GBP Health/Biotech 05-21-2010

GBP Health / Biotech News 05-21-2010:

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EurekAlert - Biology:

Public Release: 20-May-2010
2010 ASCO Annual Meeting
ASCO data highlight novel anti-cancer approach that exposes tumors to immune attack
A new anti-cancer approach targets "flipping" phospholipids that are exposed only on the surface of tumors and viruses, de-activating the normal immune response. PS-targeting antibodies, a novel immunomodulatory approach, mask this "flipped" PS, re-activating the immune system to attack the tumor. Peregrine previously reported positive interim data from three Phase 2 trials of its lead PS-targeting antibody bavituximab in advanced breast and lung cancer. Complete data on all three trials will be reported at ASCO.

Contact: Barbara Lindheim
blindheim@biocompartners.com
212-918-4650
BioCom Partners

Public Release: 20-May-2010
3-D model of blood flow by supercomputer predicts heart attacks
The EPFL Laboratory of Multiscale Modeling of Materials in Switzerland has developed a flowing 3D model of the cardiovascular system that should allow for predictions of certain heart diseases before they become dangerous.

Contact: Michael Mitchell
michael.mitchell@epfl.ch
41-216-937-022
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Public Release: 20-May-2010
Science
Penn-led collaboration mimics library of bio-membranes for use in nanomedicine, drug delivery
An international collaboration led by chemists and engineers from the University of Pennsylvania has prepared a library of synthetic biomaterials that mimic cellular membranes and that show promise in targeted delivery of cancer drugs, gene therapy, proteins, imaging and diagnostic agents and cosmetics safely to the body in the emerging field called nanomedicine.
National Science Foundation, Academy of Finland, Temple University, P. Roy Vagelos Chair at the University of Pennsylvania

Contact: Jordan Reese
jreese@upenn.edu
215-573-6604
University of Pennsylvania

Public Release: 19-May-2010
Detection of potentially deadly atrial fibrillation dramatically improved by new algorithm
An algorithm developed by a researcher at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in partnership with the ScottCare Corporation, makes it possible for a new heart monitoring system to detect incidents of atrial fibrillation, the most common form of cardiac arrhythmia, far more accurately than previous methods. The algorithm also immediately flags AF episodes, obviating the need for a trained technician to spend hours analyzing data. Atrial fibrillation, a potentially deadly condition, affects about three million Americans.

Contact: Michael Dorsey
mwdorsey@wpi.edu
508-831-5609

Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Public Release: 19-May-2010
PLoS ONE
Manmade antibodies hold biomedical promise
Researchers at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University have developed a much faster and simpler way of making synthetic antibodies, by carrying out the usual steps in reverse. Stephen Albert Johnston and Chris Diehnelt have developed a technique for constructing peptide sequences, then linking them together to form a synthetic antibody, or synbody, that can bind with one or more protein molecules contained in the vast repository of human proteins -- the proteome.

Contact: Joe Caspermeyer
joseph.caspermeyer@asu.edu
480-258-8972
Arizona State University

Public Release: 18-May-2010
Cancer Research
Oncolytic viruses mediating anti-tumor immunity in human cancer patients
Researchers at the University of Helsinki, Finland, and Oncos Therapeutics, the biotech company developing new cancer therapeutics based on the next generation oncolytic viruses, have published initial results from their Advanced Therapy Access Program in Cancer Research, May 18. The results demonstrate an anti-tumor immunity of oncolytic viruses -- published for the first time in humans -- and indicate the strong efficacy of the next generation viruses against solid tumor cancers.

Contact: Timo Ahopelto
timo.ahopelto@oncos.com
358-400-569-628
University of Helsinki

Source - Science Daily : Please note : Due to the format restrictions of Science Daily articles, you must click on the URL (web address) below the article summary , rather than the article title.

New Associations Between Diabetes, Environmental Factors Found by Novel Analytic Technique

May 21, 2010 — Got diabetes? If so, you probably know that the adult-onset form of the disease can be triggered by, among other things, obesity and a fatty diet. You're also more likely to develop diabetes if other ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100520212615.htm

Study Finds Alzheimer's Disease Link in Eyes of Children With Down Syndrome

May 21, 2010 — A team of researchers has discovered that the protein that forms plaques in the brain in Alzheimer's disease also accumulates in the eyes of people with Down syndrome. The new findings in Down ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100520212611.htm

To Improve Lung Cancer Diagnosis, Good Medicine Is a Polymer Pill

May 21, 2010 — Doctors may soon be able to diagnose lung cancer more effectively, thanks to scientists who have found ways both to increase the accuracy of computed tomography scans and to lessen the amount of time ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100428121445.htm

New Blood Test Shows Promise as Screening Tool for Early Detection of Ovarian Cancer

May 21, 2010 — Evaluating its change over time, CA-125, the protein long-recognized for predicting ovarian cancer recurrence, now shows promise as a screening tool for early-stage disease, according to ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100520213114.htm

Gene Found That May Be Key to Kidney Cancer

May 21, 2010 — Researchers have discovered a key gene that, when turned off, promotes the development of common kidney cancer. Their findings suggest that a combination of agents now being tested in other cancers ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100520141221.htm

Increased Cancer Risk of People With Type 2 Diabetes, Large Study Finds

May 21, 2010 — Scientists in Germany have published the largest study worldwide on the combined risk of diabetes and cancer. People affected by type 2 diabetes have an elevated risk of 24 of the types of cancer ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100521102629.htm

New Steps Toward a Universal Flu Vaccine

May 20, 2010 — Researchers have developed a novel influenza vaccine that could represent the next step towards a universal influenza vaccine eliminating the need for seasonal ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100519143441.htm

