Tasimelteon, Sleep Disorder Drug, Shows Promising Result

Tasimelteon was able to pass the second trial which was late stage and the results were good. It is effective against a rare condition called NON-24: Non 24 hours sleep wake disorder.

NON -24 is a sleep cicadian rhythm disorder, the characteristics are like the person falls asleep and gets up hourly late, as the body clock cannot adjust properly to the cycle of dark and light. As a result people feel tired and exhausted during the day. The disorder is rare and can happen to 1 out of 2000 people; however it is common in people who are blind.  There is no approved treatment for it yet.

Vanda’s drug helps to regulate circadian rhythm and act as melatonin agonist. The master clock in hypothalamus is reset, that stabilizes cortisol and melatonin rhythms back to 24 hours cycle of night and day.
To check the safety and efficiency of the drug a study was conducted where people were treated.

Trial result were impressive
Tasimelteon was better as compared to Placebo, in the first late stage. 20mg of Tasimelteon was given to 20 patients for 2 months. The effectiveness of the drug was displayed in the first trial itself showing entertainment melatonin superiorly maintained in Tasimelteon patients.

The second trial had same results, where cortisol rhythm was maintained better in Tasimelteon as compared with Placebo patients. Hence they had normal and better sleep.

As said by Steven W. Lockley, Ph.D. from Division of Sleep Medicine in Brigham and Women's Hospital also he is Harvard Medical School teaching affiliate.

The result prove that Tasimelteon can entertain the circadian clock and to maintain the same the continue treatment is required. The entertainment should be also beneficial clinically and to treat NON-24 the master clock has to be entertainment needs to be maintained.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc shares have gone up after this and they said that approval request will be send this midyear.

Mihael H. Polymeropoulos, CEO M.D and President, Vanda said that –

“We are happy with the result as this will help us to treat blind Non-24 patients. Also the result made a mark that for treating Non-24 chronic therapy is important. Once it is approved we are sure that Non-24 patient’s life will improve.”

Protein Linked to Heart Failure Identified by Bristol Uni Scientists

Heart patients face many risks of life threatening events such as cardiac arrest, stroke, heart attack and cardiac death etc. Calcium plays vital role in monitoring cells responsible for expansion and contraction of heart muscles. A study conducted by scientists has reportedly identified a protein (or a gene) related to heart movement.

Calcium, present in heart cells, enables heart to circulate blood throughout the body. Abnormal release of calcium in heart cells is believed to be responsible for abnormal heart beats. Ryanodine receptor, also known as RyR, controls release of calcium. RyR is a type of calcium channel which maintains selective permeability of calcium ions. This ensures normal and systematic release of calcium. Irregularity in heartbeats is most commonly found in patients of heart disease.

Scientists at Bristol University conducted an experiment with RyR. As a part of the experiment, researchers took out RyR channels from heart cells and planted in artificial membranes. By doing that scientists could measure calcium currents passing through calcium channel.

Experts believe that the finding of the experiment can pave the way for new and promising treatment for heart patients and ward off deaths cause by heart diseases.

During that experiment two genes (FKBP12 and FKBP12.6) were identified which were found to be changing the flow of calcium ions in RyR channels.

Structure of the two proteins was almost similar but their function was quite opposite to each other’s. FKBP12 raised flow of calcium ions in RyR channels and FKBP12.6 protein hampered FKBP12′s effects. Lost balance between the function of the two genes is found in most of the heart patients.

Avastin, a drug for Breast Cancer Patients Found Useful but Restricted

Efficacy of a new drug named Avastin to treat tumors from those suffering from breast cancer at their early stages may get revisited. Avastin is found useful in treating breast cancer.

Avastin is found useful in those who were new to cancer, and as doctors expected it has high efficacy of treating breast cancer. Chemotherapy was done in few women with Avastin plus before they go any surgery. Period of surgery arise, doctors didn’t see any sign any of cancer in them. It was a shocking result for everyone as women doing chemotherapy with Avastin plus were safe than those with only chemo alone.

Regular precautions and research are being made as it not stated that Avastin can continue existence. The drug can also cause harm, said experts.

Virginia Commonwealth University, Dr. Harry Bear commented against Avastin as it is not specified yet that it will lead them in success. More researches are going on.

Avastin got sanctioned in the treatment for advanced breast cancer by the United States, in 2008. Researchers found Avastin is helpless in increasing life’s validity, heart problems, bleeding and many other problems can occur. Till November the government retracted the consent.

