Mainstays of biomedical research, permanent lines of cloned cells are used to study the biology of health and disease and to test prospective medical therapies. Yet, all too often, these apparent pillars of bioscience and biotechnology crumble because they are crafted from faulty starting materials: misidentified or cross-contaminated cell lines. Writing in the June 2016 issue of PLOS Biology, scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) call for "community action" to assemble a "comprehensive toolkit for assuring the quality of cell lines," employed at the start of every study.
biotechnology
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Killing Gene Patents Could Revitalize Biotech
The U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling that naturally occurring genes can’t be patented looks, on the surface, like terrible news for biotech companies. Read More »
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Life Sciences Information Framework OpenBEL To Become A Linux Foundation Collaborative Project
New Project Will Accelerate Collaboration on OpenBEL, the Open Platform for Capturing, Integrating, Storing and Sharing Biological Knowledge in and Across Organizations Read More »
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Mylan Isn't Alone: 11 Drugmakers with Off-the-Charts Pricing Power
Mylan (MYL) is drawing fire for passing off massive price hikes for its EpiPen allergy treatment. But it’s far from being the drug company with the most pricing power. Gilead (GILD), Biogen (BIIB) and Amgen (AMGN), along with eight other drug giants in the Standard & Poor's 500, enjoyed off-the-charts pricing power on their products relative to costs — far beyond Mylan's, according to a USA TODAY analysis of data from S&P Global Market Intelligence...
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New Biotech Site Sparks Hope For Cancer Treatments
The latest victory in the Myriad Genetics case in Australia, allowing Myriad Genetics to patent isolated DNA, has sparked new debate over the development of new drugs to treat cancer... Read More »
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NIST Issues Call For Developing -- And Using -- Consensus Standards To Ensure The Quality Of Cell Lines
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Quora Response: Fueling Innovation and Entrepreneurship
On the Q&A platform Quora today, Chief Technology Officer Todd Park answered a question about President Obama’s efforts to fuel innovation and entrepreneurship. Read Todd's response below, or join the conversation on Quora. Read More »
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Read How 3D Printing Can Save Your Life
The three innovations relate to discoveries in tumor identification in MS patients, open-source prosthetics and jaw replacement surgery. With each 3D printing can deliver precise measurements to medical production facilities saving time critical to patient prognosis. 3D printing (or additive manufacturing) is the process by which digital 3D design data is used to build up a component in layers by depositing material...
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Roche, Medivation, Santen and Biomarin Will Discuss CDISC Implementation Challenges At The Next Silicon Valley BioTalks
Panel composed of CDISC experts from Roche, Medivation, Santen, Biomarin and Clinovo will discuss and share ideas around the topic: “CDISC for Medical Device Companies: Progress Made and Best Practices from Pharma/Biotech Implementation”. Read More »
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The Rise of 'Technology-Enabled' Clinical Research Companies
Eric Hodgins, senior vice president, research and development technology solutions at QuintilesIMS, told us there are a number of dynamics “significantly transforming the industry and driving an increase in technology-enabled clinical research.” Notably, there are two macro trends: the pace of innovation in scientific research and the explosion of technological advancements...
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The Risks And Perils Of Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding could revolutionize fundraising for early-stage biotech companies, but beware of the pitfalls. Read More »
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The Web Is in Danger, Copyright Reform Can Break the Internet
Basic copyright laws and enforcements have been in effect for hundreds of years.
Let’s go back in the history: First Industrial Revolution was based on water and steam power to mechanize production. The second was all about electricity which helped create mass production. The third, connected electronics and information technology to automate production. Now we live in “Fourth Industrial Revolution” which we also call the digital revolution...
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To Model the Simplest Microbe in the World, You Need 128 Computers
Mycoplasma genitalium has one of the smallest genomes of any free-living organism in the world, clocking in at a mere 525 genes. That's a fraction of the size of even another bacterium like E. coli, which has 4,288 genes. M. genitalium's diminutive genome made it the first target for Stanford and J. Craig Venter Institute researchers who wanted to simulate an organism in software. Read More »
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Transparency International Reports on Massive Corruption in the Pharmaceutical Sector - Media Hardly Notices
In 2006, TI published a report on health care corruption, which asserted that corruption is widespread throughout the world, serious, and causes severe harm to patients and society. "Corruption might mean the difference between life and death for those in need of urgent care. It is invariably the poor in society who are affected most by corruption because they often cannot afford bribes or private health care. But corruption in the richest parts of the world also has its costs"...
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US Supreme Court to decide if companies can patent Human Genes
The US supreme court will hear oral arguments next week to decide whether companies can patent human genes, in a landmark case which could alter the course of US medical research and the battle against diseases such as breast and ovarian cancer. Read More »
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Using Scientific Publications Strategy to Ensure a Pharmaceutical Company's Credibility and a Product's Viability
Scientific publications remain the principal way that biopharmaceutical organizations relay critical clinical trial data to key external stakeholders such as physicians and payers. Data from different phases of drug development are the earliest ways these stakeholders learn about new products and the information serves as the building blocks for how a new product will be positioned in the marketplace...
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