Genomics/Proteomics
Following Up on Genotoxicity
June 6, 2013 4:49 pm | by Scott Hickman, Marketing Manager, Toxicology; BioReliance Corp., Rockville, Md. | Articles | CommentsA positive genotoxicity result can throw the fate of a promising drug candidate—in which a firm has invested significant time and money—into doubt. The statistical improbability and challenges of bringing a drug to market become paramount.
A Target Rich Environment
May 9, 2013 11:45 am | by Cynthia Fox, Science Editor | Articles | CommentsRecent meetings have provided a showcase for many potential druggable tumor targets. The range of potential new drug targets has been expansive, especially if one counts the whole-exome sequencing work being performed for the Cancer Genome Atlas project.
Engineering a Cure
March 7, 2013 12:05 pm | by Cynthia Fox, Science Editor | Articles | CommentsWhile the latest antiviral treatments can drop HIV levels to near undetectable levels, these drugs are a life sentence. Stop taking them and the virus comes raging back. New techniques are offering patients something previously thought impossible: a drug-free cure.
Which PCR Is Right for Your Research?
February 7, 2013 4:47 pm | by George Karlin-Neumann, Director of Scientific Affairs, Bio-Rad’s Digital Biology Center, Pleasanton, CA; Rachel Scott, Marketing Manager, Gene Expression Division, Bio-Rad, Hercules, Calif. | Articles | CommentsQuantitative real-time PCR is one of the most widely used laboratory techniques in biotech, pharmaceutical, and academic research labs. However, digital PCR is beginning to stake its claim in the laboratory due to its increased sensitivity, precision, and reproducibility.
Starting Small
December 3, 2012 3:32 pm | by Chris Hebel, VP of Business Development, LC Sciences, Houston, Texas | Articles | CommentsWhile RNA-Seq has demonstrated advantages over conventional methods of small RNA analysis, researchers still need to overcome some of the unique challenges it presents such as the handling of tremendous amounts of data. Despite this, miRNA discovery continues to advance and with the advent of RNA-Seq, shows no signs of slowing.
Drugs Limiting Excess Mucus Could Save Lives
November 25, 2012 7:00 pm | by WUSTL | News | CommentsRespiratory conditions that restrict breathing such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are common killers worldwide. Now, researchers have described the molecular pathway responsible for excess mucus in airway cells and have used that information to design a series of new drugs that inhibit that pathway.
Western Blot Imager
October 16, 2012 5:49 pm | Product Releases | CommentsThe Thermo Scientific MYECL Imager from Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is an imaging instrument that delivers one-touch image capture and analysis of protein and nucleic acid gels and Western blots.
Managing Data in the Cloud Age
October 5, 2012 3:35 pm | by Catherine Shaffer, Contributing Editor | Articles | CommentsAs next-generation technology ratchets the price of sequencing lower and lower, users from academic labs to Big Pharma are finding themselves drowning in data. What used to be gigabytes worth of information has become terabytes or petabytes.
DNA Microarray Technology for Pharmacogenomics Research
August 9, 2012 3:53 pm | by Claude E. Gagna, PhD, Assistant Professor; New York Institute of Technologies; W. Clark Lambert, MD, PhD, Professor; New Jersey Medical School; Peter Lambert, Medical Student; St. Georges University School of Medicine | News | CommentsMicroarrays are a collection of DNA sequences that are immobilized onto a solid support. Microarrays—along with pharmacogenomics—are playing a significant role in the genomics and proteomics revolution. DNA and RNA are now viewed as dynamic molecules that can undergo structural changes.
Expanding Targets, Saving Time
June 13, 2012 4:58 pm | by Neil Canavan, Contributing Editor | Articles | CommentsAfter a quick nod to the laborious ways of the old, let us ring in the new innovations in multiplex assays with what is quite literally, a new ring.
PCR Thermal Cycler Enables Rapid Optimization
June 13, 2012 1:20 pm | by Charles Joseph, PCR Portfolio Product Manager; Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, Calif. | Articles | CommentsWhile quantitative PCR is used for applications such as expression profiling, traditional end-point PCR is most commonly used to amplify DNA and RNA for downstream applications.
