Janet Stewart, MSc,  —

BIOC51, a potential nitric oxide-based treatment of chronic pulmonary infections due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF),was awarded special status to promote and speed its development, Novoclem Therapeutics announced. BIOC51 was granted what is known as Qualified Infectious Disease Product (QIDP) status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), whose incentives include priority review…

Vertex Pharmaceuticals announced it will double the number of “All in for CF Scholarships” this year to help more people with cystic fibrosis (CF) and their families. This increase in number of scholarships, the company said, is due to the positive response the program received last year when it was…

Vizient, which calls itself the nation’s “largest member-driven health care performance improvement company,” has awarded a contract for  Alcresta’s Relizorb — a product that helps with the digestion of healthy fats in serious diseases such as cystic fibrosis (CF). The Relizorb (immobized lipase) cartridge contains an enzyme that breaks down fats in tube…

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics has given Pulmatrix a grant to test the safety of PUR1900 as a treatment for allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) in cystic fibrosis and asthma patients. The grant will allow Pulmatrix to assess the safety of the anti-fungal drug this fall, paving the way for a Phase 1/1B trial in…

An influential group of European cystic fibrosis experts has signed off on the design of a Phase 3 clinical trial of Sollpura (lipromatase) as a treatment for a CF-related digestive disorder known as exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. The European Cystic Fibrosis Society Clinical Trial Network’s approval will speed up the recruitment of…

Researchers found a new defect called the R248G mutation in the CFTR gene in three Spanish siblings whose diagnoses indicate borderline cystic fibrosis, and suggest a possible link between this defect, pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas), and infertility. The findings were reported in the article “R248G cystic…

A significant number of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients do not receive timely lung transplant evaluations because of their preference and their doctors’ possibly too-narrow focus, according to the results of a survey. The study explaining the results, “Cystic fibrosis physicians’ perspectives on the timing of referral for lung transplant…