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Tuesday Apr 27, 2010
DePuy Spine Launches Expedium Vertebral Body Derotation Instrument Set
The set is designed to help surgeons correct spinal alignment and decrease rib rotation in patients with scoliosis...

Friday Apr 09, 2010
Vaccine Successfully Reverse Type 1 Diabetes in Mice
Researchers believe the vaccine may be applicable to other autoimmune disease, such as RA and MS...

Friday Apr 02, 2010
Spotlight on Sjögren's Syndrome
As many as 4 million Americans are affected by the autoimmune disorder, but most suffer from symptoms for 3 or more years before receiving an accurate diagnosis...

Monday Mar 15, 2010
Roche Suspends Experimental Arthritis Drug Study
Risks were found to outweigh potential benefits in the study of ocrelizumab after cases of serious infections led to several deaths...

Wednesday Dec 02, 2009
OxyPharma's New RA Drug Shows Positive Phase II Results
Rabeximod, an orally-administered DMARD, showed promise as a new RA treatment during a 16-week study...

Thursday Nov 05, 2009
TNFα Weakens Bones in Diabetes
High levels of TNF-α in diabetics accelerates cartilage loss, weakens bones, and slows fracture healing...

Wednesday Oct 21, 2009
Phase 2 Data Support Pfizer's JAK Inhibitor for RA
Two Phase 2 trials reported at ACR show efficacy of JAK inhibitor now in Phase 3...

Tuesday Sep 15, 2009
Neuro Exams a Must for Fibromyalgia Patients
Fibromyalgia patients have neurological abnormalities that may correlate with objective FM exam findings and influence treatment decisions...

Thursday Aug 27, 2009
Lexicon Moves LX2931 Into RA Phase 2
Lexicon's LX2931 S1P lyase blocker is in Phase 2 trials in rheumatoid arthritis...

Wednesday Aug 12, 2009
So You Think You Can Dance After Hip Replacement? You Can!
Orthopaedic surgeons are realizing that patients are never too young or too old to undergo total hip arthroplasty...

Thursday Jul 23, 2009
Gene Therapy Cleared in RA Patient Death
The vector used in an RA gene therapy study did not cause the death of a patient who died during the trial...

Thursday Jul 09, 2009
EULAR Reports Link High Glutamate to Fibromyalgia Pain
Two studies on glutamate in brains of fibromyalgia patients show abnormal levels of the neurotransmitter in areas related to pain perception and emotional processing...

Thursday Jun 18, 2009
Biogen Gets Joint Control of Genentech Post-Rituxan Development
Genentech must stop three drug development projects but can continue lupus and RA ocrelizumab studies....

Tuesday Jun 16, 2009
Infliximab Still Going Strong At 7 Years for RA Treatment
Infliximab efficacy and safety are maintained through at least 7 years of use for rheumatoid arthritis treatment...

Thursday Apr 23, 2009
Merck Inks Deal with Galapagos in Inflammatory Diseases
Merck and Galapagos have signed a multi-year agreement for discovery and development of new drugs for inflammatory disease...

Thursday Mar 26, 2009
Firefly Protein Lights Up Lupus Imaging
Bioluminescent imaging of NF-kB pinpoints inflamed sites long before symptoms appear in a mouse model of lupus and is likely to speed development of treatments for early disease...

Tuesday Mar 17, 2009
New Laser for Psoriasis Aims to Cut Treatment
The excimer laser, best known for its use in eye surgery, is providing some patients with relief from their psoriasis...

Wednesday Feb 25, 2009
ACL Repairs Becoming More Common in Kids, Don't Shorten NFL Careers
Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction is becoming more common in school-age athletes and needs longer healing time than is sometimes allowed, but it need not jeopardize a professional sports career...

Tuesday Feb 10, 2009
Each Osteoporotic Fracture Ups Death Risk
Women and men age 60 years or older who sustain a low-trauma osteoporotic fracture are at an increased risk of dying during the following 5 to 10 years...

Monday Feb 02, 2009
Rituximab B-Cell Depletion Stops JIA
Systemic onset JIA responded dramatically to B-cell depletion with rituximab...

Friday Jan 16, 2009
FDA Backs Savella for Fibromyalgia
FDA has approved Cypress Bioscience's Savella for fibromyalgia pain, function, and well-being...

Monday Nov 03, 2008
Tanezumab Reduces Moderate-Severe OA Pain in Phase II Trial
The nerve-growth-factor blocker tanezumab given once every 8 weeks significantly reduced knee OA pain in a phase 2 trial...

Monday Oct 27, 2008
VGX Initiates Follow-On, Phase I, Multiple Ascending Dose Study for Oral Anti-Inflammatory Drug Targeting RA and Type 1 Diabetes
VGX Pharmaceuticals announced phase I study results that demonstrated that its lead anti-inflammatory compound, VGX-1027, was generally safe and well tolerated in humans...

Friday Oct 10, 2008
Understanding RA Relapse After Pregnancy
New research sheds light on why rheumatoid arthritis (RA) tends to become reactivated in the postpartum period...

Thursday Oct 09, 2008
Rheumatologists Usually on Target With Intra-Articular Injections, Even Without Ultrasound
New research shows that blind intra-articular injections (IAIs) in rheumatoid arthritis patients, done without ultrasound guidance, are accurate when performed by a trained rheumatologist. Blind injections into the ankle are the most unreliable, at 77% accuracy...

Wednesday Oct 08, 2008
Fractalkine May Be Key to Unleashed Immune Response in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Fractalkine (FKN) is emerging as a central player in the RA synovial inflammation, neovascularization, and joint destruction, and also might be link between joint damage and increased cardiovascular risk...

Monday Sep 29, 2008
Pegloticase May be Just What the Rheumatologist Ordered for Treatment-Resistant Gout
Treatment-resistant gout may have finally met its match with a new, urate-lowering drug...

Thursday Sep 18, 2008
GSK, Cellzome Announce Strategic Alliance to Identify Kinase-Targeted Drugs for Inflammatory Diseases
The alliance gives GSK access to Cellzome’s expertise in identifying and developing selective kinase inhibitors and its proprietary Kinobeads™ technology which, by screening compounds in a physiological setting, is designed to improve the predictability of these drug candidates’ performance in clinical testing...

Wednesday Sep 17, 2008
NSAIDs May Block Prostate Cancer Detection
Regular use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs might reduce serum levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA) and interfere with prostate cancer detection...

Friday Sep 12, 2008
BioCryst Reports Results From Phase IIa Trial of PNP Inhibitor in Psoriasis; No Evidence of Clinical Efficacy
BCX-4208 is a potent, rationally-designed, inhibitor of PNP—a purine salvage pathway enzyme that is essential for the proliferation of activated T-cells...

Tuesday Sep 09, 2008
FDA Posts List of Potential Problem Drugs
The FDA has posted a list of prescription drugs that are under investigation for potential safety problems…

Thursday Sep 04, 2008
Omeros Enters Into Agreement With Affitech for Anti-inflammatory Therapeutics, Awaits Phase III Clinical Trial Results for Agent
Omeros Corp and Affitech AS have entered into an agreement for the discovery and development of fully human antibodies for Omeros’ MASP-2, which mediates activation of the complement system via the lectin pathway...

Tuesday Sep 02, 2008
Success Rate Rising of Transplants Using Donor Tissues
Despite hurdles such as high costs and the dangers of immunosuppression following surgery, composite tissue allotransplantation (CTA) is becoming a more popular procedure…

Thursday Aug 21, 2008
Mesoblast Reports Stem Cells Regrow Knee Cartilage in Postmenopausal Ewes With OA; Repair Nonhealing Bones in Humans
Mesoblast, a regenerative medicine company developing treatments for orthopaedic conditions, announced successful preclinical trial results showing that its proprietary adult stem cells regenerated and regrew damaged knee cartilage...

Monday Aug 18, 2008
MedImmune, Medarex Report Initiation of Phase IIa Clinical Trial of Fully Human Anti-Interferonα Monoclonal Antibody in Lupus Patients
MedImmune has initiated enrollment in a phase IIa trial with a human monoclonal antibody (MEDI-545) targeting interferonα in adult patients with moderate-to-severe active lupus...

Wednesday Aug 13, 2008
Tolerx Reports Collaboration Partner, Genentech, has Advanced a Modified Humanized Nondepleting Anti-CD4 Monoclonal Antibody Into Phase I Clinical Trial in RA Patients
The Tolerx and Genentech collaboration has moved a modified version of TRX1 (MTRX1011A), an anti-CD4 monoclonal antibody, into a phase I clinical trial that has begun enrolling RA patients...

Wednesday Jul 30, 2008
Ore Pharmaceuticals Files IND Application With US FDA for GL1001, a Nanomolar Inhibitor of ACE2, to Treat IBD
GL1001, an orally administered small molecule, is the first clinical-stage inhibitor of the ACE-related carboxypeptidase (ACE2), a membrane-associated and secreted enzyme expressed predominantly on endothelium...

Wednesday Jul 16, 2008
Amgen Reports Positive Top-Line Results for Denosumab Treatment of Bone Loss in Men With Nonmetastatic Prostate Cancer Undergoing Androgen Deprivation Therapy; Study Met Primary, Secondary Endpoints
The improvements in BMD were consistent with those seen in other denosumab studies evaluating BMD in women with breast cancer receiving aromatase inhibitor therapy and in postmenopausal women with low bone mass...

Thursday Jul 10, 2008
Merck Serono Reports EMEA Confirms Positive Benefit-Risk Balance With Raptiva^® for the Treatment of Psoriasis; European Commission Approved Product Information Update to Include Data on Up to 3 Years of Treatment
The European Commission has approved an update of the Summary of Product Characteristics (SPC) for Raptiva^® (efalizumab) in the treatment of moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis...

Thursday Jul 10, 2008
Cancer Drug Velcade^® Looks Promising for Lupus Nephritis
Bortezomib, which prolonged survival and prevented nephritis in mice with lupus, looks set to move to human clinical trials...

Tuesday Jul 08, 2008
Rheumatologists Can Expect to See More HIV-Related Joint Problems as Mortality Drops
Mortality in HIV-infected patients has dropped comparable with general population levels, especially in those who begin highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) early, and one result is that rheumatologists can expect to see more long-term HIV survivors with joint problems related to the underlying HIV, treatment, or aging...

