{"title":"HIV vaccine development: past, present and future.","authors":"Merlin L Robb","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The search for an HIV vaccine began following the discovery of the virus more than 25 years ago. Despite important progress, an effective vaccine remains an elusive goal that will likely require many more years of R&D to achieve. Following recent advances in research, however, there has been increased optimism that a prophylactic HIV vaccine is feasible. A consensus is forming among researchers to support a larger role for proof-of-concept efficacy clinical trials, conducted in parallel with invigorated basic research efforts and testing in animal models, to accelerate the discovery of key principles that will guide rational vaccine development.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"852-6"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532105","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Considerations in vaccine patent protection.","authors":"Lorna Brazell","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This feature article discusses the basic principles of patentability as related to vaccine research, and outlines recent cases in the US and EU in which vaccine patents have been considered. Issues regarding eligibility for supplementary protection, as currently being considered by the Court of Justice of the EU, are also outlined, as well as the implications of such issues in protecting future vaccine research.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"885-9"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532527","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"2010 World Stem Cell Summit--part 2. October 4-6, 2010, Detroit, MI, USA.","authors":"Alain Vertès","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The 2010 World Stem Cell Summit, held in Detroit, included topics covering new developments in the field of regenerative medicine. This conference report highlights selected presentations on the cancer stem cell hypothesis, stem cell therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, GRNOPC-1 for spinal cord injury, the use of cord blood stem cells for spinal cord injury, mesenchymal stem cell research and applications in cardiac therapy, tissue engineering, and very small embryonic-like stem cells. Investigational drugs discussed include NSI-566RSC (Neuralstem) and GRNOPC-1 (Geron Corp).</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"822-4"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29533182","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Alzheimer's Disease Drug Discovery--11th International Conference--Promising New Therapeutic Approaches. 27-28 September 2010, Jersey City, NJ, USA.","authors":"Michael S Wolfe","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The 11th Alzheimer's Disease Drug Discovery International Conference, held in Jersey City, NJ, USA, included topics covering new therapeutic developments in the field of Alzheimer's disease. This conference report highlights selected presentations on the use of patient-specific stem cells, and neuroprotection, regeneration and cognitive enhancement strategies for the prevention or treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Investigational approaches discussed include allopregnanolone for neuron protection and regeneration, PDE5 inhibitors as therapeutics, upregulating the protein Klotho to prevent cognitive decline, targeting memory deficits induced by Aβ42 oligomers, inhibiting striatal-enriched protein tyrosine phosphatase (STEP) for treating neuropsychiatric disorders, and agonism of GABA-A receptors to treat age-related cognitive deficits.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"825-7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29533183","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Targeted Cancer Therapies World Congress 2010--part 2. 21-23 September 2010, Zurich, Switzerland.","authors":"Hagop Youssoufian","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Targeted Cancer Therapies World Congress, held in Zurich, included topics covering new regulatory and therapeutic developments in the field of cancer therapy and accompanying diagnostics. This conference report highlights selected presentations on improving market access, minimizing redundant R&D investment and standardizing cancer biomarkers, incorporating diagnostics into drug development and advances in biomarker discovery for cancer.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"833-5"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532100","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Accelerating the discovery of new drug targets with chemical proteomics.","authors":"Atwood K Cheung, Rishi K Jain","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The application of chemical proteomics to new target discovery can lead to a rapid understanding of disease mechanism and new therapeutic methods. Successful application includes a thorough understanding of SAR and the validation of target relevance using multiple genetic and biochemical methods. This feature review highlights several successful applications of chemical proteomics and outlines the strategy and approaches that lead to the discovery of novel therapeutic targets.