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Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, prepares for trial of glaucoma drug
If glaucoma is left untreated, it can lead to blindness.–Courtesy of NIH
LipoLat, a controlled-release glaucoma therapeutic, is a suspension of nanocapsules each trapping a payload of drug. Designed as an injection into the conjunctiva (the outer layer of the eye), LipoLat gradually released the drug and was as effective as eye drops for as long as three months in preclinical trials. According to the researchers, this is now ready to move into human studies.
12th feb 2013
preclinical trials
http://media.ntu.edu.sg/NewsReleases/Pages/newsdetail.aspx?news=15fdbb3e-6724-4bc9-a699-a486c25f510e
For glaucoma patients, taking daily medication will soon become a thing of the past. With Nanyang Technological University’s (NTU) newest solution, a simple, quick and painless injection four times a year would be enough. The solution contains an anti-glaucoma drug wrapped in nano-sized capsules, and is delivered by an injection into the outer layer in the front of the eye (conjunctiva) by the doctor.
The nanocarrier will then slowly release the drug over several weeks. LipoLat, as it is known, is now ready for clinical trials. Extensive pre-clinical studies have shown that this single injection is as effective at treating glaucoma as taking daily eye drops for up to three months.
The newly launched Ocular Therapeutic Engineering Centre will work on this research. Housed at NTU’s School of Materials Science and Engineering, the center builds upon the School’s successful research collaboration with the Singapore Eye Research Institute. The center’s director Professor Subbu Venkatraman, who is also the school chair, said the center will build on the strong research collaboration between clinical scientists and NTU technologists, to develop new drug delivery systems for the eye.
“I hope to showcase this as a good example of how close interactions between medical practitioners and technology providers can lead to rapid translation of ideas to the clinic, such as LipoLat,” said Prof Venkatraman. “We are confident that the products co-developed at the centre will lead on to further discoveries and innovations in ocular therapy.” Working closely with Prof Venkatraman as the co-director of the center is Dr Tina Wong, an adjunct associate professor at the School of Materials Science and Engineering and a senior consultant at the Singapore National Eye Centre. She is also head of the Ocular Therapeutics and Drug Delivery Research Group at the Singapore Eye Research Institute
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Extensive pre-clinical studies have shown that a single injection of the solution developed by Nanyang Technological University is effective in treating glaucoma
The solution developed by the university contains an anti-glaucoma drug wrapped in nano-sized capsules

The solution developed by the university contains an anti-glaucoma drug wrapped in nano-sized capsules

Working closely with Prof Venkatraman (picture) as the Co-Director of the centre is Dr Tina Wong (picture)
Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Announces Results From Phase II Clinical Trial of Bavituximab in Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer
TUSTIN, CA 02/13/13 — Peregrine Pharmaceuticals announced results from its 70 patient open-label, randomized Phase II clinical trial of bavituximab used in combination with gemcitabine in patients with previously untreated, advanced Stage IV pancreatic cancer. The trial included the enrollment of patients with advanced metastatic disease including significant liver involvement and poor performance status associated with rapid disease progression. Results showed that the combination of bavituximab and gemcitabine resulted in more than a doubling of overall response rates (ORR) and an improvement in overall survival (OS) when compared with gemcitabine alone (control arm). In the trial, patients treated with a combination of bavituximab and gemcitabine had a 28% tumor response rate as compared to 13% in the control arm. Median OS, the primary endpoint of the trial, was 5.6 months for the bavituximab plus gemcitabine arm and 5.2 months for the control arm (hazard ratio = 0.75).
Bavituximab binds to phosphatidylserine which is exposed on the surface of certain atypical animal cells, including tumour cells and cells infected with any of six different families of virus. These viral families contain the viruses hepatitis C, influenza A and B, HIV 1 and 2, measles, respiratory syncytial virus and pichinde virus, which is a model for the deadly Lassa virus.[2] Other cells are not affected since phosphatidylserine normally is only intracellular.[3]

Bavituximab binds to various aminophospholipids and is dependent on interaction with plasma protein beta-2 glycoprotein I to mediate binding.
These target aminophospholipids, usually residing only on the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane of cells, become exposed in virally infected, damaged or malignant cells, and more generally in most cells undergoing the process of apoptosis.
The antibody’s binding to phospholipids alerts the body’s immune system to attack the tumor endothelial cells, thrombosing the tumor’s vascular network and/or attacking free floating virally infected and metastatic cells while potentially minimizing side effects in healthy tissues.
