Articles

Epilepsy is characterised by a tendency to experience unprovoked seizures and is one of the most common neurological disorders. Over 2% of the population will experience a seizure at some time in their life, and recurrent unprovoked seizures will require treatment in approximately one-in-200 people at any given time. Treatment of epilepsy remains important in helping to reduce the psychological and social sequelae which follow on from uncontrolled seizures.
Epilepsy is characterised by a tendency to experience unprovoked seizures and is one of the most common neurological disorders. Over 2% of the population will experience a seizure at some time in their life, and recurrent unprovoked seizures will require treatment in approximately one-in-200 people at any given time. Treatment of epileps…

Amrad and Merck & Co have selected a lead anti-IL-13 monoclonal antibody for development in severe asthma. The antibody holds promise for difficult-to-treat patients, and has sales potential in excess of $1 billion. Given asthma's complex pathophysiology, it is uncertain whether targeting this particular pathway will ultimately prove successful.
Asthma is a common chronic disorder of the airways that afflicts up to 150 million people globally, according to the World Health Organization. Although symptoms in many patients are controlled with current standard of care, around 20% of asthma sufferers across the , , , , and have a form of severe asthma that represents a significant unmet medical need. Although this group represents a small percentage of all asthma patients, it accounts for muc…

It is often forgotten that until the late 1950s there was no treatment for schizophrenia, or for that matter, any other severe enduring mental illness. The majority of patients admitted to asylum care never left: hence the peak occupancy of 150,000 reported in the UK in 1955. As an interesting comparison, this is twice the current UK prison population.
It is often forgotten that until the late 1950s there was no treatment for schizophrenia, or for that matter, any other severe enduring mental illness. The majority of patients admitted to asylum care never left: hence the peak occupancy of 150,000 reported in the UK in 1955. As an interesting comparison, this is twice the current UK prison population. The discovery of conventional (or typical) antipsychotic drugs made a major contribution…

Merck KGaA has announced plans to consolidate its position in the highly competitive US generics market with the launch of new generics subsidiary, Genpharm LP. If the venture proves successful, it could catapult Merck KGaA into the global top three, behind Teva and Novartis. Datamonitor's Santwana Kar analyzes the reasons for and possible benefits of this move...
The global generics market is forecast to grow 20% by 2008 when it will reach $80 billion, according to figures from IMS Health. The market is, however, becoming increasingly difficult to penetrate in both the and because of low profit margins, caused by regulated pricing and reimbursement schemes, and high competition, due to the presence of established players. Western generics players, particularly those in the , also face t…

According to LeadDiscovery's recent feature report, Pain Therapeutics 2005, about one and a half billion people suffer from moderate to severe chronic pain worldwide, driving the market for analgesics to nearly $23 billion in 2004. Many companies are investing heavily in the development of new pain therapeutics, even more so now with the recent problems to have hit the Cox-II inhibitors. Calcium channel blockers stepped into the spotlight at the end of last year with the FDA approval of Elan's Z
According to LeadDiscovery's recent feature report, Pain Therapeutics 2005, about one and a half billion people suffer from moderate to severe chronic pain worldwide. The value of the pharmaceutical market for pain relief reflects this seeming worldwide epidemic of pain, with the overall value reach…

Worth an estimated $35 billion in 2003, analysts predict that the sale of oncology therapeutics will grow to $60 billion by 2010. Targeted therapeutics represent one of the most exciting new developments in the field of oncology and include angiogenesis inhibitors; apoptosis stimulators and; signal transduction inhibitors. Apoptosis stimulators lead by Genta's Genesense are particularly appealing. Canadian researchers are focusing on a stimulator of apoptosis known as pancratistatin. This molecu
Oncology is the third largest pharmaceutical market, behind the cardiovascular and CNS therapy areas, and is currently experiencing strong growth. Worth an estimated $35 billion in 2003, analysts predict that the sector will grow to $60 billion by 2010, yielding a compound annual growth rate of 8%…

Parkinson's disease drug revenues grew an impressive 17% across the seven major markets to reach $1.7 billion in 2003. Despite the commercial success associated with this therapy area, currently available treatments focus on levodopa which replaces the loss of striatal dopamine, the hall mark of Parkinson's disease, rather than targeting disease progression. The efficacy of levodopa eventually declines in most patients and new therapies with disease modifying activity are urgently required. A gr
Parkinson's disease is a chronic and progressive neurological condition that affects approximately 1.5 million people in the US alone. While its cause is unknown, the symptoms of Parkinson's disease are primarily the result of degeneration of dopaminergic neurons, in the substantia nigra, a part of…

