science Archives

Science and medicine were part of my life | Times Online

November 28, 2020 [email protected]_84 Life, medicine, Online, Part, science, Times

Dinner table chats with her scientist-parents and hospital ward rounds with her Puncha, these were what inspired her, says Dr. Maheshi N. Ramasamy, Principal Investigator for the Oxford COVID-19 Vaccine Trial, in this interview with Kumudini Hettiarachchi

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Totally relaxed, she comes on Zoom on Wednesday – at the appointed hour of 12 Greenwich Meantime Time (GMT) in Oxford, England, and 5.30 p.m. in Sri Lanka.

No one would imagine that pretty Dr. Maheshi N. Ramasamy, who is quick to smile and chats leisurely, has been having a “crazy” time since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world.

Dr. Ramasamy delivering a lecture on vaccines at the International Medical Conference of the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) last year in Colombo

For, 43-year-old Dr. Ramasamy is the Principal Investigator for the Oxford COVID-19 Vaccine Trial. Dubbing these “exciting” times, she promptly reiterates that the very promising potential vaccine in the Oxford University/AstraZeneca pipeline is “very much a product of teamwork”. The Oxford vaccine will be manufactured by the British pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca which has made a commitment to making the vaccine on a non-profit basis throughout the pandemic so that it could be distributed globally.

As the Oxford Vaccine Group hopes to put out another strong research paper on their vaccine trials in a week, the Sunday Times looks at the life of this eminent Sri Lankan who loves to come back to her motherland to spend time with family, mainly her four “lovely” cousins who are like her siblings and her ‘Puncha’ (mother’s sister) who is well-known Consultant Physician Dr. Anula Wijesundere.

Out of the ordinary has been only-child Maheshi’s childhood, as her scientist-parents Prof. Ranjan Ramasamy and Prof. Manthri Samaranayake Ramasamy crisscrossed the globe. Born in Colombo, her early years had been spent in Saudi Arabia and Kenya, then back in Sri Lanka and onto California, United States of America, when the country was gripped by communal violence in 1983, then to Brisbane in Australia and finally back to Colombo in 1989.

Dr. Ramasamy says that her mother and aunt were both proud stalwarts and Head Girls of Visakha Vidyalaya, but she was there only briefly, just 10 months, as soon as she began her formal school education. When she returned from Brisbane, she joined Stafford International School – as her “Sinhala was not good enough” to attend Visakha – and did both her OLs and ALs from there. She was awarded the Felix R. de Zoysa Memorial Academic Scholarship and was also the Head Prefect at Stafford International.

Dr. Maheshi Ramasamy in her Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

“I had a great time at Stafford, with its wonderful teachers and amazing Principal Noreen Welikala,” she says, while her family in Colombo was also very close. She and her cousins would be dropped off at school by her aunt in the mornings and they would all go to their grandparents’ home for lunch after school. Family dinners were also a regular occurrence, usually ending on a high note

medicine

What I’m doing now: from Biomedical Science to Medicine | Biosciences at Sheffield

November 26, 2020 [email protected]_84 biomedical, Biosciences, medicine, science, Sheffield

I graduated from the Biomedical Science course at the university of Sheffield back in 2015 and am now in my 2nd year of Medicine at the University of Buckingham.

I know of a few graduates from my Sheffield cohort that are now also studying to become a doctor and similarly, there are quite a few other people on my medical course who have also already completed an undergraduate degree. In comparison to other biomedical science courses, I believe that Sheffield has given me a significant advantage in preparing me for my degree in medicine.

At the end of secondary school, I had initially applied to the University of Sheffield for medicine. Unfortunately I did not get in, but the university was willing to accept me for the biomedical science course.

This ended up being very beneficial in preparing me for my future studies in medicine. I really enjoyed the course because I thought that there was a good balance between molecular biology and physiology. Additionally, the lecturers often made sure to relate the lecture contents to how they applied in clinical medicine and in real life.

When starting the medical course, I quickly noticed that I had a strong foundation in human physiology compared to my fellow students. It seemed that a lot of other biomedical courses were more heavily focused on the molecular and cellular aspect of biology.

Another key advantage that the biomedical science course at Sheffield offered me was the anatomy module, which was by far my favourite part of the course.

Even though I had not studied anatomy for over 2 years before starting it in medical school, everything came back to me very quickly and made that part of the course very easy for me

Mélina Li How Cheong

BSc Biomedical Science

In second and third year, we got to do dissections on cadavers, an invaluable experience as not all universities can offer this. Even a lot of medical schools nowadays do not have the facilities to offer dissections as part of their anatomy course.

