Viruses are strange, fascinating agents, not least because scientists still find it difficult to say whether they qualify as living organisms or not. To replicate, viruses have to infect a host — so in a live biological environment, viruses are also "alive," interacting with the cells of the host they infect and multiplying. At the same time, on their own, outside ...
Most gene therapies, for instance, use viruses to enter a person’s cells and alter their DNA. But those viruses often elicit immune responses that can have unpredictable consequences and, in some cases, eliminate potential benefits associated with the treatment. Selecta Biosciences is working to overcome those problems with a nanoparticle-based system, called ImmTOR, ...
Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) led a study that investigated Mycobacterium vaccae, an environmental bacterium that feeds on decaying organic matter. Previous studies with cells and laboratory animals have shown that M. vaccae can reduce inflammation and protect against stress. However, as the authors explain in a recent Psychopharmac...
In their study, which features in the journal Cell, researchers from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena built on the work of previous studies that identified differences in the microbiomes of people with and without autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The microbiome is the name for the collective genomes belonging to the communities of microorgan...
The function of the DNA nanocapsule is based on pH-responsive DNA residues. To make this happen, the team designed a capsule-like DNA origami structure functionalized with pH-responsive DNA strands. Such dynamic DNA nanodesigns are often controlled by the simple hydrogen-bonding of two complementary DNA sequences. Here, one half of the capsule was equipped with specif...
The researchers, from Columbia University Medical Center and NYU Langone Health, both in New York City, performed a retrospective analysis of patients at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia in New York City. In 2015, the health care system switched from stool culture and ova and parasites examination to the BioFire Diagnostics FilmArray GI panel to diagnose acute gastroenterit...
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. Detecting it in time is crucial for treatment to be successful. X-ray screening (mammography) is the standard detection technique but is not without risk as it involves exposure of a patient to ionizing radiation. Another approach for detecting breast cancer cells is based on terahertz (THz) radiation, which is sensitive ...
They performed a meta-analysis of eight studies of gut bacteria and colorectal cancer, spanning seven countries and three continents, and found that the microbiome changes associated with colorectal cancer are robust, despite differences in environment or diet. The team used a tool called mOTUs2, which can accurately identify and count bacterial species in metagenomes...
Now researchers at Penn State University are pointing to the possibility that tiny robots will be able to crawl around and scrape at bacterial films wherever they find them. The team developed two types of microscopic robots, one of which works on the surface of teeth, while the other can get into very narrow spaces. The robots bring with them catalytic molecules that ar...
This is a great responsibility since roughly only half of IVF procedures are successful. Any improvement of this process would be of great benefit to the expectant parents. Researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine have now developed an computer vision system, powered by artificial intelligence algorithms, that is able to identify with impressive accuracy whether a given hum...
The researchers hope that their technology could pave the way for diagnostic chips that can identify trace amounts of disease biomarkers in blood or saliva. Such technology may allow users to conveniently assess their health at home and to receive comprehensive screenings at the clinic. The device consists of an ultrathin optical chip, which employs metasurfaces to id...
To solve that problem, a team led by Niaz Banaei, an associate professor of pathology and of medicine, and Juan Santiago, a professor of mechanical engineering, have built a prototype device that searches for signs of tuberculosis in blood and urine samples, sidestepping the need to cough on command. What's more, the device has no moving parts and requires very little el...
The work, led by Matthew Libera, professor of materials science at Stevens, describes a method for coating implant surfaces with a lattice of microgels: flecks, each 100 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair, capable of absorbing certain antibiotics. The microgels' behavior is regulated by electrical charges, and the electrical activity of an approaching microb...
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ISO 13485 specifies the requirements of quality management systems (QMS) for the medical device industry. It is based on the requirements of the more general ISO 9001: 2000 standard, in the context of this industry. The exact title of ISO 13485: 2016 is Medical Devices - Quality Management Systems - Requirements for Regulatory Purposes. Different aspects to be impl...
Dr Paulo Rocha from the University of Bath’s Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering is developing a low-cost integrative sensing tool for early detection of Dengue virus, using a novel platform containing electrical sensors to investigate the behaviour of human cells infected with Dengue virus. When someone is infected by the Dengue virus it produces protei...
This project will involve collaboration with 5 key industrial partners - Porvair Sciences, Bruker UK, GE Healthcare UK, Axis Bio and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). A new Antibody Drug Conjugates company will join the project in its second year. Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADC’s) are a powerful new class of therapeutics in medical oncology, where antibodies that target specific can...
New research at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) used microscopy techniques to piece together the brain of the millimeter-long Caenorhabditis elegans, revealing that their neurons fire action potentials—a spike in voltage due to neurons sending sensory information in the cell membrane. Their results could lead to better understan...
