The Column - May 2008 - (Page 13)

May 2008 www.thecolumn.eu.com The Column News News Saliva testing for smoking status Nymox Pharmaceutical has published independent studies reporting that its NicAlert saliva product provides an accurate, convenient and cost-effective way to verify self-reported smoking status with broad potential applications both in the clinic and in large research trials and surveys. In the study, researchers collected saliva samples from 41 smokers and 45 nonsmokers and tested the samples with both NicAlert saliva test strips and with gas chromatography to verify smoking status. Reportedly, the researchers found that the company’s product was valid and reliable in comparison with the GC saliva cotinine test. It was also noted that the company’s saliva product has the potential to be used in large-scale trials of smoking cessation interventions, for the evaluation of the effectiveness of a cessation service and in population prevalence surveys to measure the rates of smoking and quitting over time. Additionally, this product can be used on either saliva or urine samples to provide a visual read-out on a person’s tobacco use or exposure within minutes by measuring levels of cotinine, a by-product of the break-down of nicotine in the human body. Furthermore, the product has achieved certification with the CE Mark, permitting its sale within the European Union and the urine-based version has received clearance from the FDA and achieved certification with the CE Mark. This study was conducted at the Clinical Trials Research Unit, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand and has been published in the latest issue of Nicotine & Tobacco Research. For further details on this product or the published report please visit the company’s website at www.nymox.com Lena Clara/Getty Images Licence to dry Agilent Technologies has secured an exclusive licence to a drying technology for nucleic acid active pharmaceutical ingredient (APIs). The CAN-BD from AktivDry is a continuous drying technology that is reported to produce uniform particles of low moisture nucleic acids, under mild conditions, in a short amount of time. In addition to this, it features Links: www.nymox.com a closed drying and collection system to reduce the risk of product contamination. It is expected that this technology will reduce capital requirements and labour costs associated with large-scale drying of therapeutic nucleic acids. “Agilent has long recognized that nucleic acid drying methods present a significant barrier to economic production of nucleic acid therapeutics at commercial scale,” stated James Powell, the general manager of Agilent’s Nucleic Acid Solutions Division. “We have been actively evaluating alternative technologies, and we are now confident that Aktiv-Dry’s CAN-BD technology will significantly lower costof-goods for our customers while providing www.agilent.com www.aktiv-dry.com a higher-quality nucleic acid API.” Additionally, Agilent has presented a poster on this technology titled “CAN-BD: A Novel Drying Technology for Therapeutic Oligonucleotides” at the TIDES conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. For more information on this technology visit the companies’ websites at www.agilent.com and www.aktiv-dry.com 13 http://www.thecolumn.eu.com http://www.nymox.com http://www.agilent.com http://www.aktiv-dry.com http://www.nymox.com http://www.agilent.com http://www.aktiv-dry.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Column - May 2008

The Column - May 2008
Contents
Cover Story: The Application of UHPLC–MS for the Analysis of Schedule 1 Drugs of Abuse in Candied and Chocolate Matrices
News
Incognito: Continuing Professional Development — Not Very Continuous and Not Very Professional
Market Trends and Analysis
A Small Molecule HPLC-Chip for the High-sensitivity Quantification of Pharmaceuticals using Triple Quadrupole MS
Evaluation of Extraction Methods and Bias Correction by EPA Method 6800 Protocol for Mercury Species in Tuna Fish Tissue Using an Ion Chromatograph Coupled to an ICP–MS
Meeting Preview

The Column - May 2008