The California-based Genentech, the Swiss company Roche is the manufacturer of the Avastin. Since in few countries it is not recommended by doctors but in nations like Europe and Japan it is still practiced by the doctors for treating advance breast cancer and the charges is $10,000 a month.

The sponsorships for study included support from drug companies and National Cancer Institute.
Dr. Gary Lyman, who is a researcher at Duke University and one of the members at panel which retracted Avastin, commented on Avastin’s positive side of outcome through study.

Minckwitz suggested in breast cancer patients more important is healing.

Looking at results Lyman stated, it was found nearly 200,000 women in U.S every year detect breast cancer.

Women who underwent with Avastin their sample tissues would be studied for genes bio markers to check which women are positive toward Avastin which will help researchers in finding more improvement in the drug.

Dr. Sandra Horning Global Development Chief of Cancer Drugs for Roche and Genentech said, the company is not planning to alter drug Avastin until more proofs are accessible.

Deep Brain Stimulation for Treating Parkinson’s disease

New study has shown that deep brain stimulation (DBS) can actually improve the life expectancy of patients who are having severe disease like advanced Parkinson’s disease.

Researchers of University of Florida and 14 other medial centers showed the result in the online version of the Lancet Neurology journal. Parkinson’s drugs can have adverse side effects on patients which include tremors, slowness of movement, motor disability to name a few. St. Jude Medical Inc., who has sponsored the test have come up with a DBS device with the help of St. Jude Medical to help reduce the effects of the disease with this device. The research showed that people under the effective symptom control also known as “on time” seems to have a better control over their involuntary movements. Patients who were getting stimulation showed a good increase in their daily work, mobility, emotional well being and physical health.

Dr. Michael S, Okun, first author of the study, administrative director of the UF College of Medicine’s Center for Movement Disorders and Neurorestoration, and the National Medical Director for the National Parkinson Foundation, highlighted that he thinks that with time there will be a lot of improvement in DBS device and was hopeful that lot of patients will get benefits from it.

The procedure is that an electrode is imparted in the brain which is connected to a device, the electrical currents are passed through it and the brain is rectified, the surgeons detects the problem area of the brain and the operation is done according to that. Research, is also going on in Baylor College of Medicine Columbia University, the University of Miami, Texas Health Presbyterian to name a few. Study confirms that the electrical currents given gently to the certain brain type with patients having advanced Parkinson’s disease will improve with time. The improvement in the device and transmittal system will get better.

The use of DBS was approved by FDA way back in 2002. The United States is suffering heavily due to Parkinson’s disease as 500,000 people have Parkinson’s and about 50,000 new cases of disease comes each year, as reported by National Institute of Neurological Disorder and Stroke.

The study has been a wake up call for health organizations and new innovative development in this field as early as possible will only help to deduce the impact of disease that has struck America The infection rate is also come down drastically from 10% to 4% as highlighted by Dr. Gordon H Baltuch, a professor of neurosurgery in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and a study author. Due to research taking place allover the doctor are extremely optimistic about DBS device helping curing the Parkinson’s disease.

Breastfeeding Lowers Risk of Obese Baby

A study revealed the childhood obesity of a child from a diabetic mother that it can be cured when babies are small by breastfeeding them for continuous 6 months.

An experiment was conducted on those 399 of non diabetic and 94 diabetic mothers from the
time they were pregnant, birth and ended at the age of 13 years, said Epidermiologist Tessa Crume, PH.D., MSPH Childhood obesity is analyzed on BMI i.e. body mass index according to the growth of child through breastfeeding.

Dr Crume also highlighted about the time immediately after birth in elaborating the danger of obesity and pregnancy at early stage in toddler life. Women are regularly checked by the doctors, when babies are in mother’s womb the doctors take care of the nutrition level in them and analyze that if it would affect child with obesity.

BMI of infants whose mother is a diabetic patient and fed her child less than six months of time, is BMI recorded slow than those who breast-fed their child full six months.

The Academy of Pediatrics suggested mother’s in order to increase the BMI growth, experts told them to breastfeed their children for regular six months to cut down the chances of childhood obesity and metabolic diseases. Crume explained children who were having chances of getting diabetes or obesity when they were in the womb are more prone to childhood obesity and metabolic disease.

Crume also continued in order to cut down the chances of childhood obesity and to maintain public health Breast-feeding is a must.

The study would encourage the pregnant mother to breastfed their children’s and more importantly to those mother’s who are suffering from diabetes. It is printed in the International Journal of Obesity.
read more at http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v28/n10/abs/0802758a.html