Pheno Therapeutics Ltd. has received clinical trial authorization (CTA) from the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for its lead candidate, PTD-802. The program will progress to a first-in-human phase I trial.
Data from two out of three positive studies faced the U.S. FDA’s Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products Advisory Committee as members examined the package submitted by Seikagaku Corp., of Tokyo, for SI-6603 (condoliase), a chemonucleolytic drug for radicular leg pain associated with lumbar disc hernia.
Roche AG’s disclosure in December that prasinezumab, partnered with Prothena plc, fell short of its primary phase IIb endpoint put the spotlight on microtubule binding region (MTBR)-targeting therapies in neurological disorders.
2024 saw the completion of several cellular-resolution brain maps, including the entire fly brain and a comprehensive connections map of a cubic centimeter of human brain. 2025 began with the addition of another important map. In the Jan. 1, 2025, issue of Nature, researchers from the Allen Institute presented a map of areas and cell types where aging most affected the mouse brain.
Humanwell Healthcare (Group) Co. Ltd. has developed new heterocyclic compounds acting as angiotensin AT2 receptor antagonists reported to be useful for the treatment of neuropathy and neuropathic pain.
Ips Heart Inc. has been awarded orphan drug designation by the FDA for its GIVI-MPC stem cell therapy for Becker muscular dystrophy. GIVI-MPC has the unique ability to create new muscle with full length dystrophin in Becker muscular dystrophy.
Scientists at Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ) have reported a novel multitarget-directed ligand (MTDL) targeting butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) with potential for development as an antioxidant and metal-chelating agent for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability worldwide and unfortunately no treatment without side effects is available. Previous reports have found unbalanced glutamate-glutamine cycle in the medial prefrontal cortex of mice with depression, which led to the interest in glutamine synthetase as a potential therapeutic target for treating MDD, since this enzyme is a regulator of this cycle.
The J.P. Morgan (JPM) Healthcare Conference in San Francisco kicked off with a resounding bang as Johnson & Johnson (J&J) disclosed plans to acquire Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc. for $132 per share, which equates to an equity value of about $14.6 billion.