Articles
UQ and LEO Pharma collaborate on skin cancer treatment
The University of Queensland (UQ) and global pharmaceutical company LEO Pharma have entered a strategic research collaboration to deliver new treatment options to skin cancer patients. [ + ]
Strong results from PolyNovo's NovoSorb BTM trial
Calzada's (ASX:CZD) PolyNovo said its NovoSorb BTM dermal scaffold was well tolerated and effective during a 10-patient trial involving its use in free-flap donor site repair. [ + ]
AusBiotech Annual Report 2013 shows year of solid delivery
The AusBiotech Annual Report 2013 has been released, detailing another solid performance for AusBiotech and showing how it has delivered for its members and the Australian biotechnology industry. AusBiotech was steadfast in its advocacy and active in its representation and support of the industry, delivering a number of achievements in policy terms. [ + ]
New imaging system uses unconventional way of focusing light
For hundreds of years, optical devices like microscopes and telescopes have relied on solid lenses that slide up and down to magnify and to focus. In pursuit of ever-smaller imaging systems, researchers are now working to create entirely unconventional ways of focusing light. [ + ]
Through-focus scanning optical microscopy
A technique developed several years ago at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for improving optical microscopes has now been applied to monitoring the next generation of computer chip circuit components, potentially providing the semiconductor industry with a crucial tool for improving chips for the next decade or more. [ + ]
Nitrogen sustainability - a race against time
Take too much fertiliser, an inefficient crop, not enough land into the future to feed the world and more than a pinch of economics - and you have a recipe for disaster. Thankfully, Brent Kaiser is quietly confident that scientists like him can contribute to a more sustainable future. [ + ]
Clinical Genomics acquires cancer-screening lab Enterix
Clinical Genomics recently acquired the US-based cancer screening company Enterix. [ + ]
Prima re-evaluating CVac trial design
Prima BioMed (ASX:PRR) is re-evaluating using PFS as a primary objective of an upcoming trial of its CVac cancer immunotherapy candidate, based on results to date of an earlier study. [ + ]
Insect weathermen reduce mating activity before storms
Researchers from the University of São Paulo have found that insects modify their mating behaviour in response to the changes in air pressure which precede a storm. By reducing mating during wind and rain, it is suggested that the insects are also reducing their risk of injury or death. [ + ]
Agenix to divest business in China
Divesting business in China will allow Agenix to focus on its diagnostics projects. [ + ]
Antarctica's promiscuous microbes
Deep Lake, located 5 km from Davis Station in Antarctica, is 3500 years old, 36 m deep and so salty that it remains in liquid form down to a temperature of -20°C. Researchers have now uncovered the secrets of the lake's dominant inhabitants - extremophile microbes from the haloarchaea group. [ + ]
CO2 causes turf wars
The planet is warming, but Dr Marilyn Ball’s research group has found that rising carbon dioxide in the atmosphere makes cold-tolerant plants more susceptible to frost. [ + ]
Better salaries and employment prospects for US chemists
Each year the American Chemical Society surveys its members to gain a snapshot of their employment and salaries. This year's survey has found that 2013 is looking much better for chemists and chemical engineers in the US as both employment and salaries are increasing. [ + ]
First Parkinson's patient implanted with LCT's NTCELL
The first Parkinson's patient has been implanted with Living Cell Technologies' (ASX:LCT) NTCELL regenerative treatment during a phase I trial. [ + ]
New hepatitis virus or glassware contaminant?
The sensitivity of next-generation sequencing can be fantastic and also problematic as the system can easily pick up contaminants and lead researchers into false conclusions. [ + ]