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"862-8"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532107","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Florbetapir (18F), a PET imaging agent that binds to amyloid plaques for the potential detection of Alzheimer's disease.","authors":"Nobuyuki Okamura, Kazuhiko Yanai","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Florbetapir (18F), being developed by Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, is an 18F-labeled PET tracer binding to amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques for the potential detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Preclinical studies indicated high binding affinity of florbetapir (18F) to Aβ fibrils and specific labeling of Aβ plaques in the cortical regions and hippocampus. In phase I and II clinical trials, florbetapir (18F) clearly differentiated patients with AD from healthy controls and uptake was most prominent in the precuneus. The neocortical-to-cerebellar tracer uptake ratio reached a plateau within 50 min post-injection and high-quality images were acquired with 5 to 10 min image acquisition time with 370 MBq of florbetapir (18F). Results from an ongoing phase III clinical trial confirmed a strong correlation between florbetapir (18F) PET images and postmortem assessment of Aβ deposition. No serious adverse events were reported in any of the clinical trials of florbetapir (18F). At the time of publication, a marketing application for florbetapir (18F) had been submitted to the US FDA. The fast kinetics and strong evidences of radiological-pathological correlation are advantages of florbetapir (18F) over other 18F-labeled amyloid PET tracers. This tracer has a potential to serve as an agent for preclinical detection of AD-related pathology in the large elderly population.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"890-9"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532528","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Targeted Cancer Therapies World Congress 2010--part 1. 21-23 September 2010, Zurich, Switzerland.","authors":"Hagop Youssoufian","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Targeted Cancer Therapies World Congress, held in Zurich, included topics covering new developments in the field of cancer therapy. This conference report highlights selected presentations on the global market for targeted cancer therapies, understanding European regulatory evaluation strategies and meeting the requirements for acceptable reimbursement.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"830-2"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532099","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Beth-Ann G Coller, David E Clements, Timothy Martyak, Michele Yelmene, Mike Thorne, D Elliot Parks
{"title":"Advances in flavivirus vaccine development.","authors":"Beth-Ann G Coller, David E Clements, Timothy Martyak, Michele Yelmene, Mike Thorne, D Elliot Parks","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Flaviviruses comprise a diverse family of viruses that are cumulatively responsible for hundreds of millions of cases of infection annually. The Flavivirus genus includes both insect-vectored viruses, such as yellow fever and dengue, and non-vectored viruses such as HCV; the viruses have a broad range of disease presentation and geographic distribution. No specific antiviral therapies are currently available for the diseases caused by insect-vectored flaviviruses. Thus, efforts have been focused on the prevention of disease, through either vaccination or vector control, rather than on the treatment of infected individuals. While vector control can occasionally be successful in controlling the spread of flavivirus outbreaks, vaccines appear to be a more cost-effective, sustainable, and environmentally friendly approach. A review of vaccines for the medically important flaviviruses presents the full spectrum of vaccine options and complexity levels, and provides examples of successes and major challenges. The insect-borne flavivirus vaccine field is dynamic, with new and improved vaccines being advanced to replace existing vaccines, and novel vaccine approaches being developed for those targets that currently lack an approved vaccine. Advances in scientific knowledge and in the application of new technologies are helping to overcome some of the key challenges that have stymied the field for decades. New, safe and effective vaccines to protect against yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, tick-borne encephalitis, West Nile and dengue viruses will likely result.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 12","pages":"880-4"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29532526","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Using large-scale RNAi screens to identify novel drug targets for cancer.","authors":"Jeroen H Nijwening, Roderick L Beijersbergen","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In recent years, the development and clinical implementation of targeted therapeutics have progressed significantly. The specific inhibition of components of signal transduction pathways controlling proliferation and survival has been a highly successful research strategy. However, cancer is a heterogeneous disease and, even within one type of cancer, different genetic alterations are associated with identical phenotypes. To advance the use of targeted therapeutics, it is not only essential to identify the crucial factors in the signal transduction networks that control cell proliferation and survival, but also to classify individual tumors according to genetic alterations that correlate with pathway activation. RNAi screening technologies have become established as an important strategy both to identify novel targets and to provide novel biomarkers that are crucial for the further development of personalized medicine. This feature review discusses different RNAi screening strategies and their contribution to the rapidly evolving field of targeted therapeutics.</p>","PeriodicalId":55031,"journal":{"name":"Idrugs","volume":"13 11","pages":"772-7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2010-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"29443248","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}