GlaxoSmithKline has announced plans to acquire the Corixa
Corporation, which represents an important strategic deal for GSK's
vaccines division, GSK Bio. The division is the only major vaccine
maker with active R&D programs...
Scientists have developed a monoclonal antibody that can cure mice
infected with the West Nile virus, which if confirmed, could become
one of the first monoclonal antibodies used as a treatment for an
infectious disease.
Researchers have identified a common gene variant that could be a
risk factor behind a number of common diseases such as
cardiovascular disease, rheumatism and Multiple Sclerosis (MS), of
which up to a quarter of the population could...
Scientists, paving the way for new treatments against Malaria, have
discovered a genetic "camouflage" with which the malaria parasite
hides itself from the immune system of the host. The findings could
lead to the development...
Researchers have, for the first time, identified two separate
populations of immune cells in the liver, which will help doctors
understand the mechanisms by which the liver is damaged and
repaired and may lead to future drug therapies.
The prospect of using genomic analysis as a tool for studying
trauma patients is a realistic prospect according to a new study,
which says the tool can be used to predict whether or not a given
patient will respond to a specific course...
GE Healthcare announced the launch of two new purification tools
designed to meet growing industry needs for the advancement of
monoclonal antibody (MAbs) research and development. The tools
become the latest offering in the chromatography...
Avidex has announced the publication of data that demonstrates the
potential of new immunotherapeutics based on the T cell immune
response, which has so far been largely unexplored.
The European approval of a new high-potency vaccine for hepatitis B
virus (HBV) marks the debut on the marketplace of a new adjuvant
ingredient that can significantly improve the effectiveness of
immunisations, reports Phil Taylor.
A potential vaccine for the deadly ricin, a "Category B" biological
agent, is to proceed with the first phase of human clinical testing
of RiVax, a genetically engineered vaccine for the toxin for which
there is currently...
Astrazeneca and Cambridge Antibody Technology (CAT) have entered
into an alliance to jointly discover and develop human monoclonal
antibody therapeutics, principally in the field of inflammatory
disorders, including respiratory diseases....
UK company MicroScience has completed a Phase I study of a new
therapeutic vaccine for patients carrying the hepatitis B virus,
raising the hope of a new approach to tackling this
life-threatening infection.
US company Sontra Medical has successfully completed the first
tests of a novel technology that allows vaccines to be applied
topically to the skin, rather than delivered through a needle.
Preliminary data suggest the method is as...
Stellar Biotechnologies has been awarded $3 million (€2 million)
for the development of production methods, quality standards, and
facilities for its Keyhole Limpet Hemocyanin (KLH), a key component
of its anti-cancer vaccine.
Medarex has announced a global collaboration agreement with Pfizer
that will provide for the discovery and development of up to 50
antibody products over ten years including the creation of fully
human antibody products in a variety...
The first molecular-scale images of DNA binding to an adenovirus
enzyme, a crucial step for a virus to cause infection, have been
produced, which shows how binding to DNA may stimulate the enzyme,
aiding to the design of new antiviral...
The first natural human model for specific Hodgkin's and
non-Hodgkin's lymphomas has been identified by scientists whose
studies into cancer immunity in chickens could pave the way for an
effective drug therapy to treat...
The discovery of a naturally occurring protein could play a pivotal
role in the fight against autoimmune diseases with the possibility
of developing this compound into a practicable treatment for
rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which currently...
New treatment strategies for the hepatitis C virus (HCV) based on a
specific combination of genes that directly give protection against
HCV without the necessity for additional treatment for a virus that
affects 170 million people...
Last week's International Conference on AIDS in Thailand was marked
by a report that pointed to a dearth of innovation in HIV vaccine
research, both from the manufacturing perspective and in terms of
the mechanism of action of...
Global efforts to develop a vaccine to prevent HIV infection and
AIDS have intensified over the past few years, yet they continue to
fall short of what is likely to be needed to achieve success,
reports Phil Taylor.
A natural mutation of a gene that helps regulate the reactivity of
the immune system is a major contributor to type 1 diabetes,
researchers have found, writes Wai Lang Chu..
