StemCell Therapy

Puma Biotechnology Inc (NYSE:PBYI) insider Robert Charnas sold 3,008 shares of Puma Biotechnology stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.83, for a total transaction of $95,744.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 28,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $905,913.63. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Shares of Puma Biotechnology Inc (NYSE:PBYI) traded up 0.75% during trading on Thursday, reaching $33.45. 527,529 shares of the company traded hands. The companys 50-day moving average price is $33.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.94. Puma Biotechnology Inc has a 52 week low of $19.74 and a 52 week high of $73.27. The companys market capitalization is $1.23 billion.

PBYI has been the topic of several research reports. J P Morgan Chase & Co set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Puma Biotechnology and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, November 14th. Citigroup Inc. set a $88.00 price objective on shares of Puma Biotechnology and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, November 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $88.00 price objective on shares of Puma Biotechnology in a research report on Thursday, November 10th. Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of Puma Biotechnology from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. Finally, Cowen and Company reaffirmed a market perform rating on shares of Puma Biotechnology in a research report on Tuesday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Puma Biotechnology currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $68.56.

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PBYI. Redmile Group LLC bought a new position in Puma Biotechnology during the third quarter valued at about $44,406,000. Janus Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Puma Biotechnology by 30.6% in the second quarter. Janus Capital Management LLC now owns 2,540,331 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $75,675,000 after buying an additional 594,821 shares in the last quarter. EverPoint Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Puma Biotechnology during the second quarter valued at about $13,406,000. BlackRock Fund Advisors boosted its position in Puma Biotechnology by 160.7% in the second quarter. BlackRock Fund Advisors now owns 602,071 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $17,936,000 after buying an additional 371,151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in Puma Biotechnology by 22.3% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,415,800 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $42,177,000 after buying an additional 258,100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.98% of the companys stock.

About Puma Biotechnology

Puma Biotechnology, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the development and commercialization of products for the treatment of cancer. The Company focuses on in-licensing the global development and commercialization rights to over three drug candidates, including PB272 (neratinib (oral)), which the Company is developing for the treatment of patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 (HER2), positive breast cancer, and patients with non-small cell lung cancer, breast cancer and other solid tumors that have a HER2 mutation; PB272 (neratinib (intravenous)), which the Company is developing for the treatment of patients with advanced cancer, and PB357, which is an orally administered agent.

Read this article:
The Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Insider Sells $95744.64 in Stock - DailyQuint

Kaden Hadfield was just five years old when he died from arthritis (Picture: MEN)

A five-year-old boy who suffered arthritis so bad he could barely walk at times died after doctors failed to diagnose him, his family has said.

Kaden Hadfield attended hospital more than 20 times over a two-year course, but nobody diagnosedhis arthritis and sent him home with Calpol and Ibuprofen.

Despite the pain and struggling to walk at times, Kaden continued to go to school.

It was only when he was finally referred to Alder Hey two years after his symptoms began that he was diagnosed and prescribed steroids.

But by that time the disease had ravaged his body and although treatment seemed to work at first, he sadly died.

Mum Caitlin Tattersall, 25, from Bolton, and dad Lee Hadfield, 29, of Oldham, are now awaiting an inquest this month, when they hope to discover the truth surrounding his death.

Meanwhile, the Trust which runs Blackpool Hospital where he was originally treated has confirmed launching a case review into his treatment.

Caitlin, who lived in Blackpool at the time after she and Lee separated, said: It was heartbreaking, the last time I saw Kaden he was in intensive care, they had his chest open, I could see his heart and lungs.

They tried to save him for 13 hours. But I dont understand. I feel like if Kaden had just had the medication he needed earlier he would be here today.

He had been so unwell for so long he never even complained from the pain, but he needed help. I was taking him to school he was sitting through it and not complaining.

It took two years to get Kaden an appointment at Alder Hey, they diagnosed him straight away but it was too late.

The familys ordeal began two years ago, when Kaden woke up one day with pain in one of his ankles, which a GP diagnosed as a sprain.

But the pain grew worse, and 18 months ago later when it moved to his other ankle, Caitlin took him to Blackpool Victoria Hospitals A&E.

Blood tests showed him to have a vitamin D deficiency and anaemia.

In hospital for a week, he was discharged with a bottle of Calpol and Ibuprofen as well as vitamin D and iron tablets.

The pain spread to Kadens knees then all his joints.

Referred to Rheumatology at Blackpool, Caitlin claims they gave him more Calpol despite an ultrasound showing tissue damage.

Caitlin added: It was worse in the morning, he couldnt walk, he couldnt even scratch his own nose his hands were so swollen and stiff.

We got referred to a physio the therapist said I was doing too much for Kaden and thats why he wasnt able to do things himself. I felt like I was banging my head against a brick wall.

At Blackpool Hospital, blood tests showed again showed that he was anaemic, despite the iron tablets.

Finally, after months of delays, Kaden got an appointment at Alder Hey Hospital, where doctors were so shocked they suspected leukaemia.

They diagnosed systemic onset juvenile arthritis and started a course of steroids which immediately began to ease his pain.

But the arthritis was already attacking Kadens joints and organs and he was placed on a high dependency unit.

After six weeks in hospital, he finally turned a corner and his family celebrated with the nurses as he took his first steps in months.

But the next day, Kaden complained of a stabbing pain in his stomach and he was taken to intensive care where his heart stopped.

Caitlin added: They had all these wires on him, they had to open his chest, I could see his heart and his lungs. They were trying to stop him bleeding but it was just pouring from him.

I knew he was going and there was nothing they could do. I was just screaming at them to try.

Kaden died the following day and doctorstold the family it was caused by sepsis as a result of his arthritis.

Caitlin, who is training to be a social worker, added: I want to know exactly what happened.

I want everyone to know. How can a healthy boy go from having a sore ankle two years ago to being gone?

Im training to be a social worker, I know what the standards should be.

Why did it take so long to get a diagnosis?

Describing Kaden as loving, kind and caring, she added: If he was in pain he would just entertain himself, play on his computer. When his friends came round Sometimes he was too weak to play with them. I had to take him to school in a pram in the end, he didnt like it, he said everyone would think he was a baby.

He was in agony every day and he never moaned. Everyone who ever met him loved him.

A spokesman for Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: Our thoughts are with Kadens family at this sad time. Upon hearing of his death the trust initiated a case review which is ongoing and is standard procedure in all childrens deaths.

A spokeswoman for Alder Hey Childrens NHS Foundation Trust said: Our thoughts remain with the family at this extremely difficult time.

Read more here:
Kaden Hadfield, 5, died from arthritis after doctors failed to diagnose ... - Metro

Studies have found that strengthening the quadriceps or thigh muscles may help prevent knee osteoarthritis. But a new study has found that how fast the quadricep muscle is able to generate force for example pushing the leg out may impact knee osteoarthritis too.