Thursday Jun 26, 2008
New ACR Guidelines Help Clinicians Incorporate Biologics Into RA Treatment Plans
The new American College of Rheumatology guidelines help rheumatologists to choose the right drugs and to monitor RA patients for untoward effects, but the guidelines should not replace sound clinical judgment…

Thursday Jun 19, 2008
Stem Cells Might Treat Tough Fractures
Adult stem cells may be the key to healing broken bones that fail to mend properly on their own…

Wednesday Jun 18, 2008
Rigel Launches Two Global Phase IIb Clinical Trials of Syk Inhibitor, R788 (fostamatinib disodium), in RA
Rigel currently has small-molecule product development programs in inflammatory/autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, thrombocytopenia, and asthma...

Tuesday Jun 17, 2008
At 1 Year, Balloon Kyphoplasty Provides Better Pain, Function Outcomes Than Nonsurgical Care for Osteoporotic Vertebral Fractures
After 12 months, patients with acute vertebral compression fractures treated with balloon kyphoplasty had sustained improvements in pain and function compared with those who received nonsurgical care...

Monday Jun 16, 2008
Phase III Data Show Golimumab Efficacy in MTX-Resistant, TNF-Pretreated, Untreated RA
Data from the phase III GO-FORWARD and GO-BEFORE studies show that subcutaneous golimumab improves symptoms, function in RA patients after MTX, anti-TNF failure...

Friday Jun 13, 2008
Clinical, X-ray, and Functional Remission Possible in Early RA With MTX-ETN Combo
Etanercept (ETN) in combination with methotrexate (MTX) was superior to MTX alone in allowing RA patients to achieve clinical remission, radiographic nonprogression, and normalized function... 

Wednesday Jun 11, 2008
Merck Announces Initiation of Second Phase II/III Pivotal Clinical Study of Atacicept in SLE
Merck and development partner ZymoGenetics have initiated a phase II/III trial of atacicept (formerly TACI-Ig) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Atacicept inhibits the two growth factors BLyS and APRIL that are known to impact disease progression...

Monday Jun 02, 2008
Targeted Genetics Reports Positive Interim Findings From Inflammatory Arthritis Phase I/II Trial of tgAAC94; Demonstrates Safety and Preliminary Efficacy, Supports Further Clinical Development
Targeted Genetics Corp's study is designed to assess the safety and potential effect of multiple doses of tgAAC94 administered directly to affected joints of inflammatory arthritis subjects with or without concurrent use of systemic TNF antagonist therapies...

Thursday May 29, 2008
Medarex Initiates Phase II Proof-of-Concept Trials for MDX-1100, a Fully Human Anti-CXCL10 Monoclonal Antibody, in UC and RA
Medarex announced that it has initiated two phase II clinical development programs of MDX-1100, a fully human monoclonal antibody that targets CXCL10 (also known as IP-10), in ulcerative colitis and rheumatoid arthritis...

Thursday May 22, 2008
Bone Pain Can Be a Sign of Myeloma
Patients who report bone pain should be checked for myeloma, a treatable form of bone marrow cancer

Monday May 19, 2008
ChemoCentryx Initiates Phase I Clinical Trial of CCR1 Inhibitor CCX354 for Inflammatory Disease; Milestone Triggers $10 Million Payment From Partner GSK
ChemoCentryx announced the initiation of a phase I clinical trial of CCX354, an orally-available, novel small molecule compound designed to specifically target the CCR1 chemokine receptor associated with inflammatory diseases...

Monday May 19, 2008
AACE Experts Warn of Vitamin D Problems in Vegans, Urge Routine Monitoring in Osteoporosis Patients
Vitamin D deficiency research reported at the 2008 American Association for Clinical Endocrinology meetings included a warning about vegan diets, evidence that osteoporosis patients in treatment are still not getting enough vitamin D, and evidence that even a hip fracture does not lead to adequate vitamin D therapy...

Monday May 12, 2008
Rituximab OK Following Anti-TNF-Associated TB
Rituximab is both safe and effective in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who have had active TB while being treated with a TNF-α inhibitor...

Monday May 12, 2008
Nuon Raises $27 Million to Advance Tranilast Through Phase II Clinical Trials for Autoimmune Diseases
Nuon completed a $27 million series B financing to advance tranilast, its orally available, small-molecule lead compound...

Tuesday May 06, 2008
Lexicon's RA Drug Candidate LX2931, Targeting S1P Lyase, Shows Positive Results in Phase 1a Clinical Trial; Dose-Dependent, Rapid-Onset Decrease in Circulating Lymphocytes Observed
Positive results were obtained from Lexicon's phase 1a clinical trial of LX2931, an orally-delivered, small molecule targeting sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) lyase for the treatment of RA and other autoimmune conditions...

Tuesday May 06, 2008
Rigel's R788 (fostamatinib disodium) Slows Progression, Prolongs Survival in Murine Lupus Model; Phase II Lupus Clinical Trial Planned Later in 2008
Rigel's lead agent, R788 (fostamatinib disodium), an orally bioavailable spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has successfully treated lupus-prone mice and significantly improved their survival...

Friday May 02, 2008
Icelandic and British Researchers ID Five New Osteoporosis Genes
New research spotlighting five genetic loci associated with bone mineral density (BMD) and fractures may provide insight into the biochemical pathways that underlie osteoporosis…

Thursday May 01, 2008
Cola May Be Bad to the Bones
High consumption of soda may contribute to lower bone mass and the eventual development of osteoporosis…

Friday Apr 11, 2008
FDA Warns of Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy With CellCept
FDA informed healthcare professionals that it is investigating a potential association between the use of mycophenolate mofetil and development of PML...

Friday Apr 04, 2008
Seven New Psoriasis Risk Genes Identified
A genome-wide study has identified 7 new genes that appear to increase a person's risk for psoriasis…

Thursday Mar 20, 2008
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Completes Enrollment in a Phase II Study of MM-093, Recombinant AFP, in Patients With RA
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc's phase II trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of MM-093, a nonglycosylated, recombinant version of human alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has completed enrollment...

Tuesday Mar 18, 2008
Genzyme Reports That US Data From Large Outcome Studies of Carticel^® Support Long-Term Clinical Duration; Prior Marrow Stimulation Techniques May Compromise Treatment With Carticel
Genzyme announced that almost 90% of patients treated with Carticel who experienced improvement in knee function at an early follow-up, sustained their improvement for almost 10 years...

Wednesday Mar 12, 2008
Docs Seen as Clueless About What’s Afoot in RA
About 10% of RA patients develop some type of potentially debilitating foot ulceration, but management approaches are lagging behind…

Tuesday Mar 11, 2008
Will Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Cure Human Autoimmune Diseases?
Researchers analyzed hematopoietic stem cell transplantation as an acceptable therapy for autoimmune diseases…

Monday Mar 10, 2008
Avoidable Hospitalizations Common Among Older, Poorer SLE Patients
Rheumatologists have a key role in preventing avoidable hospitalizations among older, poorer patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)…

Thursday Feb 28, 2008
Adult Stem Cells Nearing Clinical Use for RA, SLE, Other Autoimmune Diseases
Adult stem cells offer a safer, less controversial approach than embryonic stem cells to treat various rheumatoid and autoimmune diseases, and are now entering randomized clinical trials...

Thursday Feb 28, 2008
Tysabri May Cause Liver Damage, Health Officials Say
Tysabri, the MS drug recently approved for treatment of Crohn’s disease, can cause liver damage in as few as 6 days…

Thursday Feb 28, 2008
Acceleron, Celgene to Collaborate on Anabolic Bone Agent ACE-011, a Decoy Activin Receptor, for Cancer-Related Bone Loss
Acceleron Pharma and Celgene Corp announced a worldwide strategic collaboration for the development and commercialization of ACE-011, a novel bone-forming compound for the treatment of cancer-related bone loss...

Thursday Feb 21, 2008
Pharmacopeia Advances Chemokine Receptor Antagonist Into Preclinical Development for Inflammatory and Autoimmune Disease Indications
Pharmacopeia Inc announced the advancement of PS031291, a potent and highly selective oral antagonist at the chemokine receptor CCR1, as a preclinical development compound from its internal CCR1 discovery program...

Thursday Feb 14, 2008
Celgene Reports More Positive Phase II Data on Apremilast in Psoriasis Patients; to Expand Dosing Level, Duration; Accelerate Advancement in Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis, RA
Celgene Corp announced positive clinical data from a phase II study of apremilast (CC-10004), its lead orally bioavailable, small molecule inhibitor of TNF/PDE4, in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis...

Monday Jan 28, 2008
Tolerx Achieves Milestone With Completion of Phase Ib Study of TRX1, a Humanized Nondepleting Anti-CD4 Monoclonal Antibody, in Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus
Tolerx, Inc announced the successful completion of a phase Ib clinical study of TRX1, a humanized anti-CD4 monoclonal antibody, in subjects with refractory cutaneous lupus erythematosus...

Monday Jan 28, 2008
Genentech, Biogen Idec, Roche Report Rituxan® (rituximab, MabThera®) Phase III Trial Meets Study Endpoints in RA; Use as First-Line Biologic Therapy Improves Symptoms 
Genentech, Inc, Biogen Idec, and Roche Pharmaceuticals announced that a pivotal phase III study of rituximab (Rituxan®) met its primary endpoint of greater proportion of biologic-naïve RA patients achieving ACR20 response at week 24, compared with placebo...

Thursday Jan 17, 2008
Elan, Biogen Idec Gain US FDA Approval of Tysabri® for Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Crohn's Disease
Elan Corp, plc and Biogen Idec announced the approval of a supplemental Biologics License Application for Tysabri® (natalizumab) for inducing and maintaining clinical response and remission in adult patients with active moderate-to-severe Crohn's disease...

Wednesday Jan 16, 2008
Incyte Reports INCB18424, a Selective JAK2 Inhibitor, Shows Initial Positive Clinical Activity With Rapid Onset of Action in RA and Psoriasis
Incyte Corp announced positive clinical proof-of-concept results with its wholly-owned, internally developed, lead JAK2 (Janus-associated kinase 2) inhibitor, INCB18424, in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriasis...

Tuesday Jan 15, 2008
Three More Cases of Significant Neutropenia Lead to Recommendation for Routine CBC Monitoring
Three more cases of significant neutropenia in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis patients treated with etanercept lead to a recommendation for regular monitoring of complete blood counts (CBC)...

Friday Jan 11, 2008
aRigel Initiates Phase I Clinical Trial of JAK3 Inhibitor R348 for RA, Psoriasis, and Other Immune Disorders 
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc announced that it has initiated the enrollment of patients in a phase I clinical study to evaluate the safety and tolerability of R348, an orally bioavailable, potent (<100 nM) and selective inhibitor of Janus kinase 3 (JAK3) as a potential treatment for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, and other immune disorders...

