Tag: genomics
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DuPont Expanding Iowa Agriculture R&D Center
DuPont Corporation says it will add a $40 million plant genetics research center to its current facilities in Johnston, Iowa. The 200,000 square foot center is expected to add some 400 jobs. The new facility will be part of DuPont’s Pioneer Hi-Bred business, a subsidiary developing seeds through plant genetics. Johnston is located northwest of…
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DNA Sequencing Extended to Cancer Treatment Decisions
Medical researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have adapted DNA sequencing technology to map the genetic evolution of disease and monitor response to treatment. Up to now, researchers have used genomic sequencing to identify mutations at the root of a patient’s tumor, but that technology can also help guide treatment decisions, according to Elaine…
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Carnegie Institution Adds Four New Crop Databases
The Carnegie Institution of Science says its Plant Metabolic Network, based in Stanford, California, has added online databases on the biochemical pathways controlling the metabolism of corn, soybeans, wine grapes, and cassava. The new additions offer a detailed view of the chemical reactions taking place in the cells of these four commercially important crops. The…
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Lab-On-A-Chip Device Developed to Test for Flu Viruses
Researchers from Boston University and Harvard medical schools have devised an inexpensive, point-of-care prototype device that tests for flu strains. The team led by BU biomedical engineering professor Catherine Klapperich published its findings last week in the journal PLoS ONE. The lab test currently considered the most accurate for influenza uses a process called reverse…
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Nanoscale DNA Sequencing Process Developed
Physicists at University of Washington in Seattle and microbiologists from University of Alabama at Birmingham have developed a sensor with the ability to read the sequence of DNA one strand at a time. A description of their research, with implications for inexpensive DNA sequencing and personalized medicine, appears in this week’s issue of the journal…
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Agilent to Develop Salmonella, Fish Species Tests for FDA
Agilent Technologies Inc. in Santa Clara, California, a developer of instrumentation for chemical and life science analysis, unveiled its agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to develop new tests for the agency’s regulation of food. One set of tests for FDA will identify salmonella more precisely, while a different test suite will use…
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Genetic Testing Users, Costs Expected to Increase
A working paper released today by UnitedHealthcare, a health care insurance and services company in Minneapolis, says few patients currently use genetic testing, but a large majority of physicians believes their patients could benefit from these tests. The report also estimates some $5 billion is now spent annually on genetic testing, with those costs expected…
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FDA Approves Cell Product for Dental Tissue Regeneration
The Food and Drug Administration has approved the product Gintuit for regenerating oral soft tissue, made by Organogenesis Inc. in Canton, Massachusetts. The product combines skin cells and connective tissue with bovine collagen and proteins to regrow soft tissue in the mouth resulting from gingival recession, or receding gums. Gingival recession occurs when the gingiva…
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Australian Researchers Develop Salt-Tolerant Wheat Strain
Agricultural researchers at universities and research institutes in Australia have developed a strain of wheat that can thrive in salty soils. Their findings appear today online in journal Nature Biotechnology (paid subscription required). The research led by University of Adeliade plant scientist Matthew Gilliham first aimed at understanding in the lab the functioning of salt-tolerant…
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Biotech, Pharma Companies to Collaborate on New Vaccines
Medicago Inc. in Quebec City, Canada and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp. in Osaka, Japan have agreed to develop and commercialize at least three new vaccines based on Medicago’s technology. The first part of the deal is expected to provide Medicago with up to $C33 million ($US 33 milion) in revenues. The partnership will give Mitsubishi…