Spatz FGIA : First Implants of Spatz (TM) Adjustable Intragastric Balloon System

October 19, 2009 - Spatz FGIA, Inc., a privately held medical device company, announced the first implants of its Spatz (TM) Adjustable Balloon System. The Spatz (TM) Adjustable Balloon System is a non-surgical weight loss therapy for the overweight and obese. The system’s innovative features offer greater weight-loss success, increased patient safety, and ease of use for the physician... Spatz FGIA's Press Release -

PROLOR Biotech : LICENSE OPTION FROM YEDA FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LONG-ACTING ANTI-OBESITY DRUG

July 27, 2009 -- PROLOR Biotech, Inc. (OTCBB: PBTH) formerly Modigene Inc., announced that it has entered into an evaluation and option agreement with Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd., the technology transfer arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science. Under the terms of the evaluation and option agreement, PROLOR may obtain from Yeda a license to develop a number of peptide drug candidates, including an anti obesity peptide, utilizing a delivery technology developed at the Weizmann Institute. The Weizmann Institute of Science is a world-renowned center of natural and exact sciences research and higher learning based in Rehovot, Israel... [PDF] PROLOR Biotech's Press Release -

Mylan Pharmaceuticals : Marketing First Generic Version of Desoxyn(R)

April 26, 2010 - Mylan Inc. (Nasdaq: MYL) announced that its subsidiary Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. has begun to market Methamphetamine Hydrochloride Tablets USP, 5 mg, based on an agreement with licensing partner Coastal Pharmaceuticals. This product, used for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or obesity, is the first generic version of Lundbeck's Desoxyn(R) to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)... Mylan' Press Release -

Gelesis : novel non-invasive capsulated device for obesity and presents clinical data

4/22/10 -Boston-based medical technology firm Gelesis, Inc. unveiled its capsulated device Attiva™, and presented data showing that Attiva™ significantly increased the post-meal feeling of satiety and reduced hunger between meals in obese patients. This data was presented at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 19th Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress.

Attiva™, the first and only superabsorbent hydrogel composed entirely from food components, is administered in the form of small particles that are designed to swell after ingestion with water and occupy the gastric and intestinal cavities, inducing a feeling of satiety that lasts beyond its transit time in the stomach. Afterwards, it safely degrades in the colon and releases absorbed liquids. When fully swollen, the product creates very small and individual gel beads that are mixed homogenously with the food in the stomach and also have the same elasticity and viscosity as foods.

"For the first time a group was able to overcome the enormous technical hurdles in creating a super-absorbent polymer made entirely out of food,"... Gelesis' Press Release -

ZenBio Licenses an Important Cell Line from Harvard to Drive Metabolic Disease Research RESEARCH

December 1, 2009 - ZenBio announce that they will be a commercial source for the popular murine 3T3-L1 cell line, which has been fundamental in metabolic disease research for 30 years. Originally derived from Swiss mouse embryo tissue by Dr. Howard Green of the Department of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School, the 3T3-L1 system has been pivotal in advancing the understanding of basic cellular mechanisms associated with diabetes, obesity and other related disorders.
3T3-L1 is a cell line derived from 3T3 cells that is used extensively in research on adipose tissue, making the line popular for metabolic disease research studies. 3T3-L1 cells have a morphology that resembles fibroblasts, but under the right conditions the cells will differentiate into a phenotype that mimics the behavior of adipocytes. The 3T3-L1 in vitro system has proven a highly useful complement to primary human adipocyte cultures, and has been used extensively by scientists to unlock many of the mysteries of metabolic diseases. The 3T3-L1 cell line is recognized as a very well-characterized, consistent in vitro system, and has served as the basis for a wide range of published studies... [PDF] ZenBio's Press Release -