Andor Zyla high-speed cameras power novel four-lens light-sheet microscope to deliver whole embryo images in under ten seconds.
Understanding embryo development is still one of the most intriguing questions facing today's biologists. Light-sheet microscopy is rapidly gaining recognition for whole organism imaging, allowing cell growth, differentiation and morphogenesis to be studied in detail. However, compared to confocal microscopy, the amount of data generated by this new technique is approximately three thousand times greater and poses new storage and image post-processing challenges...
French Bacteriologist Receives Half Million Pound Prize
The 2013 Balzan Prizewinners 750,000 Swiss Francs (approx. EUR 610,000; USD 800,000; GBP 515,000) for each of the four subjects. Half of the amount must be destined by the winners to research projects. The names of the 2013 Balzan Prizewinners were proclaimed today in a public announcement: Pascale Cossart (France), Institut Pasteur, Paris, for Infectious diseases: basic and clinical aspects André Vauchez (France), Université de Paris Ouest Nanterre, for Medieval History Manuel Castells (Spain), University of Southern California (USA), for Sociology Alain Aspect (France), École Polytechnique, Palaiseau, for Quantum Information Processing and Communication...
Revised METTLER TOLEDO Sensor Product Guide Saves Time
METTLER TOLEDO is pleased to announce the launch of the latest version of its interactive, web-based Electrode ValueBox. This downloadable electrode identification and troubleshooting toolkit, which features a revised electronic Sensor ProductGuide, will help METTLER TOLEDO customers choose the right electrode in less time, enabling easy optimization of delicate values such as pH. Particularly for pH measurements, subtle electrode composition shifts capture electron transfer in various solution types...
Frost & Sullivan: Hospitals and laboratories look for cost-effective test panels enabling simultaneous autoimmune diseases testing
Successful autoimmune disease awareness campaigns are encouraging patients to seek clinical diagnostics even for general symptoms such as fatigue and gastrointestinal distress, spurring the global autoimmune disease diagnostics market. The rising incidence of gastrointestinal autoimmune conditions, primarily celiac disease, also promotes testing. As a result, market revenue is estimated to reach $1.0 billion in 2018 from $712.5 million in 2012, according to the new Global Autoimmune Disease Diagnostics Market analysis from Frost & Sullivan...
Sygnature Discovery, a leading provider of integrated drug discovery services, today announced that it has been selected by CellCentric, a biotechnology company with a scientific foundation in epigenetics, to progress small molecule inhibitor drug discovery against a specific deubiquitinase (DUB) enzyme which has been demonstrated to play a key role in the progression of prostate cancer.
CellCentric recently received £4.3 million through further venture investment and an award from the UK government-backed Technology Strategy Board’s BioMedical Catalyst Fund, to further fuel the DUB programme through to small molecule clinical candidates. The new agents act upon the androgen receptor (AR) pathway, which is gaining significant interest from the pharmaceutical industry. CellCentric’s approach has the potential to modulate AR and AR splice variants, which could be key to overcoming many of the drug resistance mechanisms which limit the clinical benefit of existing approved and developmental therapeutic agents...
BiOptix formally announced the European expansion of the BiOptix Innovators Program at MipTec & BioValley Life Sciences Week.
During the event, the company is launching the BiOptix Innovators Program into Europe, with an emphasis on partnering with key research institutions, pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology/drug discovery firms. The BiOptix Innovators Program is a unique and innovative product evaluation platform that allows customers to try BiOptix SPR technology independently in their lab, on their timeframe and with complete customer and technical support during the evaluation...
Hospitals in Nottingham will become the first in the world to take advantage of an electronic blood-tracking system allowing nurses to use Apple iPods at the bedside.
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust has agreed the deal with leading healthcare technology company MSoft eSolutions to implement the technology at Nottingham City Hospital and Queen’s Medical Centre. The Trust already has a strong working relationship with MSoft which last year decided to introduce its Bloodhound solution following a rigorous tender process. Bloodhound controls access to and from all blood fridges, while a bedside management system allows each bar-coded blood unit to be matched with the patient’s bar-coded wristband in a matter of seconds...
AMSBIO has announced a new on-demand webinar entitled 'CometAssay: Detecting single and double strand DNA breaks in individual cells'.
Presented by Dr Sandra Woodgate, a Subject Matter Expert for this technique., this informative webinar explores how the Comet Assay quantitates DNA damage and repair from in vivo and in vitro samples of eukaryotic cells. The comet assay or single cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE) is a technique to easily and rapidly detect and quantitate DNA fragmentation associated with DNA damage caused by apoptosis and cytotoxicity. The technique can be particularly useful in the field of genotoxicity testing, human biomonitoring, cellular response to DNA damage, and for screening cancer therapeutics...
Thermo Fisher Scientific has developed a method for the fast determination of PCDD/Fs in sediments, soils, bottom and fly ash (as incineration by-products) using gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS).
