News archive
October 2008
Google awards $14 million for research using
its disease prediction technology
Google.org, the philanthropic arm of Google has awarded the grants to
support partners working in Southeast Asia and Africa to help prevent
the next pandemic. Google.org's Predict and Prevent initiative is
supporting efforts to identify hot spots where diseases may emerge,
detect new pathogens circulating in animal and human populations, and
respond to outbreaks before they become global crises. 27 October 2008
First transplantation of lungs using Steen
solution carried out in North America
Swedish company Vitrolife has announced that lung transplantations using
its Steen Solution technology have been carried out in North America as
part of a study being carried out as a basis for the application for
sales approval in the USA and Canada. 27 October 2008
IDEX Corporation acquires optical filter
producer Semrock. 27 October 2008
Pfizer and UCB form new drug-discovery company
with support of UK Technology Strategy Board. 27 October 2008
Philips adds Respironics to Moore
microprocessor patent license. 27 October 2008
Active Implants enters UK distribution
agreement with Joint Replacement Instrumentation. 27 October 2008
Deutsch
Francais
Gates Foundation invests in 104 unconventional
approaches to solving global health problems
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded 104 grants to explore
bold and largely unproven ways to improve global health. The grants of
US$100,000 each, announced in Bangkok this week, will be made to
scientists from 22 countries and five continents. They mark the first
round of funding from Grand Challenges Explorations, an initiative to
help lower the barriers for testing innovative ideas in global health.
24 October 2008
PML
develops revolutionary miniature powered wheel
Hampshire based PML
Flightlink Ltd has developed a revolutionary 15cm diameter motorised
wheel that can power anything from scooters to wheelchairs and hospital
trolleys. 24 October 2008
International effort to study role of body microbes in human health
and disease
Scientists from around the globe have formed the International Human Microbiome Consortium (IHMC),
which will co-ordinate research to characterize the relationship of the
human microbiome in the maintenance of health and in disease. 23 October
2008
Optimized radiation for prostate cancer therapy
In a cooperative study with Innsbruck Medical University and the
East-Vienna Center of Social Medicine, two physicists of Vienna
University of Technology (TU), evaluated the mean deviation of radiation
parameters for prostate cancers and compared various sources of
radiation. 23 October 2008 Deutsch
Medical device markets to ride out economic
crisis
Medical technology markets are resilient in times of economic downturn,
providing shelter for investors worrying about drops in other, more
volatile industries, according to Millennium Research Group. 23 October
2008
iMDsoft wins clinical data management
contract in Norway
iMDsoft and ErgoGroup have signed a framework agreement with Helse
Sør-Øst RHF (South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority) to provide
integrated clinical data management services to the Health Trusts and
related hospitals in southeast Norway. The value of the project is
estimated to be up to €29 million.
20 October 2008
Philips and King's College London to
collaborate on research into heart disease
Philips and King’s College London will develop new medical imaging
research projects with a particular focus on cardiology and cardiac
electrophysiology. An area of focus will be on combining different
imaging technologies, such as X-ray, MRI, ultrasound and CT, to help
doctors navigate their way through a patient’s heart during
minimal-invasive procedures. 20 October 2008
NanoKTN and Bionano Consulting partner to
develop bionano and nanomedicine in UK
The Nanotechnology Knowledge Transfer Network (NanoKTN), the UK’s
primary network for Micro and Nanotechnologies, has announced a 20-month
partnership with Bio Nano Consulting (BNC) and the creation of the
NanoKTN’s fourth theme, Bionano and Nanomedicine. 20 October 2008
Unnecessary regulation harming clinical research in the UK
Increasing bureaucracy is the biggest single threat to clinical
research in the UK and urgent action needs to be taken, argue experts in
the British Medical Journal. 18 October 2008
Risk of leukaemia not greater for children
living near powerful transmitters
Children living in the vicinity of powerful radio and television
transmitters are not significantly more at risk of leukaemia than
others, according to a study by the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz,
Germany. 18 October 2008 Deutsch
Nanotechnology gives insight into workings
of antibiotics for fighting superbugs
Scientists from the London Centre for Nanotechnology (LCN) at University
College London (UCL) are using a novel nanomechanical approach to
investigate the workings of vancomycin, one of the few antibiotics that
can be used to combat increasingly resistant infections such as MRSA. 16
October 2008
Pandemic
flu models help determine food distribution and school closing
strategies
The 1918 flu pandemic killed more than 40 million people worldwide and
affected persons of all age groups. While it is difficult to predict
when the next influenza pandemic will occur or how severe it will be,
researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed models
to help organisations such as emergency services and education
authorities prepare emergency response plans. 16 October 2008
New catheter-less technique may ease pain
and discomfort after prostate cancer surgery
An innovative and patient-friendly approach that eliminates the use of a
penile urinary catheter can ease the pain of recovery following prostate
cancer surgery. The new patentable technique, used in conjunction with
robotic prostatectomy (the surgical removal of the prostate) eliminates
the pain and discomfort associated with the standard catheter. 16
October 2008
Simple ultrasound test shows promise for
detecting blood clots in leg
A comparison of two diagnostic methods used to detect deep vein
thrombosis (DVT; a blood clot in a deep vein in the leg or thigh) of the
lower extremities indicates that a simpler method, with wider
availability, has rates of DVT detection that are equivalent to a more
complex method, according to a study in the October 8 issue of JAMA.
