Associate Professor Ruth Arkell is revealing the mysteries of the ZIC family of genes, which have been coordinating the development of the nervous system in vertebrate embryos for hundreds of millions of years. [ + ]

A custom-built programmable 3D printer, created by Oxford University scientists, can create materials with several of the properties of living tissues. The material consists of thousands of connected water droplets, encapsulated within lipid films, which can perform some of the functions of the cells inside our bodies. [ + ]

Lab studies into Patrys’s (ASX:PAB) cancer treatment candidate PAT-SM6 show that the antibody can bind to two separate targets. [ + ]

Keeping up with current scientific literature is a daunting task, considering that hundreds to thousands of papers are published each day. Now researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a computer program to help them evaluate and rank scientific articles in their field. [ + ]

A new vaccine against pneumonia in pigs, potentially saving millions for the Australian swine industry, could result from novel proteomics research. [ + ]

2012 wasn’t the breakthrough year many were expecting for Australian biotechs, but 2013 could be. [ + ]

This coming July the world-renowned Adelaide Convention Centre will be hosting the Australian Society for Microbiology Annual Scientific Meeting and the Australasian Mycological Society Joint Conference. Add them to your diary and register to attend now. [ + ]

The widespread use of media among university students - from texting to chatting on mobile phones to posting status updates on Facebook - may be taking an academic toll, say researchers with The Miriam Hospital’s Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine. [ + ]

Researchers at the UPNA/NUP-Public University of Navarre have produced a prototype of a self-cooling thermoelectric device that achieves ‘free’ cooling of over 30°C in devices that give off heat. It is a piece of equipment that acts as a traditional cooler but which consumes no electricity because it obtains the energy it needs to function from the very heat that has to be dissipated. [ + ]

Synbiosis, a manufacturer of automated microbiological systems, has announced that its ProtoCOL 3 automated colony counter is being successfully used at UK vaccine company ImmunoBiology (ImmBio) in Cambridge to speed up testing throughput of its bacterial meningitis vaccines. [ + ]

New Benitec (ASX:BLT) board member Kevin Buchi said he was drawn to the company due to the potential of its trial-ready hepatitis C treatment candidate. [ + ]

Building on the success of the Research and Development (R&D) Tax Incentive, industry leaders are calling for further tax reform to provide incentives for innovative manufacturing and investment, according to the Biotechnology Industry Position Survey 2013. [ + ]

A phase I trial of intravenous delivery of Viralytics’ (ASX:VLA) Cavatak shows that the viral cancer treatment candidate was well tolerated. [ + ]

A leading opponent of transgenic crops in Britain recants. But Australian scientists developing GM crops to help feed the world aren’t waiting for local anti-GM campaigners to see the scientific light. [ + ]

The South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) is building an innovative 25,000 m² facility, designed to foster researchers’ creativity and productivity. Together with Schneider Electric Life Sciences solution experts, SAHMRI will realise its vision of a highly intelligent and responsive facility. [ + ]