Electromagnetic energy in the brain enables brain matter to create our consciousness and our ability to be aware and think, according to a new theory developed by Professor Johnjoe McFadden from the University of Surrey.Publishing his theory in the eminent Oxford University Press journal Neuroscience of Consciousness, Professor McFadden posits that consciousness is in fact the brains energy field. This theory could pave the way towards the development of conscious AI, with robots that are aware and have the ability to think becoming a reality.

Early theories on what our consciousness is and how it has been created tended towards the supernatural, suggesting that humans and probably other animals possess an immaterial soul that confers consciousness, thought and free will capabilities that inanimate objects lack. Most scientists today have discarded this view, known as dualism, to embrace a monistic view of a consciousness generated by the brain itself and its network of billions of nerves. By contrast, McFadden proposes a scientific form of dualism based on the difference between matter and energy, rather than matter and soul.

The theory is based on scientific fact: when neurons in the brain and nervous system fire, they not only send the familiar electrical signal down the wire-like nerve fibres, but they also send a pulse of electromagnetic energy into the surrounding tissue. Such energy is usually disregarded, yet it carries the same information as nerve firings, but as an immaterial wave of energy, rather than a flow of atoms in and out of the nerves.

This electromagnetic field is well-known and is routinely detected by brain-scanning techniques such as electroencephalogram (EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) but has previously been dismissed as irrelevant to brain function. Instead, McFadden proposes that the brains information- rich electromagnetic field is in fact itself the seat of consciousness, driving free will and voluntary actions. This new theory also accounts for why, despite their immense complexity and ultra-fast operation, todays computers have not exhibited the slightest spark of consciousness; however, with the right technical development, robots that are aware and can think for themselves could become a reality.

Johnjoe McFadden, Professor of Molecular Genetics and Director of the Quantum Biology Doctoral Training Centre at the University of Surrey, said: How brain matter becomes aware and manages to think is a mystery that has been pondered by philosophers, theologians, mystics and ordinary people for millennia. I believe this mystery has now been solved, and that consciousness is the experience of nerves plugging into the brains self-generated electromagnetic field to drive what we call free will and our voluntary actions.

Reference: McFadden J. Integrating information in the brains EM field: the cemi field theory of consciousness. Neurosci Conscious. 2020;2020(1). doi:10.1093/nc/niaa016

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New Theory Suggests Consciousness Is the Brain's "Energy Field" - Technology Networks

According to a new theory developed by Professor Johnjoe McFadden from the University of Surrey, consciousness is the brains energy field. The brains electromagnetic energy enables brain matter to create our consciousness and our ability to be aware and think.

Prof. McFadden believes that this theory could help develop conscious AI, with robots aware and can think of becoming a reality.

Early hypotheses on our consciousness and how it has been created tended toward the supernatural, recommending that humans and probably different animals have an immaterial soul that confers consciousness, thought, and choiceabilities that inanimate objects lack.

Today, most researchers have disposed of this view, known as dualism, to grasp a monistic perspective on consciousness produced by the brain itself and its network of billions of nerves. Conversely, McFadden proposes a scientific form of dualism dependent on the contrast among issue and energy, as opposed to matter and soul.

The hypothesis depends on scientific fact: when neurons in the brain and nervous system fire, they not just impart the recognizable electrical sign down the wire-like nerve fibers, yet they likewise send pulse of electromagnetic energy into the surrounding tissue. Such energy is normally dismissed, yet it conveys similar data as nerve firings, however, as an irrelevant wave of energy, instead of a progression of particles all through the nerves.

McFadden proposes that the brains information-rich electromagnetic field is, in fact, itself the seat of consciousness, driving free will and voluntary actions. This new theory also accounts for why, despite their immense complexity and ultra-fast operation, todays computers have not exhibited the slightest spark of consciousness; however, with the right technical development, robots aware and can think for themselves could become a reality.

Johnjoe McFadden, Professor of Molecular Genetics and Director of the Quantum Biology Doctoral Training Centre at the University of Surrey, said:How brain matter becomes aware and manages to think is a mystery that has been pondered by philosophers, theologians, mystics and ordinary people for millennia. I believe this mystery has now been solved. That consciousness is the experience of nerves plugging into the brains self-generated electromagnetic field to drive what we call free will and our voluntary actions.

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A new theory of consciousness - Tech Explorist

As the Jonas Salk Chair for Vaccine Research and professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at the University of Pittsburgh, Paul Duprex has been leading the local effort to create candidate vaccines for COVID-19.

In March, he joined an international team of scientists in using the tried and true measles vaccinea weakened form of the virus Duprex has been studying for decadesas the basis for a new candidate vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. Phase 1 testing began in August.

More recently, Duprex joined forces with the massive global vaccine maker Serum Institute of India, which already produces vaccines for two-thirds of the worlds children, to manufacture a similar measles-based SARS-CoV-2 candidate vaccine developed solely at Pitt.

On Oct. 15 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. ET, Duprex will sit on a panel with vaccine experts from March of Dimes, Johns Hopkins, CDC Foundation and Pitt for a discussion about the challenges that lay ahead. The event is free and open to the public.Attendees must register at the Wilson Center website.

UPMC science writer Erin Hare caught up with Duprex in the Center for Vaccine Research, where he serves as director.

Think of a telephone. A telephone is very different in the 1960s compared to the cell phone that you carry in your pocket today. So, just imagine the same analogy and apply that to vaccines.

We can make vaccines in new ways. The toolkit is enormously large now, compared to what it was way back when. That doesn't mean that we don't do the same types of vaccines that were made in the 1960syes, that's part of the portfolio of vaccines, but there are many more vaccines available.

