Polymers News and Research

RSS

Nottingham scientists win £1.2M grant for research into engineering of nanomaterials

Pioneering scientists at The University of Nottingham have won a £1.2 million grant for research into the engineering of nanomaterials that could transform the global healthcare industry.

20 Jul 2012

Heart defects at birth linked to workplace exposure to solvents

Workplace exposure to organic solvents is linked to several types of heart defects at birth, indicates research published online in Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

18 Jul 2012

Special surface coating for stents to keep them in place

If a person's windpipe is constricted, an operation in which the surgeon inserts a stent to enlarge the trachea is often the only way to relieve their respiratory distress. But this grid-like implant can slip out of position, closing off the windpipe altogether. Researchers are working on a special surface coating for the stents to keep them in place.

9 Jul 2012

USPTO issues patent to Aeris’ cross-linked polymers for treatment of emphysema

Aeris Therapeutics, LLC announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a patent covering the use of cross-linked polymers administered into the lung to reduce lung volume for the treatment of emphysema.

14 Jun 2012

Partnership between Molecular Profiles and GEA Process Engineering to demonstrate benefits of new technology

Molecular Profiles, a leading specialist contract research and manufacturing organisation, announces that it has entered into a strategic collaboration with GEA Process Engineering - the company behind the world-recognized GEA Niro spray drying technology.

29 May 2012

Investigators describe how they synthesized polymers to stabilize proteins

Proteins are widely used as drugs - insulin for diabetics is the best known example - and as reagents in research laboratories, but they react poorly to fluctuations in temperature and are known to degrade in storage.

22 May 2012

Male cyclists may experience hormonal imbalances that affect reproductive health

A new study conducted by UCLA School of Nursing researchers has found that serious leisure male cyclists may experience hormonal imbalances that could affect their reproductive health. The study, "Reproductive Hormones and Interleukin-6 in Serious Leisure Male Athletes," was published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology.

21 May 2012

PGI first quarter net sales increase to $295.2 million

Polymer Group, Inc. (PGI) reported results of operations for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

16 May 2012

Researchers investigate hydrogels' potential in drug delivery

The flexible properties of hydrogels - highly absorbent, gelatinous polymers that shrink and expand depending on environmental conditions such as humidity, pH and temperature - have made them ideal for applications from contact lenses to baby diapers and adhesives.

4 May 2012

New bio-inspired approach can synthesize polymers

A new bio-inspired approach to synthesising polymers will offer unprecedented control over the final polymer structure and yield advances in nanomedicine, researchers say.

3 May 2012

Two MSU researchers invent protein purifier for pharma companies

Two Michigan State University researchers have invented a protein purifier that could help pharmaceutical companies save time and money.

2 May 2012

LCP molecules can treat prion diseases

Toxic prions in the brain can be detected with self-illuminating polymers. The originators, at Linköping University in Sweden, has now shown that the same molecules can also render the prions harmless, and potentially cure fatal nerve-destroying illnesses.

25 Apr 2012

BIND announces data from BIND-014 Phase 1 trials on prostate cancer

Nanomedicine research at the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT funded by a $5 million grant from the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) has delivered the first nanomedicine shown to successfully target prostate cancer cells and deliver docetaxel chemotherapy in high concentrations in Phase I clinical trials.

5 Apr 2012

Study reveals mechanism by which AD may cause memory loss

Alzheimer's disease (AD) steals memory and ruins lives. Despite near-daily reports of promising new therapies, AD remains unchecked. Now a new study reveals the mechanism by which AD may cause memory loss, suggesting new therapies.

26 Mar 2012

Six early-career researchers to receive Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prize

The new recipients of the most important prize for early-career researchers in Germany have been announced. The selection committee, appointed by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), has chosen three young men and three young women to receive the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prize 2012.

21 Mar 2012

Sanofi enters definitive agreement to acquire Pluromed

Sanofi and Pluromed Inc. announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Sanofi is to acquire Pluromed Inc., a medical device company based in Woburn, Massachusetts.

17 Mar 2012

Researchers describe preparation of chitosan nanoparticles

Nanoparticles containing chitosan have been shown to have effective antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus saprophyticus and Escherichia coli. The materials could be used as a protective wound-healing material to avoid opportunistic infection as well as working to facilitate wound healing.

17 Mar 2012

Implant to assume function of damaged venous valves

If heart valves don't close properly, they are replaced. Conventional treatment of venous valve failure, however, has up to now always and exclusively been via medication. In future, an implant will assume the function of damaged valves - and a new dispensing tool means these prostheses can be made using an automated process.

11 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

Researchers confirm how food poisoning bacteria hijack cell's sense of direction

Working in the emerging field of systems biology, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers mathematically predicted how bacteria that cause food poisoning hijack a cell's sense of direction and then confirmed those predictions in living cells.

2 Mar 2012