Drug | Page 239 of 280 | SpiritIndia.com

Diabetes :: JANUVIA, sitagliptin phosphate – the First and Only DPP-4 Inhibitor for Type 2 Diabetes

Merck & Co., Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved JANUVIA (sitagliptin phosphate), the first and only DPP-4 inhibitor available in the United States for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. JANUVIA has been approved as monotherapy and as add-on therapy to either of two other types of oral diabetes medications, metformin or thiazolidinediones (TZDs), to improve blood sugar (glucose) control in patients with type 2 diabetes when diet and exercise is not enough. The recommended dose of JANUVIA is 100 mg once daily. JANUVIA should not be used in patients with type 1 diabetes or for the treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis, as it would not be effective in these settings.

Hepatitis :: Roche and InterMune’s ITMN-191 HCV protease inhibitor for hepatitis c

Roche and InterMune Inc. announced that the companies have entered into an exclusive worldwide collaboration agreement to develop and commercialize products from InterMune?s Hepatitis C (HCV) protease inhibitor program. The agreement includes InterMune?s lead candidate compound ITMN-191, expected to enter clinical trials before the end of the year. The companies will also collaborate on a research program to identify, develop and commercialize novel second-generation HCV protease inhibitors.

HIV :: Virco introduces an improved rapid methodology to establish new hiv-1 resistance profiles

Responding to the need to make timely evaluations and decisions when treating treatment experienced HIV patients, Virco (http://www.vircolab.com), a leader in drug resistance testing recently introduced an improved virco(R)TYPE HIV-1 test that rapidly determines the complex phenotypic resistance profiles for darunavir, tipranavir and other antiretroviral (ARV) drugs. Utilizing clinical trial data that was used to support the approval of darunavir and tipranavir, virco(R)TYPE HIV-1 reports now include Clinical Cut-Offs (CCOs) for these recently introduced agents(1). Virco(R)TYPE HIV-1 analyzes patient HIV-1 resistant genotypes using Virco’s large database to quickly and accurately predict phenotypic resistance. This timely determination of phenotypic resistance assists physicians in choosing a drug treatment plan that has the least amount of drug resistance.

Health :: New mechanism found that may underlie neuropathic pain

Researchers at Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development (J&JPRD) announced on 15 October 2006 that they have discovered a new molecular mechanism that may underlie neuropathic pain. The clearer understanding of the root-cause of chronic neuropathic pain, and the preclinical validation of new targets for pharmaceutical therapies shown in this research, together present an opportunity for the development of new ways to treat the severe pain associated with such common conditions or diseases as sciatica, diabetic neuropathy and shingles.

Diabetes :: Novartis GALIANT study – clinical trials for diabetes drug Galvus – vildagliptin

Novartis announced the start of GALIANT, a significant clinical trial set to involve more than 7,500 people in the United States comparing the investigational oral type 2 diabetes medication Galvus? (vildagliptin) with commonly prescribed anti-diabetic oral medicines called thiazolidinediones (TZDs).

Health :: Prescription pain medication abuse on surprising increase, with unexpected geographic distribution

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center found prescription pain medication (PPM) abuse is a rapidly growing problem with surprising and often unpredictable distribution patterns. The research was presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Anesthesiologists in Chicago, October 13, 2006.

Migraine :: Clinical trial in acute migraine for lead compound tezampanel

TorreyPines Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: TPTX) today announced the initiation of a Phase IIb clinical trial for its lead product candidate, tezampanel, a novel pain compound in development for the treatment of acute migraine. An AMPA/kainate (AK) receptor antagonist, tezampanel offers a non-narcotic, non-vascular approach to the management of headache pain and represents a potentially promising alternative to current migraine treatments.

Cancer :: Methoxyamine – new cancer therapy reverses resistance to chemotherapy

Case Western Reserve University’s Technology Transfer Office has entered a worldwide exclusive licensing agreement with TRACON Pharmaceuticals of San Diego, Calif., to develop Methoxyamine, a new cancer therapeutic that reverses cancer cell resistance to chemotherapy. Methoxyamine is a “first in class” drug that targets a specific DNA repair pathway.

Osteoporosis :: Potassium citrate base supplements may help fight osteoporosis

Taking a potassium citrate supplement to counteract the high acidity of the modern diet can lead to increased bone density in older women, suggests a study in the November Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Diabetes :: Alert on One Touch Basic/Profile and One Touch Ultra Blood Glucose Test Strips

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is alerting the public to counterfeit blood glucose test strips being sold in the United States for use with various models of LifeScan, Inc., One Touch Brand Blood Glucose Monitors used by people with diabetes to measure their blood glucose.