For instance, we can genetically engineer viruses. We can make one virus look like another virus. Or, we can take bits of genetic material and not even introduce proteins, which are normally recognized by the immune system. We can introduce the RNA, which makes the protein, which then is recognized by the immune system.

That's just examples of new ways to think about new vaccines, 65 years on.

One of the advantages is that we have studied coronaviruses for many years. So, we understand a bit about which parts of the coronavirus can be used to make a good immune response.

The other thing which is interesting about coronaviruses is they're really big viruses, and they have the ability to correct mistakes whenever they replicate, so any mutation gets fixed straight away. That's good for us because that means the virus doesn't change much the way some other viruses do.

Like, for example, influenza. Influenza mixes it up all the time. HIV mixes it up all the time. But because SARS-CoV-2 has this drive to keep itself the same, that means the likelihood of changing is less. Plus, the virus just has one genetic segment, so it's not like influenza. So, instead of shuffling a pack of cardsthe genetic material of influenzaSARS-CoV-2 can just play around with one sequence.

So those are all good things for us.

Hard things for us? Well, it's a brand-new virus. So, we still have to understand this relatively young virus. We have to understand a lot more about the biology of it. And, of course, the world is working hard on understanding the biology of SARS-CoV-2.

We need so many because the first vaccine may not always be the best vaccine. It may work, but it might not work as efficiently as some of the other ones, which just take a bit longer to bring through the pipeline of development.

So, it's the same as that old analogy: You shouldn't keep all of your eggs in one basket. It's good to have multiple baskets for your eggs. And it's pretty good to have multiple approaches to deal with a virus that's rather new. The other part of having multiple approaches is we just don't know how long the immune response will last. And therefore we can't assume too much until we have the data.

So, it's all driven by science. Science is creative. People are creative. People come up with many ways to get to the same end point, and that's why we need lots of different sorts of vaccines.

Well, I think one of the things that gives me hope is there are a lot of individuals working on the problem. The world is focusedthe virology community, the immunology community and many other disciplinesare laser focused on solving this problem. People have developed vaccines in the past. So, that gives me hope. But also what we have to remember is vaccines are not easy.

The average time to make a vaccine is 10 and a half years. And if you think about HIV, it pulls that average way up, because 36 years after identifying that virus, we still don't have a vaccine. So therefore vaccines are hard, but vaccines have led to the eradication of infectious diseases, and vaccines have done so much for human health. They consistently deliver, they consistently live up to their expectations, and they have delivered so many people who otherwise would not be here because vaccines actually work.

So, what gives me hope? Vaccines work.

First and foremost, I'm sympathetic to individuals who are trying their best to understand something which is familiar to scientiststhe process of vaccine developmentbut very foreign to the general public. No vaccine has ever been developed under the microscope like these candidate vaccines for SARS-CoV-2.

We also get our news from many different sources. We have social media, we have regular mediawe have this tsunami of information. And that's what makes it really hard for the public to weed through, because not all of that information is equivalent.

So, what's important is to get information from verified, validated, sound sourcesto look at the evidence produced by science. And the evidence says that vaccines work. That does not mean that vaccines work perfectly. Sometimes the influenza vaccine's great, sometimes in one particular year, for whatever reason, it just doesn't work as well. But we don't undermine all the vaccines because we do not get to perfection.

And we do realize that there are side effects, adverse events that happen. And that's why it's really important as we do vaccine development, clinical trials in the here and now, that we use all of the standard approaches in phase 1, phase 2, phase 3 clinical trials, to understand any potential effects, whatever that could be. And we only license safe, efficacious and life-giving vaccines.

What you also have to remember is these companies do much more than make a coronavirus vaccine. Some of them have made vaccines for many years. Some of them have never made a vaccine at all. So, there's an example of why I could be sympathetic and understand the population looking at it and thinking we're going to license something that has never been used before. But remember that these companies have reputations, they have other products, they have history, they have a brand, they are known and it's very unlikely a private company will throw all of that reputation in the air just to be first with unsafe, untested, non-satisfactory coronavirus vaccine.

Vaccines are not just produced and marketed and sold without a lot of care and a lot of attention to how they are made, tested and licensed.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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Q&A: Paul Duprex on the Promise of a COVID-19 Vaccine - UPJ Athletics

HAMBURG, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / October 19, 2020 / Topas Therapeutics GmbH (Topas), a Hamburg, Germany-based private platform company leveraging the natural immune tolerance induction capabilities of the liver, today announced the appointment of Klaus Martin, Ph.D., as Chief Executive Officer. Effective August 1, 2020, Dr. Martin replaced Timm Jessen, Ph.D., who resigned for personal reasons. Dr. Jessen will remain with Topas in a consulting capacity to ensure a smooth transition.

Dr. Martin joins Topas from Toronto-based Apobiologix, Apotex' biotechnology division, where he had served as President since 2018. During his tenure, he led the development, sales & marketing and operational organization and played a key role in Apobiologix' registrations, partnerships and in achieving a market leadership position. Prior to that, he was Chief Scientific Officer of Polpharma Biologics, the biologics arm of Polpharma S.A., where he set up the organization and managed all portfolio, licensing and late-stage development activities for biosimilar and innovative biologics. Previously, he worked at Sandoz Biopharmaceuticals, both in Germany and Austria, most recently serving as Global Head Business Development & Licensing (BD&L) and Portfolio Management where he drove the portfolio strategy and managed all licensing negotiations. While at Sandoz Biopharmaceuticals, he also served in global development management functions and during that time supported the registration of Sandoz's first three biosimilars in the U.S., Europe, Canada and Japan. Dr. Martin holds a Ph.D. in molecular genetics from Cambridge University and Darwin College, United Kingdom.

