Toxicology News and Research

Latest Toxicology News and Research

Scientists discover critical pathway in the brain linked to stress response

A team of neuroscientists at the University of Leicester, UK, in collaboration with researchers from Poland and Japan, has announced a breakthrough in the understanding of the 'brain chemistry' that triggers our response to highly stressful and traumatic events.

21 Apr 2011

Existing scientific evidence indicates no risk to human health from BPA exposure

The North American Metal Packaging Alliance, Inc. urges policymakers and media to take heed of a decisive analysis by independent toxicologists that concludes bisphenol A (BPA) poses no risk to human health.

20 Apr 2011

Breakdown products of thalidomide cause birth defects: New study

Thalidomide may have been withdrawn in the early 1960s for use by pregnant women, but its dramatic effects remain memorable half a century later. Now, researchers have taken a major step toward understanding exactly how thalidomide causes the birth defects.

20 Apr 2011

Radiation leaked from Japan's nuclear power plant does not pose immediate public health risk, WHO says

The decision on Tuesday by Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency to increase the level of severity at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant "does not mean the public health risk is any worse or that the disaster resembles Chernobyl in 1986," the WHO and other agencies said in response to the announcement, Reuters reports.

15 Apr 2011

RXi Pharmaceuticals acquires Apthera

RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation, a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing innovative therapies addressing major unmet medical needs using RNA-targeted and immunotherapy technologies, today announced the completion of its previously announced acquisition of Apthera, Inc.

15 Apr 2011

Toxic substances including arsenic in baby food

The latest reports have revealed that there are small amounts of arsenic and other toxins that are found in soil, creeping into the ingredients used in top-selling baby foods. Manufacturers insist the levels are so low they do not pose a health risk. But scientists and food campaigners are calling for efforts to eliminate the chemicals from mass-produced products eaten by millions of young babies. Leading brands from Organix, Hipp, Nestle and Holle were tested by Swedish researchers.

10 Apr 2011

Experimental Biology 2011 to be held April 9-13 in Washington, D.C.

The meeting Experimental Biology 2011 (EB 2011) begins April 9 and runs through April 13 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.

8 Apr 2011

CoMeD urges UN to ban mercury use in pharmaceuticals

While the United Nations actively questions the use of a vaccine preservative that contains the known neurotoxin mercury, the Coalition for Mercury-Free Drugs, a Maryland-based, non-profit organization, is urging the UN to ban it.

7 Apr 2011

Circadian's VGX-100 neutralises VEGF-C and inhibits tumour growth in mouse models of human cancers

Circadian Technologies Limited today released data at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual conference in Orlando, Florida (U.S.A.) demonstrating that its lead anti-cancer therapeutic, VGX-100, significantly inhibits tumour growth and spread in a variety of different mouse models of human cancer.

7 Apr 2011

VBL's VB-111 preclinical data against metastatic cancer presented at AACR meeting

VBL Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company committed to the development of novel treatments for immune-inflammatory diseases and cancer, today announced preclinical data demonstrating VB-111's potential utility as a targeted cancer treatment.

7 Apr 2011

BioLife Solutions first quarter revenue is $611,000 for March 31, 2011

BioLife Solutions, Inc., a leading developer and manufacturer of clinical grade biopreservation media products for cells and tissues, today announced preliminary revenue of $611,000 for its first quarter ended March 31, 2011.

6 Apr 2011

Neurocrine completes NBI-98854 Phase IIa study in schizophrenia patients with dyskinesia

Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. announced today that it has completed the dosing and preliminary assessment of the initial cohort of Tardive Dyskinesia patients using its proprietary Vesicular Monoamine Transporter 2 inhibitor, NBI-98854.

6 Apr 2011

Breast cancer updates

According to the latest research human breast milk holds the potential to assess a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer.

5 Apr 2011

USPTO issues patent to Asterand's BioMAP technology

Asterand plc, a leading provider of human tissue-based services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies engaged in drug discovery research, and its subsidiary BioSeek LLC today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued U.S. Patent Nos. 7,908,089 entitled "Patient classification" and 7,912,651 entitled "Function homology screening."

1 Apr 2011

VBL's VB-111 preclinical data against metastatic cancer to be presented at AACR meeting

VBL Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company committed to the development of novel treatments for immune-inflammatory diseases and cancer, today announced two upcoming presentations of preclinical data from the company's VB-111 program at the American Association for Cancer Research 102nd Annual Meeting.

1 Apr 2011

Merck's VICTRELIS phase III study results against HCV presented at EASL annual meeting

Merck, known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, announced results from several new data analyses from the pivotal Phase III studies evaluating the addition of its investigational oral protease inhibitor VICTRELIS to peginterferon alfa-2b and ribavirin in adult patients with chronic hepatitis C virus genotype 1 infection.

1 Apr 2011

RXi Pharmaceuticals to acquire Apthera

RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation, a recognized leader in RNAi-based therapeutic discovery and development, and Apthera, Inc., a private biotechnology company developing a pipeline of peptide-based immunotherapies for the adjuvant treatment of HER2-positive breast and other cancers, announced today the signing of a definitive merger agreement under which RXi will acquire Apthera.

31 Mar 2011

Positive top-line data from Inhibitex INX-189 Phase 1b trial against HCV

Inhibitex, Inc. today reported positive top-line safety and antiviral data from its multiple ascending dose Phase 1b clinical trial of INX-189, an oral nucleotide polymerase inhibitor being developed to treat chronic infections caused by hepatitis C virus.

31 Mar 2011

Foundation for nationwide consensus on access to genetic information

Health privacy is a serious concern, but as genetic testing becomes more common, access to your genetic information raises questions the healthcare industry has never faced before. It is particularly important that we begin to address these questions now that genomic information is being collected to improve the diagnosis and treatment of children.

31 Mar 2011

Mucus may play a key role in penetration of hydrophobic substances into cells

Are our bodies vulnerable to some pollutants whose lack of solubility in water, or "hydrophobicity," has always been thought to protect us from them? New Tel Aviv University research has discovered that this is indeed the case.

31 Mar 2011