Millions of people could be vaccinated against coronavirus as the UK secures early access to 90 million doses of promising Covid-19 vaccine candidates. The UK government has agreed significant partnerships with leading pharmaceutical and vaccine companies BioNTech/Pfizer and Valneva that are developing new vaccines to protect people against… Read More
The next critical phase for The University of Queensland’s (UQ) COVID-19 vaccine is underway, with the research effort moving out of the lab and into human trials. Healthy adult volunteers have received the first dose of the vaccine at the Brisbane clinic of phase 1 clinical trials specialist,… Read More
Cancer Research UK is planning to become a leaner, more focused organisation following the impact of COVID-19 on its fundraising income. The charity is making difficult decisions to reduce how much it spends on beating cancer, its operations and the number of staff following… Read More
Image: Fusion Medical Automation Initially designed to target the published CDC and WHO consensus sequences, the AccuPlex SARS-CoV-2 Verification Panel and Reference Material Kit are available with full SARS-CoV-2 viral genome coverage. This expansion allows for compatibility with any SARS-CoV-2 assay target, while maintaining the safety features and… Read More
Scientists in academic centres and companies around the world desperately search for novel therapeutics and vaccines to treat and prevent COVID-19. However, with lockdowns and limited access to laboratories, researchers are being forced to work from home, putting research continuity at risk. To help scientists continue their R&D,… Read More
Antibodies derived from llamas have been shown to neutralise the SARS-CoV-2 virus in lab tests, UK researchers have found. The team involves researchers from the Rosalind Franklin Institute, Oxford University, Diamond Light Source and Public Health England. They hope the antibodies – known as nanobodies due to their… Read More
Cobra Biologics has produced and supplied two further DNA plasmids for the production of CombiGene’s gene therapy drug candidate CG01, which is being developed for the treatment of drug-resistant focal epilepsy. This completes delivery of all plasmids required to progress to the next phase of the project. The… Read More
The Translational Research Institute-based Mater researchers in partnership with The University of Queensland have developed a new cancer vaccine, which has shown promising signs in preclinical laboratory studies. Funded by grants from the Worldwide Cancer Research in the United Kingdom, and Mater Foundation, the new vaccine could be potentially… Read More
Aigenpulse has released an intelligence platform designed to speed up the drug discovery and development process. The Aigenpulse platform harnesses the latest artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning tools to deliver advanced analytics to underpin scientific decision making. Aigenpulse has built the data-agnostic platform for importing, integrating, processing, linking,… Read More
Optibrium and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM), are celebrating five years of an education support collaboration. As part of this specialist science and technology summer school initiative, Optibrium provides free access to StarDrop, Optibrium’s software for small molecule design, optimisation and data analysis. This… Read More
With 90 evidence-based sessions and nearly 300 global speakers, the ASCO20 Virtual Education Program, is taking place 8-10 August. It is designed to provide an engaging line-up of education content, covering COVID-19, treatment adaptations, health equity, and more. Members can register for free. Additional membership benefits provide oncology professionals… Read More
4D pharma has announced that its phase II clinical trial of oral immunomodulator MRx-4DP0004 for patients hospitalised with COVID-19 is now open to enrolment. Dosing of the first patients is expected shortly. The phase II randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial is enrolling up to 90 patients admitted to hospital… Read More
Researchers have developed a human cell ‘membrane on a chip’ that allows continuous monitoring of how drugs and infectious agents interact with our cells. It may soon be used to test potential drug candidates for COVID-19. The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, Cornell University and Stanford University,… Read More
Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals have announced that the US Phase III trial of rheumatoid arthritis drug Kevzara (sarilumab) in COVID-19 patients requiring mechanical ventilation did not meet its main goals. Minor positive trends were observed in the primary pre-specified analysis group (critical patients on Kevzara 400mg who were… Read More
The first patient has been treated in Abivax’s Phase IIa/III study of ABX464 in COVID-19 patients at the University Hospital Centre in Nice, France. The randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled miR-AGE study investigates the effect of early treatment (at point of diagnosis) in 1,034 COVID-19 elderly or high-risk patients. The… Read More
Clinician scientists at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland, have begun a clinical trial of a promising therapy for critically ill COVID-19 patients in intensive care. In a paper published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the team, led by RCSI Professors… Read More