Erich F. Greiner, M.D., Chairman of the Supervisory Board, said: "We are delighted to have Klaus join Topas. He is an accomplished biotech leader with a proven track record in development and operations, as well as partnering and commercialization. His transatlantic experience managing all stages of the biotechnology value chain and in growing businesses are a great fit for Topas as the Company advances its pipeline."

Dr. Greiner continued: "On behalf of the entire Board, I would like to warmly thank Timm Jessen, who founded Topas and has served as CEO since the Company's inception. He has successfully led Topas from discovery into the clinic, secured several pharmaceutical collaborations and successfully completed all financing rounds. We are extremely pleased that he will remain as a consultant to ensure a smooth transition and very much look forward to working with him in his new role."

Klaus Martin, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, said: "Topas has a novel and compelling technology platform with the potential to develop promising treatments where new options for patients are urgently needed. I am excited to lead the Company and work with the Topas team to continue to grow and build our pipeline."

About Topas Therapeutics

Topas Therapeutics GmbH is a private Hamburg, Germany-based biotechnology company focused on developing nanoparticle-based therapeutics to address areas of major unmet need, including autoimmune diseases, allergies and anti-drug antibodies. The Topas Particle Conjugates technology platform induces antigen-specific immune tolerance by harnessing the liver's natural immunology capabilities. The Company has several proprietary programs; lead product candidate TPM203 has recently entered clinical testing for pemphigus vulgaris, an orphan disease. A second program, TPM 501, is being developed for the treatment of celiac disease. Other programs are in the area of anti-drug immune responses, such as in gene therapy and with anti-drug antibodies, and are available for partnering. Topas' investors are: BioMedPartners, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, EMBL Ventures, Epidarex Capital, Evotec, Gimv and Vesalius Biocapital III. For additional information, please visit http://www.topas-therapeutics.com.

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SOURCE: Topas Therapeutics GmbH via EQS Newswire

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Topas Therapeutics Appoints Klaus Martin, Ph.D. as Chief Executive Officer - BioSpace

NEW YORK, Oct. 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- n (Nasdaq: APLT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of novel drug candidates against validated molecular targets in indications of high unmet medical need, announced today that it will present two poster presentations covering AT-007 in Galactosemia at the upcoming American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2020 Annual Meeting. The presentations include animal model efficacy data and adult clinical data on the safety and biomarker efficacy of Applied Therapeutics investigational candidate for Galactosemia, AT-007, a Central Nervous System (CNS) penetrant Aldose Reductase Inhibitor (ARI).

We are pleased to present data on our Galactosemia program at the ASHG conference, said Riccardo Perfetti, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer of Applied Therapeutics. Our preclinical data demonstrates that reduction in galactitol, a toxic metabolite of galactose, prevents long-term CNS complications in an animal model of Galactosemia. In parallel, our clinical data from the ACTION-Galactosemia study demonstrates rapid and sustained reduction in galactitol with once-daily AT-007 treatment. Together, this data represents an important advancement in our understanding of the disease and a potential therapeutic intervention to halt disease progression.

Presentation Details

Poster #1881 (Abstract #3646): Positive Biomarker Efficacy Results from the ACTION-Galactosemia StudyPresenter: Riccardo Perfetti, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer of Applied TherapeuticsTime: Monday, October 26, 6:00 a.m. 11:59 p.m. EDT

Poster #1958 (Abstract #3647): Post-Natal Galactitol Reduction is Associated with Normalization of CNS Phenotype in Animal Model of GalactosemiaPresenter: Riccardo Perfetti, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer of Applied TherapeuticsTime: Monday, October 26, 6:00 a.m. 11:59 p.m. EDT

Slides will be available on the Presentations and Publications section of the Applied Therapeutics website following the conference.

About Applied TherapeuticsApplied Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of novel drug candidates against validated molecular targets in indications of high unmet medical need. The Companys lead drug candidate, AT-007, is a novel central nervous system penetrant aldose reductase inhibitor (ARI) for the treatment of Galactosemia, a rare pediatric metabolic disease. The Company initiated a pivotal Phase 1/2 clinical trial in June 2019, read out positive top-line biomarker data in adult Galactosemia patients in January 2020 and announced full data from the trial in April 2020. A pediatric Galactosemia study commenced in June 2020. The Company is also developing AT-001, a novel potent ARI that is being developed for the treatment of Diabetic Cardiomyopathy, or DbCM, a fatal fibrosis of the heart. The Company initiated a Phase 3 registrational study in DbCM in September 2019. The preclinical pipeline also includes AT-003, an ARI designed to cross through the back of the eye when dosed orally, for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy, as well as novel dual PI3k inhibitors in preclinical development for orphan oncology indications.

About AT-007

AT-007 is a central nervous system (CNS) penetrant Aldose Reductase inhibitor (ARI) in clinical development for treatment of Galactosemia. AT-007 has been studied in an animal model of Galactosemia, which demonstrated that AT-007 reduces toxic galactitol levels and prevents disease complications. Applied Therapeutics is conducting a biomarker based development program in patients with Galactosemia, based on the recently released industry guidance on drug development for low prevalence, slowly progressing rare metabolic diseases. The company received Orphan Designation for AT-007 for Galactosemia in May 2019 and Pediatric Rare Disease Voucher (PRV) designation in 2020.

