Emphysema News and Research

Latest Emphysema News and Research

Scientists engineer bacterial cell wall with small molecules to combat diseases

A team of Yale University scientists has engineered the cell wall of the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, tricking it into incorporating foreign small molecules and embedding them within the cell wall.

8 Oct 2010

Merck's boceprevir Phase III studies for HCV to be presented at 61st AASLD

Merck today announced that final results from two pivotal Phase III studies of boceprevir, its investigational oral hepatitis C protease inhibitor, will be presented in oral plenary sessions at the 61st Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), which is taking place from Oct. 29 through Nov. 2 in Boston. Results for boceprevir in response-guided therapy strategies, which evaluated treatment durations shorter than current standard therapy, will be presented during the meeting.

4 Oct 2010

Hundreds of experts including Nobel laureates say Medicare's bidding system for durable medical equipment will fail

Medicare's bidding program for durable medical equipment will fail, say 166 leading experts on auctions and competitive bidding systems.

1 Oct 2010

Rotech Healthcare prices $230 million Senior Secured Notes offering

Rotech Healthcare Inc. announced today the pricing of its offering of $230 million in aggregate principal amount of Senior Secured Notes due 2015. The notes will be sold to investors at a price of 97.189% of the principal amount thereof and will bear a coupon rate equal to 10 ¾ % per annum. The offering is expected to close on October 6, 2010.

30 Sep 2010

Circadian partners with Cincinnati Children's Hospital to develop blood test diagnostic for LAM, a serious lung disease

Circadian Technologies (ASX.CIR) has announced today that it has partnered with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Centre (CCHMC) to develop and market a blood test to diagnose LAM, a serious lung disease that strikes women, usually in their child bearing years.

29 Sep 2010

VENT Study highlights endobronchial approaches to emphysema treatment

Pulmonx, an emerging leader in interventional pulmonology, announced today that the New England Journal of Medicine has published the results of the largest prospective, randomized, controlled study completed to date of endobronchial approaches to emphysema treatment, the VENT Study (Endobronchial Valve for Emphysema PalliatioN Trial).

28 Sep 2010

Rotech Healthcare offers $225 million in Senior Secured Notes due 2015

Rotech Healthcare Inc. announced today that the company intends to offer, subject to market and other conditions, $225 million in aggregate principal amount of Senior Secured Notes due 2015.

27 Sep 2010

ProtAffin presents impressive efficacy data for PA401 in COPD

ProtAffin AG, a biotechnology company developing a novel class of biopharmaceutical products that act by targeting cell-surface glycan structures, today presents compelling preclinical data in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for its lead product PA401 at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Barcelona, Spain. This conference is the largest gathering of scientists and clinicians in the respiratory community in the world. The Oral Presentation will be made in the session "Pre-clinical models of airways disease".

21 Sep 2010

Talecris Biotherapeutics announces 2010 eALTA award recipients

Talecris Biotherapeutics GmbH announced yesterday the recipients of the 2010 European alpha1-antitrypsin Laurell's Training Awards (eALTA). The annual awards, sponsored by Talecris, provide two fellowships of 50,000 euros to young investigators whose research aims to enhance the understanding and treatment of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency (AAT deficiency).

21 Sep 2010

Aeris Therapeutics receives CE Mark approval for AeriSeal System to treat emphysema

Aeris Therapeutics, a company specializing in the development and commercialization of novel treatments for patients with emphysema and other advanced lung diseases, today announced that it has received CE Mark approval for its AeriSeal System.

20 Sep 2010

FDA grants AGTC $1M for Phase II human clinical trial in alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation, a privately-held, clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel systems to deliver human therapeutics, announces that it has received a grant of $1 million from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA Orphan Drugs Program) to fund a Phase II Human Clinical Trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of a treatment for Alpha 1 Antitrypsin Deficiency (AAT), a genetic disease known to result in serious lung and/or liver disease.

17 Sep 2010

Translational Research issue focuses field of stem cell research, therapy

The use of stem cells for research and their possible application in the treatment of disease are hotly debated topics. In a special issue of Translational Research published this month an international group of medical experts presents an in-depth and balanced view of the rapidly evolving field of stem cell research and considers the potential of harnessing stem cells for therapy of human diseases including cardiovascular diseases, renal failure, neurologic disorders, gastrointestinal diseases, pulmonary diseases, neoplastic diseases, and type 1 diabetes mellitus.

10 Sep 2010

Research finds immune system mechanism to minimize collateral damage

A study published today in the journal Science shows how our bodies try to minimise potential 'collateral damage' caused by our immune system when fighting infection. The research may also provide new clues to why cigarette smoke is a significant risk factor for developing diseases of the lung such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

3 Sep 2010

Second-hand smoke triggers complex inflammatory response

Second-hand smoke is associated with a number of diseases and conditions, including cancer, heart disease, and emphysema. It is an irritant to lung tissue and blood vessels, but the processes through which the body reacts to second-hand smoke comprise a mystery scientists are only beginning to unravel. Researchers at the University of Colorado-Denver are currently studying how second-hand smoke affects the lungs of rats, and so far it appears that second-hand smoke triggers a complex inflammatory response.

27 Aug 2010

Baxter announces definitive agreement with Kamada for GLASSIA alpha1-proteinase inhibitor

Baxter International Inc. today announced a definitive agreement with Kamada Ltd. for exclusive commercial rights to GLASSIA™ [Alpha 1-Proteinase Inhibitor (Human)], the first and only liquid alpha1-proteinase inhibitor, in the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

From Baxter International Inc. 24 Aug 2010

Tips for management of COPD

What is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States? Many would be surprised to learn that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is, and the number of people with COPD is increasing. According to the COPD Foundation, more than 12 million Americans are currently diagnosed with COPD and an additional 12 million may not realize their shortness of breath and coughing are in fact symptoms of this debilitating condition.

20 Aug 2010

NAC to deliver education program on asthma management for youth

As children with asthma head back to school this fall, the National Asthma Campaign Foundation (NAC) is partnering with Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago (RHAMC) to deliver Fight Asthma Now (FAN), an asthma education program that teaches youth to control and manage their asthma.

13 Aug 2010

Myths and realities of Medicare bidding program for durable medical equipment

Providers of home medical equipment and services across California are proposing a fiscally responsible alternative to the mislabeled "competitive" bidding scheme currently under way in Medicare that will actually discourage competition, reduce access to care for many of California's 4.6 million Medicare beneficiaries, and put thousands of California homecare providers out of business.

7 Aug 2010

Rotech Healthcare second-quarter adjusted EBITDA increases to $29.2 million

Rotech Healthcare Inc. today announced financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2010.

5 Aug 2010

Merck's two pivotal boceprevir Phase III registration studies for chronic HCV meet primary endpoint

Merck reported that two pivotal Phase III registration studies for boceprevir, its investigational oral hepatitis C protease inhibitor, have been completed and met the primary endpoints: in both studies in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 infection, the addition of boceprevir to treatment with PEGINTRON® and REBETOL® significantly increased the number of patients who achieved sustained virologic response, compared to control groups that received Peg/riba plus placebo.

5 Aug 2010