More than a third of West Virginian adults report experiencing arthritis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The studys authors followed 3,996 participants for 12 months, 3,820 for 24 months and 3,623 for 36 months. They measured quadricep speed and force by using a special chair with a cable that recorded muscle strength when pushing the leg out. They also tested how well participants walked for 20 and 400 meters and how well the participant was able to stand from after being seated in a chair. Finally, participants completed self-assessments of how well they were able to do daily activities like bathing, getting in a car and getting dressed.

The studys authors found that people with slower muscle responses are more likely to suffer from worse physical function in the future.

We know that maintaining quadriceps strength is important for protection against painful knee OA, said Neil Segal, one of the studys authors. Now, we know the ability to move the muscle quickly is important for keeping people able to walk, stand from a chair and do other functional activities.

Appalachia Health Newsis a project of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, with support from theBenedumFoundation, Charleston Area Medical Center andWVUMedicine.

Originally posted here:
Muscle Speed Affects Arthritis Prevention as Much as Strength, Study Finds - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Arthritis pain supplements fare poorly in new study

Many people take glucosamine and chondroitin supplements for arthritis pain, but a controlled trial has found no evidence that the combination works. In fact, in this study, the placebo worked better.

Spanish researchers randomized 164 men and women with knee osteoarthritis to take a single daily dose of 1,500 milligrams of glucosamine and 1,200 of chondroitin, or an identical looking placebo. The study is in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

The researchers used a scale that shows 10 faces with increasingly pained expressions and asks patients which picture matches their degree of pain. People who took the medicines had a 19 percent reduction in pain scores after six months on the regimen. But those who took the placebo had a 33 percent reduction.

On scales measuring how well the knee worked, there was no difference between the treatment and control groups.

A lot of money is spent on these drugs, and people have thought they were useful to decrease pain and increase function, said the senior author, Dr. Gabriel Herrero-Beaumont, a professor of medicine at the Autonomous University of Madrid. But its difficult to demonstrate that they work. We have not found any kind of pharmacological effect of these drugs.

Nicholas Bakalar, The New York Times

Go here to see the original:
Health Short: Arthritis pain supplements fare poorly in new study - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

GB Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB:GBLX) announced filing the second in a series of patent applications for life science inventions by its wholly-owned subsidiary, Growblox Life Sciences, LLC.

Inflammatory disorders represent a serious health and economic burden in the US with over $200 billion spent annually. GB Sciences novel cannabis-based therapies could significantly help both patients and society. According to the CDC, arthritis affects 22.7% (52.5 million) of adults in the US (2010-2012), and the prevalence is projected to increase to an estimated 26% (78 million of the projected total adult population) by 2040. The total costs associated with arthritis were $128 billion in 2003, and they have been increasing over time. Additionally, 8.6% (7 million) children and 7.4% (17.8 million) adults had asthma (2014), which costs the US $56 billion per year. Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), which includes Crohns disease and ulcerative colitis) affected between 1 and 1.3 million people in the US (2007). Per the CDC, IBD is an expensive, chronic disease, which cost the US $11.8 billion in 2008, despite the lower prevalence rates.

The current provisional patent application covers cannabinoid-containing complex mixtures (CCCM) capable of preventing and treating a spectrum of inflammatory disorders. The application focuses on the use of CCCM to disrupt the signaling pathways in certain immune cells that lead to the initiation and maintenance of inflammatory responses. Both common and uncommon inflammatory disorders, ranging from chronic arthritis to acute responses to insect stings, are likely to be effectively targeted by this therapeutic approach.

Although inflammatory reactions are a necessary part of human immunity in some situations (e.g., fighting pathogens), humans (and animals) suffer from multiple inflammatory disorders involving hyper-inflammatory responses. Our novel CCCM strategically target multiple arms of these hyper-inflammatory responses in parallel for maximal effect, rather than inhibiting a single arm like other commonly available anti-inflammatory therapies, explains Dr. Andrea Small-Howard, Chief Science Officer of GB Sciences. For example, anti-histamines are partly effective, but leave untouched those inflammatory pathways that lead to release of other pro-inflammatory mediators, such as bioactive lipids and cytokines. GB Sciences approach is to simultaneously target as many inflammatory outputs as possible with our CCCM, leading to more comprehensive relief from tissue inflammation.

John Poss, CEO, GB Sciences states: GB Sciences is committed to developing cannabis-based therapies for inflammatory disorders that affect large numbers of patients (arthritis, dermatitis, allergic asthma, eczema, IBD, Crohns disease, etc.). Our CCCM products will be developed to the same efficacy and safety standards as other commercially available anti-inflammatory therapies; however, cannabis-based medicines often have more favorable side effect profiles than traditional pharmaceuticals.

About GB Sciences, Inc.

GB Sciences, Inc. (GBLX) is a diverse cannabis company, focused on standardized cultivation and production methods; as well as biopharmaceutical research and development. The Companys goal is creating safe, standardized, pharmaceutical-grade, cannabinoid therapies that target a variety of medical conditions. To learn more about GB Sciences, Inc., go to: http://growblox.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain statements relating to future results or events, which are forward-looking statements. Words such as expects, intends, plans, may, could, should, anticipates, likely, believes and words of similar import may identify forward-looking statements. These statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only the Companys belief regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the Companys control. It is possible that the Companys actual results and financial condition may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements. Further, information concerning the Company and its business, including factors that potentially could materially affect the Companys business and financial and other results, are contained in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at http://www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release, and we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or correct any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that subsequently occur or of which we hereafter become aware.

Note: Although the Companys research and development activities are not illegal, the production and sale of cannabis products violate federal laws as they presently exist.

Contact Information

Corporate: GB Sciences, Inc., 3550 West Teco Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89118 866-721-0297, or Liz Bianco Publicity Director, liz@gbsciences.com, http://growblox.com Investors: John Poss, j.poss@gbsciences.com

creating safe, standardized, pharmaceutical-grade, cannabinoid therapies that target a variety of medical conditions. To learn more about GB Sciences, Inc., go to: http://growblox.com

SOURCE Growblox Sciences, Inc.

See the original post here:
GB Sciences Files Patent Application for the Treatment of Chronic Arthritis, Crohn's Disease, Inflammatory Bowel ... - Investing News Network (press...

Back to Browse Journals Psoriasis: Targets and Therapy Volume 7

Ilja L Kruglikov,1 Uwe Wollina2

1Scientific Department, Wellcomet GmbH, Karlsruhe, 2Department of Dermatology and Allergology, Hospital Dresden-Friedrichstadt Academic Teaching Hospital of the Technical University of Dresden, Dresden, Germany

Abstract: The structure and physiological state of the local white adipose tissue (WAT) located underneath the lesional psoriatic skin and inside of the joints affected by psoriatic arthritis play an important role in the pathophysiology of these diseases. WAT pads associated with inflammatory sites in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis are, correspondingly, dermal WAT and articular adipose tissue; these pads demonstrate inflammatory phenotypes in both diseases. Such local WAT inflammation could be the primary effect in the pathophysiology of psoriasis leading to the modification of the local expression of adipokines, a change in the structure of the basement membrane and the release of keratinocytes with consequent epidermal hyperproliferation during psoriasis. Similar articular adipose tissue inflammation can lead to the induction of structural modifications and synovial inflammation in the joints of patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Keywords: psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, pathophysiology, adipose tissue, dermal adipocytes, articular adipose tissue

This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License. By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms.