Application Note 10336,Determination of PCDD/Fs in Environmental Samples using Accelerated Solvent Extraction and GC-MS/MS,describes a sensitive and accurate GC-MS/MS method for determining levels of dioxins and furans in various environmental samples using GC-MS/MS. Instrumental LOQs using GC-MS/MS were calculated in the low fgL concentration ranges...
Research settles potential variance in performance of international broiler carcass sampling methods
As the world’s leading laboratory paddle blender for food microbiologists, Seward’s Stomacher® 400 Circulator has been used in a recent evaluation of international sampling methods for the microbiological analysis of broiler carcasses after immersion chilling[1]. As a widespread pathogen, Salmonella can cause severe illness in humans. Global poultry industries have therefore deployed and maintained various food safety programmes to ensure that poultry is safe for consumption...
Cellectricon, a leading provider of advanced cell-based screening technologies and services, has announced the two winners of its Cellaxess® ACE project grant, supporting cutting-edge research in cell biology. The grant was awarded for project proposals utilizing Cellectricon’s Cellaxess ACE technology for the delivery of non-genetic material to adherent cells and cultures. The winners not only receive a Cellaxess ACE module and consumables, but will also benefit from Cellectricon’s on-going support and expertise throughout the project’s duration. Cellaxess ACE is a single electrode based electroporation system optimized for the in-situ transfection of all adherent cell types, which offers superior efficiency and cell viability due to minimal cell processing and the low voltages required...
PHSS Annual Members Conference 2013, Microbial Aspects of Cleanroom Manufacture
Cherwell Laboratories will be offering expert knowledge and demonstrating their comprehensive range of specialist environmental monitoring and process validation products at the forthcoming PHSS Annual Members Conference 2013, Microbial Aspects of Cleanroom Manufacture. The annual conference, to be held at Wychwood Park Hotel, Crewe on 9th & 10th October 2013, coincides with the release of the new PHSS Bio-contamination technical monograph 20....
San Diego-based Sapphire Energy, the pioneer of an entirely new industry – Green Crude production – is taking advantage of the unique benefits of Bredel hose pump technology from Watson-Marlow Pumps Group.
Sapphire is using a Bredel 2100 for the shear sensitive transfer of algae used in an innovative fuel production process which offers the potential to transform America’s energy and petrochemical landscape. Backed by $100 million of government funding, in August 2012 Sapphire Energy opened its state-of-the-art Green Crude farm in Columbus, New Mexico....
iXon EMCCD camera's exceptional low light performance opens the door to real-time implementation of atomtronics
Since the first demonstrations of Bose-Einstein condensation in 1995, ultra-cold matter has become a fertile and lively field of study. Research around the world is establishing a high level of understanding of the underlying physics for applications, such as inertial guidance systems, atomic clocks and quantum computing. Teams are also beginning to design and build compact, low-power instrumentation for handling ultra-cold atoms...
Biocatalysis and metagenomics used for generation of improved hydrocolloids with potential therapeutic properties
Libragen, a contract research organization dedicated to biocatalysis and metagenomics, has been a major contributor to the success of PolyModE (Polysaccharide Modifying Enzymes), a large collaborative research project funded by the European Community. The project, which began in 2009 and ended in April this year, looked at developing novel polysaccharide modifying enzymes for the optimized use of hydrocolloids as, for example, food additives or novel therapeutic agents in the food sciences and medical industries....
Pharmaceutical formulation development and manufacturing services provider Molecular Profiles Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Laboratories, Inc., (Nasdaq: CBRX) has been selected as the formulation development partner for a major pan-European collaborative project.
The UK-based company has been chosen by clinical stage biopharmaceutical company Telormedix SA (Telormedix) to develop both topical and solid dosage formulations for the use in the treatment of psoriasis. The project, operating under the acronym PAT (Psoriasis Anti-inflammatory Treatment), will involve other consortium partners Biopta, Midatech Biogune and the University Hospital Zurich....
Suffolk (UK) based Vapourtec has partnered up with Dr Nicholas Leadbeater and the New Synthetic Methods Group at the University of Connecticut (USA) to produce a new guide entitled “An Introduction to Flow Chemistry – A Practical Laboratory Course”.
Aimed principally at undergraduate teaching laboratories within colleges and universities but also a great asset to the research lab, the 100 page manual details a set of ten continuous-flow processing experiments, each of which can be easily delivered in conjunction with Vapourtec’s E-series flow unit during a regular lab period. Dr Leadbeater, Associate Professor at the University of Connecticut and widely recognised as one of the leading lights in the fields of flow chemistry and new educational initiatives, commented: “Flow chemistry offers a lot of exciting possibilities in terms of running reactions for a wide variety of industries and it’s vital that it is encouraged and nurtured in the field of education...
