Researchers at University College London have made a key discovery about how cancer spreads through the body, which could lead to drugs being developed to halt the process.
Scientists at the university carried out experiments on frog and zebrafish embryos and discovered a mechanism called ‘chase and run’ that showed how diseased and healthy cells follow each other around the body, reports The Telegraph.
A new therapeutic approach can take advantage of cancer cells’ need to repair double-strand breaks in DNA, in order to overcome the tumour’s resistance to chemotherapy (Science Transl. Medicine). According to the research group headed by Hans Christian from University Cologne, mutations in the ATM gene protect cancer cells from cell death during chemotherapy. ATM is instrumental in initiating DNA repair and inducing cell death when repair is not possible in curse of the so-called DNA damage response (DDR). http://www.eurobiotechnews.eu/news/news/2013-02/double-strike-against-cancer.html
| ThromboGenics’ Jetrea receives NICE approval for eye condition treatment |
| Biopharmaceutical company ThromboGenics’ Jetrea has received approval from UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the treatment of some adults with vitreomacular traction (VMT), a rare eye condition… |
Ocriplasmin (trade name Jetrea) is a recombinant protease with activity against fibronectin and laminin, components of the vitreoretinal interface. It is used for treatment of symptomatic vitreomacular adhesion, for which it received FDA approval on 17 October 2012. It works by dissolving the proteins that link the vitreous to the macula, resulting in posterior detachment of the vitreous from theretina.[1]
Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute advance heteorcylic chemistry trhough new reagents and reaction-tracking techniques.
| http://www.pharmtech.com/pharmtech/Ingredients+Insider/Elucidating-Heterocyclic-Chemistry-in-Pharmaceutic/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/814894?contextCategoryId=43497 |
jun 2, 2013
Pharmaceutical Technology
 Patricia Van Arnum |
Heterocyclic compounds play an important role in medicinal chemistry and drug synthesis. Like any important functional class of compounds, developments that facilitate their production or elucidate their reaction mechanisms are significant for process chemists in the pharmaceutical industry. In two separate developments, researchers at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in La Jolla, California recently reported on the use of zinc sulfinates as reagents for the direct chemical functionalization of nitrogen-based heterocycles and on reaction-tracking tools to better elucidate copper-catalyzed reactions in making triazoles.
Figure 1. Schematic of an antibody. Pfizer’s developmental compound tremelimumab is an antibody of subclass IgG2 and is composed of four proteins linked by disulfide bonds. Many antibodies are glycosylated, meaning that polysaccharide structures are covalently attached to the proteins at distinct sites. An antibody can have several domains that have activity, including the variable regions on the arms of the heavy and light chains, which bind to antigens, and the Fc domains, which can mediate effector functions. Adapted with permission from Pfizer, Inc.
Volume 13, Issues 13–14, July 2008, Pages 613–618
Deltarasin is a novel anti-tumoral drug which targets KRAS by inhibiting its association with PDEd
The synthesis and initial biological evaluation of a calixarene-based inhibitor for cholera toxin has been developed
A device for the genetic detection of pathogenic bacteria has emerged from microfluidics research coupled with NMR spectroscopy
Does This Pipeline Promise Tomorrow’s Blockbuster Sales?
DailyFinance
The company currently has six drugs and indications under review for regulatory approval, with 15 more therapies undergoing phase 3 trials as of May 6. Those 21 drugs in total match up well with some of the top pipelines in the business. As a …http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/06/12/does-this-pipeline-promise-tomorrows-blockbuster-s/
