Research

Nov. 4, 2009 -- Searching for a needle in a haystack may seem futile, but it’s worth it if the needle is a hard-to-detect protein that may identify a person at high risk of a heart attack circulating within a haystack of human serum (liquid component of blood).    » read more »

Oct. 27, 2009 -- WASHINGTON -- NASA is funding 12 proposals from nine states to investigate questions about the effects of space radiation on human explorers. The selected proposals from researchers in Alabama, California, Colorado, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Texas, Virginia and Washington have a total value of approximately $13.7 million.

The ground-based studies will address the impact of space radiation on astronaut health. Research areas will include risk predictions for cancer and models for potential damage to the central nervous system and the heart.    » read more »

October 27, 2009 -- WASHINGTON — Sens. Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, both D-Mich., announced today that Michigan researchers will receive more than $5 million for work on clean energy technologies for motor vehicles. The funding comes from the Department of Energy’s recently-formed Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). The General Motors Company in Warren will receive $2,655,174 and Michigan State University in East Lansing will receive $2,540,631.

“Michigan has always been a leader in manufacturing and the auto industry, and these grants will keep this cutting-edge work happening in our state,” Levin said. “Achieving energy independence is critical to our economic and environmental interests.”    » read more »

Findings by Scripps Research Scientists Brighten Prospects of Stem Cell Therapy for Range of Diseases

LA JOLLA, CA – October 15, 2009 A team led by scientists from The Scripps Research Institute has developed a method that dramatically improves the efficiency of creating stem cells from human adult tissue, without the use of embryonic cells. The research makes great strides in addressing a major practical challenge in the development of stem-cell-based medicine.

The findings were published in an advance, online issue of the journal Nature Methods on October 18, 2009.    » read more »

Scientists identify enzyme that could help grow biofuel crops in harsh environments

October 19, 2009 -- by J. Bryan Lowder -- UPTON, NY — Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have identified a novel enzyme responsible for the formation of suberin — the woody, waxy, cell-wall substance found in cork.

While effective at keeping wine inside a bottle, suberin’s most important function in plants is to control water and nutrient transportation and keep pathogens out. Adjusting the permeability of plant tissues by genetically manipulating the expression of this enzyme could lead to easier agricultural production of crops used for biofuels.    » read more »

According to public health officials, low income countries carry more than 90% of the global disease burden and have less than 10% of funds from public and private sources to deal with them[1]

Basel, October 19, 2009 - Leading Dengue and TB scientists from the Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD) are meeting today at a symposium at NEHCRI (Novartis - Eijkman Institute - Hasanuddin University Clinical Research Initiative) in Makassar, Indonesia, to discuss the initiative's clinical research updates. NEHCRI is a unique collaboration comprised of a specialized network of institutes that are focused on drug discovery, capacity building and training local Indonesian scientists.    » read more »

$18.4 Million for 24 Agrilife Programs That Protect Food Supply, Family Farms & Economy

At the request of Congressman Edwards, Texas A&M Agrilife Research and Agrilife Extension received a total of $18.4 million for 24 research programs under the House bill.    » read more »

October 15, 2009 -- Michael Bennet, U.S. Senator for Colorado, and Congresswoman Betsy Markey announced today that Colorado State University's Sustainable Biofuels Development Center is on track to receive $500,000 in funding to help grow its efforts in research and development of sustainable techniques to produce biofuels at competitive costs.

The funding is included in the final Energy and Water appropriations bill, which passed the Senate by a vote of 80-17. The House passed the bill earlier this month, where Markey supported the measure, and it now awaits the President's signature.    » read more »

15 October 2009 -- A French research team reports a new gene therapy approach tested in macaque monkeys that shows promise for treating Parkinson’s disease by restoring dopamine in the brain and preventing the jerky, involuntary movements that accompany long-term treatment of the disease.

The research is reported in the 14 October issue of Science Translational Medicine, the new journal from AAAS and Science that’s designed to help speed basic research-advances into clinics and hospitals worldwide.    » read more »

Summit one of most important life sciences conferences in world

October 15, 2009 -- LANSING - Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced that Detroit will host the 2010 World Stem Cell Summit organized by the Genetics Policy Institute.

The conference will take place October 4-6, 2010, at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center. It will be co-hosted by Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, Wayne State University, and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.    » read more »

October 15, 2009 -- (Washington, DC) -- Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-Wisc.) today announced that three Milwaukee research facilities will receive a combined $3,940,596 in Recovery Act dollars to fund cutting-edge medical research in the Milwaukee area.

The grants are provided through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Marquette University will receive $2,003,655 to fund nine research projects, the BloodCenter of Wisconsin will receive $1,123,553 to fund five projects and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will receive $813,388 to fund four projects.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, Oct. 14, 2009 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced more than $7 million in grants for research on the biology of plant processes and traits which can be used to breed crops with enhanced value and resilience to climate stress. The research will increase understanding of plant biology from the genome to the field, and provide a foundation for the development of plant varieties with increased yield, reduced production cost, and enhanced quality and nutritional value.    » read more »

Patent-based indicator provides better measurement of Innovation Strength

Ludwigshafen, Germany & Midland, MI - October 12, 2009 -- BASF SE (Deutsche Börse: BAS) and The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: Dow), the world's two largest chemical companies, today jointly announced their support for the Patent Asset Index, a new methodology that measures research and development (R&D) effectiveness, innovation strength and how these factors lead to sustained competitive advantage.

Findings based on 2008 results rank BASF first in the overall Patent Asset Index. Dow ranks first in a critical measurement of the Patent Asset Index - Competitive Impact™. These results show that BASF and Dow are among the most innovative companies in the global chemical industry.    » read more »

October 8, 2009 -- Washington, D.C. - Congressman Brad Sherman announced that research institutes in the San Fernando Valley are receiving nearly four million dollars in combined grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), also known as the Stimulus Bill, provides an unprecedented level of funding to the NIH to help stimulate the US economy through the support and advancement of scientific research. The NIH targeted projects that were likely to stimulate the economy, create or retain jobs, and have the potential for making scientific progress in 2 years.    » read more »

YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, N.Y. - 12 Oct 2009: IBM Research (NYSE: IBM) today announced it has received an "Advanced Sequencing Technology Award" from the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of the National Institutes of Health, to design a silicon-based "DNA Transistor" that will advance genome sequencing technology and generate progress in health care diagnosis and practice.

As part of the "Revolutionary Genome Sequencing Technologies - The $1000 Genome", NHGRI selected the development of technologies aimed to sequence mammalian genomes for $1,000 or less. NHGRI leadership believes that inexpensive genomic sequencing will revolutionize health and medicine.    » read more »