| BioMarin Uses Itamar Medical's Endo-PAT2000 In Successful Phase 2 Study For New Treatment For Sickle Cell Disease |
| Itamar Medical, an international medical technology company developing noninvasive diagnostic technology using the Peripheral Arterial Tone (PATâ„¢) Signal, announced today the use of the company's patented Endo-PAT2000 in BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.'s phase 2 study of patients with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD). The Endo-PAT2000 was used to measure endothelial function in a study designed to evaluate whether the drug 6R-BH4 can improve endothelial function in SCD patients.
12/04/2008
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| Genes Determine Whether Sugar Pills Work |
| It is a well-known fact in drug trials that individuals can respond just as well to placebos, sugar pills, as to the active drug. On the other hand, it is difficult to explain why only certain people get better from placebos. A team of researchers from Uppsala University and Gothenburg University have now found gene variants that can impact the placebo effect and a mechanism in the brain that characterizes those who respond to placebos.
12/04/2008
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| New Standard Of Treatment For Women With Advanced Ovarian Cancer Supported By International Study |
| Results of a phase III, international randomized clinical trial demonstrate a new standard of care for treating advanced ovarian cancer that significantly reduces side-effects and post-operative deaths compared to the previously established treatment course. The study, presented at the 12th Biennial Meeting of the International Gynecologic Cancer Society (IGCS) in Bangkok in October, has a major impact on many countries where the new standard represents a more practical course of treatment.
12/04/2008
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| Drug Treatment For Parkinson's Disease Outlined By Henry Ford Neurologist In NEJM |
| Levodopa has long been proven to provide the greatest relief of all available medications in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. It also is the most cost-effective drug for managing the full range of problems associated with this chronic neurological disorder, which affects an estimated one million Americans. In the Dec. 4 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, Henry Ford Hospital neurologist Peter A. LeWitt, M.D.
12/04/2008
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| New Guidelines Released By The International Society For Stem Cell Research |
| The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), the world's leading professional organization of stem cell researchers, released new guidelines for the responsible development of safe and effective stem cell therapies for patients. A Commentary article that summarizes the Guidelines for the Clinical Translation of Stem Cells will be published by Cell Press in the December issue of Cell Stem Cell, the official affiliated journal of the ISSCR.
12/04/2008
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| ConjuChem's PC-DAC(TM):Exendin-4 Lowers Glucose And Weight In Phase II Diabetes Trials |
| ConjuChem Biotechnologies, Inc. (TSX:CJB) announced preliminary results today showing that its Type 2 diabetes product, PC-DAC(TM):Exendin-4, achieved statistically significant reductions in HbA1c and weight in its two Phase II clinical trials. Commenting on the clinical results, Mark Perrin, President and CEO stated, "We are extremely pleased with these results which have met our clinical objectives. Achieving a 1.
12/04/2008
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| Testosterone Levels Reduced By Prostate Cancer Drug In As Little As 3 Days |
| More than 95 per cent of men who took degarelix for prostate cancer saw their testosterone levels fall dramatically as early as three days after they started treatment, according to a paper in the December issue of BJU International. They also experienced much greater falls in their prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels at 14 and 28 days than men taking leuprolide.
12/04/2008
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| Multidisciplinary Team Researching Gene Therapy For Human Degenerative Retinal Diseases |
| A Canadian and American research group including the team of Dr. Robert Koenekoop from the Research Institute at the Montreal Children's Hospital of the MUHC has just been awarded $2.4 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Foundation Fighting Blindness Canada (FFB). This five-year grant will fund an ambitious research project to develop innovative gene therapies for a number of human degenerative retinal diseases.
12/04/2008
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| Sucampo Completes Enrollment In Phase 3 Pivotal Studies Of Oral Lubiprostone To Treat Opioid-Induced Bowel Dysfunction |
| Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCMP) today announced that it has completed enrollment and initial dosing of patients in two pivotal phase 3 trials of lubiprostone for the treatment of Opioid-Induced Bowel Dysfunction (OBD). "If lubiprostone is successful in Phase 3, we believe that it could represent a breakthrough in the treatment of patients suffering from OBD," said Ryuji Ueno, M.D., Ph.D., Ph.D.
12/04/2008
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| Protalix BioTherapeutics Announces Completion Of Enrollment For Its Pivotal Phase III Clinical Trial Of Gaucher Disease |
| Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. (Amex: PLX), announced today that it has completed enrollment in the Company's pivotal phase III clinical trial of prGCD, a proprietary plant cell expressed recombinant form of human glucocerebrosidase (GCD) for the treatment of Gaucher disease. Gaucher disease is a rare and serious lysosomal storage disorder in humans. "The completion of enrollment signifies that we are one important step closer to our goal of commercializing prGCD," said Dr.
12/04/2008
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| Asthma Breathing Exercises Effective Management Technique |
| Breathing exercises meant to reduce asthma symptoms are effective at improving quality of life but do not eliminate the need for inhalers, according to an article released on December 2, 2008 in Thorax, one of the BMJ Specialist journals. Previously, it has been shown that the number symptoms exhibited by asthma patients are associated with the degree of control they have over their lives.
12/04/2008
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| The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society And Memgen Announce New Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Clinical Trial |
| The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) and Memgen, LLC jointly announce the beginning of a new clinical trial of ISF35, a cancer vaccine, at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). LLS is collaborating on this trial in the hopes that it will speed the development and approval of a novel approach aimed at treating patients with fludarabine refractory and/or 17p deleted chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).
12/04/2008
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| Bionovo Announces Development Plans For Menopausal Hot Flash Drug Candidate, Menerba (MF101), Following FDA Meetings |
| Bionovo, Inc. (Nasdaq: BNVI) announced that the FDA has reviewed the company's manufacturing and control process descriptions (CMC), and has provided guidance on how Bionovo can move forward with the development of Menerba (formerly named MF101) for menopausal hot flashes. "We have concluded three CMC discussions with the FDA, and are moving to address the Agency's recommendations for further development of Menerba.
12/04/2008
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| Isis Announces That OGX-011 Has Shown Overall Survival Advantage In Prostate Cancer Compared To Standard Therapy In A Randomized Phase 2 Study |
| Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ISIS) announced that OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. provided positive survival results from a randomized Phase 2 clinical trial of OGX-011 in combination with docetaxel and prednisone ("the OGX-011 arm") compared to docetaxel and prednisone alone ("the control arm") for first-line treatment of metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer. The current 10.
12/04/2008
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| Advanced Life Sciences Announces Cethromycin NDA Accepted For Filing By FDA For The Treatment Of Community Acquired Pneumonia |
| Advanced Life Sciences Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADLS), announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted and filed the Company's New Drug Application (NDA) for cethromycin, a novel once-a-day oral antibiotic, for the treatment of mild-to-moderate community acquired pneumonia (CAP). The FDA has established a goal of a standard 10-month review such that the anticipated target action date of the cethromycin NDA would be July 31, 2009.
12/04/2008
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