Alexion Pharmaceuticals (Cheshire) recorded a dramatic increase in total revenue to $45.6 million in Q1 2008 from $6.3 million for the same period in 2007. Results reflected increased demand for the company's Soliris® eculizumab. "Demand increased significantly in both the United States and Europe, as we educated more physicians, patients, and payors about PNH and the compelling data from Soliris clinical trials," said Leonard Bell, M.D., CEO of Alexion. The drug is used to treat the rare blood disease paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

Alexion has completed enrolling patients in its previously announced AEGIS study, a single registration study to evaluate the safety, efficacy, and pharmacology of Soliris as a treatment for Japanese patients. The patients will be treated with Soliris at clinical sites throughout Japan for 12 weeks.

Bayer HealthCare (Leverkusen, Germany/West Haven) unveiled plans to launch VistaTrak™, a contrast media management system that, the company says,  provides radiology departments with a new and powerful management tool to help enhance patient care and safety, optimize inventory management and improve billing accuracy. VistaTrak is a collaboration between Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and Mobile Aspects, which provides Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)-enabled solutions for healthcare and hospital environments. The system combines RFID technology of "tagged" bottles of contrast agent with a "smart" cabinet and a specially designed interface to capture, store, and manage product utilization data.

Boehringer Ingelheim (Ingelheim, Germany/Danbury) said that a trial has demonstrated that MICARDIS® (telmisartan), a second-generation angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB), is equally effective as the current standard, ramipril, in reducing the risk of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke and hospitalization for congestive heart failure in a broad cross-section of high-risk cardiovascular patients with normal blood pressure or controlled high blood pressure, and resulted in fewer discontinuations. Telmisartan is marketed in the United States by Boehringer Ingelheim as MICARDIS® tablets.  MICARDIS is indicated for the treatment of hypertension.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (New York/Wallingford) has selected a compound from its collaboration with Isis Pharmaceutical, Inc. as a development candidate. As a result, Isis will receive a $2 million milestone payment. The two companies have an ongoing collaboration to identify antisense drugs that target proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin 9 (PCSK9). The development candidate is an antisense inhibitor of PCSK9 that helps regulate the amount of cholesterol in the bloodstream.

CMD Bioscience (Orange) signed signed an exclusive licensing agreement with the Research Foundation of SUNY on behalf of Stony Brook University. The deal gives CMD Bioscience exclusive control of a computational method for predicting protein-protein and protein-peptide binding affinities. The algorithm has implications for computer-aided drug design (more). CMD was recently featured in an article in the New Haven Register.

Connecticut Innovations (Rocky Hill) will assist in administering the $9.84 million in stem cell research funds allocated this year by the Connecticut Stem Cell Research Advisory Committee and announced by Governor M. Jodi Rell on April 4. "It is our hope that the scientific findings of the research will be refined for market introduction by existing and new Connecticut bioscience companies, helping further expand our growing bioscience sector," said Peter Longo, president and executive director of Connecticut Innovations.

CuraGen Corporation (Branford) has sold its ownership in belinostat, a Phase I/II histone deacetylase inhibitor, to TopoTarget A/S of Copenhagen for approximately $39 million upfront in a combination of cash and stock. CuraGen will receive $26 million in cash and 5 million shares of TopoTarget common stock, currently valued at approximately $13 million, and $6 million in potential commercial milestone payments related to future net sales and sublicenses of belinostat.

GlaxoSmithKline (London/Research Triangle Park, NC) has acquired Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, maker of anti-aging chemical resveratrol, for $720 million. Glaxo said the deal, which comes four years after Sirtris was launched, will allow it to "significantly enhance its metabolic, neurology, immunology and inflammation research efforts." 

HistoRx (New Haven) has signed a three-year agreement with Eli Lilly and Company to make the HistoRx AQUA® technology for tissue biomarker analysis widely available to Lilly researchers and clinicians involved in drug discovery, preclinical research, and clinical development.

Invitrogen (Carlsbad, CA/Branford) will become the exclusive North American distributor of all MitoSciences products, including antibodies and assays used for researching mitochondrial proteins and diseases. MitoSciences currently has the world's largest collection of anti-mitochondrial monoclonal antibodies and immunoassays.

