Back!

I've been sick and now i'm back. There are a lot of new drugs out there that we need to know about. I'M BAAACK.!

stay tuned. thanks.

Let's hope Humira works: Here's what RA does to your hands

Humira: Got Rheumatoid Arthritis?

ABOUT: Rheumatoid arthritis can cause joint damage, as seen on x-ray, within the first year. For many people, HUMIRA can help slow the progression of that damage.

HUMIRA is a TNF Blocker.

TNF (tumor necrosis factor) [TNF is a protein messenger produced by the body's immune cells that yells "hey you guys, get in here, we have a problem here" It tells the rest of the immune cells that there is a problem and to react] blockers are a class of medications that fight both the painful symptoms and progressive joint damage of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis.

TNF blockers can slow down the rate at which RA causes damage to joints and bones. HUMIRA is one such TNF blocker.

For many patients, HUMIRA can provide relief to painful joints. It can help fight the fatigue. And it can help slow the progressive joint damage of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis.

BLAH! How does it work?

Humira is a monoclonal human antibody against the cytokine TNF (see above). It binds to circulating TNF in the blood and binds to it, thereby inactivating it. It therefore cannot bind to its receptor, thus inhibiting it's RA effects.

There are more indications for Humira other than RA, and I will post them here.

Your poster has a broken foot, and the vicodin is working in full effect. More to follow......More tomorrow. Good night.

Humira

Along with the staff at biotech1o1, we were at Del Mar today and we are still scratching our heads as to why we like to bet longshot trifectas and still think there is a shot to win. We think a post in the am when we can think straight, is due on Humira. Stay tuned, thanks.

This one's for Mom: Gemfibrozil (Lopid)

Ms. Field, i'll get back to you tomorrow.

My Mom was just put on yet another cholesterol lowering drug, as probably many of you have too have been on the merry-go-round to prescription drugs. So let's go through what this drug is, it's chemical nature and history and how it works:

Gemfibrozil belongs to a class of drugs used in hyperlipidemia (HL), which is basically elevated levels of fats in the blood. Decisions to use drug therapy for HL must be based on the potential for causing atherosclerosis or pancreatitis. Most important, diet of the individual is a necessary co-therapy to drug therapy and should be followed strictly to achieve the full potential of drug therapy.

Gemfibrozil is a first generation fibric acid derivative clofibrate. First generation means that this is an older drug and it works by making an enzyme that causes fats to be cut up at a higher rate.

Gemfibrozil is thought to function by binding to a DNA binding protein called PPAR [called a transcription factor]. It increases fat cutting enzymes that degrade triglycerides.

Skin rashes, intestinal symptoms, heart palpitations are associated with toxicity. It seems it increases the mechanism of action of blood thinning drugs as well.

Take it in good health Mom! LU!

Aspirin....Here we go

Been busy this week with my job receiving clinical trial samples. I'll try and keep this as short and to the point as possible. And to explain the science too.

THE inflammatory response to invading organisms (or any other thing the body deems foreign) is divided into three phases: acute inflammation, the immune response, and chronic inflammation. Acute inflammation is the response to tissue injury [a bruise that turns yellow] and usually preceeds the immune response. The immune response occurs when immune cells [white blood cells] are turned on [activated] in response to foreign organisms or antigenic substances [things the body doesn't recognize]. This results in immune cells release small protein substances called cytokines that act as messengers or centuries that can cry "HELLO, WE NEED SOME HELP HERE, WE NEED TO KICK SOME BUTT BODY".

So where does aspirin come in? Among those messengers mentioned above and the pathways that make them in your body, one is termed cyclooxygenase that is involved in inflammation.
There are two kinds [isoforms] of this messenger called COX-1 and COX-2. COX-2 has been shown to be a facilitator [starter] of the inflammatory response and heavy research has been done to develop inhibitors of this pathway to stop inflammation.

Aspirin was the standard against which all anti-inflammatory agents were measured. It belongs to a class of drugs termed salicylates [the chemical structure]. Aspirin is a nonselective inhibitor of the aforementioned COX family, and is an irreversible inhibitor [it's done COX until new protein is made]. It also inhibits immune cells from going to areas of inflammation and from the body releasing damaging chemicals that harm blood vessels and stop cells from crawling into places the normally be.

These effects are seen in the fever reducing properties and blood thinning actions as well. It's anagesial effects [pain relief] are noted as well through the same pathway.

This was an abbreviated mechanism of action: if you want more details leave a comment and i'll get back to you ASAP. I hope this was useful.

Humira: What is it?

I'll put up some information on this drug in the morning. I'm watching foodtv right now and there is one commercial after another for this drug. I'll give you the run down in the morning (pacific time).

http://www.humira.com/

The cool thing about this website is that you can read the link and then I can explain it to you in terms you can understand. I always wanted to teach and here we go. Come back to learn with me.

Aspirin

I have not forgotten, just got a bit miffed at Ms. Field with all the commercials lately. check back. thanks.

Later today: once a month osteoporosis drug treatments

How do they work, Ms. Field?

Stay tuned.

Do You know how aspirin works?

The age old remedy for just about anything. But this is 2008, and we hear on TV (and everywhere else for that matter) that it's good for the heart, headaches and blood thinning.

So what gives? You will know tomorrow, for each mechanism of action for each indication.

For now, a quick review:

Have you ever read your medication bottle or your prescription and wondered what language that was (or hieroglyphics) ? I am constantly reminded in meetings about the drug i'm working on--e.g., schedule of drug administration and route of administration.

BID= twice a day
OD= right eye
OL= left eye
PO= by mouth
qd= every day
qod= every other day

Check back for the aspirin update.

HAART and TB

Use of highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART) has had a major impact on HIV-associated morbidity and mortality in industrialized countries. Access to HAART is now expanding in low-income countries where tuberculosis (TB) is the most important opportunistic disease. The incidence of TB has been fueled by the HIV epidemic and in many countries with high HIV prevalence current TB control measures are failing. HAART reduces the incidence of TB in treated cohorts by approximately 80% and therefore potentially has an important role in TB control in such countries. However, despite the huge beneficial effect of HAART, rates of TB among treated patients nevertheless remain persistently higher than among HIV-negative individuals. This observation raises the important question as to whether immune responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) are completely or only partially restored during HAART. Current data suggest that full restoration of circulating CD4 cell numbers occurs only among a minority of patients and that, even among these, phenotypic abnormalities and functional defects in lymphocyte subsets often persist. Suboptimal restoration of MTB-specific immune responses may greatly reduce the extent to which HAART is able to contribute to TB control at the community level because patients receiving HAART live much longer and yet would maintain a chronically heightened risk of TB.

I'll try and post some current drugs used in HAART therapy within the day.

Anti Virals

What exactly is HAART? Is it applicable to Hep C/HIV?

There are numerous new drugs being investigated now for hepatitis C that have very different mechanisms of action. Stay tuned as I try to unravel the intricies of this exciting field of research.