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EC grants orphan drug designation for MP4CO for treating sickle cell disease

Sangart, Inc., a global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing life-saving medicines specifically designed to enhance the perfusion and oxygenation of ischemic (oxygen deprived) tissues through targeted oxygen and other gas delivery, today announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted orphan medicinal product designation for MP4CO for the treatment of sickle cell disease.

10 Dec 2009

Sanofi Pasteur expands dengue vaccine clinical program in Latin America

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of the sanofi-aventis Group (EURONEXT: SAN and SNY), announced today the expansion of its dengue vaccine clinical program in Latin America with a new multicenter study in children and adolescent in Mexico, Colombia, Honduras and Puerto Rico. This new multicenter study complements an earlier study in Mexico and an ongoing study in Peru.

10 Dec 2009

Low doses of lidocaine given intravenously help control pain after ambulatory surgery procedures

Although lidocaine is most often used as a local anesthetic, low doses of lidocaine given intravenously can help to control pain after common ambulatory surgery procedures, suggests a study in the December issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).

10 Dec 2009

Study reveals increased discussion on flu vaccines has no significant impact on public's behavior

Seasonal flu vaccination rates among American adults have only slightly improved over last year, despite increased public discussion of the importance of influenza vaccines resulting from the worldwide outbreak of the H1N1 virus.

10 Dec 2009

Perrigo files Abbreviated New Drug Application for Clobex Spray

Perrigo Company today announced that it has filed an Abbreviated New Drug Application for Clobetasol Propionate Topical Spray, 0.05%, a generic form of Clobex® Spray.

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

New research suggests cancer drug may also help patients suffering from asthma

Scientists at the University of Edinburgh found that the drug - R-Roscovitine - helps to kill certain immune cells which can exacerbate symptoms associated with asthma.

10 Dec 2009

Pharmaceutical industry to execute new strategies in the coming year

As they pop the champagne corks to celebrate New Year's Eve, drug industry executives will likely be glad to put 2009 behind them. That's because pharmaceutical companies who make top-selling drugs for heart disease, asthma, and many other conditions had a tough year in the midst of mounting market pressures and a global recession.

10 Dec 2009

FDA launches workshop to simplify orphan drug development

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced the launch of an orphan drug workshop series--an opportunity for biotechnology companies, pharmaceutical firms, academics and other interested parties to spend two days creating applications for orphan status designation, under the guidance of staff from FDA's Office of Orphan Products Development (OOPD).

9 Dec 2009

Pacific Beach BioSciences signs licensing agreement with major pharmaceutical company

Pacific Beach BioSciences, Inc. today reported that it has granted non-exclusive rights to a large pharmaceutical company for the use of one of its anti-fungal compounds required for the manufacturing of a clinical stage product.

9 Dec 2009

Alternative, fast and safe process for producing large quantities of effective flu vaccines

A shortage of flu vaccines may soon become a problem of the past. Researcher Manon Cox has developed an alternative process for producing large quantities of safe and effective vaccines at twice to four times the usual speed. The process is based on using cells in bioreactors instead of fertilised chicken's eggs, which have a limited availability.

9 Dec 2009

Drug makers attract scrutiny over cost and ads, but may benefit from overhaul

Drug makers came under scrutiny after the AARP published research recently showing their wholesale prices had increased by an average of 9.3 percent during the past year, offsetting the value of rebates the industry promised as part of a health care overhaul to help seniors pay for drugs.

9 Dec 2009

USPTO grants CyDex Pharmaceuticals patent for Captisol

CyDex Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a patent to the company entitled “Sulfoalkyl Ether Cyclodextrin Compositions and Methods of Preparation Thereof.” This patent, along with other previously issued technology patents, will provide broader protection for CyDex’s Captisol® technology until 2028.

9 Dec 2009

Misuse of blood thinners in dialysis patients reported

Reuters/ABC News reports on research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association that examined the misuse of two blood thinners - Lovenox and Integrilin - in "about 20 percent of kidney dialysis patients who undergo a procedure to open a blocked artery [who] are given the wrong blood clot medicine, increasing the chances of significant bleeding, researchers said Tuesday.

9 Dec 2009

Newly created line of skin care products based on ISCO’s proprietary Parthenogenic Stem Cells

Lifeline Skin Care, Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of International Stem Cell Corporation, announced today that it has retained the services of a highly experienced expert in the skin care industry, Raulee Marcus, to help design a marketing program for its newly created line of skin care products based on ISCO’s proprietary Parthenogenic Stem Cells.

9 Dec 2009

Protalix Biotherapeutics completes NDA submission for taliglucerase alfa

Protalix Biotherapeutics, Inc. today announced the completion of its New Drug Application (NDA) submission with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for taliglucerase alfa, a plant-cell expressed form of glucocerebrosidase (GCD) for the potential treatment of Gaucher’s disease.

9 Dec 2009

Particle Sciences expands High Potency Compound handling capabilities

Particle Sciences Inc. (PSI), a leading pharmaceutical CRO, has further expanded their High Potency Compound (HPC) handling capabilities through a unique relationship with IES Engineers.

9 Dec 2009

AHS annual meeting focuses on myeloma, says IMF

The International Myeloma Foundation (IMF)—supporting research and providing education, advocacy and support for myeloma patients, families, researchers and physicians— says a large number of abstracts – nearly a quarter of the presentations submitted this year to the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) were for myeloma, with one being presented at the prestigious plenary session.

9 Dec 2009

Report on the community-acquired pneumonia drug market

Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that the patent expiries of three blockbuster antibiotics -- levofloxacin, moxifloxacin and piperacillin/tazobactam -- will be the primary factors contributing to a decline of more than 15 percent in the community-acquired pneumonia drug market though 2018.

9 Dec 2009

New drug designed to stop cancer from spreading by preventing mitosis

TGen Clinical Research Services at Scottsdale Healthcare (TCRS) is the world's first clinical trials site for a new drug designed to halt cancer cell division.

9 Dec 2009