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U.K. Medical Tech Company Acquires Wound Care Developer
Smith & Nephew, a medical technology company in London, is purchasing Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, a developer of wound treatments in Fort Worth, Texas. In the transaction, Smith & Nephew will acquire all Healthpoint assets for $782 million in cash, with the deal expected to close next month. Olivier Bohuon, Smith & Nephew’s CEO, says the acquisition…
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International Consortium Sequences Bread Wheat Genome
Researchers from the U.S., U.K., and Germany sequenced the genome of the strain of wheat used to make bread, an achievement that is expected to increase yields and enhance the nutritional value of this crop. The findings of the consortium, comprising researchers from 10 different institutions, appear today online in the journal Nature. U.S. Department…
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Membrane Technology to be Studied for Industrial Processes
Engineers and materials scientists at University of Minnesota in Minneapolis received funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop membrane technology for energy-efficient separations in a range of process industries. The three-year, $1.8 million grant from the Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E) aims to adapt lab research on nanotechnology for membranes that can improve…
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Microneedles Found Effective as Syringe for Measles Vaccine
Biomedical engineers at Georgia Institute of Technology and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), both in Atlanta, found microneedle patches could deliver a vaccine for measles to lab animals as effectively as a conventional hypodermic needle. The team led by Georgia Tech’s Mark Prausnitz published its findings online in a recent issue of the…
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Process Developed to Grow Carbon Nanotubes on Graphene
Researchers from Rice University in Houston developed a method of growing seamless carbon nanotubes on graphene, with a high surface area and electric conductivity. The team that included members from Tianjin University in China and University of Texas at San Antonio published their findings today in the journal Nature Communications (paid subscription required). James Tour…
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Functioning Lung Transport System in Clinical Trial
A system for transporting functioning human lungs for transplants is being tested in a clinical trial, with the first transplant surgery in the U.S. occuring earlier this month. The Organ Care System tested in the trial is developed by TransMedics Inc. in Andover, Massachusetts, with the first U.S. transplant taking place at the UCLA medical…
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Director David Kappos to Leave USPTO
The director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office David Kappos announced in an e-mail yesterday to USPTO staff that he plans to leave the agency by the end of January 2013. The news was reported late yesterday by the industry blog, IP Watchdog and confirmed independently by sources at USPTO. Kappos became USPTO director…
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Stem Cells Devised for Rare Disease Boost Personal Medicine
Medical researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Institute in New York developed a method of screening treatments for a rare genetic disorder that the authors say could be applied to tests of stem-cell derived personalized medicines. The team led by Gabsang Lee at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Cell Engineering published…
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University, Corporation Partnering on Paint-Stripping Robots
National Robotics Engineering Center at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and Concurrent Technologies Corporation in Johnstown, Pennsylvania are developing robotic systems with lasers to strip paint from aircraft. The two-year project is funded by a contract from the National Defense Center for Energy and Environment, part of the U.S. Department of Defense, with participation from the…
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Cyclists with Parkinson’s Show Improved Brain Functions
Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio found Parkinson’s disease patients benefited from stationary cycling, with the greatest benefits experienced by patients who pedaled faster. The Cleveland Clinic team presents its findings today at a meeting in Chicago of the Radiological Society of North America. Parkinson’s disease is a brain condition that leads to shaking,…