16 October 2008
New study examines effectiveness of
colorectal cancer screening tests
New findings from a Decision Analysis for the US Preventative Services
Task Force (USPSTF) suggest that routine colorectal cancer screenings
can be stopped in patients over the age of 75. The results are based on
patients who began screenings at age 50 and have had consistently
negative screenings up to the age of 75. 16 October 2008
A third of diseases in developing countries
are potentially treatable by surgery
Researchers from Columbia and Cornell Universities (NY) have been
studying whether patients in poor countries suffering from certain
medical conditions could benefit from surgical treatment. The results of
the study could potentially lead to the implementation of surgical
infrastructure in countries where none currently exists. 16 October 2008
Optics meets medicine at US Optical Society
meeting
A few of the many technical highlights to be discussed at the meeting: a
new look at mini-strokes; a potential new tool for brain surgeons; new
technique for mapping blood supply in retina increases safety and
comfort of exams; the optics of alzheimer's disease; potential
non-invasive optical detection of pancreatic cancer; the neuron
microscope, treating bone cancer and futuristic lighting at FiO. 16
October 2008
Report: Nanobiotechnologies applications, markets and companies
Nanobiotechnology, an
integration of physical sciences, molecular engineering, biology,
chemistry and biotechnology holds considerable promise of advances in
pharmaceuticals and healthcare.
The report starts with an introduction to various techniques and materials
that are relevant to nanobiotechnology. It includes some of the physical
forms of energy such as nanolasers. Some of the technologies are scaling
down such as microfluidics to nanofluidic biochips and others are
constructions from bottom up. Application in life sciences research,
particularly at the cell level sets the stage for role of nanobiotechnology
in healthcare in subsequent chapters. October 2008.
Read more ...
GE Healthcare and Boston Scientific
collaborate on cardiovascular imaging
GE Healthcare and Boston Scientific Corporation have announced a
collaboration that enables improved intravascular ultrasound (IVUS)
workflow between the GE Healthcare Innova Cardiovascular x-ray system
and the Boston Scientific iLab ultrasound imaging system. 14 October
2008
Landmark 20-year study to assess impact of
personal genetic testing
A US consortium is undertaking a first-of-its-kind study to assess the
behavioural impact of personal genetic testing on up to 10,000 people to
see how it affects their health and to identify their potential risk for
developing certain diseases. 14 October 2008
Caprion awarded $12.9M US infectious
disease biomarker research contract
Caprion Proteomics Inc. has been awarded a $12.9 million contract by the
US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), for
research into biomarkers with potential for clinical use against
infection from diseases caused by biodefense pathogens. 14 October 2008
Francais
LIFE Biosystems to deploy TEMIS' clinical
text analysis solution Luxid
LIFE Biosystems has entered into a strategic software and services
agreement with TEMIS to use TEMIS' Luxid for Life Sciences solution to
expedite the analysis of clinical and molecular data from diverse
textual information sources. 14 October 2008
Francais
Deutsch
CaridianBCT initiates clinical trial of
pathogen reduction technology for blood processing
CaridianBCT will test its Mirasol PRT system, a proprietary technology
that uses riboflavin and UV light to reduce the levels of infectious
pathogens and inactivate white cells from collected blood, improving the
safety of transfused blood. 14 October 2008
Español
Francais
Endovascular simulation at Transcatheter
Cardiovascular Therapeutics symposium
Medical Simulation Corporation (MSC) has teamed up with Boston
Scientific Corporation (BSC) to provide product- and procedure-based
simulation experiences aboard two BSC Mobile Simulation Labs to
attendees of the 20th annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT)
scientific symposium in Denver this week. 13 October 2008
Report: RNA
interference markets
Since its discovery, the naturally occurring RNA (ribonucleic acid)
interference effect has been acclaimed as the most exciting technical
breakthrough in biological research in the last decade. Some industry
analysts predict that RNA interference (RNAi) may even surpass PCR as a
top technology.
