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Cummings School granted U.S. Patent for antibody-based treatment against Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome

Researchers at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine have received U.S. patent approval for an antibody-based treatment for Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS), a potentially fatal outcome of E. coli poisoning and the leading cause of kidney failure in children.

1 Mar 2011

Transgenic fungal approach can fight against malaria and bug-borne diseases

New findings by a University of Maryland-led team of scientists indicate that a genetically engineered fungus carrying genes for a human anti-malarial antibody or a scorpion anti-malarial toxin could be a highly effective, specific and environmentally friendly tool for combating malaria, at a time when the effectiveness of current pesticides against malaria mosquitoes is declining.

24 Feb 2011

Experimental vaccine appears to protect against pneumonia

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have developed an experimental vaccine that appears to protect against an increasingly common and particularly deadly form of pneumococcal pneumonia. Details of the new vaccine, which was tested in an animal model, are reported in a paper published today in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

22 Feb 2011

Researchers find blue-green algae may be responsible for producing estrogen-like compound in water

University of Tennessee, Knoxville, researchers have found that blue-green algae may be responsible for producing an estrogen-like compound in the environment which could disrupt the normal activity of reproductive hormones and adversely affect fish, plants and human health.

17 Feb 2011

Unrecognized substances released by algae blooms may act as endocrine disruptors

Scientists are reporting for the first time that previously unrecognized substances released by algae blooms have the potential to act as endocrine disruptors, which can interfere with the normal activity of reproductive hormones. The effect is not caused by microcystin toxins, long recognized as potentially harmful to humans and aquatic animals, but as yet unidentified substances.

17 Feb 2011

Gene-transfer system may control mosquito-borne diseases without pesticides

Scientists have modeled a system that may be used to control mosquitoes and the diseases they transmit, without the use of pesticides. In the proposed system, mosquitoes are engineered to carry two genes. The first gene causes males to transmit a toxin to females through their semen. The second gene, when expressed in females, makes them immune to this toxin.

14 Feb 2011

DOPAL plays key role in killing dopamine neurons which trigger Parkinson's disease: Study

In new research from Saint Louis University, investigators have found evidence that a toxin produced by the brain is responsible for the series of cellular events that lead to Parkinson's disease. The study, published in PLoS One, found that the brain toxin DOPAL plays a key role in killing the dopamine neurons which trigger the illness.

10 Feb 2011

Key advance in development of fast, simple test for detection of cholera

With cholera on the rampage in Haiti and almost 40 other countries, scientists are reporting the development of a key advance that could provide a fast, simple test to detect the toxin that causes the disease. The report appears in ACS' journal Bioconjugate Chemistry. Cholera affects more than 200,000 people annually, mainly in developing countries, and causes about 5,000 deaths. Many involve infants, children, and the elderly.

10 Feb 2011

Americans willing to pay more, but up to a limit, for safer food

Government regulators could more realistically assess the value of improving food safety if they considered the fact that consumers typically want to avoid getting sick - even if it means they have to pay a little extra for safer food, researchers say.

10 Feb 2011

Drugs against protective action of bacteria's antitoxin molecules

Bacteria often attack with toxins designed to hijack or even kill host cells. To avoid self-destruction, bacteria have ways of protecting themselves from their own toxins.

9 Feb 2011

Bruker launches new fully automated and fast toxin identification system

Bruker today announces the North American launch of its compact, fully automated and fast toxin identification system, called pTD™ (portable Toxin Detector), at the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Bio-Defense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting in Washington, DC. The novel, benchtop, push-button pTD system is intended for smaller, field and mobile laboratories for use by non-expert operators in homeland security applications.

7 Feb 2011

Dermatologists offer preventative tips to minimize pesky skin problems caused by plants

What may start as a seemingly harmless day of gardening or yard work can quickly take a turn for the worse when common plants make their mark on the skin, causing a host of mild to even severe skin reactions. That is why dermatologists are arming outdoor enthusiasts with preventative tips to keep these perils of the great outdoors at arm's length.

