Novel approaches to administering drugs took a step forward after
Aradigm announced positive trial results in its Intraject
needle-free delivery system, which paves the way for a viable
alternative to the standard needle injection.
Researchers in the US have reported the initial development of a
biodegradable polymeric nanofibre-based antibiotic delivery system,
which promotes the healing process even in hard-to-treat wounds.
Ending months of speculation, the flavours and texturants units at
Degussa, Germany's third largest chemicals group, are up for sale
as the firm looks at selling the food ingredients arm or finding a
partner for its business.
Finland's Kemira has completed the divestment of its fine chemicals
business, which now operates as KemFine under the control of the
division's former management team.
Danish pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk has launched a new product
in its Norditropin range of human growth hormone (hGH) that
simplifies the delivery of the drug to children with growing
difficulties.
Efforts to improve the efficacy of cancer therapy by blocking
cellular mechanisms that underlie resistance to cytotoxic drugs
have promised much but delivered little to date. Now, a team of
researchers in the US believe they have...
Nanotechnology company pSivida has announced the results of the
BrachySil trial, which has confirmed expectations that the compound
(32P-BioSilicon) is safe and effective at tumour progression and
raises possibilities of an effective...
Novartis Consumer Health is set to become one of the first
companies to launch a pharmaceutical based in the 'film strip'
format, which has become a popular alternative to lozenges and gums
for freshening the breath.
Pharmaceutical scientists at Cardiff University, UK, have developed
a new method of delivering drugs for treating breast cancer that
promises to be more effective than current treatments
Scientists have discovered the antimonial drugs used to treat
Leishmaniasis focus on the same drug targets as those drugs used to
treat sleeping sickness and Chagas disease, raising the possibility
of a multi-functional drug that...
Scientists at Yale University in the US have discovered the
vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) plays an important role
in the development of the disease and raises the possibility of new
asthma drugs that block VEGF receptors...
Medicated chewing gum company Fertin has launched its Chlorhexidine
therapeutic chewing gum in Singapore, the second chewing gum brand
approved since the country's relaxation of its chewing gum ban.
A drug derived from a natural source - the cottonseed rape plant -
could find a new application as a cancer drug after failing to
prove itself as a male contraceptive.
A new family of drugs specifically designed to inhibit nuclear
import of integrase, blocking viral replication of human
immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infected cells suggests an
approach that could be effective against drug...
US biotechnology company Corgentech has licensed a peptide delivery
technology from UK-based Cyclacel to help it develop a new class of
gene blocking drugs.
Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has decided to put its
weight behind the inhaled insulin project it has been pursuing
alongside US drug delivery specialist Aradigm.
Medivative Technologies, a contract manufacturing and process
engineering services supplier to the life sciences and medical
device industries, has just been cleared for operations by the US
Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Researchers in the US have recognised one of the key functions of
the c-myb gene, which leukaemia cells depend on for proliferation,
is the formation of white blood cells. The discovery is sure to
position the gene as a potential...
Competition in the sweeteners market could move up a gear in the
near future as Japanese scientists harness production capacity for
the taste-altering protein miraculin that makes sour foods taste
sweet,reports Lindsey Partos.
Number one natural colours firm Chr Hansen builds on ambitions to
penetrate deeper into this growing market with the launch of a new
range of natural reds that tackle stability for beverage
formulations, reports Lindsey Partos.
Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical of Japan has been granted the first
approval - in the Netherlands - for a product based on its
proprietary OCAS drug delivery technology.
Australian nanotechnology company pSivida, which earlier this year
revealed it has designs on the drug delivery market, has created a
wholly owned spin-off diagnostics company, AION Diagnostics.
Sulfa drugs, the primary therapy for treating anthrax, are losing
the battle in its effectiveness in treating this bacterium, of
which antibiotic-resistant strains are emerging. Now,
computer-generated images which show bacterium...
Emisphere Technologies of the US has entered into a licensing deal
with Swiss drug major Novartis to develop an oral formulation of
recombinant growth hormone, currently administered by injection.
