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Novel method for designing geometric structures created from DNA

Among the valuable holdings in London's Wellcome Library is a rough pencil sketch made in 1953 by Francis Crick. The drawing is one of the first to show the double-helix structure of DNA--Nature's blueprint for the design of sea snails, human beings, and every other living form on earth.

27 May 2016

New approach offers unprecedented view of how HIV virus infects and appropriates host cell

Viruses attack cells and commandeer their machinery in a complex and carefully orchestrated invasion. Scientists have longed probed this process for insights into biology and disease, but essential details still remain out of reach.

25 May 2016

Landmark study characterizes evolution of symptoms, signs of acute HIV infection

Acute HIV infection (AHI) contributes significantly to HIV transmission and may be important for intervention strategies seeking to reduce incidence and achieve a functional cure.

19 May 2016

DeNovix honored at Scientists’ Choice Awards® Best New Life Sciences Product 2015

DeNovix’s DS-11 FX+ Series of Spectrophotometers / Fluorometers was awarded runner-up position in the annual Scientists Choice Awards® Best New Life Sciences Product 2015. The award was presented during this year’s American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting.

16 May 2016

New optimised PCR tests for reliable diagnosis of Zika virus

DZIF scientists from the University of Bonn have shown that not all conventional Zika virus molecular diagnostic tests for are sufficiently reliable. They developed optimised assays and a control for quantifying viruses in blood and urine.

13 May 2016

Researchers develop novel ss-siRNAs to turn off disease-related genes

Combining the therapeutic potential and advantages of existing oligonucleotide-based approaches to turn off disease-related genes, a type of single-stranded silencing RNAs (ss-siRNAs) has shown significantly improved potency and activity.

13 May 2016

Early infection screening programs may lead to lower rates of HIV transmission

Detecting HIV earlier, through screening programs that can identify the virus shortly after infection, may lead to lower rates of HIV transmission in local epidemics, suggest findings from a new study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases and available online.

12 May 2016

Novel NanoDrop One spectrophotometers provide accurate quantitation, sample quality information

Life scientists who work with DNA, RNA and proteins can make educated decisions about sample suitability for experiments using the new standalone microvolume spectrophotometers.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 12 May 2016

Thermo Scientific accelerates product innovation to meet customer demand for enhanced productivity

Laboratories can now expand productivity levels using products designed to meet increasing demands for sustainability, cost-effectiveness and performance.

12 May 2016

MGH researchers develop device to rapidly diagnose health-care-associated infections

A team of Massachusetts General Hospital investigators has developed a device with the potential of shortening the time required to rapidly diagnose pathogens responsible for health-care-associated infections from a couple of days to a matter of hours.

10 May 2016

Scientists develop low-cost, easy-to-use diagnostic platform to detect Zika virus

University of Toronto Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Keith Pardee and an international team of collaborators, including scientists from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, have developed a low-cost, easy-to-use diagnostic platform for detecting the Zika virus.

9 May 2016

MIT researchers develop innovative paper-based test to diagnose Zika virus

A new paper-based test developed at MIT and other institutions can diagnose Zika virus infection within a few hours. The test, which distinguishes Zika from the very similar dengue virus, can be stored at room temperature and read with a simple electronic reader, making it potentially practical for widespread use.

9 May 2016

New blood treatment technology could reduce malaria risk following blood transfusions

Patients, especially children, who undergo blood transfusions in sub-Saharan Africa are at high risk of transfusion-transmitted malaria. A new trial, published in The Lancet today, suggests that treating donated blood with a new technology that combines UV radiation and vitamin B is safe and could minimise the risk of malaria infection following blood transfusions.

26 Apr 2016

DeNovix exhibits DS-11 FX+ Spectrophotometer / Fluorometer at AACR 2016

DeNovix Inc.

From DeNovix Inc. 19 Apr 2016

New device can deliver diagnosis to patient in 30 minutes

When a person contracts a disease, it takes time to diagnose the symptoms. Cell culturing, immunoassay and a nucleic-acid based diagnostic cycle all take several days, if not a week to determine the results. Not only do sick patients suffer during this time period, the wait can also lead to unnecessary disease spreading and perhaps avoidable antibiotic use.

30 Mar 2016

Automated sample-to-answer system could make EVD diagnosis easier

An automated "sample-to-answer" system could provide Ebola virus disease (EVD) diagnosis more quickly and easily than the current standard test, according to research published this week in PLOS Medicine.

30 Mar 2016

UT Southwestern scientists discover mutation that causes X-linked reticulate pigmentary disorder

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have discovered a mutation that causes a rare systemic disorder known as X-linked reticulate pigmentary disorder (XLPDR) and, significantly, the unexpected cellular mechanism by which the mutation causes the disease.

29 Mar 2016

Sandia engineers aim to develop autonomous device to passively monitor mosquito-borne diseases

Mosquitoes are deadly efficient at spreading disease. Despite vaccines and efforts to eradicate the pesky insects, they continue to infect humans with feared diseases like Zika virus, malaria and West Nile virus.

22 Mar 2016

UC San Diego researchers use CRISPR-Cas9 system to target RNA in living cells for first time ever

The genetic code stored in DNA determines everything from the color of our eyes to our susceptibility to disease. This has motivated scientists to sequence the human genome and develop ways to alter the genetic code, but many diseases are linked to a different fundamental molecule: RNA.

18 Mar 2016

Homeostasis may have allowed first living cells to maintain internal environment

A Massachusetts General Hospital research team investigating how the earliest stages of life might have developed has discovered a way the first living cells could have met a key challenge -- maintaining a constant internal environment, a process called homeostasis, even when external conditions change.

17 Mar 2016