Johnson & Johnson (New Brunswick, NJ) announced record sales of $16.2 billion for Q1 2008, an increase of 7.7% over the same period last year. Excluding a one-time charge in 2007, net earnings were up 6.4%. Commenting on the results, William C. Weldon, chairman and CEO, said: "Our solid first-quarter results demonstrate the strength of our broadly-based businesses, especially the strong performance of our pharmaceutical business. We are delighted to add the Pfizer Consumer Healthcare and Conor Medsystems businesses to the Johnson & Johnson family of companies. Our strategy of being broadly-based continues to serve us well and is one of the keys to our consistent long-term performance."

MannKind Corporation (Valencia, CA/Danbury) announced that Matthew J. Pfeffer will join the company as Corporate Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Pfeffer served as Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration of VaxGen, Inc. from March 2006 until April 2008, with responsibility for finance, tax, treasury, human resources, IT, purchasing and facilities functions. Prior to VaxGen, Mr. Pfeffer served as CFO of Cell Genesys, Inc.

NanoViricides, Inc. (West Haven) announced in March that preliminary animal trials of HivCide-I™, the Company’s proposed HIV therapeutic, will begin at a BSL-3 facility in Boston, MA. The initial results are expected by the second week of May. These animal studies will be conducted by Dr. Krishna Menon, PhD, VMD, MRCS, an authority in preclinical and toxicological studies of novel therapeutics.

Neurogen Corporation (Branford) entered into definitive agreements for a private placement offering of exchangeable preferred stock and warrants with institutional investors for gross proceeds of $30.6 million. Proceeds from this offering will be used for clinical development of existing product candidates and other general corporate purposes. The company announced recently that it is focusing its resources on clinical programs in insomnia, anxiety, restless legs syndrome and Parkinson's disease.

Optherion, Inc. (New Haven) is featured in an article in Forbes magazine, which says "a breakthrough in gene research may offer hope for the millions suffering from macular degeneration." more

Purdue Pharma L.P. (Stamford) announced that OxyContin® (oxycodone HCl controlled release) Tablets are now available in three new dosage strengths: 15 mg, 30 mg and 60 mg. These tablet strengths complement the currently available 10 mg, 20 mg, 40 mg and 80 mg dosages. The new tablet strengths are being introduced in response to requests from healthcare professionals for greater flexibility in dosing and titration for patients who are prescribed OxyContin Tablets, the company said.

Pfizer Inc. (New York, NY/Groton/New London) announced that Lipitor® (atorvastatin calcium) 80 mg reduced the risk of heart attack and stroke by 32 percent in patients who have heart disease and chronic kidney disease compared with patients taking the 10 mg dose of Lipitor. This analysis, designed and completed following the closure of the five-year Treating to New Targets (TNT) study, was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) (Washington, DC) reports that the worldwide pharmaceutical industry has launched Global Health Progress, an initiative to bring research-based biopharmaceutical companies, global health leaders and policymakers together to build on current partnerships to improve health in the developing world. The project's website, <http://www.globalhealthprogress.org>, houses a database of research-based biopharmaceutical companies’ global health programs, including information on more than 300 partners, 400 programs and ongoing investments.

Quinnipiac University (Hamden) reports that Ronald Beckett, a respiratory care professor in the School of Health Sciences, has received a Fulbright Scholar grant to deliver a lecture series and conduct research from May 3 through May 18 in Ilo, Peru. Beckett, who also is co-director of the Bioanthropology Research Institute, will lecture about paleoimaging using video endoscopy, endoscopy in archeological settings and endoscopy as an adjunct to document the mummification process in the Atacama Desert.

Rib-X Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (New Haven) and the Laboratory of Molecular Biology of the Medical Research Council (MRC) announced they have renewed their research collaboration agreement in the area of ribosome and antibiotic structure and function for an additional year. Under the terms of the Agreement, Rib-X and the MRC will continue to jointly explore the high resolution crystal structure of the 70S ribosome.

Following is recent news from The University of Connecticut (Storrs) and the University of Connecticut Health Center (Farmington).

