Business Album briefs
?Morgantown, W.Va.
Partnership announced
Protea Biosciences, a leading developer of new technology for pharmaceutical research, has announced that the company, in partnership with Mayoly-Spindler, a European pharmaceutical company, has successfully completed a Phase I/IIA human clinical trial for their MS1819 recombinant Lipase.
The clinical trial was a randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel design conducted at Hospital la Timone in Marseille, France. The goal of the clinical trial was primarily to assess the safety profile and secondarily, to get early evidence of the clinical activity of the MS1819 recombinant lipase in patients with malabsorption syndrome due to exocrine pancreatic insufficiency resulting from chronic pancreatitis.
“The study results are fully in accordance with our expectations,” stated Steve Turner, Protea’s chief executive officer. “The completion of our first clinical trial is an important milestone for this promising drug, as well as for Protea.”
Lipase is an enzyme that is produced by the pancreas to digest fat. Chronic pancreatitis is defined as long term inflammation of the pancreas, characterized by irreversible changes in pancreatic cells. Causes of exocrine pancreatitis insufficiency (EPI) include cystic fibrosis, drug/alcohol abuse, pancreatic cancer and other conditions. Chronic pancreatitis causes chronic abdominal pain, impairment of hormone and digestive enzyme functions of the pancreas, and can produce serious weight loss. Protea Biosciences, Inc. (www.proteabio.com) develops and commercializes new bioanalytical technologies that enable the direct analysis of the proteins, lipids and metabolites produced by living cells and organisms.
Uniontown
Butter leads program
President Tim Yurcisin of the Private Industry Council of Westmoreland/Fayette Inc. has announced that Ryan Butter has been promoted to Fatherhood Initiative Program supervisor, effective May 17. His primary responsibilities will be supervising the Dads Matter staff, ensuring that Dads Matter reaches the program goal of serving 150 participants, using the 24/7 Dad curriculum and assisting in additional funding ventures.
The Fatherhood Initiative works to enable fathers to improve their relationships with their children; improve parenting skills; and help fathers overcome barriers that often prohibit them from being effective and nurturing parents by providing them with training and learning opportunities.
Butter is a graduate of University of Nevada, Las Vegas with a degree in elementary education. He has been employed with The Private Industry Council in the capacity of a Fatherhood case manager in Fayette County since September 2009. He began serving as the interim Fatherhood supervisor in March.
“Ryan gives us the best chance to continue the momentum that he and the previous supervisor, Bill Huebner, had developed. Recently we had the opportunity to bring the Dad’s Matter program to Westmoreland County. Hopefully with the success of some upcoming grant applications we will be able to continue to grow this program in both counties,” Yurcisin said.
The Private Industry Council of Westmoreland/Fayette Inc. (PIC) is a 501(c)(3) organization and houses its corporate office in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. The organization has conveniently located satellite offices in both counties, to best extend services to adults, youth, dislocated workers and those who are economically disadvantaged.
For more information, go online to www.privateindustrycouncil.com or call 724-836-2600.