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TEMSO Phase III Trial shows ARR reduction in multiple sclerosis patients

Sanofi-aventis announced today that the investigational once-daily oral drug teriflunomide significantly reduced annualized relapse rate (ARR) at 2 years versus placebo in patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS), thus achieving the primary endpoint in the TEMSO phase III trial.

30 Aug 2010

New high throughput sequencing technology to identify genetic defects in rare diseases

The majority of rare diseases are hereditary. But despite significant progress in genome research, in most cases their exact cause remains unclear. The discovery of the underlying genetic defect is, however, a prerequisite for their definitive diagnosis and the development of innovative approaches to their treatment. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics and the Institute of Medical Genetics at the Charit- Universit-tsmedizin - Berlin have succeeded in using a new process with which all of the genes in the human genome can be analysed simultaneously.

30 Aug 2010

Study reveals impact of genetic make-up on response to oral antiplatelet treatment ticagrelor

A new genetic substudy of PLATO showed that the effects on a combined primary endpoint of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke seen in Acute Coronary Syndromes patients who received the investigational oral antiplatelet treatment, ticagrelor (BRILINTA), were maintained, whether or not they had the genetic variability that has been previously shown to affect a patient's response to clopidogrel.

30 Aug 2010

GWAS finds new genetic link between Parkinson's disease and inflammation

A hunt throughout the human genome for variants associated with common, late-onset Parkinson's disease has revealed a new genetic link that implicates the immune system and offers new targets for drug development.

30 Aug 2010

New non-invasive method to diagnose osteoarthritis

Researchers at New York University have developed an innovative way to look at the development of osteoarthritis in the knee joint-one that relies on the examination of sodium ions in cartilage. Their work, which appears in the Journal of Magnetic Resonance, may provide a non-invasive method to diagnose osteoarthritis in its very early stages.

30 Aug 2010

Asia-Pacific convention on osteoporosis management

Clinicians, researchers and allied health professionals with an interest in osteoporosis and its prevention, diagnosis and management, are invited to convene in Singapore for the IOF Regionals - 1st Asia-Pacific Osteoporosis Meeting from December 10-13, 2010.

30 Aug 2010

Study finds BMI, thrombogenic factor increases cardiovascular risk

Although having a high body mass index (BMI) is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, researchers are only beginning to understand how BMI affects the physiological processes involved in the development of the disease. Now, a study of a subset of women in the Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study (KEEPS), suggests that as BMI increases, so do platelet reactivity and thrombogenic microvesicles and activated protein C in the blood-all of which contribute to the formation of atherothrombosis and associated cardiovascular events.

30 Aug 2010

Study finds common risk factors linked with painkiller addiction

A new Geisinger study begins to unlock the puzzle of painkiller (opioid) addiction - why some people are more likely to become addicted than others. Geisinger investigators have found that patients with four common risk factors have a significantly higher risk of addiction. In addition, a history of severe drug dependence and drug abuse compounds the risk.

30 Aug 2010

Cigarettes as mood enhancers increase risk of depression

While some teenagers may puff on cigarettes to 'self-medicate' against the blues, scientists at the University of Toronto and the University of Montreal have found that smoking may actually increase depressive symptoms in some adolescents. Published in the journal Addictive Behaviors, the findings are part of the long-term Nicotine Dependence in Teens (NDIT) study based at the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre.

27 Aug 2010

Merck's initiation of IMO-2055 Phase 1b clinical trial in SCCHN triggers €3.0M milestone payment to Idera

Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced that it has achieved a milestone under its worldwide licensing and collaboration agreement with Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. The milestone was achieved upon Merck KGaA's initiation of a Phase 1b clinical trial of IMO-2055 (EMD 1201081), an agonist of Toll-like Receptor 9 (TLR9), in combination with cisplatin, fluorouracil and cetuximab (Erbitux®) in first-line treatment of patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN).