Investors:Maeve Conneighton(212) 600-1902 orappliedtherapeutics@argotpartners.com

Media:Gleb Sagitovmedia@appliedtherapeutics.com

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Applied Therapeutics to Present Data on AT-007 for the Treatment of Galactosemia at the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) 2020 Annual Meeting...

As flu season approaches and scientists continue to work on a vaccine for COVID-19, Andrea Amalfitano, dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine and Osteopathic Heritage Foundation Endowed Professor of Pediatrics, Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, uses his expertise to shed light on how vaccines work and the process for creating new ones. The first of this two-part series addresses general questions about vaccines. The second part will address development of the COVID-19 vaccine.

How do vaccines work?

Vaccines work by introducing specific sub-portions, or antigens, of a desired target, like COVID-19, to the immune system in a manner that is safe and results in a training of the immune system should a vaccine recipient be subsequently exposed to COVID-19 naturally.The vaccinated individual will be able to ramp up an immune response that eliminates the COVID-19 much more rapidly than someone who was not vaccinated, thereby minimizing or completely preventing illness.

Our laboratories previously developed, for example, a vaccine platform for use against a variety of targets. This platform was created by genetically engineering a common cold virus to present antigens safely to the immune system. This unique vaccine platform has been safely used in hundreds of clinical trial participants targeting their cancers, and that safety record has allowed researchers to now test the platforms ability to induce beneficial immunity against the COVID-19 virus in human subjects as part of an FDA-approved Phase I clinical trial.

Confirming safety is key, and at this time it is more critical than ever that FDA regulations are maintained and followed, as these will help confirm that an approved vaccine is both effective and safe.Suspending FDA regulations at this crucial time would be the last thing I would recommend, for example, to hasten the approval of any potential COVID-19 vaccine.Suspending FDA oversight would undermine the trust the public would have in any other vaccine, therapeutic, test or other medical device subsequently approved by the FDA.

We hear a lot about the fast-tracking of a coronavirus vaccine. What is the usual time frame for creating a new vaccine?

Andrea Amalfitano, dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine and Osteopathic Heritage Foundation Endowed Professor of Pediatrics, Microbiology and Molecular Genetics.

In my experience as a clinician/scientist who has developed new vaccine technologies for various purposes, the track typically is multiple years. Fast-tracking is not the typical term applied to vaccines, as the brunt of the time required to get a new vaccine approved is devoted to confirming the vaccine can be scaled up consistently and also has no untoward side-effects, especially when it is planned to be administered to potentially millions of people.

Given that, the annual flu vaccine is what I would consider a fast-tracked vaccine, as it is essentially a novel vaccine every year. The reasons it can be fast-tracked are: 1) the long-standing safety record (decades) of developing and producing flu vaccines using tried and true scale-up methods, 2) long-standing blood tests that consistently measure, and then correlate the amount of anti-flu antibodies generated by each annual flu vaccine with ultimate potential for efficacy.

What are the steps or phases of researching a new vaccine?

Typically, any new drug, vaccine or other form of medical therapeutic or device goes through three phases of clinical trials prior to receiving approval for generalized usage. Phase I studies typically involve dose testing and safety studies in normal human volunteers, as appropriate. Phase II studies involve using optimal doses of the new drug or vaccine in those potentially benefitting from the therapeutic, for example, a new drug to treat high blood pressure being evaluated in patients with high blood pressure. For flu vaccines, this phase would attempt to note how many anti-flu antibodies are produced by the potential new vaccine, and if these antibody levels are above the known thresholds required to have a good vaccine. Phase III studies typically involve testing the new therapeutic in trial subjects as compared to use of currently available therapeutics for the same disease indication to verify it is an improvement.

For flu vaccines, and more specifically COVID-19-specific vaccines, this phase may include asking clinical trial participants to receive a potential COVID-19 vaccine and monitor the rate of COVID-19 infection by these vaccine recipients over time. If the COVID-19 vaccine is good, those who receive the potential vaccine should have a much lower rate of acquiring COVID-19 infection than those trial participants who receive a placebo vaccine.

What are the risks associated with getting a new vaccine?

Vaccines are some of, if not the safest, types of medications doctors can provide to their patients. In fact, if you look back through time, beyond clean water, vaccines have saved more lives and decreased morbidity of the human race more so than any other medicine.

Risks can occur, as with anything administered to a human even excess water consumption can be dangerous to humans. Clinical trials in hundreds or thousands of trial participants serve to identify potential side effects. Furthermore, many times the FDA will also add Phase IV studies, even after a new therapeutic or vaccine is approved, typically to monitor for very low-frequency side effects not identified in prior clinical trials.

Do vaccines have to be kept at a certain temperature to be effective?

This depends on the type of vaccine platform. Some can be dehydrated and/or delivered as an oral pill, while others may require refrigeration at specific temperatures to maintain viability. It is not clear what these viability requirements will be of the several potential COVID-19 vaccines currently being tested.

Obviously, this also has to be a consideration in regard to scalability. For example, if a vaccine can be delivered at room temperature and remain effective as an orally ingestiblepill or tablet, this vaccine will be much more likely to succeed, versus a different vaccine that requires refrigeration until the time of a required administration.

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Ask the expert: How vaccines are created | MSUToday | Michigan State University - MSUToday

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AVEO Oncology (Nasdaq: AVEO) today announced the appointment of David Crist as Vice President of Sales. In this role, Mr. Crist will be responsible for building out AVEOs sales force in anticipation of the potential approval and launch of tivozanib, the Companys next-generation vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (VEGFR-TKI), as a treatment for relapsed or refractory renal cell carcinoma.

