Hepatitis C News and Research

Latest Hepatitis C News and Research

Medivir reports 24-week interim Phase 2b results of TMC435 in treatment-naïve patients with HCV genotype-1

Medivir announced today 24-week end-of-treatment interim results from the 5-arm phase 2b response guided PILLAR study in 386 treatment-naïve patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype-1 (TMC435-C205).

12 Jul 2010

Deaths from heroin overdoses in Chicago's Cook County fall 16%: Study

A new study by Roosevelt University's Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy shows deaths from heroin overdoses in Chicago's Cook County fell 16 percent during the last decade, but the Chicago metropolitan region still ranks among the worst in the nation for heroin use. Kimberly Dennis, M.D., eating disorder specialist at Chicago's Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center, sees the use of heroin regularly from women and girls she treats and knows the importance of awareness and seeking help to overcome this addiction.

12 Jul 2010

Biomagnetics, LANL collaborate to develop device for tuberculosis diagnosis

Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corp., a developer of revolutionary technology for diagnostic systems for HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis and malaria detection, today announced the signing of an agreement with Los Alamos National Security, LLC where Los Alamos National Laboratory's scientific and engineering staffs will attempt to identify new potential human tuberculosis biomarkers and will develop a validated assay to detect human tuberculosis using a currently known biomarker to be used in combination with the waveguide-based optical biosensor platform.

9 Jul 2010

Report investigates clear cell ICC

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma is a cancer of the bile duct in the liver. The clear cell subtype of ICC is a rare cancer; until now, only 8 cases have been reported. The number of reports is so small that a detail description of clear cell ICC is valuable.

8 Jul 2010

Codex Alimentarius Commission provides new guidance to help improve food safety

The maximum amount of melamine allowed in powdered infant formula is 1 mg/kg and the amount of the chemical allowed in other foods and animal feed is 2.5 mg/kg, according to new rulings from the United Nations' food standards body, Codex Alimentarius Commission.

7 Jul 2010

Data on activity of Nektar's NKTR-102 in gastrointestinal cancer presented at ESMO 12th World Congress

Nektar Therapeutics announced today that data presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 12th World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer demonstrates that NKTR-102, the company's lead oncology compound, exhibits superior activity compared to irinotecan as part of either a monotherapy or combination regimen in tumor models of gastrointestinal cancers.

7 Jul 2010

TWINCORE researchers develop new model approaches for HCV research

The hepatitis C virus is highly specialised. We humans are its natural hosts. The only other living organisms that could be infected with the hepatitis C virus in the lab are chimpanzees. Nevertheless it is - from the viewpoint of the virus - highly successful: around 170 million people are chronically infected with the virus. And with the chronic infection the risk of developing liver cancer also increases.

7 Jul 2010

Biomagnetics Diagnostics signs new CRADA with Los Alamos National Security

Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corp., a developer of revolutionary diagnostic systems and technology for HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis and malaria detection, today announced the signing of a new Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with Los Alamos National Security, LLC for the development of a waveguide-based integrated optical biosensor platform for the detection of disease causing pathogens.

7 Jul 2010

FDA grants Angion Biomedica's BB3 therapeutic Fast Track and Orphan Drug product designations

Angion Biomedica Corp., a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapeutics that enhance quality of life, eradicate disease and save lives by modulating the body's protective, reparative and regenerative systems, announced today that its lead therapeutic BB3 was accepted into the Fast Track program of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and has also been designated an Orphan Drug product by FDA.

7 Jul 2010

Three Rivers Pharmaceuticals receives FDA expanded labeling for INFERGEN

Three Rivers Pharmaceuticals, LLC, today received expanded labeling from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to include daily use of INFERGEN (Consensus Interferon) in combination with ribavirin (RBV) for retreatment of chronic hepatitis C patients. The expanded labeling targets hepatitis C patients who need retreatment.

6 Jul 2010

HTDS, Shenzhen Mellow Hope secure new business partner in Ethiopia

Hard to Treat Diseases, Inc. and Shenzhen Mellow Hope are excited to announce that the company has secured a new business partner in Ethiopia through which Mellow Hope will distribute biomedical vaccines.

6 Jul 2010

EU requirement for HIV, hepatitis screening of ART couples at each donation unnecessary, distressing

European legislation that requires all couples undergoing assisted reproduction treatment (ART) to be screened for HIV and hepatitis at the time of every sperm or egg donation is unnecessary, expensive, and potentially distressing for patients, the 26th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology heard Monday.

2 Jul 2010

Clemizole can yield high-level synergy with protease inhibitor class: Research

Eiger BioPharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company developing antiviral therapies, announced today the publication of research from the lab of Stanford scientist and Eiger Founder, Dr. Jeffrey Glenn, M.D., Ph.D. and colleagues entitled, "The Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) NS4B RNA Binding Inhibitor Clemizole is Highly Synergistic with HCV Protease Inhibitors".

2 Jul 2010

Virus related to hepatitis C discovered in Asian bats

Viral hepatitis affects more than 500 million people worldwide and is a cause of liver failure and liver cancer. While vaccines are available for hepatitis A and B, this is not the case for hepatitis C, which affects as much as two percent of the population in the U.S. Scientists today are reporting discovery of a virus related to hepatitis C in Asian bats, which may provide insights into the origins of the hepatitis C virus and into the mechanisms by which infectious diseases move from other species to humans.

2 Jul 2010

New formula may speed up organ allocation process, improve transplant outcomes

Only a small fraction of transplant centers nationwide are willing to accept and transplant deceased-donor kidneys that they perceive as less than perfect, leading to lengthy, organ-damaging delays as officials use a one-by-one approach to find a willing taker.

2 Jul 2010

Ecolab launches Virasept to treat Clostridium difficile spores

Ecolab Inc. today announced the launch of Virasept, Ecolab's first ready-to-use (no mixing required) hard surface disinfectant approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to be effective against Clostridium difficile spores.

1 Jul 2010

Call for incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies

Three leading scientific and health policy organizations today launched a global drive for signatories to the Vienna Declaration, a statement seeking to improve community health and safety by calling for the incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies. Among those supporting the declaration and urging others to sign is 2008 Nobel Laureate and International AIDS Society (IAS) Governing Council member Prof. Fran-oise Barr--Sinoussi, co-discoverer of HIV.

30 Jun 2010

Repeated viral screening for ART patients unnecessary with each donation

30 Jun 2010

UCLA School of Dentistry awarded NIH grant to study methamphetamine's oral, dental health consequences

The abuse of methamphetamine - a powerful and highly addictive psychostimulant that is toxic to the nervous system - has reached epidemic proportions in many parts of the United States. The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that more than 10 million Americans have tried methamphetamine, while more than 1.4 million are habitual users.

30 Jun 2010

Study investigates efficacy of SWV measurement in evaluation of NASH pathophysiology using ultrasound

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is manifestation of metabolic syndrome in the liver and is a pandemic over the globe especially in the developed countries, based on a high calorie diet and sedentary life style. As in the other types of chronic hepatitis, collagen fibers continuously accumulate in the liver through the course of NASH toward cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma development.

29 Jun 2010