| U.N. Passes Polio Plan; Faces Shortfall The World Health Organization approved a three-year plan to eradicate polio, bringing a two-decade battle to a critical juncture as funding falls short and the disease is on a surprise upturn. online.wsj.com |
Digital Pathology Will Usher in a New Era of Personalized Medicine Joseph Krueger submits: The Human Genome Project (HGP) was a 13-year project coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health in cooperation with genetic bioscience giants Celera Genomics (CRA), Incyte (INCY), and Human Genome Sciences (HGSI). The Human Genome Project aimed to tell us what the sequence of the average person’s genetic code is “supposed” to be, and gave the necessary information for publicly funded research as well as for-profit research to begin understanding how the differences between individuals DNA affect health and disease. Indeed, this information gave rise to the concept of “personalized medicine”, which seeks to use precise genetic information about individual patients to custom tailor their mode of therapy for a disease. This concept of personalized medicine has fueled the growth of multi-billion dollar companies like Myriad Genetics (MYGN), Sequenom (SQNM), Illumina (ILMN), and Affymetrix (AFFY). We have been hearing about the promise of “personalized medicine” for over a decade now, but what has come of it? It has long been predicted that diagnostics based on genetic information brought forward by the human genome project would bring more targeted and cost-effective therapies. However, to date, almost 20 years later, there are only a few examples that have come to fruition. In general, large pharma has been slow to implement useful companion tools to apply the concept of personalized medicine to their clinical drugs. The idea seems simple: Along with the drug, create a companion diagonostic that will determine the correct course of therapy for the patient. More specifically, the companion diagnostic will predict ahead of time whether or not patients will respond to the drug.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Merck: All Kids' Vaccines Now Available Merck said that for the first time since 2007, its entire lineup of pediatric vaccines is now available—a milestone in the company's efforts to recover from a series of vaccine manufacturing and supply setbacks. online.wsj.com |
LTX-Credence CEO Discusses F4Q10 Results - Earnings Call Transcript LTX-Credence (LTXC)F4Q10 Earnings CallSeptember 1, 2010 10:00 a.m. ETComplete Story » seekingalpha.com |
GE expands into molecular testing [at Financial Times] - General Electric has agreed to purchase Clarient, a molecular testing company, for about $580m in cash as it seeks to expand into the growing market for products and tests that analyse cancers. us.rd.yahoo.com |