Thursday Dec 06, 2007
Medarex Announces Acceptance by US FDA of IND Application for Wholly-Owned Fully Human Anti-CD19 Antibody, MDX-1342, for Phase I Clinical Study for RA
Medarex, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of fully human antibody-based therapeutics, announced the allowance of an investigational new drug application filed with the US FDA for MDX-1342 for rheumatoid arthritis...

Thursday Nov 29, 2007
Osiris Announces Clinically and Statistically Significant 1-Year Data From Phase I/II Trial of Chondrogenâ„¢; OA Knee Patients Receive Single Injection of Adult Stem Cells Into Knee
Osiris Therapeutics, Inc, a leading stem cell therapeutic company, announced positive 1-year interim results in the evaluation of Chondrogenâ„¢, a preparation of mesenchymal stem cells obtained from the bone marrow of healthy adult donors and formulated for direct injection into the knee...

Wednesday Nov 28, 2007
Update on Joint Replacement
Total joint replacement has reduced pain and disability in elderly patients with arthritis. The procedure is cost-effective even for high-risk patients, but it is associated with higher risk for cardiac complications if both joints are replaced during the same procedure, and it might be chosen by more African-American patients if finances were less of an issue...

Tuesday Nov 27, 2007
Elan, Biogen Idec Report that CHMP Adopts Negative Opinion on Appeal of EU Application for Natalizumab (Tysabri®) to Treat Crohn's
Elan Corp, plc and Biogen Idec announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has adopted a negative opinion on the marketing authorization for natalizumab (Tysabri®) as a treatment for moderate-to-severe, active Crohn's disease (CD) in patients who had an inadequate response to or could not take conventional treatments and who have evidence of active inflammation...

Thursday Nov 15, 2007
New Rheumatoid Arthritis B-Cell Depletor Advances in Phase II Trials
The experimental B-cell depleting small modular immunopharmaceutical (SMIP), TRU-015 has promising safety and efficacy trials in phase II RA data reported at the American College of Rheumatology...

Monday Nov 12, 2007
Biogen Idec's Baminercept, the First Lymphotoxin-β Pathway Inhibitor in Development, Shows Promise in Phase IIa Trial in RA Patients; Phase IIb Underway 
Biogen Idec announced results from its phase IIa trial of baminercept, the first dual-mechanism, lymphotoxin-β (LT-β) and LIGHT pathway inhibitor in development for the treatment of autoimmune diseases...

Wednesday Nov 07, 2007
Smoking Blamed for 44% of Psoriasis Risk in Current Smokers, 27% of Risk in Past Smokers
Data from the Nurses Health Study II show that smoking plays a major role in causing psoriasis in women, that heavy smoking worsens psoriasis, and that risk reverts to normal only after 20 years of smoking cessation...

Monday Nov 05, 2007
Lab-on-a-Chip Promises Fast Profile of RA Patients' Autoantibodies
A new technique promises fast, inexpensive serum antibody profiling in RA patients without the need for fluorescent labeling or preprocessing...

Thursday Nov 01, 2007
Lilly Acquires TRPV1 Antagonist Portfolio Including Phase II Drug Candidate GRC 6211 From Glenmark for Treatment of Pain, Including Osteoarthritic Pain 
Eli Lilly and Co announced that it has entered into a license agreement with Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA, a wholly owned subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd, under which Lilly will acquire the rights to a portfolio of transient receptor potential vanilloid subfamily 1 (TRPV1) antagonist molecules, including the clinical compound GRC 6211...

Thursday Nov 01, 2007
Few Remissions From Switching to Other DMARDs After MTX Failure
If initial MTX fails to produce remission in RA, adding or switching to other conventional DMARDs is also unlikely to produce remissions...

Wednesday Oct 24, 2007
GSK and Tolerx Form Worldwide Collaboration for Development and Commercialization of Otelixizumab (TRX4) for T-Cell Mediated Autoimmune and Inflammatory Diseases
GlaxoSmithKline and Tolerx, Inc announced a worldwide alliance to develop and commercialize otelixizumab (TRX4), a novel humanized anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody that has potential across a broad range of T-cell mediated autoimmune and inflammatory diseases including psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis...

Monday Oct 22, 2007
Hollis-Eden Reports Positive Data Demonstrating That Anti-Inflammatory Agent HE3286 (Triolex^TM) Provides Benefit in Animal Models of Ulcerative Colitis and RA; Will Initiate Phase I/II Clinical Study in RA
Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a company focused on the development of a proprietary new class of small molecules that are metabolites or synthetic analogs of endogenous adrenal steroid hormones, announced additional data on drug candidate HE3286 (Triolex^TM), an orally active, second generation, synthetic 17-ethynyl derivative of the steroid hormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), currently in preclinical and clinical study for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and inflammatory disorders...

Friday Oct 19, 2007
Lilly Acquires Exclusive Rights to MacroGenics' Humanized Anti-CD3 Monoclonal Antibody and Will Collaborate to Develop Autoimmune Disease Treatments
Eli Lilly and Co and MacroGenics, Inc have entered into a global strategic alliance to develop and commercialize teplizumab (MGA031 or hOKT3γ1(Ala-Ala)), a humanized, non-Fc receptor binding, anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody, as well as other potential next generation anti-CD3 molecules, for use in the treatment of multiple T–cell-mediated autoimmune diseases...

Tuesday Oct 16, 2007
Prolonged IV Antibiotics Produce No Lasting Benefit in Post-Lyme Cognitive Problems
The fourth randomized clinical trial to test prolonged antibiotic therapy in patients previously treated for Lyme disease confirms the lack of lasting improvement in cognitive function reported in the early studies...

Tuesday Oct 16, 2007
Combination Therapy is Better for RA Patients Who Partially Responded to Long-term Monotherapy
Many RA patients who have partial responses to long-term etanercept or methotrexate monotherapy can be put into remission by combining these drugs...

Thursday Oct 11, 2007
Review Rejects "Chronic Lyme Disease" Diagnosis, Extended IV Antibiotics
A major review challenges "chronic Lyme disease" as a valid diagnosis and warns against extended use of IV antibiotics...

Thursday Sep 27, 2007
Panel Issues New Guidelines for Use of Imaging in Ankylosing Spondylitis
Although standard X-rays are essential for diagnosis and MRI may help diagnose early cases before radiographic damage develops,  no form of imaging is yet useful for monitoring response to treatment or for routine monitoring of disease progression in AS, experts say...

Thursday Sep 20, 2007
Vitamin D + Calcium Decrease Risk of Falling; Vitamin K₁ Effect Not Due to Improved BMD

Researchers at the ASBRM report that vitamin D and calcium decrease the risk of falling in postmenopausal women and that the protective effect of vitamin K₁ is not due to improving BMD...Kärkkäinen M, et al; Cheung AM, et al. ASBMR 2007.

Thursday Sep 20, 2007
Researchers Identify Additional RA, SLE Genes
Genetics researchers report a new variant on chromosome 9 associated with anti-CCP-positive RA and a mutation of STAT4 on chromosome 2q associated with both RA and lupus...

Wednesday Sep 19, 2007
Sosei's Fibromyalgia Phase II Trial of Nonopioid Analgesic, AD 337, Fails to Achieve Primary Endpoint
Sosei Group Corp, an international biopharmaceutical company focused on drug reprofiling, announced that its phase II proof-of-principle trial of AD 337 (an enantiomer of an approved, centrally acting, nonopioid, analgesic) for the treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) failed to achieve a statistically significant outcome in its primary endpoint at 4 weeks...

Tuesday Sep 11, 2007
Genizon BioSciences Reports Results of Genome-Wide Association Study in Quebec Founder Population and the Identification of Multiple Validated Novel Genes for Crohn's

Genizon BioSciences Inc, known for its genome-wide association studies of the Quebec Founder Population (QFP) in search of genes involved in complex diseases, announced the identification of four novel loci (3p21, 4p16.1, 17q11.1, and 17q22-q23) in Crohn's disease (CD)...

Wednesday Sep 05, 2007
Health Canada Approves Actonel® 75 mg; First 2-Day Monthly Dosing Regimen to Treat Postmenopausal Osteoporosis
The Alliance for Better Bone Health, formed in 1997 by Procter & Gamble and Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc (now part of sanofi-aventis) to promote bone health and disease awareness, announced that the government's Health Canada has approved Actonel® (risedronate sodium tablets) 75 mg, the first monthly 2-day dosing regimen for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis...

Friday Aug 17, 2007
Mayo Researchers Shake, Blast Biofilms to ID Bacteria Infecting Joint Prostheses
Mayo Clinic researchers have developed a new test that identifies organisms infecting joint prostheses more accurately than sampling tissue around the joint at the time of resection...Trampuz A, et al. N Engl J Med. 2007;357:654-663.

Thursday Aug 02, 2007
Stem Cell Transplants Offer Hope for Children With Severe, Refractory JIA
Intensive immunosuppression followed by T-cell-depleted autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation offers refractory JIA patients a chance for remission, but is it worth the risks?…Brinkman DMC, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2007;56:2410-2421.

Wednesday Aug 01, 2007
MedImmune Initiates Phase Ib Multidose Trial of Anti-Interferon-α Monoclonal Antibody in Lupus Patients
MedImmune, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company focused on fully human antibody-based therapeutics, announced it has begun a phase Ib multidose clinical trial with MEDI-545, a fully human monoclonal antibody targeting interferon-α, in lupus patients.

Thursday Jul 26, 2007
Vitamin C After Wrist Fracture Prevents Chronic Pain Syndrome
Vitamin C (500 mg/day) taken for 50 days after wrist fracture significantly reduces the risk of developing complex regional pain syndrome...

Monday Jul 23, 2007
BioCryst, Roche Initiate Phase II Study of PNP Inhibitor for Psoriasis
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a leader in the use of crystallography and structure-based drug design for the development of novel therapeutics, announced the initiation of the first phase II study to evaluate BCX-4208/R3421, an orally available, small molecule, second generation transition-state analog inhibitor of purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP).

Monday Jul 23, 2007
Elan, Biogen Idec to Appeal Negative Ruling on European Application for Tysabri^R for Crohn's

Elan Corporation, plc, and Biogen Idec announced that they have been informed by the European Medicines Agency that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has adopted a negative opinion on the marketing application for the use of Tysabri® (natalizumab).

Friday Jul 06, 2007
Chi-Med Announces Positive Phase II Data for Botanical Compound, HMPL-004, in Ulcerative Colitis

Chi-Med, the Hutchison Whampoa-backed pharmaceutical and healthcare group, announced positive results for its phase II proof-of-concept study for HMPL-004 in mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis (UC).

