Doctors have used the drug disulfiram to help patients stay sober for several decades. It interferes with the body's ability to metabolize alcohol, giving a fierce hangover to someone who consumes even a small amount of alcohol.
More recently, disulfiram was shown to be effective in treating cocaine addiction as well, even though alcohol and cocaine affect the nervous system in different ways.
The results are published online this week by the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/eu-etf082610.php
Source:EurekAlert

Vitamin A and beta-carotene supplements are unsafe for HIV-positive women who breastfeed because they may boost the excretion of HIV in breast milk---thereby increasing the chances of transmitting the infection to the child, a pair of new studies suggest.
The findings appear in two separate articles in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and the Journal of Nutrition.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/uom-vai082610.php
Source:EurekAlert

Researchers have isolated a molecule, small enough to be used as a drug, that can shut down a dysfunctional immune response that causes deadly hemorrhagic shock, results in delayed death of heart attack patients, promotes rejection of transplanted organs and destroys joints in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, according to a paper published in Molecular Immunology.
The molecule that modulated the complement cascade, however, was relatively large, consisting of 787 amino acids, too sizable to be used therapeutically.
By meticulously testing smaller shards of the shell, researchers found and then modified a shard consisting of just 30 amino acids that actually was more effective than the larger molecule. That smaller segment, a modified peptide dubbed E23A, makes it a viable candidate for in-vitro testing of the compound.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/evms-rct082610.php
Source:EurekAlert

Confirmation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the proposed Phase II protocol for CH-4051 in rheumatoid arthritis has been approved by the agency was announced.
CH-4051 is the L-isomer of CH-1504 and second drug candidate from Chelsea's portfolio of orally bioavailable, non-metabolized antifolates.
Link:http://www.irconnect.com/chtp/pages/news_releases.html?d=200159
Source:Chelsea

A Phase III clinical trial to evaluate tasimelteon in patients with Non-24-Hour Sleep Wake Disorder (N24HSWD), a condition experienced primarily by totally blind individuals that results in abnormal night sleep patterns and chronic daytime sleepiness has been initiated. Tasimelteon binds to high affinity melatonin receptors located in the brain that are believed to regulate circadian rhythms, or sleep/wake cycles.
Link:http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=196233&p=RssLanding&cat=news&id=1464014
Source:Vanda

A dose-defining Phase IIa trial of its lead drug candidate, CXL-1020, for the treatment of patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) has been initiated. ADHF is the leading diagnosis for patients at the time of discharge from U.S. hospitals and the most common cause of hospitalization for patients over 65 years of age.
CXL-1020, a proprietary nitroxyl donor, is Cardioxyl's lead compound for the intravenous treatment of acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF).
Link:http://www.cardioxyl.com/news_events/archived_press_releases/cardioxyl_pr082610
Source:Cardioxyl

Preliminary results from the Phase 3 AVERROES clinical trial of the investigational drug apixaban compared with acetylsalicylic acid (ASA, or aspirin) in patients with atrial fibrillation expected to be or demonstrated to be unsuitable for warfarin therapy will be presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2010. The results will be presented during the “Hot Line” session on August 31, 2010, in Stockholm, Sweden.
Link:http://www.bms.com/news/press_releases/pages/default.aspx?RSSLink=http://www.businesswire.com/news/bms/20100825005714/en&t=634184527726512503
Source:Bristol-Myers Squibb

People with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes appear to be at an increased risk of developing plaques in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer's disease, according to new research published in the August 25, 2010, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/aaon-irt081710.php
Source:EurekAlert

The researchers went on to show that mutant SOD1-driven VDAC1 inhibition was seen in spinal cord mitochondria from mutant SOD1 expressing animals before symptoms developed and increased in severity during disease progression. Importantly, reduced VDAC1 activity accelerated the onset of fatal paralysis in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) mice.
The study is published by Cell Press in the August 26th issue of the journal Neuron.
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/cp-nmd081810.php
Source:EurekAlert

Results of a 2-year clinical study demonstrating that surgical implantation of biosynthetic corneas formulated with the company's proprietary recombinant human type III collagen (rhCIII) restored vision and promoted nerve regeneration (restoring sensitivity) in patients who had corneal damage and significant vision loss were announced. The results of this phase 1, investigator-sponsored study were published today in Science Translational Medicine.1
Link:http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/fi-bcf082010.php
Source:EurekAlert