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Bacteria Can Produce Gold-Forming Molecules
February 13, 2013 11:01 am | News | Comments
Researchers have discovered that a gold-dwelling bacterium excretes a small molecule capable of forming solid gold.
Bacteria Can Produce Gold-Forming Molecules
February 13, 2013 11:01 am | News | Comments
Researchers have discovered that a gold-dwelling bacterium excretes a small molecule capable of...
Turning Up the Heat on Biofuels
May 17, 2013 11:26 am | News | CommentsThe production of biofuels from lignocellulosic biomass would benefit on several levels if carried out at temperatures between 65 and 70 degrees Celsius. Researchers with the Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI) have employed a promising technique for improving the ability of enzymes that break cellulose down into fermentable sugars to operate in this temperature range.
Study Suggest New Roles for ECMO
May 17, 2013 10:48 am | News | CommentsExtracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a procedure traditionally used during cardiac surgeries and in the ICU that functions as an artificial replacement for a patient's heart and lungs, has also been used to resuscitate cardiac arrest victims in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea.
‘Brainbow’ Imaging Gets Upgraded
May 16, 2013 11:31 am | News | CommentsThe breakthrough technique that allowed scientists to obtain one-of-a-kind, colorful images of the myriad connections in the brain and nervous system is about to get a significant upgrade. A group of Harvard researchers has made a host of technical improvements in the “Brainbow” imaging technique.
New Biomaterial Can Improve Implant Success
May 15, 2013 12:16 pm | News | CommentsExpensive, state-of-the-art medical devices and surgeries often are thwarted by the body’s natural response to attack something in the tissue that appears foreign. Now, engineers have demonstrated in mice a way to prevent this sort of response.
Chemistry Breakthrough Yields New Imaging Dye
May 13, 2013 1:30 pm | News | CommentsFrom microscopes to nuclear imaging scanners, imaging technology is growing ever more vital for the world's hospitals, whether for the diagnosis of illness or for research into new cures. Imaging technology requires dyes or contrast agents of some sort. Current contrast agents and dyes are expensive, difficult to work with and far from ideal. Now, chemists have discovered a new dye and proved its worth against the dyes currently available.
Device Extracts DNA in Minutes
May 6, 2013 3:51 pm | News | CommentsTake a swab of saliva from your mouth and within minutes your DNA could be ready for analysis and genome sequencing with the help of a new device. Engineers and NanoFacture, a Bellevue, Wash., company, have created a device that can extract human DNA from fluid samples in a simpler, more efficient and environmentally friendly way than conventional methods.
Study Evaluates Nanomaterial Toxicity
May 6, 2013 9:52 am | News | CommentsFor the first time, researchers from institutions around the country have conducted an identical series of toxicology tests evaluating lung-related health impacts associated with widely used engineered nanomaterials (ENMs). The study provides comparable health risk data from multiple labs, which should help regulators develop policies to protect workers and consumers who come into contact with ENMs.
App Lets Amputees Self-program Bionic Hands
May 3, 2013 1:37 pm | by KATHY MATHESON - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsDouble-amputee Jason Koger used to fly hundreds of miles to visit a clinician when he wanted to adjust the grips on his bionic hands. Now, he's got an app. Koger came to Philadelphia this week to demonstrate the i-limb ultra revolution, a prosthetic developed by the British firm Touch Bionics. Using a stylus and an iPhone, Koger can choose any of 24 grip patterns that best suit his needs.
FDA to Review Antibacterial Soap Safety
May 2, 2013 5:54 pm | by MATTHEW PERRONE - AP Health Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsIt's a chemical that's been in U.S. households for more than 40 years, from the body wash in your bathroom shower to the knives on your kitchen counter to the bedding in your baby's basinet. But federal health regulators are just now deciding whether triclosan — the germ-killing ingredient found in an estimated 75 percent of antibacterial liquid soaps and body washes sold in the U.S. — is ineffective, or worse, harmful.
'Blindfolded' Surgery Performed with Haptic-enhanced Robot
May 2, 2013 11:11 am | News | CommentsSurgeons, using a new man-machine interface, were able to successfully perform simulated robotic surgical procedures using only their sense of touch. Despite all of the advances in robotics, the ability to provide the operator of a robotic system with a sense of touch (haptics) still remains a significant problem.
Troubling Levels of Toxic Metals Found in Cosmetics
May 2, 2013 10:14 am | News | CommentsA new analysis of the contents of lipstick and lip gloss may cause you to pause before puckering. Researchers tested 32 different lipsticks and lip glosses and detected lead, cadmium, chromium, aluminum and five other metals, some of which were found at levels that could raise potential health concerns.