Visit link:
Local effects of adipose tissue in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis - Dove Medical Press

Human skin can be morphed into genetically modified, cancer-killing brain stem cells, according to a new study. This latest advance has only been tested in mice but eventually, its possible that it could be translated into a personalized treatment for people with a deadly form of brain cancer.

The study builds on an earlier discovery that brain stem cells have a weird affinity for cancers. So researchers, led by Shawn Hingtgen, a professor at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, created genetically engineered brain stem cells out of human skin. Then they armed the stem cells with drugs to squirt directly onto the tumors of mice that had been given a human form of brain cancer. The treatment shrank the tumors and extended survival of the mice, according to results recently published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The treatment shrank the tumors and extended survival

Usually we think about stem cell therapy in the context of rebuilding or regrowing a broken body part like a spinal cord. But if they could be modified to become cancer-fighting homing missiles, it would give patients with a deadly and incurable brain cancer called glioblastoma a better chance at survival. Glioblastomas typically affect adults, and are highly fatal because they send out a web of cancerous threads. Even when the main mass is removed, those threads remain despite chemotherapy and radiation treatment. This cancer has caused a number of high-profile deaths including Senator Edward (Ted) Kennedy in 2009, and possibly Beau Biden more recently. Approximately 12,000 new cases of glioblastoma are estimated to be diagnosed in 2017.

We really have no drugs, no new treatment options in years to even decades, Hingtgen says. [We] just really want to create new therapy that can stand a chance against this disease.

But theres a problem: brain stem cells arent exactly easy to get. Brain stem cells, more properly known as neural stem cells, hang out in the walls of the brains irrigation canals areas filled with cerebrospinal fluid, called ventricles. They generate the cells of the nervous system, like neurons and glial cells, throughout our lives.

They could be modified to become cancer-fighting homing missiles

A research group at the City of Hope in California conducted a clinical trial to make sure it was safe to treat glioblastoma patients with genetically engineered neural stem cells. But they used a neural stem cell line that theyd obtained from fetal tissue. Since the stem cells werent the patients own, people who were genetically more likely to reject the cells couldnt receive the treatment at all. For the people who could, treatment with the neural stem cells turned out to be relatively safe although at this phase of clinical trials, it hasnt been particularly effective.

More personalized treatments have been held up by the challenge of getting enough stem cells out of the patients own brains, which is virtually impossible, says stem cell scientist Frank Marini at the Wake Forest School of Medicine, who was not involved in this study. You cant really generate a bank of neural stem cells from anybody because you have to go in and resect the brain.

So instead, Hingtgen and his colleagues figured out a way to generate neural stem cells from skin which in the future, could let them make neural stem cells personalized to each patient. For this study, though, Hingtgen and his colleagues extracted the skin cells from chunks of human flesh leftover as surgical waste. That really is the magic piece here, Marini says. Now, all of a sudden we have a neural stem cell that can be used as a tumor-homing vehicle.

That really is the magic piece here.

Using a disarmed virus to infect the cells with a cocktail of new genes, the researchers morphed the skin cells into something in between a skin cell and a neural stem cell. People have turned skin cells back into a more generalized type of stem cell before. But then turning those basic stem cells into stem cells for a certain organ like the brain takes another couple of steps, which takes more time. Thats something that people with glioblastoma dont have.

The breakthrough here is that Hingtgens team figured out how to go straight from skin cells to something resembling a neural stem cell in just four days. The researchers then genetically engineered these induced neural stem cells to arm them with one of two different weapons: One group was equipped with an enzyme that could convert an anti-fungal drug into chemotherapy, right at the cancers location. The other was armed with a protein that binds to the cancer cells and makes them commit suicide in an orderly process called apoptosis.

The researchers tested these engineered neural stem cells in mice that had been injected with human glioblastoma cells, which multiplied out of control to create a human cancer in a mouse body. Both of the weaponized stem cell groups were able to significantly shrink the tumors and keep the mice alive by about an extra 30 days (for scale, mice usually live an average of two years).

Were working as fast as we can.

But injecting the cells directly into the tumor doesnt really reflect how the therapy would be used in humans. Its more likely that a person with glioblastoma would get the bulk of the tumor surgically removed. Then, the idea is that these neural stem cells, generated from the patients own skin, will be inserted into the hole left in the brain. So, the researchers tried this out in mice, and the tumors that regrew after surgery were more than three times smaller in the mice treated with the neural stem cells.

Its a promising start, but it could take a few years still before its in the clinic, Hingtgen says. He and his colleagues started a company called Falcon Therapeutics to drive this new therapy forward. Were working as fast as we can, Hingtgen says. We probably cant help the patients today. Hopefully in a year or two, well be able to help those patients.

One of the things theyll have to figure out first is whether the neural stem cells can travel the much bigger distances in human brains, and whether theyll be able to eliminate every remaining cancer cell. The caveats on this are that, of course, its a mouse study, and whether or not that directly converts to humans is unclear, Marini says. Still, he adds, Theres a very high probability in this case.

View original post here:
The next weapon against brain cancer may be human skin - The Verge

share

pin

email

February is National Cancer Prevention Month. It's a disease that more than a million Americans are diagnosed with each year, according to the National Cancer Institute. This morning in our special series "War on Cancer," TODAY takes a look at the latest advances in the fight against this deadly disease.

Celine Ryan, a 51-year-old engineer and mother of five, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer three years ago. After undergoing surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, doctors discovered cancer in her lungs seven tumors that threatened her life.

Ryan, who lives in Michigan, read about a clinical trial using gene therapy at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, and decided to apply. The trial is headed up by Dr. Steven Rosenberg, a leading researcher in immunotherapy at the institute. She decided the treatment would be a birthday present to herself.

Getting into the trial wasn't simple because her tumors, though numerous, weren't large enough for the form of treatment being tested, but she was finally accepted in March 2015.

RELATED: Keytruda, the drug that helped Jimmy Carter, also can stop lung cancer

The treatment involves removing cells from a tumor your body's own cancer-fighting cells multiplying them by billions in a lab, then returning them back to your body to fight the tumor.

Celine Ryan is being referred to as an historic figure in medicine.

After spending a month in the hospital and letting the treatment run its course, six of her seven tumors had completely disappeared. The last tumor started to grow eight or nine months later and the decision was to remove it through surgery.

RELATED: 10 things I wish I knew before I was diagnosed with breast cancer

The treatment isn't widely available now, and not all patients experience the positive results Ryan had.

"Many have not responded," Rosenberg said. "But from every patient that we treat, whether... their cancers go away or not, we learn something."

Today, Celine Ryan is ten months cancer-free.

Thanks to Ryan's unusual genetic makeup, researchers were able to identify how to attack the mutation that causes common cancers. This experimental treatment may not be the solution for everyone, but for Ryan, it's meant ten months of being cancer-free.

"We can do, and are planning to do, that kind of gene therapy using the exact receptor we got from Celine's cells to treat other people," Rosenberg explained.

