Olaparib Maintenance Therapy in Platinum-Sensitive Relapsed Ovarian Cancer — NEJM

We know that Olaparib, is a experimental chemotherapeutic agent, developed by KuDOS Pharmaceuticals and later by Astra Zeneca, that failed to progress through clinical trials to approval. It is an inhibitor of poly ADP ribose polymerase (PARP), an enzyme involved in DNA repair. It acts against cancers in people with hereditary BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations, which includes many ovarian, breast and prostate  

Olaparib Maintenance Therapy in Platinum-Sensitive Relapsed Ovarian Cancer — NEJM

FDA Approves Intelence (Etravirine) for Pediatric Patients...

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Intelence (etravirine) to be administered in combination with other antiretroviral (ARV) medications for treatment of human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) in treatment-experienced pediatric patients (6 years to <18 years old) who are experiencing virologic failure with HIV-1 strains resistant to a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) and other ARVs.

This approval, which follows FDA priority review of the company’s supplemental New Drug Application, expands the Intelence indication and makes it the only NNRTI indicated for this use in both treatment-experienced children and adults with resistance to an NNRTI and other ARVs. The approval includes a new 25mg dose to allow for weight-based dosing in pediatric patients (6 years to <18 years old and weighing at least 16kg or 35.2 lbs). The 25mg tablet is expected to be available in the first half of May.

Ref : http://www.janssentherapeutics.com/news-center/fda-approves-edurant-rilpivirine-for-use-in-treatment-naive-adults-with-hiv

Paclitaxel drug slows damage and symptoms in (Alzheimer's disease) animal model

A compound,  epothilone D (EpoD) that previously progressed to Phase II clinical trials for cancer treatment slows neurological damage and improves brain function in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study.  Compound is effective in preventing further neurological damage and improving cognitive performance in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The results establish how the drug might be used in early-stage AD patients......

Potential Alzheimer's disease drug slows damage and symptoms in animal model

Healthy lactic acid bacteria in wild honey bees can fight bacterial infections

In continuation of my update on the usefulness of honey...

Healthy lactic acid bacteria in wild honey bees can fight bacterial infections: The stomachs of wild honey bees are full of healthy lactic acid bacteria that can fight bacterial infections in both bees and humans. A collaboration between researchers at three universities in Sweden ¬- Lund University, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Karolinska Institutet - has produced findings that could be a step towards solving the problems of both bee deaths and antibiotic resistance...

A New Approach to Faster Anticancer Drug Discovery

A new approach to drug discovery, according to scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine who used the approach to uncover a potential treatment for prostate cancer, using a drug Peruvoside (see below structure) currently marketed for congestive heart failure.  

A New Approach to Faster Anticancer Drug Discovery

Researchers unlock mystery of how an inflammatory molecule is produced in the body

Researchers unlock mystery of how an inflammatory molecule is produced in the body: Cedars-Sinai researchers have unlocked the mystery of how an inflammatory molecule is produced in the body, a discovery they say could lead to advances in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, Type 2 diabetes and numerous other chronic diseases that affect tens of millions of people.

DNDi commences Oxaborole SCYX-7158 Phase I clinical trial for sleeping sickness

DNDi commences Oxaborole SCYX-7158 Phase I clinical trial for sleeping sickness: The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) has commenced a Phase I clinical trial in healthy adults in Paris, France, to determine the safety and tolerability of a promising oral drug candidate Oxaborole SCYX-7158 (see below structure) , to treat human African trypanosomiasis (HAT, or sleeping sickness) for stage 1 and stage 2 of the disease.

Ref : http://www.dndi.org/press-releases/1169-oxa-phasei.html

Antidepressant, TCP (Trabylcypromine) could help the workings of anticancer drug used in leukemia...

A new study shows that an antidepressant could be crucial in helping cancer treatment drugs reach their full potential.

The study by scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research found that tranylcypromine (TCP - cis and trans iosmers - below structures) – which can be used to treat psychotic depressive states - can make cancer cells vulnerable to the effects of a vitamin A- derivative drug called ATRA (above structure).

Retinoids are a class of chemical compounds related chemically to vitamin A. ATRA is already used successfully to treat a rare form of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), but up until now, has not been effective against other types of the disease. ATRA works by encouraging leukemia cells to mature and die naturally, but the researchers lead by Ar. Arthur Zelent say that the reason many AML patients do not respond to the treatment is because the genes that ATRA normally attacks are switched off by an enzyme called LSD1. The scientists discovered that using TCP to block this 'off switch' could reactivate these genes, making the cancer cells susceptible to ATRA.

The team has already joined forces with the University of Munster in Germany to start a Phase II clinical trial of the drug combination in AML patients. The authors also commented that both the retinoid ATRA and the antidepressant TCP are already available in the UK and off-patent, so these drugs should not be expensive for the health service. 

Ref : http://www.icr.ac.uk/research/new_research_highlights/research_highlights/22625.shtml

New RAGE inhibitor shows promise against Alzheimer's

In continuation on drug discovery for Alzheimer's disease....
New RAGE inhibitor shows promise against Alzheimer's: Researchers have taken another crack at a promising approach to stopping Alzheimer's disease that encountered a major hurdle last year. In research published this week in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, scientists have developed a compound that targets a molecular actor known as RAGE (Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products), which plays a central role in mucking up the brain tissue of people with the disease.

