Strategies & Technologies Driving Drug Discovery to Market
The Next Era of Gene Expression Tools
October 11, 2007 12:58 pm | by Bruce Silgmann, PhD, High Throughput Genomics | Articles | CommentsObstacles to measuring gene expression have hindered the impact of genomics on drug discovery and the life sciences.
Diploid Genome Sequenced
October 11, 2007 12:51 pm | News | CommentsResearchers have published a genome sequence of an individual that covers both sets of chromosomes that were inherited from each parent. This represents the first time a true diploid genome from one individual ahs been published.
Patents on a Budget: The Provisional Application
October 11, 2007 12:51 pm | by Richard Lebovitz, Millen, White, Zelano, and Branigan | Articles | CommentsPatents are the intellectual property currency of the world of commerce.
Simulating Protein Vibrations
October 11, 2007 12:46 pm | News | CommentsAn international collaboration has performed the first-ever atomic-detail computer simulation of how proteins vibrate in a crystal.
Bioinformatics Outstrips Info Technology
October 11, 2007 12:38 pm | by Michael Kane, PhD, Purdue University | Articles | CommentsIn addition to the growing amount of genomic data, the diversity of data types in the bioinformatics domain are also increasing, and systems biology efforts emerge to integrate genomic data with proteomic, ionomic, metabolomic, biochemical, and pharmacological data to study various fundamental aspects of living systems.
Mammoth Hair Provides DNA Source
October 11, 2007 12:37 pm | News | CommentsResearchers discovered that hair shafts provide an ideal source of ancient DNA—a better source than bones and muscle for studying the genome sequences of extinct animals.
New Mechanism for DNA Recombination and Repair
October 11, 2007 12:34 pm | News | CommentsA biochemistry research team has discovered that the RecA family of recombinases function as a new type of rotary motor proteins to repair DNA damages.
Transposons Could Lead to Safer Gene Deliveries
October 11, 2007 12:30 pm | News | CommentsA nonviral gene delivery systems using transposons, or "jumping genes," provides a safer alternative than viruses and more efficient delivery than plasmids.
Microarrays Get Ready to Step Outside the Laboratory
October 11, 2007 12:24 pm | by Alan Dove, PhD, Contributing Editor | Articles | CommentsAfter a decade of being restricted to the laboratory, biological microarrays are being sent into the field.
Tackling High Variability in Gene Expression Studies
October 11, 2007 12:15 pm | by Juan Pedro Steibel, Steven P. Suchyta, and Guilherme J. M. Rosa | Articles | CommentsHigh variability in gene expression studies often prevents differences from being noticed. To increase power and improve precision of such experiments, special attention should be given to each source of variation functioning in the system.
NMR is Ready, so Bring on the Macromolecules
October 11, 2007 12:06 pm | by Angelo DePalma, Phd, Contributing Editor | Articles | CommentsNuclear magnetic resonance now rivals X-ray crystallography for protein and RNA structure studies. NMR's capabilities enable the investigation of dynamic properties of molecules, particularly protein-small molecule interactions, that cannot be observed by other methods.
Europe Approves Child-Sized Anti-Flu Medicine
October 11, 2007 12:00 pm | News | CommentsThe European Commission has approved smaller child-sized Tamiflu (oseltamivir) capsules of 30mg and 45mg doses from Roche. The lower dose Tamiflu capsules were previously approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July.
Generx Now in Phase 3 for Heart Disease
October 11, 2007 11:56 am | News | CommentsCardium Therapeutics announced that positive findings from pooled by-patient analysis of the AGENT-3 and AGENT-4 Phase 2b/3 clinical trials will be published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
PCR Leaves its Teen Years, and Lingering Questions, Behind
October 11, 2007 11:53 am | by Bill Schu, Senior Editor | Articles | CommentsDiscovered almost two decades ago, PCR has retained its place as the top technique for cyclic amplification of DNA segments. Despite improved methodologies, it remains a confounding process for many researchers. Here are some key questions still surrounding PCR.
Big Plans for Small Molecules
October 11, 2007 11:47 am | by Bill Schu, Senior Editor | Articles | CommentsAs part of its Roadmap for Medical Research, NIH is embarking on a sweeping series of initiatives to equip academic researchers with the same toolset available to most pharmaceutical companies. The effort, called the Molecular Libraries Initiative, is likely to have a profound influence on our understanding of biological pathways.