Read more ...
VWR International acquires Omnilab AG
VWR International, LLC, a laboratory supply company, has announced that
it has acquired Omnilab AG, a Swiss scientific laboratory supply
distributor headquartered in Mettmenstetten near Zurich. 10 October 2008
Deep Breeze announces latest results on
vibration response imaging
Deep Breeze Ltd, developer of pulmonary imaging technology, vibration
response imaging (VRI), has announced the latest study results comparing
VRI to conventional procedures of assessing regional lung function
measurement. 10 October 2008
Guidelines for characterization and
qualification of commutable reference materials for laboratory medicine
The Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) has recently
published a new document, Characterization and Qualification of
Commutable Reference Materials for Laboratory Medicine; Proposed
Guideline (C53-P). 10 October 2008
NextBio search engine for life sciences shows rapid growth in users
NextBio, a life sciences search engine that enables researchers and
clinicians to search and correlate public scientific data and
literature, share their own research findings and collaborate with
colleagues, achieved 150,000 unique monthly visitors to its website in
September 2008.
Philips and STERIS in alliance to provide
hybrid surgical rooms for minimally invasive procedures
The alliance will combine Philips' cardiovascular X-ray systems and
STERIS HD 360° Suites technologies and design services to create a
flexible environment where clinicians can treat patients requiring
minimally invasive procedures, or those needing open surgery, within a
single operating suite. 8 October 2008
Simbionix launches patient-specific
simulation system for surgeons
Simbionix has launched the PROcedure Rehearsal Studio which creates a
digital 3D model of a patient’s clinically relevant anatomy from CT and
MRI scan data and enables surgeons to create practice scenarios based on
their patient's unique pathology and anatomy. 7 October 2008
Carbon nanotubes improve electrical
stimulation therapy
Researchers at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have
designed a way to improve electrical stimulation of nerves by coating
electrodes with a coating of basic black, formed from carbon nanotubes.
7 October 2008
Website to help prostate cancer specialists
make better treatment choices
A free online computer tool, the CaP Calculator, provides cancer
specialists access to the latest prostate cancer research and helps them
better individualise each patient’s treatment options. 6 October 2008
New imaging technique for rare thyroid
cancer
A new imaging approach for identifying a rare form of thyroid cancer
that is typically hard to diagnose has been developed by researchers at
the University of Iowa. 6 October 2008
Bluetooth system orients blind and sighted pedestrians
in urban environments
A new system based on Bluetooth wireless technology places a
layer of information technology over the real world to tell pedestrians
about points of interest along their path as they pass them. 5 October 2008
bioMérieux to develop non-invasive test for
prostate cancer
French in vitro diagnostics company bioMérieux has signed a license and
development agreement with German biotechnology company ProteoSys for
its novel prostate cancer marker Annexin 3, which will be used to
develop a urine-based, confirmatory diagnostic test for prostate cancer.
2 October 2008 Francais
First Arab human genomes sequenced
An international consortium consisting of Saudi Biosciences, Beijing
Genomics Institute Shenzhen, and CLC bio have sequenced and analysed the
first Arab human genome. The sequencing is part of a large project to
sequence 100 Arab human genomes to map the unique genetic variations of
the Arab population. 1 October 2008
Kit to design your own bio-feedback
clothing
Textronics is offering a developer’s kit that includes the company’s
textile electrodes for use by designers, researchers and product
developers interested in creating their own interactive wearable
prototypes. 1 October 2008
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