The quality of teaching was of a very high standard which gave me a thorough understanding of human anatomy. Therefore, even though I had not studied anatomy for over 2 years before starting it in medical school, everything came back to me very quickly and made that part of the course very easy for me.

Additionally, after graduating, I had the opportunity to work as an Anatomy Demonstrator for a semester at the University of Sheffield, which gave me valuable work experience in teaching, as well as allowing me to further consolidate my knowledge of human anatomy.

Soon I will be starting my clinical rotations. I do not yet know what specialty I will be going into as I want to keep an open mind and explore as I work in different departments. One thing I do know is that I want to get involved in teaching at some point in my career.

It is through my experience as an

health

WH communications director Farah says science office’s COVID statement was ‘poorly worded’

October 28, 2020 [email protected]_84 communications, COVID, director, Farah, Offices, Poorly, science, statement, worded

White House strategic communications director Alyssa Farah clarified a White House statement regarding the coronavirus pandemic on “America’s Newsroom.”

The White House’s science policy office was criticized for listing “ending the COVID-19 pandemic” as one of President Trump’s accomplishments in a press release, which Farah said was “poorly worded.”

“Cases are still rising and we need the American public to remain vigilant,” she said. “This is the top priority of the president, defeating this virus and rebuilding our economy. But we are rounding the corner because we think that we will have a vaccine by the end of the year, and because of the president’s leadership, we expect that we’ll be able to massively deploy that on a large scale to as many as 100 million Americans by the end of the year.”

TRUMP INSISTS US ‘ROUNDING THE TURN’ ON CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC AT NEW HAMPSHIRE RALLY

The Office of Science and Technology Policy statement read: “From the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Administration has taken decisive actions to engage scientists and health professionals in academia, industry, and government to understand, treat, and defeat the disease.”

As of Wednesday morning, the U.S. had reported more than 8,779,655 coronavirus cases and at least 226,722 deaths, as several areas of the country struggle to contain surging cases.

“Does the White House — the president — believe the virus has been defeated?” host Sandra Smith asked.

TRUMP, BIDEN CLASH OVER CORONAVIRUS REOPENING PLANS

“No, absolutely not,” Farah replied. “That was poorly worded. I think that the intent was to say that it is our goal to end the virus.”

She pointed to Trump’s leadership amid the pandemic, saying there will be more positive announcements coming soon from the White House.

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“We are rushing therapeutics. … We’ve got remdesivir on the market that people are able to use. We’ve got monoclonal antibodies. We’ve got steroids that are able to be used to treat the most vulnerable. We have massive testing and the ability to isolate cases,” Farah concluded. “We are in the best position to date to treat the virus than we have been at any time.”

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health

White House science office lists ‘ending’ COVID pandemic as cases soar.

October 28, 2020 [email protected]_84 Cases, COVID, house, lists, Office, pandemic, science, soar, White

R-0 may be the most important scientific term you’ve never heard of when it comes to stopping the coronavirus pandemic.

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON – The White House’s science policy office on Tuesday listed “ending the COVID-19 pandemic” among the Trump administration’s first-term accomplishments, as the United States breaks records for new coronavirus cases daily.

A press release from the Office of Science and Technology Policy lists the “decisive actions to engage scientists and health professionals in academia, industry, and government to understand, treat, and defeat the disease” as a success.

However, the disease has not been defeated, and the White House has signaled they are not going to be able to control it before a vaccine is available.

More: Donald Trump made many promises in 2016 and early in his term. Which has he kept and what is he still working on?

The U.S. reported 489,769 COVID-19 cases in just the last week, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data. It’s another record high since July when the nation saw a peak in cases.

The death rate has also edged back up to about 800 Americans per day, a level not seen in more than a month, and the seven-day average of daily new cases is nearly 70,000. According to the Covid Tracking Project, nearly 43,000 people are hospitalized with COVID-19.

President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, said Sunday that the Trump administration is “not going to control the pandemic” before a vaccine is available because COVID-19 “is a contagious virus.”

More: ‘We’re not going to control the pandemic,’ Meadows says

Fact check: COVID-19 vaccine won’t be ready in weeks, nor mandatory

Leading health officials, such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, have maintained that a vaccine likely won’t be widely available until mid-2021.

Health officials have stressed preventative measures, such as face coverings and social distancing, as a way to control the spread. The Trump White House and campaign have flouted some of these measures by defying state orders and federal health guidelines. Trump rallies, for example, have left a trail of coronavirus outbreaks.