Edinburgh instruments are delighted to announce that LiCONiC AG have selected the Edinburgh Sensors Gascheck IR CO2 sensor for integration into their range of CO2 Incubator products.
LiCONiC AG manufacture a wide range of automated incubators for use in life science research applications including cell screening. Selective high quality CO2 measurement is essential in automated incubator performance because the regular access challenges the chamber environment. Using Gascheck sensors enables LiCONiC to deliver the required controls without dependence on temperature or humidity...
Aberdeen scientists are investigating if antibodies found naturally in sharks could be used to target breast cancer. AICR, the Scottish cancer research charity, has awarded biologists from the University of Aberdeen a grant of over £200,000 to analyse if IgNAR – a special antibody found only in sharks – can be used to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. The three-year study will look at two molecules - called HER2 and HER3 - found on the surface of cancer cells. When these molecules pair-up on the surface of a cancer cell, they signal it to grow and divide...
Experiments with neutrons at the Technische Universität München (TUM) show that the antidepressant lithium accumulates more strongly in white matter of the brain than in grey matter.
This leads to the conclusion that it works differently from synthetic psychotropic drugs. The tissue samples were examined at the Research Neutron Source Heinz Maier-Leibnitz (FRM II) with the aim of developing a better understanding of the effects this substance has on the human psyche. At present lithium is most popular for its use in rechargeable batteries....
In the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Life Sciences CRM Software 2013 Vendor Assessment (Doc # HI242172, July 2013), IDC Health Insights reports that cloud-based solutions, including Veeva CRM, part of Veeva System's Commercial Suite, have now entered the mainstream.
According to the IDC MarketScape, this move is driven by next-generation applications that provide advanced functionality and mobile capabilities, along with the flexibility of the cloud. In this new report, IDC Health Insights evaluated all major CRM solution providers for life sciences and named Veeva Systems as a leader. The IDC MarketScape reported, "Veeva's CRM software scored extremely well in this IDC MarketScape, with Veeva positioned in the Leaders category. Veeva CRM's ease of use, user interface, and breadth of functionality are among the best in the industry, and the company's sole focus on the life sciences industry boosts Veeva's unique understanding of market wants and needs...
A Freedom EVO® workstation with an integrated HydroSpeed™ plate washer and Infinite® F200 PRO multimode reader is helping researchers at Jikei University School of Medicine to perform high throughput compound screening in the battle to combat persistent bacterial infections.
Dr Ken-ichi Okuda, Assistant Professor in the Department of Bacteriology at Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan, explained: “Bacteria within biofilms have a low susceptibility to the immune system and antibiotics, which means that infection is more difficult to eradicate in many cases. Our objective is to find compounds that prevent formation of the biofilms, and then to analyze the detailed composition of the molecular interactions of these compounds with the bacteria.”...
During the event, the company is launching the BiOptix Innovators Program into Europe, with an emphasis on partnering with key research institutions, pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology/drug discovery firms. The BiOptix Innovators Program is a unique and innovative product evaluation platform that allows customers to try BiOptix SPR technology independently in their lab, on their timeframe and with complete customer and technical support during the evaluation...
As the world’s leading laboratory paddle blender for food microbiologists, Seward’s Stomacher® 400 Circulator has been used in a recent evaluation of international sampling methods for the microbiological analysis of broiler carcasses after immersion chilling[1]. As a widespread pathogen, Salmonella can cause severe illness in humans. Global poultry industries have therefore deployed and maintained various food safety programmes to ensure that poultry is safe for consumption...
Since the first demonstrations of Bose-Einstein condensation in 1995, ultra-cold matter has become a fertile and lively field of study. Research around the world is establishing a high level of understanding of the underlying physics for applications, such as inertial guidance systems, atomic clocks and quantum computing. Teams are also beginning to design and build compact, low-power instrumentation for handling ultra-cold atoms...
Aberdeen scientists are investigating if antibodies found naturally in sharks could be used to target breast cancer. AICR, the Scottish cancer research charity, has awarded biologists from the University of Aberdeen a grant of over £200,000 to analyse if IgNAR – a special antibody found only in sharks – can be used to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. The three-year study will look at two molecules - called HER2 and HER3 - found on the surface of cancer cells. When these molecules pair-up on the surface of a cancer cell, they signal it to grow and divide... 
ccording to the IDC MarketScape, this move is driven by next-generation applications that provide advanced functionality and mobile capabilities, along with the flexibility of the cloud. In this new report, IDC Health Insights evaluated all major CRM solution providers for life sciences and named Veeva Systems as a leader. The IDC MarketScape reported, "Veeva's CRM software scored extremely well in this IDC MarketScape, with Veeva positioned in the Leaders category. Veeva CRM's ease of use, user interface, and breadth of functionality are among the best in the industry, and the company's sole focus on the life sciences industry boosts Veeva's unique understanding of market wants and needs...