Hypertension continues to represent a highly prevalent clinical problem affecting 190 million people in the 7 major pharmaceutical markets. This therapeutic area is also a highly lucrative field for pharmaceutical companies with sales exceeding $30 billion in 2003. Despite the improved efficacy and tolerability of the angiotensin receptor blocker class led by valsartan, physicians remain frustrated by the lack of efficacy of antihypertensive agents and the current trend is towards the use of com
Hypertension is defined as a systolic blood pressure of >139mmHg or a diastolic blood pressure of >89mm. Once these values increase past 160 and 100 respectively patients are classified as having stage 2 disease. Although there is a growing awareness of cardiovascular risk factors and the n…

Earlier in 2005, LeadDiscovery published an in depth report on the development of the novel anti-cancer class, the HDAC inhibitors. As this class advances with therapeutic candidates now entering phase II trials, companies are seeking to optimize therapeutic margins by targeting specific isoforms of histone deacetylase that are involved in tumor progression. In a recent NEJM study Prof. Peter Barnes and colleagues demonstrates that the inhibition of HDAC2 could introduce airway risks, possibly e
Earlier in 2005, LeadDiscovery published an in depth report on the development of the novel anti-cancer class, the HDAC inhibitors (see Histone deacetylase inhibitors-Moving from the bench to a promising companion for classic and targeted cancer therapies). This report, in addition to discussing the…

The overlapping fields of angiogenesis and growth factor biology represent two extensively investigated areas of modern day oncology and the recent success of Avastin, a monoclonal antibody that binds to and neutralizes one such growth factor, VEGF has not only resulted in the introduction of an effective clinical tool for the treatment of cancer but it also helped spark a wave of optimism in the angiogenesis inhibitor arena. As a result companies are evaluating new approaches to target VEGF in
The overlapping fields of angiogenesis and growth factor biology represent two extensively investigated areas of modern day oncology (see Innovative Cancer Therapies: Targeted therapy, a clinical and commercial revolution) and the recent success of Avastin, a monoclonal antibody that binds to and ne…

Rheumatoid arthritis affects an estimated 2.1 million Americans. The initial success of biologics that neutralize TNF alpha mean that these therapeutics dominate the US and European rheumatoid arthritis markets. Although the development of biologics has revolutionized treatment of rheumatoid arthritis therapies remain far from optimal. Since biologics are peptidic in nature they must be administered by injection. Moreover, multiple dosing is required and this can be disruptive to the patient.
Rheumatoid arthritis affects an estimated 2.1 million Americans and is characterized by chronic inflammation of the lining of the joints and the development of the pannus, a structure composed of fibroblast-like synovial cells that erode the joint and surrounding bone.  The initial success of…

It is estimated that there are more than 38 million people in the seven major markets with diabetes and this figure is set to rise to 50 million in 2012. Despite the presence of well established treatments of diabetes significant unmet needs remain driving a large body of research and development activity. The highlighted JCI paper described work by Lilly researchers advancing FGF-21 or its mimics as a novel therapeutic candidates for the treatment of diabetes.
It is estimated that there are more than 38 million people in the seven major markets with diabetes and this figure is set to rise to 50 million in 2012 (for an in depth evaluation of the diabetes market size and value, plus an analysis of emerging therapeutics see our recent feature Non-insulin Antidiabetics - Three New Classes C…

Although cytotoxics agents represent a cornerstone of oncology, toxicity and drug resistance has driven the development of targeted anticancer therapies. The current study highlights a novel antimitotic agent, PTX-2. This molecule, like the Taxol and Taxotere, blocks the cell cycle in late mitosis channelling cells into an apoptotic program. In direct contrast to Taxol and Taxotere, PTX-2 targets cells with p53 mutations; the plant alkaloids on the other hand are relatively insensitive in such c
Cytotoxic agents represent a cornerstone of oncology however many established agents are reaching patent expiry and the last cytotoxic genericization is expected in 2011 (Xeloda). One good example of the effects of genericization is the plant alkaloid Taxol (paclitaxel). Taxol, one of a group of al…

