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Monsanto and Stokes Bio announce licensing agreement and R&D collaboration

Monsanto Company and Limerick-based biotechnology firm, Stokes Bio Limited, announced today that they have entered into a licensing agreement and R&D collaboration, which is expected to help accelerate the pace of new advancements in plant breeding.

13 Jan 2010

Donald Danforth Plant Science Center researchers enter into research collaboration with Dow AgroSciences

Researchers working at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center have entered into a research collaboration with Dow AgroSciences LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, to study how its EXZACTTM Precision Technology can help improve the root crop cassava for millions of people living in developing countries.

13 Jan 2010

Sangamo BioSciences initiates two new clinical trials of ZFP Therapeutics

Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. announced the initiation of two new clinical trials of ZFP Therapeutics, a Phase 2b study in diabetic neuropathy (DN) and a Phase 1 trial in glioblastoma, as well as the renewal of $3.0 million in funding for the Phase 2b trial by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRF).

11 Jan 2010

Shah sworn in as USAID administrator

On Thursday, Rajiv Shah was sworn in as USAID administrator at an official ceremony in Washington, D.C., Foreign Policy's blog, "The Cable," reports. "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed overwhelming praise and relief before swearing in Shah," according to the blog, which noted that Clinton's remarks provided some "insider details" about Shah.

9 Jan 2010

Canadian Cancer Society calls on the B.C. government to ban cosmetic use of pesticides

The Canadian Cancer Society British Columbia and Yukon today called on the B.C. government to enact legislation to ban the cosmetic use of pesticides that would set a new national standard. The Society is also asking British Columbians to participate in the on-line public consultation.

8 Jan 2010

Development to be 'central pillar' of U.S. foreign policy, Clinton says

In a speech on Wednesday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said that it is time to "elevate development as a central pillar of all that we do in our foreign policy," United Press International reports (1/6). According to Reuters,

8 Jan 2010

Scientists use NIR to predict how quickly pills dissolve in body

Scientists at the University of Maryland, Baltimore have successfully used near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) -- a method already used to test farm product quality -- to predict how quickly pills dissolve in the body.

7 Jan 2010

Also in global health news: Aid in S. Somalia; virus-resistant mosquitoes; composting toilets in Haiti; U.S. Congressional Group visits India

The U.N. World Food Program (WFP) announced Tuesday that it has been forced to halt "aid distribution to about 1 million people in southern Somalia because of attacks against staff and demands by armed groups that aid groups remove women from their teams," the Associated Press reports.

5 Jan 2010

Water experts plan coordinated approach towards global water crisis

More than two dozen leading United Nations water experts will convene in Hamilton, Canada Feb. 2-4 to plan fresh strategy for a coordinated approach to the global water crisis that increasingly threatens both human health and international security.

5 Jan 2010

CCNI announces grant for daycare providers

Child Care & Nutrition, Inc. (CCNI) is pleased to announce a grant for daycare providers who apply for licensing for the first time in most areas of Minnesota.

5 Jan 2010

Independent examines diseases that jump from animals to humans

The Independent examines the expansion of human diseases that originated in animals. "At least 45 diseases that have passed from animals to humans have been reported to U.N. agencies in the last two decades, with the number expected to escalate in the coming years," the Independent writes.

5 Jan 2010

State officials release updated fish consumption advisories

State officials today released updated fish consumption advisories that include two new fish species and a water body that had not previously been on the list, but also eases or lifts advisories on fish from seven water bodies.

30 Dec 2009

NSP recalls E. coli contaminated beef steaks in six states

On Christmas eve the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a notice that National Steak and Poultry (NSP) was recalling 248,000 pounds of beef steaks contaminated with the highly virulent pathogen E. coli O157:H7. The steaks were mechanically tenderized “non-intact steaks”, and were shipped to restaurants nationwide.

29 Dec 2009

Second part of the 2009 Food Safety Naughty and Nice list released

Food Safety News, the web-based newspaper that covers all things food safety, today released the second part of its 2009 Food Safety Naughty and Nice list. The web-based newspaper’s “Naughty” list was published yesterday and included food safety missteps, missed opportunities, and downright dirty deeds.

28 Dec 2009

Also in Global Health news: Food shortages in Eritrea; Kenya HIV testing; aid in Malawi, Nepal; U.S. agriculture appointment

BBC examines Eritrea's decision to pass on international food aid in an effort to produce enough food for its population. According to Girma Asmerom, Eritrea's ambassador to the EU, "foreign food aid demonises the local people and makes them lazy." The government's strategy for addressing food shortages, includes distributing food from some areas in the country that had a bumper harvest, he said.

28 Dec 2009

Opinion: Food aid; HIV vaccine, microbicide research; Global Tobacco Surveillance

In a Washington Post letter to the editor, Alan Bernstein, executive director of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, and Rafi Ahmed, science committee chairman of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, challenge a recent Washington Post editorial that questioned the scientific progress being made in the search for an HIV vaccine and microbicide. "The search for a safe and effective method to prevent HIV infection and AIDS is a long journey in which we should expect both success and failure," the authors write, before highlighting the lessons learned from the recent microbicide gel study and AIDS vaccine trial in Thailand.

27 Dec 2009

UNICEF chief to step down after term ends in 2010

UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman will not seek a second term as head of the agency after her term expires in a few months, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced "with great regret" on Wednesday, Xinhua reports. In a statement, Ban said that Veneman "fulfilled her mandate with immense dedication, and I have been impressed by her extraordinary energy and determination to improve children's health, education and well-being around the world" (12/23).

27 Dec 2009

Bacterial DNA reveals a rise in antibiotic resistant genes

Antibiotic resistance in the natural environment is rising despite tighter controls over our use of antibiotics in medicine and agriculture, Newcastle University scientists have found.

24 Dec 2009

Food Safety News releases 2009 “Naughty” list, “Nice” list to follow

Food Safety News, the web-based newspaper that covers all things food safety, has published the first half of its 2009 Food Safety Naughty and Nice list. The website, which has had more than 75,000 unique visitors since its September, 2009 launch, compiled the list from stories it covered as well as input from the food safety community. The release of the finger-wagging “Naughty” list will be followed by a kudos-to “Nice” list, just in time for Santa’s sleigh.

23 Dec 2009

Food safety leader organizes holiday recipe contest to highlight food borne illness

It's not too late! Enter the National Pasteurized Eggs, (www.SafeEggs.com), makers of Davidson's Safest Choice Pasteurized Shell Eggs, best holiday recipe contest. Designed by National Pasteurized Eggs, food safety leader, to celebrate the season and remind at-home chefs and bakers about food borne illness, the Davidson's Safest Choice "Safest Recipes" contest runs through Dec. 31, 2009.

23 Dec 2009