Read the rest here:
The experimental gene therapy treatment that helped one woman fight cancer - Today.com

The hottest biotechs in the field of hemophilia are stealing the show at this years edition of the EAHAD hemophilia congress in Paris.

A disorder for which no cure is available, hemophilia is caused by absent or defective genes coding for blood clotting factors, turning simple injuries intohealth risks and causing spontaneous bleeding. Researchers and companies worldwide working to improve hemophilia therapy are meeting this week in Paris for the10th Annual Congress of the European Association for Haemophilia and Allied Disorders (EAHAD).

We recently reviewed the latest advances in hemophilia, a field teeming with innovative solutions and technology.Among the most interesting presented at the congress are new results on gene therapy and RNAi, a pen to treat hemophilia and many companies fighting to reduce thedosing frequency of prophylactic therapy. On top of that, Shire has reported that current estimates of people suffering from the disease could be completely wrong

Novo Nordisk ismaking plans to use its famous insulin pens to deliver hemophilia drugs. According to astudy evaluating user experience with the pens presented at the congress, participants liked the device as it is easy to use, well designed, more portable and involving fewer steps than their current kits for hemophilia.

The ultimate goal of the Danish company is to use its FlexTouch pen to deliverconcizumab, an antibody againsttissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) currently in Phase I for both hemophilia A and B.

Shire has presented a study revealing that the incidence of hemophilia could be more than three times higherthan current estimates. It also showed that only 25% of hemophiliacs receive adequate treatment. These findings might push efforts to put an end to this situation and stimulate market growth.

Shirepresented positive results from a Phase II/III trial for Adynovate (BAX 855) in children with hemophilia A. Interestingly, the company also showed early stage in vitro results for combination therapies with a biosimilar of Roches emicizumab (ACE910). It looks like the antibody, not yet in the market, already has strong competitors getting ready for when its patent expires.

Sobi, inSweden, has co-developed recombinant clotting factors with an extended half-life in partnership with Biogens spin-offBioverativ. To do so, they fuse the clotting factor to the Fc portion immunoglobulin G1 proteins.

The team has presented positive long-term safety and efficacy results forEloctatein hemophilia A andAlprolixin hemophilia B. Both are already in the market and reduce dosing frequency to weekly injections.

OPKO Biologics, in Israel, follows a strategy similar to Sobis. ItsCTP technologyextends the half-life of proteins by fusing them with theC-terminal peptide of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG).

The company has presented data forMOD-5014(FVIIa-CTP) supporting the advance intoPhase II/IIItrials. The drug is intended for delivery twice a week, which is double of that from Sobis products.

Spark Therapeuticsis one of the leaders in the development ofgene therapy for hemophiliaanduniQures main competitor. The American company will report results from itsPhase I/IItrial forSPK-9001in hemophilia B showing sustained activity of the therapy after12 weeks, with only one reported bleeding.

Despite good results, Spark is facing strong competition from the DutchuniQure. Its gene therapyAMT-060has already shown sustained effects for at least52 weeksin a patient subpopulation. Both companies nowhavebreakthrough designation from the FDA and therace to reach the market is tight.

Sanofis partner, Alnylam, is conducting clinical trials across the UK, Switzerland and Bulgaria to test its unique RNAi technology for hemophilia. Its candidate fitusiran, which blocks antithrombin to improve clotting,is proving safe and effective inPhase I/IItrials.

This unique treatment has the potential to reduce dosing to a monthly basis and is suitable for patients with both hemophilia A and B, also including those that have developed resistanceto standard treatments.

Among the companies presenting are many others includingGenentech, Bayer and Catalyst Biosciences. The sheer number of innovative approaches under development is great news. Such a wide arrange of solutions could provide a better quality of life for hemophilia patients, each treatment suited for the particular needs of differentpatients. Especially now that, thanks to Shire, scientists know the number of patients suffering from the condition could actually be much higher.

Images from Sashkin, nobeastsofierce, Roberta Canu, Mond Duang,Art tools, LeonP,Pakpoom Nunjui /Shutterstock.com

Read more:
Gene Therapy, RNA and Pens at European Hemophilia Congress in Paris - Labiotech.eu (blog)

Xconomy Boston

Despite the early and in some cases stunning results produced by gene therapy treatments in handfuls of hemophilia patients, significant questions remain about their durability, safety, and how broadly theyll be used if they are ultimately shown to work. The first human data produced by Dimension Therapeutics, one of several companies developing hemophilia gene therapies, are the latest example.

Shares of Cambridge, MA-based Dimension (NASDAQ: DMTX) tumbled more than 49 percent on Tuesday on early data from a Phase 1/2 trial of DTX101, its experimental gene therapy for hemophilia B.

DTX101 boosted the levels of the blood-clotting protein Factor IX in six patients. Those on the higher of two tested doses havent needed other drugs since getting treatment. But five of the six patientsand all three on the higher of the two tested dosesalso saw a rise in liver enzyme levels, indicating an immune reaction to the gene therapy. While none of the five patients have had any safety problems, the liver enzyme spikes have caused a delay for Dimension. The company wont test an even higher dose of DTX101 in patients until it gets feedback from the FDA.

Gene therapy offers the potential of a long-lasting, if not permanent treatment for hemophilia patients, whodepending on how severe their disease ismay need frequent infusions of preventative drugs to stave off dangerous bleeds. A group of experimental gene therapies have been creeping their way forward in clinical trials, accumulating data in dribs and drabs. Spark Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ONCE) and UniQure (NASDAQ: QURE) are the furthest along in hemophilia B, while BioMarin Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: BMRN) leads the way in the more common hemophilia A.

Each experimental therapy has shown promise helping patients produce meaningful levels of the clotting proteins Factor IX and Factor VIII, respectivelymore than 5 percent of the levels found in normal patients, which many view as the minimum bar for successover the course of a year or more. And Spark and BioMarin have seen much higher numbers than that, in some cases. But there are caveats: Those results have come in small sample sizes, and they have varied patient to patient. Data today from Dimension show the three patients on a low dose of DTX101 had roughly 3 to 4 percent of normal Factor IX levels a year after treatment. The results are earlier for those on a higher dose: 5 and 8 percent, respectively, for two patients 12 weeks post-treatment; 7 percent for a third patient 7 weeks after DTX101.

Additionally, so far, liver enzyme increases have been seen in clinical tests for each of the hemophilia gene therapies. Such increases could indicate that patients immune systems were attacking their liver cells, which are the ones that take up the therapeutic gene and churn out the new clotting protein. Theyre typically treated with a short course of immunosuppressive steroids and havent caused bad side effects so far. But in some cases theyve stifled a response to gene therapy, which is important because it means that certain gene therapies may not workor at least wont work as well as they couldfor some patients who develop neutralizing antibodies. It also means that patients who develop those antibodies wont be eligible for a second dose if the gene therapy wears off. This phenomenon reduces the potential market for the firms developing hemophilia gene therapies. Such immune responses were the impetus behind a deal Spark cut last year with Selecta Biosciences (NASDAQ: SELB), for example.