Despite the cardiovascular risks that have recently emerged following prolonged treatment with COX-2 inhibitors, this class of drug continues to receive interest as an approach to chemoprevention. Celebrex, which was approved in 1998 for the treatment of familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) has been shown to reduce the development of precancerous colorectal polyps by 28%. Data recently highlighted in the FASEB journal suggests that at least part of the efficacy of celebrex may be related to the
Until preventative and diagnostic approaches to cancer are significantly improved patients will continue to present to clinicians with tumors that have progressed to a stage where metastasis will in many cases be inevitable. This is particularly the case for the 160,000 patients seen yearly in the…

Job satisfaction is an attitude that employees have about their work and is based on numerous factors, both intrinsic and extrinsic to the individual.
Job satisfaction is an attitude that employees have about their work and is based on numerous factors, both intrinsic and extrinsic to the individual. Job satisfaction is important from the perspective of maintaining and retaining the appropriate employees within the organisation; it is about fitting the right person to the right job in the right culture and keeping them satisfied. 1,2 Today's business environment is characterised by weak economies, rapidly changing technology, organisational re-engineering, shortened length of tenure, and outsourcing of peripheral business activities. The pharmaceutical industry is reflective of this enviro…

Clinical Research Academy has decided to implement a sure-fire way of finding top candidates for Clinical Research Associate (CRA) posts – by running a Selection and Assessment Day. The first was held at the end of July in Marlow in the UK.
Clinical Research Academy has decided to implement a sure-fire way of finding top candidates for Clinical Research Associate (CRA) posts – by running a Selection and Assessment Day. The first was held at the end of July in Marlow in the UK. The company has set up a three-month traineeship scheme which incorporates the Introduction to Clinical Trials Practice course, in conjunction with the UK's Institute of Clinical Research. While following the course, trainees are actively assigned to a pharmaceutical sponsor. The 25 candidates for the Selecti…

While brain cancer may be one of the rarer cancers, the outlook for those diagnosed is bleak. For patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) - the most aggressive form of brain cancer - average survival is approximately one year. However the recent supplementary approval of temozolomide for use in first-line treatment may represent the first step in a more 'personalized' approach to GBM.
In March 2005, Schering-Plough's temozolomide (Temodar/Temodal) garnered US FDA approval for the first-line treatment of patients with GBM and European approval followed in June 2005. Temozolomide given in combination with radiation therapy has been shown to increase survival by two months. While this improvement may at first glance seem modest, given the poor prognosis for these patients and the current d…

Novartis has received a positive opinion from a European committee recommending marketing authorization be granted to Xolair for severe persistent allergic asthma. Although Xolair has delivered impressive results, the restrictive label, together with high treatment costs, will limit its sales potential in the EU, meaning Novartis, and partner Genentech, may prefer to focus on the US market.
Asthma is a common chronic disorder of the airways, characterized by airway inflammation, airway hyperresponsiveness, and airway narrowing that is reversible, with treatment or spontaneously. There are estimated to be around 10 million diagnosed asthma patients in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, of which around 1.8 million (18%) have severe persistent asthma. While representing a small percen…

Few who love its taste associate it with good health, but recent reports that a confectionary company was seriously examining the pharmaceutical potential of chocolate achieved widespread international media coverage.
Few who love its taste associate it with good health, but recent reports that a confectionary company was seriously examining the pharmaceutical potential of chocolate achieved widespread international media coverage.   In fact the health-related properties of chocolate have long been debated and it appears that certain people in the industry believe compounds in chocolate could yield new pharmaceutical approaches to major disorders. In an industry which is seeking new sources of innovative products, this could be one of the most unusual avenues to be explored in a long…

This alert is brought to you by LeadDiscovery and concerns today's announcement by Celera Genomics that clinical evaluation of their HDAC inhibitor CRA-024781 is about to commence. The press release is featured on today's edition of DailyUpdates-Oncology.
Special alert from DailyUpdates-Oncology: Milestone in the development of Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors This alert is brought to you by LeadDiscovery and concerns Celera Genomics' July 14th today's announcement that clinical evaluation of their HDAC inhibitor CRA-024781 is about to commence. The press release is featured on today's edition of DailyUpdates-Oncology. Click here to access this bulletin or read our editorial below. Editorial Comment The field of histone deacetylase (HDACs) inhibition has recently start…