More: Trump’s campaign made stops nationwide. Coronavirus cases surged in his wake in at least five places.

Trump has consistently downplayed the severity of coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic, saying it’s “going to disappear” approximately 40 times, according to CNN, even as health officials are sounding the alarms as winter approaches.

Hospitals across the country have been straining with a flood of new cases, with some state’s considering rationing health care. Medical care sites are being created, and some daily curfews have also been implemented.

El Paso issues daily curfew as COVID-19 patients flood hospitals: ‘We are in a crisis stage’

As of Tuesday, the U.S. has recorded more than 8.7 million cases and around 226,000 deaths, more than any other country.

Contributing: Adrianna Rodriguez, Jessica Flores, Mike Stucka, David Jackson, Matthew Brown, Christal Hayes, Adrienne Dunn; USA TODAY

Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/10/27/white-house-science-office-lists-ending-covid-pandemic-cases-soar/3753312001/

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White House science office says Trump ended COVID-19 pandemic as US hits record cases

October 27, 2020 [email protected]_84 Cases, COVID19, ended, hits, house, Office, pandemic, record, science, Trump, White

The White House science office listed “ending the COVID-19 pandemic” as the top accomplishment of President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump admin to announce coronavirus vaccine will be covered under Medicare, Medicaid: report Election officials say they’re getting suspicious emails that may be part of malicious attack on voting: report McConnell tees up Trump judicial pick following Supreme Court vote MORE‘s first term, even as the U.S. has set records for new daily infections and numerous hospitals across the country are stretched to their breaking points.

According to a press release intending to highlight the administration’s science accomplishments, the Trump administration said it “has taken decisive actions to engage scientists and health professionals in academia, industry, and government to understand, treat, and defeat the disease.”

The rosy outlook flies in the face of reality, and underscores the efforts of Trump to continuously try to downplay the severity of the pandemic that continues to rage nearly uncontrolled across the country.

As of Tuesday, more than 226,000 people in the U.S. have died from COVID-19. The seven-day average of new cases is nearly 70,000, a record number that is only expected to get worse. Hospitalizations and deaths are also climbing steadily upward. According to the COVID Tracking Project, there are more than 42,000 people hospitalized with COVID-19, up from about 30,000 just a month ago.

Meanwhile, Trump has been holding rallies with thousands of people and minimal physical distancing or mask-wearing. He says the country is “rounding the turn,” has attacked the media for focusing too much on COVID-19 and claimed the rise in cases is merely because the U.S. is testing more people.

The office of Vice President Pence is dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak a week before the election, and White House chief of staff Mark MeadowsMark Randall MeadowsOvernight Health Care: US sets a new record for average daily coronavirus cases | Meadows on pandemic response: ‘We’re not going to control it’ | Pelosi blasts Trump for not agreeing to testing strategy Hillicon Valley: Hospitals brace for more cyberattacks as coronavirus cases rise | Food service groups offer local alternatives to major delivery apps | Facebook says it helped 4.4M people register to vote Trump is cruising for a bruising MORE is under fire for saying the country is not going to control the virus.

Public health experts say that as the fall and winter progress, the situation is going to get much worse. Former Food and Drug Administration chief Scott Gottlieb said on CNBC Monday that the U.S. was at a “tipping point” of exponential spread in much of the country.

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medicine

As STAT turns 5, a look back at science and medicine’s biggest headlines

October 26, 2020 [email protected]_84 Biggest, Headlines, Medicines, science, STAT, turns

The past five years have been packed with medical and scientific advances, a series of public health crises that have gripped the world, and uproar over rising prescription drug costs.

They’ve also been a heck of a time to launch a publication about health and medicine.

As STAT celebrates its five-year anniversary, our reporters took a look back at six areas we’ve covered closely — CRISPR, infectious disease, the opioid crisis, drug pricing, AI in medicine, and cell and gene therapy — to recap the biggest headlines and controversies and cast an eye to what may lie ahead.

CRISPR: A Nobel, He Jiankui’s bombshell, and an ugly patent fight

Even before STAT published its first stories, we knew CRISPR would be big: Breakthrough scientific papers in 2012 and early 2013 showed that this technique for changing the DNA of plants and animals was so easy to use that labs across the world would seize on it to understand basic biological processes as well as develop cures for genetic diseases. That’s why my first story for STAT profiled one of CRISPR’s inventors, biologist Feng Zhang of the Broad Institute. Check out his “Twinkle, twinkle, little star” analogy.

