Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Adherex Phase 1 Clinical Trial for testing MELANOMA treatment coming soon

This announced plan for a clinical trial of Adherex's ADH-1 to be combo therapy tested for dose tolerance effects against MELANOMA tumors is where ADH-1 will begin its hoped for journey to successes against difficult cancer tumor types, with the hoped for promise seen in preclinical testing of combo cancer treatments using ADH-1 and the conventional chemo for the specific tumor.

Apparently there were hints of success in preclinical tests of this same treatment to be tested in this P1 clinical trial, generating unsual tumor regression in the almost impossible to treat Melanoma.

[this was presented in the last quarter's conference call online presentation foils - where the slides included preliminary information on the preclinical testing of combo ADH-1 ?Mephalan for melanoma... to clarify this was indeed public info, albeit a bit obtuse in references in the slides, and later questions in the CC]

Godspeed Dr. Peters ... and best of luck to the patients, as you are in most capable hands.
..............................
From http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct/show/NCT00421811?order=4
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A Phase 1 Dose Escalation Study of ADH-1 in Combination With Normothermic Isolated Limb Infusion of Melphalan

This study is not yet open for patient recruitment.
Verified by Adherex Technologies, Inc. January 2007
Sponsored by: Adherex Technologies, Inc.
Information provided by: Adherex Technologies, Inc.
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00421811

Purpose
N-cadherin, a protein involved in blood vessel cell binding and on the surface of many tumor cells, is increased as cancer progresses. ADH-1 blocks N-cadherin. This study will test the safety and effects of the combination ADH-1 with Normothermic Isolated Limb Infusion of Melphalan in subjects with locally advanced malignant melanoma.
Condition Intervention Phase Neoplasms
Drug: ADH-1 Drug: melphalan
Phase I

MedlinePlus related topics: Cancer
Genetics Home Reference related topics: Cancer

Study Type: Interventional Study Design: Treatment, Non-Randomized, Open Label, Uncontrolled, Parallel Assignment

Official Title: An Open-Label, Multicenter, Phase 1 Dose Escalation Study to Evaluate Safety, Tolerability and Anti-Tumor Activity of Systemic ADH-1 in Combination With Normothermic Isolated Limb Infusion of Melphalan in Subjects With Locally Advanced In-Transit Malignant Melanoma (Adherex Protocol Number AHX-01-007).

Eligibility Ages Eligible for Study: 18 Years and above, Genders Eligible for Study: Both

Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
* Signed written informed consent
* Male and female patients > or = 18 years of age with diagnosis of melanoma for which treatment with Normothermic Isolated Limb Infusion (ILI) of melphalan would be appropriate
* Measurable disease
* Disease site(s) must be distal to the planned site of tourniquet placement
* Available for immunohistochemical testing of N-cadherin expression tumor tissue
* Adequate performance status and organ function, as evidenced by hematological and biochemical blood testing and ECG

Exclusion Criteria:
* Receipt of ADH-1 prior to this clinical study (prior melphalan via ILI, is okay)
* Chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or any other investigational drug within 4 weeks before study entry
* History of tumors that have shown clinically significant evidence of active bleeding within 12 weeks before study entry
* Stroke, major surgery, or other major tissue injury within 4 weeks before study entry
* Uncontrolled congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, or life threatening arrhythmias; myocardial infarction within 12 months; significant electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities
* Allergic reaction to any therapeutic peptide or to melphalan

Location and Contact Information
Please refer to this study by ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT00421811

North Carolina
Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, 27516, United States
Gretchen Mann, RN, BSN 919-684-6858 gretchen.mann.sanders@duke.edu
Doug Tyler, MD, Principal Investigator

Study chairs or principal investigators
Doug Tyler, MD, Principal Investigator, Duke University

More Information
Study ID Numbers: AHX-01-007 Last Updated: January 10, 2007
Record first received: January 10, 2007
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00421811
Health Authority: United States: Food and Drug Administration
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[ed - more of my prior Adherex posts are linked just below]

adherex-receives-regulatory-approval-for-dosing-increase

article-on-genesis-of-adherex

cadherins-and-looming-revolution-in-cancer-treatment





Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Patents of Xradia - High Resolution Xray Microscopy

Phase Contrast Microscope for Short Wavelength Radiation and Imaging Method
High resolution direct-projection type x-ray microtomography system using synchrotron or laboratory-based x-ray source
Phase contrast microscope for short wavelength radiation and imaging method
Lens Bonded X-Ray Scintillator System and Manufacturing Method Therefor
Near-field X-ray fluorescence microprobe
Low Pass X-Ray Scintillator System
Scintillator optical system and method of manufacture
Back-end-of-line metallization inspection and metrology microscopy system and method using x-ray fluorescence
Dual-band detector system for x-ray imaging of biological samples
ACHROMATIC FRESNEL OPTICS FOR ULTRAVIOLET AND X-RAY RADIATION
Achromatic fresnel optics for ultraviolet and x-ray radiation
Reflective lithography mask inspection tool based on achromatic Fresnel optics

Element-specific X-ray fluorescence microscope and method of operation
Achromatic fresnel optics based lithography for short wavelength electromagnetic radiations
Short wavelength metrology imaging system
Fabrication methods for micro compound optics
Phase contrast microscope for short wavelength radiation and imaging method
Achromatic fresnel optics based lithography for short wavelength electromagnetic radiations
Reflective lithography mask inspection tool based on achromatic fresnel optics
Element-specific X-ray fluorescence microscope and method of operation





Friday, January 12, 2007

Cyrus Mody's Excellent Perspective on the Commercialization of AFM


Dr. Cyrus Mody - a grad of Cornell and presently a program manager at the Chemical Heritage Foundation's Center for Contemporary History and Policy, recently wrote a wonderful paper detailing many of the more interesting dynamics that occurred during the development of the AFM & STM. Fascinating read and very well written, mostly from an academic perspective, with a wonderful historical overview rarely seen in one paper.

Read the fascinating paper "Instruments of Commerce and Knowledge: Probe Microscopy, 1980-2000" at the National Bureau of Economic Research's Science & Engineering Workforce Project

For some insight into the dynamics and major milestones, one can list the Topographiner dying on the vine at NIST, IBM's large almost skunkworks effort to develop the STM; Virgil Elings effective focus on making a reliable and practical instrument with the initial thrust in applying DSP(digital signal processing) to SPM - with numerous milestones in the instrument technology - Tapping Mode - Liftmode, LFM, excellent topography decoupled MFM that took the disk drive industry by storm, and many more; the development of microfabricated cantilevers largely by the Quate Group of Stanford; Hansma's invention of the laser beam deflection sensing technique for AFM cantilevers, Fluid cells, Rapid imaging with small Cantilevers and many more from the beehive of creativity at Hansma's UCSB labs.

There is more coming in the near future, notably some day we will see massively parallel SPM imaging commercialized, like that prototyped in the Quate lab by Minne (likely to be commercialized by Zeiss through the PRONANO European project I will write about later ).

In the nearer term we have seen the active levers from Veeco / Nanodevices speed up imaging, and advances in low noise, low drift imaging spearheaded by the brilliant team at Asylum Research - Drs. Proksch and Cleveland, with highly skilled talented founding teammates Bocek, Day and Callahan. The notable Asylum advance was Proksch's brilliant insight into an otherwise limiting sensor effect. Kudos to Roger and his magnetic wisdom !!!







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