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Mayo Clinic, Korean Biotech to Collaborate on ALS Research
Mayo Clinic’s campus in Jacksonville, Florida and SK Biopharmaceuticals in Seoul, South Korea have agreed to develop new treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The collaboration will center around the work of Mayo Clinic’s Leonard Petrucelli, who heads the neuroscience research department at the Jacksonville campus. ALS results in…
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Toxicity to Human Cells of Nanotubes, Nanowires Investigated
A research team at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island has found some nanoscale materials interact with human cells much like asbestos fibers, making the materials toxic. Their research on carbon nanotubes and gold nanowires appears online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology (paid subscription required). The team led by Huajian Gao, professor of engineering found…
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Laser Technology Developed to Detect Improvised Explosives
Scientists at Michigan State University in East Lansing have developed a laser that in lab tests has shown the potential to detect roadside bombs, a destructive weapon encountered by American and allied forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The team led by MSU chemistry professor Marcos Dantus published its findings in the current issue of the…
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Medication Poisoning of Young Children Rising Sharply
An analysis by researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center shows the number of young children hospitalized from a potentially toxic dose of medication has risen markedly in recent years. The findings by Randall Bond and colleagues from Cincinnati Children’s appear online in the Journal of Pediatrics. Bond and his team reviewed more than 453,000…
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America Invents Act Signed Into Law
President Obama signed into law today the America Invents Act at a high school in Alexandria, Virginia, not far from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The bill that passed the Senate earlier this month and House of Representatives in June, changes patent procedures to recognize parties who are first to file their applications, a procedure…
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Grant Awarded for Study of Blood Test to Spot Concussions
Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio have received a grant from National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study the effectiveness of a blood test that identifies concussions in college football players. Damir Janigro and Nicola Marchi of the Cleveland Clinic are the lead researchers on this study, in collaboration with Jeffrey Bazarian at the…
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Smartphone Advance Can Improve Efficiency, Extend Battery
Researchers at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor have devised a more efficient “idle mode” for smartphones and Wi-Fi devices that reduces power use and can extend battery life. Computer science and engineering professor Kang Shin and doctoral student Xinyu Zhang will present their discovery, still in proof-of-concept stage, next week at the ACM International…
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Campaign Begins to Boost Public Support for Biomed Research
An advocacy group kicked off a national media campaign to boost what the group says is flagging public support for biomedical research, focusing on the benefits to military veterans. However, the group’s own poll and other survey data suggest a sizable majority of Americans continues to support public funding of biomedical research. The Foundation for…
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Sanofi Division, Max Planck to Partner on Retinal Research
Max Planck Society in Germany and Fovea Pharmaceuticals in Paris have agreed to a research and licensing agreement on therapies for restoring vision to patients with diseases affecting the retina. Fovea is the ophthalmology division of the French drug company Sanofi-Aventis. Fovea’s team plans to work with the Max Planck Institute of Biophysics in Frankfurt…
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Research-Based Healthy Eating Plate Unveiled
Nutritionists at Harvard University’s School of Public Health have released the Healthy Eating Plate, a visual guide for eating a healthy meal that the developers say is based only on the science and not the interests of growers or industry. Eric Rimm, a professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the school says, “We want people…