Researchers in the US have taken an important step toward creating
a vaccine against Alzheimer's disease, overcoming the side effects
that held back a prior vaccine for the disease.
Adjuvants - substances that are added to vaccines to intensify the
immune response to an antigen which have been used for over 80
years - are beginning to be understood by researchers who believe
more effective adjuvants can be designed.
Canada's Generex Biotechnology has presented new evidence that its
RapidMist device can deliver proteins and peptides through the
lining of the mouth, potentially doing away with the need for
injections.
The safety of thiomersal, a preservative that is used in vaccines,
has come under scrutiny once again after a study found that it
causes damage to nerve cells in newborn mice.
Researchers in the US have identified an interaction between a
known cancer-related gene and a cellular enzyme that could be the
target of a new generation of drugs aimed at cancer and parasitic
infections.
Researchers in the US are testing a new way to treat HIV by
destroying the virus as it enters host cells. The treatment is
based on the genetic manipulation of the immune cells that HIV
infects to enable them to destroy the virus.
A new generation of potent, targetted vaccines for cancer could be
the offspring of a marriage between two technologies developed at
European biotechnology companies Avidex and Active Biotech.
The needle-free injector technology underpinning PowderJect, the
drug delivery company which shot onto the biotechnology scene in
the mid-1990s and was snapped up by Chiron of the US last year,
will form the foundation of a new therapeutic...
Growing knowledge about how to manage the risks of gene therapy
could improve the chances of developing successful treatments, said
experts meeting last week to weigh up the progress made on the
technology to date.
A team of researchers in the US has developed a technique that
overcomes one of the bottlenecks in research into the immune system
- identifying the antigens in a disease that stimulate attack by
the immune system.
Researchers studying cell migration and the screening of drug
compounds, can benefit from a new type of cell analysis system
developed by Guava Technologies. These processes are extensively
studied in cancer research and drug discovery...
Scientists atDuke University's Medical Centre in the US have
discovered why certain vaccines are unable to mount an attack
against cancer and have also demonstrated how to overcome this
constraint by reinforcing the vaccines'...
Inhibitors of the enzyme histone deacetylase (HDAC) have entered
clinical testing in cancer, but may also prevent a serious and
life-threatening complication of bone marrow transplants.
Zambon has teamed up with fellow Italian company BioXell to develop
small molecule drugs that antagonise CXCR3, a chemokine receptor
protein which plays a key role in inflammatory diseases affecting
skin, joints as well as the respiratory...
Australia's Gradipore has been boosted by news that its Gradiflow
separation technology has been scaled up to produce commercial
quantities of an antibody from source plasma.
Since they were introduced in the early 1990s, beta interferons
have become the standard of care for patients with the
neurodegenerative disease multiple sclerosis, but up to a third of
MS patients do not derive a benefit from these...
The bacterium Listeria monocytogenes is well known as a
cause of food poisoning, but could also improve the safety and
effectiveness of vaccines for a number of viral diseases, according
to US researchers.
Transgenomic has won a contract to manufacture an
oligonucleotide-based ingredient for an adjuvant candidate used to
increase the immunogenicity of vaccines.
Researchers have established the cause of the leukaemia which
developed in two young patients taking part in a pioneering gene
therapy trial to treat the fatal 'baby-in-a-bubble' syndrome.
France's BioProtein Technologies, a biotechnology company
specialising in the production of therapeutic proteins in the milk
of transgenic rabbits, has extended its biomanufacturing services
to include recombinant vaccine production.
Serono has initiated Phase I clinical testing of TACI-Ig, a soluble
receptor-based drug that may have a role to play in the management
of autoimmune diseases.
Pall tells BIOPHEX/INTERPHEX conference that use of its
ultrafiltration technologies cuts both the time and cost of
conjugate vaccine production; greater adoption could increase the
availability of vaccines for diseases such as meningitis...
A team of researchers at Switzerland's Novartis and Rigel
Pharmaceuticals in the USA have created a method for discovering
molecules that are involved in signalling pathways, according to a
report in the Journal of Biology.
The first vaccine targeting the strains of HIV prevalent in
sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, where millions of people are infected
with the virus, has started Phase I volunteer studies in the USA.