Sure enough, just five years later, CRISPR became Nobel big: Earlier this month, biochemist Jennifer Doudna of the University of California, Berkeley, and microbiologist Emmanuelle Charpentier of the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for their discovery of the CRISPR-Cas9 genetic scissors. The award was the first science Nobel won by two women.

What I never suspected was how fast a CRISPR nightmare might come true, how agonizingly long drug development takes, and what an ugly fight over patents CRISPR would spawn.

CRISPR’s inventors knew from the get-go that it would be theoretically possible to use the technique to alter the genes of human embryos, creating “designer babies.” That seemed like something a rogue researcher might try in, oh, 10 years. Yet there I was in Hong Kong in November 2018, at the second international conference on human genome editing, when China’s He Jiankui dropped his bombshell: He’d CRISPR’d human embryos, resulting in the birth of twin, genetically altered girls. That ignited a firestorm of condemnation and hand-wringing that the global scientific community hadn’t tried hard enough to stop him.

Also in the hand-wringing category: The fight over CRISPR patents between the Broad Institute and the University of California has been an eye-opener with its legal costs (well into eight figures; think of the science that would buy), ugly accusations, and sheer persistence.

Two happier CRISPR surprises: significant improvements on the original technique and the growing list of human diseases it might treat or cure, if success in lab mice is any indication.

With several companies as well as academic scientists already using CRISPR in clinical trials, one message from 2015 has stuck: CRISPR might actually live up to its hype, becoming the powerhouse genetic cure scientists dreamed of.

— Sharon Begley

Infectious disease: From

health

What is a foot fetish? The science behind it

October 22, 2020 [email protected]_84 fetish, foot, science

A foot fetish, or podophilia, is where feet, legs, stockings, shoes, or socks trigger sexual arousal in a person. People with fetishes become sexually aroused by certain things or specific body parts, such as the feet.

Keep reading to learn more about what a foot fetish is, the science behind it, why people have fetishes, and how to introduce them into a relationship.

Researchers propose several explanations for how and why people develop foot fetishes.

One of the first people to study these behaviors was Sigmund Freud, who believed that fetishes arose during early childhood. He suggested that when a child saw their mother’s genitals, they were shocked to find that their mother did not have a penis, leading to a fixation on objects or body parts that looked like penises.

In the case of foot fetishes, Freud’s theory states that they occur because a person perceives the foot or toes as a penis substitute.

Another hypothesis argues that they occur due to learning that being attracted to feet leads to a reward. Research suggests that people can link a typically non-erotic object or body part to arousal through positive feedback and a monetary prize.

One researcher proposes that the fetish is due to sensory input in the brain. The neuroscientist Vilayanur Ramachandran suggests that the part of the brain that processes the sensation people get from feet is next to the area that perceives genital stimulation, which may account for some people’s foot fetishes.

Researchers suggest several theories to explain why people have fetishes. However, it is unlikely that only one hypothesis can explain why they exist. It is probable that many reasons, such as behavioral, social, and cultural factors, work together to play a part.

Psychoanalytic theories

Researchers who psychoanalyze human behavior, such as Freud, have several ideas about how fetishes happen. The overarching theory is that an event occurs during a person’s childhood, causing them to develop the fetish.

Within this area of psychoanalysis, a second theory is that people may fixate on a certain object during childhood, which causes them to sexually fixate upon it by seeing it as a ‘good’ object.

Another idea is that people may regress, becoming aroused by objects or body parts that remind them of their childhood.

Behavioral factors

There is also a theory that conditioning and learning are responsible for the formation of fetishes. This means that people can learn to be aroused by certain objects or body parts through a reward system, such as physical closeness, ejaculation, or even money.

Sexual instinct

Another theory is that hormones and emotions drive people to imprint their arousal on to certain objects. These hormones and emotions allow them to respond to certain stimuli sexually.

Socialization

The way a community socializes may also contribute to the formation of fetishes in people. Certain communities may place more importance on specific body parts and sexual practices, which may lead to the fetishization of objects and body parts.

Cultural factors

Another theory suggests that communities are

medicine

Program Nationally Recognized for Bringing American Indian Students to Careers in Science and Medicine

October 22, 2020 [email protected]_84 american, Bringing, careers, Indian, medicine, Nationally, Program, Recognized, science, students

Media Contacts

Associate Director, Science Communications, University of Utah Health
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 801-587-1293

Oct 21, 2020 10:00 PM

A University of Utah Health Department of Pediatrics program that supports academic, career, and personal development of American Indian / Alaska Native (AI/AN) undergraduates from across the country has received recognition from the National Indian Health Board. The National Impact Award honors individuals and organizations whose work has made an impact on AI/AN health care on a national level. The Native American Research Internship (NARI) program was one of six recipients to receive the prestigious honor this year.