Friday Jun 22, 2007
Belimumab Improves Symptoms in Nearly Half of Lupus Patients at 52 Weeks, Advances to Phase III Studies
Belimumab produces sustained improvement in SLE symptoms…

Saturday Jun 16, 2007
Long-Term, Repeated Use of Rituximab Is Safe in RA
A safety analysis of RA patients with long-term, repeated exposure to rituximab should go far toward relieving concerns over extended use...

Friday Jun 08, 2007
CCL18 Might Help Monitor Pulmonary Fibrosis in Systemic Sclerosis
Changes in BAL fluid levels of the chemokine CCL18 reflect changes in pulmonary fibrotic activity and might be useful for monitoring disease activity in systemic sclerosis and idiopathic interstitial pneumonias...

Tuesday Jun 05, 2007
Peptech's Anti-TNF Domain Antibody (PN0621) Enters Phase I Clinical Trial
Peptech Limited, is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and providing antibody- and peptide-based human therapeutic products for the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer...

Wednesday May 23, 2007
Celgene to Advance Clinical and Regulatory Development of Oral Anti-Inflammatory Agents Based on Successful Phase II Trial in Psoriasis; Expands Clinical Program to Include RA and PsA
Celgene Corp (SUMMIT, New Jersey), an integrated global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer, announced plans to advance its leading oral anti-inflammatory candidates to address a broad range of inflammatory diseases...

Friday May 18, 2007
Xanthus Acquires Exclusive License to FLT3 Tyrosine Kinase Pathway Patent Estate as a Target for Treating Autoimmune Diseases
Xanthus Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development, acquisition, and commercialization of small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and cancer, announced that it has acquired an exclusive worldwide license to a patent estate from The Johns Hopkins University (JHU) for treating immune-related disorders by inhibiting the FLT3 receptor tyrosine kinase...

Friday May 18, 2007
Little Benefit Found for Amitriptyline in JIA, But New Research Design May Speed Clinical Trials
Amitriptyline is ineffective for JIA pain, but multiple serial N-of-1 trials plus Bayesian meta-analysis can be used with low patient numbers to weed out treatments that don't merit study in large clinical trials...

Monday May 07, 2007
Selected Presentations From the American Pain Society Meeting
American Pain Society presentations included new research on genetic factors associated with TMJD and with shoulder pain, a randomized trial of nabilone for fibromyalgia, and the intersection between chronic pain and PTSD...

Wednesday May 02, 2007
Novosom Acquires Exclusive License Option for CD40-Targeted Antisense Inhibitors from Isis; Deal Strengthens Inflammation Therapeutic Development Program
Novosom AG announced that it has purchased an exclusive option from Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc (CARLSBAD, California) that, if exercised within 6 months, enables the company to acquire an exclusive, worldwide license to antisense inhibitors targeting the CD40 receptor for all indications...

Monday Apr 23, 2007
Rigel Provides Clinical Update of R788 Phase II Trials in ITP and RA

Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical-stage drug development company, provided an update on R788, currently involved in ongoing phase II clinical trials in immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA)...

Wednesday Apr 18, 2007
Death Forces Early Termination of Study of Infliximab in Systemic Vasculitis
Adverse events, including one death among nine patients treated, forced early termination of infliximab trial in systemic vasculitis...

Thursday Apr 05, 2007
More Evidence Points Toward Safety of Anti-TNF Drugs During Pregnancy
Three recent case reports add to an accumulating body of evidence that the TNF-blockers are safe during pregnancy, but one new report is far from the final word on the issue...

Thursday Apr 05, 2007
Labopharm Reports Data from Phase III Clinical Trial for its Once-Daily Formulation of the Analgesic Tramadol (Tramadol Contramid® OAD) for Osteoarthritis
Labopharm Inc (LAVAL, Québec, Canada), is an international specialty pharmaceutical company focusing on the development of drugs incorporating it's proprietary advanced controlled-release technologies...

Thursday Mar 22, 2007
6000-Patient Open-Label ReAct Study Shows Adalimumab Safe, Effective Alone or With DMARDs in Hard-to-Treat RA
The largest prospective study to date of the use of a TNF-inhibitor in RA shows that adalimumab (Humira®) is safe and effective alone or in combination with standard disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs)...

Wednesday Mar 21, 2007
BioMimetic Receives Orphan Drug Designation for rhPDGF-BB Treatment of Osteonecrosis of the Jaw
BioMimetic Therapeutics, Inc, an emerging leader in developing and commercializing bioactive drug-device combination drugs to heal musculoskeletal injuries and disease, including periodontal, orthopaedic, spine and sports injuries, announced that it has received orphan drug designation from the US FDA for its protein therapeutic, recombinant human platelet-derived growth factor (rhPDGF-BB)...

Monday Mar 19, 2007
Medivir Begins Initial Clinical Trial of Osteoporosis Drug Cathepsin K Inhibitor
Medivir AB, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, announced the start of its first osteoporosis clinical trial of MIV-701, an orally bioavailable inhibitor of cathepsin K, a thiol (cysteine) protease that is expressed by osteoclasts and degrades key bone and cartilage matrix proteins, including type 1 collagen...

Thursday Mar 15, 2007
Unigene Receives $5.5 Million Milestone Payment for Calcitonin Collaboration in Initiation of Osteoporosis Phase III Clinical Trial

Unigene Laboratories, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company focusing on the oral and nasal delivery of large-market peptide drugs, announced that the initiation of a phase III clinical study conducted by Nordic Bioscience, the development partner with Novartis Pharmaceuticals AG, to treat osteoporosis with oral calcitonin has triggered a $5.5 million milestone payment due from Novartis to Unigene...
 

Thursday Mar 15, 2007
Growing Conflict-of-Interest Concerns Drive Demands for International Registration of All Clinical Trials
Growing evidence of a correlation between industry sponsorship of clinical trials and reported outcomes favorable to the sponsor are driving demands for an international clinical trials registration system that would include data beginning with phase I studies and continuing through completion of phase III trials...

Tuesday Mar 06, 2007
Calistoga Pharmaceuticals Completes $21 Million Series A Financing to Advance Drug Development Programs for Inflammation and Oncology Indications 
Calistoga Pharmaceuticals Inc, a newly formed, privately-held drug development company focusing on developing novel therapies for inflammation and oncology, announced that it closed a Series A venture round of financing after raising $21 million...

Monday Feb 26, 2007
Lupus Patients Clear UV-Damaged "Sunburn Cells" but May Have Unusual Inflammatory Reaction to Them
Sunlight can trigger new skin lesions and worsen disease activity in lupus; this might reflect an abnormal inflammatory response to UV-damaged cells, despite the ability to clear them normally from the epidermis...

Friday Feb 16, 2007
No Gain to Pre-Op Antibiotics Before Knee Arthroscopy
Routine knee arthroscopy is associated with a very low rate of infection, and preoperative antibiotics do not reduce that rate…

Thursday Feb 15, 2007
Surgeons Warn Against Over-Use of "Minimally Invasive Surgery" for Hip Replacements
Surgeons at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons 74th Annual Meeting questioned the advantages of minimally invasive hip replacement surgery compared with "gold standard" open THR... AAOS 2007 Annual Meeting.

Tuesday Feb 13, 2007
SRI and Telik Announce Exclusive License for SRI to Develop MCP-1 Antagonist for Autoimmune and Inflammatory Diseases
Telik, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering, developing, and commercializing novel small molecule drug candidates, and SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development organization, announced that they have signed an exclusive license agreement...

Tuesday Jan 30, 2007
Lexicon Genetics to Become Lexicon Pharmaceuticals; Plans to File IND for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Lexicon Genetics Incorporated, an emerging biopharmaceutical company employing its proprietary gene knockout technology to discover knockout-validated drug targets, announced that it is it is changing its name to Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc, to reflect the company's focus on operations on drug discovery and development.

Monday Jan 22, 2007
Glenmark's Lead Drug Candidate for pain, GRC 6211, Enters Phase I in Europe; Osteoarthritis a Target
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA, the wholly owned Swiss subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd (MUMBAI, India), a research-led, global, fully integrated pharmaceutical company, has applied for phase I clinical trials in Europe for GRC 6211...

Friday Jan 19, 2007
Anesiva's Phase II and Phase III Pivotal Clinical Studies of 4975, a Long-Acting Pain Candidate, to Start in 2007 for Osteoarthritis and Postsurgical Pain (Total Knee Arthroplasty)
Anesiva, Inc. (SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, California), a publicly-held, late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutic treatments for pain management, announced the planned phase II/III clinical trial program for the development of 4975, a long-acting, nonopioid, capsaicin-based agonist of TRPV1 (transient receptor potential vanilloid 1; formerly known as vanilloid receptor 1 or VR1), a ligand-gated ion channel activated by agonists such as capsaicin and other factors (eg, heat and acidosis), for the acute treatment of severe pain including osteoarthritis (OA) and postsurgical pain...

Monday Jan 08, 2007
MedImmune In-Licenses from Japan Tobacco anti-ICOS Monoclonal Antibody for Inflammatory Diseases
MedImmune, Inc announced an exclusive license agreement with Japan Tobacco, Inc (JT), for a human monoclonal antibody inhibiting inducible costimulator (ICOS), a protein associated with T-cell activation that plays a key role in controlling adaptive immune responses.

Wednesday Jan 03, 2007
Shire Receives Label Agreement in Europe for Ulcerative Colitis Treatment, Mezavant (mesalazine)
Shire plc, the third largest pharmaceutical company in the UK, announced that core labeling information, part of Shire's Marketing Authorization Application for the ulcerative colitis (UC) treatment Mezavantâ„¢ (mesalazine, once-daily, high-dose 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) in a delayed and extended release formulation), has been agreed by the regulatory agencies for the 15 European countries (including Germany, France, Spain, and the United Kingdom) participating in the decentralized procedure.

Friday Dec 22, 2006
New Studies Suggest That Autoantibodies Damage Brain, Cause Cognitive Impairment in SLE Patients
The cognition and mood disturbances common in lupus patients might be due in part to autoantibodies that target the NMDA receptor and cause progressive damage of the amygdala and hippocampus...

Thursday Dec 21, 2006
ZymoGenetics and Serono Begin Phase II Clinical Trial with Atacicept (TACI-Ig) in RA
ZymoGenetics, Inc and Serono announced the start of a phase II clinical trial of their investigational therapeutic atacicept (formerly TACI-Ig) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter, dose-finding study will investigate the efficacy of atacicept in patients with an inadequate disease response to prior treatment with TNF inhibitors.

Tuesday Dec 19, 2006
FDA Warns of Fatal PML Risk With Rituximab Treatment
FDA reports deaths of two lupus patients treated with rituximab, warns of PML risk...