Nine UConn faculty members, representing disciplines including neuroscience, immunology, genetics, and molecular medicine, have been awarded $3.3 million in state funding for human embryonic stem cell research. Seven of the grants were awarded to scientists based at the Health Center, and two to researchers at the Center for Regenerative Biology in Storrs. The awards were among a total of 22 grants totaling nearly $10 million in the second round of funding announced April 1 by the Connecticut Stem Cell Research Advisory Committee, a 13-member committee in charge of developing the state’s stem cell research grants-in-aid program. "We are very pleased with the results," said Dr. Marc Lalande, chair of the Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, associate dean for research planning and coordination at the Health Center, and director of the University’s Stem Cell Institute (more).  Separately, Ulrike Klueh, assistant professor of surgery, is studying the use of adult stem cells to help make the use of long-term implantable wireless glucose sensors a reality. She has received a $413,000 grant from the American Diabetes Association. more

The Carole and Ray Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center at the UConn Health Center has won the highest possible overall rating from the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Carolyn Runowicz is director of the Center (more). The Center has received a pledge of  $750,000 from the William Raveis Charitable Fund Inc. Funds will be used to expand the Center's Navigator Care Program, which pairs newly diagnosed patients with trained volunteers who assist them through the treatment process. more

The UConn Health Center's New England Musculoskeletal Institute brings research and practice together in fruitful ways, says Dr. Jay Lieberman, the director of the Institute. He is a pioneer in the field of regional gene therapy to enhance bone repair. His lab focuses on developing new methods to stimulate bone formation, including stem cell and gene therapy. more

The Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering (CASE) issued its report to the state legislature March 18 on the Health Center’s clinical facility needs. "The report makes clear that a flourishing UConn Health Center, working in partnership with the area hospitals, can elevate the quality of health care for the region," said University President Michael J. Hogan. more

Dr. Jacqueline Duncan of the UConn School of Dental Medicine has won a National Dental Honor Society teaching award. Dr. Duncan is herself a graduate of the school, earning her D.M.D. in 1992, completing the Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency program a year later, then becoming the first prosthodontic resident at the University. more

This year's  annual Clinical Career Day at the UConn Health Center attracted more than 300 students from 18 high schools in Connecticut and Massachusetts. The event is intended to help students explore career options in health care and to create a ‘pipeline’ of future health care workers is growing in popularity. more

Following is recent news from Yale University and the Yale School of Medicine (New Haven).

Twelve Yale University stem cell research proposals received $5.66 million in funding from the Connecticut Stem Cell Research Advisory Committee. The grants were among $10 million awarded to Connecticut-based state scientists in the second year of Connecticut's 10-year, $100 million grant program to fund stem cell research. The state received 87 proposals from scientists who were seeking more than $40 million under the highly competitive review process.

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have identified, characterized and cloned ovarian cancer stem cells and have shown that these stem cells may be the source of ovarian cancer's recurrence and its resistance to chemotherapy. "These results bring us closer to more effective and targeted treatment for epithelial ovarian cancer, one of the most lethal forms of cancer," said Gil Mor, M.D., associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at Yale School of Medicine. Furthermore, In a discovery that may be useful for maintaining remission in chemo-resistant ovarian cancer, Yale scientists report that pre-clinical studies have shown the drug compound NV-128 can induce the death of ovarian cancer cells by halting the activation of a protein pathway called mTOR.

The injection of uterine stem cells trigger growth of new brain cells in mice with Parkinson's disease, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in an abstract presented at the 2008 Society for Gynecologic Investigation Annual Scientific Meeting. "Previously, we were able to coax these multipotent stem cells to differentiate into cartilage cells," said lead author Hugh S. Taylor, M.D., professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at Yale School of Medicine and section chief of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Yale School of Medicine. "Now we have found that we can turn uterine stem cells into neurons that can boost dopamine levels and partially correct the problem of Parkinson's disease."

The researchers have also found that in-utero exposure to the hormone grhelin, a molecule that controls appetite and hunger and nutrition, can result in decreased fertility and fewer offspring. "When you're obese, ghrelin levels are lower, and based on these preliminary findings, they may result in lower fertility," Dr. Taylor said.

In a third study, Dr. Taylor explored the question of why synthetic estrogens such as those found in many widely-used plastics have a detrimental effect on a developing fetus, cause fertility problems, as well as vaginal and breast cancers.