Using a so-called bioactive phosphate glass containing small amounts of the metallic element cobalt, the researchers were able to achieve a "complete kill" of the deadly bacterial infections E.coli and Candida albicans (a fungal infection associated with surgery), as well as a near-complete kill of Staphylococcus aureus (the drug-resistant form of which is MRSA). Rich...
The high-performance IKA T 25 easy clean homogenizer is the first of its kind in the world for use in research, product development or quality control. Now this unique laboratory device has been lauded with the German Design Award 2019 in the "Industry" category. The disperser, which was launched at Achema 2018, homogenizes samples, emulsifies substances such as cosme...
That’s because living cells have to somehow be carefully moved through microfluidic channels to mix with other components, such as a structural material, and then onward to a nozzle that does the actual printing. At the University of Twente in The Netherlands, researchers have now developed a remarkable new way of quickly printing 3D structures that have living cells ...
Norma Instruments, an innovative technology company developing novel proprietary trend setting products in the field of hematology, announced today that it has won the prestigious Millennium Innovation Prize. The Prize was established by the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office (HIPO) and is awarded annually to companies who are considered technology leaders and develo...
Norma’s hematology product portfolio is continuously expanding. Norma’s newest hematology accessory, the Norma Autoloader is an automatic sample vial loading device that allows better workflow and improved time efficiency for your laboratory. Besides its space-saving dimensions similar to any Icon’s compact size, what makes the Autoloader a unique instrument is that i...
Researchers at the University of Michigan recently searched for new brain tumor treatments by exploring the reasons why some patients with gliomas live remarkably longer than others. Results from the study using mice suggested that certain patients’ tumor cells are less aggressive and much better at repairing DNA than others, but are difficult to kill with radiation. The...
I taught an "Introduction to Biomaterials" class for many years. In my class, biomaterial meant a material that was generally not biological in its origin and was used in implantable medical devices. Examples largely focused on metal alloys, polymers, and, to a lesser degree, ceramics. In this context, biomaterials were the raw materials from which medical devices could ...
The data generated through the microarray technology are gathered and saved in a computer with the help of an image scanner. As these data are found in large amounts, it is difficult even for statistical experts to perform the analysis using traditional methods. The problem has turned to be a highly important one to get addressed, especially challenges arising due to the...
What are bioweapons? Bioweapons encompass the use of any biological entity for the purpose of damaging the health of other living creatures. Most bioweapons concern the use of microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, or viruses. Specially designed bioweapons may be engineered to function only in specific environments or to only affect animals or plants with particular...
The stationary phase is made of immobilized ion exchange groups that have the opposite charge as the target component that is to be carried in the mobile phase. Generally, ion exchange experiments are performed in five stages. What is IEC and how is it performed? The first stage of IEC is called equilibration. During this process, the ion exchange stationary phase is...
Oliver Healthcare Packaging has acquired CleanCut Technologies, an FDA-registered and ISO 13485 certified medical packaging provider located in Anaheim, CA. “Acquiring CleanCut gives us even more cleanroom production, plus scale and access to West Coast medical device manufacturers,” Mike Benevento, president and CEO of Oliver Healthcare Packaging, told MD+DI. “And Olive...
Now a Northwestern University team has developed a new tool that images blood flow through these tiny vessels, giving insight into this central portion of the human circulatory system. Called spectral contrast optical coherence tomography angiography (SC-OCTA), the 3-D-imaging technique can detect subtle changes in capillary organization for early diagnosis of disease. ...
Day Zero Diagnostics (DZD) is seeking to develop a more effective way of detecting infectious disease using artificial intelligence and genome sequencing. The Boston-based company announced it has raised $8.6 million in its mission to further develop the test. DZD’s series A round was led by Triventures with significant participation from existing investors including ...
Personal genetics specialist, 23andMe received a nod from FDA for a genetic health risk report on a hereditary colorectal cancer syndrome. FDA’s nod for the Mountain View, CA-based company’s MUTYH-Associated Polyposis Genetic Health Risk report follows a previous authorization for the BRCA1/BRCA2 (Selected Variants) Genetic Health Risk report in March 2018. The MUT...
A simple blood test could help detect whether a newly transplanted lung is being rejected by a patient, even when there aren’t any apparent signs of rejection. The donor-derived cell-free DNA test was developed by the National Institutes of Health/National Heart Blood and Lung Institute. A study about the performance of the blood test was published in EbioMedicine, a pub...
These tiny tunnels — spotted in lab mice and traces of it in one inquisitive researcher — may be vital for transporting immune cells out of bones, where they are made. In the study, researchers found hundreds of previously unknown capillaries — the tiniest blood vessels in the body — in the leg bones of mice. The discovery of something in mice, however, doesn't necess...
The implants, described in a study published in the January 14 issue of Nature Medicine, are intended to promote nerve growth across spinal cord injuries, restoring connections and lost function. In rat models, the scaffolds supported tissue regrowth, stem cell survival and expansion of neural stem cell axons out of the scaffolding and into the host spinal cord. "In r...
