Phase I research

ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine induces immune response and is safe in humans, early trial data suggests

The University of Oxford’s ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine induces a strong immune response with no serious adverse reactions, preliminary findings of a phase I/II trial published in The Lancet have suggested.…

The hunt for an effective treatment for COVID-19

As researchers around the globe drop everything to find a treatment for COVID-19, we look at the likely frontrunners for managing this deadly disease.…

Going against type: the new class of cancer therapies targeting mutations rather than tissues

‘Tumour agnostic’ drugs offer a more effective and tolerable therapy for a wide range of people with cancer, so why has the NHS rejected its first one?…

UK leads Europe in number of early-stage clinical trials, says ABPI

The UK has the highest number of early-stage clinical trials in Europe, with 400 phase I and phase II trials starting in the NHS in 2017, a pharmaceutical industry report has said.…

Repurposing Viagra: the ‘little blue pill’ for all ills?

Study results suggest that PDE-5 inhibitors could have a role in treating cancer, heart failure, neurodegenerative diseases, circulatory disorders and even infectious diseases, but the road to approval for new indications may not be smooth.…

RNA interference therapies could be on the cusp of success

This new way of modifying problematic gene expression has had a rocky start — but things are looking up.…

Pain relief: designing better opioids

While opioids are powerful painkillers, they come with dangerous side effects and carry a sometimes fatal risk of addiction. However, new, safer opioids are being developed using a variety of innovative strategies to maximise analgesic properties, while reducing the burden of side effects.…

Immunotherapy for type 1 diabetes: what’s in the pipeline?

For many autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis, drugs that work by targeting components of the immune system are providing relief for millions of patients. However, there is no immunotherapy currently licensed for type 1 diabetes, and the reasons for this are multifold. A n…

Zika vaccine development: two years on from the outbreak

Two years after the World Health Organization declared the Zika virus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, researchers have made good progress in developing vaccines against the disease, with some candidates now in phase II trials. However, the brief nature of the outbreak is…

First trial of Huntington’s disease drug a success

The first human trial of a drug for Huntington’s disease has shown it to be safe, well-tolerated and successful in lowering the level of huntingtin protein in the nervous system. The phase I/IIa trial comprised 46 patients with early Huntington’s disease at nine study centres in th…