Thursday Dec 07, 2006
High-Dose Immune Suppression With or Without Stem Cell Transplants For Systemic Sclerosis
Studies are evaluating stem cell transplantation as a potential treatment for autoimmune disease, however, researchers sharply disagree regarding myeloablative vs nonmyeloablative approaches and whether stem cells are really necessary...

Monday Dec 04, 2006
Hollis-Eden's Steroid Hormone Preclinical Drug Candidate HE3286 Gains Positive Data in Model of RA
Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals, Inc, developing a proprietary new class of small molecule compounds that are metabolites or synthetic analogs of adrenal steroid hormones, announced data on an experimental drug candidate, HE3286, an orally active, second-generation, synthetic steroid hormone currently in preclinical study for the treatment of autoimmune diseases and inflammatory disorders.

Wednesday Nov 29, 2006
Source MDx Awarded SBIR Phase I Grant; Will Collaborate with Tufts-New England Medical Center to Develop Biomarkers to Predict Responders and Nonresponders to Anti-TNF Therapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Source MDx, a molecular diagnostics company, and Tufts-New England Medical Center (NEMC) announced a collaboration to investigate the clinical use of RNA-based molecular diagnostic tests to monitor rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease status and response to therapy.

Wednesday Nov 29, 2006
Millennium Begins Phase II Study of CCR1 Antagonist in Rheumatoid Arthritis 
Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc announced the initiation of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter phase II study of MLN3897, an orally active, small-molecule antagonist of the chemokine receptor CCR1, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). 

Wednesday Nov 22, 2006
Smoking, Anti-CCP, Shared Epitope Have Complex Relationship in North American RA Patients
Smoking increases the risk of anti-CCP but has no clear interaction with shared epitope in North American RA patients... Irigoyen P. Presented at ACR 2006 Meeting.

Tuesday Nov 14, 2006
Successful Anti-TNF Treatment Restores Regulatory T-Cell Function in RA
TNF inhibitor treatment can restore some of the lost T regulatory (suppressor) cell functioning in patients with RA, which might contribute to suppression of disease flares... Valencia X, et al. Presented at: ACR 2006 Meeting.

Monday Nov 13, 2006
Beyond HLA: Genetic Studies Find Markers Associated With Elevated Risk for RA

HLA DR4 is only one of the genetic factors involved in RA, and new genomics techniques are beginning to fill in the rest of the picture... Gregersen PK. Presented at ACR 2006 Meeting.

Wednesday Nov 08, 2006
CombinatoRx Syncretic Drug Candidate CRx-102 Achieves Phase II Trial Endpoints in Rheumatoid Arthritis
CombinatoRx, Incorporated announced positive preliminary results of its phase II clinical trial of CRx-102, an oral synergistic combination drug candidate containing the generic cardiovascular agent dipyridamole and an unconventionally low dose (3mg, below the effective human dose) of the generic steroid prednisolone, in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Tuesday Nov 07, 2006
Ablynx, Wyeth Sign Exclusive Research and License Agreement for Nanobodies® Directed at TNF-α and Its Receptors
Ablynx, a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of a novel class of therapeutic proteins based on single-domain antibody fragments (Nanobodies®) announced that they have entered into a research collaboration and exclusive worldwide license agreement with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals (a division of Wyeth) to discover, develop, and commercialize Nanobodies directed at TNF-α and its receptors, targeting diseases in multiple therapeutic areas.

Monday Nov 06, 2006
Array BioPharma Reports Success in Two Approaches to Inflammatory Disease: MEK Inhibitor Achieves Phase I Clinical Objectives; p38 MAP Kinase Inhibitor Advances into Clinical Development
Array BioPharma Inc. (BOULDER, Colorado), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development, and commercialization of orally active, small molecule drugs for the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer, announced preliminary results from a phase I clinical trial evaluating its first-in-class MEK (MAPK kinase) inhibitor for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

Thursday Oct 26, 2006
New Study Casts Doubt on Metabolic Dysfunction in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
A new study comparing response to exercise in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and fibromyalgia (FM) finds exercise more difficult in CFS/FM patients than in those with CFS alone, but casts doubt on metabolic explanations for CFS…Cook DB, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:3351–3362.

Thursday Oct 19, 2006
Lexicon Genetics Initiates Formal Preclinical Development for LX2931 for Autoimmune Disease
Lexicon Genetics Incorporated, an emerging biopharmaceutical company employing its proprietary gene knockout technology to discover knockout-validated drug targets, announced that it is initiating formal preclinical development for LX2931 in preparation for an Investigational New Drug (IND) application.

Wednesday Oct 18, 2006
Rigel Selects a Novel JAK3 Inhibitor for Advanced Preclinical Development for Immune-Mediated Diseases
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage drug development company focused on small-molecule drugs for the treatment of inflammatory/autoimmune diseases, cancer, and viral diseases, announced that it has selected R348, a potent and selective inhibitor of janus tyrosine kinase 3 (JAK3), to enter preclinical studies to support an investigational new drug application planned for 2007...

Tuesday Oct 10, 2006
ASBMR Convenes International Task Force on Jaw Osteonecrosis, Issues Interim Guidelines for Osteoporosis Patients
Reacting to multiple reports of jaw osteonecrosis in patients treated with bisphosphonates, the ASBMR has convened an international task force to address this "emerging and urgent clinical problem" and has issued interim clinical recommendations... Shane E, et al. JBMR. 2006;21:1503-1505.

Friday Sep 29, 2006
Amgen to Acquire Avidia Including Its Phase I Clinical Stage Interleukin-6 Inhibitor and Novel Avimer Protein Platform
Amgen announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Amgen has agreed to acquire Avidia, a privately held biopharmaceutical company located in Mountain View, Calif., that discovers and develops a new class of human therapeutic known as Avimerâ„¢ (from avidity multimers) proteins.

Friday Sep 29, 2006
US Docs Question RCT of Meniscus Repair Arrow, Norwegians Persevere
Rigid, bioabsorbable internal tacks have become popular for repairing meniscus tears, but problems identified with longer follow-up are leading many US orthopedists to shift to suture-based approaches. The arrow will be compared with a newer suture-based system in a Norwegian randomized clinical trial... Gifstad T, et al. Am J Sports Med. 2006;14 September 2006 [Epub ahead of print].

Thursday Sep 21, 2006
Avidia Initiates Clinical Trial of Avimerâ„¢ C326, an Inhibitor of Interleukin-6, for Crohn's Disease
vidia, Inc., a privately-held biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing a new class of small, assembled human therapeutic proteins called Avimersâ„¢ (from avidity multimers), announced that it has initiated dosing of the first patient for a phase I clinical trial of its Avimer drug candidate C326, an inhibitor of interleukin-6 (IL-6), for the treatment of Crohn's disease.

Tuesday Sep 19, 2006
TNF Inhibitors Do Not Increase Cancer Risk More Than MTX in RA Patients
A study of 1152 RA patients who used biologics and 7306 treated with methotrexate concludes that the risk of cancer is about the same in both groups, once RA disease severity is considered. Setoguchi S, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:2757-2764.

Tuesday Sep 19, 2006
Predix (now known as EPIX) Signs Exclusive Collaboration and License Agreement with Amgen, Potentially Worth Over $307.5 Million, for the Development of S1P1 Modulators for Treatment of Autoimmune Diseases; Predix Completes Merger with EPIX
Predix Pharmaceuticals Holdings, Inc. announced an exclusive collaboration and licensing deal with Amgen to develop Predix's existing preclinical and new, orally available S1P1 modulators for autoimmune diseases.

Monday Sep 18, 2006
Novartis' Once-Yearly Reclast Investigational Infusion Osteoporosis Treatment Significantly Cuts Risk of Spine and Hip Fractures in Postmenopausal Women
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation announced that phase III data presented at the 28th Annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR), September 15–19, 2006, in Philadelphia, Pa, demonstrated that its investigational, once-yearly bisphosphonate 15-minute infusion treatment, Reclast® (zoledronic acid) 5 mg, was highly effective at reducing the incidence of bone fracture in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis across the most common fracture sites—hip, spine, and nonspine (with the exception of face, fingers, and toes)—with sustained effect over 3 years.

Thursday Sep 14, 2006
Gout Is an Independent Risk Factor for Acute MI
New data show that gout, the most common inflammatory arthritis in the US population, is the third highest risk factor for acute MI after smoking and family history... Krishnan E, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:2688-2696.

Thursday Sep 14, 2006
Anthera Licenses Portfolio of Anti-Inflammatory Products from Lilly and Shionogi; Raises $36 Million in Venture Financing
Anthera Pharmaceuticals, a privately-held biopharmaceutical company developing drugs for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, announced that it has entered into a license agreement with Eli Lilly and Company and Shionogi & Co., Ltd., under which Anthera has obtained worldwide (except for Japan) development and commercialization rights to an entire platform of clinical and preclinical inhibitors of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) developed by Lilly and Shionogi as part of their collaboration.

Wednesday Sep 13, 2006
Can-Fite BioPharma to Develop Its A3 Adenosine Receptor Agonist (CF101) for Psoriasis
Can-Fite BioPharma, a clinical-stage drug development company focused on a portfolio of orally bioavailable, highly selective, small-molecule A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR) agonists with potent activities in inflammation and cancer, announced the intent to initiate a phase II clinical trial in psoriasis for its lead drug candidate, CF101.

Thursday Sep 07, 2006
Rigel Starts Phase II Study of its Oral Kinase Inhibitor, R788, in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc, announced that it has initiated enrollment and dosing of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a phase II study evaluating the efficacy and safety of its lead product candidate, R788, an oral syk kinase inhibitor that blocks the activation of the mast cells, macrophages, and B-cells that promote swelling and an inflammatory response. This multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, ascending dose, dose ranging study will evaluate up to three doses of R788...

Wednesday Sep 06, 2006
Logical Therapeutics Launches Operations With Seed Capital and In-Licenses Novel Anti-Inflammatory Drug From Medinox
Logical Therapeutics, Inc., an early-stage biotechnology company developing novel therapeutic agents to treat medical conditions caused by poorly controlled or excessive inflammatory responses, announced that it has completed a Seed round of financing in partnership with PA Early Stage Partners...

Tuesday Sep 05, 2006
Medarex and GenPat77 to Codevelop Humanized Therapeutic Antibodies Against Immune Modulatory Targets
Medarex, Inc. and GenPat77 Pharmacogenetics AG have entered into a collaborative agreement to develop fully human therapeutic antibody products...

