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EMEA calls for Europe-wide ban on blood donation from ME/CFS patients

The European ME Alliance (EMEA) is calling on Europe's health ministers to initiate an immediate Europe-wide prohibition of blood donation from people who have been diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS).

13 Dec 2010

Hamilton Thorne launches new Stiletto laser for regenerative medicine and stem cell research markets

Hamilton Thorne Ltd., a leading provider of advanced laser systems for the regenerative medicine and stem cell research markets, today announced the launch of its new Stiletto™ laser system. The Stiletto™ laser system has broad applications for research with a variety of cells, allowing the Company to enter new and exciting research markets, including developmental and advanced cell biology.

9 Dec 2010

Pelosi issues statement following House passage of food safety legislation

Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement this evening following House passage of H.R. 3082, Making Further Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal Year 2011 and the Food Safety Enhancement Act. The bill, which passed the House by a vote of 212 to 206, funds the government for fiscal year 2011 and includes a sweeping overhaul of the nation's food safety system. It now goes to the Senate.

9 Dec 2010

Agilent, UC Davis to develop MassCode PCR technology for identifying food-borne pathogens

Agilent Technologies Inc. today announced it is collaborating with the University of California, Davis in the area of food safety. The research collaboration will focus on the development of a new process that can reduce the time required to identify food-borne pathogens from several days to only a few hours.

9 Dec 2010

Interference with biofilm detachment mechanisms may prevent biofilm-associated infections

Patients in hospitals and healthcare facilities can develop infections as a result of contamination of indwelling medical devices such as catheters with bacteria that are normal inhabitants of the skin of the patient or health care personnel. The bacterium Staphylococcus epidermidis is a major cause of such infections.

7 Dec 2010

Expansion of newborn screening throws some families on a journey of great uncertainty

Mandatory genetic screening of newborns for rare diseases is creating unexpected upheaval for families whose infants test positive for risk factors but show no immediate signs of the diseases, a new UCLA study warns.

7 Dec 2010

Electronic cigarettes are potentially harmful, researchers say

Electronic cigarettes (or e-cigarettes), also called "electronic nicotine delivery systems," are increasingly used worldwide even though only sparse information is available on their health effects. In the United States, e-cigarettes are readily available in shopping malls in most states and on the Internet.

4 Dec 2010

China collaborates with Norway to address prevalence and spread of mercury

Highly skilled basic science researchers from China are pooling their talents with analytical environmental researchers from Norway - and their findings are making their mark on Chinese environmental policy.

3 Dec 2010

Fourteen cases identified on E. coli infection related to raw milk consumption in Connecticut

Raw milk is consumed by an estimated 1-3 percent of the United States population. Raw milk and raw cheeses are responsible for almost 70 percent of reported dairy outbreaks. On July 16, 2008, the Connecticut Department of Public Health identified two unrelated children who had experienced hemolytic uremic syndrome after consuming raw milk from the same farm. The authors investigated the situation further and found more cases of people affected by raw milk from the same farm.

3 Dec 2010

World's first handheld sensor for measuring optical density

BugLab LLC, the industry leader in non-invasive optical monitoring, has introduced the OD Scanner – the world's first handheld sensor for measuring optical density in shake flasks and other small vessels. This device removes the need to open shake flasks to measure optical density (OD). Instead, by directly measuring OD through the container wall, the labor, contamination risk, and inaccuracy associated with sampling and dilution are eliminated.

2 Dec 2010

Wright County Egg receives FDA concurrence to sell shell eggs

FDA today notified Wright County Egg LLC of Galt, Iowa, that the company has FDA's concurrence to begin shipping shell eggs directly to the consumer market from two hen houses on one of its six farms. The firm has not shipped eggs to the consumer market since August 2010, when the company's eggs were associated with the multi-state outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis (SE).

2 Dec 2010

Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory for 2010 December focusses on tackling norovirus outbreaks

In early 2010, Pennsylvania nursing homes and hospitals reported an increased number of cases of gastrointestinal illness which are consistent with recurring outbreaks of the highly contagious norovirus and norovirus-like illnesses nationwide. With a new norovirus season approaching, the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority issues its 2010 December Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory with data analysis, guidance and success stories provided by Pennsylvania nursing homes for preventing and controlling the illness.