Robots Reach Through Clutter with Tactile Sensing
May 1, 2013 9:59 am | News | CommentsWhether reaching for a book out of a cluttered cabinet or pruning a bush in the backyard, a person’s arm frequently makes contact with objects during everyday tasks. Animals do it too, when foraging for food, for example. Much in the same way, robots are now able to intelligently maneuver within clutter, gently making contact with objects while accomplishing a task.
Bugs Produce Diesel on Demand
April 25, 2013 10:41 am | News | CommentsIt sounds like science fiction but a team from the University of Exeter, with support from Shell, has developed a method to make bacteria produce diesel on demand. While the technology still faces many significant commercialisation challenges, the diesel, produced by special strains of E. coli bacteria, is almost identical to conventional diesel fuel.
Reproductive Effects of Pesticides Span Generations
April 22, 2013 12:58 pm | News | CommentsResearchers studying aquatic organisms called Daphnia have found that exposure to a chemical pesticide has impacts that span multiple generations– causing the so-called “water fleas” to produce more male offspring, and causing reproductive problems in female offspring.
Hologram-like 3-D Brain Decodes Migraine Pain
April 19, 2013 11:00 am | News | CommentsWielding a joystick and wearing special glasses, pain researcher Alexandre DaSilva rotates and slices apart a large, colorful, 3-D brain floating in space before him. Despite the white lab coat, it appears DaSilva's playing the world's most advanced virtual video game.
Analytik Jena Acquires UVP
April 18, 2013 11:25 am | News | CommentsAnalytik Jena AG, based in Jena, Germany has acquired all of the outstanding shares of Upland, California-based UVP, LLC, including its subsidiary, Ultra-Violet Products Ltd., located in Cambridge, UK. UVP is a manufacturer of bioimaging systems for applications in proteomics, genomics, plant and animal sciences.
EU Tests Show No Safety Issues with Horsemeat
April 16, 2013 11:53 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsMore than 7,000 tests across the European Union have shown that nearly 5 percent of the food products labeled as beef contained horse meat, but there is no danger to public health, officials said Tuesday. The tests showed that the veterinary anti-inflammatory drug phenylbutazone, or bute, was...
Implanted ‘Bracelet’ Treats Chronic Heartburn
April 11, 2013 10:31 am | by MARILYNN MARCHIONE - AP Chief Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsA tiny magnetic bracelet implanted at the base of the throat is greatly improving life for some people with chronic heartburn who get limited relief from medicines. It's a novel way to treat severe acid reflux, which plagues millions of Americans and can raise their risk for more serious health problems.
Robot Hot Among Surgeons, FDA Taking a New Look
April 9, 2013 3:19 am | by BY LINDSEY TANNER - AP MEDICAL WRITER | News | CommentsThe biggest thing in operating rooms these days is a million-dollar, multi-armed robot named da Vinci, used in nearly 400,000 surgeries nationwide last year- triple the number just four years earlier. But now the high-tech helper is under scrutiny over reports of problems, including several deaths that may be linked with it and the high cost of using the robotic system.
Building Better Blood Vessels Can Advance Tissue Engineering
April 5, 2013 10:53 am | News | CommentsOne of the major obstacles to growing new organs—replacement hearts, lungs and kidneys—is the difficulty researchers face in building blood vessels that keep the tissues alive, but new findings could help overcome this roadblock.
Device Gets Upgrade to Detect Biothreat Agents
April 3, 2013 11:01 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Sandia National Laboratories are developing a medical instrument that will be able to quickly detect a suite of biothreat agents, including anthrax, ricin, botulinum, shiga and SEB toxin.
Lawmakers Weigh Bills on GM Food Labeling
March 21, 2013 5:06 pm | by LAUREN GAMBINO - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsOregon lawmakers heard testimony Thursday on several bills to require labels on genetically modified food and prohibit importing genetically modified fish. Supporters say consumers should know what kind of food they are buying at the grocery store.
New, Thin Endoscope Leads Way to Micro-endoscopy
March 14, 2013 10:29 am | News | CommentsEngineers have developed a prototype single-fiber endoscope that improves the resolution of these much-sought-after instruments fourfold over existing designs.
J&J Loses First of 4,000 Implant Suits
February 25, 2013 4:48 pm | by LINDA A. JOHNSON - AP Business Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsA New Jersey jury has awarded $3.35 million to a former nurse who says Johnson & Johnson's vaginal mesh implant caused severe chronic pain despite 18 unsuccessful repair surgeries. It's the first verdict in about 4,000 lawsuits filed against the health products maker.
BIO Commends EPA Rule on New Biofuels
February 25, 2013 2:22 pm | by Biotechnology Industry Organization | News | CommentsWASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--EPA approved camelina, energy cane, and renewable gasoline as cellulosic and advanced biofuels that can meet the Renewable Fuel Standard volume requirements. Additional pathways await approval.