We continue to explore the therapeutic window for DTX101 as our data mature and in light of the [liver enzyme] rises that appear to be associated with a decline in [Factor IX] activity, CEO Annalisa Jenkins said in a statement.

Heres more on Dimension, and the technical differences between each of the companies developing gene therapies for hemophilia.

Ben Fidler is Xconomy's Deputy Biotechnology Editor. You can e-mail him at bfidler@xconomy.com

View original post here:
Investors Sour on Data Debut For Dimension's Hemophilia Gene Therapy - Xconomy

In 2014, when Springer Publications published Stem Cells in Aesthetic Procedures, the first book ever published on the subject, Jacksonville physician Lewis Obi contributed a chapter, Specialized Stem Cell Fat Transfer to Face.

At places like the Mayo Clinic, researchers have been looking at the possibilities that stem cells could someday help repair damaged organs.

But Obi, a veteran plastic surgeon, already has been using stem cells, harvested from a patients own fat, in a number of procedures in recent years. He has become an ardent champion of the potential stem cells have in regenerative medicine. While stem cells extracted from bone marrow have been used in the past, Obi said there are actually more stem cells in fat than in bone marrow and they are easier to harvest

The current use of stem cells and the potential of stem cells will be the subject of a two day symposium by the Cell Surgical Network of Florida, an organization Obi founded. The symposium will be held Thursday and Friday at Memorial Hospital.

Presenters during the conference include three Jacksonville physicians, Obi, orthopedic surgeon David Heekin and anesthesiologist and pain management specialisit Orlando Florette. Heekin will talk about the orthopedic uses of stem cells and Florette will talk about the use of stem cells in pain management.

Another presenter will be Hee Young Lee, a Korean physician who invented Maxstem, a totally enclosed system which processes adult fat into large numbers of viable stem cells. Obi has used these cells in both his plastic surgery practice as well as in regenerative medicine.

Stuart Williams, a researcher with the University of Louisville, will discuss issues with the Food and Drug Administration, which has been reluctant to approve the use of stem cells to treat many conditions that stem cell advocates believe could be treated effectively with stem cells.

Mark Berman, co-author of the 2015 book The Stem Cell Revolution and co-founder of the Cell Surgical Network, the nations largest stem cell network, is scheduled to appear via Skype to talk about using stem cells to mitigate the effects of concussions.

Thursday will feature asesssions on preparing and storing stem cells and bioprinting. Friday will feature 12 presentations, the last being a panel discussion by nine faculty members.

For more about the conference and about the Cell Surgical Network of Florida, go to http://www.stemcellsurgeryflorida.com.

Charlie Patton: (904) 359-4413

Read more:
Conference looks at the medical possibilies of using adult stem cells - Florida Times-Union

Scientists have extracted stem cells from a 50-year-old test subjects fatty tissue and applied genetic reprogramming to make them mature into functional beta cells.

The feat brings them a step closer to a personalized repair kit for diabetes.

In the presence of glucose, the beta cells generated using this genetic software produce the hormone insulinjust like natural beta cells, which are found in the pancreas.

The researchers report the findings in Nature Communications.

The team, led by Martin Fussenegger, professor of biotechnology and bioengineering in ETH Zurichs department of biosystems science and engineering, took the stem cells and added a highly complex synthetic network of genesthe genetic software.

They designed this network to precisely recreate the key growth factors involved in this maturation process.

Central to the process are the growth factors Ngn3, Pdx1, and MafA. Concentrations of these factors change during the differentiation process. For instance, MafA is not present at the start of maturation.

Only on day four, in the final maturation step, does it appear, its concentration rising steeply and then remaining at a high level.

The changes in concentration of Ngn3 and Pdx1, however, are very complex: while the concentration of Ngn3 rises and then falls again, the level of Pdx1 rises at the beginning and towards the end of maturation.

Fussenegger stresses that it is essential to reproduce these natural processes as closely as possible in order to produce functioning beta cells: The timing and the quantities of these growth factors are extremely important.

In Fusseneggers opinion, it is a real breakthrough that a synthetic gene network has been successfully used to achieve genetic reprogramming that delivers beta cells.

Until now, scientists have controlled such stem cell differentiation processes by adding various chemicals and proteins using pipettes.

Its not only really hard to add just the right quantities of these components at just the right time, its also inefficient and impossible to scale up, Fussenegger says.

In contrast, the new process can successfully transform three out of four adipose stem cells into beta cells.

These beta cells look very similar to their natural counterpartsboth kinds contain dark spots known as granules, which store insulin. In addition, the artificial beta cells function in a very similar way.

At the present time, the quantities of insulin they secrete are not as great as with natural beta cells, he admits.

In the future, the new technique might make it possible to implant new functional beta cells in diabetes sufferers that are made from their own adipose tissue.

While beta cells have been transplanted in the past, this has always required subsequent suppression of the recipients immune systemas with any transplant of donor organs or tissue.

With our beta cells, there would likely be no need for this action, since we can make them using endogenous cell material taken from the patients own body, says Fussenegger.

This is why our work is of such interest in the treatment of diabetes.

To date, the ETH researchers have only cultured their beta cells; they have yet to implant them in someone with diabetes.

This is because they first wanted to test whether stem cells could be fully differentiated from start to finish using genetic programming.

Fussenegger is convinced that this new method could also be used to produce other cells.

Stem cells taken from adipose tissue could be differentiated into various cell types, he says, and most people have an overabundance of fat from which these stem cells can be harvested.

Follow Knowridge Science Report onFacebook.

News source: ETH Zurich. The content is edited for length and style purposes. Figure legend: This Knowridge.com image is for illustrative purpose only.

Go here to read the rest:
How a person's own fat could one day treat diabetes - Knowridge Science Report

Over the past decade, studies have found that obesity and eating a high-fat, high-calorie diet are significant risk factors for many types of cancer.

Now, a study from MIT reveals how a high-fat diet makes the cells of the intestinal lining more likely to become cancerous.

The study of mice suggests that a high-fat diet drives a population boom of intestinal stem cells and also generates a pool of other cells that behave like stem cells.

This means they can reproduce themselves indefinitely and differentiate into other cell types.

These stem cells and stem-like cells are more likely to give rise to intestinal tumors, says Omer Yilmaz, an MIT assistant professor of biology and leader of the research team.

Not only does the high-fat diet change the biology of stem cells, it also changes the biology of non-stem-cell populations, which collectively leads to an increase in tumor formation, says Yilmaz, who is a member of MITs Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and a gastrointestinal pathologist at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Under a high-fat diet, these non-stem cells acquire the properties of stem cells so that when they are transformed they become tumorigenic, says David Sabatini, an MIT professor of biology, member of the Whitehead Institute, and investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Sabatini and Yilmaz, who previously collaborated on research into the effects of caloric restriction on stem cell potential in the intestine, are the senior authors of the study, which appears in Nature.

Exploring cancer risk

People who are obese have a greater risk of developing colorectal cancer, according to previous studies.

