Contract biomanufacturing firm Laureate has won a contract to
produce Seattle Genetics' humanised monoclonal antibody product
candidates for clinical trial, adding to its experience in
monoclonal antibody development.
Biophage has completed the final phase of its CRO business
restructuring in preparation to meet the expected demand in
immunotoxicity testing, in which its requirement stems from
increasing legislation that calls for stricter standards.
Vaccine developer Iomai has announced results of a clinical trial
showing its new dry patch formulation for travelers' diarrhea can
trigger a stronger immune response than its wet patch, promising a
vaccine that is easier to...
Biopharmaceuticals manufacturer Cobra will provide process
development and manufacturing of two HIV vaccine candidates for
evaluation in clinical trials under an agreement with the
International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and...
Scientists believe they have made a major breakthrough in a
potential cure for diabetes after animal experiments using a
combinatorial treatment approach reversed onset type 1 diabetes.
The US Navy has extended an existing deal with Austrian biotech
company CEL-SCI to further investigate the company's novel drug
compound, CEL-1000, that could offer 100 per cent protection
against Malaria.
Beckman Coulter launches its latest monoclonal antibody that
identifies Tolereogenic cells making it highly in transplant and
cancer research. It is also applicable in clinical research on
autoimmunity.
The UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
has said it has so far found no evidence of wrongdoing in the human
trials of the monoclonal antibody TGN1412, which US contract
research firm Parexel carried...
Scientists have discovered the existence of a HIV accessory protein
that disables host immunity via receptor-protein intermediary in a
discovery that points to possible novel ways to fight AIDS, immune
disorders and sepsis.
New diabetes trials scheduled to start this spring have been
heralded as groundbreaking as researchers aim to reverse juvenile
diabetes of which numbers have been steadily on the rise in
developed nations.
The European Union has approved new alternatives to animal testing
of drugs and chemicals, which will not only reduce the number of
animals needed for testing, but will also increase the accuracy of
the tests, thereby making the products...
A consortium of British private companies and a university facility
has been awarded $2.6m (€2.13m) by the UK's Department of Trade and
Industry (DTI) to produce a slow release vaccine which will
eliminate the need for booster...
Anticipating a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval this
year, Dendreon has awarded Diosynth Biotechnology with a long-term
contract to supply the recombinant protein antigen component of its
novel vaccine for prostate cancer...
The first clinical laboratory based test for saliva-based oral
cancer detection has been developed by scientists, who believe that
the clinical value this test demonstrates, could reduce the 350,000
- 400,000 new cases recorded each...
Scientists have found that certain T-cell stimulation could help
improve treatment of autoimmune disease and cancer, which could be
significant for developing new drug treatments to help patients
with autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid...
A consortium of researchers has detailed the activity of a novel
drug compound that kills multiple HIV strains via a unique
mechanism of action. The discovery brings with it hope in using
this compound in both topical and systemic...
Researchers are looking into the possibility of using a protein
that undesirably shields a skin poxvirus from the immune system as
the key ingredient in a new topical treatment for inflammatory
diseases.
A dairy based vaccine could soon be on the horizon after
researchers took a giant step in the development of a series of
effective cancer-fighting vaccines that appear to be able to stop
and reverse cancer growth.
Roche and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals announced an agreement to
develop and commercialise BioCryst's phase I compound, which has
been developed for the prevention of acute rejection in
transplantation and for the treatment of autoimmune...
Researchers have combined nanotechnology with biochemistry to
create synthetic membranes that, for the first time, enable direct
control of signalling activity in living T cells from the immune
system, which could lead to better development...
Sanofi Pasteur has entered into a license and supply agreement with
Eisai for the use of their novel adjuvant designed to boost the
immune response to a broad range of vaccines.
Scientists from the US have discovered that compounds secreted by
frog skin could be used as a successful treatment in the fight
against HIV infection, which if developed further, could form an
effective pharmaceutical treatment.
Scientists have discovered how good cholesterol (HDLs) provide
human immunity to certain parasites, which may serve as a platform
for the assembly and delivery of two naturally occurring proteins
that combine to create a super-toxic...
New Life Scientific and CureLab have identified an anti fungal
compound that represents a significant breakthrough as part of a
joint collaboration, which has demonstrated immunostimulating and
antibacterial properties.
Elusys Therapeutics' Anthrax drug candidate is to commence human
clinical trials after the biopharmaceutical company received
Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval. The drug, which has
already received "Fast Track"...
US researchers have discovered a new immune cell that may play a
key role in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, which raises the
prospect of finding ways to treat these disorders that include
asthma, arthritis, and multiple sclerosis...
