medicine

Federal health officials said Monday that patients taking a Bristol-Myers Squibb drug for HIV are at risk of a rare, but potentially fatal, liver disorder.

U.S. researchers have found a way to coax human embryonic stem cells to turn into the types of cells that make eggs and sperm, shedding light on a stage of early human development that has not been fully understood.

A new consortium has been formed to boost drug development for the treatment of two deadly diseases, African sleeping sickness and Leishmaniasis, which affect millions of people worldwide. A total budget of nearly 3.6 million euros has been allocated over the next 4 years, to develop effective drugs for these diseases. The consortium includes IOTA Pharmaceuticals, Mercachem, Nycomed, the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative, the Royal Tropical Institute, the University of Bern, the VU University Amsterdam and TI Pharma.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Tekturna HCT((R)) (aliskiren and hydrochlorothiazide) tablets as initial therapy for patients who are likely to need multiple drugs to achieve their blood pressure goals. Tekturna HCT is a single-pill combination of Tekturna((R)) (aliskiren), the first and only approved direct renin inhibitor, and the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), one of the most commonly-used high blood pressure medications.

Human Genome Sciences Inc said on Monday its experimental drug, which was developed with GlaxoSmithKline, to treat lupus was successful in a late-stage clinical trial.