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Trial Shows Long-Term Benefit of Multiple Sclerosis Drug
The drug company Novartis today released results of a clinical trial that shows patients with multiple sclerosis taking its drug fingolimod — marketed under the name Gilenya — had fewer relapses and lower brain volume loss, including among patients who switched from a competing drug. The findings are expected to be delivered today at a…
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Robotic-Guided Brain Surgery Performed
Mazor Robotics Ltd. in Caesarea, Israel says it completed three robot-guided brain surgical procedures with its technology. The nature of the procedures was not disclosed. The procedures were performed by neurosurgeons In-Se Kim and Robert Schönmayr at Horst Schmidt Kliniken in Wiesbaden, Germany. Mazor Robotics is a developer of robotics for spinal surgery, often involving…
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Small-Scale Surveillance/Emergency Robot Developed
ReconRobotics Inc. in Edina, Minnesota has unveiled a compact and lightweight robotic device for military, police, and emergency-response applications. The company plans to demonstrate the Throwbot XT Reconnaissance Robot at the Eurosatory defense and security exhibition, 11-14 June in Paris. The Throwbot is designed to be physically thrown into harm’s way by military, police, and…
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New Data Encoding Method Cuts Energy for Memory Cards
Engineers and computer scientists at Rice University in Houston and University of California in Los Angeles have discovered a way to write data on computer memory cards that cuts the energy needed for the task by 30 percent. The team from Rice’s Adaptive Computing and Embedded Systems Laboratory, led by Ph.D. student Azalia Mirhoseini (pictured…
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Biomarker Diagnostics Company Gains $40M in Venture Funding
Astute Medical Inc. in San Diego, a developer of biomarker-based medical diagnostics, says it completed $40.4 million in series C venture financing, the third cycle of funding after initial start-up. The funding round was led by MPM Capital and included new investor Kaiser Permanente Ventures, as well as existing investors De Novo Ventures, Delphi Ventures,…
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Grant to Fund Research on Earthquakes, Building Design
Engineers at University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) and UC-Berkeley will study the impact of building construction practices, particularly the design and performance of structural walls, on resisting earthquake damage. The team led by UCLA civil and environmental engineering professor John Wallace is funded by a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s…
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High-Energy Infrared Beams Adapted for Tabletop X-Ray Device
Physicists from University of Colorado at Boulder, with colleagues from the U.S., Austria, and Spain, have developed an X-ray system that captures concentrated infrared beams, in a compact device that can fit on a lab table. The team led by Colorado researchers Henry Kapteyn and Margaret Murnane published their findings in the 8 June issue…
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Universities Awarded Clean Coal Research Grants
The U.S. Department of Energy says 10 universities will receive grants for research on the development of clean coal technologies. Each grant of about $300,000 will be supplemented with additional funds from the schools, for a total research budget of $3.1 million. The grants are expected to support research on high-pressure corrosion-resistant alloys, protective coatings,…
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Novartis, Foundation Medicine to Partner on Genome Analysis
The pharmaceutical company Novartis has agreed to use the genomic analysis services of Foundation Medicine in Cambridge, Massachusetts in Novartis’s clinical trials of cancer drugs. The agreement expands an 18-month pilot program between the two companies. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Foundation Medicine conducts a detailed genomic analysis of tumors to help…
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IVF Assessment Company Lands $18M in Venture Capital
Auxogyn Inc., in Menlo Park, California, a developer of viability tests of embryos during in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures, has raised $18 million in series B venture funds, the second round of financing after initial start-up. The financing was led by new investor SR One — the corporate venture capital arm of GlaxoSmithKline — and…