Scientists have found that certain T-cell stimulation could help
improve treatment of autoimmune disease and cancer, which could be
significant for developing new drug treatments to help patients
with autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid...
2005 was a challenging year for contract sales organisations (CSO),
with many downsizing their sales teams. However, In2Focus, is
bucking the industry trend, and increasing its headcount to meet
demand.
Nastech Pharmaceutical Company, announced today the expansion of
its RNAi therapeutics pipeline by initiating an RNAi therapeutics
program targeting influenza and respiratory diseases.
California-based Electronic Sensor Technology, provider of fast
vapor analyzers, is benefiting from recent restrictions in
California Air Quality and Nuisance Odor laws that require
bad-odor-causing industries to measure and control...
Millipore, a maker of purification systems used in drug
manufacturing, has expanded its range of hydrophilic
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes, enabling it to offer
filters for virtually all solvents, acids, and alkaline solutions.
French firms PCAS and Proteus have decided to pool their expertise
to create a new biotech company which will provide APIs and
intermediates on a large scale, looking to offer new products and
also capitalise on the growing demand...
Britain's Department of Health has awarded healthcare company
Baxter and biotech firm Chiron two contracts worth £33m (€48m) in
total for the production of around 3.5m doses of H5N1 influenza
vaccine, underlying how worldwide...
Isis Pharmaceuticals and Rosetta Genomics has announced a joint
research collaboration to develop microRNA related therapies for
the treatment of liver cancer, demonstrating the therapeutic
potential of microRNA as a drug target...
Graffinity, announced today that it has entered into its second
research collaboration with Mutabilis, which aims to discover novel
therapeutics for infectious diseases, building on 2003's
collaboration focusing on another anti-infective...
An experimental TB drug has proved effective against multi
drug-resistant forms of the disease as well as becoming the first
compound to treat the latent stage of this disease, which affects
nearly a third of the world's population,...
Celera Genomics has announced that Abbott has selected two
additional cancer targets for further development, which brings the
total of targets to four under investigation as a result of the
collaboration between the companies to...
In order to stay competitive, Wyeth looks to model its business not
on that of other pharma companies, but of other successful big
industries, which includes outsourcing or off-shoring anything that
is not a core function.
Rigel has completed the Phase I stage of its drug interaction study
in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The oral syk kinase
inhibitor could be an improvement over current treatment options,
which have side effects that include...
Swiss outsourcing company Lonza has granted biotechnology firm
Genentech a non-exclusive, worldwide license to their Glutamine
Synthetase (GS) Gene Expression System which offers better yields,
speed and stability in cell protein...
A new family of objectives from Olympus specifically for Total
Internal Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy (TIRFM) can selectively
visualise processes and structures of the cell membrane, minimising
photo-damage and allowing cells...
Singapore's Ministry of Trade & Industry (MTI) will commit
$7.5bn (€63.1bn) over the next five years to drive R&D growth
in key industry areas such as biomedical science and increase
national R&D spending to 3 per...
Drug delivery company Chrono Therapeutics has unveiled a
wristwatch-like device for the non-invasive automatic
administration of drugs based on the amount and time instructed,
thus improving patience compliance.
India is emerging as a powerhouse of pharmaceutical R&D. Backed
by a scientist president and with an army of talented scientists,
the country now has R&D capacity second only to the US, at
one-fifth of the cost.
Cambrex Bio Science has been given a contract to manufacture
Geron's GRNVAC1 telomerase vaccine for use in clinical trials and
will now transfer production to its Walkersville, Maryland
facility.
British company Q Chip has upped the stakes in the drug delivery
market with its new tailor-made bioencapsulation technology,
claiming to improve drug effectiveness, reduce side effects and
increase patient acceptance.
An insatiable Asian appetite for cell biology products has made
Fisher Scientific's cell-culture unit expand its Beijing facility,
making it the first non-native business to offer large-scale
liquid-media manufacturing in China.
A team of forensic pathologists are believed to be the world's
first to use a new radiological laboratory approach for mass
fatality investigations that could bring to the end current lab
methods that are slow and limited in...
The global market for microfiltration (MF) membranes used in liquid
separations is set to grow at an average annual rate of 9.4 per
cent to more than $1.2bn (€1bn) by 2010 from an estimated $792m in
2005 according to a new report,...
