Vitalea Science to Partner with Loma Linda University in Pediatric Medicine Research

Vitalea Science, Inc. a privately held company that specializes in microdosing and micro-tracing studies using AMS, partners with the Division of Neonatology of Loma Linda University to support clinical research studies on neonatal pharmacology.

Woodland, CA (PRWEB) August 26, 2007 -- Vitalea Science, Inc., a privately held company that specializes in microdosing and micro-tracing studies using AMS, announced today that it has formed an alliance with the Division of Neonatology of Loma Linda University to support clinical research studies on neonatal pharmacology.

"Approximately two thirds of all drugs prescribed to children have not been studied carefully enough for adequate pediatric-specific information to be included on the label. Adult pharmacokinetic studies are routine in the pharmaceutical industry, but performing them in children poses many challenges," explained Dr. Arlin Blood, Director of Research for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Loma Linda University Children's Hospital. "Pharmacokinetic studies typically require collection of 8-20 samples of blood per patient totaling 100-500 mL of blood to enable adequate detection of the drug in each sample. Thus, the amount of blood required makes most conventional pharmacokinetic studies technically impossible in premature or even term infants," said, Dr. Blood.

"The extreme sensitivity of Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) offers a potential solution to the problem of pediatric clinical research. At Vitalea, we are validating an assay to quantify the incorporation of an anti-HIV drug in DNA that would require only a few drops of blood", Dr. Le Vuong, VP of Global R&D of Vitalea Science added. "This foremost collaboration will establish the utility of AMS as a tool for studying the pharmacokinetics of drugs in children. We hope that the success of this alliance will lead to future investigation of many other pediatric medications by both academia and industry worldwide," said Dr. Blood.

About Vitalea Science (http://www.vitaleascience.com):
Vitalea Science is a leading contract research organization that provides ultra-sensitive detection strategies for drugs and drug candidates at microdose levels. Situated in Northern California, the company was formed by chemists and physicists from the University of California and the Department of Energy's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in 2003.

About Loma Linda University Children's Hospital (http://www.llu.edu/lluch/):
Loma Linda is a comprehensive, state-of-the-art medical facility designed especially for children's unique health-care needs. The Children's Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is one of the largest and most advanced neonatal centers in the world, with 22,000 square feet and 84 beds dedicated to caring for some of the tiniest babies ever born.

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