Month: May 2016
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Smart Laser Device Tracks, Kills Mosquitoes
23 May 2016. Tests with two species of insects show an electronic device called a photonic fence can identify, track, and kill harmful bugs while in flight. Results of the tests, conducted by Intellectual Ventures Laboratory in Bellevue, Washington, developer of the photonic fence, appear in this week’s issue of Optics Express, published by the…
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Venture Firm Funding Univ. Blood Diagnostics Technology
23 May 2016. A life sciences venture capital company is funding development of a technology at an Israeli research lab using DNA from blood tests to diagnose a range of diseases. Aurum Ventures is providing $1.2 million to Hebrew University of Jerusalem, through its technology transfer affiliate Yissum Research Development Company, for the university lab…
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Graphene Adds Stretch to Natural Rubber, Plastic Films
20 May 2016. A team in the U.K. discovered that adding a small amount of the material graphene creates more stretchable thin films made from natural rubber and plastic. Researchers from the lab of materials science professor Aravind Vijayaraghavan at University of Manchester describe their findings in a recent advance publication of the journal Carbon.…
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New Process Boosts Injectable Drug Purity, Safety
20 May 2016. A team of engineers and chemists developed a process for enhancing the purity and safety of drugs given with injections by removing excess additives, while keeping the drugs easy to inject. Researchers from University at Buffalo in New York, led by biomedical engineering professor Jonathan Lovell, describe their process in yesterday’s issue…
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Grid Computing Power Applied to Zika Research
Carolina Horta Andrade at Federal University of Goiás in Brazil, the lead researcher on the OpenZika project. (Ana Fortunato, IBM) 19 May 2016. A consortium in Brazil and the U.S. is employing distributed grid computing to provide processing power for research on prospective compounds for treating Zika virus infections. The OpenZika project is using World…
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Start-Up Licenses Genetics Technology for HIV Diagnostics
19 May 2016. A spin-off company from Harvard University is licensing genetics research to develop more powerful tools to detect drug-resistant strains of HIV. Financial details of the agreement between the 2 year-old Aldatu Biosciences Inc. and Harvard were not disclosed. Aldatu Biosciences is the creation of pathologist Iain MacLeod and geneticist David Raiser that…
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FDA Approves Trial Testing Stem Cells for Brain Injuries
Updated 10 June 2016. Gordie Howe died today at age 88. 18 May 2016. A company developing stem cell therapies says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved its application for a clinical trial testing stem cell treatments for traumatic brain injury. The intermediate-stage trial, sponsored by Stemedica Cell Technologies Inc. is part of a research…
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Fast, Inexpensive Test for Water Bacteria Developed
18 May 2016. A team at York University in Toronto designed a water-testing kit connecting to a smartphone that makes testing for water-borne bacteria faster and less expensive. The Mobile Water Kit, from the lab of engineering professor Sushanta Mitra, is described in a recent issue of the journal Analyst (free registration required). Developers of the…
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ReWalk, Wyss Institute Developing Soft Exoskeleton Robot
17 May 2016. A robotics company is licensing technology from a bioengineering lab at Harvard University to develop systems for people needing help with mobility, such as those with multiple sclerosis or suffering a stroke. Financial aspects of the deal between ReWalk Robotics Ltd. in Yokneam Ilit, Israel and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired…
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Braeburn to Continue N. Carolina Facility Despite HB2
17 May 2016. Braeburn Pharmaceuticals, a developer of treatments for opioid addiction, will continue with its plans to build a research and manufacturing facility in North Carolina, despite its opposition to a recent state law overturning local ordinances prohibiting discrimination against the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) individuals. The company says the state’s Attorney…