Yilmaz lab, which studies the relationship between diet and cancer, set out to uncover the cellular mechanisms underpinning the enhanced risk of colon cancer.

Recent studies have shown that intestinal stem cells, which last a lifetime, are the cells most likely to accumulate the mutations that give rise to colon cancer.

These stem cells live in the lining of the intestine, known as the epithelium, and generate all of the different cell types that make up the epithelium.

To investigate a possible link between these stem cells and obesity-linked cancer, Yilmaz and colleagues fed healthy mice a diet made up of 60 percent fat for nine to 12 months.

This diet, Yilmaz noted, is much higher in fat than the typical American diet, which is usually about 20 to 40 percent fat.

During this period, the mice on the high-fat diet gained 30 to 50 percent more body mass than mice fed a normal diet, and they developed more intestinal tumors than mice on a normal diet.

These mice also showed some distinctive changes in their intestinal stem cells, the researchers discovered.

First, they found that the mice on a high-fat diet had many more intestinal stem cells than mice on a normal diet. These stem cells were also able to operate without input from neighboring cells.

Normally, intestinal stem cells are surrounded by support or niche cells, which regulate stem cell activity and tell them when to generate stem cells or differentiated cells.

However, the stem cells from mice on a high-fat diet were more able to function on their own;

when they were removed from the mice and grown in a culture dish without their niche cells, they gave rise to mini-intestines much more readily than intestinal stem cells from mice on a normal diet.

Expanding the pool

The researchers also found that another population known as progenitor cells differentiated daughter cells of stem cells started to behave like stem cells:

They began to live much longer than their usual lifespan of a few days, and they could also generate mini-intestines when grown outside of the body.

This is really important because its known that stem cells are often the cells in the intestine that acquire the mutations that go on to give rise to tumors, Yilmaz says.

Not only do you have more of the traditional stem cells (on a high-fat diet), but now you have non-stem-cell populations that have the ability to acquire mutations that give rise to tumors.

The researchers also identified a nutrient-sensing pathway that is hyperactivated by the high-fat diet.

The fatty acid sensor known as PPAR-delta responds to high levels of fat by turning on a metabolic process that enables cells to burn fat as an energy source instead of their usual carbohydrates and sugars.

Indeed, small-molecule agonists of PPAR-delta mimic the effects of a high-fat diet in animals fed a normal diet, Sabatini says.

In addition to activating this metabolic program, PPAR-delta also appears to turn on a set of genes that are important for stem cell identity, Yilmaz says.

His lab is now further investigating how this happens in hopes of identifying possible cancer drug targets for tumors that arise in obesity.

Follow Knowridge Science Report onFacebook.

News source: MIT. The content is edited for length and style purposes. Figure legend: This Knowridge.com image is credited to MIT News.

Link:
How diet influences colon cancer - Knowridge Science Report

A new clinical study is offering hope for folks who suffer from hair loss. The treatment: stem cells.

Americans spend between one and four billion dollars a year treating hair loss. It's a problem that affects around 56 million people in this country. Now, four surgeons in the U.S. are testing a stem cell treatment in a non-surgical procedure, and overseas trials in Japan and Egypt are already showing some success.

Roy Woelke knows how overwhelming hair loss can be. He's been dealing with it for 30 years.

I noticed thinning in my late 20s, and it never stops. It seems like it just goes on and on, he said.

Hes had three hair replacement surgeries, but thats really just moving hair around the head, and as he says, you run out of supply. Dr. Kenneth Williams may have new hope for Roy and millions of others. Hes running a clinical trial that uses stem cells and platelet-rich plasma, or PRP, to treat baldness.

The study is taking cells that are in our body that help to regenerate or stimulate inactive or dormant hair follicles. That is the theory behind what were doing this procedure on.

Doctor Williams takes fat from the abdomen, emulsifies it and separates the stem cells, mixes it with the patients own plasma which has been spun down to be super concentrated. Then with 300 shots, he injects the mixture into the scalp, twice over a three month period. Roy hopes to get into the trial, which has five participants so far. Dr. Williams already does the procedure for paying patients whove had promising results.

Those patients are seeing some differences in the density of the hair. Were waiting for the final results, which takes 9 to 12 months after the administration. We look to see the final results of what were doing," Dr. Williams explained.

Dr. Williams hopes to publish results in two years.

His trial is supported by National Institutes of Health, but not by a major pharmaceutical company yet. That means his trial is patient-funded, meaning theyll pay a reduced cost of the $2,500 to $5,800 procedure, depending on which arm of the trial is chosen.

-- Research Summary

Background: Around 70 percent of men and 40 percent of women are impacted by hair loss. Two- thirds of American men will suffer from some kind of hair loss by the age of 35. By the age of 50, 85 percent of American men will experience thinning of their hair. The process begins for 25 percent of men during their twenties, and even though it is a common process that occurs naturally, like aging, most men and women are unhappy and would do anything to fix or delay the process. Hair loss can occur for different reasons like disease, reaction to medications and stressful events; however, heredity is most often the cause of hair loss. (Source: http://www.americanhairloss.org/men_hair_loss/introduction.asp & http://www.straandstudy.com)

Treatments: American hair loss sufferers have spent around $3.5 billion combined in treatments. If a treatment is not FDA approved or recommended by the AHLA (American Hair Loss Association), it may not be a safe option for your scalp or hair. The key to treating hair loss or hair thinning is treating it early. The two popular options recommended by the AHLA are medication or surgery, like propecia, and/or surgical hair restoration. (Source: http://www.americanhairloss.org/men_hair_loss/treatment.asp)

Straand Study: Dr. Kenneth Williams is currently running a clinical trial that will hopefully help and delay hair loss. Unlike any other form of current treatment, Dr. Williams is focusing on stem cells and platelet-rich plasma, or PRP, to treat baldness. The study consists of taking stem cells that are already in the body to regenerate or stimulate inactive hair follicles. Studies show that stem cells residing in the scalp remain at recurrent numbers but in balding patients, the conversion of stem cells to progenitor cells required for follicle growth is reduced. The goal of this study is to stimulate hair to become active and to be able to grow again. In the non-surgical procedure, Dr. Williams takes fat from the abdomen of the patient. The stem cells are separated from the fat cells by emulsification. The stem cells are then mixed with the patients plasma and the mixture is injected 300 times into the scalp of the patient twice in the span of three months. With the current five participants in the study, the results have been very promising. The current trial is supported by National Institutes of Health and is patient-funded. For more information on the study or to become a participant, visit http://www.straandstudy.com. (Source: Dr. Kenneth Williams & http://www.straandstudy.com)

Originally posted here:
Study shows stem cells could treat hair loss - WNDU-TV

whnt.com

Blind mom regains sight after church visit whnt.com After struggling with medical issues, Gutierrez went blind in her right eye in 2012. She says she lost vision completely in both eyes in November 2015. A physician diagnosed Gutierrez with benign intracranial hypertension a condition where pressure ... and more »

Link:
Blind mom regains sight after church visit - whnt.com

Daily Herald

Monday Close-Up: Finding her way Daily Herald Like many things, eyesight is a spectrum. 20/20 vision is considered perfect eyesight, and anything below 20/200 vision is considered legally blind (i.e. a person with perfect vision can see at 200 feet what a person with 20/200 vision can only make ...

