Tag: Europe
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Insomnia Costs U.S. Employers Billions in Lost Productivity
Researchers from universities, hospitals, and companies in the U.S. and Europe calculated the lost productivity of Americans suffering from insomnia at an annual cost of $63.2 billion to employers. Their findings from the study, funded by the pharmaceutical company Merck, appear in the 1 September issue of the journal Sleep (paid subscription required). The team…
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Improved Cellulose Processing Developed for Biofuels
A team of university and industry researchers in Europe and the U.S. have developed a process to hasten the breakdown of cellulose in waste plant matter for conversion to ethanol. Their findings appear online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Scientists with the company Novozymes in Davis, California, and Bagsvaerd, Denmark,…
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Nanotech-Enhanced Graphene Can Propel Optical Communications
Physicists and engineers from the universities of Manchester and Cambridge in the U.K. have devised a method for improving graphene devices as photodetectors in future high-speed optical communications. Their findings appear in the 30 August issue of the journal Nature Communications (paid subscription required). Graphene is a two-dimensional layer of carbon atoms arranged in a…
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Trials Show Potential Benefits of Remote ICD Monitoring
Two clinical trials in France suggest that remote monitoring of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) — which use electrical pulses to control irregular heartbeats — is a safe alternative to regular doctors’ office visits. Results of the trials were presented at a meeting of the European Society of Cardiology now underway in Paris. ECOST trial Salem…
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Cancer Monitor Chip Implant in Development
Biomedical engineers at Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) in Germany are developing an electronic sensor chip capable of monitoring tumors that are difficult to remove with surgery or growing slowly. The chip operates by determining the oxygen content in a patient’s tissue fluid. A team headed by Bernhard Wolf, professor of medical electronics at TUM, have…
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Trial Finds New Drug Better Than Common Blood Thinner
A clinical trial found that apixaban, an anticoagulant drug made by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer, does better in preventing stroke and blood clots in patients with atrial fibrillation, compared to the common drug warfarin. The results were presented today at the European Society of Cardiology in Paris, and published online in the New England Journal…
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Cambridge U.K. Spin-Off Gains $9.5 Million in Early Funding
Mission Therapeutics, a research spin-off company from Cambridge University in the U.K., has raised £6 million ($US 9.5 million) in Series A funding from a European venture capital syndicate. Series A investments represent the first round of significant funds raised after an enterprise’s initial launch. The company specializes in the discovery and development of drugs…
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New Treatment Fixes Tooth Decay Without Drilling
Researchers at University of Leeds in the U.K. have developed a way of treating dental decay that reverses the damage caused by acid and re-builds teeth, without drilling. The technology developed at Leeds has been licensed to a company in Switzerland for commercialization. Dental cavities are caused by a process that begins with bacteria, which…
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Computer Model Helps Pinpoint Cancer Cell Targets
Medical and computer scientists in Israel and the U.K. have developed a computer model of cancer cell metabolism, which can help predict which drugs are lethal to cancer cells. Their work was part of a research study reported online last week in the journal Nature (paid subscription required). Many cancer drugs are now designed to…
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Clinical Trial Shows Drug Improves Heart Muscle Functions
A clinical trial conducted by University of Hull in the U.K. shows the drug omecamtiv mercabil improves the heart’s ability to pump blood in heart failure patients. The findings by Hull cardiology professor John Cleland and colleagues appear in the 20 August issue of the journal The Lancet (paid subscription required). Omecamtiv mercabil is one…