French bio-terrorism network of labs
Born in the USA out of the anthrax scare that followed the 9/11 attacks, the formation of a network of laboratories kept on 24/7 alert against potential bio-terrorism was introduced in France at the end of 2001.
Microbiology
European nanomedicine research
Cancer diagnostics - Nanotechnology is currently being used in oncology to improve early tumour detection, imaging procedures and targeting of cancer therapies. Cancer biomarkers, indicators that are being produced by the body in spreading tumour cells, play an important role in cancer detection, Dr. Jörg Raach reports
Is copper preventing nosocomial infections?
The properties of copper in helping prevent nosocomial infections were debated this October at the Infection Prevention 2013 conference, when Professor Tom Elliott, Consultant Microbiologist at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, addressed the question: ‘Can the use of copper help prevent infection?’
C.diff associated diarrhoea
Diarrhoea caused by Clostridium difficile, which remains an issue in hospital settings, has been the focus of Cochrane Collaboration scientists, who now suggest that taking probiotics at the same time as antibiotics could help to maintain a healthy balance of bacteria in the gut, particularly as antibiotics can disturb the ecosystem of organisms normally present in the digestive system.
Combating surgical infection risks
Shocking: Air quality checks are infrequent and insufficient in operating theatres. The good news: a new device can now measure pathogens circulating during surgical procedures, John Brosky reports
Do-it-yourself scientific testing
A British teenager, 17-year-old Fred Turner, has won a major accolade for building a DNA testing analyser in his own home for a few hundred euros.
Faster sample analysis for UK and EU hospitals
Run by Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, the new automated Medical Laboratory at the Northern General Hospital has drawn a previously fragmented service into a purpose-built centre.
New cooperation in research on ovarian cancer
Sanofi and the Curie Institute, through its Curie-Cancer partnership under the Institut Carnot label, today announce the establishment of a three-year research collaboration to identify new therapeutic targets for the development of treatments for ovarian cancer.
The Robert Koch Foundation announces the 2013 laureates
Robert Koch Award 2013 goes to Jeffrey I. Gordon for pioneering studies of the human microbiome; Anthony S. Fauci receives the Robert Koch Gold Medal 2013 for outstanding scientific contributions to HIV research
German Cancer Research Center to broaden strategic alliance with Bayer HealthCare
The German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Bayer HealthCare (Bayer) will extend their successful strategic research alliance in search of novel cancer therapeutics by focusing their activities also on the field of immunotherapy.
Epigenetic drugs
‘All human body cells contain the same DNA, but every type of cell – for example a muscle cell compared to that of a nerve – has a different gene expression pattern’, said Dr Sonja Stadler, speaking at the 2012 congress of DGKL (German Society for Clinical Chemistry).
DNA sequencing tackles MRSA outbreak
‘This is a dramatic demonstration that medical genomics is no longer a technology of the future – it is a technology of the here and now' Report: Mark Nicholls
A link between adult neurogenesis and memory recovery
The brain of mammals produces new neurons for the whole of their lives. This process, called neurogenesis, enables cognitive functions such as memory or learning, and its decrease is linked to some neuro-psychiatric pathologies and intellectual disabilities.
Instantaneous imaging, without the need for a computer
Olympus has released a new standalone controller for the 5 megapixel DP26 camera. Using the controller, it is possible to view samples and capture images directly on a monitor screen with no need for a dedicated computer.
Promise for controlling'blood-brain barrier'
Working with mice, Johns Hopkins researchers have shed light on the activity of a protein pair found in cells that form the walls of blood vessels in the brain and retina, experiments that could lead to therapeutic control of the blood-brain barrier and of blood vessel growth in the eye.
Smartphones and high-tech laboratories to reveal health effects
New technologies for sensing chemicals that people are exposed to and their effects in the body will help scientists work towards a complete picture of how environmental pollutants influence health in a major EU initiative being launched yesterday.
Gene therapy restores sense of smell in mice
A team of scientists from Johns Hopkins and other institutions report that restoring tiny, hair-like structures to defective cells in the olfactory system of mice is enough to restore a lost sense of smell.
Molecular diagnostics
Research in the field is booming thanks to newly arriving methods to identify gene sequences. Scientists are interested in a wide range of issues from disease-relevant variations of human genetic information to the detection of viral genetic material that supports therapies. Several highlights of current research were presented this spring at the 9th International Symposium on Molecular…
The potent cardiac depressant in our own homes
Scientists state concern for both human and environmental health from a very commonly used antibacterial/antifungal agent. Brenda Marsh reports
Knowing the Enemy
Modern wars will be fought in the cyber zone, targeting an enemy's communications technology to cause critical damage; a Tel Aviv University researcher suggests to employ similar tactics in the battle against cancer.
Multichannel Verification System facilitates improved assay results
Artel is launching the new MVS Multichannel Verification System, an objective performance assessment and optimization tool for automated liquid handlers. The MVS offers accuracy and precision information for any liquid handling device with up to 384-channels, allowing for confidence in assay data.
IFCC-WORLDLAB BERLIN 2011
‘Heal the world’ sang the Berliner Rundfunk Children’s Choir and Youth Orchestra, and thus aptly began the joint 21st International Congress of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine and the 19th IFCC-EFCC European Congress of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, attracting 4,418 delegates, 2,833 visitors and 1,058 exhibiting staff to Berlin in May.
Copper: The relentless killer on our side
Professor Bill Keevil, Director of the Environmental Healthcare Unit at University of Southampton’s School of Biological Sciences, was among the first microbiological researchers to experiment on copper’s efficiency against pathogenic and nonpathogenic strains of E. coli bacteria and demonstrate the inherent anti-microbial property of the metal.
Concerted efforts to combat prosthetic joint infections
Bacteria are highly flexible when it comes to choosing a vehicle to enter a human body. During orthopaedic surgery, they may well settle on a prosthetic joint and cause immediate or delayed infections.
From friend to foe
It’s a war against a perceived enemy that is not – autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus erythematosus or multiple sclerosis, occur when the immune system attacks normal tissue components. Characteristic of those disease patterns are autoantibodies in the blood, which the immune system produces to attack its own organism.
