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FDA clears Agendia's breast cancer recurrence assay

Agendia, a world leader in molecular cancer diagnostics, today announced that the company has received its fifth U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance for MammaPrint, its widely used breast cancer recurrence assay.

23 Feb 2011

Ibio acquires Orphan Drug Designation and Fabry disease therapeutic program from Kentucky

iBio, Inc. today announced it has acquired Orphan Drug Designation for plant-produced human alpha galactosidase A and related property rights from an affiliate of Kentucky Bioprocessing LLC and has initiated a program, based on its iBioLaunch platform, to develop an improved version of the enzyme for therapy of Fabry disease.

23 Feb 2011

Pretreatment with FDA-approved drug allows successful pregnancies in radiation-exposed rhesus monkeys

A strategy developed by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers to shield the ovaries of female mammals from the damaging effects of radiation and chemotherapy has passed an important milestone. A collaborative study with investigators from Oregon Health and Sciences University (OHSU), published online in the journal Fertility and Sterility, reports that brief preexposure of the ovaries to an FDA-approved agent called FTY720 preserved the fertility of female rhesus monkeys exposed to potentially lethal doses of radiation.

23 Feb 2011

Brain reward center responds to good and bad experiences

The so-called reward center of the brain may need a new name, say scientists who have shown it responds to good and bad experiences. The finding, published in PLoS One, may help explain the "thrill" of thrill-seeking behavior or maybe just the thrill of surviving it, according to scientists at Georgia Health Sciences University and East China Normal University.

23 Feb 2011

Signaling mechanism in bacterial ribosome linked to antibiotic resistance

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have discovered a signaling mechanism in the bacterial ribosome that detects proteins that activate genes for antibiotic resistance.

23 Feb 2011

New method integrates supercomputer simulation and experimental results

A theoretical technique developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory is bringing supercomputer simulations and experimental results closer together by identifying common "fingerprints."

23 Feb 2011

PPD, Elan establish strategic collaboration to execute clinical programs

Elan, plc and PPD, Inc. today announced they have formed a global business collaboration focused on the advancement, progression and execution of Elan's development portfolio.

23 Feb 2011

New study: Portion of brain responsible for reading doesn't require vision at all

The portion of the brain responsible for visual reading doesn't require vision at all, according to a new study by researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and France.

23 Feb 2011

ETH scientists warn about impact of cell phone radiation in brain of healthy adults

Expert scientists working with Environmental Health Trust, a nonprofit research and educational group, say that new studies showing that cell phone radiation excites the brain strengthen the need for a major research program on cell phones and health, revamping approaches to setting standards, and putting warnings on cell phones.

23 Feb 2011

Stripe of Gennari in the blind may play greater role in processing tactile stimuli

The Stripe of Gennari develops even in those who are blind from birth and does not degenerate, despite a lack of visual input. This was discovered by Robert Trampel and colleagues from the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences using magnetic resonance imaging. This bundle of nerve fibers, which is approximately 0.3 mm thick, is not exclusively responsible for optic information.

23 Feb 2011

Knocking out genes completely and exclusively in Natural Killer cells

Our immune systems contain three fundamentally different types of cell: B-cells, T-cells and the mysteriously named Natural Killer cells (NK cells), which are known to be involved in killing tumour cells and other infected cells. Experiments to investigate the function of NK cells have proven difficult to interpret because the interactions between the various components of the immune system make it almost impossible to isolate effects of individual cell types.

23 Feb 2011

USPTO issues patent to Silence Therapeutics' siRNA technology

Silence Therapeutics plc announces the issuance of United States patent 7,893,245, titled "Interfering RNA Molecules," by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

23 Feb 2011

Cerasome filled molecular-sized bubbles to target liver cancer cells

Nanotechnology may open a new door on the treatment of liver cancer, according to a team of Penn State College of Medicine researchers. They used molecular-sized bubbles filled with chemotherapy drugs to prevent cell growth and initiate cell death in test tubes and mice.

23 Feb 2011

Biochemist receives STAC grant to find treatment for C. albicans infection in premature infants

A $200,000 grant from the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council is helping a Bryant University biochemist find a treatment for a fungal infection that is often lethal to premature infants.

23 Feb 2011

Nanoparticle therapy may improve survival after life-threatening blood loss

In an advance that could improve battlefield and trauma care, scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have used tiny particles called nanoparticles to improve survival after life-threatening blood loss.

23 Feb 2011

New DNA technology to study cystic fibrosis 'superbug' during infection

The bacterium, called Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is the most common cause of persistent and fatal lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. Scientists at Liverpool identified a particularly virulent strain of the bacteria that is transmissible between patients. The Liverpool Epidemic Strain (LES), referred to as a cystic fibrosis 'superbug', can cause aggressive infection and results in progressive lung decline.

23 Feb 2011

Mechanism of cancer treatment related to infertility in women

Chemotherapeutic agents, used in cancer treatment, destroy not only cancer cells but also healthy cells, thus affecting germ cells as well. Consequently, after surviving cancer many female patients are confronted with the diagnosis: infertility. For a long time a relationship between infertility and chemotherapeutic agents has been assumed, but until now, the exact mechanism was not known.

23 Feb 2011