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British drugmaker AstraZeneca says it's confident that its new version of COVID-19 antibody treatment could protect immunocompromised patients against all known virus variants. Laboratory studies show the antibody, called AZD3152, neutralises all known variants of COVID-19 and AstraZeneca has support from regulators to make the treatment available by the end of this year, the company's vaccines head Iskra Reic said on Tuesday (April 18). AstraZeneca plans, pending more positive data and regulatory approval, to make the antibody available by the end of 2023. These types of therapies are most needed for people with compromised immune systems, either because of underlying conditions or because they are undergoing immune suppressing treatments. They account for nearly 2% of the global population. AstraZeneca's AZD3152, it new COVID-19 antibody, was acquired through a $157 million deal last year with British biotech start-up RQ Bio. The British drugmaker will likely make future investments like its current partnerships with RQ Bio but did not have any deals to announce, said Reic, a long-time AstraZeneca executive who has led the company's vaccines and immune therapies unit since it was formed in late 2021, during the pandemic.

DVD-IgG is one type of bispecific antibody format, which is generated from two parental mAbs by placing two variable domains from one parental antibody onto the heavy chain and the light chain of another parental antibody, instead of one variable domain. The variable domain pairs can be derived from whole human, mouse or rat mAbs with phage/yeast display libraries. And the short peptides derived from the N-termini of CH1 or CL link the outer variable domain (VD1) and the inner variable domain (VD2) together. The DVD-IgG retains the antigen-binding specificity, affinity, and biologic activities from its both parental antibodies, therefore, all of its four variable domains are functional. Many different DVD-IgGs have been designed and manufactured for treating complex diseases with multiple mediators contributing to overall disease pathogenesis.

American global healthcare company, Viatris, has launched a new rapid self-test for qualitative detection of antibodies developed after Covid-19 vaccinations. The firm is going to market the Covid-19 Neutralising IgG Serological self-test, manufactured by PRIMA Lab SA, in the UK market, which would check presence of neutralising antibodies after vaccination. The presence of antibodies indicates that a person has had an immune response to the Covid-19 vaccine, and not that protective immunity has been acquired. The self-test that can be performed easily at home with a small blood sample, delivers results in just 10 minutes and has a recommended retail price of sub £20. After two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, the self-test has shown a seroconversion rate of 98.3 per cent for the Pfizer vaccine, 98.5 per cent for the AstraZeneca vaccine and 95.2 per cent for the Moderna vaccine. It recommended that the test be performed at least 14 days after completing the vaccination cycle.

Britain's biotech firm Avacta Group on Monday (January 10) announced halting sales of its Covid-19 rapid antigen lateral flow test AffiDX to replace antibodies in the device and increase its ability to diagnose the Omicron variant. The company stated that AffiDX is capable of detecting Omicron when the virus is present in high numbers in samples, but the sensitivity of the test reduces at lower viral loads. The performance of all rapid antigen tests came under scanner in wake of a large number of mutations in the Omicron variant. AffiDX contains both a proprietary Affimer reagent and a commercially available antibody. The Affimer reagent detects the Omicron variant with the same sensitivity as the Delta variant, and performance of the antibody is paired with the Affimer reagent in the test. This has been affected by the additional Omicron mutations, the firm said. Alastair Smith, chief executive of Avacta Group, said: "Our determination to only provide high quality, high performance diagnostic tests has led us to the correct decision to pause all marketing of the AffiDX® lateral flow antigen test. We have, of course, been unable to market the product in the UK since October 2021, as the product continues to await approval under the new CTDA regulatory process.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) says initial tests of the antibody-based Covid-19 therapy it is developing with US partner Vir suggest the drug is effective against the Omicron variant. A GSK statement on Thursday (December 2) said that lab tests and a study on hamsters have demonstrated the sotrovimab antibody cocktail to work against viruses that were bio-engineered to carry a number of hallmark mutations of the new variant. The tests are continuing to confirm the results against all of the Omicron mutations, with an update expected by the end of the year, it added. The antibody is designed to latch on to the spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus, but Omicron has been found to have an unusually high amount of mutations on that protein. "Sotrovimab was deliberately designed with a mutating virus in mind," said Vir chief executive George Scangos, adding that the drug was targeting a region of the spike protein that was highly unlikely to mutate.