A Fat Cell Grows Up: Stages from Early to Mature Cell Offer Clues for Anti-Obesity Drug Development

May 20, 2010 — In a finding with potential drug-development implications, researchers report the discovery of an intermediate state between early-stage fat cells and fully mature ones that is only present ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100517144818.htm

Drug in New Class of Targeted Therapies Shows Early Promise Against Blood-Related Cancers

May 20, 2010 — A Phase I clinical trial of SNS-032, one of the first in a new class of drugs that inhibit cyclin-dependent kinases, demonstrated the drug's safety and potential clinical action against advanced ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100519112719.htm

New Path for Novel Alzheimer's Therapies

May 20, 2010 — Researchers have found a new Alzheimer's-related mechanism that could give rise to the development of new therapies against this ...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100520093030.htm

Source - Health Day:

Health Highlights: May 21, 2010

• UC Berkeley Criticized for Plan to Test Freshmen DNA
• 350,000 Target Trunks Recalled
• Concussion Damage Called Worse for Young Athletes

Common Diabetes Drug Linked to Vitamin B-12 Deficiency
Type 2 patients taking metformin should get levels tested regularly, study suggests.

Gene Therapy Shows Promise for Muscular Dystrophy
Small study found technique restored some muscle function for months

IV Treatment May Thwart Advanced Cancers
In studies, anti-tumor virus stops advanced disease, researchers say

Clinical Trials Update: May 21, 2010

• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Influenza
• GERD (Heartburn)

Medical Devices Driving Up Heart Care Costs
Drug-coated stents, implanted defibrillators add more than $4 billion to U.S. health bill, study shows

Source - Yahoo Biotech News:

Provectus Reports Further Positive Phase 2 Data on PV-10 for Metastatic Melanoma at ASCO - Business Wire - Fri 6:00 am ET
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.----Provectus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , a development-stage oncology and dermatology biopharmaceutical company, has announced further positive data on the first forty subjects in its Phase 2 clinical trial of PV-10 for metastatic melanoma, with an objective response observed in 61% of subjects and a mean Progression Free Survival of at least 11.1 months among those subjects achieving an OR.

Two Studies Evaluated Full-Dose Chemotherapy Regimen and Concurrent Radiation in Treatment of Lung Cancer - PR Newswire - Thu 6:00 pm ET
Results of two Phase II trials evaluating ALIMTA® in combination with a platinum chemotherapy and radiation for patients with locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer will be presented by Eli Lilly and Company at the 46th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago, Ill., on June 6, 2010.

Lilly Presents New Data in Advanced Melanoma - A Difficult-To-Treat Cancer That Causes Majority of Skin Cancer Deaths - PR Newswire - Thu 6:00 pm ET
Lilly released results today from a Phase II study evaluating Lilly Oncology's tasisulam, a novel anti-cancer agent, in patients with metastatic melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Study results will be presented during the 46th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology held in Chicago, Ill. on June 6, 2010.

Source - Google Health News:

AMT sees progress with cholesterol reducing therapy
Reuters
AS) has reported positive preclinical data from a study using gene therapy to lower cholesterol, it said in a statement late on Thursday. ...

Creation of genes in lab raises hopes, concerns
San Francisco Chronicle
The agency still oversees gene therapy research. Genetic engineering is now commonplace, and a huge drug industry based on the science has resulted. ...

Clinical Trial Examines Gene Therapy for Dialysis Patients
Health News - HealthCanal.com
CINCINNATI—A new gene therapy may help sustain dialysis access in patients, eliminating the need for multiple interventions and surgeries and improving ...

Gene therapy may be effective in treating PAH
EurekAlert (press release)
ATS 2010, NEW ORLEANS— Gene therapy has been shown to have positive effects in rat models of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), according to ...

Source - Medical News Today :

Boston Scientific Launches Sterling(R) SL Balloon Catheter In U.S. And Europe

Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) today announced the U.S. and European launches of the Sterling® SL PTA Balloon Dilatation Catheter, a high-performance balloon dilatation catheter designed for use in peripheral angioplasty procedures below the knee. The Company plans to launch the product immediately in both markets. The Sterling SL Balloon Catheter was developed specifically to address physicians' needs in treating below-the-knee arteries by providing a low tip profile, excellent deliverability and rapid deflation time. It expands the Company's leading line of low-profile peripheral angioplasty balloon catheters, which includes the Sterling and Sterling ES products.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/189520.php

Synthetic Antibodies Could Open Door To Cheaper, New Diagnostics And Treatments

Researchers in the US have developed a new way of making synthetic antibodies ("synbodies") that offers a cheap, high throughput alternative to traditional methods, and may also open the door to new diagnostic tools and treatments. Compared to conventional methods that start with a pathogen, injects it into an animal and then waits to see what kind of natural antibodies develop, the Arizona State University researchers' method works "backwards": they synthesized antibodies from random peptides and then looked for the proteins they might have a high affinity for.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/189404.php

New Microneedle Antimicrobial Techniques May Foster Medical Tech Innovation

A team led by researchers from North Carolina State University has developed two new approaches for incorporating antimicrobial properties into microneedles - vanishingly thin needles that hold great promise for use in portable medical devices. Researchers expect the findings to spur development of new medical applications using microneedles. Microneedles cause less pain, tissue damage and skin inflammation for patients, and could be a significant component of portable medical devices for patients with chronic conditions, such as Parkinson's disease or diabetes . However, longstanding concerns regarding the possibility of infection associated with microneedles have been an obstacle to their widespread adoption - until now.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/189341.php

Source - MIT's Technology Review :

Synthetic Genome Reboots Cell

http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/25362/

Shocking Treatment for Heart Repair

http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/25357/

Helping the Brain to Help Itself

http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/25353/