Monday Aug 28, 2006
GlaxoSmithKline and ChemoCentryx Establish Worldwide Strategic Alliance to Develop Therapies for Inflammatory and Autoimmune Diseases; ChemoCentryx May Pocket More Than $1.5 Billion, Raises $17.7 Million in Series C Financing
GlaxoSmithKline and ChemoCentryx, Inc., a company focused on orally-administered, small-molecule therapeutics that target the chemokine and chemoattractant receptor systems, announced a worldwide multitarget strategic alliance to discover, develop, and market novel medicines targeting four chemokine and chemoattractant receptors for the treatment of a variety of inflammatory disorders, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), multiple sclerosis (MS), acute macular degeneration, and asthma...

Thursday Aug 17, 2006
Superagonist Trial Hit By Cytokine Storm
The six patients who nearly died in a phase I trial of an experimental anti-CD28 monoclonal antibody being developed as a rheumatoid arthritis treatment were injured by "cytokine storms" triggered by the new drug, and the head of the intensive care unit where their lives were saved thinks this demonstrates that a new approach to testing biologic agents is needed....Suntharalingam G, et al. N Engl J Med. 2006; August 14; [Epub ahead of print].

Wednesday Aug 16, 2006
Biogen Idec and University of Adelaide Find TWEAK Is a Novel Arthritogenic Mediator; Potential New Pathway in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis Disease Process
Biogen Idec announced studies published in the August 15, 2006, issue of the providing evidence that TWEAK (TNF-like weak inducer of apoptosis), a TNF family member, is a novel arthritogenic mediator that contributes to joint tissue inflammation, angiogenesis, and destruction, and may inhibit endogenous repair.

Monday Aug 14, 2006
TissueGene Initiates Phase I Study of TissueGene-C in Patients With Degenerative Joint Disease of the Knee Prior to Total Knee Arthroplasty
TissueGene, Inc. announced the initiation of a phase I clinical trial of the company's cell-mediated therapy, TissueGene-C (TG-C).

Thursday Aug 10, 2006
More RA Patients May Need Lipid-Lowering Treatment
Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death for rheumatoid arthritis patients, and many may be candidates for lipid-lowering therapies. Soubrier M, et al. J Rheumatol. 2006 July 15 [Epub ahead of print]

Monday Jul 31, 2006
Expert Scientific Group Proposes Recommendations to Improve Safety of First-In-Man Clinical Trials Following TeGenero's TGN 1412 Drug Trial
The Expert Scientific Group on phase I clinical trials, an independent committee established by the UK Secretary of State for Health to examine the safety and design of first-in-man clinical studies involving biologic molecules with novel mechanisms of action, new investigational agents with a highly species-specific action, and new drugs directed toward immune system targets, has published its interim report for public comment.

Friday Jul 28, 2006
Serono Initiates First Large-Scale European Pharmaco-Epidemiologic Study to Gather Additional Safety Data on RaptivaR in Psoriasis
Serono announced that it has initiated a prospective 7-year cohort, multi-national, multicenter study in more than 7000 adult patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis who have been treated with RaptivaR (efalizumab).

Thursday Jul 27, 2006
FDA Approves 13 Generic Versions of Mobic
FDA approves 13 meloxicam formulations for the treatment of osteoarthritis

Thursday Jul 20, 2006
Actelion's Orally Active Selective S1P1 Receptor Agonist to be Jointly Developed/Promoted with Roche in Autoimmune Disorders and Transplantation; Deal Potentially Worth Well Over US$630 Million to Actelion
Actelion Ltd and Roche have announced that they have entered into an exclusive worldwide collaboration to jointly develop and commercialize Actelion's selective S1P1 receptor agonist, an immunomodulator with the potential for once-a-day oral dosing.  testing.

Thursday Jul 20, 2006
Bioengineered Cartilage Successfully Transplanted in Osteoarthritic Knees
Cells taken from areas of healthy cartilage can be grown on hyaluronic acid scaffolds and used to patch damaged knees, even joints that have already progressed to osteoarthritis....Hollander AP,  et al. Tissue Engineering 2006;12:1-12.

Wednesday Jul 19, 2006
TeGenero Files for Insolvency as Investors Evaporate Following Disastrous First-In-Man Phase I Trial of Superagonistic Anti-CD28 Antibody for Autoimmune Diseases and Leukemia  
TeGenero AG has filed for the commencement of insolvency proceedings at the competent local court/insolvency court because the serious adverse reactions caused by the investigational agent TGN1412 in the March 2006, first-in-man, phase I trial made it impossible to attract the investment necessary for the company to continue operations.

Wednesday Jul 19, 2006
ZymoGenetics and Serono Obtain Positive Results from TACI-Ig Phase Ib Trial in RA
ZymoGenetics, Inc, and Serono announced results from an exploratory dose-escalating, single- and repeat-dose phase Ib clinical trial with TACI-Ig (atacicept) in 73 adult patients with active, moderate-to-severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Monday Jul 17, 2006
LTKfarma Starts Operations With Lead Product for Autoimmune Diseases and Leukemia Already in Phase I/II, Names Advisory Board
LTKfarma, a biopharmaceutical company founded in March 2006 and focused on developing and marketing cell therapy products derived from modified T-cells to treat autoimmune diseases and leukemia announced its creation and the appointment of its advisory board....

Tuesday Jun 27, 2006
Bosentan Prevents Digital Ulcers, Improves Heart Function in Systemic Sclerosis
Bosentan reduces digital ulcer risk and improves heart function in systemic sclerosis patients... Allanore Y, et al. Presented at: EULAR 2006 Meeting; June 21–34, 2006; Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Abstract OP0120.

Saturday Jun 24, 2006
Doctors Urged to Recognize Toll RA Takes on Patient's Sex Life
Health practitioners should be willing to provide information about sexual aids and positions that will allow patients with rheumatoid arthritis to continue to enjoy a healthy sex life without risking joint pain or damage... Helland Y, et al. EULAR 2006 Meeting; June 21–24, 2006; Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Abstract OP0134.

Wednesday Jun 21, 2006
Thalidomide, IL-6 Inhibitors Seen As Possible Treatments in JIA
Thalidomide, IL-6 receptor inhibitors, and genomics were highlights of the overview of JIA presented by Patricia Woo, MD, at the 2006 EULAR Meeting...

Tuesday Jun 20, 2006
VLST Raises $55 Million in Series B Financing to Develop Treatments for Autoimmune and Inflammatory Disorders
VLST Corporation, of Seattle, Washington, announced that it has raised $55 million in Series B financing...

Friday Jun 09, 2006
Cytopia Signs Exclusive License and Collaboration Agreement With Novartis for JAK3 Kinase Inhibitors in Autoimmune Diseases and Transplant Rejection
Cytopia Ltd announced the execution of a worldwide license and R&D collaboration agreement with Novartis to develop orally active, small-molecule therapeutics targeting JAK3 kinase...

Thursday Jun 01, 2006
Devil's Claw, White Willow Bark As Good As Vioxx for Low Back Pain?
A new Cochrane systematic review of published clinical trials finds that some herbal preparations significantly relieve pain and reduce the need for rescue medications in patients with acute exacerbations of chronic low-back pain... Gagnier JJ, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2006;(2)CD004504.

Wednesday May 31, 2006
Synta Initiates Phase II Clinical Trials in RA, CVID for Oral Inhibitor of IL-12 and IL-23
Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp announced the dosing of the first patients in its phase IIa clinical studies of apilimod mesylate in RA and CVID...

Wednesday May 24, 2006
MacroGenics Raises $45M in Series C Financing to Support Phase II/III Trial of CD3 Monoclonal Diabetes Treatment 
MacroGenics, Inc, of Rockville, Maryland, announced that it has raised $45 million in a Series C financing round...

Wednesday May 17, 2006
Immunomedics and UCB Announce Collaboration and License Agreement for Epratuzumab for Autoimmune Diseases
Immunomedics, Inc, and UCB announced a development collaboration and license agreement for Immunomedics' lead product, epratuzumab...

Wednesday May 17, 2006
Avidia Raises $43.8 Million in Series C Financing to Advance Its Lead Avimerâ„¢ Drugs for Inflammation and Autoimmune Diseases
Avidia, Inc, announced that it has raised $43.8 million in a Series C financing round...

Wednesday May 17, 2006
Lupus Worsens Atherosclerosis, Changes Plaques
Preclinical work in atherosclerosis-prone mice shows that adding a lupus-susceptible immune system greatly accelerates and worsens atherogenesis, which might help explain the accelerated atherosclerosis seen in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus... Stanic AK, et al. PNAS.

Thursday May 11, 2006
"Fossil Virus" Footprints Found in RA

Human endogenous K10 retroviruses, the residue of infections from generations past, are significantly more active in rheumatoid arthritis patients than in osteoarthritis patients or normal controls and might contribute to the development of autoimmune disease... Ejtehadi HD, et al. Ann Rheum Dis. 2006;65:612-616.

Thursday May 11, 2006
Adding Zoledronic Acid Improves MTX Efficacy in Early RA
Zoledronic acid added to standard methotrexate treatment reduced the progression of MRI hand and wrist erosions by 61% in patients with early RA, apparently by inhibiting osteoclast activity... Jarrett AJ, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:1410-1414.

Monday May 08, 2006
Additional Neuropathies Linked to TNF Inhibitors

Guillain-Barré syndrome, demyelinating and axonal neuropathies, and a central nervous system syndrome have been reported recently in patients treated with TNF inhibitors... Shin I-SJ, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:1429-1434; Jarand J, et al. J Rheumatol. 2006;33:1018-1020.

Monday May 08, 2006
Array BioPharma Initiates Phase I Clinical Trial of Its MEK Inhibitor for Inflammatory Disease
Array BioPharma Inc, of Boulder, Colorado, announced the initiation of a phase I clinical trial in the US for its proprietary small-molecule novel MEK inhibitor, ARRY-438162, for the treatment of inflammatory disease...

Tuesday Apr 18, 2006
Reata Obtains Exclusive Worldwide Rights to Tricyclic-Bis-Enones, a New Class of Anti-Inflammatory Compounds
Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc, of Dallas, Texas, has been granted exclusive worldwide rights to a novel class of anti-inflammatory compounds, tricyclic-bis-enones (TBEs)...

Monday Apr 17, 2006
Subcutaneous Infliximab Shows Promise in Treating RA
An experimental subcutaneous and intramuscular formulation of the tumor necrosis factor-alpha inhibitor infliximab is well tolerated and associated with a favorable American College of Rheumatology (ACR) response…Westhovens R, et al. J Rheumatol. 2006;33:5. First release April 1, 2006.

Monday Apr 17, 2006
MedImmune Begins Phase I Clinical Trial of a Fully Human Monoclonal Antibody Targeting Interferon-Alpha in Lupus Patients
MedImmune, Inc, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, and Medarex, Inc, of Princeton, New Jersey, announced that patient dosing has begun in a phase I clinical trial to evaluate the safety and tolerability of MEDI-545  (formerly MDX-1103) in patients diagnosed with mild systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)...

