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Thermo Fisher Scientific launches Acclaim Surfactant Plus and MAbPac SCX-10 chromatography columns

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today introduced new chromatography columns, the Thermo Scientific Acclaim Surfactant Plus and smaller-particle sized Thermo Scientific MAbPac SCX-10.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 12 Mar 2012

Thermo Fisher Scientific introduces new ICP-MS system, iCAP Q

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today launched its new Thermo Scientific iCAP Q, an ICP-MS system that features world-class performance and increased throughput to help laboratories cut analysis times by up to 50 percent when compared to the XSERIES 2 ICP-MS, the model it replaces.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 12 Mar 2012

Researchers determine structure of concentrative nucleoside transporter

A team of researchers at Duke University has determined the structure of a key molecule that can carry chemotherapy and anti-viral drugs into cells, which could help to create more effective drugs with fewer effects to healthy tissue.

12 Mar 2012

ITQB, REQUIMTE convert solid antibiotic ampicilin into an ionic liquid form

In a daring move into the biomedical arena, ITQB chemists from the Molecular Thermodynamics Lab and collaborators from REQUIMTE have managed to convert the solid antibiotic ampicilin into an ionic liquid form, a method that may be extended to other pharmaceutical compounds with benefits for their administration. The work is now published in Medicinal Chemistry Communications.

12 Mar 2012

Unknown 'root' extension in hair cells of the inner ear

The hair cells of the inner ear have a previously unknown "root" extension that may allow them to communicate with nerve cells and the brain to regulate sensitivity to sound vibrations and head position, researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine have discovered. Their finding is reported online in advance of print in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

10 Mar 2012

New inexpensive medical sensor may simplify diagnosis of diseases

An inexpensive new medical sensor has the potential to simplify the diagnosis of diseases ranging from life-threatening immune deficiencies to the common cold, according to its inventors at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

8 Mar 2012

Sperm only react to changes in calcium concentration

Sperm have only one aim: to find the egg. The egg supports the sperm in their quest by emitting attractants. Calcium ions determine the beating pattern of the sperm tail which enables the sperm to move. Together with colleagues from the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems in Dresden and the University of G-ttingen, scientists from the caesar research centre in Bonn, an institute of the Max Planck Society, have discovered that sperm only react to changes in calcium concentration but not to the calcium concentration itself.

8 Mar 2012

Zalicus fourth quarter revenue decreases to $8.2 million

Zalicus Inc. today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011.

8 Mar 2012

Study shows how hydra respond to light in the absence of eyes

In the absence of eyes, the fresh water polyp, Hydra magnipapillata, nevertheless reacts to light. They are diurnal, hunting during the day, and are known to move, looping end over end, or contract, in response to light.

4 Mar 2012

Ion channels assembled in different combinations distinguish temperatures

The winter sun feels welcome, but not so a summer sunburn. Research over the past 20 years has shown that proteins on the surface of nerve cells enable the body to sense several different temperatures. Now scientists have discovered how just a few of these proteins, called ion channels, distinguish perhaps dozens of discrete temperatures, from mildly warm to very hot.

3 Mar 2012

Polymer-based medical implants can produce harmful free radicals

A polymer is a mesh of chains, which slowly break over time due to the pressure from ordinary wear and tear. When a polymer is squeezed, the pressure breaks chemical bonds and produces free radicals: ions with unpaired electrons, full of untapped energy. These molecules are responsible for aging, DNA damage and cancer in the human body.

3 Mar 2012

Desflurane may be safer anesthetic option for patients with AD

In a study that will appear in Annals of Neurology and has received early online release, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers report that administration of isoflurane impaired the performance of mice on a standard test of learning and memory - a result not seen when another anesthetic, desflurane, was administered.

2 Mar 2012

NexGen receives U.S. patent allowance for novel pathogenesis based seizure treatment

NexGen Biomedical, Inc.'s Founder has received a Notice of Allowance from the US Patent Office for a novel treatment method for seizures.

2 Mar 2012

Metal hip implants need monitoring annually: MHRA issues guidelines

The UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency advised that patients with certain artificial hips need annual tests to check for metal ions and MRIs if they show symptoms. The new guidelines follow reports from doctors of swelling and tissue damage in some patients with metal-on-metal hip implants. The update applies to those in Britain with a hip replacement with a head diameter of 36 millimetres or more. The MHRA said on Tuesday that around 49,000 UK patients with large-head hip implants out of 65,000 with all-metal hips were in a high-risk category.

1 Mar 2012

Scientists discover that sperm do not function like olfactory cells

According to a 2003 study by German and American scientists, a component of the Lily of the Valley scent known as Bourgeonal alters the calcium balance of human sperm and attracts the sperm. The "Lily of the Valley phenomenon" - also the title of a book about smelling - was born as a result of this discovery that sperm act as swimming olfactory cells which follow a "scent trail" laid by the egg. However, a detailed explanation for the Lily of the Valley phenomenon remained illusive as neither Bourgeonal nor other scents could be identified in the female sex organ.

29 Feb 2012

Five things that can aggravate suffering of people with spring allergies

Fruits and veggies, air filters, spring breezes, procrastination and self-medication - each can delay relief from a stuffy nose, sneezing, sniffling or other symptoms if you're one of the more than 35 million Americans who suffer from seasonal allergies.

24 Feb 2012

Evolutionary forces encourage diversity in the active surfaces of venomous toxins

For snakes, spiders, and other venomous creatures, the "business end," or active part, of a toxin is the area on the surface of a protein that is most likely to undergo rapid evolution in response to environmental constraints, say researchers from Ben Gurion University in Israel.

24 Feb 2012

Hibernation may provide insight into arrhythmia therapies

How much calcium could a hibernating woodchuck's heart cells sequester, if a hibernating woodchuck's heart cells could sequester calcium? More than enough, it turns out, to protect the animals from cardiac arrhythmias - abnormal heart rhythms such as ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation that can lead to sudden cardiac death - according to a new study of the hibernating animals that may provide insight into arrhythmia therapies.

23 Feb 2012

FDA approves Boston Scientific's ION and TAXUS Liberte paclitaxel-eluting stents

Boston Scientific Corporation's ION Paclitaxel-Eluting Platinum Chromium Coronary Stent System and TAXUS Liberte Paclitaxel-Eluting Coronary Stent System have received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for use in patients experiencing an acute myocardial infarction (AMI), or heart attack.

23 Feb 2012

Chemists build light-controlled neural inhibitor

The notion of a pain switch is an alluring idea, but is it realistic? Well, chemists at LMU Munich, in collaboration with colleagues in Berkeley and Bordeaux, have now shown in laboratory experiments that it is possible to inhibit the activity of pain-sensitive neurons using an agent that acts as a photosensitive switch. For the LMU researchers, the method primarily represents a valuable tool for probing the neurobiology of pain.

23 Feb 2012