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Epigentek Group releases SuperSense Methylated DNA Quantification kit

Epigentek Group Inc. today announced that it released the SuperSense(TM) Methylated DNA Quantification Kit to complete its line of methylated DNA quantification products. The SuperSense(TM) kit fluorometrically measures global DNA methylation shifts.

1 Oct 2009

Coupling electrosurgery with mass spectrometry for real-time identification of tumor tissues

Instead of the classic scalpel, surgeons can also operate with an electroscalpel. A significant advantage to this technique is that while a cut is being made, blood vessels are closed off and hemorrhaging eliminated. Now another advantage may be added as well: a German-Hungarian research team has developed a mass-spectrometry-based technique by which tissues can be analyzed during a surgical procedure.

30 Sep 2009

Lab-on-a-chip performs 1,000 chemical reactions at once

Flasks, beakers, and hot plates may soon be a thing of the past in medicinal chemistry labs. Instead of handling a few experiments on a benchtop, scientists may simply pop a microchip into a computer and instantly run thousands of chemical reactions, with results literally shrinking the lab down to the size of a thumbnail.

From Siemens Healthineers 23 Sep 2009

NIST collaborates with private industry to release a new reference material for beryllium

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in collaboration with private industry and other government agencies, have produced a new reference material for beryllium. Beryllium, an exotic rare-earth metal used as a hardener in high-performance alloys and ceramics, can cause berylliosis-a chronic, incurable and sometimes fatal illness.

23 Sep 2009

Bioscreen Instruments to be Labcyte's partner in India

Labcyte, the developer of acoustic liquid transfer, with systems in all top 10 pharmaceutical companies, today announced the selection of Bioscreen Instruments Pvt. Ltd. as its exclusive distributor in India.

23 Sep 2009

Novel cleavage sites for enzyme caspase-3 identified

Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) have identified novel cleavage sites for the enzyme caspase-3 (an enzyme that proteolytically cleaves target proteins). Using an advanced proteomic technique called N-terminomics, Guy Salvesen, Ph.D., professor and director of the Apoptosis and Cell Death Research program of Burnham's NCI-designated Cancer Center, and colleagues determined the cleavage sites on target proteins and found, contrary to previous understanding, that caspase-3 targets α-helices as well as unstructured loops.

22 Sep 2009

Three German laboratories utilize Bruker’s molecular identification solution

At the 61st Annual Meeting of the German Society for Hygiene and Microbiology on September 20-23, 2009 in Goettingen, Bruker Daltonics announces that three major German private clinical microbiology laboratories have extended their accreditation according to DIN EN ISO 15189 to include the use of Bruker’s MALDI Biotyper molecular identification solution.

21 Sep 2009

Research program to study personalized medicine

A new collaborative research program that will use the power of metabolomic profiling to help advance the concept of personalized medicine was announced September 17, 2009 by the Burnham Institute for Medical Research and the Sarah W. Stedman Nutrition and Metabolism Center at Duke University Medical Center.

18 Sep 2009

SEQUENOM's first laboratory developed cystic fibrosis test launched

SEQUENOM, Inc. today announced that the company's first laboratory developed test, the SensiGene(TM) Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Carrier Screening test, has been launched.

18 Sep 2009

New tool developed to provide precise and cost-effective data collection for drug discovery efforts

Cancer and cell biology experts at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have developed a new mass spectrometry-based tool they say provides more precise, cost-effective data collection for drug discovery efforts.

18 Sep 2009

Dominion develops and validates clinical quantitative assays for tapentadol

Dominion Diagnostics (Dominion) has recently developed and validated one of the first clinical quantitative assays for the drug tapentadol (Nucynta(TM)) performed by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). Tapentadol, recently approved for use by the FDA, is a centrally-active analgesic that has demonstrated efficacy in pain relief with improved gastrointestinal tolerability compared to other opioids for pain management.