Researchers have helped pioneer a novel approach to the development
and delivery of an HIV/AIDS vaccine, which involves a
female-controlled vaginal HIV vaccine. The novel method is to be
tried in order to break the infection cycle...
Researchers in the US have constructed a new virus-based gene
therapy delivery system that has uses in cancer treatment. The
findings are said to provide a solution to the problems that have
hampered gene therapy treatments.
Medimmune announced the signing of an agreement to acquire
Cellective Therapeutics, in a deal that furthers its strategy of
increasing new drug candidates in its specialist areas of cancer
and autoimmune diseases such as lupus and...
BioSante Pharmaceuticals has licensed its calcium phosphate (CaP)
nanotechnology - used for drug delivery and as an adjuvant for
vaccines - to an unnamed European pharmaceutical company.
Scientists in the US have discovered a cellular switch that
controls immune system function. The research could lead to future
drug treatment advancements for rheumatoid arthritis, multiple
sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases.
A new immunotherapeutic approach for the treatment of tuberculosis
(TB) is set to open up new avenues of laboratory research that
sidesteps the associated side effects of current conventional
treatments and provides a solution to...
Dutch biotechnology company Crucell and the Aeras Global TB Vaccine
Foundation has announced the initiation of a series of clinical
studies for a unique TB vaccine, which allows millions of doses to
be manufactured simultaneously...
Researchers have discovered a new tumour defence system that
interferes with the cells that are trying to kill them. These
results raise the possibility of new drug targets for cancer such
as those that may transport free fatty acids...
Living Cell Technologies announced a significant reduction in the
size of brain lesions in a Huntington's disease (HD) model after
pre-clinical demonstrated this result using its NeurotrophinCell
(NtCell).
Japan's Kirin Brewery Co has bought Hematech of the US, acquiring
the latter's core technology for the production of bovine-derived
human polyclonal antibodies which could be useful in the
development of a range of human-use...
Nabi Biopharmaceuticals has opened its new vaccine manufacturing
facility in which commercial quantities of StaphVAX [Staphylococcus
aureus Polysaccharide Conjugate Vaccine] will be produced. StaphVAX
is currently in phase III development...
Life Therapeutics has announced the acquisition of Pyramid
Biological Corporation in a deal that increases Life Therapeutics
presence in the source plasma sector - a market that has nearly
doubled, from $125 million (€103 million)...
Scientists have taken a major step forward in autoimmune disease
research after the process of T-cell trafficking through the blood
and lymph nodes to fight infection was discovered. Controlling this
process with drugs offers "enormous...
The efficiency of vaccinations could be dramatically improved by
combining peptide antigens with dendritic cells, according to new
research published in the journal Nature Medicine (July issue).
Emergent Biosolutions has announced it has acquired Microscience,
in a deal that adds proprietary platform technology in oral vaccine
delivery. The deal also adds to Emergent's European presence in the
growing global vaccine...
US researchers have identified a specific pathway that causes
inflammation in lung tissue, a discovery that could help in the
design of more targeted drug treatments for patients with various
lung diseases, including cystic fibrosis,...
Researchers have claimed that a fragment of the deadly yellow fever
virus may hold the key to a safer and more effective vaccine,
bringing hope to the 200,000 victims a year. Currently, no drug
treatment is effective against the virus.
Scientists have created the nanotechnology equivalent of a Trojan
horse to smuggle a powerful chemotherapeutic drug inside tumour
cells - increasing the drug's cancer-killing activity and reducing
its toxic side effects.
Living Cell Technologies (LCT) are set to put a major dent in the
market for diabetic treatments after they announced the retrieval
of live, insulin-producing cells, from a patient, in a transplant
that did not require the use of...
The use of DNA as a vaccine has been an exciting but elusive
prospect in drug development for many years, held back by problems
with effectivness and difficulties in production. But this could be
about to change, reports Phil Taylor.
Biotechnology company, Affitech, has entered into a collaboration
agreement for two promising new cancer-specific human antibodies
using its Cell-Based Antibody Selection technology (CBAS).
Researchers may have found a novel way to fight asthma by targeting
a protein that is centrally involved in the bronchial inflammation
and airway constriction that prompts asthma's hallmark symptoms.
The antibody treatment is...
US researchers think they have found promising new molecular
targets and treatment approaches for malignant brain tumours,
suggesting a new therapy for anti-cancer drugs.
A worldwide agreement to develop and commercialise a fully human
monoclonal antibody that could have therapeutic potential in the
treatment of T-cell mediated diseases has been agreed between
Serono and Genmab.
