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Virtual reality becomes a drug design tool

A new study published in March 2020 in the journal PLOS ONE shows the use of virtual reality (VR) as a powerful tool to create next-generation therapeutics. The focus is on the ability of VR to simulate the way commonly used drugs act on the cells at the molecular level, which enables innovation to improve the mechanism of action or to use alternate mechanisms.

11 Mar 2020

Popular painkiller may have more significant effects on the liver than expected

The popular painkiller ibuprofen may have more significant effects on the liver than previously thought, according to new research from the University of California, Davis.

11 Mar 2020

City dwellers, children and seniors take more antibiotics

City dwellers take more antibiotics than people in rural areas; children and the elderly use them more often than middle-aged people; the use of antibiotics decreases as education increases, but only in rich countries: These are three of the more striking trends identified by researchers of the NRW Forschungskolleg "One Health and Urban Transformation" at the University of Bonn in a recent study.

11 Mar 2020

Heart Association puts halt to Bayer’s giant displays of baby aspirin

The large red-and-white bins at Walmart pharmacies across the country read, in bold all-caps type: "Approximately every 40 seconds an American will have a heart attack."

10 Mar 2020

How effective is Gabapentin in alcohol use disorder?

A new study published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine in March 2020 reports the striking efficacy of the drug gabapentin in helping people with alcohol use disorder (AUD) with their alcohol withdrawal symptoms.

9 Mar 2020

Pilot study aims for community pharmacists to provide optimal care to women with UTIs

Community pharmacists in Queensland will trial providing medication for urinary tract infections (UTIs) without a GP prescription.

9 Mar 2020

Evaluating the safety and effectiveness of investigational drug to manage pediatric myopia

SUNY College of Optometry will take part in a multi-center US clinical trial sponsored by Eyenovia, Inc. to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of an investigational drug, MicroPine, to help slow myopic progression in children 3 to 12 years old.

3 Mar 2020

Drug prices beat inflation all the way even with discounts

A new study published in the journal JAMA in March 2020 shows how prescription drug prices are rising faster than the rate of inflation. The decade-long trend reflects a threefold higher rise in brand-name drug prices compared to inflation if all drugs are lumped together.

3 Mar 2020

Big Pharma more profitable than most other large public firms

A large study published in the journal JAMA in March 2020 reports that large pharmaceutical companies make a much larger profit from their products than other large public companies. This is important because it indicates the potential to reduce drug prices while sustaining competitive and innovative drug development and marketing.

3 Mar 2020

The research and development costs of a new drug

Many recent studies have focused on how much it costs to bring a new drug to market in the light of increasing drug prices. Estimates range from $314 million to $2.8 billion. Most of this was based on proprietary data and was, therefore, not verifiable independently, attracting much criticism.

3 Mar 2020

How cannabis interacts with medications

A new practice guideline published in the journal CMAJ in February 2020 describes five types of drug interactions possible with the use of cannabis. Cannabis is a plant-derived drug containing the psychoactive ingredient delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and non-psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD). These cannabinoids are broken down by the liver enzymes cytochrome P450 C(YP)34A, and CYP2CC9.

2 Mar 2020

Five things to know about drug interactions with cannabinoids

A practice article provides 5 things to know on how drugs can interact with cannabinoids in CMAJ.

2 Mar 2020

People with drug-induced liver damage could continue taking life-saving medications

When you ingest a drug--whether over-the-counter Tylenol or medication prescribed by a doctor--your liver is your body's first responder.

28 Feb 2020

Researchers show how investigational antiviral drug stops coronavirus

A team of academic and industry researchers is reporting new findings about how exactly an investigational antiviral drug stops coronaviruses.

28 Feb 2020

Medications meant for opioid use disorder improve outcomes after endocarditis hospitalization

Boston-Starting medication to treat opioid use disorder within 30 days of being discharged from the hospital due to injection drug use-related endocarditis - a type of serious heart infection - improves health outcomes

28 Feb 2020

Certain drugs can reduce epilepsy risk following traumatic brain injury

A research team led by a scientist at the University of California, Riverside, has found that brains treated with certain drugs within a few days of an injury have a dramatically reduced risk of developing epilepsy later in life.

28 Feb 2020

New compounds may help stop the spread of the coronavirus

Amid the global health crisis of the coronavirus (COVID-19), scientists from around the world are racing to find a treatment to stop the deadly virus. The sudden acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread across 46 countries, infecting more than 82,000 and killing more than 2,800 people.

26 Feb 2020

Study finds no benefit in using broad-spectrum antibiotics as initial pneumonia treatment

Doctors who use drugs that target antibiotic-resistant bacteria as a first-line defense against pneumonia should probably reconsider this approach, according to a new study of more than 88,000 veterans hospitalized with the disease.

26 Feb 2020

Chronic cough could be eased with new drug

A pair of studies have shown that chronic cough and its distressing symptoms could be eased with the help of a new drug. Also, the drug does not have side effects that can restrict its use, explain the researchers. The results of the two studies are published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, and the European Respiratory Journal, respectively.

26 Feb 2020

Novartis and DNDi to partner on development of new oral treatment for visceral leishmaniasis

Novartis and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative, a not-for-profit research and development organization, have signed a collaboration and license agreement to jointly develop LXE408, as a potential new oral treatment for visceral leishmaniasis, one of the world's leading parasitic killers.

25 Feb 2020