We are excited to welcome David to the AVEO team as we continue to prepare for the potential commercial launch of tivozanib in the U.S., said Mike Ferraresso, senior vice president, business analytics and commercial operations of AVEO. Davids proven track record of success and deep experience with the launch and growth of new oncology therapies will play an important role in the success of our commercial strategy and team. Our commercial team and I look forward to working closely with him throughout this process.

I am pleased to join AVEO during this transformational period for the Company, as it prepares for the potential launch of tivozanib in the U.S., said Mr. Crist. I believe that tivozanib has the potential to be an important new treatment option for patients with relapsed or refractory renal cell carcinoma with what would be the first evidence-based roadmap for treatment decisions in the third-plus-line setting, including for patients receiving earlier-line immunotherapy. I look forward to working alongside this talented team as AVEO moves toward the potential commercialization of tivozanib in the U.S.

Mr. Crist brings more than twenty years of oncology sales experience in both launch-stage and late-stage companies, building commercial organizations and developing high performing sales force teams. During his career, Mr. Crist held oncology-focused sales roles at several leading pharmaceutical companies including MGI (Molecular Genetics, Inc), Eisai, Sanofi Genzyme, GlaxoSmithKline and ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, where he led their sales organization in the successful relaunch of ICLUSIG (ponatinib), which contributed to the acquisition of ARIAD by Takeda Oncology in 2017. Following the acquisition, he continued at Takeda to successfully launch ALUNBRIG (brigatinib), which exceeded launch year and subsequent year forecasts nationally. Directly prior to joining AVEO, Mr. Crist served as general manager, hematology oncology U.S. franchise at argenx, a global immunology company, where he led commercial development for two of the companys hematology and oncology compounds. Mr. Crist holds a B.S. from Florida State University.

About AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

AVEO is an oncology focused biopharmaceutical company committed to delivering medicines that provide a better life for cancer patients. AVEOs strategy is to focus its resources toward development and commercialization of its product candidates in North America, while leveraging partnerships to support development and commercialization in other geographies. AVEOs lead candidate, tivozanib is approved as FOTIVDA in the European Union and other countries in the EUSA territory for the treatment of adult patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma. AVEO is working to develop and potentially commercialize tivozanib in the U.S. as a treatment for renal cell carcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma. AVEO has previously reported promising early clinical data on ficlatuzumab (anti-HGF mAb) in head and neck cancer, acute myeloid leukemia and pancreatic cancer and is conducting a randomized Phase 2 confirmatory clinical trial of ficlatuzumab in head and neck cancer. AVEOs earlier-stage pipeline includes several monoclonal antibodies in oncology development, including AV-203 (anti-ErbB3 mAb), AV-380 (anti-GDF15 mAb) and AV-353 (anti-Notch 3 mAb). AVEO is committed to creating an environment of diversity and inclusion as a foundation for innovation.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements of AVEO within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. The words anticipate, believe, expect, hope, intend, may, plan, potential, could, should, would, seek, look forward, advance, goal, strategy, or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These forward-looking statements include, among others, statements about: the potential for tivozanib as a treatment option for patients with advanced HCC or relapsed/refractory or advanced RCC; the potential efficacy, safety, and tolerability of tivozanib, both as a stand-alone drug candidate and in combination with immunotherapy; AVEOs execution of its clinical and regulatory strategy for tivozanib; AVEOs plans and strategies for current and future clinical trials of tivozanib, ficlatuzumab and AV-380 and for commercialization of tivozanib in the United States; and AVEOs strategy, prospects, plans and objectives for its product candidates and for the Company generally. AVEO has based its expectations and estimates on assumptions that may prove to be incorrect. As a result, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these expectations and estimates. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements that AVEO makes due to a number of important factors, including risks relating to: whether the results of TIVO-3 are sufficient to obtain marketing approval for tivozanib in the U.S., which turns on the ability of AVEO to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the FDA the safety and efficacy of tivozanib based upon the findings of TIVO-3, including its data with respect to PFS, the rate of adverse events, OS and other information that the FDA may consider to be relevant to an approval determination; AVEOs ability, and the ability of its licensees, to demonstrate to the satisfaction of applicable regulatory agencies such as the FDA the safety, efficacy and clinically meaningful benefit of AVEOs product candidates, including, in particular, tivozanib and ficlatuzumab; and AVEOs ability to enter into and maintain its third party collaboration and license agreements, and its ability, and the ability of its strategic partners, to achieve development and commercialization objectives under these arrangements. AVEO faces other risks relating to its business as well, including risks relating to the timing and costs of seeking and obtaining regulatory approval; AVEOs and its collaborators ability to successfully enroll and complete clinical trials; AVEOs ability to maintain compliance with regulatory requirements applicable to its product candidates; AVEOs ability to obtain and maintain adequate protection for intellectual property rights relating to its product candidates; AVEOs ability to successfully implement its strategic plans, including its ability to successfully launch and commercialize tivozanib if it may be approved for commercialization by the FDA; AVEOs ability to raise the substantial additional funds required to achieve its goals, including those goals pertaining to the development and commercialization of tivozanib; unplanned capital requirements; AVEOs ability to access future borrowings under the Hercules loan facility, which turns on the achievement of milestones related to the approval and commercialization of tivozanib in the U.S., which milestones may not be achieved; adverse general economic and industry conditions; the potential adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on AVEOs business continuity, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity and ability to successfully and timely enroll, complete and read-out data from its clinical trials; competitive factors; and those risks discussed in the sections titled Risk Factors and Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of OperationsLiquidity and Capital Resources included in AVEOs quarterly and annual reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and in other filings that AVEO makes with the SEC. The forward-looking statements in this press release represent AVEOs views as of the date of this press release, and subsequent events and developments may cause its views to change. While AVEO may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, it specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. You should, therefore, not rely on these forward-looking statements as representing AVEO's views as of any date other than the date of this press release.

