A simple injection of muscle tissue could control glucose in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Genetic modification of skeletal muscle and subsequent intramuscular implantation could increase blood sugar absorption and become an effective and long-lasting treatment for this pathology. “We took mice satellite cells and we genetically altered to overexpress GLUT4,” Hagit Shoyhet, researcher at the Levenberg lab of stem-cell and tissue engineering, Technion (Israel), said at the European Association for the study of Diabetes (EASD) 58th Annual Meeting.
It failed to meet the primary endpoint at six months, but the European chief investigator for Biogen Inc.’s phase III trial of tofersen in treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) now describes the study as “trailblazing,” following a six-month open label extension.
Virios Therapeutics Inc. said most likely COVID-19 had a hand in the phase IIb failure of IMC-1 (famciclovir + celecoxib), a dual COX-2/COX-1 inhibitor for treating fibromyalgia. The drug failed to hit statistical significance in dampening pain severity when compared to placebo (p=0.302).
The Royal Veterinary College has presented drug conjugates comprising hyaluronan (HA) synthesis inhibitors covalently bonded to betaine reported to be useful for the treatment of chondrosarcoma and osteoarthritis.
Following a research program to identify inhibitors of protein kinases TBK1 and IKK-ε, Domainex Ltd. has nominated DMXD-011 as a preclinical drug candidate.
Wellstat Therapeutics Corp. has described compounds for co-delivery of uridine and ketoleucine with high bioavailability reported to be useful for the treatment of muscle atrophy, sarcopenia and cachexia.
Gilead Sciences Inc. has described thienopyrrole compounds acting as Toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) and/or TLR8 antagonists reported to be useful for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus, cutaneous lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis and inflammatory disorders, among other disorders.
What a difference a U.S. FDA advisory committee meeting can make. In the wake of the Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee voting 7-2 Sept. 7 to recommend approval of Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) candidate, shares of the Cambridge, Mass.-based company (NASDAQ:AMLX) more than regained the value they lost in March when the same committee voted against approval of AMX-0035.
Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s amyotrophic lateral sclerosis candidate, AMX-0035, will get a rare second bite at the adcom apple Sept. 7. This time around, the Cambridge, Mass.-based company is looking to improve on its first performance by stressing the survival benefit of its drug.
Structure-guided design for carbazole antagonists of Toll-like receptors 7 and 8 (TLR7/8) for the potential treatment of autoimmune disorders was reported by Bristol Myers Squibb Co. TLR activation can induce proinflammatory pathway activation, which has been identified in patients with lupus.