Cancer drug improved cognition and motor skills in small Parkinson's clinical trial
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An FDA-approved drug for leukemia improved cognition, motor skills and non-motor function in patients with Parkinson's disease and Lewy body dementia in a small phase I clinical trial, report researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) in Washington. In addition, the drug, nilotinib (Tasigna® by Novartis), led to statistically significant and encouraging changes in toxic proteins linked to disease progression (biomarkers).
Biosimilars - clinical perspectives in rheumatology
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Drugs produced using biotechnology are among the most expensive medicines available. Biosimilars that offer a real alternative are becoming increasingly available on the market. The promise of biosimilars is that, once patent protection has elapsed for established biologics, more patients will be able to access effective and well-tolerated drugs.
Breast cancer drug beats superbug
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Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences have found that the breast cancer drug tamoxifen gives white blood cells a boost, better enabling them to respond to, ensnare and kill bacteria in laboratory experiments. Tamoxifen treatment in mice also enhances clearance of the antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogen MRSA and reduces mortality.
Increasing placebo responses over time, in the U.S. only
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A new study finds that rising placebo responses may play a part in the increasingly high failure rate for clinical trials of drugs designed to control chronic pain caused by nerve damage. Surprisingly, however, the analysis of clinical trials conducted since 1990 found that the increase in placebo responses occurred only in trials conducted wholly in the U.S.; trials conducted in Europe or Asia showed no changes in placebo responses over that period.
Study shows new 'driver' to assess cancer patient survival and drug sensitivity
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Cancer specialists have long looked at genetic mutations and DNA copy changes to help predict patient survival and drug sensitivity. A study led by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has opened up yet another avenue for understanding the biological reasons why some people live longer or respond better to treatment - RNA editing events.
Researchers find genes that shut down HIV-1
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A pair of studies by researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, the University of Trento in Italy, and the University of Geneva in Switzerland, point to a promising new anti-retroviral strategy for combating HIV-1. The two studies, published online in Nature, show that the host cell membrane proteins SERINC5 and SERINC3 greatly reduce the virulence of HIV-1 by blocking the ability of the virus to infect new cells.
Decision aids help patients with depression feel better about medication choices
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Choosing the right antidepressant can be a daunting task. With so many choices and such unpredictability in their individual effects, patients with depression often spend months or years casting about for the right medication, while clinicians are often uneasy or unwilling to offer options other than their preferred prescriptions.
More Pharma News ...
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- Antidepressants plus blood-thinners slow down brain cancer
- Two-drug combination shows promise against one type of pancreatic cancer
- Stanford team re-engineers virus to deliver therapies to cells
- Reanalysis of antidepressant trial finds popular drug ineffective & unsafe for adolescents
- Study highlights possible knowledge gap over effects of some diabetes drugs
- Immune system may be pathway between nature and good health