The recent surge in HIV research shows no sign of terminating as
researchers reported the successful targeting of an HIV protein
that has eluded existing therapies. The technique used for
identifying the synthetic molecules may also...
A new generation of 'smart antibiotics', which uses a virus that
adapts to recognize and attack bacteria, could become the latest
approach to tackling the growing public health problem of
antibiotic-resistant pathogens such...
Key changes discovered in gene expression that provide an improved
understanding of neurones controlling movement and coordination and
their malfunction and death in Parkinson's Disease has lead to the
possibility of a drug therapy...
Drug giant Pfizer is planning to buy UK-based drug delivery company
Meridica in a move that it says will bolster its activities in
allergy and respiratory medicine.
A drug delivery device worn like a wristwatch and programmed to
administer doses automatically has been developed by Chrono
Therapeutics and researchers at the University of Basel in
Switzerland.
French drug delivery specialist Novagali has raised €14 million in
a second round of fundraising and says the cash will allow it to
support its development programmes, based on a proprietary emulsion
technology, for up to three years.
The results of an ongoing study could revolutionise Alzheimer's
disease treatment as a new technique, which uses a gene therapy
agent to deliver a drug containing nerve growth factor (NGF), to
the brain area affected by Alzheimer's...
Inyx has acquired a Swiss-developed drug delivery technology that
should make it possible to develop inhaled drug therapies with two
or more active compounds, even if they are incompatible or
unstable.
Solvay subsidiary Peptisyntha is boosting its capacity to make
peptides at its facilities in California, US, in anticipation of
increasing numbers of drugs in this class coming through to market.
A study, which uses immunoglobulins to treat multiple sclerosis,
may also be able to help patients with Alzheimer's. The discovery
seems to point towards an approach, which treats Alzheimer's with
anti-bodies, which are...
Austrian biotech company, Austrianova, has received approval from
the European Medicines Evaluation Agency (EMEA) for its product
Novacaps, a new category of therapeutic for pancreatic cancer.
EMEA's latest decision ensures trial...
New research in the US, focusing on the pharmacological aspects of
smoking marijuana, are closer to understanding how the drugs active
ingredients exert its effects, paving the way for drugs that
selectively bind and block subtypes...
Cellomics has launched a new image analysis software module that
allows scientists performing drug discovery and basic science
research to analyse a broad variety of cell-based assays in as
little as five minutes.
A 'tail' at one end of the Ubc 12 protein has been found to
play a key role in accelerating cell replication. The determination
of its structure and role bodes well for the development of new
types of drugs targeting the...
The lead agent in a new class of drugs for the treatment of
diabetes - Novartis' LAF-237 - seems to improve glucose control
without the weight gain associated with other orally-active drugs
for this common disease, reports Phil...
UK drug delivery company SkyePharma has reported net losses down in
the first half of the year, but warned revenues and cash flow will
come under pressure as it moves away from its current
milestone-based revenue model.
Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim has revealed plans to buy a
microtechnology specialist - STEAG microParts - to get full control
of a novel inhaler for drug delivery into the lungs.
Cardinal Health has entered into a licensing agreement that gives
it access to an electrostatic tablet-coating process and drug
delivery technologies developed by Phoqus Pharmaceuticals of the
UK.
A team of US researchers has developed a new microgel film that
could be used to create implants that release drugs into the body -
on demand - by applying small variations in heat.
BioProgress has had one of its pending patents granted in Europe,
shoring up its intellectual property in the area of 'foamed films'
used for rapid delivery of drugs into the mouth.
The chief executive of Akzo Nobel expects to record sales of more
than $1 billion in China within the next five years, more than
double the level at present, and is boosting its presence in the
country in anticipation.
US chemical company Aceto has reported a healthy rise in sales and
operating income in the year ended 30 June, helped by its recent
entry into the market for biopharmaceuticals.
DSM Nutritional Products has lifted its vitamin E capacity to
25,000 tons - the world's largest - at a new plant that is being
hailed for its production efficiencies, reports Dominique
Patton.