Any reference to AVEOs website address in this press release is intended to be an inactive textual reference only and not an active hyperlink.

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AVEO Oncology Announces Appointment of David W. Crist as Vice President of Sales - Business Wire

A new study led by scientists at IUPUI and Indiana University Bloomington is the first to describe a biochemical mechanism that increases the activity of a molecule whose presence is observed in many types of cancer.

The molecule, an enzyme called Pif1 helicase, plays a role in many important cellular processes in the body. Tightly regulating this protein is vital to genome stability because too little -- or too much -- activity can influence aging and age-related diseases, primarily cancer. A common cancer therapy, HDAC inhibitors, can also impact the mechanism that regulates this enzyme.

"We're currently giving people drugs that change the acetylation status of the cell without knowing how it affects many proteins that play a role in genome stability," said Lata Balakrishnan, an associate professor of biology in the School of Science at IUPUI, who is co-lead author on the study. "HDAC inhibitors upregulate certain tumor-suppression genes, and thus are used in combination therapies to treat specific cancers, but when it comes to their impact on other parts of the cell, we're basically operating in the dark."

The study's other lead author is Matthew Bochman, an associate professor in the IU Bloomington College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry. Other co-authors are Christopher Sausen and Onyekachi E. Ononye, Ph.D. students in Bochman's and Balakrishnan's labs, respectively, at the time of the study.

The effect of lysine acetylation on Pif1 is the mechanism described in the study. Lysine acetylation occurs when a small molecule called an acetyl group binds to lysine, an amino acid used to build common proteins in the body. This action transforms lysine from a positively charged molecule to a neutrally charged molecule. This neutralization can impact protein function, protein stability and protein-protein interaction in cells, among other things.

Helicases are known as the genetic "zippers" of cells because they pull apart DNA for the purpose of genetic replication and repair. They also help maintain telomeres, the structure at the end of chromosomes that shortens as people age.

In the new study, the researchers identified lysine acetylation on Pif1 helicase and showed the addition of the acetyl group increases the protein's activity -- as well as its "unzipping" function. They also found that lysine acetylation changes the shape -- or "conformation" -- of the Pif1 protein. They believe that this shape change increases the amount of Pif1 helicase.

"The dynamic interplay of the addition and removal of the acetyl group on lysine regulates a wide variety of proteins within the cell," Balakrishnan said. "Perturbations to this process can play a role in cancer, aging, inflammatory responses and even addiction-related behaviors."

"As a class, helicases are involved in a lot of processes necessary for genome integrity," Bochman added. "Any significant failure in these processes is generally carcinogenic."

The precise details of lysine acetylation in Pif1, its effect of the enzyme's shape and the resulting impact on helicase activity took nearly five years to observe and report. The study, carried out in parallel on two IU campuses, was made possible by the lead scientists' complementary expertise. As a biochemist who has previously studied lysine acetylation in other proteins, Balakrishnan was able to isolate Pif1 in vitro to observe its response to chemical reactions in a test tube. In contrast, as a geneticist working in yeast as a model organism to study Pif1, Bochman was able to modify cells in vivo to watch reactions play out in a living organism.

"The ability to observe these reactions in a living cell is often more relevant, but it's also a lot messier," Balakrishnan said. "Our experiments were constantly informing each other as to where to go next."

Looking to the future, Bochman said intricate knowledge of cellular processes -- such as lysine acetylation -- will increasingly play a role in personalized therapy.

"If you sequence a patient's tumor, you can fine-tune drugs to target very specific enzymes," he said. "Instead of a drug that broadly affects the whole cell, it will be possible to take a targeted approach that reduces potential side effects. This level of personalization is really the future of cancer biology and cancer medicine."

"Lysine Acetylation Regulates the Activity of Nuclear Pif1" is available online in advance of print in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. A perspective article on the work is also forthcoming in the journal Current Genetics.

This work was supported in part by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the American Cancer Society.

Indiana University's world-class researchers have driven innovation and creative initiatives that matter for 200 years. From curing testicular cancer to collaborating with NASA to search for life on Mars, IU has earned its reputation as a world-class research institution. Supported by $854 million last year from our partners, IU researchers are building collaborations and uncovering new solutions that improve lives in Indiana and around the globe.

Read more from the original source:
Study reports chemical mechanism that boosts enzyme observed in cancer - IU Newsroom

Healthy start: Welcome to Wednesday, dear readers, and the midpoint of this latest busy week of socioeconomic innovation.

Before we get into it, Oct. 21 brings us National Check Your Meds Day, when were supposed to check the expiration dates on our older prescription meds, which is important. Go ahead, well wait.

Big day: This ones for you, Godzilla, and all your little lizard friends.

Scales: Welcome back. Saluting cold-blooded creatures from the Geico gecko to Godzilla, today is also National Reptile Awareness Day.

And fans of the chickpea, rejoice Oct. 21, of course, is National Garbanzo Bean Day.

Virtual vote-getter: We cant press the flesh or kiss any babies, not in the Age of Coronavirus, but wed sure be grateful if youd drop a vote (or 20) for us in Bethpage Federal Credit Unions 2021 Best of Long Island contest, where Innovate Long Island faces some stiff competition for the coveted title of Best Long Island Blog.

