Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Four studies of bavituximab and PS-targeting antibodies to be presented at AACR 2010

Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of cancer and viral infections, today announced four studies of bavituximab and its other PS-targeting antibodies have been accepted for presentation at the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research to be held April 17-21, 2010 in Washington, D.C.

1 Apr 2010

Cell study may yield new treatment strategies for debilitating diseases

A Los Alamos National Laboratory toxicologist and a multidisciplinary team of researchers have documented potential cellular damage from "fullerenes"-soccer-ball-shaped, cage-like molecules composed of 60 carbon atoms. The team also noted that this particular type of damage might hold hope for treatment of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, or even cancer.

1 Apr 2010

Positive results from Ardea Biosciences' Phase 2b study of RDEA594 for hyperuricemia and gout

Ardea Biosciences, Inc. announced positive, preliminary, top-line results from its Phase 2b monotherapy study of RDEA594, its lead product candidate for the treatment of hyperuricemia and gout. In this 28-day, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation study, 123 gout patients with hyperuricemia (serum urate levels greater than or equal to 8 mg/dL) received 200 mg once-daily (qd) RDEA594, 400 mg qd RDEA594, 600 mg qd RDEA594 or matching placebo.

1 Apr 2010

ViroPharma initiates Phase 2 clinical study to evaluate Cinryze

ViroPharma Incorporated today announced that it has initiated an open-label, single-dose Phase 2 study to evaluate doses of Cinryze™ (C1 esterase inhibitor [human)] for treatment of acute angioedema attacks in children less than 12 years of age with hereditary angioedema.

31 Mar 2010

Japanese Patent Office grants Alnylam Pharmaceuticals' claims in second patent application for Tuschl II

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today that the Japanese Patent Office has granted claims in a second patent application (JP Application Number 2006-317758) for the Tuschl II patent series, entitled "RNA Interference Mediating Small RNA Molecules." In May 2008, the Japanese Patent Office granted a related set of claims in the Tuschl II patent series (JP 4 095 895).

31 Mar 2010

T-cell cytolytic activity may be effective in clearing HBV infection

Co-infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) poses a treatment challenge. In Western Europe and the United States, chronic HBV infection has been found in 6%󈝺% of HIV-positive patients and this co-infection is well known to be associated with increased liver-related morbidity and mortality. However, factors associated with HBV surface antigen (HbsAg) loss in HIV and HBV co-infected patients remain unclear.

31 Mar 2010

SCYNEXIS presents overview of novel cyclophilin inhibitor at Hepatitis C Conference

Drug discovery company, SCYNEXIS, Inc. announced today that management will present an overview on the Company's lead anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) candidate, SCY-635, at the upcoming Canaccord Adams' Hepatitis C Conference on Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 11:15 am ET at the Peninsula Hotel in New York City.

31 Mar 2010

Study finds rapid epidemiological shift in HAV infection in Korea

In Korea, there has been a rapid epidemiological shift in hepatitis A virus infection as a result of rapid economic development. The adult cases of acute hepatitis A have increased rapidly during the past 10 years due to the emergence of susceptible adults in Korea.

31 Mar 2010

Prevalence of head and neck cancer linked to human papillomavirus

Rates of oropharangeal cancer have increased by around 50 per cent in the last 20 years, according to a report in the British Medical Journal.

31 Mar 2010

CDC, Surgeon General report on increased number of H1N1 cases in southeast U.S.

Although H1N1 (swine flu) "has waned across much of the United States, the southeast is reporting an increase in cases of the H1N1 virus, U.S. health officials said on Monday," Reuters reports.

31 Mar 2010

Nutra Pharma's Cobroxin pain reliever now available at CVS stores

Nutra Pharma Corp., a biotechnology company that is developing treatments for Adrenomyeloneuropathy, HIV and Multiple Sclerosis, has announced today that its over-the-counter pain reliever, Cobroxin, is now available for purchase in CVS.

31 Mar 2010

Praxis extends patient recruitment services for international HCV study

Praxis, a company specializing in centralized patient recruitment for clinical research studies, is extending patient recruitment services to a top 20 pharmaceutical company for an international Hepatitis C Virus study. The study explores an investigational drug's effectiveness for this condition affecting almost 4 million Americans.

31 Mar 2010

FDA allows GeoVax Labs to commence phase 1 clinical trial for HIV/AIDS therapeutic vaccine

GeoVax Labs, Inc., a biotechnology company that creates, develops, and tests innovative HIV/AIDS vaccines, is now allowed by the FDA to begin a phase 1 clinical trial for GeoVax's therapeutic vaccine, which is intended as a treatment for individuals infected with HIV. The company will begin a non-blinded study in HIV infected individuals who started drug treatment during their first year of infection.

30 Mar 2010

New therapeutic approaches against lymphoid tumors

Helmholtz Zentrum M-nchen has launched a new cooperative project with SIRION BIOTECH GmbH in Martinsried to develop new therapeutic approaches against lymphoid tumors. With a two-year grant from the Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology, the two partners will seek to further develop lentiviral vector systems to better understand the disease mechanisms of this cancer form and to devise approaches for treatment.

30 Mar 2010

Resurgence of mumps orchitis among teenage boys and young men

Urologists at a leading Irish hospital have reported an alarming increase in the number of teenage boys and young men developing mumps orchitis, in a paper published in the April issue of the urology journal BJUI.

30 Mar 2010

Emory Institute of Drug Discovery and Zirus collaborate to develop new anti-viral drugs

The Emory Institute of Drug Discovery and Zirus, Inc., a biotechnology company based in Buford, Georgia, have entered into a collaboration and research agreement to develop novel compounds to treat infectious disease. Zirus uses a proprietary method for identifying genes and gene products in host cells that, when blocked, can prevent viruses from multiplying. Over the past several years, either alone or in collaboration with partners, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Zirus has identified, licensed and filed patents on more than 1000 targets.

30 Mar 2010

Preclinical study of DAS181 for treatment and prevention of ILI published

NexBio, Inc. announced today the publication in the Journal of Infectious Diseases of a preclinical study suggesting that treatment with DAS181 (Fludase®) may reduce the risk of secondary bacterial pneumonia following influenza virus infection.

30 Mar 2010

Potential new target for treating HCV infection

A team of scientists including University of Utah researchers has discovered that binding of a potent inhibitor of the hepatitis C virus to the genetic material of the virus causes a major conformational change that may adversely affect the ability of the virus to replicate.

30 Mar 2010

GenVec announces discontinuation of TNFerade PACT trial for pancreatic cancer

GenVec, Inc. announced today that it is discontinuing its Phase 3 clinical trial of TNFerade™ in patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer based on results of an interim analysis. This interim analysis of overall survival, conducted after the 184th death (two-thirds of total expected events), was designed to determine whether the study should continue.

30 Mar 2010

Also in Global Health News: H1N1; USAID's Global Pulse; Rotavirus vaccine; Uzbek doctors; Zimbabwe development; Malaria vaccine

WHO flu chief Keiji Fukuda on Monday announced that a group of 29 independent scientists and public health experts has been formed to evaluate the response of the organization and national governments to the emergence of H1N1 (swine flu), the Associated Press reports. According to Fukuda, the committee will hold its first meeting April 12-14 (3/29).

29 Mar 2010