medical technology to combat the anthrax threat. It appears in ACS' bi-weekly Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.

25 Jun 2010

MonoSol Rx, Midatech collaborate to develop peptides for therapeutic delivery utilizing pharmaceutical films

MonoSol Rx, the developer of PharmFilm® drug delivery technology, today announced the expansion of its agreement with Midatech Group (Oxford, UK) to develop nanoparticle-based proteins and peptides for therapeutic delivery utilizing pharmaceutical films. Under the terms of the expanded agreement, MonoSol Rx has made an equity investment in Midatech and Keith Kendall, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of MonoSol Rx, will join the Midatech Board of Directors.

24 Jun 2010

Ensemble Discovery announces name change to Ensemble Therapeutics Corporation

Ensemble Discovery today announced that it will begin operating as Ensemble Therapeutics Corporation to reflect the Company's progress and emerging pipeline by applying its macrocycle drug platform to develop novel therapeutics. The new name, Ensemble Therapeutics, conveys the company's leadership and advancement in developing novel macrocycle drug compounds that are small molecules with expanded therapeutic properties of large molecule biological drugs.

22 Jun 2010

UC Irvine researchers create "plastic antibodies"

UC Irvine researchers have developed the first "plastic antibodies" successfully employed in live organisms - stopping the spread of bee venom through the bloodstream of mice.

22 Jun 2010

PAS technique to predict how blood platelets respond to complex conditions found during heart attack

A team of bioengineers from the University of Pennsylvania Institute for Medicine and Engineering have trained a computer neural network model to accurately predict how blood platelets would respond to complex conditions found during a heart attack or stroke.

21 Jun 2010

Bayer, OncoMed collaborate to develop anti-cancer stem cell therapeutics to target Wnt signaling pathway

Bayer Schering Pharma AG and OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced a global strategic alliance to discover, develop and commercialize novel anti-cancer stem cell therapeutics targeting the Wnt signaling pathway.

17 Jun 2010

OncoMed, Bayer Schering Pharma to develop and commercialize novel anti-cancer stem cell therapeutics

OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Germany, today announced a global strategic alliance to discover, develop and commercialize novel anti-cancer stem cell therapeutics targeting the Wnt signaling pathway. Cancer stem cells are a subset of tumor cells believed to play a significant role in the establishment, metastasis and recurrence of cancer.

17 Jun 2010

Chiasma successfully completes Phase I clinical study of Octreolin

Chiasma, Inc., a privately held biopharma company, announced that it has successfully completed a Phase I clinical study evaluating the safety and pharmacokinetics (PK) of its proprietary product Octreolin, which contains the active ingredient octreotide actetate and is administered orally

14 Jun 2010

Pfizer to join SGC-led collaboration to generate chemical probes for proteins involved in epigenetic signalling

The Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC) and Pfizer today announced that Pfizer will join the SGC-led public-private collaboration to generate small molecule inhibitors - "chemical probes" - for proteins involved in epigenetic signalling.

11 Jun 2010

Scientists develop plastic antibody that works in bloodstream of living animal

Scientists are reporting the first evidence that a plastic antibody - an artificial version of the proteins produced by the body's immune system to recognize and fight infections and foreign substances - works in the bloodstream of a living animal. The discovery, they suggest in a report in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, is an advance toward medical use of simple plastic particles custom tailored to fight an array of troublesome "antigens."

10 Jun 2010

Ascenta Therapeutics, sanofi-aventis sign global licensing agreement for cancer drug candidates

Ascenta Therapeutics announced today the signing of a global collaboration and licensing agreement with sanofi-aventis covering several early-stage agents being investigated for their potential to restore tumor cell apoptosis (programmed cell death). These orally-active, small-molecule drug candidates inhibit the interaction between HDM2 (Human Double Minute 2) and p53, removing a block to normal p53 tumor suppressor function and potentially enhancing cancer control and treatment.

4 Jun 2010

Merck launches Oncology Collaborative Trials Network

Today, Merck announced the launch of the Merck Oncology Collaborative Trials Network, a pioneering clinical trial network focusing on the development of Merck drug and vaccine candidates being investigated for the treatment and prevention of cancer. The global network comprises leading cancer research centers who will partner with Merck to speed the development of innovative treatments for a range of cancers.

4 Jun 2010

Nanosponge delivery system more effective at reducing tumor growth than direct injection: Study

When loaded with an anticancer drug, a delivery system based on a novel material called nanosponge is three to five times more effective at reducing tumor growth than direct injection.

3 Jun 2010

Small molecule ramps up interferon production in host cells, launching potent immune response

Many disease-causing microbes carry pumps that expel antibiotics, making the bugs hard to kill with standard drugs. Ironically, these same pumps could be the bugs' Achilles heel.

28 May 2010