Polls are open through Dec. 15 and you can vote daily for your favorites not just us, but your favorite craft brewery and alternative energy company and the best of LIs best in dozens of other categories. Find us among the Arts & Entertainment entries, and thanks for your vote(s)!

Built to last: Still an active ship of state in the U.S. Navy, the USS Constitution the only active Navy vessel to have sunk another ship in combat first put to sea on Oct. 21, 1797.

Built to last 2: British inventor Joseph Aspdin earned a UK patent for Portland cement on this date in 1824.

Also patented on Oct. 21 was a unique method of detecting sensitive computer data published illegally by third-party websites, locked up one year ago today by the United Services Automobile Association.

On the beam: A human voice carried all the way across the Atlantic Ocean on Oct. 21, 1915, when the first experimental transatlantic radiotelephone communication was made between a Virginia transmitter and a Paris antenna.

Google it: The Guggenheim opened 61 years ago today.

Spiraling upward: Designed by organic architecture legend Frank Lloyd Wright, New York Citys Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum opened on this date in 1959.

On the beam: A human voice carried all the way across the Atlantic Ocean on Oct. 21, 1915, when the first experimental transatlantic radiotelephone communication was made between a Virginia transmitter and a Paris antenna.

And speaking of telephonic firsts, it was this date in 1977 when mobile phones became a thing at least, you could walk a few feet and still dial or hang up, thanks to inventor Henry Dreyfuss corded Trimline phone, which stuck the dial and switch hook into the handset and first graced shelves in Michigan 43 years ago today.

What a prize: Swedish businessman, chemist, engineer, inventor and philanthropist Alfred Nobel (1833-1896) who famously invented dynamite, compiled 355 patents and otherwise left his mark would be 187 years old today.

Talk to the hand: Judge Judy Sheindlin, the longest-ruling arbiter of any TV court show, was born Oct. 21, 1942., in Brooklyn.

Also born on Oct. 21 were Italian mathematician Enrico Betti (1823-1892), topography pioneer and Betti numbers namesake; Canadian-American bacteriologist Oswald Avery (1877-1955), a DNA-focused innovator who laid the foundations for molecular genetics; American food scientist William Mitchell (1911-2004), who invented Pop Rocks, Cool Whip, Tang and other popular junk foods; trumpet virtuoso John Birks Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1933), who blessed American jazz with previously unexplored layers of harmonic complexity; and last surviving Honeymooners star Joyce Trixie Norton Randolph (born 1924).

You be the judge: And take a bow, Judith Susan Sheindlin the ex-prosecutor, former Manhattan family court judge, television producer and author known best as TV personality Judge Judy turns 78 today.

Honor her honor with a birthday wish at editor@innovateli.com, where it pleases the court to receive your story tips and we have no objections to your calendar items. We rest our case.

About our sponsor:New York Techs 90-plus profession-ready degree programs incorporate applied research, real-world case studies and professors who bring decades of industry knowledge and research into the classroom, where students and faculty work side-by-side researching cybersecurity, drone design, microchips, robotics, artificial intelligence, app development and more.Visit us.

BUT FIRST, THIS

The cupboard is full: The Grizzly Cupboard, part of New York Techs healthful Bear Bytes initiative, has been stocked by Stop & Shop.

Stop & Donate: Student food pantries operated by the New York Institute of Technology are swelling with wholesome foodstuffs donated by one of Long Islands most prominent supermarket chains.

Actually, the Massachusetts-based Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. has virtually stocked the shelves of the Grizzly Cupboard, a new pantry system on New York Techs Old Westbury and New York City campuses, with a generous donation of $10,000 in Stop & Shop gift cards, allowing the individual pantries to resupply as needed. The Grizzly Cupboard opened earlier this month as a free and confidential resource for students, offering healthy and nonperishable food items through New York Techs Bear Bytes initiative, which delivers students a bounty of wellness content.

Stop & Shop is also providing direct access to health and wellness products for distribution through the Bear Bytes effort. We are grateful to Stop & Shop for its partnership and sense of community, said Tiffani Blake, New York Tech assistant provost for student engagement and development. It will require a collaborative effort to help address the societal need and resolve the problem of food insecurity.

CRAFTy veterans: The East End Food Institute has resumed a popular apprenticeship program designed to expose tomorrows farmers to todays top agricultural tools and techniques.

The Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training program, coordinated by the EEFI in partnership with several Long Island-based partners, resumed this month after a COVID-induced hiatus. Designed to create peer-to-peer educational opportunities, CRAFT offers guided tours and hands-on activities introducing apprentices including professionals from other types of farming operations to a variety of successful agricultural models seeing action across the East Ends vineyards, orchards, fish and shellfish hatcheries and other working farms.

With new normal precautions including limited attendance, mask requirements and social distancing in effect, the EEFI is hoping to hear from both apprentices and regional farmers interested in growing the CRAFT program. For more information, email heather@eastendfood.org.

TOP OF THE SITE

Peas in a pod: A Huntington-based marketing agency is reaching out to the media savvy including rival marketers with high-quality podcast productions.

Cognitive collaboration: A multidiscipline team of Stony Brook University scientists is tracking similar brain biomarkers found in 9/11 responders and Alzheimers patients.

Innovation in the Age of Coronavirus: Micro-clusters, haunted campgrounds and other horrors, all lurking in Long Islands one-and-only pandemic primer be afraid.

VOICES

Nonprofits anchor Jeffrey Reynolds taps some maternal instincts this week, offering smart solutions to the COVID-compounded professional childcare crisis, which is especially hard on moms.

STUFF WERE READING

One hand washes the central processor-enabled gripping claw: To get smarter and faster, AI will always need humans, and vice-versa. Forbes explains.