15 Sep 2009

Thermo Fisher Scientific receives Ringier Technology Innovation Award

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO), the world leader in serving science, today announced that it has received a Ringier Technology Innovation Award for its role in helping Chinese laboratories quickly develop melamine detection capabilities following the discovery of melamine-tainted milk and infant formula in China. The award was presented by Ringier Trade Publishing, which publishes China's leading food industry magazine, Food Manufacturing Journal.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 9 Sep 2009

Advocacy campaign to fight reimbursement cuts for POC urine drug screen devices

Millennium Laboratories, a leading provider of therapeutic drug monitoring and education to physicians and staff treating chronic pain patients, has announced the launch of an advocacy campaign to fight reimbursement cuts to point-of-care (POC) urine drug screen devices.

9 Sep 2009

BioTrove partners with FDA to investigate the utility of SNAP system

BioTrove announced a collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research to investigate the utility of the company’s Standardized NanoArray PCR (SNAP) gene expression profiling system for the rapid and specific detection of pathogens in the nation’s blood supply.

8 Sep 2009

Optimized turmeric extracts may prevent memory loss

scientists with HerbalScience Group LLC, working with researchers from other organizations and medical institutions, conducted an in-depth study of optimized turmeric extracts, demonstrating that key bioactives in the botanical extracts inhibit aggregation and release of amyloid, a protein fragment considered a prime causal suspect in Alzheimer's disease.

3 Sep 2009

Analytical Technologies division of MDS to be acquired by Danaher

Danaher Corporation (NYSE: DHR) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement with MDS Inc. (TSX: MDS; NYSE: MDZ) to acquire the Analytical Technologies division of MDS, which includes a 50% ownership position in Applied Biosystems/MDS Sciex joint venture ("AB SCIEX"), a mass spectrometry business, and a 100% ownership position in the former Molecular Devices Corporation, a bioresearch and analytical instrumentation company.

From Danaher 2 Sep 2009

Danaher to acquire mass spectrometry business from Life Technologies Corporation

Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ:LIFE) today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its ownership stake in its mass spectrometry business, operated as a joint venture, to Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) for $450 million in cash. Danaher has also signed an agreement to acquire Life Technologies’ joint venture partner in the mass spectrometry business, MDS Analytical Technologies, a division of MDS Inc. (NYSE:MDZ). The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2009.

From Danaher 2 Sep 2009

Waters exhibits the SYNAPT G2 system at the 18th International Mass Spectrometry Conference in Europe

Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT) today exhibited for the first time in Europe the Waters((R)) SYNAPT(TM) G2 a system offering scientists greater power, versatility and speed at the 18(th) International Mass Spectrometry Conference (IMSC). Rounding out its display of mass spectrometry (MS) and UltraPerformance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC((R)))/MS systems at IMSC will be Waters Xevo(TM) family of tandem quadrupole and time-of-flight mass spectrometers noted for their ease-of-use and versatility.

27 Aug 2009

Study confirms inappropriate use of pain medication among the chronic pain population

A study published in the August issue of the peer-reviewed journal Population Health Management revealed that the majority of patients prescribed opioids for chronic pain were unlikely to be taking their medicine in a manner consistent with their prescribed regimen. In the study, titled "Inappropriate Drug Use in the Chronic Pain Population," 938,586 urine toxicology tests conducted on over 500,000 patients prescribed chronic opioid therapy were analyzed using proprietary and state of the art screening methods offered by Ameritox(R).

27 Aug 2009

Herbalscience research throws light on causes of allergic rhinitis

Most people might think of nettle as simply a common and aggressive weed that can sting and cause skin irritation. But nettle has also been used for hundreds of years to treat seasonal allergies and other inflammatory diseases, although the precise nature of its anti-inflammatory effect was unknown. Now, scientists with HerbalScience have identified specific bioactives in nettle leaf extracts that inhibit in vitro receptors and enzymes known to be key in generating symptoms of allergic rhinitis, or hay fever.

26 Aug 2009