Anti-inflammatory drugs may offer novel treatment for CHD

Anti-inflammatory drugs may offer novel treatment for CHD: A large international study indicates that anti-inflammatory drugs may become a new tool for preventing and treating coronary heart disease (CHD), the leading global cause of death.

H. pylori bacteria associated with elevated levels of HbA1c

In continuation of my update on H.Pylori

H. pylori bacteria associated with elevated levels of HbA1c: A new study by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center reveals that the presence of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacteria is associated with elevated levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), an important biomarker for blood glucose levels and diabetes.

Prazosin drug shows promise against PTSD-related nightmares

Prazosin drug shows promise against PTSD-related nightmares: Mayo Clinic researchers this week will announce the use of the blood pressure drug prazosin as an effective treatment to curb post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-related nightmares.

Ivabradine could save thousands of heart failure patients

In continuation of my update on Ivabradine

Ivabradine could save thousands of heart failure patients: Researchers behind a major trial of Procoralan believe the pill could save 10,000 lives a year in Britain alone. Ivabradine works by slowing the beating of the heart, helping it to pump blood more efficiently.

Berry fruits help the brain stay healthy in several ways

Berry fruits help the brain stay healthy in several ways: Strong scientific evidence exists that eating blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and other berry fruits has beneficial effects on the brain and may help prevent age-related memory loss and other changes, scientists report.

Experimental Drug Shows Promise Against Cushing's Disease

Experimental Drug Shows Promise Against Cushing's Disease: WEDNESDAY, March 7 -- An experimental drug called pasireotide reduced levels of the "stress hormone" cortisol and improved symptoms in patients with Cushing's disease, a new study found.

New FDA approved drug to treat infants with respiratory distress syndrome

New FDA approved drug to treat infants with respiratory distress syndrome: Scientific advances at The Scripps Research Institute have led to a new drug Surfaxin (lucinactant), approved today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat infant respiratory distress syndrome.

Experimental Drug Shows Promise Against Type 2 Diabetes

In continuation of my update on TAK 875

Experimental Drug Shows Promise Against Type 2 Diabetes: An experimental drug improves patients' blood sugar control without increasing the risk of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) in patients with type 2 diabetes, according to the results of a phase 2 clinical trial.

Type 2 diabetes is...

Rigosertib drug shows promise against advanced pancreatic cancer

Researchers from University of Colorado, lead by Antonio Jimeno, have found that, a new drug, Rigosertib,  allows pancreatic cancer cells to rush through replication - and then stops them cold, killing them in in the middle of a step called M phase. Healthy cells that don't rush are unharmed.

Data from a phase I clinical trial of patients with advanced pancreatic cancer and additional solid tumors recently published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research shows the strategy has promise. While the goal of any phase I trial is to establish the dosage that best balances effectiveness against side effects, 11 of the 19 patients treated achieved stable disease, which lasted for a median of 113 days.

"Really, the drug takes one of cancer's greatest strengths and turns it into a weakness," says Wells Messersmith, MD, co-leader of the Developmental Therapeutics Program at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and the clinical trial's national principal investigator.

Instead of going with the flow of the natural cell cycle, cancer cells amplify two signals - PLK1 and PI3K - which allows them to blast through the cell cycle and divide much more quickly. In the process, they break this step of the natural cell cycle, known as the G1 regulatory mechanism, and thus depend on the kick of PLK1 and P13K to push at a frenzied pace through replication...

More...

New Drug, Ruxolitinib May Help Fight Rare Bone Marrow Disorder

In continuation of my update on ruxolitinib

New Drug May Help Fight Rare Bone Marrow Disorder: WEDNESDAY, Feb. 29 -- Two new studies confirm that the new drug ruxolitinib can help people with the rare bone marrow disorder called myelofibrosis.

While the drug, marketed in the United States under the brand name Jakafi, won't cure...

New drug improves glycaemic control with minimum risk of hypoglycemia in type 2 diabetics..

TAK-875, a new treatment for type 2 diabetes, improves blood sugar control and is equally effective as glimepiride, but has a significantly lower risk of creating a dangerous drop in blood sugar, called hypoglycemia, according to a new study. TAK-875 is a novel oral medication designed to enhance insulin secretion in a glucose-dependant manner, which means that it has no effect on insulin secretion when glucose levels are normal, and as such has the potential to improve the control of blood sugar levels without the risk of hypoglycemia.

In the study, Charles Burant, M.D., Ph.D., professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Health System, and colleagues randomly assigned 426 patients with type 2 diabetes who were not achieving adequate glucose control through diet, exercise or metformin treatment to one of five doses of TAK-875, a placebo, or glimepiride, a conventional diabetes treatment. The primary outcome was change in hemogloblin A1c from the start of the study.

At 12 weeks, all doses of TAK-875 resulted in significant drops in HbA1c compared with placebo, a similar reduction occurred in patients given glimepiride.

At a TAK-875 dose of 25 mg or higher, about twice as many patients (33 to 48 percent) reached the American Diabetics Association target of HbA1c less than 7 percent within 12 weeks, compared with placebo (19 percent) and was similar to glimepiride (40 percent).

Ref : http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(11)61879-5/fulltext