News for August 2012

News Archive

Chemicals Today, Drugs Tomorrow: U-M's New Center for Drug Discovery Chemicals Today, Drugs Tomorrow: U-M's New Center for Drug Discovery

A new center at the University of Michigan will accelerate the progression to the marketplace of drugs under development at laboratories across campus.

African research identifies strong candidate for possible single-dose malaria cure African research identifies strong candidate for possible single-dose malaria cure

A recently discovered compound from the aminopyridine class not only has the potential to become part of a single-dose cure for all strains of malaria, but might also be able to block transmission of the parasite from person to person, according to a research collaboration involving the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), based in Switzerland, and the Drug Discovery and Development Centre (H3-D) at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. On the basis of initial results it was selected by MMV for further development – making it the first compound researched on African soil to enter preclinical development in partnership with MMV.

Zebra fish point the way towards new therapies for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Zebra fish point the way towards new therapies for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Leuven scientists are using zebrafish as a model in their search for genes that have a role in the mechanism of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). As a result, they have identified a molecule that could be the target for a future ALS treatment. ALS is a progressive degenerative motor neuron disease for which there currently is no treatment. Their study has been published in the prestigious journal Nature Medicine.

Toward medicines that recruit the body’s natural disease-fighting proteins Toward medicines that recruit the body’s natural disease-fighting proteins

Like recruiters pitching military service to a throng of people, scientists are developing drugs to recruit disease-fighting proteins present naturally in everyone’s blood in medicine’s war on infections, cancer and a range of other diseases. They reported on the latest advances in this new approach at the 244th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society.

Johns Hopkins researchers return blood cells to stem cell state Johns Hopkins researchers return blood cells to stem cell state

Johns Hopkins scientists have developed a reliable method to turn the clock back on blood cells, restoring them to a primitive stem cell state from which they can then develop into any other type of cell in the body.

Thomson Reuters study confirms economic viability of orphan drugs positioned for unmet medical needs Thomson Reuters study confirms economic viability of orphan drugs positioned for unmet medical needs

The Intellectual Property & Science business of Thomson Reuters, the world’s leading provider of intelligent information for businesses and professionals, today released the results of its study on orphan drugs, developed to treat rare diseases, finding that they have the potential to generate as much lifetime revenue as drugs used for more common health conditions.

Moffitt Cancer Center melanoma expert reviews unique adverse events with newly approved drug Moffitt Cancer Center melanoma expert reviews unique adverse events with newly approved drug

An internationally recognized melanoma researcher at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues at the University of Kiel in Germany, including Axel Hauschild, M.D. and Katharina C. Kähler, M.D., have published an article in the current issue of The Journal of Clinical Oncology that describes immune-related adverse events for patients receiving either tremelimumab or ipilimumab, the latter a drug approved last year by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treating metastatic melanoma and other cancers.

Molecular 'movies" may accelerate anticancer drug discovery Molecular 'movies" may accelerate anticancer drug discovery

Using advanced computer simulations, University of Utah College of Pharmacy researchers have produced moving images of a protein complex that is an important target for anticancer drugs. This advancement has significant implications for discovering new therapies that could attack cancer without damaging the DNA of healthy cells, according to an article published July 31, 2012 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Scientists solve key piece of prostate cancer puzzle Scientists solve key piece of prostate cancer puzzle

Cancer Research UK scientists have revealed a completely new route by which male androgen hormones fuel the growth of prostate cancer, raising the prospect that existing drugs could be used to treat the disease. The findings are published in Molecular Endocrinology.

Daily cocoa flavanol consumption shown to improve cognitive function in older adults Daily cocoa flavanol consumption shown to improve cognitive function in older adults

A study conducted by researchers from the University of L’Aquila in Italy and Mars, Incorporated provides compelling new evidence that the regular consumption of dietary cocoa flavanols may improve cognitive function in elderly subjects with early memory decline.

Researchers identify new drug target for schizophrenia Researchers identify new drug target for schizophrenia

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine may have discovered why certain drugs to treat schizophrenia are ineffective in some patients. Published online in Nature Neuroscience, the research will pave the way for a new class of drugs to help treat this devastating mental illness, which impacts one percent of the world's population, 30 percent of whom do not respond to currently available treatments.

Scientists use worms to unearth cancer drug targets Scientists use worms to unearth cancer drug targets

Through novel experiments involving small nematode worms, scientists from University of Wyoming have discovered several genes that may be potential targets for drug development in the ongoing war against cancer. Specifically, researchers hypothesize that inhibiting these genes could reverse certain key traits associated with cancer cells. This discovery is published in the August 2012 issue of the Genetics Society of America’s journal Genetics.

Launch excellence for diabetes medicines Launch excellence for diabetes medicines

The market for non-insulin diabetes treatments has experienced strong growth over the past decade, averaging 9.5 per cent over the past five years. Epidemiology and unmet need have combined to generate demand for new product classes. The first of these, the DPP-IV class, is dominated by Merck & Co’s Januvia®, but further launches are lining up in another major new class, the SGLT-2s. Given the similarities in the competitive characteristics of this new class compared to the DPP-IVs, IMS believes there may be significant learning opportunities from the successes and failures of recent oral diabetes agent launches.

The world’s first (official) biosimilar antibody goes to… rheumatoid arthritis

Remsima is only the first officially approved biosimilar antibody for RA therapy as Reditux, a MabThera biosimilar, was launched in India in 2007, but under unapproved biosimilar development guidelines.

A new approach to improving cancer chemotherapy A new approach to improving cancer chemotherapy

Chemotherapy kills tumor cells, but it also wreaks havoc on the rest of the body. A team of researchers led by Igor Roninson of the South Carolina College of Pharmacy just reported the discovery of a new class of drugs that reduces the adverse effects of cellular damage from chemotherapy.

Label-free assays: back to the (better) future Label-free assays: back to the (better) future

A unique feature of pharmacology as a scientific discipline is that it furnishes the tools to quantify complex behaviors of drugs in complete physiological systems in terms affinity and efficacy. The history of pharmacology, as applied to new drug discovery, has been heavily weighted toward null methods to determine drug properties in the absence of detailed knowledge of the physiological processes involved in yielding pharmacologic response. This process began with animal isolated tissues and now has come full circle with label-free human cell culture assays. However, the circle is now at a more advantageous point for drug discovery than it has ever been.

Aurka-to-p53 signaling: a link between stem cell regulation and cancer Aurka-to-p53 signaling: a link between stem cell regulation and cancer

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, the University of Manchester, and the MD Anderson Cancer Center have found a new role for an oncogenic signaling pathway in embryonic stem cell (ESC) self-renewal and in reprogramming adult cells into an ESC-state, which will aid in the development of future cancer therapies.

Drug Discovery Today: August Issue Drug Discovery Today: August Issue

The latest issue of Drug Discovery Today is packed full of industry focused research articles, new developments in drug discovery, and expert comment and opinion.

National phenome centre to be launched using Olympics doping lab National phenome centre to be launched using Olympics doping lab

The London 2012 anti-doping facilities will be developed after the Olympic and Paralympic Games into a world-class resource that could help revolutionise healthcare. The MRC-NIHR Phenome Centre will use the cutting edge facilities developed for London 2012 to help develop better and more targeted treatment for patients.