Best bet: Best Buy is partnering with multinational professional-services ace Accenture to diversify its internal tech and talent. The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal reports.

Computer virus: COVID-19 has had some very specific effects on global tech industries. Business 2 Community counts them up.

RECENT FUNDINGS

+ Twentyeight Health, a New York City-based telemedicine company focused on womens sexual and reproductive health, raised $5.1 million in seed funding led by Third Prime, Town Hall Ventures, SteelSky Ventures, Agla Ventures, GingerBread Capital, Rucker Park Capital, Predictive VC and strategic angels including Stu Libby, Zoe Barry and Wan Li Zhu.

+ Solarea Bio, a Massachusetts-based biotech developing microbial healthcare solutions, raised $11.2 million in Series A financing led by S2G Ventures and Bold Capital Partners, with participation from Viking Global and Gisev Family Office.

+ Sonrai Security, a NYC-based public cloud-security company, secured $20 million in Series B funding led by Menlo Ventures, with participation from founding investor Polaris Partners and Series A lead investor Ten Eleven Ventures.

+ Ateios, an Indiana-based maker of a paper-thin customizable battery, raised $1.25 million in seed funding led by Good Growth Capital, Keshif Ventures, Techstars Ventures, Elevate Ventures, HG Ventures, Impact Assets and VisionTech Angels.

+ Fiveable, a Wisconsin-based online social learning company, secured $2.3 million in venture capital funding led by BBG Ventures, Metrodora Ventures, Deborah Quazzo, Spero Ventures, Matchstick Ventures, Cream City Venture Capital, 27V, Golden Angel Investors and SoGal.

+ Agility Robotics, an Oregon-based maker of legged robots, closed a $20 million funding round led by DCVC and Playground Global, TDK Ventures, MFV Partners, the Industrial Technology Investment Corp., Sony Innovation Fund and Safar Partners.

BELOW THE FOLD

Origin story: Not what you think.

Are you out of your gourd? The fairly unceremonious history of pumpkin beer.

Have you ever considered? How over-inquisitive leaders can easily derail innovation.

Any questions? You bet here are dozens of good ones for job candidates to ask during their interview.

Theyve got answers: Please continue supporting the amazing institutions that support Innovate LI, including the New York Institute of Technology, where some of the regions brightest educators, administrators and researchers already know what youre going to ask.

More here:
No. 541: In which Cool Whip, garbanzo beans and Godzilla get their due, and podcasts take over - Innovate Long Island

Research teams from several University of Toronto departments have undertaken innovative projects to understand and combat Covid-19.

Earlier this month, Scott Gray-Owen, a molecular genetics professor at the Temerty faculty of medicine, received the Minister of College and Universities Awards of Excellence. Professor Gray-Owens research has significantly advanced the provinces reaction and management of Covid-19, making Ontario a safer place in these trying times.

Professor Gray-Owens research focuses on the interactions between human-restricted bacterial and viral pathogens. His contributions to Covid-19 research has been significant in determining the effectiveness of personal protective equipment.

Gray-Owens experiments at the molecular genetics department concluded that masks produced by I3 BioMedical Inc. are highly efficient in protecting the wearer. The sanitary layer, which coats, the masks neutralizes the virus almost entirely. This considerably decreases the risk of medical personnel contracting Covid-19 if they were to come in contact with the outer, contaminated layer of their masks during removal or adjustment.

This is a huge step forward in fighting the novel coronavirus as it allows health care workers to touch their masks without risking cross-contamination.Thanks to his research, medical personnel can feel a lot more secure on the frontlines.

In an interview withU of T News, Christine Allen, associate vice-president and vice-provost of strategic initiatives, praised Gray-Owen and emphasized the importance of his research.

His efforts helped [I3 BioMedical Inc.] bring its essential health innovation to market, supporting a made-in-Canada solution to the pressing need for personal protective equipment for frontline health-care workers, said Allen.

Gray-Owen also discussed the progress of Covid-19 research and the universitys support of students and faculty in their endeavors.

The natural synergies that arise from U of Ts culture of innovation and collaboration have always driven impactful breakthroughs, stated Gray-Owen. But the speed and scale with which our entire community pivoted toward this great challenge has honestly been inspiring to behold and gives me the confidence that science will once again save us.

In addition to the faculty of medicine, the robotics institute has conducted notable research on Covid-19 and how governments can better respond to the crisis at hand. The faculty of engineering released an authoritative reporton September 21. This report is the product of 14 U of T researchers with a combined 130 years of experience and informs the public about robotics and how it can help combat the novel coronavirus.

Through intensive research and numerous interviews, this report examines the pandemic from a variety of perspectives.

From disinfection and remote triage, to logistics and delivery, countries around the world are making use of robots to address the unique challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, states the executive summary. But the story of robots and Covid-19 is not just about which countries are using robots to help manage their pandemic response; it is also about how the pandemic has become an inflection point for accelerating investment in robotics more broadly.

The report analyzes Canadas most significant vulnerabilities and advantages, going on to discuss how the robotics industry can help keep citizens safe while also increasing efficiency across sectors.Moreover,it provides decision-makers with necessary information surrounding robotics and its potential roles in the fight against Covid-19.

Canada has the opportunity to create a roboticized future that reflects the unique cultural, geographic, and economic needs of its citizens, reads the report. Rather than fear that robots will one day take over our jobs, our freedom, and our privacy, we can engineer and design the robots that we want to ensure a bright future for this country and its residents.

Continue reading here:
U of T research teams work to increase pandemic response efficiency - The Medium