Real-time PCR System Enables Small- and Large-Scale Experiments
June 13, 2012 12:14 pm | by Vanee Pho, Product Manager for Life Technologies; Kathleen Hayashibara, Senior Applications Specialist; Life Technologies Corp., Carlsbad, Calif. | Articles | CommentsThe growing demand for biomarker screening experiments has created a greater need for instruments that enable high-throughput capabilities coupled with high accuracy and low cost.
High Throughput Real-Time PCR for Large-Scale Gene Analysis
June 13, 2012 12:09 pm | by John R. Ogden, PhD, Director, Applications & Technical Services; Roche Diagnostics, Indianapolis, Ind. | Articles | CommentsLarge-scale, PCR-based gene analysis is only possible when signals are generated, captured, and analyzed accurately and reproducibly.
A Better Route for Diagnostics?
June 11, 2012 10:08 am | by Jeffrey M. Perkel, Contributing Editor | Articles | CommentsFrom the moment of its inception, the Human Genome Project was expected to yield substantial benefits in diagnostics. But the genome is only part of the story.
HaloPlex Spreads to Ion Torrent
June 6, 2012 11:28 am | News | CommentsAgilent Technologies Inc. has made the HaloPlex target enrichment system available on Ion Torrent’s Personal Genome Machine, a benchtop sequencing solution.
Surface Plasmon Resonance Kits
June 5, 2012 10:55 am | Product Releases | CommentsBio-Rad Laboratories Inc. announced the launch of two surface plasmon resonance kits for the ProteOn XPR36 protein interaction analysis system.
Protein Tag
May 22, 2012 11:51 am | Product Releases | CommentsSandia Biotech's split-Green Fluorescent Protein technology allows researchers to analyze proteins and peptides with greater accuracy and fewer steps than current methods.
Bioethics Experts Form Global "Collaboratory"
May 11, 2012 11:39 am | News | CommentsA team of bioethics experts has created ELSI 2.0, an international "collaboratory" to better respond to the global aspects of the ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) of modern genomics.
Bioinformatics Software
April 24, 2012 11:27 am | Product Releases | CommentsAgilent Technologies Inc. has released GeneSpring 12.0, allowing GeneSpring users to analyze next-generation sequencing data and conduct joint analysis at the pathway level across multiple “omics” platforms.
Peptide Synthesizer
April 19, 2012 11:41 am | Product Releases | CommentsProtein Technologies Inc. has introduced infrared heating on the Tribute peptide synthesizer. This technology produces rapid, precise heating like microwaves, with the high throughput and scalability of conventional heating methods.
Hype, Hope, Reality
April 12, 2012 4:09 pm | by Rita C. Peters, Editorial Director | Articles | CommentsA recent TV program examined the rapidly moving developments in genetics research and the impact on the public and patients.
Microarray-Synthesized Oligos for Targeted Sequencing
April 12, 2012 3:28 pm | by Chris Hebel, Vice President of Business Development; LC Sciences, Houston | Articles | CommentsThough next-generation DNA sequencing provides very high levels of coverage even on complex genomes, it is still advantageous to reduce the complexity of samples.
Automation of Next-Generation Sequencing Sample Preparation
April 12, 2012 3:20 pm | by Alicia Burt, Senior Product Manager; Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, Calif. | Articles | CommentsNext-generation sequencing (NGS) has revolutionized genomics, enabling entire genomes and exomes to be sequenced more efficiently than ever before.
qPCR Analysis
April 5, 2012 12:02 pm | Product Releases | CommentsIntegromics has launched its latest tool for qPCR analysis, RealTime StatMiner 4.3 on TIBCO Spotfire. This version allows users to upload and analyze data from a large range of qPCR vendors.
DNA Sequencing Lays Foundation for Personalized Cancer Treatment
April 3, 2012 9:20 am | News | CommentsScientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are using DNA sequencing to identify mutations at the root of a patient's tumor—considered key to personalizing cancer treatment—and to map the genetic evolution of disease and monitor response to treatment.
