Month: July 2012
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Biopharm Gains SBIR Grant for Cystic Fibrosis Treatment
OrPro Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company in San Diego, received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from National Institutes of Health, to advance development of its lead product, ORP-100, for the treatment of cystic fibrosis. The company did not disclose the amount of the award from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of…
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Life Science Analytics Start-Up Generates First Sales
Tymora Analytical Operations LLC, a developer of analytic technology for drug development in West Lafayette, Indiana, says the company is generating its first sales income after only two years in business. The Purdue University spin-off licenses research done by biochemist W. Andy Tao (pictured left), who also serves as Tymora’s chief scientist. The company is…
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Liquid Coating Prevents Biofilm Build-Up on Surfaces
Researchers at Harvard University tested a new liquid coating that prevents the accumulation of bacterial communities called biofilms from forming on surfaces. The team of engineers and materials scientists published its findings online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Biofilms are collections of bacteria found on exposed surfaces in home, commercial,…
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Bayer CropScience, Australian Agencies Partner on Wheat R&D
Bayer CropScience in Monheim, Germany, is collaborating with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO, Australia’s science agency) and the Australian Grains Research and Development Corporation to develop new wheat varieties that produce higher yields. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. CSIRO has already designed a new higher-yielding wheat strain using genetic…
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European Venture Volume Up, Science Company Investments Drop
Venture capital (VC) investment volume rose in the second quarter of 2012 compared to the second quarter of 2011, but the number of VC deals dropped sharply. The number and volume of investments in European science-based companies, says financial industry research service Dow Jones VentureSource, declined by double-digit percentages in the second quarter of 2012…
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Interactive Time-Lapse Landsat Images Now Available
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh developed a capability to assemble and view time-lapse images of earth collected from NASA Landsat satellites over the past 13 years. The team from CMU’s Robotics Institute, working with colleagues at Google and the U.S. Geological Survey, created this feature by extending GigaPan technology for capturing and assembling…
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Company, University Share Stem Cell Research Funds
Researchers at StemCells Inc. in Newark, California and University of California in Irvine will share a $20 million award from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to conduct research on stem cells leading to clinical trials to treat cervical spinal cord injury. The grant was one of several awards announced last week by CIRM,…
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New Quantum Dot Material Boosts Solar Cell Efficiency
Engineers at University of Toronto in Canada and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia developed a film made of nanoscale semiconductors called quantum dots for inexpensive and more efficient solar cells. The team led by Toronto engineering professor Ted Sargent published its findings in a letter to the journal Nature…
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Start-Up Licenses National Lab-Developed Network Technology
Two computer scientists at Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee developed wireless network simulation technology, then started up a company to take that technology to market. Oak Ridge Lab licensed Radio Channel Simulator, or RCSim, technology for software development and commercialization to Networcsim LLC, a company formed by the technology’s inventors James Nutaro and Phani…
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Computer Simulation Models Effects of HIV Policies
A Brown University epidemiologist developed a computer simulation that can model the spread of HIV in New York City, under various scenarios of interventions. Brandon Marshall (pictured left) discusses his work in two sessions at this week’s International AIDS Society Conference in Washington, D.C. The model creates a community of individual actors, who engage in…