Arthritis News and Research

Latest Arthritis News and Research

Plexxikon commences patient dosage in PLX4032 trials for metastatic melanoma

Plexxikon Inc. announces that enrollment has been initiated and the first patient has been treated in the first of two pivotal trials of PLX4032 (RG7204) in patients with metastatic melanoma. PLX4032 is a novel, oral and highly selective drug that targets the BRAFV600E cancer-causing mutation occurring in about 50 percent of melanomas and about eight percent of all solid tumors.

30 Sep 2009

GE Healthcare launches Venue 40, a portable miniaturized ultrasound system

GE is helping to transform the delivery of patient care with Venue™ 40, a miniaturized ultrasound system with advanced touch-screen technology, launched by GE Healthcare, a business unit of General Electric Company. Venue 40 is portable, allowing physicians to quickly perform rapid diagnostics and needle-guided procedures right at a patient’s bedside, providing real-time results.

30 Sep 2009

Michelle’s Miracle raises $750,000 in its first tranche of Series A funding

Michelle’s Miracle, Inc the leading provider of tart cherry nutraceutical products announced that it has closed its first tranche of Series A funding after raising approximately $750,000 in equity.

30 Sep 2009

Women making poor shoe choices suffer with hindfoot pain

A recently published study determined that women who make poor shoe choices early in life suffer with foot pain in later years. Research shows that men do not experience the same foot pain as women, due to type of shoes they wear. Details of this study appear in the October issue of Arthritis Care & Research, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology.

30 Sep 2009

NINDS: $50 billion spent each year for low back pain

A study by researchers at The George Institute for International Health in Australia found that it is rare for patients presenting to PCPs with acute lower back pain to have previously undiagnosed serious diseases. The most common serious disease cause documented was vertebral fracture, with half of the cases identified at the time of initial consultation.

29 Sep 2009

CIHR and CMAJ honour eight Canadian Health Researchers

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) today honoured eight outstanding Canadian individuals and teams with the first ever CIHR-CMAJ Top Canadian Achievements in Health Research Awards, which recognize and celebrate Canadian health research and innovation excellence.

29 Sep 2009

Leptin can determine osteoarthritis in obese patients

The link between obesity and osteoarthritis may be more than just the wear and tear on the skeleton caused by added weight.

29 Sep 2009

Ligand and GSK amend agreement to pursue independent research programs

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced that pursuant to an amendment to a March 2006 research agreement with GlaxoSmithKline, GSK has agreed to accelerate the timing of a $500,000 payment to Ligand that would otherwise have been required upon the identification of a new lead chemical series for advancement in its alliance with GSK.

29 Sep 2009

High-heels may lead to heel and ankle pain

Women should think twice before buying their next pair of high-heels or pumps, according to researchers at the Institute for Aging Research of Hebrew SeniorLife in a new study of older adults and foot problems.

29 Sep 2009

Obesity due to leptin deficiency plays major role in knee osteoarthritis

In 2005 the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that globally 400 million adults were obese, defined by a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 or greater. WHO projects that by 2015 there will be more than 700 million obese adults worldwide. Obesity is considered to be one of the greatest risk factors for osteoarthritis, a progressive musculoskeletal disorder that is characterized by loss of joint cartilage.

29 Sep 2009

2009 International Society meeting to focus on hip arthroscopy

Recent advances in diagnostic imaging techniques and hip arthroscopy procedures are giving physicians and surgeons better tools with which to treat hip pain. The 2009 International Society for Hip Arthroscopy meeting, hosted by Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, brings together leading surgeons from all over the world to take an in-depth look at hip arthroscopy and its potential benefits.

29 Sep 2009

IOF awards the Linda Edwards Memorial Award to AFI

The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) has awarded its prestigious 'IOF Linda Edwards Memorial Award' to the Arthritis Foundation of India Trust (AFI), one of 193 IOF member societies around the world. The award was presented today at the IOF Worldwide Osteoporosis Patient Society Conference, being held from September 22-25, 2009 in Beijing, China.

28 Sep 2009

$4.5 million cost involved for MLSIC set up

The Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC), Ann Arbor SPARK, Greater Wayne Economic Development Corporation and a private foundation have collaborated to create the Michigan Life Science and Innovation Center (MLSIC). MLSIC will connect well-funded, experienced entrepreneurs with business accelerator organizations and start-up life science companies.

25 Sep 2009

Research to develop small-molecule drug that blocks excess iron absorption

Excess iron in the body, if left unchecked, can form toxic deposits in major organs leading to serious conditions including heart failure, diabetes, liver cirrhosis, arthritis, and even infertility. Iron overload can be a consequence of a genetically mutated gene known as hereditary hemochromatosis, or a consequence of red blood cell transfusions, required as life saving treatments, for patients with diseases such as thalassemia.

25 Sep 2009

Caliper Life Sciences unveils XenoLight Rediject reagents series at WMIC

Caliper Life Sciences, Inc., a leading provider of tools and services for drug discovery and life sciences research, today introduced a series of XenoLight Rediject reagents at the World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC) in Montreal, Canada. Rediject D-Luciferin Ultra is the latest in an expanding range of XenoLight reagents for Caliper's IVIS optical imaging systems.

25 Sep 2009

Three antibodies dried using EnWave's freezeREV vial dehydration technology

EnWave Corporation ("EnWave" or "the Company") today announced that it has successfully dried three different antibodies in the Company's prototype freezeREV vial dehydration technology.

25 Sep 2009

NDA submitted to the FDA for new osteoarthritis drug

NicOx S.A. today announced that a New Drug Application (NDA) for naproxcinod has been submitted to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), seeking approval for an indication for the relief of the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis (OA). The NDA file contains data from three large pivotal phase 3 studies, all of which met their co-primary efficacy endpoints. NicOx plans to submit a Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for naproxcinod to the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) in Q4 2009.

25 Sep 2009

La Jolla Institute scientist Hilde Cheroutre earns the 2009 NIH Director's Pioneer Award

A scientist at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology has received one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)'s top awards -- the 2009 NIH Director's Pioneer Award. The prestigious prize carries with it funding for total costs of up to $4.7 million over five years, and is designed to support the work of exceptionally creative scientists, whose novel proposals offer the potential to make extraordinary contributions to human health.

24 Sep 2009

Symposium on genetics of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis to be held

A symposium about “Pharmacogenomics In Dermatology And Cosmetics” will be presented on Thursday, October 8 to coincide with the 18th European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (EADV) Congress. It will be held at the Kempinski Hotel Bristol - Salon Charlottenburg-Cecilienhof, Kurfürstendamm 27, D-10719, Berlin, Germany.

24 Sep 2009

Phase 1 extension study results of Plexxikon's PLX4032 in metastatic melanoma patients encouraging

Plexxikon Inc. today announced encouraging clinical data from a Phase 1 extension study of PLX4032 (RG7204) in metastatic melanoma patients, which expand the results announced from the initial phase of the study. PLX4032 is a novel, oral and highly selective drug that targets the BRAFV600E cancer-causing mutation that occurs in about 50 percent of melanomas and about eight percent of all solid tumors.

23 Sep 2009