Month: November 2012
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Functioning Lung Transport System in Clinical Trial
A system for transporting functioning human lungs for transplants is being tested in a clinical trial, with the first transplant surgery in the U.S. occuring earlier this month. The Organ Care System tested in the trial is developed by TransMedics Inc. in Andover, Massachusetts, with the first U.S. transplant taking place at the UCLA medical…
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Director David Kappos to Leave USPTO
The director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office David Kappos announced in an e-mail yesterday to USPTO staff that he plans to leave the agency by the end of January 2013. The news was reported late yesterday by the industry blog, IP Watchdog and confirmed independently by sources at USPTO. Kappos became USPTO director…
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Stem Cells Devised for Rare Disease Boost Personal Medicine
Medical researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Institute in New York developed a method of screening treatments for a rare genetic disorder that the authors say could be applied to tests of stem-cell derived personalized medicines. The team led by Gabsang Lee at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Cell Engineering published…
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University, Corporation Partnering on Paint-Stripping Robots
National Robotics Engineering Center at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and Concurrent Technologies Corporation in Johnstown, Pennsylvania are developing robotic systems with lasers to strip paint from aircraft. The two-year project is funded by a contract from the National Defense Center for Energy and Environment, part of the U.S. Department of Defense, with participation from the…
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Cyclists with Parkinson’s Show Improved Brain Functions
Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio found Parkinson’s disease patients benefited from stationary cycling, with the greatest benefits experienced by patients who pedaled faster. The Cleveland Clinic team presents its findings today at a meeting in Chicago of the Radiological Society of North America. Parkinson’s disease is a brain condition that leads to shaking,…
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Fuel Cell Generates Power from Green Roofs, Wetlands
An environmental scientist at Wageningen University in the Netherlands designed a fuel cell that can generate electrical power from living plant roots and soil bacteria found in natural wetlands or vegetation on green roofs of urban buildings. Wageningen’s Marjolein Helder defends her doctoral dissertation today describing the technology, and she has started a company to…
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Electric Bus Developer Lands $23 Million in Series B Funds
Proterra Inc. in Greenville, South Carolina, a developer of electric buses for public transportation, secured $23 million in series B funds, the second round of venture financing after initial start-up. New investor Hennessey Capital led the round, with new investor NMT Capital, and current investors Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, GM Ventures, Mitsui & Co.…
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Happy Thanksgiving
Science Business will take a break for the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow, 22 November, and return on Friday with limited posting. For those celebrating Thanksgiving, enjoy the holiday and safe travels. * * *
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U.S. Patent Awarded for Protein Therapy Delivery Technology
Medgenics Inc., a biotechnology company in Misgav, Israel and San Francisco, received a U.S. patent for its technology for the sustained delivery of therapeutic proteins to treat anemia. Patent number 8,293,463 was awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on 23 October 2012 to 11 inventors, including Andrew Pearlman, president of Medgenics Inc., and…
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Online Health Info Access Linked to Clinical Services Use
Researchers with Kaiser Permanente in Denver, Colorado found health plan members with access to their medical records and the ability to communicate online with clinicians made more use of clinical services than members without online access. The findings of the team from Kaiser Permanente’s Institute of Health Research appear in the 21 November issue of…