Schizophrenia News and Research

Latest Schizophrenia News and Research

Merck hosts R&D and Business Briefing

Merck & Co., Inc. today hosted its first R&D and Business Briefing since the completion of the Merck and Schering-Plough merger. The event included a comprehensive review of the company's late-stage pipeline, as well as the company's commercial strategy and progress made in the integration of Merck's worldwide operations.

12 May 2010

Regular exercise plays important role in improving wellbeing of patients with schizophrenia: Review

Regular exercise can play an important a role in improving the physical and mental wellbeing of individuals with schizophrenia, according to a review published in The Cochrane Library.

12 May 2010

Phase IIb study of EVP-6124 initiated in patients with Alzheimer's disease

EnVivo Pharmaceuticals today announced the initiation and dosing of patients in a Phase IIb study of its EVP-6124 compound, a selective alpha-7 nicotinic agonist in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease.

12 May 2010

Gene variations may increase risk of developing schizophrenia: Study

By analyzing the genomes of patients with schizophrenia, genetics researchers have discovered numerous copy number variations—deletions or duplications of DNA sequences—that increase the risk of developing schizophrenia. Significantly, many of these variations occur in genes that affect signaling among brain cells.

11 May 2010

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals reports increased revenue in first-quarter 2010

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company utilizing innovative technology to fuel drug discovery and clinical development of novel treatments for central nervous system disorders, today reported its unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010.

11 May 2010

CrystalGenomics completes European Phase I SAD study of CG400549 antibiotic candidate

CrystalGenomics, Inc., a novel drug R&D company announced today that the Phase I SAD (Single Ascending Dose) study for its novel antibiotic candidate, CG400549, has been successfully completed in Europe.

11 May 2010

A cutting-edge symposium sheds light on the possibilities of molecular neuroimaging

SNM's Molecular Imaging Center of Excellence wrapped up its Molecular Neuroimaging Symposium today in Bethesda, Md., at the Natcher Auditorium of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

10 May 2010

Biovail reports 27% increase in first-quarter 2010 total revenues

Biovail Corporation today announced its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2010.

6 May 2010

Scientists use specialized fluorescent protein to study nerve cell activity

Electrical currents are invisible to the naked eye - at least they are when they flow through metal cables. In nerve cells, however, scientists are able to make electrical signals visible. Working with fellow experts from Switzerland and Japan, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg successfully used a specialized fluorescent protein to visualize electrical activity in neurons of living mice.

6 May 2010

Making stem cells in the lab: a training program and a study

Young researchers will now be trained for the first time by the Australian Stem Cell Centre (ASCC) in scientific techniques of using and growing human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells in research. This training will be through StemCore iPS Cell Workshop, the ASCC's national facility for the provision of stem cells and advice.

5 May 2010

Understanding the biology of postpartum blues

Greater levels of a brain protein called monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) - may explain why postpartum blues and clinical depression are so common after childbirth according to an important study published today in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

5 May 2010

Targacept, AstraZeneca expand TC-5619 development program to include ADHD, Alzheimer's disease

Targacept, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel NNR Therapeutics (TM), today announced an amendment to its 2005 collaboration agreement with AstraZeneca expanding the TC-5619 development program. In addition to the current development of TC-5619 in cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia (CDS), the amended terms provide for parallel development in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and potentially Alzheimer's disease.

3 May 2010

Psychotic symptoms in children

Children normally experience flights of fancy, including imaginary friends and conversations with stuffed animals, but some of them are also having hallucinations and delusions which might be the early signs of psychosis.

3 May 2010

SGB procedure holds potential promise for PTSD treatment

Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda, MD, has published case reports detailing the successful treatment of combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder with a stellate ganglion block.

3 May 2010

Researchers use healthy person's complete genome sequence to predict risk for dozens of diseases

For the first time, researchers have used a healthy person's complete genome sequence to predict his risk for dozens of diseases and how he will respond to several common medications. The risk analysis, from the Stanford University School of Medicine, also incorporates more-traditional information such as a patient's age and gender and other clinical measurements.

30 Apr 2010

Oxytocin enhances ability to experience fellow-feeling

48 healthy males participated in the experiment. Half received an oxytocin nose spray at the start of the experiment, the other half a placebo. The researchers then showed their test subjects photos of emotionally charged situations in the form of a crying child, a girl hugging her cat, and a grieving man. The test subjects were then invited to express the depth of feeling they experienced for the persons shown.

30 Apr 2010

Astrazeneca settles drug marketing lawsuit, plea deal rejected for possibly defective heart device maker

The New York Times: AstraZeneca has settled a case and agreed to pay $520 million after federal investigations into its marketing practices for a schizophrenia drug, Seroquel. The announcement came Tuesday from Attorney General Eric Holder. Government officials, including Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, said the company paid illegal kickbacks to doctors to promote drugs for unapproved uses by children, the elderly, veterans and prisoners, which is illegal under federal law.

29 Apr 2010

AstraZeneca to pay $520 million in largest pharmaceutical civil settlement

AstraZeneca will pay the federal government $520 million in civil fines to settle charges of off-label marketing of the powerful antipsychotic drug Seroquel. The settlement is the largest pharmaceutical civil settlement and among the top five civil and criminal drug company settlements in U.S. history.

28 Apr 2010

Freedland Russo announces $520M settlement over Seroquel marketing practice lawsuit against AstraZeneca

Freedland Russo is pleased that Eric Holder, U.S. Attorney General, announced the $520 million dollar settlement of a lawsuit filed against AstraZeneca. The settlement announced today in Philadelphia indicates marketing practices for Seroquel included promotion of the drug by physicians participating in clinical studies and drug sales representatives encouraging doctors to prescribe for the unapproved uses.

28 Apr 2010

Slitrk5 gene linked to development of OCD-like behaviors

Researchers at the Ansary Stem Cell Institute and the Department of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College discovered that mice missing a single gene developed repetitive obsessive-compulsive-like behaviors. The genetically altered mice, which behaved much like people with a certain type of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), could help scientists design new therapies for this debilitating condition.

27 Apr 2010