Tuesday Apr 04, 2006
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc, Raises $65 Million to Support Continued Clinical Development of Human Alpha-fetoprotein in RA and Psoriasis
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, announced that it has raised $65 million in a Series E private equity financing to advance the company's lead product, MM-093, a recombinant version of human alpha-fetoprotein (hAFP)...

Monday Mar 27, 2006
EntreMed's 2ME2 Continues to Yield Positive Data in Preclinical Models of RA, Further Supporting the Potential for 2ME2 as a DMARD
EntreMed, Inc, of Rockville, Maryland, announced at the Inflammation and Immune Diseases Drug Discovery and Development Summit held this month in New Brunswick, New Jersey, that daily oral administration (100 mg/kg) of its lead compound, 2-methoxyestradiol (2ME2)...

Thursday Mar 23, 2006
Biomarkers May Identify Early Implant Failure or Loosening
New research is helping to identify early biomarkers of prosthetic performance as well as genetic polymorphisms that predict risk of osteolysis... Presented at: 52nd Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society; March 18–22, 2006; Chicago, Ill.

Monday Mar 20, 2006
Trial Halted of TeGenero's Study Drug TGN1412 (CD28-SuperMAB®) for Autoimmune Diseases and Leukemia; Six Hospitalized Following Serious Adverse Reactions 
TeGenero AG, of Würzburg, Germany, announced that six subjects participating in a clinical trial evaluating the safety of its study drug TGN1412...

Thursday Mar 09, 2006
RA Patients Have Increased Risk of Preclinical Atherosclerosis
Rheumatoid arthritis patients have an increased prevalence of preclinical atherosclerosis independent of traditional risk factors... Roman MJ, et al. Ann Intern Med. 2006;144:249-256.

Thursday Mar 02, 2006
Denosumab Shows Promise in Phase II Study of Bone Mineral Density
Twice yearly injections of denosumab (previously known as AMG 162) significantly increased bone mineral density in the total hip, lumbar spine, distal 1/3 radius, and total body of postmenopausal women compared with placebo... McClung MR, et al. N Engl J Med. 2006;354:821-831.

Thursday Feb 23, 2006
EntreMed Receives New Patent for 2-Methoxyestradiol (2ME2, or Panzem®) Analogs for Inflammatory Diseases
EntreMed, Inc, of Rockville, Maryland, announced the issuance of US Patent No. 6,995,278, covering compositions and methods for treating mammalian diseases characterized by undesirable angiogenesis, by administering derivatives of 2-methoxyestradiol...

Thursday Feb 16, 2006
Infliximab Effective Treatment for Refractory Childhood Uveitis
Tumor necrosis factor-alpha inhibition is effective for treatment of childhood uveitis refractory to standard immunosuppressive therapy... Saurenmann RK, et al. Rheumatology Advance Access. February 3, 2006.doi:10.1093/rheumatology/ke1030.

Monday Feb 13, 2006
Inflabloc Pharmaceuticals Closes $6 Million in Series C Financing and Announces Merger With MantiCore Pharmaceuticals
Inflabloc Pharmaceuticals, Inc, of Salt Lake City, Utah, has announced the closing of $6 million in Series C financing, co-led by Friedli Corporate Finance...

Monday Feb 06, 2006
NovImmune Files IND Application in Netherlands for Fully Human Antibody Against CD3 for Autoimmune Disease
Medarex, Inc, of Princeton, NJ, has announced the filing of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application in the Netherlands by its licensing partner, NovImmune SA of Geneva, Switzerland, for NI-0401...

Wednesday Feb 01, 2006
Stem Cell Transplantation Shows Promise in Treatment-Resistant Lupus
Autologous nonmyeloablative hematopoietic stem cell transplantation ameliorates disease activity, improves serologic markers, and stabilizes or reverses organ dysfunction in about half of patients with treatment-refractory systemic lupus erythematosus... Burt RK, et al. JAMA. 2006;295:527-535.

Monday Jan 30, 2006
Can-Fite BioPharma Submits Clinical Protocol to FDA for Multinational Phase IIb Study of A₃ Adenosine Receptor Agonist for RA
Can-Fite BioPharma, of Petach Tikva, Israel, announced that it has submitted a draft protocol to the US Food and Drug Administration...

Monday Jan 30, 2006
PharmaFrontiers Obtains Exclusive License to T-Cell Vaccine for RA
PharmaFrontiers Corp, of The Woodlands, Texas, announced that it has acquired an exclusive worldwide license...

Monday Jan 23, 2006
BMS Initiates Phase I Trials for Pharmacopeia's p38 Kinase Inhibitor Targeting RA
Pharmacopeia, of Princeton, NJ, announced that its marketing partner Bristol-Myers Squibb will commence phase I clinical trials...

Thursday Jan 19, 2006
Biomarkers Help Predict OA Patients at Greatest Risk of Progression
A single measurement of serum hyaluronic acid or short-term changes in urine C-telopeptide of type II collagen can identify osteoarthritis patients at the greatest risk of disease progression... Bruyere O, et al. Ann Rheum Dis. Published online January 5, 2006; doi:10.1136/ard.2005.045914.

Wednesday Jan 11, 2006
Repligen and University of Michigan File Infringement Complaint Against BMS Over Orencia®
Repligen Corporation of Waltham, Massachusetts, announced that Repligen and the University of Michigan (UM) have filed a joint complaint against Bristol-Myers Squibb Corporation (BMS) for infringement of a US patent...

Thursday Dec 22, 2005
TolerRX Initiates Phase Ib Trials of Novel Antibody Therapies for Psoriasis and Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus
TolerRX, Inc, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, announced the initiation of a phase Ib study of the monoclonal antibody TRX4 in patients with moderate-to-severe...

Monday Dec 05, 2005
Roche and BioCryst Collaborate on Phase I Compound for Autoimmune Diseases and Transplant Rejection
Roche Pharmaceuticals of Nutley, New Jersey, and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc, of Birmingham, Alabama, have announced...

Friday Dec 02, 2005
New Gout Drug PEG-Uricase May Benefit Severe, Refractory Patients
A new study has found that multiple doses of PEG-uricase, a novel polyethylene glycol conjugate of porcine uricase (urate oxidase), has shown substantial and sustained reductions in plasma urate levels in patients with severe, refractory gout... Presented at: Annual Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology; November 12–17, 2005; San Diego, Calif. Abstract 1836.

Wednesday Nov 30, 2005
Pfizer to Pay Up to $803 Million for Incyte CCR2 Antagonists for Chronic Inflammation
Pfizer Inc and Incyte Corporation have entered into a global collaborative research and license agreement...

Monday Nov 21, 2005
Rigel's Phase I Study Demonstrates Safety and Bioavailability of New Oral DMARD
Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc, of South San Francisco, California, presented phase I data for its syk kinase inhibitor R406...

Monday Nov 21, 2005
New Analysis Supports La Jolla Pharmaceutical's Riquent® for Lupus Renal Disease; Company Reports on Experimental Anti-inflammatory Agent
La Jolla Pharmaceutical Co of San Diego, California, announced that new analyses of existing clinical trial data provide support for Riquent® (abetimus sodium)...

Wednesday Nov 16, 2005
Amgen's Denosumab Effective in Increasing Bone Mineral Density in Postmenopausal Patients
Amgen has announced that twice-yearly subcutaneous injections of 60 mg denosumab increased bone mineral density (BMD) of the lumbar spine by 7.4% and of the total hip by 5.1% compared with 6.2% and 3.4%, respectively, for alendronate (Fosamax®) 70 mg/week over a 24-month period.

Wednesday Nov 16, 2005
Chromos to Acquire Target Molecules Corporation and Its Anti-VLA-2 Product Candidate for Inflammatory Diseases; Complete a $6–10 Million Private Placement
Chromos Molecular Systems Inc of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, has announced that it will acquire Target Molecules Corporation of San Diego, California, a privately held biotechnology company with two preclinical stage antibody product candidates, including TMC-2003

Tuesday Nov 15, 2005
Thalidomide Shows Promise in Refractory Systemic Onset Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
Thalidomide improves systemic clinical features, lab parameters, and joint symptoms in most patients with refractory systemic onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis (So-JIA), but caution is urged due to possible neurologic side effects... Badot V, et al. Presented at: 69^th Annual Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology; November 12–17, 2005; San Diego, Calif.

Friday Nov 04, 2005
Study Provides Additional Clues to the Causes of Systemic Sclerosis and the Potential Efficacy of Paclitaxel
New research in a murine model points to the ability of low-dose paclitaxel (Taxol®) to modulate transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß) and lessen fibrosis in systemic sclerosis patients, findings that also provide additional clues to the pathogenesis of the disease... Liu X, et al. PloS Med. 2005;2:e354

Tuesday Nov 01, 2005
CAT and Abbott Resolve Royalty Dispute Regarding Humira®
Cambridge Antibody Technology Group PLC (CAT), a British biotechnology company headquartered in Cambridge, England, and Illinois-based Abbott Laboratories have reached an agreement...

Tuesday Nov 01, 2005
NSAIDs Plus Aspirin Increase Risk of Gastrointestinal Complications
Patients who combine ibuprofen and naproxen with aspirin are two to three times more likely to suffer gastrointestinal complications than patients who do not combine these common over-the-counter medications...Biskupiak J, et al. Presented at: American College of Gastroenterology 70th Annual Scientific Meeting; November 2, 2005; Honolulu, Hawaii.

Thursday Oct 20, 2005
Novel Hereditary Cartilage Debonding Syndrome Identified
Researchers have identified a new cartilage friability and osteochondral debonding syndrome that may provide insight into cartilage-bone interaction in other forms of joint degeneration ... Holderbaum D, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2005;52:3300-3304.

Tuesday Oct 18, 2005
MedImmune Completes Acquisition of Cellective and Its CD19-Directed Monoclonal Antibody; Files IND with Medarex for Lupus
MedImmune, Inc, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, announced that it has completed its acquisition of Cellective Therapeutics, Inc...

Monday Oct 17, 2005
Autoimmune Disease May Contribute to Increase in Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Particularly Among Women
Providing further insight into the dramatic rise in the incidence of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) over the last 20 years, a new study suggests that autoimmune diseases, as well as the potent immunosuppressive drugs commonly used for their treatment, may partly account for the increase in NHL, especially among women... Cuttner J, et al. J Rheumatol. 2005;32:1884-1887.

