Science and Enterprise

Tag: biotechnology

  • Consortium Formed for Antibiotic Resistance Drug Discovery

    A collaboration of Anacor Pharmaceuticals in Palo Alto, California with Colorado State University and University of California in Berkeley is researching new types of antibiotics to treat a broad range of infections, including those resistant to current antibiotics. The $13.5 million, 3.5 year project is funded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, part of the…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Clinical Trial of ALS Stem Cell Therapy Begins Treatments

    The first two of up to 15 patients received their first injections of stem cells to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease, in an intermediate-stage clinical trial at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Emory University in Atlanta. The study is testing stem cell treatments made by Neuralstem, a biotechnology company…

  • Biotech Company to Go Public in $86 Million IPO

    GlycoMimetics Inc., a biotechnology company in Gaithersburg, Maryland, filed its registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed initial public offering (IPO) of common stock. Fortune Magazine’s Term Sheet page reports the company aims to raise $86.25 million through the IPO, and trade on the Nasdaq exchange under ticker symbol GLYC. GlycoMimetics…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Clinical Trial to Test Engineered Enzyme with Kidney Failure

    AM-Pharma, a biopharmaceutical company in Bunnik, the Netherlands, began recruiting volunteers to test an engineered form of the human enzyme alkaline phosphatase to treat acute kidney injury. The clinical trial will test the safety and tolerability of the human recombinant alkaline phosphatase as well as its enzyme-chemical activity in blood serum, an indicator of treatment…

  • Biotech Financing Up, Licensing Down in First Half of 2013

    The biotechnology industry experienced healthy growth in venture financing and valuations in the first half of 2013, but licensing deals — a prime source of biotech revenue — were flat during the period, pointing to limits on the industry’s growth potential. This accounting of biotech industry financial activity is described in a report from Evaluate…