Go here to read the rest:
Monday Close-Up: Finding her way - Daily Herald

Sarah Cooke listened as her aging diabetic patients vented about trying to cope with the pernicious disease.

Guilt and denial, thats pretty much it, said a woman with short gray hair.

Confused, said another woman wearing wire-rimmed glasses. I dont know what I can eat and what I cant.

Cooke, a clinical dietitian at Loma Linda University Health Care, leads a weekly class as part of an effort to combat the diabetes crisis in Southern California, with elderly residents particularly vulnerable. Cooke recently discovered that about 70 percent of all patients who enter Loma Linda University Medical Center are diabetic.

The important thing is to get to people shortly after theyre diagnosed and get them the resources and proper education, she said. A lot of people have had diabetes for a number of years, have developed complications and never had the opportunity to talk to a dietitian or take a class.

After hearing the diabetic patients complaints, Cooke offers suggestions. During her nine years as a dietitian at Loma Linda, Cooke has seen an increasing number of younger patients who have pre-diabetes. She attributes this to the sodas, sugary energy and coffee drinks, and fast food that many younger people subsist on, in addition to their sedentary lifestyle.

That is translating into an onrush of suffering as these patients age, when the effects of the disease are most pronounced. Diabetes is a disease in which the bodys inability to produce any or enough of the hormone insulin causes elevated levels of glucose (or sugar) in the blood. If untreated, it can lead to hypertension, heart disease, strokes, blindness, kidney disorders, amputations and death.

Physicians anticipate the rate of diabetes among the elderly will increase sharply in the coming years. About 45 percent of all adults in the state have pre-diabetes or undiagnosed diabetes, according to a study by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. Up to 30 percent of those with pre-diabetes will develop Type 2 diabetes within five years.

The diabetes rate in the state has increased by 35percent since 2001, according to the study. About 13 million adults in California have pre-diabetes or diabetes and another 2.5million adults have already been diagnosed with the disease, totaling about 40percent of the states population. Nationally, annual medical spending for people with diabetes is almost twice that for people without the disease. A person who is diagnosed with diabetes by age 40 will have lifetime medical spending that is $124,600 more than someone who is not diabetic.

Advertisement

Education is important in preventing and controlling diabetes, said Dr. Theodore Friedman, an endocrinologist at Martin Luther King Jr. Outpatient Center and chairman of the county Department of Health Services Endocrinology Work Group. He leads a weekly class for diabetics, most of whom are seniors, which emphasizes healthy eating and exercise. He has discovered that elderly diabetic patients are sometimes more amenable to changing their eating and unhealthy habits than younger patients, he said.

Most of my patients say they want to lose weight, he said. Many are on so many medications theyre trying to reduce the number theyre taking. They really want to change, while some younger people feel theyre invincible or theyre too busy to alter their lifestyle.

The rate of adults with diabetes in Los Angeles County (about 10 percent) is slightly higher than the state average (about 9 percent), according to the UCLA study. The county Health Department offers a number of diabetes classes, but some impoverished elderly patients dont have transportation and cant attend regularly. As a result, the department offers eleven classes, some in Spanish and English, posted on YouTube, ranging from nutrition suggestions to stress management to mixing insulin.

In the past, diabetes education was more for wealthy people, Friedman said. Now were trying to educate everyone. Were trying to get patients to get as involved as possible in managing their diabetes.

Although experts say the diabetes rate is concerning all over Southern California, the level varies from county to county. Orange Countys rate is below the state average.

Thats the case in Riverside County, too. But next door, in San Bernardino County, the diabetes-related death rate 32.4 per 100,000 population is more than 50 percent higher than the state average.

Because the problem is so severe among the elderly, extensive community outreach is needed, said Dr. Kevin Codorniz of Loma Lindas division of endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism. The classes at the Diabetes Treatment Center and at other hospitals are an important way to educate patients so they understand the disorder and change their lifestyle to avoid dangerous blood sugar levels.

Carolyn Edwards, who attended the class at Loma Linda, lives nearby in Bloomington. Edwards, 71, a retired hotel front desk manager, was diagnosed with diabetes decades ago, but never assiduously monitored her condition.

When I was working it was easier to keep my sugar levels down because I was much more active, she said. But when I retired it became much more of a challenge. I had stopped fixing meals and just snacked or went to hamburger places. Then my blood sugar went crazy and my doctor suggested I take this class.

For years Edwards had little energy and was often too weak to walk. She frequently felt so dizzy that she occasionally leaned against a wall for support and slowly slid to the floor. After two classes at the Diabetes Center, she said she has made significant changes and already feels more energetic. She now tests her blood sugar twice a day, shops and makes herself healthy dinners every night, and works out on a stationary bicycle at a gym.

Most of the people who participate in the Loma Linda class are in their fifties and older. The first class focuses on the basics of diabetes, the second on nutrition, and the third on blood sugar monitoring and reading food labels. The patients put into practice what theyve learned and then return two months later for a final class, when their weight and blood sugar levels are tested again.

Cooke recently saw a 70-year-old patient with severe diabetes who was almost 50 pounds overweight and had a number of complications, including kidney failure and hyperten-sion. When Cooke asked the woman about her eating habits, the woman mentioned that she consumed eight tortillas. A day? Cooke asked. No, the woman said. Each meal.

That meant she was eating 24 tortillas every day, Cooke said. The woman thought that since tortillas arent sweet, they wouldnt be bad for her diabetes. She didnt realize this was way too much carbohydrates and carbohydrates break down into sugar.

Cooke immediately signed the woman up for a diabetes class.

Corwin writes for the Center for Health Reporting at the Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics at the University of Southern California. Research for the story was supported by the Gary and Mary West Foundation.

Originally posted here:
Diabetes crisis grips Southern California - Los Angeles Daily News - LA Daily News

Sacramento Bee

Diabetes among the most expensive American diseases, as drug ... Sacramento Bee With an estimated 30 million Americans struggling with diabetes, the disease is one of the nation's most entrenched chronic conditions. It's also one of the most ... One-third of young Women with Diabetes likely to have Eating Disorder: Studyhttp://www.newsgram.com/ Don't freak out, but you might have diabetes and not know itWRAL.com Stick to This Diet If You Want to Reverse Diabetes Risk Factorsor Avoid Them CompletelyReader's Digest Southernminn.com -Medgadget (blog) all 15 news articles »

Continued here:
Diabetes among the most expensive American diseases, as drug ... - Sacramento Bee

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --Stellar Biotechnologies, Inc. (SBOT), a leading manufacturer of a key protein utilized in multiple immunotherapy development pipelines targeting cancers, Alzheimer's and lupus, among other diseases, today issued a statement congratulating Neovacs S.A. for its decision to extend the development of its lupus drug for Type 1 diabetes.