This award elevates the visibility of American Indian health care issues in the state of Utah and across the country,” says Scott Willie, NARI alumni and program coordinator. “NARI represents a small piece in the circle that has significantly increased the awareness of the need for more AI/AN researchers and health care providers. This award signifies the hope and prayers that our ancestors had for the future health and wellness of our communities.

Launched in 2010, NARI was built on the guiding principal that eliminating health disparities hinges on recruitment, education, and training of the most talented scientists in the US. The program accomplishes this goal by providing hands-on research experience with University of Utah faculty and intensive mentoring to American Indian students who are interested in health science careers. The National Institutes of Health-funded program brings students to the U from around the country for 10 weeks each summer.

““The fires ignited here can bring light to our tribes for generations.”

Unique to the program is the mentoring support provided to students as many navigate the world of biomedical research for the first time. Students meet with academic mentors about research in addition to mentors from the larger regional AI/AN community, who help them integrate their identity inside and outside of the research environment. In weekly talking circles, interns learn from one another as they discuss challenges and shared experiences. NARI students credit the personalized approach for making all the difference.

“…Even more important than the networking this program has provided is the great job it has done in fostering and strengthening our self-identity as future physicians,” one participant said in a survey. “The fires ignited here can bring light to our tribes for generation.

alt=" — Gloria Slattum, PhD, Maija Holsti, MD, Scott Willie

In its ten years, NARI has been a resounding success, with 128 participants representing 46 different tribal nations and 57 colleges and universities completing the internship. Of those, none have dropped out of college; so far, 53% have gone on to either medical or graduate school and 28% are employed in biomedical research. In addition, all students surveyed last year reported improvements in research skills, oral and written presentations, and knowledge of health disparities within AI/AN communities.

“I am most proud of the resilience, perseverance, and wonderful accomplishments of our NARI students,” says Maija Holsti, M.D., NARI director. “The NARI program hopes to continue to

health

Trump’s broadsides against science put GOP governors in a bind

October 21, 2020 [email protected]_84 bind, broadsides, GOP, governors, put, science, Trumps

“These numbers will not change unless we change,” DeWine said Tuesday. “By more of us wearing masks, by more of us avoiding situations where there can be spread and just really being careful, we can turn this heat down and get back to a simmer of this virus instead of the flame that’s coming up.”

Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee on Tuesday announced a new statewide ad campaign promoting face coverings, saying wearing a mask is the only way people can safely return to their routines. The number of Covid patients in the state’s intensive care units is up 40 percent since Oct. 1.

Mississippi GOP Gov. Tate Reeves on Monday said that hospitals in his state must be able to reserve at least 10 percent of their beds for coronavirus patients or cancel elective procedures. He also issued a mask mandate and limited indoor gatherings to 10 people and outdoor gatherings to 50 people in nine counties.

“We’re trying to prevent so many individuals from getting the virus at once that our health care system cannot respond,” Reeves said.

The push by Republican governors whose states are in danger of being overrun by a new wave of infections and hospitalizations reflects the disconnect between politicians who are fighting the virus’ real effects on the ground and Trump’s reelection campaign, which is trying to project optimism that the country is turning the corner on infections, even though the statistics don’t back him up.

Hospitals in Utah and Wisconsin are at or near capacity, while facilities in Texas and Indiana battle medical staff shortages. Nationally, the number of people hospitalized with Covid-19 has climbed 20 percent in the two weeks since Trump left Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after contracting the virus. And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Tuesday that the pandemic has resulted in 299,000 excess deaths from late January to Oct. 3 — a toll members of Trump’s own administration say is sure to sharply increase.

“We’re going straight up again with the number of cases happening each day,” NIH Director Francis Collins warned in an NPR interview Tuesday. “Hospitalizations are up … and I’m afraid, inevitably, that is going to result in an increase in deaths, because that’s what happens every time with about a two- or three-week delay.”

But with less than two weeks until the election, the president has insisted that coronavirus concerns are exaggerated, called the government’s leading infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci an “idiot” and a “disaster” and relied more heavily on Scott Atlas — a coronavirus task force member who backs protecting vulnerable populations while loosening nearly all Covid-related restrictions and letting the virus spread unfettered among healthy people.

