Memento Mori: Investigating Mummies for Ancient Diseases
Sept 2013. The dead give clues to the evolution and spread of human diseases
Grow Your Own: Protalix BioTherapeutics Produces Drugs in Carrot Cells
Aug 2013. Putting vegetables to work
Addgene: the bank that gives points for (plasmid) deposits
Jul 2013. Furthering scientific exchange through plasmid swapping
Epigenetic cancer therapies emerge out of the lab into the limelight
Apr 2013. Celebrities raise money for cancer dream teams
Parasites R US: Coronado Biosciences Recruits Parasitic Worms to Treat Autoimmune Disease
Feb 2013. A safe, discreet way to get your parasites
Grabbing for the Ring: Macrocycles Tweak the Conventions of Drug-Making
Nov 2012 . Ring-shaped molecules gain purchase on unlikely targets
Ariad Pharmaceutical’s Ninja Cancer Drug Inhibits Armies of Mutants
Sep 2012 . Could Ponatinib shield universally against mutations?
TRND Navigates Landscape of Rare Drugs Jun 2012 . Could pursuing cures for rare diseases solve more common ones? The NIH wants to find out.
Targacept’s NNR Drugs Rehabilitate Nicotine Jan 2010. It is so hard to quit cigarettes because our brains have receptors that groove on nicotine
The Tastemakers: Semonyx Targets Taste Receptors Nov 2009.Researchers at Coca Cola devote their careers to outdoing sugar
Aileron Staples Peptides Sep 2009. Aileron staples peptides into alpha-helical shapes
Evolva Breeds Small Molecule Drugs Au Naturel Jun 2009. Inside Evolva’s main laboratory in Basel, an international team of scientists subjects yeast cells to an evolutionary sweepstakes based on survival.
Synthetic Biology Transforms Green Goo to Black Gold Mar 2009. Advances in synthetic biology are now enabling scientists to transform bacteria, algae, and fungus into fuel producers that could power tomorrow’s cars and planes.
In the Arms of Morpheus: Actelion Keeps Sleepers from Waking Feb 2009. Sleep drug is almost like the real thing.
Food and Drugs: Arena Pharmaceuticals Develops Next Generation Obesity Drug Nov 2008. The dream of a diet pill that works is getting closer, but there are still caveats, like, it only works while you take it.
A Good Vaccine is Hard to Find: Nonprofit Biotechs Tackle Tuberculosis Oct 2008
Seeking Clues to Transplantation Tolerance Aug 2008
caBIG: Seeking Cancer Cures by Bits and Bytes Jun 2008
Regeneron Focuses on Age-Related Macular Degeneration Apr 2008. For some people, the onslaught of time brings another loss: the erosion of central vision, making it impossible to drive or read a book or see the contours of a loved one’s face.
Unraveling the Tangled Brain of Alzheimers Feb 2008.
Thwarting tumors: Nereus trolls for cancer cures beneath the sea Nov 2007. VDAs in combination could potentially lower the dose of toxic chemotherapeutics to do the job
Little Biotech on the Prairie Sep 2007. Mike Chambers, cofounder of Aldevron thought North Dakota was a fine place to set up plasmid farming
Freezer Burn: Egg Banking is a Growth Industry Jul 2007. Egg freezing could be a godsend for women who are facing cancer treatments or other medical procedures that could impair fertility … but a bigger market lurks: healthy women who delay childbearing or worry that they won’t meet the right partner in time and are seeking a bit of insurance to safeguard their fertility.
Neuropathic Pain Treatment Gives Avigen New Lease on Life and Neuromed Follows the Snail Trail Apr 2007. While a roster of drugs including opioids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories are deployed for the acute, inflammatory pain that occurs after injury or surgery, people who suffer from neuropathic pain have fewer options.
Leapin’ Lizards: Amylin Targets Diabetes and Obesity via Incretins Mar 2007. Large and lucrative markets could await the drug that causes significant weight loss, but developing a medication that is both safe and effective has stymied the largest of drug companies. Some new contenders are now grabbing for the brass ring by finding creative ways to make you think you are not hungry.
Boston Autism Consortium Searches for Genetic Clues to Autism’s Puzzle Feb 2007
Anadys Uses Toll-like Receptors to Switch on Immunity Jan 2007
Ablynx Makes Nanobodies from Llama Bodies Dec 2006 — The students purified the camel blood serum and noticed curious antibodies.”
Speedel Staunches the Renin Cascade at its Source Nov 2006
Amber Codon Flashing: Ambrx Augments Proteins with Unnatural Amino Acids Oct 2006
Spray-on Special Effects: Mendel Biotechnology Uses Chemical Genetics to Help Plants Cope with Stress Sept 2006. Agriculture has always been at the
mercy of the elements and blessed by the gods. But instead of praying for rain, farmers in the near future may use chemical genetics to help crops better cope with heat, cold,
and drought.
Fragmentary Solutions: Astex Therapeutics Puts the Pieces Together Aug 2006
Ancora Cooks with Carbs: Synthesizing Carbohydrate Vaccines Jul 2006 — Immunologists have turned to other antigens that are less susceptible to change
by mutation and are rarely shifted in the life cycle of pathogens. Such antigens are complex carbohydrates.
Channeling Ions and Hope: Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Follows Phlegmatic Strategy Jun 2006
On the Trail of Prometheus Mar 2006 — Although bodily regeneration has existed in myth for millenia, only certain tissues will, in fact, regenerate. Over the last two decades, many companies have tried to transform regenerative ability into reality.
Targeted Nanoblobs Treat Cancer and Heart Disease Apr 2006 — Raquel Welch glamorized nanomedicine in the 1966 movie, Fantastic Voyage, based on the Isaac Asimov book about a miniaturized submarine’s journey through a human body. An underrated precursor was George S. Chapell’s 1930 travelogue, Through the Alimentary Canal with Gun and Camera.
Spinning Corncobs into Socks: Farming Plastics with “Green” Chemistry Feb 2006
Holding Back the Tide of Antibiotic Resistance Jan 2006
Biotechnology May Help Thwart Malaria Dec 2005 — Malaria is a difficult challenge for vaccines because the target keeps changing.
Resurrection Men Dig through the Drug Graveyard: ARYx Revives Problem Blockbuster Drugs Nov 2005
Janus-Faced Drugs: the Double-Edged Synthetic Opiate Trade Oct 2005
If You Build It, Will They Come? Sept 2005
Can Scarred Hearts Be Repaired? MG Biotherapeutics Is Testing Cell Therapy for Heart Repair 2005