2 Dec 2010

Food safety bill passes in Senate

Reuters: "The Senate passed the largest overhaul of the U.S. food safety system in decades on Tuesday, a response to massive recalls such as last summer's recall of half a billion eggs in a salmonella outbreak. The Senate voted 73-25 to pass the bill. The House of Representatives backed a different version in July 2009.

2 Dec 2010

Arsenic contamination of drinking water in Bangladesh leads to slow-developing diseases

The well-reported arsenic contamination of drinking water in Bangladesh called the "largest mass poisoning of a population in history" by the World Health Organization and known to be responsible for a host of slow-developing diseases has now been shown to have an immediate and toxic effect on the struggling nation's economy.

1 Dec 2010

New study may lead to non-medicinal methods of eradicating Hamburger disease

Hamburger disease, a debilitating form of food poisoning, may be a thing of the past. New findings from an international research collaboration conducted by the French National Institute for Agronomic Research (INRA), involving the Universit- de Montr-al are the first to show how the contaminating E.coli bacterium is able to survive in the competitive environment of a cow's intestine by scavenging specific food sources.

30 Nov 2010

New water dispenser with Firewall UV technology deactivates harmful micro-organisms

Waterlogic water dispensers with Firewall UV technology, have become the world's first bottle-less water coolers to be awarded dual certification for achieving the highest levels of drinking water purification.

23 Nov 2010

Grifols launches Flebogamma 10% DIF intravenous immune globulin in the U.S.

Grifols today announced availability of its recently approved Flebogamma® 10% DIF intravenous immune globulin. Grifols is a global healthcare company specializing in bioscience medicines derived from human plasma. Approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Flebogamma® 10% DIF was obtained in July 2010 and final approval in Europe is expected before the end of the year. Today's announcement signals widespread product availability to the US market.

22 Nov 2010

U.S. federal court sanction lawyers at Gibson Dunn for abusive questioning in Ecuador environmental contamination

A U.S. federal court has sanctioned Chevron and its lawyers at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher for abusive questioning during a deposition related to the oil giant's multi-billion dollar liability in Ecuador for environmental contamination, according to court papers made available today.

20 Nov 2010

FIP's PSWC and AAPS Annual Meeting to highlight targeted inhalable dry powder HPV vaccine

New research being presented at the 2010 FIP Pharmaceutical Sciences World Congress in association with the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists Annual Meeting and Exposition will highlight a targeted inhalable dry powder vaccine that may prove preferable in terms of needle avoidance and expected lower cost than the current commercial human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine used throughout the world.

18 Nov 2010

Selenium secures NIH grant to apply patented antimicrobial technology for ear infections

Selenium, Ltd., a biopharmaceutical company focused on unique solutions to meet antimicrobial coating and therapeutic needs, has been awarded a research grant from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, one of the National Institutes of Health. With the $155,387 NIH grant the company will apply its proprietary antimicrobial technology to researching the inhibition of biofilms on tympanostomy tubes.

18 Nov 2010

Contamination News and Research

EMEA calls for Europe-wide ban on blood donation from ME/CFS patients

Hamilton Thorne launches new Stiletto laser for regenerative medicine and stem cell research markets

Pelosi issues statement following House passage of food safety legislation

Agilent, UC Davis to develop MassCode PCR technology for identifying food-borne pathogens

Interference with biofilm detachment mechanisms may prevent biofilm-associated infections

Expansion of newborn screening throws some families on a journey of great uncertainty

Electronic cigarettes are potentially harmful, researchers say

China collaborates with Norway to address prevalence and spread of mercury

Fourteen cases identified on E. coli infection related to raw milk consumption in Connecticut

World's first handheld sensor for measuring optical density

Wright County Egg receives FDA concurrence to sell shell eggs

Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory for 2010 December focusses on tackling norovirus outbreaks

Food safety bill passes in Senate

Arsenic contamination of drinking water in Bangladesh leads to slow-developing diseases

New study may lead to non-medicinal methods of eradicating Hamburger disease

New water dispenser with Firewall UV technology deactivates harmful micro-organisms

Grifols launches Flebogamma 10% DIF intravenous immune globulin in the U.S.

U.S. federal court sanction lawyers at Gibson Dunn for abusive questioning in Ecuador environmental contamination

FIP's PSWC and AAPS Annual Meeting to highlight targeted inhalable dry powder HPV vaccine

Selenium secures NIH grant to apply patented antimicrobial technology for ear infections

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