Monday Oct 03, 2005
Cytori Therapeutics Reports Differentiation of Adipose-Derived Adult Stem Cells to Spinal Disc
Cytori Therapeutics, Inc, along with its collaborators, released data demonstrating that human adipose-derived adult stem cells have the potential to differentiate into cells with the phenotypic traits and DNA expression markers of mature nucleus pulposus cells...

Tuesday Sep 27, 2005
Cellerant Therapeutics Closes Series B Financing with $25 Million
Cellerant Therapeutics, Inc, of San Carlos, California, a developer of treatments for autoimmune diseases, genetic blood disorders, and neutropenia, has announced...

Tuesday Sep 27, 2005
Researchers Report Promising Findings on Biomarkers for Postmenopausal Osteoporosis and OA
New research has uncovered biomarkers that serve as both diagnostic "fingerprints" for the risk of postmenopausal osteoporosis and predictors for osteoarthritis (OA) progression... Presented at: 27th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research; September 23-27, 2005; Nashville, Tennessee.

Tuesday Sep 20, 2005
MedImmune to Acquire Privately Held Cellective Therapeutics
MedImmune Inc of Gaithersburg, Maryland, has announced its intent to acquire privately held Cellective Therapeutics, Inc, a 5-person early-stage biopharmaceutical company...

Monday Aug 29, 2005
Short-Term Acupuncture Found to Relieve the Pain, Fatigue, and Anxiety of Fibromyalgia
Following the results of a study indicating that acupuncture has no effect on fibromyalgia (FM), new research suggests that short-term acupuncture does improve symptoms of pain, fatigue, and anxiety in FM patients. Presented at the 11th World Congress of the International Association for the Study of Pain in Sydney, Australia...

Monday Aug 29, 2005
Entremed's 2ME2 Generates More Positive Preclinical Data in Arthritis Models
EntreMed, Inc, of Rockville, Maryland, a clinical-stage company developing treatments for cancer and inflammatory diseases...

Tuesday Aug 09, 2005
Neuropsychiatric Syndromes in SLE Patients Are Complex and Underdiagnosed
Though neuropsychiatric (NP) syndromes, regardless of etiology, are common among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a new study suggests that lupus patients with a history of NP syndromes report more severe anxiety and depression as well as cognitive dysfunction, pointing to the need for earlier diagnosis of these nonspecific symptoms...J Rheumatol. 2005;32:1459-1466.

Sunday Aug 07, 2005
Biogen Idec and PDL to Collaborate on Three Phase II Antibody Products
Biogen Idec of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Protein Design Labs, Inc (PDL) of Fremont, California...

Friday Aug 05, 2005
RA Patients With High BMI Have Lower Mortality
In a finding that runs contrary to the recognized relationship between increased weight and mortality, a new study has found that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with a high body mass index had a lower risk of death than their leaner counterparts... Escalante A, Haas RW, del Rincón I. Arch Intern Med. 2005;165:1624-1629.

Wednesday Jun 29, 2005
The Immune Response Corporation Identifies Reduced FOXP3 Levels in MS Patients
An ongoing clinical trial conducted by The Immune Response Corporation (IRC) of Carlsbad, California, and Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) in Portland has demonstrated that the investigational T-cell receptor (TCR) peptide vaccine NeuroVax^TM  significantly increases levels of FOXP3, a transcription factor necessary for regulatory T-cell (Treg cells) development.

Tuesday Jun 28, 2005
Botox Injections Improve Symptoms in Patients With Raynaud's Phenomenon
Injections of botulinum toxin type A may accelerate the rewarming process by inhibiting vasoconstriction in patients with secondary Raynaud's phenomenon... Presented at: Annual European Congress of Rheumatology of EULAR; June 8-11, 2005; Vienna, Austria.

Wednesday Jun 15, 2005
Apratastat, an Experimental Dual Acting Biologic Agent Shows Early Promise for RA
A novel, oral, small-molecule dual inhibitor of TNF-α-converting enzyme and matrix metalloproteinases has been shown in early trials to target two of the factors known to cause inflammation in RA... Fleischmann R, et al. Presented at: Annual European Congress of Rheumatology of EULAR; June 8-11, 2005; Vienna, Austria.

Friday Jun 03, 2005
Recombinant Version of Alpha-Fetoprotein May Hold Promise in RA and Other Autoimmune Diseases
As a Phase II trial begins, experts are cautiously optimistic that the experimental immunomodulating agent may be safer than existing RA treatments, and that the work may help explain why RA tends to remit during pregnancy...National Jewish Medical and Research Center [press release]; June 2, 2005.

Wednesday Jun 01, 2005
More Evidence for the 'FitzGerald Hypothesis' on the Relationship of Coxibs and Cardiovascular Disease Risk
Vascular remodeling may interact with a predisposition to hypertension and atherosclerosis, contributing to the gradual increase in cardiovascular risk during extended periods of treatment with COX-2 inhibitors...Rudic RD, et al. Circ Res. Published online May 19, 2005.

Tuesday May 17, 2005
Medarex's Fully Human Monoclonal Antibody Targeting IP-10 (CXCL10) Starts Phase I Trial
Medarex Inc, announced the initiation of a multicenter, single-dose, dose-escalation, 32-patient Phase I clinical trial for MDX-1100, a fully human monoclonal antibody targeting the chemokine IP-10 (CXCL10), for the treatment of ulcerative colitis.

Wednesday May 11, 2005
New Genetic Variant May Increase Risk of Inflammatory Disease
A recently identified polymorphism results in differential HLA molecule expression and is associated with susceptibility to common diseases with inflammatory components...Swanberg M, et al. Nat Genet. 2005;37:486-494.

Thursday May 05, 2005
Presence of Parallel Neural Pain Pathways May Assist in the Management of Fibromyalgia Patients
New research among patients with fibromyalgia shows evidence of parallel, independent neural processing pathways for sensory and affective pain, a finding that may lead to better diagnosis, selection of therapeutic agents, and efficacy for the chronic pain and concomitant depression that accompany the condition... Giesecke T, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2005;52:1577-1584.

Monday Apr 18, 2005
Herbal Supplements Carry Risk of Adverse Interaction with Arthritis Medications
High rates of polypharmacy and comorbidity may put rheumatology patients at particularly high risk for dangerous drug interactions involving unconventional medication...Holden W, et al. Ann Rheum Dis. 2005;64:790.

Tuesday Mar 08, 2005
Phase II Study of Recombinant Human Alpha-Fetoprotein Initiated in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis
Alpha-fetoprotein, which is produced by the fetus during pregnancy, is associated with remission of autoimmune diseases during the third trimester, when it reaches peak levels in maternal serum.

Sunday Mar 06, 2005
Oral Formulation of a Small Molecule Kinase Inhibitor in Phase I Study for Rheumatoid Arthritis
A Phase I clinical trial has been initiated to study the safety and pharmacokinetics of a novel candidate drug for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), R406, an orally administered small molecule syk kinase inhibitor that blocks both IgG and IgE activation of mast cells, macrophages, and B cells.

Friday Jan 21, 2005
The Promise and Peril of the Next Generation of COX-2 Inhibitors
CIAOMed continues its series on the impact of the withdrawal of rofecoxib (VioxxR) from the worldwide market. The first installment (CIAOMed.org; November 9, 2004) discussed possible mechanisms of the cardiovascular (CV) risk observed with rofecoxib, and whether they apply to other selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors. The second (CIAOMed.org; December 10, 2004) examined the impact of recent disclosures about COX-2s and CV risk on patient management. This third and final installment focuses on the clues to CV risk profiles of the second-generation COX-2 inhibitors and the role these newer drugs will play if they are approved for marketing in the US& Brune K, Hinz B. Scand J Rheumatol. 2004;33:1-6.

Thursday Jan 20, 2005
New Bone Imaging Technology May Give DEXA a Run for Its Money on Earth -- and in Space
New ultrasound bone imaging device, which measures bone strength and rate of bone loss as well as bone density, could become the standard for osteoporosis assessment... National Space Biomedical Research Institute, Houston, Texas.

Wednesday Jan 19, 2005
Next Generation of Antibody-Based Designer Biologics in Development
Trubion announces first Phase I study of small modular immunopharmaceutical SMIP technology in rheumatoid arthritis…

Friday Dec 10, 2004
Occupational Risk Factors for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus May Include Mercury Exposure and Pesticide Mixing
Epidemiologic study indicates that occupational mercury exposure and some dental and agricultural work are significantly associated with a greater risk for developing SLE and that previously suspected occupations may not present this risk...Cooper GS, et al. J Rheumatol. 2004;31:1928-1933.

Wednesday Nov 24, 2004
Gender Bias May Exist in the Recognition and Treatment of Osteoporosis in Men
Although men have higher vertebral fracture rates than women, they may not get screening and treatment for osteoporosis as often or as early... Sawka AM, et al. J Rheumatol. 2004;31:1993-1995.

Thursday Nov 18, 2004
Mexican Ancestry May Be Associated With Earlier Onset of Damage in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Hispanic patients with SLE who are living in Texas may be predisposed to a shorter time to initial damage, which is known to predispose to the accrual of further damage&Toloza SMA, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2004;3177-3186.

Monday Nov 15, 2004
New Approaches Show Promise in Refining Treatment and Assessment of SLE

Autologous stem cell transplant and rituximab show promise in refractory disease, and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate test may be more useful than CRP in showing disease activity... Alexander T et al. Presented at: Annual Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology; October 19, 2004; San Antonio, Tex.

Thursday Nov 04, 2004
TNF-α Blocker Etanercept Reduces Daytime Sleepiness in Patients with Sleep Apnea
Pilot trial is reportedly the first to demonstrate that neutralizing tumor necrosis factor-α activity is associated with a significant reduction of daytime somnolence in obese patients with sleep apnea... Vgontzas AN, et al. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2004;89:4409-4413

Monday Aug 30, 2004
Studies Point to Genetic Susceptibility for Knee Osteoarthritis
(Neame RL, et al. Ann Rheum Dis. 2004;63:1022-1027; Valdes AM, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2004;50:2497-2507.)

Friday Jun 11, 2004
Pain Management Remains a Key Component to Treatment of Inflammatory Conditions
Understanding the mechanisms involved in chronic pain and treating it as effectively as possible is a crucial component to the management of rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory disease...

Thursday Jun 10, 2004
Preliminary TARGET Data Show Less GI Risk with Lumiracoxib Compared to Conventional NSAIDs
Early findings of a study show that patients who receive lumiracoxib for arthritis symptoms are 50 percent less likely to experience adverse GI effects than those who are treated with conventional NSAIDs.

Wednesday Jun 09, 2004
Genome-wide Approaches Shed New Light on the Genetic Control of Arthritis
This session, on the opening day of EULAR 2004, revealed insight into the genetic control of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.