- Statement on a nonproprietary name adopted by the USAN council
- Nature Medicine 14, 1357 – 1362 (2008)
- He, J.; Yin, Y.; Luster, T. A.; Watkins, L.; Thorpe, P. E. (2009). “Antiphosphatidylserine Antibody Combined with Irradiation Damages Tumor Blood Vessels and Induces Tumor Immunity in a Rat Model of Glioblastoma”. Clinical Cancer Research 15 (22): 6871–6880. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-09-1499. PMID 19887482. edit
- New Progression-Free Survival Data From Peregrine’s Bavituximab in Phase II Refractory Breast Cancer
- Phase II Advanced Breast Cancer Data to Be Presented at ASCO Highlight Promising Tumor Response and Progression-Free Survival Data With Peregrine’s Bavituximab
- Pharma company completes humanization of 3G4 antibody
- He, J.; Luster, T. A.; Thorpe, P. E. (2007). “Radiation-Enhanced Vascular Targeting of Human Lung Cancers in Mice with a Monoclonal Antibody That Binds Anionic Phospholipids”. Clinical Cancer Research 13 (17): 5211–5218. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-07-0793. PMID 17785577. edit
- Ran; Downes, A.; Thorpe, P. E. (2002). “Increased exposure of anionic phospholipids on the surface of tumor blood vessels”. Cancer Research 62 (21): 6132–6140. PMID 12414638.
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AbbVie Announces First Long-term, Patient-Reported Health Outcomes Data for Use of HUMIRA® (Adalimumab) in Patients with Pediatric Crohn’s Disease
Adalimumab
monoclonal antibody
http://www.nature.com/nrd/journal/v2/n9/fig_tab/nrd1182_F1.html
VIENNA, Feb. 15, 2013 AbbVie announced the first long-term, patient-reported health outcomes data from analyses of the Phase 3 IMAgINE-1 trial. The analyses assessed improvements in health-related quality of life (HRQOL) measures for pediatric patients aged 6 to 17 years with severe active Crohn’s disease, taking HUMIRA, who had an inadequate response, were intolerant or had contraindications to conventional therapy, as well as the work productivity of their caregivers throughout the 52-week study. The results of these analyses are being presented this week at the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO) 8th Annual Congress.
Adalimumab (HUMIRA, Abbott) is the third TNF inhibitor, after infliximab and etanercept, to be approved in the United States. Like infliximab and etanercept, adalimumab binds to Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα), preventing it from activating TNF receptors. Adalimumab was constructed from a fully human monoclonal antibody, while infliximab is a mouse-human chimeric antibody and etanercept is a TNF receptor-IgG fusion protein. TNFα inactivation has proven to be important in downregulating the inflammatory reactions associated with autoimmune diseases. As of 2008 adalimumab has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Crohn’s disease, moderate to severe chronic psoriasis and juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Although only approved for ulcerative colitis from late 2012 by the FDA in the disease’s management, it has been used for several years in cases that have not responded to conventional treatment at standard dosing for Crohn’s Disease.

However, because TNFα is part of the immune system that protects the body from infection, prolonged treatment with adalimumab may slightly increase the risk of developing infections.
HUMIRA (“Human Monoclonal Antibody in Rheumatoid Arthritis”) is marketed in both preloaded 0.8 mL syringes and also in preloaded pen devices (called Humira Pen), both injected subcutaneously, typically by the patient at home.
Adalimumab was discovered as a result of the collaboration between BASF Bioresearch Corporation (Worcester, Massachusetts, a unit of BASF) and Cambridge Antibody Technology which began in 1993.[4]
The drug candidate was discovered initially using CAT’s phage display technology and named D2E7.[2] The key components of the drug were found by guiding the selection of human antibodies from phage display repertoires to a single epitope of an antigen TNF alpha.[5] The ultimate clinical candidate, D2E7, was created and manufactured at BASF Bioresearch Corporation and taken through most of the drug development process by BASF Knoll, then further development, manufacturing and marketing by Abbott Laboratories, after Abbott acquired the pharmaceutical arm of BASF Knoll.[6]
Adalimumab was the first fully human monoclonal antibody drug approved by the FDA. It was derived from phage display,[1] and was discovered through a collaboration between BASF Bioresearch Corporation (Worcester, Massachusetts, a unit of BASF) and Cambridge Antibody Technology as D2E7,[2] then further manufactured at BASF Bioresearch Corporation and developed by BASF Knoll (BASF Pharma) and, ultimately, manufactured and marketed by Abbott Laboratories after the acquisition of BASF Pharma by Abbott.
