Geisinger Researchers Awarded Funds For Personalized Healthcare Project
Researchers at Geisinger Medical Center recently received funding totaling more than $44, 000 from a Geisinger Health System (GHS) - NYU Langone Medical Center (NYULMC) collaborative project focusing on personalized healthcare. The grant, titled "Expanding Comparative Effectiveness Research in Orthopedics by Capturing Uniform Measures of Patient-Reported Functional Outcomes at Two Institutions", will permit Geisinger to administer electronic questionnaires to patients with osteoarthritis (OA) via new, touch-screen monitors in its orthopaedic clinics. Results from these questionnaires will allow physicians to track patient-reported outcomes, which are critical in developing evidence-based protocols in OA management.
MorphoSys Enrolls First Patient In Phase 1b 2a Clinical Trial For MOR103 Program In Rheumatoid Arthritis
MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced that it has enrolled the first patient in its Phase 1b/2a clinical trial of its lead drug MOR103. The Company's lead development program, MOR103, is a fully human HuCAL antibody directed against GM-CSF (granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor), being developed in the area of inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), where current treatment options are inadequate. "We are very pleased that our Phase 1b/2a study in patients with rheumatoid arthritis has now started according to plan, " commented Dr. Arndt Schottelius, Chief Development Officer. "This is an important step for MorphoSys, since we will test an antibody from our growing proprietary pipeline for the first time in patients.
Dr. Mary K. Crow Named Physician-In-Chief And Chair Of Rheumatology At Hospital For Special Surgery
Hospital for Special Surgery announced that Mary K. Crow, M.D. has been appointed physician-in-chief and chair of the Division of Rheumatology. This appointment is effective as of April 1. Dr. Crow, who is an internationally recognized research scientist and a leader in the field of rheumatology and autoimmunity research and clinical practice, will bring her expertise to her new role at Special Surgery. Dr. Crow, who has been associate chief, Division of Rheumatology, and director of Rheumatology Research at Hospital for Special Surgery since 2001, succeeds Stephen Paget, M.D. Dr. Paget, who will become Physician-In-Chief Emeritus, will assume a new leadership role with responsibility for a wide range of educational and training endeavors as well as the further development of external support for the institution.
Strength Training, Self-Management Improve Outcomes For Knee Osteoarthritis
Researchers participating in the Multidimensional Intervention for Early Osteoarthritis of the Knee (Knee Study) determined that physically inactive, middle-aged people with symptomatic osteoarthritis benefitted equally from strength training regimens, self-management programs, or a combination of the two. Details of this study are available in the January 2010 issue of Arthritis Care & Research, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology. Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and the second leading cause of disability in the United States. Currently OA is the most prevalent chronic condition among women, afflicting 35-45% of women by the age of 65.
Super-strong Collagen Created By UW-Madison Scientists
A team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers has created the strongest form of collagen known to science, a stable alternative to human collagen that could one day be used to treat arthritis and other conditions that result from collagen defects. "It's by far the most stable collagen ever made, " says Ron Raines, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of chemistry and biochemistry who led the study, published in the Jan. 12 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Collagen is the most abundant protein in the human body, forming strong sheets and cables that support the structure of skin, internal organs, cartilage and bones, as well as all the connective tissue in between.
American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association AARDA Statement On The FDA Approval Of A New Treatment For Rheumatoid Arthritis
Friday, January 8, 2010, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved ACTEMRA® (tocilizumab), a new biologic response modifier for adult patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We are pleased with the FDA's approval of this new drug as it offers a promising new option available to those suffering from this debilitating autoimmune disease, especially those who have failed other forms of treatment. Of the more than 80 autoimmune diseases, RA is one of the most common and one of the more difficult autoimmune rheumatic diseases to control. It is a progressive disease that can affect many joints, most commonly the small joints of the hands.
Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces Initiation Of A Phase 2 Study Of SBI-087 For The Treatment Of Rheumatoid Arthritis RA
Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: TRBN) announced that its collaboration partner, Pfizer, has initiated a Phase 2 clinical trial of SBI-087 (PF-05230895) for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). SBI-087 is a next-generation, humanized Small Modular ImmunoPharmaceutical (SMIP(TM)) protein therapeutic directed against the CD20 antigen. SBI-087 is also being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical trials for RA and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The Phase 2 multi-center, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group, outpatient dose regimen-finding study will enroll approximately 200 patients who meet the criteria for RA with American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Functional class I, II or III, are seropositive, and who have been diagnosed with RA more than six months before trial initiation.
FDA Approves New Drug For Rheumatoid Arthritis
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Actemra (tocilizumab) on Friday to treat adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis who have not adequately responded to or cannot tolerate other approved drug classes for rheumatoid arthritis. Actemra recommended use is limited to patients who have failed other approved therapies because of serious safety concerns that were noted in clinical studies. These safety concerns include elevated liver enzymes, elevated Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) or bad cholesterol, hypertension, and gastrointestinal perforations. "Physicians and patients need to be aware of the risk of serious adverse effects of Actemra and make informed decisions regarding its benefits and risks in the treatment of individual patients, " said Bob Rappaport, M.
Genetic Research Related To Disabling Form Of Arthritis
Work done in part by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has led to the discovery of two new genes that are implicated in ankylosing spondylitis (AS), an inflammatory and potentially disabling disease. In addition, the international research team pinpointed two areas along stretches of DNA that play an important role in regulating gene activity associated with the arthritic condition. The findings, a critical milestone in the understanding of AS, are published in the January issue of Nature Genetics, a journal that emphasizes research on the genetic basis for common and complex diseases. "This helps us better understand what is driving this disease and gives us direction for new treatments and diagnostic tests, " said John D.
Immune Responses To Tetanus Vaccine Unchanged For RA Patients On Rituximab
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University determined that immune responses to the tetanus vaccine were not changed when rituximab in combination with methotrexate (MTX) was compared with MTX alone in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Responses to a pneumococcal vaccination (Pneumovax® pneumonia vaccine), however, were reduced in RA patients with rituximab. Complete findings of this study are published in the January 2010 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), RA affects 1.3 million adults in the U.S. (2005). RA patients may be at an increased risk of infection because of impaired immune function due to the disease as well as from the use of immunsuppressive medications.