Plasmid News and Research

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Innovative ways to target antibiotic resistance in short term

There has been much recent talk about how to target the rising tide of antibiotic resistance across the world, one of the biggest threats to global health today.

3 Mar 2017

New MIP system for therapeutic gene delivery can enhance transgene expression using AAV vector

Advanced engineering of a mini-intronic plasmid (MIP) system designed to carry a therapeutic gene can significantly enhance the expression of the transgene delivered using an adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector.

28 Jan 2017

How does the brain control appetite?

Energy balance between energy intake and expenditure in our bodies is important for maintaining energy homeostasis to keep our bodies functioning properly. The appetite determines how much we eat, the energy intake, by communication between the brain and body.

4 Jan 2017

Research shows new role for plasmids in antibiotic resistance

A new study led by scientists at the University of Oxford has found that small DNA molecules known as plasmids are one of the key culprits in spreading the major global health threat of antibiotic resistance.

8 Nov 2016

Researchers identify drug-resistant superbug in Australian domestic animal

The first evidence of a superbug in a domestic cat that could infect humans and livestock has been discovered in Australia.

31 Oct 2016

Synthego introduces CRISPRevolution synthetic sgRNA kit for fast, high-throughput gene editing

Synthego, a leading provider of genome engineering solutions, today announces the world’s first synthetic single guide RNA (sgRNA) CRISPR genome editing kit.

24 Sep 2016

Eppendorf Advantage supports smart, safe and stress-free environment for research labs

Eppendorf has announced the latest Advantage promotion period, until December 31st 2016, on a range of best-in-class solutions which drive productivity in the laboratory.

From Eppendorf 8 Sep 2016

UM SOM selected as study site for human safety trial of new Zika vaccine

As world leaders increasingly recognize the Zika virus as an international public health threat, the Center for Vaccine Development at the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Institute for Global Health has been chosen as one of three study sites in a human safety trial of a new Zika vaccine.

7 Aug 2016

Three vaccine candidates provide complete protection against Zika virus in rhesus monkeys

A month after announcing that two promising vaccine candidates provided mice with complete protection against the Zika virus, a research team at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, in collaboration with scientists at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and the University of São Paulo, now reports achieving complete protection against Zika virus in rhesus monkeys.

5 Aug 2016

NIH launches clinical trial of experimental vaccine candidate for preventing Zika virus infection

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, has launched a clinical trial of a vaccine candidate intended to prevent Zika virus infection.

3 Aug 2016

Tourists returning from India import multidrug-resistant superbugs

Many tourists returning from India were found colonized with multidrug-resistant superbugs. Microbiologists at the Institute for Infectious Diseases of the University of Bern, Switzerland, also isolated a strain possessing a gene which can make these life-threatening bacteria resistant to the last active antibiotic option.

19 Jul 2016

Italian researchers identify new variant of emerging antibiotic resistance mechanism

A team of Italian investigators has discovered a new variant of an emerging antibiotic resistance mechanism. The new variant, dubbed mcr-1.2, confers resistance to colistin, a last-resort antibiotic against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative pathogens.

13 Jul 2016

Study sheds more light on how bacteria rapidly causes infectious diseases

Researchers at Umea University are first to discover that bacteria can multiply disease-inducing genes which are needed to rapidly cause infection.

1 Jul 2016

Researchers test experimental Zika virus vaccine in mice

An experimental vaccine against Zika virus developed by Brazilian and US researchers has been tested successfully in trials with mice.

30 Jun 2016

ECDC sketches actions to reduce public health risks of mcr-1 gene spread

The recently recognised global distribution of the mcr-1 gene poses a substantial public health risk to the EU/EEA. The gene is widespread in several continents and has been detected in bacteria isolated from multiple different sources such as food-producing animals, food, the environment and humans.

20 Jun 2016

Nanoparticle-based gene therapy may hold promise for patients with asthma

A new study has demonstrated a way to deliver a nanoparticle-based gene therapy, in order to repair lungs damaged by chronic allergic asthma and to reduce inflammation that causes asthma attacks.

19 May 2016

Abstracts on colistin resistance and migrant health part of 300 late-breaker sessions for ECCMID 2016

The European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Disease (ESCMID) – an organization that explores risks, knowledge sharing and best practices in the fight against infectious disease – has received more than 300 late-breaker abstract submissions for its annual congress, ECCMID 2016 in Amsterdam.

31 Mar 2016

Novel plasmid-based microRNA inhibitor system effectively prevents microRNA activity in cells

Today at the 45th Annual Meeting & Exhibition of the American Association for Dental Research, researcher Brad Amendt, University of Iowa, Iowa City, USA, will present a study titled "New Biotechnology to Inhibit MicroRNA Activity and Novel Applications for Craniofacial and Dental Research."

19 Mar 2016

Researchers describe antibiotic resistance as either selfish or co-operative

Trace concentrations of antibiotic, such as those found in sewage outfalls, are enough to enable bacteria to keep antibiotic resistance, new research from the University of York has found. The concentrations are much lower than previously anticipated, and help to explain why antibiotic resistance is so persistent in the environment.

15 Mar 2016

Caltech researchers identify gene that causes severe insomnia when overactivated

Caltech biologists have performed the first large-scale screening in a vertebrate animal for genes that regulate sleep, and have identified a gene that when overactivated causes severe insomnia. Expression of the gene, neuromedin U (Nmu), also seems to serve as nature's stimulant--fish lacking the gene take longer to wake up in the morning and are less active during the day.

18 Feb 2016