Tag: chemistry
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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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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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MIT Spin-Off Develops Material Mimicking Human Skin
9 May 2016. A substance that emulates properties of youthful human skin was shown in pilot tests with human subjects to outperform other materials used for wound dressings. The new polymer material, based on research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and commercialized by Olivo Laboratories, a start-up enterprise, is described in today’s issue of the…
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Technique Extends Bioactive Device Coating Lifetime
14 April 2016. A new process is shown to regenerate therapeutic coatings on implanted medical devices in lab tests and with animals, possibly extending the devices’ lifetimes in patients. The techniques, developed in the lab of Harvard University biomedical engineering professor Elliot Chaikof, are described in the 13 April 2016 issue of the journal Nature…
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Cell-Free Synthetic Biochemical Process Devised
13 April 2016. A biochemistry lab at University of California in Los Angeles developed techniques for producing synthetic bio-based chemicals without processing sugars through cells. The discoveries from the lab of biochemistry professor James Bowie is described in the 11 April 2016 issue of the journal Nature Chemical Biology (paid subscription required). Bowie, with postdoctoral…
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On-Demand Pharma Manufacturing System Developed
1 April 2016. Chemical engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology created a compact manufacturing system that produces small quantities of pharmaceuticals as needed. The system developed in the MIT labs of Alan Myerson, Klavs Jensen, and Timothy Jamison is described in the 31 March issue of the journal Science (paid subscription required). Making drugs at…
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Sensor Material Developed to Detect Fuel Vapors
28 March 2016. A University of Utah engineering team designed a new ultra-sensitive material that can detect traces of hydrocarbon fuel or explosive vapors in the air. Researchers from the lab of Ling Zang published their findings earlier this month of the journal ACS Sensors; paid subscription required. Zang, a professor of engineering and materials…
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Merck Licensing Harvard Cancer Drug Molecules
21 March 2016. The pharmaceutical company Merck is licensing small molecule research discoveries from a Harvard University lab as potential treatments for leukemia. The agreement brings the university $20 million immediately, with further payments expected as Merck develops the discoveries into products. The deal gives Merck an exclusive license to research by biochemistry professor Matthew…
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Injected Drug Forms Anti-Cancer Nanoparticles in Tumors
15 March 2016. Medical researchers developed a drug delivery technique that in lab mice forms anti-cancer nanoparticles inside metastatic tumors, promising much more potent cancer treatments. The team led by Mauro Ferrari and Haifa Shen at Houston Methodist Research Institute in Texas published its findings in yesterday’s (14 March) issue of Nature Biotechnology; paid subscription…
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Process Devised for Plastics from Carbon Dioxide, Plants
10 March 2016. Producing common plastics like polyester today often needs large inputs of fossil fuel derivatives. A chemistry lab at Stanford University in California developed a low-carbon alternative to polyester that combines recycled carbon dioxide with inedible plant matter, such as agricultural waste, as reported in today’s issue of the journal Nature. Matthew Kanan…