Patricia Silva, PhD,  director of science content—

Patrícia holds a PhD in medical microbiology and infectious diseases from the Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands, and completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Lisbon, Portugal. Her work in academia was mainly focused on molecular biology and the genetic traits of infectious agents such as viruses and parasites. Patrícia earned several travel awards to present her work at international scientific meetings. She is a published author of several peer-reviewed science articles.

Articles by Patricia Silva

Biogen to Present New Data at Upcoming ECTRIMS 2015 Congress on MS Therapies, Including TECFIDERA

Biogen, a biotechnology company focused on innovative therapies for autoimmune disorders, neurodegenerative diseases and hematological conditions, recently announced that it will present new data on its multiple sclerosis (MS) portfolio of therapeutic agents at the upcoming 31st Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis…

Teva’s COPAXONE Approved in Japan for the Prevention of Relapse Remitting Multiple Sclerosis

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., a leading global pharmaceutical company that delivers high-quality, patient-centric healthcare solutions, recently announced that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) approved the once per day 20 mg injection of COPAXONE® as prophylaxis for relapses in multiple sclerosis (MS). Glatiramer acetate, the active…

FDA Approves BETACONNECT Autoinjector for BETASERON Delivery

Bayer HealthCare is pleased to announce the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted the approval of BETACONNECT, a first-of-its-kind electronic autoinjector indicated as a treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). For now, the drug delivery device is only compatible with BETASERON® (interferon beta-1b), and will soon be available come early 2016.  While…

Could Genentech’s Ocrelizumab Become the First Effective Primary Progressive MS Therapy?

Genentech, a leading biotechnology company and member of the Roche Group, recently announced promising results on a pivotal Phase III clinical trial (ORATORIO) assessing its investigational therapy ocrelizumab as a treatment for patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS). Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disorder that results from…

Kessler Foundation Researchers Report BICAMS Can Predict Performance of Everyday Life Activities in Multiple Sclerosis Patients

Kessler Foundation researchers recently reported that the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis (BICAMS) is able to predict the performance of normal daily activities. According to the researchers, the BICAMS is a promising tool to predict actual functional performance in participants with multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is a progressive…

Clinical Benefit of Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis Therapies Highlighted in Review

A review study recently published in the journal Cochrane Database of Systematic Review (CDSR) focused on the clinical benefit of different therapies available for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). The study is entitled “Immunomodulators and immunosuppressants for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis: a network meta-analysis” and was led…

Fingolimod (Gilenya) Found to Be an Effective Multiple Sclerosis Therapy for Up to Three Years of Treatment

An encouraging new analysis reveals that fingolimod is an effective multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy for a treatment period of up to three years. The results were presented at the Annual Meeting of the Consortium of MS Centers. MS is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disorder that is the result of an attack on the central nervous system…

Merck Prepares to File for European Marketing Authorization for Cladribine Tablets as a Multiple Sclerosis Therapy

Merck recently reported its intention to file for European registration of its product candidate for relapsing multiple sclerosis – Cladribine, a synthetic anti-cancer agent able to suppress the immune system. Cladribine causes relatively few side effects and results in very little non-target cell loss. Merck’s decision follows new findings and further characterization of…

Biogen Obtains Exclusive Rights Over Promising MT-1303 Drug for Autoimmune Diseases, Multiple Sclerosis

Biogen recently announced an agreement with Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation (MTPC), a research-driven pharmaceutical company based in Japan, to exclusively license the company’s experimental product MT-1303. The product is a late stage experimental oral compound developed as a therapy for several autoimmune conditions. MT-1303 is a sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P)…

Cryoport, Inc. to Supply Opexa’s MS and NMO Immunotherapy Studies with Cryogenic Logistics Solutions

Cryoport, Inc., a leader in providing advanced cryogenic logistics solutions for the life sciences industry, has just announced it will be supplying Opexa Therapeutics’ lead personalized T-cell immunotherapy research initiatives for Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Neuromyelitis Optica (“NMO”). Opexa’s breakthrough immunotherapy drug platform has shown the potential to improve the lives of…