Collins said Tuesday that Trump has also stopped meeting with the rest of the task force even as cases and hospitalizations surge and as public health experts warn that the colder weather and approaching holiday season will send more Americans indoors, where the virus more easily spreads.

Trump’s message

health

AB Science announces positive top-line Phase 3 results for oral masitinib in severe asthma

October 20, 2020 [email protected]_84 Announces, asthma, masitinib, oral, Phase, positive, Results, science, severe, topline

Paris, October 20, 2020, 9.15pm

AB Science announces positive top-line Phase 3 results
for oral masitinib in severe asthma

This is the second Phase 3 study to demonstrate efficacy for masitinib in severe asthma

AB Science SA (Euronext – FR0010557264 – AB) today announced that the Phase 3 study (AB14001) evaluating oral masitinib in severe asthma uncontrolled by high-dose inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) and with eosinophil level >150 cells/μL met its primary endpoint.

The pre-specified primary analysis was rate of severe asthma exacerbations, with masitinib demonstrating a statistically significant 29% reduction in severe exacerbations relative to placebo (p=0.022). The frequency of severe asthma exacerbations was 0.43 in the masitinib arm, versus 0.62 in the placebo arm. Duration of exposure was well-balanced between the treatment-arms (16 months in the masitinib arm and 17 months in the placebo arm). Sensitivity analysis based on the rate of moderate and severe asthma exacerbations was consistent with the primary analysis and detected a statistically significant 31% reduction in exacerbations (p=0.005) between masitinib and placebo. The frequency of moderate and severe asthma exacerbations was 0.55 in the masitinib arm, versus 0.80 in the placebo arm.

This is the second time that masitinib has demonstrated efficacy in reducing severe asthma exacerbations in patients with severe asthma. The treatment effect observed in study AB14001 is comparable with the effect previously reported for study AB07015. In that first phase 3 study, which evaluated masitinib in severe asthma uncontrolled by oral corticosteroids (OCS), masitinib significantly (p=0.010) reduced the rate of severe asthma exacerbations by 35% as compared with placebo. The frequency of severe asthma exacerbations in study AB07015 was 0.34 in the masitinib arm, versus 0.45 in the placebo arm. Duration of exposure was also well-balanced between the treatment arms (13 months in both treatment arms).
Safety was consistent with the known tolerability profile for masitinib.

Detailed results will be presented at an upcoming medical meeting.

The study AB14001 enrolled patients with blood eosinophil level >150 cells/μL, which differs from the population usually addressed by biological treatments, targeting patients with high eosinophils (>300 cells/μL or above) defined as Th2-high eosinophilic asthma.

Masitinib is a first in class drug in severe asthma, distinct from biological treatments targeting type-2 high eosinophilic phenotypes of asthma. Masitinib has a dual mechanism of action, targeting mast cells and PDGFR signaling that are both involved in airway remodeling associated with severe asthma. It has also been shown that increased mast cell activity is associated with both eosinophilic (Th2-high) and non-eosinophilic (Th2-low) asthma phenotypes. Furthermore, masitinib is orally administered, whereas biologics are sub-cutaneous, which is an advantage because oral administration is less of a burden for patients and facilitates compliance for long-term use.

There is still a need for effective therapy of patients with severe asthma. Biologics are established in first line treatment in severe asthma patients with blood eosinophil levels of ≥300 cells/µL. However, these therapies have limited efficacy in reducing severe asthma exacerbations for severe asthmatics with blood eosinophil levels of <300 cells/µL. In

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science

Science and medicine were part of my life | Times Online

What I’m doing now: from Biomedical Science to Medicine | Biosciences at Sheffield

WH communications director Farah says science office’s COVID statement was ‘poorly worded’

White House science office lists ‘ending’ COVID pandemic as cases soar.

White House science office says Trump ended COVID-19 pandemic as US hits record cases

As STAT turns 5, a look back at science and medicine’s biggest headlines

CRISPR: A Nobel, He Jiankui’s bombshell, and an ugly patent fight

Infectious disease: From

What is a foot fetish? The science behind it

Psychoanalytic theories

Behavioral factors

Sexual instinct

Socialization

Cultural factors

Program Nationally Recognized for Bringing American Indian Students to Careers in Science and Medicine

Media Contacts

Julie Kiefer

Trump’s broadsides against science put GOP governors in a bind

AB Science announces positive top-line Phase 3 results for oral masitinib in severe asthma

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