News

The second annual Napa in Newport drew more than 420 guests in a sold-out event that raised more than $700,000 to help to find a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The money will go to CureDuchenne, a nonprofit dedicated to finding a cure for Duchenne. The event was chaired by Darioush and Shahpar…

Scientists have discovered why fetal muscle stem cells are better at regenerating muscle than adult muscle stem cells. These findings open new avenues for the treatment of muscular dystrophies. Researchers from Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, based in La Jolla, California, and Orlando, Florida, investigated the properties of different cells in a study…

The Precision Medicine Initiative was launched in 2015 to spur biomedical research and the development of a more personalized approach to therapy, one based on an individual’s genetic profile and response to treatment. While the initiative largely focuses on genetically based cancers, a University of Wisconsin-Madison review points out that Emery–Dreifuss muscular…

Ways of better addressing the high cost of breakthrough treatments that either are or might soon be available for a range of chronic and rare diseases, from certain cancers to Duchenne muscular dystrophy (Âé¶¹Éç) or Becker’s muscular dystrophy (BMD), was the subject of recent research — with the authors suggesting that healthcare…

Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, has treated the first Duchenne muscular dystrophy patient with related cardiomyopathy with its drug candidate CAP-1002, and is continuing to enroll people in its HOPE-Duchenne (Halt cardiomyOPathy progrEssion in Duchenne) Phase I/II clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02485938). CAP-1002 is a proprietary allogeneic,…

Tarix Orphan LLC recently announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug designation to TXA127, the company’s lead candidate for the treatment of laminin-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy (LAMA2 MD). Early-onset LAMA2-related muscular dystrophy (MD) occurs in nearly one in every 30,000 people and is responsible for…

Pfizer, in collaboration with Newcastle University, reports finding four serum biomarkers for three types of muscular dystrophy. The markers may be valuable for monitoring disease progression and treatment response in both preclinical and clinical studies. Researchers analyzed previously collected serum samples from three types of muscular dystrophies — 38 Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) and…