Latest Ursodiol Stories

NEW YORK, Sept. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics to treat chronic liver diseases, announced today that it has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) relating to a proposed initial public offering of shares of its common stock. All shares of the common stock to be sold in the offering...

Drug found to be safe in PBC patients not responsive to ursodeoxycholic acid An open-label study of rituximab, a monoclonal antibody for human CD20, was shown to be safe in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) who had an incomplete response to the standard ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapy, also known as Ursodiol. Study details available in the February issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver...

A synthesised compound which is also found in bear bile could help prevent disturbances in the heart's normal rhythm, according to research published today in the journal Hepatology by a team from Imperial College London.Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is manufactured as a drug to decrease production of cholesterol in the body and to dissolve gallstones. It is also present in many traditional Chinese medicines made from bear bile.The new study suggests it could also potentially treat abnormal...

Mice without cortisol receptor lose weight and suffer from gallstonesNature sees to it that we do not have "too much choler" (bile) in our body. A delicately equilibrated regulation system ensures that there is always exactly the right amount of bile in the gallbladder. When we are hungry, our body releases a hormone called cortisol, which is a glucocorticoid. Hepatic cells receive this hormone signal through their cortisol receptors (glucocorticoid receptors) and respond by filling...

NEW YORK, March 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced positive results from a 59 patient, placebo controlled, double-blind Phase II clinical trial of obeticholic acid (OCA) given as monotherapy to patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). The study evaluated the effects of 10 mg and 50 mg of OCA compared with placebo in patients with elevated alkaline phosphatase (AP). AP is a liver enzyme routinely used to evaluate the clinical status and disease...

Drug fails to improve overall liver histology compared to placeboA study conducted by researchers at Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany found that high doses of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), suggested by some studies to have a beneficial effect on nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), does not improve overall histology in these patients. Full findings of this study are published in the August issue of Hepatology, a journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver...

NEW YORK, April 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced the presentation of the results from its recently completed Phase II clinical trial of INT-747 (obeticholic acid) in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). The oral presentation will take place during the Opening Session of the 45th Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL 2010) on April 15, 2010. About the INT-747 Phase II Clinical Trial in Patients with PBC This...

 A national team of researchers led by scientists at Mayo Clinic has found that a common treatment for primary sclerosing cholangitis, a chronic liver disease, is not helpful for patients, according to a study published this month in the journal Hepatology.Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a disease of the bile ducts. In this case, the term "cholangitis" refers to inflammation of the bile ducts, while "sclerosing" describes the hardening and scarring of the bile...

High-dose ursodeoxycholic acid associated with worsened disease state for patients with PSCPrimary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is an uncommon chronic liver disease characterized by progressive inflammation and destruction of the bile ducts. The disease progresses slowly, usually leading to biliary cirrhosis, portal hypertension and liver failure over a 10-15 year period. PSC is a common cause of adult cholestatic liver diseases and a primary source behind many of the liver transplantations...

A newly discovered hormone plays an important role in the digestion of fat, cholesterol, and fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamins A, E, and D, according to a new study in the October 2005 issue of Cell Metabolism. The intestinal hormone sends a signal to the liver that controls the production of bile acid. Manufactured from cholesterol in the liver, bile acids emulsify fats, allowing them to be broken down and absorbed. The research team, studying mice, found that the intestine senses the...