Latest Immunosuppressants Stories

LEXINGTON, Mass., Feb. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Avaxia Biologics, Inc., a privately-held biotech company developing oral antibody drugs that act locally within the gastrointestinal tract, announced today that the company completed its $4.1 million Series A angel-led financing. Cherrystone Angels of Providence, Rhode Island led the round, with participation from Beacon Angels, Boston Harbor Angels, Launchpad Venture Group, Mass Medical Angels, North Country Angels and other...

Increase not necessarily linked to arthritis treatments, including TNF inhibitors New research reports that incident malignancy among children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is four times higher than in those without the disease. Findings now available in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), suggest JIA treatment, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors, does not necessarily explain the...

ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Feb. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A new study published in the journal Clinical Chemistry reported Abbott's (NYSE: ABT) ARCHITECT® Tacrolimus assay provides accurate and consistent medication monitoring for patients taking tacrolimus, an immunosuppressive medication, after receiving solid organ transplantation. Tacrolimus is a calcineurin inhibitor often used in patients to help prevent organ rejection. For continued organ survival, a transplant patient must be...

NIH study shows benefits of long-term Kineret therapy in people with NOMID A new study shows that Kineret (anakinra), a medication approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, is effective in stopping the progression of organ damage in people with neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID). This rare and debilitating genetic disorder causes persistent inflammation and ongoing tissue damage. The research was performed by scientists at the National Institute of Arthritis...

A new system for delivering a drug to organ transplant patients, which could avoid the risk of harmful side effects, is being developed by scientists at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. The drug, cyclosporine (CsA), is widely used in transplant operations and helps prevent the patient's body rejecting the organ but it can cause adverse drug reactions, of which the most serious problems are kidney and liver damage, in the doses which are currently administered in the long term....

PORTLAND, Ore., Jan. 25, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- To assist the millions of Americans living with psoriasis, the most common autoimmune disease in the country, the National Psoriasis Foundation published the most recent guidelines in the United States for the management of plaque psoriasis--the most prevalent form of the disease, affecting roughly 80 percent of people with psoriasis. The consensus guidelines from the National Psoriasis Foundation Medical Board, adapted...

SILVER SPRING, Md., Jan. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allowed marketing of the first test to help determine the risk for a rare brain infection called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) in people using the drug Tysabri (natalizumab) to treat multiple sclerosis (MS) or Crohn's disease (CD). (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090824/FDALOGO) The Stratify JCV Antibody ELISA test, when used with other clinical data from...

Helps lower high blood levels of the chemotherapy drug SILVER SPRING, Md., Jan. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Voraxaze (glucarpidase) to treat patients with toxic levels of methotrexate in their blood due to kidney failure. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090824/FDALOGO) Methotrexate is a commonly used cancer chemotherapy drug normally eliminated from the body by the kidneys. However, patients receiving high doses of...

NY Dermatologist Joshua Fox, MD offers tips for best treatments for Psoriasis. Roslyn, NY (PRWEB) January 08, 2012 Some skin diseases are more than skin deep. Psoriasis is the most prevalent autoimmune disease in the country, affecting as many as 7.5 million Americans. This noncontagious condition often appears on the skin as red, scaly patches that itch and bleed. Psoriasis frequently starts between the ages of 15 and 35, but can appear at any time. New research in the news indicates...

HORSHOLM, Denmark, Jan. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Veloxis Pharmaceuticals A/S (OMX: VELO) today announced dosing of the first patient in the STRATO (Switching kidney TRAnsplant patients with Tremor to LCP-tacrO) Phase IIIb study of LCP-Tacro(TM) in kidney transplant recipients experiencing drug-induced tremors. The STRATO study is designed to explore whether a conversion of patients who have symptomatic tremor from treatment with standard immediate release twice-daily tacrolimus...