GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has taken a step closer to a true targeted
cancer therapy, and its vaccine, which 'educates' the immune system
to kill tumour cells, has showed 'impressive' results in its latest
clinical...
The latest in a series of periodic roundups of drugs that have
moved from preclinical research into clinical testing via the
announcement of a Phase I trial or an application for a trial to
industry regulators.
Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) will pay up to $490m (€348m) for Adnexus
Therapeutics, as it continues its transformation into a
biopharmaceutical company and strengthens its oncology pipeline.
Merck & Co. has stopped the Phase II trial of its V520 HIV
vaccine after interim results showed that the vaccine was not
effective and did not prevent infection.
The burgeoning US contract assay services arena has witnessed the
arrival of a brand new player with the launch of ReachBio, which is
opening its business operations this week.
At this week's research and development (R&D) day in Paris,
Sanofi-Aventis gave a comprehensive update of its pipeline.
DrugResearcher.com was there to bring you the highlights.
Sanofi-Aventis hopes it can buck a pharma industry trend of
declining numbers of new drugs with potentially 31 new drug
submissions over the next 3 years.
Microbia and Forest Laboratories have penned a multi-million dollar
deal over the former's first-in-class drug to treat irritable bowel
syndrome (IBS).
The FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) and Gene Logic are to
collaborate in developing a set of industry standards for genomic
data sent to the regulator.
Bioreliance has signed a deal with Gentronix to provide the UK
firm's novel DNA damage testing tool as a service for biopharma
companies for the first time.
Caliper Life Sciences has launched a new high throughput (HT)
microfluidic assay that automates RNA quality and concentration
assessment for gene expression analysis.
Pharmacopeia plans to expand the Phase I clinical study of its
cardiovascular drug while beginning the next stage of trials,
following promising results so far.
Novartis is aiming to hunt down its rivals through a pipeline of
truly innovative drugs, measured by increasing numbers of New
Molecular Entities (NMEs) in development.
The European Commission has named research-performing small and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as 'the entrepreneurial stars of
Europe', and hopes to raise €800m of extra funds for them.
Loneliness has been linked to serious diseases such as cancer,
heart disease and infection but a new study could point to new ways
of reducing its impact on health.
A group of Canadian scientists have developed a technique to
automatically inject material such as DNA or experimental drugs
into individual cells, to use in drug screening.
The latest in a series of periodic roundups of drugs that have
moved from preclinical research into clinical testing via the
announcement of a Phase I trial or an application for a trial to
industry regulators.
Merck & Co.'s integrase inhibitor, the first in a new class of
HIV drug, looks likely to win approval in the near future,
following a recommendation to regulators.
AstraZeneca (AZ) is to assist Biovator in the development of its
in vitro test for identifying potential allergens that
could replace many experiments on animals.
King Pharmaceuticals has ended its alliance with Palatin
Technologies, shortly after regulators raised 'serious concerns'
over the first-in-class erectile dysfunction drug which was the
subject of the collaboration.
Ablynx, one of the two main players in the miniature antibody
sector, has signed 'by far' the biggest deal in its history, to
help Boehringer Ingelheim develop up to ten so called 'Nanobodies'.
Isis Pharmaceuticals has initiated a Phase I safety study for its
first-in-class antisense drug that aims to control blood glucose
levels in patients with Type II diabetes.
A contract research organisation (CRO) is offering a unique
toxicity screening service using zebrafish as a model for assessing
drug effects on cardiac function.
Positive results from a Phase II trial have shown that Eli Lilly's
latest antipsychotic drug acts on a new target and avoids key
adverse effects caused by other antipsychotics.
Two big players in the early stage contract research organisation
(CRO) arena have announced this week they are expanding their
preclinical capabilities in Canada as demand for preclinical
testing is rising.
Micromet is sticking to its research into cell adhesion antibodies
to treat breast cancer and other tumours, hoping it will have more
luck than GlaxoSmithKline and Centocor's failed attempt.
Vioxx (rofecoxib) might have been offered a lifeline with the news
that the drug could be used safely, so long as drugs such as
GlaxoSmithKline's investigational dyslipidaemia compound are
administered at the same time.
In a round up of the latest news in pharma research, Pfizer and
Bristol-Myers Squibb have big plans for DGAT-1 in obesity and
diabetes, GlaxoSmithKline is extra keen on Exelixis' anticancer
drug, Takeda is talking TLRs and UK...
New data have raised 'serious questions' about whether Arpida's new
antibiotic will be approved by industry regulators, according to
one analyst's report.
Novartis is to pull millions of planned investment dollars out of
India in reaction to intellectual property (IP) fears. The decision
may leave China as the cat that got the cream.
Amgen is rushing to discover how interleukin-17 causes
inflammation and bone destruction in rheumatoid arthritis, as it
could provide a valuable new therapeutic target.
A team of scientists at Biogen Idec have unveiled preclinical data
for a potential protein therapeutic to treat Alzheimer's, a disease
normally only attacked using small molecules due to delivery
issues.
Through a new service partnership, Applied Biosystems is helping
scientists study genetic variations - even if they can't access or
afford the necessary lab equipment.
Pfizer has penned a discovery-stage deal with Icagen aimed at
finding potential pain alleviating drugs, but has forked out over
twice the industry average.
An award-winning therapeutic protein technology, touted as superior
to antibodies, has attracted venture capitalist investment for its
owners, the Swiss biotech Molecular Partners.
The often cited decline in R&D productivity and dwindling
innovation within the pharma industry is actually a thing of the
past, according to Wyeth's head of business development.
Some of the world's largest pharma firms have set out what
therapeutic areas and specific mechanisms are becoming more
important to them, and which will be left by the wayside.
The latest in a series of periodic roundups of drugs that have
moved from preclinical research into clinical testing via the
announcement of a Phase I trial or an application for a trial to
industry regulators.
Merck & Co's latest bid to fill the gap left by the withdrawal
of Vioxx (rofecoxib) has hit another stumbling block as it has
dropped NMED-160 that it was developing in collaboration with
Neuromed.
Abraxis Bioscience has bought the worldwide rights to a discovery
platform designed to generate new therapeutics and identify new
drug targets that alter the p53 tumour suppressor signalling
pathway.
Following Archemix' initial public offering (IPO) filing the
company has announced two high profile strategic alliances aimed at
leveraging its aptamer technology to a wider audience.
