Polymers News and Research

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Graphitic carbon plays key role as lubricating layer on metal-on-metal hip implants

A team of engineers and physicians have made a surprising discovery that offers a target for designing new materials for hip implants that are less susceptible to the joint's normal wear and tear.

23 Dec 2011

New pharma title from iSmithers ‘Update on Polymers for Ocular Drug Delivery’

The eye is the most easily accessible site for topical administration of a medication. Drugs are commonly applied to the eye for localised action on the surface or in the interior of the eye. A major problem in ocular therapeutics is the attainment of an optimal drug concentration at the site of action.

21 Dec 2011

Short spiral-shaped proteins can efficiently deliver DNA segments to cells

Clinical gene therapy may be one step closer, thanks to a new twist on an old class of molecules. A group of University of Illinois researchers, led by professors Jianjun Cheng and Fei Wang, have demonstrated that short spiral-shaped proteins can efficiently deliver DNA segments to cells. The team published its work in the journal Angewandte Chemie.

16 Dec 2011

Study: Many prescription drugs use phthalates as inactive ingredients

Researchers from Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center (SEC), in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health, have found numerous prescription and over-the-counter drugs and supplements use certain chemicals called phthalates as inactive ingredients in their products.

15 Dec 2011

Hydrogel regenerates healthy, scar-free tissue on skin damaged by severe burns

Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a jelly-like material and wound treatment method that, in early experiments on skin damaged by severe burns, appeared to regenerate healthy, scar-free tissue.

14 Dec 2011

Dendrimers can capture circulating tumor cells in blood by biomimicry

The removal of rare tumor cells circulating in the blood might be possible with the use of biomolecules bound to dendrimers, highly branched synthetic polymers, which could efficiently sift and capture the diseased cells, according to new research at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

18 Nov 2011

Micell announces preliminary data from MiStent Sirolimus DES clinical study

Micell Technologies, Inc. today announced the release of preliminary data from the first-in-human clinical study of the MiStent Sirolimus Drug Eluting Coronary Stent System (MiStent DES), a thin-strut drug-eluting stent distinguished by a rapid-absorbing drug/polymer coating designed for controlled drug release.

9 Nov 2011

Polystyrene surface triples number of human ES and iPS cells in culture

By irradiating typical polystyrene lab plates with ultraviolet (UV) waves, Whitehead Institute and MIT scientists have created a surface capable of tripling the number of human embryonic stem (ES) and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells that can be grown in culture by current methods. Use of this novel surface also eliminates the need for layers of mouse "feeder cells" to support ES- and iPS-cell growth.

8 Nov 2011

SurModics to sell Pharma assets to Evonik for $30 million

SurModics, Inc., a leading provider of surface modification technologies to the healthcare industry, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its SurModics Pharmaceuticals assets to Evonik Industries AG for $30 million in cash.

2 Nov 2011

UCSB receives Dow Chemical grant to create new materials institute

The Dow Chemical Company has awarded UC Santa Barbara up to $15 million to establish a collaborative research initiative that will help shape the future of technology in areas that will benefit society.

12 Oct 2011

New conference on Innovations in Medical Polymers

MPMN and PlasticsToday.com, both leading news and information providers for the medical device and plastics industry, today announced the launch of a new conference on Innovations in Medical Polymers, providing insights into the latest technological and regulatory developments in the use of polymers in medical devices.

11 Oct 2011

Synthetic lectins inhibit HIV from entering cells

University of Utah researchers have discovered a new class of compounds that stick to the sugary coating of the AIDS virus and inhibit it from infecting cells - an early step toward a new treatment to prevent sexual transmission of the virus.

23 Sep 2011

Gamma radiation could toughen up plastic prosthetic joints

A blast of gamma radiation could toughen up plastic prosthetic joints to make them strong enough to last for years, according to researchers in China writing in the current issue of the International Journal of Biomedical Engineering and Technology.

23 Sep 2011

New microbicide may block AIDS virus from infecting cells

23 Sep 2011

Researchers develop polymers that fluoresce in the presence of bacteria

Researchers at the University of Sheffield have developed polymers that fluoresce in the presence of bacteria, paving the way for the rapid detection and assessment of wound infection using ultra-violet light.

16 Sep 2011

Researchers combine 3-D printing technology and multiphoton polymerization to develop artificial blood vessels

Researchers have been working at growing tissue and organs in the laboratory for a long time. These days, tissue engineering enables us to build up artificial tissue, although science still hasn't been successful with larger organs. Now, researchers at Fraunhofer are applying new techniques and materials to come up with artificial blood vessels in their BioRap project that will be able to supply artificial tissue and maybe even complex organs in future.

14 Sep 2011

IBN scientists harness ultrasmall peptides to repair spinal disc damage

New ultrasmall peptides that can be used as building blocks for a wide range of regenerative applications such as spinal disc replacement and cartilage repair have been developed by scientists at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), the world's first bioengineering and nanotechnology research institute. These peptides spontaneously assemble in water to form hydrogels, which resemble collagen, a major component of connective tissues found in cartilage, ligaments, tendons, bone and skin.

12 Sep 2011

Researchers rethink fenretinide for prevention of oral cancer

Scientists on the cutting edge of biomedical research know that research is a process - a combination of successes and failures that inform the next step forward. However, for some researchers at The Ohio State University progress means taking a step back. Supported by the Ohio State University Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS), these scientists are using failed and forgotten research to uncover future treatments for major health conditions as diverse as oral cancer and stroke.

7 Sep 2011

Pittsburgh researchers combine Viscotek GPC and Zetasizer Nano in work on novel polymers for drug delivery

Molecular weight and molecular weight distribution measurements are a basic necessity in studying the synthesis of the novel polymers being carried out by researchers at the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh. For the Pittsburgh team, the applications and technical expertise provided by Malvern Panalytical is a significant factor in their use of the company’s Viscotek gel permeation chromatography (GPC) system to characterize polymer molecular weight, prior to applying the Zetasizer Nano for zeta potential measurements to study inter-molecular interactions.

From Malvern Panalytical 18 Aug 2011

Prosthetic heart valve market to reach $1.3 billion by 2017

The prosthetic heart valve market is expected to reach a value of $1.3 billion by 2017, according to a new report available from companiesandmarkets.com.

8 Aug 2011