In 2009, HUMIRA had over $5 billion in annual sales.[3]
Components of a Humira autoinjector pen
- Brekke OH , Sandlie I (January 2003). “Therapeutic antibodies for human diseases at the dawn of the twenty-first century”. Nat Rev Drug Discov 2 (1): 52–62. doi:10.1038/nrd984. PMID 12509759.
- Kempeni J (January 1999). “Preliminary results of early clinical trials with the fully human anti-TNFα monoclonal antibody D2E7”. Ann Rheum Dis 58 (suppl 1): I70–2. doi:10.1136/ard.58.2008.i70. PMC 1766582. PMID 10577977.
- http://www.abbott.com/static/content/microsite/annual_report/2006/humira.html
- [1] Cambridge Antibody Technology website
- Jespers LS, Roberts A, Mahler SM, Winter G, Hoogenboom HR (September 1994). “Guiding the selection of human antibodies from phage display repertoires to a single epitope of an antigen”. Biotechnology (N.Y.) 12 (9): 899–903. doi:10.1038/nbt0994-899. PMID 7521646.
- http://www2.basf.us/corporate/news2000/newsknoll_pharma_121500.html
- http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/11-12-2001/0001613559&EDATE=
- Rau R (January 2002). “Adalimumab (a fully human anti-tumour necrosis factor α monoclonal antibody) in the treatment of active rheumatoid arthritis: the initial results of five trials”. Ann Rheum Dis 61 (Suppl 2): ii70–3. doi:10.1136/ard.61.suppl_2.ii70. PMC 1766697. PMID 12379628.

Genzyme Announces Positive New Data from Two Phase 3 Studies for Oral Eliglustat Tartrate for Gaucher Disease
ENGAGE Study Results:
In ENGAGE, a Phase 3 trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of eliglustat tartrate in 40 treatment-naïve patients with Gaucher disease type 1, improvements were observed across all primary and secondary efficacy endpoints over the 9-month study period. Results were reported today at the WORLD Symposium by Pramod Mistry, MD, PhD, FRCP, Professor of Pediatrics & Internal Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine, and an investigator in the trial.
The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study had a primary efficacy endpoint of improvement in spleen size in patients treated with eliglustat tartrate. Patients were stratified at baseline by spleen volume. In the study, a statistically significant improvement in spleen size was observed at nine months in patients treated with eliglustat tartrate compared with placebo. Spleen volume in patients treated with eliglustat tartrate decreased from baseline by a mean of 28 percent compared with a mean increase of two percent in placebo patients, for an absolute difference of 30 percent (p<0.0001).
Eliglustat tartate (Genz-112638)
What is Eliglustat?
- Eliglustat is a new investigational phase 3 compound from Genzyme Corporation that is being studied for type 1 Gaucher Disease.
- Eliglustat works as a substrate reduction therapy by reducing glucocerebroside. formation.
- This product is an oral agent (i.e. a pill) that is taken once or twice a day in contrast to an IV infusion for enzyme replacement therapy. Enzyme replacement therapy focuses on replenishing the enzyme that is deficient in Gaucher Disease and breaks down glucocerebroside that accumulates.
- The clinical trials for eliglustat tartate are sponsored by Genzyme Corporation.
FDA Approves Pomalyst for Advanced Multiple Myeloma – February 8, 2013
Pomalyst (pomalidomide) Capsules
Company: Celgene Corporation
Date of Approval: February 8, 2013
Treatment for: Multiple Myeloma
Pomalyst (pomalidomide) is a thalidomide analogue indicated for the treatment of patients with multiple myeloma.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Pomalyst (pomalidomide) to treat patients with multiple myeloma whose disease progressed after being treated with other cancer drugs.
Multiple myeloma is a form of blood cancer that primarily affects older adults and arises from plasma cells in the bone marrow. According to the National Cancer Institute, approximately 21,700 Americans are diagnosed with multiple myeloma and 10,710 die yearly from the disease.
Pomalyst is a pill that modulates the body’s immune system to destroy cancerous cells and inhibit their growth. It is intended for patients who have received at least two prior therapies, including lenalidomide and bortezomib, and whose disease did not respond to treatment and progressed within 60 days of the last treatment (relapsed and refractory).
“Pomalyst is the third drug in a class of immunomodulatory agents that includes lenalidomide and thalidomide, and is the second drug approved in the past year to treat multiple myeloma,” said Richard Pazdur, M.D., director of the Office of Hematology and Oncology Products in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “Treatment for multiple myeloma is tailored to meet individual patient’s needs, and today’s approval provides an additional treatment option for patients who have not responded to other drugs.”
