Sartorius Stedim Biotech (SSB), an international leading supplier for the biopharmaceutical industry, introduced the new ambr® 15 fermentation system, an automated micro bioreactor system designed to enhance microbial strain screening with advanced capabilities supporting fed-batch microbial cultures.

The new system, based on the gold-standard ambr 15 micro bioreactor technology, has been designed to meet the requirements of microbial fermentation. It comprises 24 single-use stirred micro bioreactors (each with an 8-12mL working volume) integrated to a user-friendly, automated workstation. The system offers parallel processing and walk-away control of 24 micro bioreactors, providing fermentation scientists with...

Autoscribe Informatics has published a new case study on the use of the Matrix Gemini LIMS (Laboratory Information Management System) at a multi-site veterinary diagnostic and clinical pathology laboratory.

Matrix Gemini is being used by NationWide Laboratory Services to co-ordinate sample tracking, management and reporting across laboratories in four different UK locations. NationWide Laboratory Services is a UKAS accredited independent multi–disciplinary veterinary laboratory providing diagnostic and clinical pathology services for veterinary surgeons throughout the UK, Europe and...

Flexicon, a business division of Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group, has introduced an upgraded version of its established and successful FlexFeed30 (FF30) tabletop liquid filling and capping machine for the pharmaceutical, biotech and diagnostic industries.

Focussing predominantly on ease-of-use, the upgraded features are set to make the Flexicon FF30 even more appealing for laboratories, hospital pharmacies, R&D departments, essential oil manufacturers, cosmetics producers and general subcontract filling companies. 1200 bottles per hour. The Flexicon FF30 is capable of filling and capping up to 1200 bottles per hour with diameters from 12 to 50mm (up to 110mm high). Standard...

Designed to handle low flows from laminar to turbulent, and largely immune from viscosity, the Atrato ultrasonic flowmeter from Titan Enterprises is a perfect tool for laboratory testing applications.

The Atrato ultrasonic flowmeter is a true inline non-invasive flowmeter without the contorted flow path and disadvantages of alternative designs. Available in 60°C and 110°C temperature versions and a 30 bar higher pressure model - Atrato flowmeters use ‘time-of-flight’ ultrasonic technology that enable them to operate over wide flow ranges with accuracy better than ±1.0% of reading. Rugged, clean bore PEEK construction makes the...

The new series of 5 megapixel lenses can be used in conjunction with a variety of CCD and CMOS sensors

The Imaging Source, an international manufacturer of industrial cameras and software for machine vision, has expanded its extensive portfolio to include a new series of high-quality, 5 megapixel lenses starting at 59 USD. The lenses are available in C- or CS-mount types with a focal length of 4 mm up to 75 mm. To ensure maximum stability, the C-mount lenses are of a screw-thread type with a locking screw. The very competitively priced...

Use of the new Vacuum De-aeration Apparatus from Copley Scientific  improves the accuracy of semisolid pharmaceutical testing by efficiently de-gassing the medium used in Vertical Diffusion Cells (VDCs) to measure the drug release profile of these products.

Semisolids are creams, ointments, gels or lotions used principally in the treatment of dermatological conditions that are applied topically to the skin to deliver a localised therapeutic response. The performance of such products is determined by measuring the release rate of the active ingredient, through a suitable membrane held in contact with a receptor medium contained within a VDC. Air bubbles accumulating on the underside of the...

PrimeTime^® qPCR Assays and Master Mix from IDT provide superior efficiencies and reliability for gene expression studies

Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT) has introduced its latest addition to an expanding genomic applications portfolio: PrimeTime^® Gene Expression Master Mix, an optimized enzyme mix for probe-based qPCR. IDT continues to provide higher value qPCR products by delivering superior assay performance at a lower price per reaction, while empowering customers with access to assay sequences. This newest product enhances the...

Employing capacitance micrometry, the NX NanoSensor® from Queensgate delivers sensitivity levels that are able to measure changes in position to an atomic scale.

This state-of-the-art non-contact position measuring system relies on 2 sensor plates - a target and a probe, which between them form a parallel plate capacitor. Through the use of an appropriate electronic controller, the spacing of these two plates can be accurately ascertained. Among the key applications for the NX NanoSensor are stage feedback, vibration measurement, metrology, deformation measurements, precision manufacturing...

AMSBIO has launched a comprehensive collection of pre-packaged human full-length cDNA ORF and miRNA adenoviruses.

Featuring over 1,240 pre-packaged human miRNA precursor adenoviruses and 30,000 pre-packaged human full-length cDNA ORF adenoviruses the collection will considerably enhance high throughput drug discovery, improve functional genomic studies, and make life science research more cost-effective and efficient. Recombinant adenoviruses are extremely efficient gene delivery systems that are widely used in human gene therapy...

In his latest report issued in December 2015 Lord O’Neill highlights that the use of antibiotics in agriculture around the world represents a threat to public health, promoting the development and spread of so-called drug-resistant infections (‘superbugs’).

Given the world uses far more antibiotics in animals than it does in humans, agricultural use must be reduced globally, according to the new report published today (8th December 2015) by the independent Review on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), chaired by Jim O’Neill. The report recommends stricter rules on the type of drugs used in agriculture depending on their importance to humans. Antibiotic Research UK the world’s first...

Merging novel phase contrast technologies, high quality imaging and user-friendly handling, the CKX53 microscope is optimised to enhance a variety of cell culture applications – from live cell observation and documentation to cell sampling and handling.