4 Feb 2011

New England Journal publishes fidaxomicin Phase 3 trial results against CDI

Optimer Pharmaceuticals, announced The New England Journal of Medicine has published results from the North American Phase 3 trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of the Company's novel antibiotic fidaxomicin as a treatment for patients with Clostridium difficile infection.

3 Feb 2011

New study reports migraine surgery eliminates headache in nearly 30% of patients

Surgery to "deactivate" migraine headaches produces lasting good results, with nearly 90 percent of patients having at least partial relief at five years' follow-up, reports a study in the February issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

2 Feb 2011

Scientist examines tungsten contamination in drinking water

A Kansas State University scientist is digging deep to solidify information about potential tungsten contamination in the nation's groundwater and aquifers.

28 Jan 2011

USPTO issues Notice of Allowances to Lakewood's three patent applications for treatment of HUS

Lakewood-Amedex, a leading developer of novel anti-infective pharmaceuticals, announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued Notice of Allowances on three patent applications relating to the use of novel monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of hemolytic uremic syndrome caused by shiga toxin II secreting E.coli O157: H7 strain.

28 Jan 2011

Soligenix and CU enter definitive license agreement for novel vaccine thermostabilization technology

Soligenix, Inc., a late-stage biopharmaceutical company, today announced that it has entered into a definitive license agreement with the University of Colorado (CU) for novel technology for use in the development of subunit vaccines with long-term stability, including stability at elevated temperatures.

28 Jan 2011

FDA grants Soligenix Orphan Drug Designation to RiVax for prevention of ricin intoxication

Soligenix, Inc., a late-stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation to RiVax™ for the prevention of ricin intoxication. RiVax™ is a proprietary vaccine that contains a recombinant subunit of the A chain of ricin toxin which induces ricin neutralizing antibodies in humans and animals.

20 Jan 2011

Dextran-coated onto iron oxide nanoparticles can detect cholera toxin: Study

A complex sugar may someday become one of the most effective weapons to stop the spread of cholera, a disease that has claimed thousands of lives in Haiti since the devastating earthquake last year.

19 Jan 2011

Kenneth D. Steinsapir receives rare USPTO patent for Microdroplet BOTOX

Kenneth D. Steinsapir, M.D., has been issued a rare patent (US 7,846,457 B2) by The United States Patent and Trademark Office for the invention of a breakthrough method for administering cosmetic botulinum toxin. The patent for Microdroplet botulinum toxin, a nonsurgical cosmetic facial treatment that improves upon standard BOTOX treatments, was officially approved on December 7, 2010.

13 Jan 2011

Toxin News and Research

Cummings School granted U.S. Patent for antibody-based treatment against Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome

Transgenic fungal approach can fight against malaria and bug-borne diseases

Experimental vaccine appears to protect against pneumonia

Researchers find blue-green algae may be responsible for producing estrogen-like compound in water

Unrecognized substances released by algae blooms may act as endocrine disruptors

Gene-transfer system may control mosquito-borne diseases without pesticides

DOPAL plays key role in killing dopamine neurons which trigger Parkinson's disease: Study

Key advance in development of fast, simple test for detection of cholera

Americans willing to pay more, but up to a limit, for safer food

Drugs against protective action of bacteria's antitoxin molecules

Bruker launches new fully automated and fast toxin identification system

Dermatologists offer preventative tips to minimize pesky skin problems caused by plants

New England Journal publishes fidaxomicin Phase 3 trial results against CDI

New study reports migraine surgery eliminates headache in nearly 30% of patients

Scientist examines tungsten contamination in drinking water

USPTO issues Notice of Allowances to Lakewood's three patent applications for treatment of HUS

Soligenix and CU enter definitive license agreement for novel vaccine thermostabilization technology

FDA grants Soligenix Orphan Drug Designation to RiVax for prevention of ricin intoxication

Dextran-coated onto iron oxide nanoparticles can detect cholera toxin: Study

Kenneth D. Steinsapir receives rare USPTO patent for Microdroplet BOTOX

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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