Neovacs, a collaboration partner utilizing Stellar's KLH protein as a carrier molecule for its Kinoid treatment, announced in a press release that it would begin preclinical proof-of-concept studies in diabetes this year, with the objective of entering clinical studies in the first half of 2018. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, which affects 25 million people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Lupus affects approximately 5 million people globally.

"We extend our congratulations to Neovacs on this promising news and the continuing advancement of their Kinoid technology," said Stellar President and CEO Frank Oakes. "The large patient populations of lupus, and now diabetes, underscore the need for us to prepare Stellar to be in a position to provide significantly larger supplies of our pharmaceutical-grade KLH products."

To this end, Stellar has ongoing initiatives to expand its infrastructure and production capacity to manufacture multi-kilogram quantities of its Stellar KLH products. In addition, last year, Stellar and Neovacs announced formation of a joint venture, Neostell S.A.S., for manufacturing immunotherapy products for Neovacs and potentially other third-party customers utilizing KLH-based therapeutic vaccines. Therapeutic vaccines represent a new class of treatments, known as active immunotherapies, which are designed to stimulate a patient's own immune system to generate an immune response to target and attack an existing disease or condition.

About Stellar Biotechnologies Based north of Los Angeles at the Port of Hueneme, Stellar Biotechnologies, Inc. (SBOT) is the leader in sustainable manufacture of Keyhole Limpet Hemocyanin (KLH), an important immune-stimulating protein used in wide-ranging therapeutic and diagnostic markets. KLH is both an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in many new immunotherapies (targeting cancer, immune disorders, Alzheimer's and inflammatory diseases) as well as a finished product for measuring immune status. Stellar is unique in its proprietary methods, facilities, and KLH technology. The company is committed to meeting the growing demand for commercial-scale supplies of GMP grade KLH, ensuring environmentally sound KLH production, and developing KLH-based active immunotherapies. Stellar KLH is a trademark of Stellar Biotechnologies.

Follow Stellar: LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook | Google+

Stellar Forward-Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "might," "potential," or "continue" and variations or similar expressions. Readers should not unduly rely on these forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of future performance. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as all such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results or future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Such risks include, but may not be limited to: general economic and business conditions; technology changes; competition; changes in strategy or development plans; availability of funds and resources; anticipated requirements for operating capital; governmental regulations and the ability or failure to comply with governmental regulations; changes in trade policy and international law; the timing of Stellar's or its partners' anticipated results, including in connection with clinical trials; the ability to meet the goals of Stellar's joint ventures and strategic partnerships;and other factors referenced in Stellar's filings with securities regulators. For a discussion of further risks and uncertainties related to the Stellar's business, please refer to Stellar's public company reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the British Columbia Securities Commission. All forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and are subject to change. Except as required by law, Stellar assumes no obligation to update such statements. This press release does not constitute an offer or solicitation of an offer for sale of any securities in any jurisdiction, including the United States.

Read More

View original post here:
Stellar Biotechnologies Congratulates Partner's Decision to Extend Drug Development for Diabetes - Yahoo Finance

February 6, 2017 Credit: iStockphoto

Consuming one or more pot of "snus" Swedish snuff or dipping tobacco per day increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 70 per cent. This is the same risk increase as previously seen for smokers who smoke one packet of cigarettes a day. The study on the effects of snus was conducted by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and their colleagues at Ume and Lund universities, and is published in the Journal of Internal Medicine.

According to figures from the Public Health Agency of Sweden, 19 per cent of men and 4 per cent of women in Sweden take snus. Type 2 diabetes is also common; seven per cent of the adult population have a diabetes diagnosis and up to 20 per cent are in the risk zone. The disease is a serious one, as it can lead to complications, cardiovascular disease and premature death.

The researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Ume and Lund universities studied pooled data for a total of 54,500 men followed between the years of 1990 and 2013, during which time 2,441 of them developed type 2 diabetes. Owing to the size of the study, the team was able to estimate the effects of snus on never-smokers and thus avoid having the results contaminated by those who use both snus and cigarettes.

Confirm earlier suspicions

"We can confirm earlier suspicions that snus-users have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, an effect that can seemingly not be explained by them being occasional smokers or having a lifestyle that is less healthy in other respects," says Sofia Carlsson, researcher at Karolinska Institutet's Institute of Environmental Medicine.

There is also a 40 per cent increase in risk at a lower level of consumption (5-6 pots a week). A possible explanation for the result is the effect of nicotine, which experimental studies have shown can impair insulin sensitivity and thus possibly increase the risk of diabetes.

Snus-users expose themselves to at least the same dose of nicotine as smokers, even though they are spared many of the other chemicals contained in cigarette smoke. No increased risk was seen in people who stopped using snus, which suggests that quitting snus can have a beneficial effect in this regard.

"Because snus is relatively uncommon amongst women, we were unable to make corresponding analyses for them, so the impact of snus on the diabetes risk for women is an important matter for future research," says Dr Carlsson.

No less dangerous than cigarettes

From a wider perspective, it is important to point out that existing research suggests that smokers are much more likely to develop cancer and cardiovascular disease than snus-users; it is in terms of type 2 diabetes that snus is no less dangerous than cigarettes.

"The diabetes trend is largely driven by lifestyle factors, so to reduce your risk of diabetes you should not use tobacco, avoid being overweight and be physically active," she says.

Explore further: Smokeless tobacco product snus may increase risk of death among prostate cancer patients

More information: S. Carlsson et al. Smokeless tobacco (snus) is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes: results from five pooled cohorts, Journal of Internal Medicine (2017). DOI: 10.1111/joim.12592

The smokeless tobacco product snus, which is used mainly in Sweden but also is sold in the U.S., may increase the risk that men with prostate cancer will die from their disease, and the risk that they'll die prematurely from ...

The increase in Scandinavian snus consumption in Norway is highest among young people, according to a new report from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

It is a myth that snus (Swedish snuff) users today have fewer dental caries. On the contrary, some types of nicotine-free snus contain both carbohydrates and starch that increase the risk of cavities. Those are the findings ...

People who stop using smokeless tobacco after a heart attack may extend their life expectancy similar to people who stop smoking, according to new research in the American Heart Association journal Circulation.

Rat-grown mouse pancreases help reverse diabetes in mice, say researchers at Stanford, University of Tokyo

Diabetes accounts for 12 percent of deaths in the United States, a significantly higher percentage than previous research revealed, making it the third-leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer, according to findings ...

An international team of researchers and clinicians led by York University Professor Michael Riddell has published a set of guidelines to help people with type 1 diabetes exercise safely to avoid fluctuations in blood sugar.

(HealthDay)Although breast milk is still considered the best nutrition for babies, a new study suggests that most cow's milk formulas don't increase the risk of developing type 1 diabetes.

A more powerful version of an anti-inflammatory molecule already circulating in our blood may help protect our vision in the face of diabetes.

(HealthDay)Newly updated guidelines reaffirm that metformin is the first-line drug for people with type 2 diabetes, and that several other medicationsincluding newer onescan be added if needed.

Please sign in to add a comment. Registration is free, and takes less than a minute. Read more

More:
'Snus' users run greater risk of type 2 diabetes - Medical Xpress