Cochlear (ASX:COH) has blamed delays receiving anticipated regulatory approval for new products and the potential costs of a patent violation lawsuit on a steep decline in 1H14 net profit. [ + ]

The US FDA has granted marketing approval for Admedus's (ASX:AHZ) CardioCel for use in cardiac repair surgeries in adults and children. [ + ]

An Italian phase II trial of Clinuvel's (ASX:CUV) Scenesse in rare skin condition Hailey-Hailey Disease has commenced, with recruitment due to be complete by March. [ + ]

After one of the most intensive investigations in veterinary history for a single animal, what caused the death of Berlin Zoological Garden's polar bear, Knut, has been revealed. [ + ]

The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) has released the results of its survey on the most important chemically engineered inventions and solutions of the modern era. The top 10 list, comprising the inventions considered to have made the biggest impact on society, was voted for by IChemE's MediaEnvoys. [ + ]

Researchers from Harvard University have created a piece of open-source software which enables users to analyse and rearrange ranking systems based on the attributes they find the most important. [ + ]

Novel synthetic molecules that represent potential combination therapies for late-stage basal breast cancer are moving towards being trialled in animals. [ + ]

Calzada's (ASX:CZD) PolyNovo announced that three RAH surgeons have been authorised to prescribe its NovoSorb BTM dermal scaffold in free flap donor site repair surgery. [ + ]

With both discrete and continuous segmented flow analysers being widely available, choosing the better technique is one of the common decisions facing laboratory managers. [ + ]

Arcitecta is developing a product to improve the capture and management of data from clinical research worldwide. The work builds on the company's metadata management platform, Mediaflux, "but extends its capabilities for clinical research data capture and management", according Arcitecta Chief Technical Officer Jason Lohrey. [ + ]

Surveys on public attitudes to science regularly tell us that there are swathes of the public that simply seem to not care about science, despite our best effort to engage them. But perhaps the issue is not with the public - the issue is with the question. [ + ]

Detect, destroy, remember is the mantra of the immune system as it campaigns against infectious invaders and the body's own abnormal cells. And now immunotherapy is finally offering viable treatment options for some cancers. [ + ]

Microscopy researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a technique that eliminates the distortion encountered when capturing images at the atomic scale. Their method will be reported in the March issue of Ultramicroscopy. [ + ]

Neuren (ASX:NEU) is well underway with clinical trials of drug candidate NNZ-2566 in neurological conditions including Fragile X syndrome, Rett syndrome and traumatic brain injury. [ + ]

New Queensland recruit Dr Roberta Mazzieri is passionate about understanding the complex and dangerous cellular interactions that make up a tumour microenvironment. Specifically, she wants to hijack one cell component of this environment and use its cancer-promoting powers for good, not evil. [ + ]