A genetic mutation in a gene that is a marker for asthma severity may also play a role in causing the disease, researchers at Yale School of Medicine and the University of Chicago report in the New England Journal of Medicine. "We know from a recent study that people with severe asthma are more likely to have elevated levels of the protein known as YKL-40 in their blood compared to people without asthma," said Geoffrey Chupp, M.D., associate professor of medicine at Yale and senior author of the study. "In this study we found that a mutation in the YKL-40 gene is associated with YKL-40 levels in the blood, a diagnosis of asthma, and impaired lung function. Ultimately, blocking the effects of YKL-40 may prove to be a novel and effective way to treat asthma."

Recent research at Yale has created the first crystal structure of a crucial self-splicing region of RNA. The work, published in Science, highlights a 16-year quest by Anna Marie Pyle, the William Edward Gilbert Professor of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry at Yale, and her research team into the nature of "group II" introns, a particular type of intron within gene transcripts that catalyzes its own removal during the maturation of RNA. Group II introns are found throughout nature, in all forms of living organisms. Although much has been learned about their structure and how they work through biochemical and computational analysis, until now there have been no high-resolution crystal structures available. 

A microRNA (miRNA) molecule known as let-7 substantially reduced cancer growth in multiple mouse models of lung cancer as reported by researchers at Yale University School of Medicine and Asuragen, Inc. in the journal Cell Cycle. "We believe that our studies provide the first direct evidence in mammals that let-7 functions as a tumor suppressor gene and that this is the first report of a miRNA being used to a beneficial effect on any cancer. Our work is particularly noteworthy given that the let-7 miRNA inhibits the development of lung cancer, the deadliest of all cancers worldwide," said senior author Frank Slack, Associate Professor of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at Yale University.

Yale University researchers report in the journal Nature Genetics that rare genetic variants can be associated with a dramatically lower risk of developing high blood pressure in the general population. The team of researchers was led by Richard Lifton, chair of the Department of Genetics and Sterling Professor of Genetics and Internal Medicine at Yale, and Daniel Levy, director National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's Framingham Heart Study.

Inhaling chlorine triggers a nerve receptor that protects healthy people by inducing sneezing, coughing, and irritation, but can cause major problems for people with asthma and other respiratory problems, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. "We show that chlorine activates a specific receptor, TRPA1, in pain-sensing nerve endings in the airways," said corresponding author, Sven-Eric Jordt, assistant professor of pharmacology.

Fertility experts like Pasquale Patrizio, M.D. of the Yale School of Medicine have long been interested in understanding why so few human eggs harvested during in vitro fertilization result in pregnancies. In a paper published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Patrizio and a colleague have identified some possible molecular suspects.

Higher organisms do not have a "cost of complexity" - or slowdown in the evolution of complex traits - according to a report by researchers at Yale and Washington University in Nature. "While a mutation in a single gene can have effects on multiple traits, even as diverse as the structures of brain, kneecap and genitalia, we wondered how often random mutation would affect many traits," said lead author Gunter Wagner, professor and chair of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale. This study showed that most mutations only do affect few traits. Further, the effect of an individual mutation is not dampened because of its effects on other traits.

Some change in the environment in many East Asian communities during the past few thousand years may have protected residents from becoming alcoholics, a new genetic analysis conducted by Yale School of Medicine researchers suggests. The study was conducted by Hui Li and others in the laboratory of Kenneth Kidd, professor of genetics, psychiatry and ecology & evolutionary biology.

Despite numerous nutrient claims on the box, children's breakfast cereals are still higher in calories, sugar, and salt than in an equal amount of adult cereals, according to a study by Yale's Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity. There are a number of public health and food industry initiatives to encourage children to eat breakfast, particularly cereal, so the nutritional content is important, said Marlene Schwartz, deputy director of the center, senior research scientist, and lead author of the study.

Yale University's Scott A. Strobel, professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, has been awarded the prestigious Schering-Plough Research Institute Award. The award is given by the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology to recognize outstanding scientific contributions made by young researchers early in their careers. Strobel is a leader at the interface between chemical and structural biology and is an expert on the function of RNA.

Yale School of Medicine has overhauled its financial aid policy with a major boost in aid to middle-income families by eliminating the required parental contribution for families making up to $100,000 per year, medical school Dean Robert J. Alpern, M.D., announced.

For more member news, see the April 2008 issue of CURE News