Nervous System News and Research

Latest Nervous System News and Research

ALS TDI and Oxford BioMedica extend collaboration to develop gene therapies for Lou Gehrig's disease

The ALS Therapy Development Institute and Oxford BioMedica announced today the extension of their collaboration following successful completion of the first phase. The extended collaboration, which is funded by the Muscular Dystrophy Association, aims to advance the development of Oxford BioMedica's preclinical gene therapy candidate, MoNuDin®, and to evaluate other gene-based strategies for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease).

28 Jan 2010

Children with cancer are treated with proton therapy at ProCure Proton Therapy Center

Children with cancer are now being accepted for treatment at the ProCure Proton Therapy Center in Oklahoma, where a wide range of tumors are treated with proton therapy, an alternative to X-ray radiation that spares healthy tissue and results in far fewer short- and long-term treatment side effects.

28 Jan 2010

Sepracor's STEDESA NDA: FDA extends PDUFA action date

Sepracor Inc. today announced that it has received notification from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the agency now anticipates completing its review of the STEDESA™ (eslicarbazepine acetate) New Drug Application (NDA) on April 30, 2010, which is a three-month extension to the original Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) date of January 30, 2010.

28 Jan 2010

Abbott declares quarterly dividend of 40 cents per share

Abbott today announced financial results for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2009.

27 Jan 2010

US PTO grants new allowances to intellectual property covering Neurologix' GAD based delivery systems

Neurologix, Inc., a biotechnology company engaged in the development of innovative therapies for the brain and central nervous system, announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (US PTO) has expanded the intellectual property protections enabled by a previously issued patent that is central to Neurologix’s Parkinson’s disease program. The new allowances to U.S. Patent Number 765,446, entitled “Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) based delivery systems,” broaden the patent’s coverage beyond Parkinson’s disease to include the use of GAD65 in the treatment of other neurological and related disorders.

27 Jan 2010

Geron collaborates to explore hESC-based product for Alzheimer’s disease

Geron Corporation today announced that it has entered into a collaboration jointly funded by Geron and a University of California Discovery Research and Training Grant to investigate the therapeutic potential of its human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-based product, GRNOPC1, for Alzheimer’s disease. The company is currently developing GRNOPC1 for the potential treatment of spinal cord injury.

27 Jan 2010

EpiCept's NP-1 for treatment of PHN receives FDA orphan drug designation

EpiCept Corporation announced today that EpiCeptTM NP-1 has been granted orphan drug designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN). NP-1 is a prescription topical analgesic cream designed to provide long-term relief from the pain of peripheral neuropathies.

27 Jan 2010

AAN guideline finds diazepam drug is effective for treating children with cerebral palsy

A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology and the Child Neurology Society finds botulinum toxin type A to be an effective treatment for spasticity, muscle tightness that interferes with movement, in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy, but poses some risk.

27 Jan 2010

Elan Drug Technologies issues statement on FDA approval of AMPYRA

Elan Drug Technologies, a business unit of Elan Corporation, plc (NYSE: ELN) today issued the following statement regarding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of AMPYRA™ (dalfampridine) as a treatment to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

25 Jan 2010

Heart research news and updates from University of Houston

Matters of the heart dominate in February with Valentine's Day and the American Heart Association's 'Heart Month' topping the list. As you consider story ideas ranging from heart disease to relationships, keep in mind these resources from the University of Houston.

23 Jan 2010

FDA's Ampyra approval wonderful news for people with MS experiencing walking problems

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the marketing of Ampyra™ (dalfampridine, formerly known as fampridine SR, from Acorda Therapeutics) for its ability to improve walking speed in people with any type of multiple sclerosis.

23 Jan 2010

FDA approves fampridine-SR drug for treatment of multiple sclerosis

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the drug fampridine-SR for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) have been evaluating the effects of the drug in MS for more than 10 years- it is the first medication shown to enhance some neurological functions in people with the disease - and their efforts helped pave the way for today's action by the FDA.

23 Jan 2010

Ampyra receives FDA approval for improving walking in MS patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Ampyra (dalfampridine) extended release tablets to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). In clinical trials, patients treated with Ampyra had faster walking speeds than those treated with an inactive pill (placebo). This is the first drug approved for this use.

23 Jan 2010

Biovail comments on Teva Pharmaceutical's proposed Budeprion XL trial

Biovail Corporation today commented on a proposed clinical trial recently announced by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. According to Teva, the trial is intended to address reports of inefficacy and adverse events by consumers who switched from Wellbutrin XL® 300 mg, Biovail’s FDA-approved brand of the antidepressant, bupropion hydrochloride, to Budeprion XL, Teva’s generic formulation of the drug. The trial was described in a Dow Jones Newswire article dated December 2, 2009.

22 Jan 2010

Acorda Therapeutics receives marketing approval from FDA for AMPYRA

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that it has received marketing approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for AMPYRA™ (dalfampridine), an oral treatment to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

22 Jan 2010

The American Journal of Pathology: Highlights from February 2010 issue

A group led by Dr. Peter Lloyd Jones at the University of Dundee, Dundee, Scotland; the University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO; and the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA has demonstrated that tenascin-C affects proto-oncogene function in breast cancer. Their report can be found in the February 2010 issue of The American Journal of Pathology.

22 Jan 2010

Postdoctoral scientists receive prestigious award; grants totaling $1.54 million will help in funding innovative projects

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on supporting exceptional early career researchers and innovative cancer research, named 11 new Damon Runyon Fellows at its November 2009 Fellowship Award Committee review.

22 Jan 2010

Vitamin D insufficiency associated with higher risk of relapse attacks in patients with MS

Low vitamin D blood levels are associated with a significantly higher risk of relapse attacks in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who develop the disease during childhood, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco.

22 Jan 2010

Update on the status of Somaxon Pharmaceuticals' NDA for Silenor provided

Somaxon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the in-licensing, development and commercialization of proprietary branded pharmaceutical products and late-stage product candidates for the treatment of diseases and disorders in the central nervous system therapeutic area, today provided an update on the status of its New Drug Application (NDA) for Silenor® (doxepin) for the treatment of insomnia.

22 Jan 2010

Neuralstem announces treatment of first ALS patient with spinal cord stem cells

Neuralstem, Inc. announced that the first ALS patient was treated with its spinal cord stem cells yesterday at the Emory ALS Center at Emory University, in Atlanta, GA. A total of up to 18 patients is planned to be treated in this first U.S. clinical trial to evaluate human neural stem cells for the treatment of ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease). ALS affects roughly 30,000 people in the U.S., with about 5,600 new diagnoses per year, according to the ALS Association.

21 Jan 2010