Improved rodent trials can speed cancer drug development
October 28, 2008Better design of rodent trials could reduce the cost and time required for cancer drug development, according to a commentary in the October 28 online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Cancer drug development is a multistep process that involves in vitro tests, animal studies—often with rodent models of disease—and human clinical trials. Inadequately designed rodent studies have led to missteps and delays in previous drug development programs.
In a commentary, Melinda Hollingshead, D.V.M., Ph.D., of the developmental therapeutics program at the National Cancer Institute in Frederick, Md., reviews the critical facets of a well-designed rodent trial. The key steps include the identification and use of an appropriate animal model and study endpoints, correct statistical evaluation of the data, proper randomization, and inclusion of a sufficient number of animals for statistically meaningful data. Hollingshead also argues for the inclusion of enough methodological detail in the published article to allow readers to fully interpret and understand the implications of those data.
Using examples from the peer-reviewed literature, she illustrates the consequences of improper experimental design. Although properly designed experiments may cost more money or require the use of more animals initially, they ultimately save resources and are necessary to streamline the whole process, she argues.
"The conclusions drawn from a series of studies are only as good as the data on which they are based. The impact of high-quality experimental design, methodology, and data interpretation cannot be overstated," she writes. "Along with a savings in animals, there will likely be a concomitant savings in costs and time, contributing to an overall reduction in drug development costs."
Source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute
-
Seizures in patients with pork tapeworm caused by Substance P
Feb 09, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Researchers develop method of directing stem cells to increase bone formation and bone strength
Feb 06, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
Researchers turn skin cells into neural precusors, bypassing stem-cell stage
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
4
-
Pig-induced pluripotent stem cells may be safer than previously thought
Dec 09, 2011 |
4 / 5 (1) |
1
-
Loss of weight associated with chronic illness may soon have first treatment
Nov 15, 2011 |
5 / 5 (3) |
0
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (33) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (4) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
Is Everyday Technology Killing Us?
Feb 08, 2012
-
Exercise and weight loss
Feb 08, 2012
-
Why do we have head aches? Our brains can't feel anything.
Feb 07, 2012
-
"The end of diseases" by David Agus, interview from Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Feb 04, 2012
-
Oncolytic adenovirus
Feb 04, 2012
-
Nutrition label stuffs and diets
Feb 02, 2012
- More from Physics Forums - Medical Sciences
More news stories
Starve a virus, feed a cure? Findings show how some cells protect themselves against HIV
A protein that protects some of our immune cells from the most common and virulent form of HIV works by starving the virus of the molecular building blocks that it needs to replicate, according to research published online ...
11 hours ago |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
|
Overeating may double risk of memory loss
New research suggests that consuming between 2,100 and 6,000 calories per day may double the risk of memory loss, or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), among people age 70 and older. The study was released today and will be ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
8 hours ago |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
|
Declining health-care productivity in England: Who says so?
Reports that the National Health Service in England has been declining in productivity in the last decade appear to have been accepted as fact. However, a Viewpoint published Online First by The Lancet disputes this. The Vi ...
6 hours ago |
1 / 5 (1) |
0
Injured boomers beware: Know when to see doctor
(AP) -- It happened to nurse Jane Byron years after an in-line skating fall, business owner Haralee Weintraub while doing "men's" push-ups, and avid cyclist Gene Wilberg while lifting a heavy box.
13 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
FDA-approved drug rapidly clears amyloid from the brain, reverses Alzheimer's symptoms in mice
Neuroscientists at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have made a dramatic breakthrough in their efforts to find a cure for Alzheimer's disease. The researchers' findings, published in the journal Science, show t ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Feb 09, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (58) |
17
|
Scientists discover molecular secrets of 2,000-year-old Chinese herbal remedy
For roughly two thousand years, Chinese herbalists have treated Malaria using a root extract, commonly known as Chang Shan, from a type of hydrangea that grows in Tibet and Nepal. More recent studies suggest that halofuginone, ...
New method to examine batteries -- MRI from the inside
There is an ever-increasing need for advanced batteries for portable electronics, such as phones, cameras, and music players, but also to power electric vehicles and to facilitate the distribution and storage of energy derived ...
A mitosis mystery solved: How chromosomes align perfectly in a dividing cell
Although the process of mitotic cell division has been studied intensely for more than 50 years, Whitehead Institute researchers have only now solved the mystery of how cells correctly align their chromosomes during symmetric ...
Google might launch Drive for cloud storage soon
(PhysOrg.com) -- Google's next big move, according to the Wall Street Journal, is a cloud storage service called Drive. Hardly first to the plate, Google is simply catching up to introducing its cloud reposi ...
Lab study raises questions over nano-particle impact
Tests involving chickens have raised questions about the impact on health from engineered nano-particles, the ultra-fine grains commonly used in drugs and processed foods, scientists said on Sunday.
Researchers find extensive RNA editing in human transcriptome
In a new study published online in Nature Biotechnology, researchers from BGI, the world's largest genomics organization, reported the evidence of extensive RNA editing in a human cell line by analysis of RNA-seq data, demons ...