Notch inhibitors may offer breakthrough on brain cancer

Cancer researchers are hailing a preclinical proof-of-concept study demonstrating the effectiveness of a combo therapy in targeting and eliminating brain cancer cells, an important new strategy for defeating a lethal case of glioblastoma. Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School found that by combining an experimental Notch inhibitor with the chemotherapy drug temozolomide they could slow tumor growth and recurrence in mice and tissue more effectively than either agent...

Cardiome shares sag after Merck delays PhIII study

Investors in Canada's Cardiome Pharma (CRME) are more than a little disappointed to hear that the company's Big Pharma partner Merck isn't going to keep to its late-stage development schedule for the oral formulation of vernakalant, an experimental drug for irregular heartbeat. Once slated for a summer start date, the Phase III study is now up in the air, with no firm countdown in place. The news took some of the wind out of Cardiome's sails, along with a chunk of its stock price,...

Merck commits up to $289M for new Alzheimer’s collaboration

Undaunted by its mixed results trying to come up with a new therapy for Alzheimer's, Merck has struck a $289 million deal with Canada's Alectos Therapeutics to collaborate on new molecules for the memory-wasting ailment and other disorders. The pact includes an upfront payment and milestones, but there was no breakout on the payments. The collaboration will target that modulate O-linked N-acetylglucosaminidase, an enzyme that is believed to be involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease....

Merck’s boceprevir scores high in PhIII hep C trial

Merck says its hepatitis C drug boceprevir hit its primary endpoints in two Phase III studies and will file for an approval of the potential blockbuster by the end of this year. And analysts quickly began to handicap Merck's chances against Vertex, which has compiled a mountain of positive data for its hep C drug telaprevir. Boceprevir was one of the jewels in Schering-Plough's crown when Merck swept in to buy up the company. Analysts give it high marks and say that the drug has the potential...

Merck, Stallergenes race to FDA with new allergy treatments

Merck and Stallergenes are preparing to approach the FDA with two new therapies that promise to replace the traditional allergy shot with sub-lingual treatments that would be a lot easier to take as well as safer to dispense. "It takes probably three years, at least, of immunotherapy to produce a good and lasting result," Dr. Harold Nelson, an allergist at National Jewish Health in Denver, tells the Los Angeles Times. "An awful lot of people get tired of it." And in rare cases, usually...

Merck buys vax unit from bankrupt Hawaii Biotech

Merck (NYSE: MRK) has agreed to purchase bankrupt Hawaii Biotech's dengue fever vaccine unit for an undisclosed sum. It's a critical move for Hawaii, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year and will deplete a $2 million credit line by the end of this month. The sale leaves Hawaii with a West Nile virus vaccine in development. Hawaii CEO Elliot Parks says Merck's interest in the dengue unit validates the work his company has done on the program. "We're very proud to...

TheStreet tracks the top 10 clinical trials to watch

TheStreet's top biotech stock ace, Adam Feuerstein, has culled through a mountain of releases and reports to come up with the 10 most closely-watched trial announcements expected in the second half of the year. His list includes: Ariad's Phase III data for the sarcoma drug ridaforolimus, which Merck licensed; AstraZeneca's zibotentan, which hopes to answer the question about who has the next Provenge to offer the market; as well as mid-stage data on BioMarin's Peg-Pal for phenylketonuria,...

Merck to shutter eight R&D facilities in global restructuring

Driven by a need to cut back after swallowing Schering-Plough while relying more on external development collaborations, Merck today spelled out long-awaited plans to shutter eight R&D centers around the globe, including facilities in Cambridge, MA and Montreal. In a release issued this morning, Merck said it would close research operations in Montreal, Canada; Boxmeer (Nobilon facility only), Oss, and Schaijk, Netherlands; Odense, Denmark; Waltrop, Germany; Newhouse, Scotland; and...

Nycomed wins EU approval for COPD therapy

Despite being rebuffed by the FDA and its drug experts, Switzerland's Nycomed has won EU approval for Daxas, its new therapy to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder. The approval will usher in the first new drug for smoker's lung in more than a decade. The OK marks a big step ahead for Merck, which holds European and Canadian marketing rights. The approval by the EU also marks a major advance for Nycomed, which has been working hard to develop a blockbuster market for the drug. Nycomed...

Doc sentenced to prison for faking research data

Scott Reuben, a Massachusetts anesthesiologist, has been sentenced to six months in prison for mounting a fake 2007 pain management study for Pfizer's Celebrex. He also has to pay more than $350,000 in restitution to Pfizer and Merck....