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Mutagenic drugs designed to kill viruses may make them stronger, says research

As the flu season continues in full-swing, most people can appreciate the need for drugs that stop viruses after they take hold in the body. Despite this serious need for new drugs, a team of researchers from the University of Texas at Austin raise serious concerns about an emerging strategy for stopping viral infections.

18 Jan 2010

Over-the-counter medications can help manage minor ailments

Nonprescription medications in the home medicine cabinet could save a trip to the doctor. The January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter lists more than a dozen over-the-counter medications that can help manage minor ailments.

18 Jan 2010

Environmental health groups call for ban on BPA from all food applications

Environmental health advocates responded to today's announcement that Food and Drug Administration concurs with the National Toxicology Program's assessment that bisphenol A is a chemical of concern. FDA posted tips for parents to minimize children's exposure, and announced further research. BPA is a synthetic sex hormone linked to cancer, behavioral changes, reproductive harm, heart problems and other illnesses.

18 Jan 2010

FDA extends Tarceva's sNDA review period

OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Genentech, Inc., a wholly owned member of the Roche Group, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended the review period for the supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for Tarceva® (erlotinib) as a first-line maintenance therapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by an additional 90 days.

18 Jan 2010

Obama signals interest in reducing the protections for biologic drugs

Lobbyists for generic biologic drugmakers are fighting to undercut a provision in the proposed health overhaul that would protect brand-name pharmaceutical companies from lower-cost, generic competition over new products for 12 years, the Associated Press reports. The generic companies have friends in high places: "White House officials and Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, are trying to reduce the curbs against competition to 10 years or less" (Fram, 1/14).

18 Jan 2010

Fertility drugs cause a high percentage of multiple births; contribute to growing crisis of prematurity

The widespread use of so-called fertility drugs, not just high-tech laboratory procedures, likely plays a larger role than previously realized in the growing problem of premature births in the United States, because these drugs cause a high percentage of multiple births, the March of Dimes said today.

18 Jan 2010

Safety concerns of acetaminophen

The pain reliever acetaminophen is one of the safest and most effective drugs on the market. It's often recommended instead of aspirin as a day-to-day pain reliever because it's much easier on the stomach than other over-the-counter options and is considered safe when taken properly.

18 Jan 2010

Scientists develop alternative method for producing active ingredient in Tamiflu

Scientists have developed an alternative method for producing the active ingredient in Tamiflu-, the mainstay for fighting H1N1 and other forms of influenza. The new process could expand availability of the drug by reducing its cost, which now retails for as about $8 per dose.

18 Jan 2010

Kenta Biotech and Rentschler Biotechnologie sign agreement to develop antibody against MRSA

Kenta Biotech today announced an agreement with Rentschler Biotechnologie for the development of a fully human monoclonal antibody against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

18 Jan 2010

Dartmouth researchers to develop and market a drug throughout Asia for treatment of CKD

Thanks in part to more than a decade of preclinical work by Dartmouth researchers, a Japanese biopharmaceutical firm is preparing to develop and market throughout Asia a drug for the treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD).

18 Jan 2010

FTC wants to ban 'pay-to-delay' settlements related to generic drugs

The Associated Press/USA Today: "The Federal Trade Commission says patent settlements between drugmakers that cost U.S. consumers billions each year are on the rise. The agency reported Wednesday that the number of lucrative settlements between brand-name and generic drug companies rose to 19 last year from 16 in 2008 and 14 the year before."

18 Jan 2010

FDA grants orphan drug exclusivity approval for Octapharma AG's wilate

Octapharma AG, one of the largest manufacturers of plasma products in the world, today announced that it has received orphan drug exclusivity approval for wilate® from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

18 Jan 2010

Shionogi receives approval to develop and commercialize intravenous peramivir in Japan

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that its partner, Shionogi & Co., Ltd. has received marketing and manufacturing approval for intravenous (i.v.) peramivir to treat patients with influenza in Japan.

13 Jan 2010

Medical Marijuana praises New Jersey State Assembly for removing state-wide penalties on marijuana use

Medical Marijuana Inc applauds the New Jersey State Assembly and Senate for having approved "The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act" on Monday, January 11, 2010. A804/S119 removes state-wide penalties for possession of up to two ounces of marijuana when a New Jersey licensed Physician recommends it for one of the qualified medical conditions including Aids, Cancer, Multiple Sclerosis and Crohn's disease among others.

13 Jan 2010

Law enforcement and community activists join hands to support anti-marijuana cause

With President Obama leading the charge against legalization of marijuana in what he calls a "new era of responsibility," a cultural change is taking place in California as more and more community activists join law enforcement officers, former drug addicts and faith-based leaders in support of the anti-marijuana cause.

13 Jan 2010

Webinar to assist pharmaceutical companies on how to measure effectiveness of Medication Guides

More than 80 Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) plans have been approved by the Food & Drug Administration since their inception in March 2008. Now, pharmaceutical companies must formally assess and report on how well these plans have actually been working in reducing drug risks, a mandated step in the REMS process.

13 Jan 2010

Sudden deaths attributed to cocaine use; drug remains a growing health problem in Europe

Forensic pathologists have shown that over three per cent of all sudden deaths in south-west Spain are related to the use of cocaine. They believe their findings can be extrapolated to much of the rest of Europe, indicating that cocaine use is a growing public health problem in Europe and that there is no such thing as "safe" recreational use of small amounts of the drug.

13 Jan 2010

Whitley urges public to get vaccinated against H1N1 influenza virus

With several months left in the influenza season and growing supplies of vaccine, now is an opportune time to get vaccinated against the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, says Richard Whitley, M.D., director of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and current president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA).

13 Jan 2010

Teenage girls are not receiving HPV vaccine, says report

In 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine for girls and women ages 9 to 26. As part of Cervical Cancer Awareness Month in January, experts at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center review what we have learned about this controversial vaccine in the past four years.

13 Jan 2010

Growth hormone deficiency can lead to memory deficits later in life

Scientists have shown that early growth hormone supplementation in rats with growth hormone deficiency can prevent defects in memory developing later in adulthood. The study, published in the Journal of Endocrinology is the first to show that memory defects in adults as a result of growth hormone deficiency arising in childhood can be prevented by growth hormone treatment during adolescence.

13 Jan 2010

Pharmaceutical News

Mutagenic drugs designed to kill viruses may make them stronger, says research

Over-the-counter medications can help manage minor ailments

Environmental health groups call for ban on BPA from all food applications

FDA extends Tarceva's sNDA review period

Obama signals interest in reducing the protections for biologic drugs

Fertility drugs cause a high percentage of multiple births; contribute to growing crisis of prematurity

Safety concerns of acetaminophen

Scientists develop alternative method for producing active ingredient in Tamiflu

Kenta Biotech and Rentschler Biotechnologie sign agreement to develop antibody against MRSA

Dartmouth researchers to develop and market a drug throughout Asia for treatment of CKD

FTC wants to ban 'pay-to-delay' settlements related to generic drugs

FDA grants orphan drug exclusivity approval for Octapharma AG's wilate

Shionogi receives approval to develop and commercialize intravenous peramivir in Japan

Medical Marijuana praises New Jersey State Assembly for removing state-wide penalties on marijuana use

Law enforcement and community activists join hands to support anti-marijuana cause

Webinar to assist pharmaceutical companies on how to measure effectiveness of Medication Guides

Sudden deaths attributed to cocaine use; drug remains a growing health problem in Europe

Whitley urges public to get vaccinated against H1N1 influenza virus

Teenage girls are not receiving HPV vaccine, says report

Growth hormone deficiency can lead to memory deficits later in life

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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