Month: March 2014
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Quality Assurance Techniques Proposed for Stem Cells
7 March 2014. Biomedical engineers at Harvard University proposed a scheme for assessing the quality of stem cells used in drug testing to assure they transform into the cells and tissue they purport to represent. The team from Harvard’s Disease Biophysics Group, led by Kevin it Parker, published its findings online yesterday in the journal…
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University, Spin-Off Partner on Enviro Flying Robotic Device
6 March 2014. University of Nevada in Reno and NevadaNano, a spin-off company from the university, are developing an aerial robotic device for environmental sensing and reporting over a large area. The project is funded by a $150,000 Small Business Technology Transfer grant from the U.S. Army. The project combines the university’s expertise in autonomous…
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Early Trial Shows Gene Editing Potential to Treat HIV/AIDS
6 March 2014. Researchers from University of Pennsylvania, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and the biotechnology company Sangamo BioSciences showed the company’s gene-editing technology could engineer the immune cells of HIV-positive patients to resist infection and decrease their viral loads. Results of the early-stage clinical trial led by Penn immunologist Carl June will be presented…
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Bio-Gel Designed to Transform into Precursor Tooth Material
5 March 2014. Life science and engineering researchers at Harvard University developed a sponge-like gel material that when seeded with embryonic cells in lab tests shrinks and hardens into a predecessor of human tooth tissue. The team led by Donald Ingber, director of Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, published its findings online last…
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Patent Granted for RNA-Interference to Treat Scar Tissue
5 March 2014. RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp., a biotechnology company in Westborough, Massachusetts, received a patent for its technology based on RNA-interference to treat skin scars, including surgical scars. Patent number 8,664,189 was awarded yesterday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to seven inventors and assigned to RXi Pharmaceuticals. RXi develops therapies with a technology…
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School Meal Standards Lead to More Fruit, Veggies Eaten
4 March 2014. A study by public health researchers at Harvard University shows children eating lunch at school increased their consumption of fruit and vegetables after new school lunch standards took effect. The team led by nutrition research fellow Juliana Cohen published its results online today in American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Cohen and colleagues…
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Pharma Alliance Extends Cancer Antibodies to Eye Disorders
4 March 2014. Santen Pharmaceutical Co. in Osaka, Japan is licensing antibodies developed as a cancer therapy by Tracon Pharmaceuticals in San Diego as treatments for eye diseases. Tracon is expected to earn $10 million in an upfront payment from Santen, as well as undisclosed milestone payments and royalties. Tracon develops biologic therapies for cancer,…
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FDA Fast-Tracks Depression Drug from Northwestern Spin-Off
Naurex Inc., a biotechnology company in Evanston, Illinois, says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted fast-track status for its drug candidate code-named GLYX-13 to treat depression. GLYX-13 is Naurex’s lead product for treatment of central nervous system disorders. The company develops drugs for diseases of the central nervous system that stimulate N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors,…
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Genocea, Harvard, Dana-Farber to Partner on Melanoma
3 March 2014. Genocea Biosciences, a biotechnology company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Research Institute, are testing the company’s vaccine discovery platform to help target therapies for melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer. The collaboration is funded by Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, but financial aspects of the partnership…