Researchers have isolated a protein molecule that may hold the key
to learning and memory disorders that have been linked with autism.
By isolating this potential drug target, new therapies for diseases
in which synapses either...
Hospira, the leading injectable contract manufacturer in the US, is
planning to close two manufacturing plants in the US and Canada in
order to improve operational efficiencies and remain competitive in
the marketplace.
If you're a big pharma company, outsourcing the writing of medical
publications is not the way to go, according to a report by
pharmaceutical business intelligence firm Cutting Edge Information.
Promed is due to start operations at its new research centre in
India, New Deli, this month, in a move that will bring the company
closer to becoming a global provider of drug development and supply
services.
Thermo Electron makes available a new datasheet to provide an
overview of the capabilities of its Watson Laboratory Information
Management System (LIMS), which is designed to support drug
metabolism and pharmacokinetic (DMPK) studies...
A consortium of US scientists have developed and evaluated a robust
new system for analysing how drugs bind to proteins, which could
speed up the delivery of potential new drugs and improve existing
ones.
Biofusion has announced the creation of Genophrenix, a new spin-out
company that aims to focus on treatments originating from
biochemical pathways implicated in a range of neuropsychiatric
diseases, including schizophrenia.
According to a new report, the adoption of eClinical technologies
has been hampered by the ability to take the electronic revolution
to the next level, as the adoption of eClinical technologies
currently remain confined to localised...
Drug developer Biosante has been awarded a $250,000 (€210,000)
subcontract from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln (UNL), to
develop recombinant Factor IX (FIX) formulations for delivery via
alternative routes of administration,...
Packaging specialist Ampac has unveiled a new thick-gauge lidstock
for demanding pharmaceutical applications, promising extra
durability and protection.
Dutch instrumentation specialist PANalytical has added new options
to its X'Pert PRO MPD X-ray diffractometer, providing a total
solution for high throughput diffraction and analysing almost any
material.
Increased sales and price hikes helped BASF achieve record earnings
in 2005, despite substantially higher raw material prices, Europe's
subdued economy and hurricanes in the US.
A species of frog, which may hold the key to future mosquito
repellents, is set to open up new avenues of lab research into frog
chemical ecology as researchers try to come up with alternatives to
synthetic repellents.
Analytic technology company Ometric is promising to revolutionalise
quality control with software that achieves real-time, in-line
final product testing at a rate of five tablets per second,
minimising product recalls, reducing waste...
Chiltern is expanding its clinical trial services business in
India, and in doing so will be the first company to provide
specialised staff recruitment services for the Indian clinical
research industry.
Asynt have launched the first affordable 500ml parallel reactor on
the market with its latest addition to the DrySyn range, providing
a safe and flexible alternative to oil bath and mantles.
A unique DNA-based targeting technology has shown to halt tumour
progression with significantly smaller chemotherapy doses opening
the way to reduce the side effects as well as increase the efficacy
of anti cancer therapies.
A natural compound could become the starting molecule for the
design of drugs that prolongs lifespan and delay the onset of
aging-related traits in vertebrate organisms, supporting the
potential utility of the compound in human aging...
A consortium of researchers has detailed the activity of a novel
drug compound that kills multiple HIV strains via a unique
mechanism of action. The discovery brings with it hope in using
this compound in both topical and systemic...
Swiss pharma giants, Novartis has formed a collaboration with
Alnylam, which aims to develop an RNAi-based therapeutic for
pandemic flu. The deal is in response to analysts who believe that
current vaccines and existing anti-viral...
IT specialist ComplianceControl has a introduced a comprehensive
new directory of compliance regulations with precise and accessible
information that can be used to assist pharmaceutical companies in
co-ordinating their corporate...
A disposable two-compartment flask bioreactor designed by Swiss
company Integra Biosciences has been shown to minimise production
costs in a new study, as opposed to cell cultivation roller bottles
which are 60 per cent more expensive.
Optio Healthcare introduces a new RFID and labelling solution,
which allows healthcare facilities to generate thermal, barcode and
RFID labels that can be used to track pharmaceuticals, as well as
manage controlled substances, pathogens...