British drugmaker GSK said on Tuesday (December 7) its antibody-based Covid-19 therapy with US partner Vir Biotechnology is effective against all mutations of the new Omicron coronavirus variant, citing new data from early-stage studies. The data, yet to be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, shows that the companies' treatment, sotrovimab, is effective against all 37 identified mutations to date in the spike protein, GSK said in a statement. Last week, another pre-clinical data showed that the drug had worked against key mutations of the Omicron variant. Sotrovimab is designed to latch on to the spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus, but Omicron has been found to have an unusually high number of mutations on that protein. "These pre-clinical data demonstrate the potential for our monoclonal antibody to be effective against the latest variant, Omicron, plus all other variants of concern defined to date by the WHO," GSK chief scientific officer Hal Barron said.

Antibody Sequencing has been widely used in the research and development of antibody field. In order to meet with the biotechnical industry needs, Creative Biolabs established a solid platform for DNA sequencing of both IgG and IgM types of monoclonal antibodies produced by mouse and rat hybridoma cell lines. The sequences of a monoclonal antibody are important for patent protection and therapeutic approval...

AstraZeneca said its antibody cocktail against Covid-19 would - unlike its vaccine - be priced commercially as it negotiates supply contracts with governments around the globe. "We are looking at a commercial pricing strategy. That is part of our negotiations with governments," Iskra Reic, Astra's executive vice president for vaccines and immune therapies, said in a media call on Thursday. She added that the group's main objective was to make the shot affordable and broadly available.

US-based developer of new immunotherapeutics, including a portfolio of checkpoint modulators, anti-cancer vaccines and adjuvants, Agenus has completed the acquisition of Switzerland-based biopharmaceutical firm 4-Antibody.

PBR Staff Writer Published 25 March 2014 US-based Goodwin Biotechnology has entered into an agreement with Aspyrian Therapeutics for the technology transfer, process development, scale-up, and cGMP manufacturing of a new Antibody Drug Conjugate (ADC) for use in Phase I clinical trials.

HIV can attack T-cells (SUPER important cells that protect your body from disease). When these cells killed off, your immune system weakens, and without T-cells, the human body cannot produce antibodies. All you can do is take medication to reduce the concentration of the virus to decrease the likelihood of transmission. For more information visit our website: https://drpounders.com/ or Call Us at 214-520-8833

HIV can attack T-cells (SUPER important cells that protect your body from disease). When these cells killed off, your immune system weakens, and without T-cells, the human body cannot produce antibodies. All you can do is take medication to reduce the concentration of the virus to decrease the likelihood of transmission. For more information visit our website: https://drpounders.com/ or Call Us at 214-520-8833

Integrative Cancer Science and Therapeutics welcomes submission of papers both at the molecular, subcellular, cellular, organ, and organism level, and of clinical proof-of-concept and translational studies. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: novel basic cancer research discoveries, cell and tumor biology, animal models, metastasis, cancer antigens and the immune response to them, cellular signalling and molecular biology, epidemiology, genetic and molecular profiling of cancer and molecular targets, cancer stem cells, cancer-associated pathways (including cell-cycle regulation; cell death; chromatin regulation; DNA damage and repair; gene and RNA regulation; genomics; oncogenes and tumor suppressors; and signal transduction), molecular virology and vaccine- and antibody-based cancer therapies, and other cancer-related research.

In order to enable the immune system to function normally, the body needs: protein necessary for the construction of the immune cells and antibodies, carbohydrates for energy, which without any physiological process in the body is not possible, is also necessary for the fat metabolism, minerals and vitamins included in the composition of enzymes, which are due to perform and provide conversion processes. - See more at: http://www.immunesystemboosters.info/2013/08/which-vitamins-mostly-boost-immune.html#sthash.HRijemgv.dpuf

Adenoids are essentially pharyngeal tonsils, which produce antibodies, or white blood cells that help fight infections.

