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Marcus evans Summit highlights potential growth, innovation in drug discovery

Drug discovery scientists need to broaden their approaches to pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) and Medicinal Chemistry, to take advantage of untapped opportunities, says Torsten Hoffmann, Head Discovery Chemistry at F. Hoffmann La Roche, Basel, Switzerland. Chemical Biology allows room for innovation, but is often overlooked by scientists in the industry.

29 Nov 2010

Selcia announces drug discovery collaboration agreement with Gilead Sciences

Selcia Limited, a leading contract research organisation, today announced a drug discovery collaboration agreement with Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Foster City, California).

29 Nov 2010

Pfizer, Protalix announce marketing authorization submission in Europe for taliglucerase alfa

Pfizer Inc. and Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. today announced the submission of a Marketing Authorization Application to the European Medicines Agency for taliglucerase alfa, a plant-cell expressed form of glucocerebrosidase (GCD)for the treatment of Gaucher disease. Taliglucerase alfa was granted Orphan Designation by the European Commission for the treatment of Gaucher disease on March 23, 2010.

29 Nov 2010

New irreversible covalent approach to inhibit viral protease

Avila Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company developing novel targeted covalent drugs, has published research in Nature Chemical Biology demonstrating the first-ever selective irreversible inhibition of a viral protease using a targeted covalent drug.

28 Nov 2010

GFS solution to Cholera

GFS BioProtect™ Effluent Remediator kills Vibrio cholerae O: 1, serotype Ogawa to Log 3 immediately, and the kill rate for this and several other pathogens continues to improve over time. The product breaks down B Class biomass (latrine and septic tank waste) into A class biomass suitable for reuse.

28 Nov 2010

Pharma enhances its focus on Asia-Pacific partnerships

While the Japanese market still dominates deal activities in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, companies and research institutes in emerging APAC countries have recently been attracting high calibre collaborators, according to the latest analysis by Datamonitor.

28 Nov 2010

Impax initiates patent challenge in connection with SIMCOR

Impax Laboratories, Inc. today confirms that it has initiated a challenge of patents listed in connection with SIMCOR® (niacin/simvastatin) extended-release tablets, 1000/20 mg.

26 Nov 2010

Researchers synthesize iron compounds that inhibit growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

A team of researchers from Spain and Latin America have synthesized two iron compounds that inhibit the in vitro growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that causes tuberculosis. Due their low level of toxicity in mammel cells, the compounds could be used in the future as therapeutic agents and hospital disinfectants.

26 Nov 2010

FDA extends review period of Cladribine Tablets for MS therapy

EMD Serono, an affiliate of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended its review period for Cladribine Tablets as a therapy for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) by three months to February 28, 2011.

26 Nov 2010

Personalized oncology requires new paradigm for drug development, experts say

Millions of cancer patients worldwide may soon be able to receive more effective, personalized treatments for their disease thanks to developments in the understanding of cancer biology, experts will say at the Cancer Biology for Clinicians Symposium organized by the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in Nice this week.

25 Nov 2010

Looking back and moving forward: 100 years of Pneumococcal vaccination

"Since the introduction of smallpox vaccination by Sir Edward Jenner in 1796, it took 184 years until the WHO could declare the world free of smallpox. How long will it take to eliminate pneumococcus from the world?"

25 Nov 2010

Use of aspirin and statins can reduce depression: Study

A study that appears in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics addresses the association between use of aspirin and statins and the risk of major depression.

25 Nov 2010

Further studies needed over use of Proton-Pump Inhibitors in early pregnancy

Despite the reassurances of Pasternak and Hviid in their study, "Use of Proton-Pump Inhibitors (PPI) in Early Pregnancy and the Risk of Birth Defects," featured in the Nov. 24 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, an epidemiologist from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) believes that further studies are needed.

25 Nov 2010

Researchers explain molecular mechanism that induces HER2+ tumours to ignore cell signals

About 30% of breast cancer patients have tumours that show rapid growth and invasion through the body. A common denominator in all of these cases is the presence of a large number of Her2 proteins in tumour cellular membranes. Consequently, these aggressive tumours are referred to as HER2+. Scientists working in the Metastasis Laboratory (MetLab) at IRB Barcelona headed by ICREA researcher Roger Gomis, have described the molecular mechanism that induces HER2+ tumours to ignore the signals that protect cells from excessive growth.

25 Nov 2010

Genzyme meets FDA consent decree by ending fill/finish activities in Allston plant

Genzyme Corporation announced today that the company has ended fill/finish operations within its Allston plant for products sold in the United States, as required by the FDA consent decree.

25 Nov 2010

Specialists suggest U.S. should stockpile cholera vaccines for rapid deployment at disease outbreak

As the cholera epidemic in Haiti continues to rage, public health workers are focusing their efforts on treating the tens of thousands who have already been hospitalized with cholera-like symptoms and providing clean water and adequate sanitation to control the disease's spread.

25 Nov 2010

RCSI review highlights development in drug discovery field

A research review carried out by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) and published in 'Nature Reviews and Drug Discovery' (October 2010) has highlighted the lessons, opportunities and recent developments in the area of drug development for cardiovascular disease, auto-immune disorders and multiple sclerosis.

25 Nov 2010

E. coli host bacterium produces antibiotic erythromycin A

Researchers at Tufts University School of Engineering have reported the first successful production of the antibiotic erythromycin A, and two variations, using E. coli as the production host.

24 Nov 2010

Breastfeeding while taking epilepsy drugs may not affect child's IQ

New research from the Emory University School of Medicine offers reassurance for nursing mothers with epilepsy. According to a study published in the November 24 online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, breastfeeding a baby while taking a seizure medication may have no harmful effect on the child's IQ later in life.

24 Nov 2010

Researchers find IGF1 topical gel can treat sudden sensorineural hearing loss

A new treatment has been developed for sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL), a condition that causes deafness in 40,000 Americans each year, usually in early middle-age.

24 Nov 2010