Tag: genomics
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Genetic-Based Antibiotic Found Effective in Lab Tests
Researchers at Oregon State University, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, and the biotechnology company Sarepta Therapeutics tested in lab mice an antibiotic developed from synthetic genetic material that kills bacteria resistant to traditional antibiotics. Their findings appear online today in the Journal of Infectious Diseases (paid subscription required). The team from the labs of…
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Evogene, DuPont Pioneer Extend Biotech Soybean Partnership
Evogene Ltd, a biotechnology company in Rehovot, Israel is extending its collaboration with the Pioneer subsidiary of the U.S. chemical company DuPont to develop soybean varieties resistant to Asian soybean rust, a damaging fungus to soybean plants. The agreement adds one year to the partnership between the two companies, but financial aspects of the deal…
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Genome Analysis Via Mobile App, Web Site in Development
A genomics lab at Tel Aviv University in Israel is developing a system making it possible to upload a person’s whole genome and get results analyzed through a mobile app. Tel Aviv graduate students Ofer Isakov and Gershon Celniker in the lab of geneticist Noam Shomron are writing the software that they expect to release…
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Dow AgroSciences Developing Insect-Resistant Soybean Traits
Dow AgroSciences in Indianapolis, a subsidiary of Dow Chemical Company, is developing genetically engineered traits that provide soybeans with a greater ability to resist attacks from insects that chew on their plants. The company in a statement says it plans to submit its soybean traits for regulatory approval worldwide, beginning in Brazil and Argentina. The…
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Early Clinical Trial Shows RNA Therapy Lowers Cholesterol
A clinical trial by the biopharmaceutical company Alnylam Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, Massachusetts shows that one dose of a drug made from interfering ribonucleic acid (RNA) cuts LDL, or bad, cholesterol levels more than a placebo. Results of the study, conducted with colleagues from University of Texas-Southwestern in Dallas and medical centers in the U.K., appear…
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Pfizer Licenses University Institute’s Obesity Research
The global pharmaceutical company Pfizer is funding research at Université de Montréal in Quebec, Canada to identify cellular pathways in genetic defects leading to therapies for early-onset morbid obesity. Financial aspects of the collaboration, which gives Pfizer a license to commercially develop results of the research, were not disclosed. Pfizer is funding and licensing research…
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Programming Language Created for Synthetic DNA Chemistry
Computer scientists and systems biologists at University of Washington, California Institute of Technology, and University of California in San Francisco are developing a coding language to enable the programming of synthetic DNA chemical interactions. A report from the team led by Washington computer scientist Georg Seelig appeared yesterday online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology (paid…
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Genetic Solution Identified for Canola Crop Losses
Biologists at University of Calgary in Canada identified a genetic process in plants similar to the oilseed canola that offers a solution to a problem causing large annual losses of this key cash crop. The team lead by Calgary’s Marcus Samuel, with associates from University of Toronto and University of Bordeaux in France, published its…
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AbbVie, Galapagos Partner on Cystic Fibrosis Therapies
The pharmaceutical companies AbbVie in North Chicago, Illinois and Galapagos NV in Mechelen, Belgium are collaborating on development and marketing of treatments for the inherited disease cystic fibrosis. The deal, with a total potential value of at least $405 million, covers discovery, development, and commercialization of compounds addressing defective genetic mutations associated with the disease.…
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Cleveland Clinic Spin-Off Developing Breast Cancer Vaccine
Shield Biotech, a spin-off company from the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, is creating a vaccine to prevent breast cancer based on research conducted at the clinic’s research institute. Vincent Tuohy, a Cleveland Clinic immunologist, founded the company with the clinic’s commercialization division, and serves as its chief scientist. Tuohy’s research seeks to find a method for protecting…