Infectious Mononucleosis (IM) is an acute, self-limiting disease caused by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Infection with EBV in early life in adults usually is asymptomatic. Diagnosis of IM is based on the evaluation of characteristic clinical symptoms and serological changes. Serological diagnosis of IM has been demonstrated by the detection of heterophile and EBV specific antibodies. It is a widely accepted practice among physicians to use the detection of heterophile antibodies as an aid in the diagnosis of IM.

Prince Charles formally opened a new 1 billion pound AstraZeneca research and development (R&D) facility in Cambridge on Tuesday (November 23), as the company aims to fuel the growth of its drug pipeline. AstraZeneca has supplied two billion doses of its Covid-19 vaccine, developed at Oxford University, and is also looking to bring a preventative antibody cocktail against Covid-19 to market. Prince Charles, son of Queen Elizabeth and heir to the throne, saw an exhibit on the pandemic and a demonstration of how augmented reality headsets can help with lab work, before hearing about the company's net-zero targets. "The last two years have been some of the most difficult of a generation," Prince Charles said in a speech.

Covid-19 vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna that use mRNA technology provide the biggest boost to antibody levels when given 10-12 weeks after the second dose, a new study has found. The "COV-Boost" study was cited by UK officials when they announced that Pfizer and Moderna were preferred for use in the country's booster campaign, but the data has only been made publicly available now. The study found that six out of the seven boosters examined enhanced immunity after initial vaccination with Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine, while all seven increased immunity when given after two doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine. "A third dose will be effective for many of the vaccines we've tested and in many different combinations," Professor Saul Faust, an immunologist at the University of Southampton and the trial's lead, told the media.

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved the marketing authorisation of Adtralza, a dermatological solution developed by Danish specialist LEO Pharma. This injectable solution contains 300 mg of tralokinumab in a 2 mL pre-filled pen and will be available for tralokinumab patients in the UK from early 2024. Tralokinumab is indicated for treating moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in adult and adolescent patients aged 12 and older who require systemic therapy, Leo Pharma said in a statement. It is a fully human monoclonal antibody developed to specifically bind to and inhibit the IL-13 cytokine. Previously, it was available in a 150 mg in 1 mL pre-filled syringe. According to Leo Pharma, the 300 mg tralokinumab in a 2 mL pre-filled pen offers a streamlined administration for both patients and prescribers. It begins with an initial 600 mg dose in two injections, followed by a single 300 mg maintenance dose administered every other week. "We're pleased that this simplified administration method for tralokinumab will soon benefit eligible atopic dermatitis patients in the UK. It aligns with our commitment to elevate the standard of care and support for individuals with skin conditions," said Leanne Walsh, Vice President and General Manager of UK and Ireland at LEO Pharma.

Japanese pharmaceutical firm Eisai Co plans to seek full approval of its experimental Alzheimer's drug lecanemab in the United States, Europe and Japan armed with data showing it can slow the brain-wasting disease for people with early symptoms, potentially getting the treatment to patients next year. It remains unclear how widely the drug developed with U.S. biotech Biogen Inc will be used due to uncertainty over insurance coverage, including the U.S. government's Medicare plan for people age 65 and over, potential side effects and cost. One Wall Street analyst told Reuters news agency that he is not counting on measurable sales until 2024. Several estimated lecanemab may be priced at around $20,000 per year. "Most people who this (drug) would apply to are on Medicare, and most private payers look to Medicare as they make their own (coverage) decisions. So there's a massive roadblock in the way of all who could benefit from this treatment," said Robert Egge, Alzheimer's Association chief public policy officer. Eisai confirmed on Tuesday (November 30) that lecanemab - an antibody designed to remove sticky deposits of a protein called amyloid beta from the brain - reduced the rate of cognitive decline on a clinical dementia scale by 27% compared to a placebo. It also gave new details on side effects including a dangerous type of brain swelling and brain bleeding.