Science and Enterprise

Month: April 2012

  • University Start-Up to Generate Power with Stored CO2

    A spin-off company from University of Minnesota is commercializing a process for generating electricity with geothermal energy from stored carbon dioxide captured at coal-fired power plants. Heat Mining Company LLC, in Rapid City, South Dakota, is based on a technology invented by Minnesota faculty Martin Saar (earth science) and Thomas Kuehn (engineering), and earth science…

  • Sanofi, Fox Foundation Partner on Parkinson’s Drug Trial

    The drug manufacturer Sanofi, based in Paris, and the Michael J. Fox Foundation in New York agreed today to conduct a clinical trial of AVE8112, a Sanofi compound, in patients with Parkinson’s disease. AVE8112 is a type of anti-inflammatory drug known as PDE4 inhibitors that have been tested as treatments for respiratory diseases, but in…

  • Biotech Company Secures $38 Million Series D Funds

    Alder BioPharmaceuticals Inc. in Bothell, Washington says it closed $38 million in financing today to support clinical studies of its two lead compounds. The series D round, the fourth financing installment after initial start-up, is led by Novo Ventures, the venture capital subsidiary of Danish pharmaceutical maker Novo Nordisk. Alder BioPharmaceuticals has developed an antibody production…

  • Australian Science Agency, Biotech Partner on Insect Silks

    Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and the global biotechnology company Lonza have agreed to develop new insect silks for medical and industrial applications. Financial and intellectual property terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Insect silk is a potential component in a range of new products and applications because of properties such…

  • Forest Biofuels Unsustainable, Could Boost Greenhouse Gases

    An analysis by researchers in Europe and the U.S. indicate that large-scale biofuel production from forest biomass is unsustainable and will increase greenhouse gas emissions. The findings appear online in the journal Global Change Biology/Bioenergy. The report, an invited analysis by the journal, was led by the Max-Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry in Germany, Oregon State…

  • Lab-Made Heart Cells Found Useful for Research, Testing

    Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine in California have devised a process for generating artifical heart cells from the skin of patients with a common cardiac condition. Their findings appear today in the journal Science Translational Medicine (paid subscription required). The team led by Joseph Wu, a professor of cardiovascular medicine and of…

  • Helicopter Medevacs Save Trauma Patient Lives But Are Costly

    A study led by researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore shows helicopter transport increases the survival rate of trauma victims brought to hospitals compared to ground transport, but the costs are high and better guidelines are needed to determine when to use this resource. The findings are published in this week’s issue of the…

  • Breakout Labs Makes First Early-Stage Science Company Grants

    Breakout Labs, a revolving investment fund in San Francisco that aims to support early-stage enterprises developing radical new technologies, announced its first six grants yesterday. The fund is backed by the Thiel Foundation, established by entrepreneur Peter Thiel, a founder of online payments service PayPal and an early investor in Facebook. All of the recipient…

  • Bioengineered Microbe Developed for Low-Temperature Enzymes

    Molecular biologists at University of Georgia in Athens have devised a process for engineering a microorganism to generate enzymes at lower temperatures than in its natural state. Their findings appear today in the online journal mBio published by American Society for Microbiology. The team, led by Georgia professor Michael Adams, engineered a type of microbe…

  • Clinical Trial Shows Brain Cancer Vaccine Extends Lives

    A clinical trial involving researchers from University of California at San Francisco and the biotechnology company Agenus Inc. in Lexington, Massachusetts found a vaccine has extended the lives of patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme, a type of brain cancer. The findings are being presented today at a meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.…