March « 2014 « Science and Enterprise

Blood Biomarker Measured in Hockey Player Concussions

By Alan, on March 14th, 2014%

(Dan4th/Flickr)

14 March 2014. Researchers at Quanterix Corp. in Lexington, Massachusetts, and universities in Sweden, tested the company’s method for detecting and measuring tau protein as an indicator of concussion in the blood of professional hockey players. The team led by Pashtun Shahim at University of Gothenburg, with colleagues at Quanterix, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, . . . → Read More: Blood Biomarker Measured in Hockey Player Concussions

Virtual Fish in Development for Environmental Toxin Testing

By Alan, on March 13th, 2014%

Rainbow trout (USBR.gov)

13 March 2014. Researchers at Plymouth University in the U.K. and the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca are developing a technique to gauge potential toxic effects of chemicals in rivers and oceans using cells from fish configured into a testing device. The three-year, £600,000 ($998,000) project of biologist Awadhesh Jha with colleagues . . . → Read More: Virtual Fish in Development for Environmental Toxin Testing

Study to Evaluate Spatial Repellents to Control Mosquitos

By Alan, on March 13th, 2014%

Aedes aegypti mosquito that carries Dengue fever (CDC.gov)

13 March 2014. Biologists at University of Notre Dame in Indiana are evaluating area-wide techniques for repelling mosquitoes as a way to control diseases like malaria and dengue fever. A grant of $23 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is funding a five-year . . . → Read More: Study to Evaluate Spatial Repellents to Control Mosquitos

Trial Underway to Test Mutation Fix for Cystic Fibrosis

By Alan, on March 12th, 2014%

(Mikael Häggström/Wikimedia Commons)

12 March 2014. An early-stage clinical trial is underway testing the safety and chemical activity of a drug designed to correct a genetic mutation causing cystic fibrosis. The study, sponsored by N30 Pharmaceuticals Inc. in Boulder, Colorado — the drug’s inventor — aims to enroll up to 40 healthy adults.

Biotech Partnership to Develop Non-Ricin Castor Plants

By Alan, on March 12th, 2014%

Castor beans (plants.usda.gov)

12 March 2014. Precision BioSciences Inc. and Novo Synthetix, biotechnology companies in Durham, North Carolina, are collaborating on a new type of castor bean, without the ricin poison that makes the beans difficult to process and market. Financial and intellectual property aspects of the deal were not disclosed.

Beans from castor . . . → Read More: Biotech Partnership to Develop Non-Ricin Castor Plants

Store Checkout Data Generate Neighborhood Food Profiles

By Alan, on March 11th, 2014%

(otakusan555/Flickr)

11 March 2014. An epidemiologist at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada devised a method for tracking food choices, with data from food stores, that helps gauge family nutrition in city neighborhoods. The team led by McGill’s David Buckeridge published its findings online in a recent issue of the Annals of the . . . → Read More: Store Checkout Data Generate Neighborhood Food Profiles

Trial Shows Drug Efficacy with Chronic Kidney Disease

By Alan, on March 11th, 2014%

Cross-section of kidney (National Library of Medicine)

11 March 2014. An intermediate-stage clinical trial by La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company in San Diego shows patients with chronic kidney disease taking the company’s drug candidate succeeded in improving their kidney functions, compared to similar patients taking a placebo. However, the drug code-named GCS-100 appears effective . . . → Read More: Trial Shows Drug Efficacy with Chronic Kidney Disease

Start-Up Company Licenses University Stroke Drug Research

By Alan, on March 10th, 2014%

CT scan of stroke victim’s brain (National Library of Medicine)

10 March 2014. Zocere Inc. in Albuquerque, New Mexico is licensing a neurological protein from University of New Mexico for development into a drug to protect ischemic stroke victims from extensive brain damage. Financial terms of the deal with the university’s technology transfer . . . → Read More: Start-Up Company Licenses University Stroke Drug Research

Smartphone Obstetrics App Gains $2M Angel, Public Funding

By Alan, on March 10th, 2014%

Phone Oximeter (LionsGate Technologies)

10 March 2014. LionsGate Technologies, a medical device developer in Vancouver, British Columbia, received $2 million in private and public financing for its smartphone app measuring blood oxygen levels in pregnant women. The funds will support clinical trials and scaling up for production of LionsGate’s Phone Oximeter, a device . . . → Read More: Smartphone Obstetrics App Gains $2M Angel, Public Funding

Trial Shows Nasal Filter Helps Relieve Hay Fever Symptoms

By Alan, on March 7th, 2014%

( mcfarlandmo/Flickr)

7 March 2014. A clinical trial at Aarhus University in Denmark shows a small filter placed in the nose reduced symptoms of hay fever among allergy sufferers, compared to a placebo. The inventor of the filter, Peter Kenney, a doctoral candidate at Aarhus, and colleagues presented their findings earlier this week at . . . → Read More: Trial Shows Nasal Filter Helps Relieve Hay Fever Symptoms

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