27 Aug 2010

Traumatic brain injury causes $6.8 billion worth of economic trauma in Texas

Each year in Texas, traumatic brain injury (TBI) causes an estimated $6.8 billion worth of economic trauma in terms of deaths, emergency room visits, hospitalizations and disability, according to a study commissioned by the CORE Health Foundation. To put that dollar amount in perspective, it equals Coca-Cola's corporate profit for fiscal 2009.

27 Aug 2010

Transcatheter heart valve replacement recipient celebrates 102nd birthday

When Doris Snyder celebrated her 102nd birthday on August 10, she was that much closer to the expected birth of her first great-granddaughter who's due to arrive early September. She is very excited about the milestone, which might not have been possible were it not for a cutting-edge, experimental procedure that replaced one of Doris' heart valves weeks earlier when she was 101. The valve had been rendered useless by aortic valve stenosis—hardening from calcium deposits that restrict the flow of blood from the heart.

27 Aug 2010

FDA approves Novartis' Tekamlo for treatment of high blood pressure

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Tekamlo™ (aliskiren and amlodipine) tablets, a single-pill for the treatment of high blood pressure combining the only approved direct renin inhibitor, Tekturna® (aliskiren), with the widely used calcium channel blocker amlodipine. Tekamlo is approved as initial therapy for patients who are likely to need multiple drugs to achieve their blood pressure goals, and as replacement therapy for patients whose blood pressure is not adequately controlled with either aliskiren or amlodipine alone.

27 Aug 2010

KemPharm broadens protection for LAT prodrug technology platform for ADHD with second patent

KemPharm, Inc. announced today that it has received a Notice of Issuance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for its patent application entitled "Non-Standard Amino Acid Conjugates of Amphetamine and Processes for Making and Using the Same", U.S. Patent No. 7,776,917 B2. This patent, combined with KemPharm's recently issued U.S. Patent No. 7,772,222, provides broad protection of the Company's Ligand Activated Therapy (LAT) prodrug technology platform and its application to the treatment of Attention Deficit – Hyperactivity Disorder.

27 Aug 2010

Most home care clients rely on informal care from spouse or child

One in six people providing informal care to seniors experiences distress, according to a new study released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), and those caring for seniors with moderate to severe cognitive impairment, such as those with Alzheimer's or other dementia, are most at risk.

27 Aug 2010

Research: Impact of seafood components on human health

Seafood has an enormous potential to promote health. At the same time the opportunities for innovation and value creation are huge. Knowledge and documentation are the keys to success.

27 Aug 2010

APF offers actionable solutions to improve access to pain care

The American Pain Foundation (APF), the nation's largest consumer advocacy organization for people in pain, released today a position statement imploring the medical community, regulators and concerned stakeholders to reaffirm their ethical commitment to the 76.5 million Americans—or one in four people—who struggle with pain, work collaboratively to improve access to pain care and dismantle the barriers preventing timely, appropriate and effective pain care for millions.

27 Aug 2010

Mixed pathologies in brains of elderly account for memory loss and confusion

Most recent studies show that elderly people over the age of 80 often have mixed pathologies in their brains that account for their memory loss and confusion. Very few senior citizens have "pure Alzheimer disease"; therefore, this terminology should be used with caution. It now appears that vascular problems such as high blood pressure and diabetes can shrink the parts of the brain that control memory and can significantly affect at what age elderly people become demented.

27 Aug 2010

World's tallest man undergoes Gamma Knife surgery

Much of Sultan Kosen's eight feet, two-inch stature rose up in an 17-year period starting at age 10, when the benign tumor in his brain's pituitary gland highjacked the organ, causing it to secrete massive amounts of growth hormone, making Mr. Kosen's body grow fast and grow without ceasing. He will need to wait several months to find out if his Gamma Knife® surgery last Thursday at the University of Virginia (UVA, Charlottesville, Va.) has inactivated the tumor and he has reached his final height, but his physicians are optimistic.

27 Aug 2010

Expansion of rapid response systems throughout the Veterans Affairs network can reduce morbidity

Implementing a rapid response team to aid in managing "potentially unstable" patients has led to a sharp reduction in the rate of cardiac arrests at a U.S. Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital, reports a study in the September issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).

27 Aug 2010