- FDA Approves Pomalyst for Advanced Multiple Myeloma – February 8, 2013
- Celgene Corporation Provides Update on FDA Advisory Committee for Pomalidomide – October 3, 2012
- The International Myeloma Foundation Says Pomalidomide, an Important New Drug for Patients, Has Been Submitted for FDA Approval – April 27, 2012
pomalidomide. 4-Amino-2-(2,6-dioxopiperidin-3-yl)isoindole-1,3-dione
Pomalidomide (INN, originally CC-4047 or 3-amino-thalidomide, marketed as Pomalyst by Celgene), is a derivative of thalidomide that is anti-angiogenic and also acts as an immunomodulator. Pomalidomide was approved on February 8, 2013 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a treatment for relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma.[1] An application for approval to treat multiple myeloma also has been submitted by Celgene to the European Medicines Agency, and a decision on that application is expected by the second half of 2013.[1]
Origin and development
The parent compound of pomalidomide, thalidomide, was originally discovered to inhibit angiogenesis in 1994.[2] Based upon this discovery, thalidomide was taken into clinical trials for cancer, leading to its ultimate FDA approval for multiple myeloma. Further structure activity studies done in Dr. Robert D’Amato’s lab at Boston Children’s Hospital led to the first report in 2001[3] that 3-amino-thalidomide was able to directly inhibit both the tumor cell and vascular compartments of myeloma cancers. This dual activity of pomalidomide makes it more efficacious than thalidomide in vitro and in vivo.[4]
Clinical trials
Phase I trial results showed tolerable side effects.[5]
Phase II clinical trials for multiple myeloma and myelofibrosis reported ‘promising results’.[6][7]
Phase III results were reported at ASH in 2012 and showed significant extension of progression-free survival (median 3.6 months vs. 1.8 months; P < 0.001), and overall survival in patients taking pomalidomide and dexamethasone.[8]
- “Pomalyst (Pomalidomide) Approved By FDA For Relapsed And Refractory Multiple Myeloma”. The Myeloma Beacon. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
- D’Amato, Robert J.; Loughnan, Michael S.; Flynn, Evelyn; Folkman, Judah (1994). “Thalidomide is an inhibitor of angiogenesis”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 91 (9): 4082–5. Bibcode 1994PNAS…91.4082D. doi:10.1073/pnas.91.9.4082. JSTOR 2364596. PMC 43727. PMID 7513432.
- D’Amato, R; Lentzsch, S; Anderson, KC; Rogers, MS (2001). “Mechanism of action of thalidomide and 3-aminothalidomide in multiple myeloma”. Seminars in Oncology 28 (6): 597–601. doi:10.1016/S0093-7754(01)90031-4. PMID 11740816.
- Lentzsch, S; Rogers, MS; Leblanc, R; Birsner, AE; Shah, JH; Treston, AM; Anderson, KC; D’Amato, RJ (2002). “S-3-Amino-phthalimido-glutarimide inhibits angiogenesis and growth of B-cell neoplasias in mice”. Cancer research 62 (8): 2300–5. PMID 11956087.
- Streetly, Matthew J.; Gyertson, Kylie; Daniel, Yvonne; Zeldis, Jerome B.; Kazmi, Majid; Schey, Stephen A. (2008). “Alternate day pomalidomide retains anti-myeloma effect with reduced adverse events and evidence of in vivo immunomodulation”. British Journal of Haematology 141 (1): 41–51. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2141.2008.07013.x. PMID 18324965.
- “Promising Results From 2 Trials Highlighting Pomalidomide Presented At ASH” (Press release). Celgene. December 11, 2008. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
- Tefferi, Ayalew (December 8, 2008). “Pomalidomide Therapy in Anemic Patients with Myelofibrosis: Results from a Phase-2 Randomized Multicenter Study”. 50th ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition. San Francisco. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
- “Phase III Study (MM-003) of Pomalidomide Plus Low-Dose Dexamethasone Demonstrates Significant Progression-Free and Overall Survival Improvement for Patients with Relapsed or Refractory Multiple Myeloma.”. 11 Dec 2012.
- This new drug is specifically indicated for patients who have received at least 2 prior therapies, including lenalidomide (Revlimid, Celgene) and bortezomib (Velcade, Millennium Pharmaceuticals), and whose disease did not respond to treatment and progressed within 60 days of the last treatment.

DRUG APPROVALS BY DR ANTHONY MELVIN CRASTO
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