Science and Enterprise

Month: January 2011

  • Univ. Engineers Develop New Sewage Treatment Device

    Research engineers at University of Utah in Salt Lake City have developed and commercialized an alternative device to help growing communities deal with sewage treatment. The device, known as Poo-Gloos because of their igloo-like shape (pictured right), supplement wastewater lagoons often used for sewage treatment, particularly in small, rural towns. Kraig Johnson and research colleagues…

  • Report: Nanotech Can Cut Green Energy Costs

    In a new report, a technology research company estimates the use of available nanotechnologies can significantly reduce the cost of producing energy from renewable sources. ABI Research in New York says that worldwide investment in renewable energy will top $2 trillion on a cumulative basis from 2010 through 2015, but over that same period using…

  • Consumers Want, Will Pay for Predictive Health Tests

    In a national survey conducted by researchers at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, consumers indicated they place a high value on information to predict their future health, and may be willing to pay out of pocket to get it. The they survey was funded by the Institute for Health Technology Studies. The findings appear…

  • Myeloma Foundation Awards Biotech Research Grants

    The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) in Norwalk, Connecticut today announced awards of $1 million to each of three Massachusetts biotech companies through its 2010 Biotech Investment Awards program: Constellation Pharmaceuticals Inc., Epizyme Inc., and Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc. Since the biotech program began in 2006, MMRF funded research at 11 companies leading to treatments for…

  • Spirogen, Genentech Partner on Anti-Cancer Therapies

    Spirogen Ltd. a London, U.K. biotechnology company, announced a multi-year research collaboration and license agreement with Genentech, a Roche Group company, to discover and develop antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) as potential anti-cancer agents. The collaboration will make use of Spirogen’s pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD) drugs,  a group of natural antibiotics, and associated linking technology. Under the agreement,…

  • Univ. Developing Plastic That Tells When Food Goes Bad

    Chemists at University of Strathclyde in the U.K. are developing a new form of food packaging that tells consumers when the contents have started to spoil. The university received a £325,000 ($502,500) grant from the Scottish Enterprise Proof of Concept Programme to support the project. The problem of food spoilage is important to both consumers…

  • Study: Longer Drug Exclusivity Hikes Costs, Adds Approvals

    A new study in the January 2011 issue of the journal Health Affairs (paid subscription required) calculates the financial and social costs of regulations that limit access to pharmaceutical companies’ clinical trial data, used in the manufacture of generic drugs. The study suggests that extending the term of exclusive access for that data would likely…

  • National Lab Signs Two Auto Battery Licensing Deals

    Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, Illinois, part of the U.S. Department of Energy, announced two licensing agreements today (6 January 2011) for its cathode material technology used in electric vehicle lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. The deals are with or involve cars made by General Motors. The first agreement, with General Motors, involves the worldwide licensing of…

  • Academic-Business Partnership Developing IVF Technology

    A reproductive biologist at University of Adelaide in Australia has discovered molecules in a mother’s tissue that can help women who have suffered previous miscarriages after in-vitro fertilization (IVF) improve their rates of subsequent IVF success. Professor Sarah Robertson (pictured right), who made the discovery, is partnering with a Danish company to develop a product…

  • Researchers to Study Hip Replacement, Jobs, Retirement

    Researchers in Italy, the U.K., and the U.S. will study the impact of hip replacement therapy on the employment and retirement decisions of older adults. The project with participants from Università Bocconi in Milan, University of York in the U.K., and Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland is funded by a…