Polymers News and Research

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New RNA interference method holds promise for cancer, other diseases

For the past decade, scientists have been pursuing cancer treatments based on RNA interference - a phenomenon that offers a way to shut off malfunctioning genes with short snippets of RNA. However, one huge challenge remains: finding a way to efficiently deliver the RNA.

27 Feb 2012

Biocompatible interface scaffolds for improved prosthetics

Sandia National Laboratories researchers, using off-the-shelf equipment in a chemistry lab, have been working on ways to improve amputees' control over prosthetics with direct help from their own nervous systems.

22 Feb 2012

New method can create scaffolds for tissue engineering applications

Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a new method for creating scaffolds for tissue engineering applications, providing an alternative that is more flexible and less time-intensive than current technology.

13 Feb 2012

New approach for production of tissue culture scaffolds in 3-D arrangements

Scientists at the University of California, San Diego have developed a new method for making scaffolds for culturing tissue in three-dimensional arrangements that mimic those in the body. This advance, published online in the journal Advanced Materials, allows the production of tissue culture scaffolds containing multiple structurally and chemically distinct layers using common laboratory reagents and materials.

10 Feb 2012

Wyatt Technology Instruments employed to develop alternative materials to silicone breast implants

Wyatt Technology Corporation today announced that Professor Judit E. Puskas at the University of Akron has developed a system using its instrumentation that will also help to solve a prevalent and particularly controversial material science challenge. The researchers are employing the multi detector system to develop alternative materials to silicone breast implants. This development will be welcomed by many as faulty Poly Implant Prothèse (PIP) implants are causing global concern about implant safety, and as a result, alternative materials are sought.

1 Feb 2012

New mechanism of drug release using 3D superhydrophobic materials

According to a recent study, there is a new mechanism of drug release using 3D superhydrophobic materials that utilizes air as a removable barrier to control the rate at which drug is released.

30 Jan 2012

New system safe, effective in delivering CsA to organ transplant patients

A new system for delivering a drug to organ transplant patients, which could avoid the risk of harmful side effects, is being developed by scientists at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.

27 Jan 2012

Novel nano-carrier platform shows promise for cancer drug delivery

A new class of nanoparticles, synthesized by a UC Davis research team to prevent premature drug release, holds promise for greater accuracy and effectiveness in delivering cancer drugs to tumors. The work is published online in Angewandte Chemie, a leading international chemistry journal.

20 Jan 2012

PolyTherics announces acquisition of WEP

PolyTherics Limited, a provider of solutions to biopharmaceutical companies for the improvement of protein and peptide based drugs, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Warwick Effect Polymers, a provider of specialty biopolymers for the modification of biological products.

20 Jan 2012

Ocular drug delivery: DSM awarded membership in PANOPTES EU Funded Consortium

DSM, a global leader in biomedical materials sciences, today announced that it is contributing proprietary knowledge in the preparation of tailored amino acid-based polymers and offering use of processing facilities that will produce an innovative step change in the sustained delivery of drug molecules. The PANOPTES consortium’s goal is to research and develop novel drug delivery technology for the posterior eye segment. This partnership further validates the innovative properties of DSM’s polyesteramide (PEA) biomaterials as a superior drug delivery technology.

12 Jan 2012

Caltech researchers devise new method to make complex molecules

A team of researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has devised a new method for making complex molecules. The reaction they have come up with should enable chemists to synthesize new varieties of a whole subclass of organic compounds called nitrogen-containing heterocycles, thus opening up new avenues for the development of novel pharmaceuticals and natural products ranging from chemotherapeutic compounds to bioactive plant materials such as morphine.

12 Jan 2012

Researchers produce multifunctional films from whey protein

Convenience foods are growing in popularity, and the food they contain is usually protected by films based on petrochemicals. Now researchers have not only developed a biomaterial from whey protein, they have also come up with a commercially viable method of producing multifunctional films on an industrial scale.

10 Jan 2012

Olympus adds dissolvable sinus spacing and hemostat products to ENT portfolio

Olympus, a precision technology leader in designing and delivering innovative solutions in Medical and Surgical Products, among other core businesses, today announced the addition of a broad line of advanced, dissolvable sinus spacing and hemostat products to its already extensive ENT product portfolio. These products include spacers, foams and powders available in either plant-based or chitosan polysaccharide polymers.

From Evident Corporation - Life Sciences 6 Jan 2012

Graphitic carbon plays key role as lubricating layer on metal-on-metal hip implants

A team of engineers and physicians have made a surprising discovery that offers a target for designing new materials for hip implants that are less susceptible to the joint's normal wear and tear.

23 Dec 2011

New pharma title from iSmithers ‘Update on Polymers for Ocular Drug Delivery’

The eye is the most easily accessible site for topical administration of a medication. Drugs are commonly applied to the eye for localised action on the surface or in the interior of the eye. A major problem in ocular therapeutics is the attainment of an optimal drug concentration at the site of action.

21 Dec 2011

Short spiral-shaped proteins can efficiently deliver DNA segments to cells

Clinical gene therapy may be one step closer, thanks to a new twist on an old class of molecules. A group of University of Illinois researchers, led by professors Jianjun Cheng and Fei Wang, have demonstrated that short spiral-shaped proteins can efficiently deliver DNA segments to cells. The team published its work in the journal Angewandte Chemie.

16 Dec 2011

Study: Many prescription drugs use phthalates as inactive ingredients

Researchers from Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center (SEC), in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health, have found numerous prescription and over-the-counter drugs and supplements use certain chemicals called phthalates as inactive ingredients in their products.

15 Dec 2011

Hydrogel regenerates healthy, scar-free tissue on skin damaged by severe burns

Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a jelly-like material and wound treatment method that, in early experiments on skin damaged by severe burns, appeared to regenerate healthy, scar-free tissue.

14 Dec 2011

Dendrimers can capture circulating tumor cells in blood by biomimicry

The removal of rare tumor cells circulating in the blood might be possible with the use of biomolecules bound to dendrimers, highly branched synthetic polymers, which could efficiently sift and capture the diseased cells, according to new research at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

18 Nov 2011

Micell announces preliminary data from MiStent Sirolimus DES clinical study

Micell Technologies, Inc. today announced the release of preliminary data from the first-in-human clinical study of the MiStent Sirolimus Drug Eluting Coronary Stent System (MiStent DES), a thin-strut drug-eluting stent distinguished by a rapid-absorbing drug/polymer coating designed for controlled drug release.

9 Nov 2011