Press monitoring
Waging war on Australia\'s nastiest parasite: Scientists map blowfly genome
8.7.2015 | Press monitoring
This blowfly is responsible for about $280 million in losses to Australia's sheep industry each year from flystrike. All 14,544 genes of the blowfly (Lucilia cuprina) were identified by the international research team, led by the University of Melbourne. Around 2000 genes not seen before in any other organism were discovered. These genes can now...
Researchers mass-producing stem cells to satisfy the demands of regenerative medicine
6.7.2015 | Press monitoring
Steve Oh had been growing stem cells by conventional means at the A*STAR Bioprocessing Technology Institute (BTI) for seven years, when in 2008 his colleague Shaul Reuveny proposed an idea for speeding up the process. Instead of culturing the cells on round, flat Petri dishes, he could try growing them on tiny polystyrene beads known as...
Engineered particles produce toxins deadly to targeted bacteria
3.7.2015 | Press monitoring
The global rise in antibiotic resistance is a growing threat to public health, damaging our ability to fight deadly infections such as tuberculosis. In a paper published online in the journal Nano Letters, researchers at MIT, the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and Harvard University reveal that they have developed a new means of killing...
Strong teeth: Nanostructures under stress make teeth crack resistant
1.7.2015 | Press monitoring
Human teeth have to serve for a lifetime, despite being subjected to huge forces. But the high failure resistance of dentin in teeth is not fully understood. An interdisciplinary team led by scientists of Charite Universitaetsmedizin Berlin has now analyzed the complex structure of dentin. At the synchrotron sources BESSY II at HZB, Berlin,...
Genetic discovery uncovers key tool for morphine production in poppies
29.6.2015 | Press monitoring
Scientists at the University of York and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Australia have made a key genetic discovery in poppies, paving the way for more effective painkillers. The discovery, published in the latest issue of Science, reveals the long sought after gene that is seen as a critical gateway step in the synthesis of the morphinan class of...
Inactivating a single enzyme could effectively eradicate an aggressive form of leukemia
26.6.2015 | Press monitoring
EPFL scientists show how inactivating a single enzyme could effectively eradicate an aggressive form of leukemia. The principles could apply to other cancers as well. T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is a rare type of leukemia that is more common in older children and teenagers. It affects white blood cells, which are an essential...
Microalgae produced on a commercial scale
24.6.2015 | Press monitoring
Many products, including food supplements, cosmetics and biodiesel, are made from substances derived from microalgae. A fully automated pilot plant operated by Fraunhofer in Leuna is capable of producing microalgae on pilot scale. Microalgae are highly versatile organisms. Some strains, for instance, produce large quantities of omega-3 fatty...
Scientists use molecular lock and key for potential control of GMOs
22.6.2015 | Press monitoring
Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have developed an easy way to put bacteria under a molecular lock and key in order to contain its accidental spread. The method involves a series of genetic mutations that render the microbe inactive unless the right molecule is added to enable its viability. The findings show promise as a...
Cellulose from wood can be printed in 3-D
19.6.2015 | Press monitoring
A group of researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have managed to print and dry three-dimensional objects made entirely by cellulose for the first time with the help of a 3D-bioprinter. They also added carbon nanotubes to create electrically conductive material. The effect is that cellulose and other raw material based on wood will be...
Weirdo mutant plant opens doors for food security
17.6.2015 | Press monitoring
The discovery that an Australian tobacco plant studied internationally as part of plant breeding programs is actually the genetic "weirdo" of its family holds huge potential for food security, experts say. Susceptible to infection by more than 500 plant viruses, Nicotiana benthamiana is the plant of choice for studies in plant virology and...
