Gastrointestinal Health News and Research

Latest Gastrointestinal Health News and Research

Narrow band imaging an equally effective alternative to chromoendoscopy for dysplasia

A new study from Spain finds that narrow band imaging appears to be a less time-consuming and equally effective alternative to chromoendoscopy for the detection of dysplasia (abnormal growths) in patients with long-standing inflammatory bowel disease.

13 Oct 2011

Shield commences two ST10 Phase 3 studies in iron deficiency anaemia

Shield Therapeutics (Shield), the independent specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialisation of late-stage, mineral-derived hospital pharmaceuticals which address areas of high unmet medical need, today announced that the first patients have been treated in the two Phase 3 clinical studies of ST10 for the treatment of iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) in subjects with inflammatory bowel disease.

12 Oct 2011

Isis designates ISIS-AATRx candidate in collaboration with GSK

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that it has designated the second development candidate, ISIS-AATRx, in its collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline

12 Oct 2011

World class scientist presents fourth Environmental Microbiology Lecture

World class scientist Professor Willem M. de Vos will explain next Monday how the microbes that are closest to our hearts - gut microbes - could underpin a new way of thinking about human biology. As well as looking at our own genes, we can now include those of our microbes in studies of human health and disease. This is a significant shift in the way we approach human biology.

11 Oct 2011

Takeda, Affymax announce data from multiple studies of peginesatide on anemia

Affymax, Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceuticals Global Research & Development Center, Inc., U.S., today announced data from multiple studies of peginesatide have been accepted for presentation at the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) Kidney Week 2011 taking place November 8-13, 2011 in Philadelphia, Pa.

11 Oct 2011

Case Western Reserve wins NCI grant to study genetic determinants of esophageal cancer

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center are proud to announce the receipt of a highly competitive $5.4 million grant to study genetic determinants of Barrett's esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma.

11 Oct 2011

UNC professor to co-direct Barrett's Esophagus Translational Research Network projects

A University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researcher is one of five co-principal investigators in a new collaborative network created to study genetic determinants of Barrett's esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma.

10 Oct 2011

MDC Partners acquires majority stake in Concentric Pharma

Concentric Pharma Advertising, one of the largest and fastest-growing healthcare advertising agencies in the country, announced today that MDC Partners, Inc., has acquired a majority stake in the company.

1 Oct 2011

Vertex announces abstracts from hepatitis C program to be presented at The Liver Meeting

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced that abstracts from its hepatitis C program, including two late-breaking posters from studies of INCIVEK (telaprevir) tablets and VX-222, were accepted for presentation at The Liver Meeting, the 62nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) in San Francisco, November 4-8, 2011.

1 Oct 2011

Takeda acquires Nycomed

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited ("Takeda", TSE: 4502) announced it has completed its acquisition of Nycomed A/S for 9.6 billion Euro on a cash-free, debt-free basis and made Nycomed a wholly owned subsidiary of Takeda effective the same day. Dr. Frank Morich has been named CEO of Nycomed in addition to his current role as Executive Vice President (EVP), International Operations, Takeda Pharmaceuticals International, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Takeda America Holdings, Inc.

30 Sep 2011

Special symposium focuses on ethical, legal, and social issues in translational research

An important focus of medical research today is on translating new scientific discoveries into advances in clinical care that will lead to meaningful improvements in health outcomes. Ongoing ethical, legal, and social issues in this era of "translational" research are the subject of a special symposium in the October issue of The American Journal of the Medical Sciences (AJMS), official journal of the Southern Society for Clinical Investigation.

30 Sep 2011

PTK6 protein may play a different role in colon and breast cancer

A protein that regulates cell differentiation in normal tissue may play a different role in colon and breast cancer, activating proliferation of damaged cells, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine.

30 Sep 2011

Oral steroid users twice as likely to have severe vitamin D deficiency

People taking oral steroids are twice as likely as the general population to have severe vitamin D deficiency, according to a study of more than 31,000 children and adults by scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.

30 Sep 2011

New study recommends colorectal cancer screening from age of 45 for men

Each year, around 5,000 people die from colorectal cancer in Austria, with the mortality rate being just under 50 per cent. A screening colonoscopy (bowel imaging) is recommended in Austria for people who turn 50, regardless of their gender.

29 Sep 2011

Almirall seeks European approval for linaclotide to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation

Almirall, S.A. announced today that it has submitted a Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for linaclotide, an investigational guanylate cyclase-C (GC-C) receptor agonist for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C). Once approved, linaclotide will be marketed in Europe under the trademark Constella®.

29 Sep 2011

Almirall submits linaclotide MAA to EMA for treatment of IBS-C

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that its European partner Almirall, S.A. submitted a Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for linaclotide, a guanylate cyclase type-C (GC-C) agonist, for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation.

29 Sep 2011

Men need colon cancer screening earlier than women: Study

A new study finds that men are at a higher risk of colon cancer than women and should get their first colonoscopy to screen for the disease at age 45, five years earlier than the current recommendation.

28 Sep 2011

Takeda, AACE partner to launch Diabetes Navigator website

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America Inc. (Takeda) have partnered to launch the Diabetes Navigator, a compendium capturing a selection of useful and reliable type 2 diabetes information available online for patients and caregivers.

28 Sep 2011

Low vitamin B12 raises risk of dementia in the elderly: Study

According to a latest study the elderly with low levels of vitamin B12 in their blood may be more likely to develop problems with their thinking skills and have more brain shrinkage. The study points to a link between low B12 and early cognitive decline, a condition that often leads to dementia. Previous research has found that those people with high levels of vitamin B12 in their blood have lower levels of an amino acid called homocysteine, which some studies have linked to an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, memory loss, and stroke.

27 Sep 2011

Double balloon enteroscopy safe and effective for detection of small intestine diseases

A large-scale data review by researchers in China of double balloon enteroscopy (DBE) over the last decade showed the endoscopic procedure to be safe and effective for detection of diseases of the small intestine.

27 Sep 2011