Streamlining the cell culture workflow in a range of application areas, Olympus’ renowned optical expertise has given rise to the new CKX53 microscope including a novel inversion phase contrast (IVC) imaging technique. While a variety of capabilities enable the CKX53 to deliver high quality images over a wide field of view for live cell and fluorescence imaging, the system is also tailored to the cell culture process with optimised...

University of Leicester researchers evaluate effects of GLP-1RAs

Once-weekly glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) differ in their efficacy and safety profiles, according to new research by the University of Leicester. Compared to other once-weekly GLP-1RAs which are licensed and available, dulaglutide 1.5mg and once weekly exenatide showed the greatest reduction of HbA1c and fasting plasma glucose. GLP-1RAs are a relatively new class of drugs that stimulate insulin and...

Demand drives expansion of Titian's team, underlining the global success of its Mosaic software

Titian Software, has announced the appointments of James Craven, head of global marketing, and Angela Gray, Western US sales manager, to further consolidate its position as the world leader in sample management software. The successful launch earlier this year of Titian’s Mosaic Freezer Management, a cost-effective software package optimised for small to medium-sized sample collections, followed the recent introduction of Titian’s Mosaic...

Spectronics Corporation manufactures a full line of cabinets that provide different working sample sizes, options for UV lamps, and can accommodate a wide variety of applications.

Spectroline^® CL-150 Series UV workstations enable lab technicians to view, analyze and photograph fluorescent samples with both epi-illumination and trans-illumination light sources. A removable bottom panel allows either unit to be placed directly over the transilluminator. The 25-watt white light bulb in the cabinet provides visible illumination for easy sample preparation. The spacious CL-150 cabinet is able to accommodate large...

NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership, on behalf of Betsi Cadwaladr University Local Health Board, contracted with Leica Biosystems for its Aperio digital pathology solutions.

This partnership has enabled the merging of three sites: Glan Clwyd, Wrexham & Bangor to form the new trust: North Wales. Digital pathology enables rapid distribution, eliminating slide shipping costs and travel time. Additionally, the digital slides can be annotated to facilitate a more efficient and accurate review from one pathologist to another. The use of digital pathology is leveraging NHS Wales as a pioneering healthcare organization...

Protagen AG, a company concerned with the development of advanced diagnostic tools to address some of the most severe autoimmune diseases, has today announced that it will join the MATURA Consortium.

The overarching mission of the MATURA Consortium is to improve patient care in Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) by rationalizing therapy decisions through a stratified medicine approach.

MATURA (MAximising Therapeutic Utility for Rheumatoid Arthritis) aims to identify treatment response predictors which will allow the allocation of patients to subgroups defined by the therapy they are most likely to respond to, early in the disease process. RA provides the ideal setting for the introduction of a stratified medicine approach as the treatment is standardized, there is a significant non-responder rate to each marketed and commonly used drug, and early and effective therapy has consistently been shown to improve long-term outcomes, including joint damage, disability and employment.

A collaboration between Malvern Instruments (Malvern, UK) and Bio-Rad (Hercules, California) has delivered new analytical tools for the rapid identification of unknown particles.

New software to support Malvern’s Morphologi G3-ID, which analyzes particle size, shape and chemical composition, enables the direct comparison of measured Raman spectra with reference spectra in the extensive database of Bio-Rad’s market-leading KnowItAll® software. The result is powerful, robust particle identification capabilities for scientists working in forensic analysis and pharmaceutical/biopharmaceutical development who are...

New data paves way for adoption of sTNFR1 as a routine test for Diabetic Nephropathy management

EKF Diagnostics, the global in vitro diagnostics company, announces that new data has been presented in support of soluble Tumour Necrosis Factor Receptor 1 (sTNFR1) as a biomarker to predict progression of Diabetic Nephropathy (also referred to as Diabetic Kidney Disease). This new data [1] was recently presented at Kidney Week, the world’s premier nephrology meeting, organised by the American Society for Nephrology (ASN) and is...

Have superbugs breached the last line of antibiotic defences for the first time? Industry gathers next March to collaborate on tackling antimicrobial resistance

With a focus on pushing financial and collaborative incentives to accelerate clinical success of antibiotic drugs, the agenda for SMi’s 18th annual summit on Superbugs & Superdrugs will spotlight on models for successful partnerships, progressive R&D, strengthening the antibiotic pipeline and pioneering approaches to "smart" antibiotics.

Cell counting and analysis just got easier and better

Eikonix are pleased to announce that they have been appointed by Countstar to sell their automated cell counters and fluorescence cell analyser in the UK. Featuring ease of use, efficiency, accuracy and reliability, these products have been widely used in major research and medical institutions in various fields including biopharmaceuticals, beer and beverages.

In late October 2015, PCE launched their new viscometer which is available in two versions: the PCE-RVI 4 VP20 with a rotational speed of 20 rpm and the PCE-RVI 4 VP60 with a rotational speed of 60 rpm.

The portable stand viscometer was especially designed for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, for the food and the cosmetics sector and for paint manufacturing, but also for other sectors. The PCE-RVI 4 works with the Brookfield method and is suitable for continuous use for 24 … 30 hours. The LC display can indicate the revolutions, the measuring system, the viscosity, the percentage and the battery status.

Researchers from the University of Glasgow have found a way to make swallowable cameras more effective at detecting cancers of the throat and gut. 

In recent years, tiny sensing systems small enough for patients to swallow have proven to be a valuable clinical alternative to more intrusive imaging methods such as endoscopes. Until now, the systems, often known as video-pill, have relied on illuminating patients’ innards using a small light source, restricting clinicians to conclusions based on what they can see in the spectrum of visible light. In a new paper published in the...