Edinburgh, UK (Scicasts) – According to a report from the University of Edinburgh, Scientists at the Institute have built a clearer picture of how lengthy strands of DNA are concertinaed when our cells grow and divide, in a discovery could help explain how cell renewal can go wrong.

Copenhagen, Denmark (Scicasts) - While studying for her PhD in chemistry at the University of Copenhagen, Dr. Jeannette Bjerre demonstrated a novel concept involving a completely man-made chemical enzyme used as an antidote against natural toxins found in fruits and vegetables. The so-called chemzyme was able to decompose glycoside esculin, a toxin found in horse-chestnuts.

Dresden, Germany (Scicasts) - Transinsight, provider of semantic search technologies, releases the next version of its Enterprise Semantic Intelligence Knowledge Suite at the I-SEMANTICS Conference in Graz, Austria.

This is the fish, Macropteris maculatus, with antifreeze protein structure. Image by: Konrad Meister

Bochum, Germany (Scicasts) - Researchers at the Ruhr-University Bochum (RUB) uncovered the mystery behind why fish do not freeze in the Arctic Ocean. The so-called anti-freeze proteins are special frost protection proteins that are found in the blood of these fish, which work much more efficiently than any household antifreeze sold today.

Cambridge, MA (Scicasts) - Human pluripotent stem cells, which can become any other kind of body cell, hold great potential to treat a wide range of ailments, including Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injuries. However, scientists who work with such cells have had trouble growing large enough quantities to perform experiments — in particular, to be used in human studies. Furthermore, most materials now used to grow human stem cells include cells or proteins that come from mice embryos, which help stimulate stem-cell growth but would likely cause an immune reaction if injected into a human patient.

This shows cerebral arterial circulation showing the left brain hemisphere of a C57BL/6 mouse and the right hemisphere of BALB/c mouse. Note the difference typical for these strains in number of collaterals (red stars).

Chapel Hill, NC (Scicasts) – Researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) have uncovered the genetic architecture which controls the growth of the "back-up" blood vessels that can provide oxygen to starved tissues in the event of a heart attack or stroke – also known as collateral circulation.

Tokyo, Japan (Scicasts) - World Fusion, the Japanese informatics management firm, today announced the creation of a sequence analysis service center with a bioinformatics infrastructure based on CLC bio's enterprise platform for high-throughtput sequencing data analysis, coupled with World Fusion's own Life Science Knowledge Bank (LSKB) bio knowledge database system.

Houston, TX (Scicasts) - The most robust statistical examination to date of our species' genetic links to "mitochondrial Eve" -- the maternal ancestor of all living humans -- confirms that she lived about 200,000 years ago. The Rice University study was based on a side-by-side comparison of 10 human genetic models that each aim to determine when Eve lived using a very different set of assumptions about the way humans migrated, expanded and spread across Earth.

Blacksburg, VA (Scicasts) - A software package developed by a professor at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) and his colleagues to help researchers better understand the workings of biochemical networks now features an open source license, offering an ever wider range of benefits to its users.

Santa Clara, CA (Scicasts) - Agilent Technologies announced the latest version of its OpenLAB Electronic Lab Notebook (ELN), which offers scientists in analytical research and development an optimized workflow to document and share experiments and results.

Madison, WI (Scicasts) - The influenza virus, scientists well know, is a crafty, shape-shifting organism, constantly changing form to evade host immune systems and jump from one species, like birds, to another, mammals.

Cold Spring Harbor, NY (Scicasts) -  Chronic pain is a serious medical problem, afflicting approximately 20% of adults. Some individuals are more susceptible than others, and the basis for this remains largely unknown. In a report published online today in Genome Research (http://www.genome.org), researchers have identified a gene associated with susceptibility to chronic pain in humans, signalling a significant step toward better understanding and treating the condition.

San Francisco, CA (Scicasts) - Genedata, a provider of advanced software solutions for drug discovery and life science research, has announced Genedata Selector, a new solution for biotechnological strain development in fermentation-based applications. The latest addition to the Genedata portfolio, Genedata Selector is an integrated data management and analysis system specifically for industrial biotechnology R&D. It supports industrial biotechnology production of feed and food additives, fine chemicals, biofuels, and personal care, pharmaceutical, and agrochemical products.

St. Paul, MN (Scicasts) - A new study shows a gene variant may increase the severity of multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms. The research is published in the August 3, 2010, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Rochester, NY (Scicasts) - Digital archives of biomedical images could someday put critical information at doctors' fingertips within seconds, illustrating how computers can improve the way medicine is practiced. The current reality, however, isn't quite up to speed, with databases virtually overwhelmed by the explosion of medical imaging.

Buffalo, NY (Scicasts) - Apoptosis, programmed cell death, is essential to normal development, healthy immune system function, and cancer prevention. The process dramatically transforms cellular structures but the limitations of conventional microscopy methods have kept much about this structural reorganization a mystery.

France and USA (Scicasts) – According to a report from Virginia Tech, a team of students from the Institute and ENSIMAG, an engineering school in Grenoble, France, is using bioinformatics to implement federal guidance on synthetic genomics. The students' work will help gene synthesis companies and their customers better detect the possible use of manufactured DNA as harmful agents for bioterrorism.

Chapel Hill, NC (Scicasts) - Take a skin cell from a patient with Type 1 diabetes. Strip out everything that made it a skin cell, then reprogram it to grow into a colony of pancreatic beta cells. Implant these into your patient and voilà! She's producing her own insulin like a pro.

UC Davis biomedical engineer ProfESSOR Alexander Revzin has developed a 'lab on a chip' device for HIV testing. Revzin's microfluidic device uses antibodies to 'capture' white blood cells called T cells that are affected by HIV. In addition to physically binding these cells the test detects the types and levels of inflammatory proteins (cytokines) released by the cells. Revzin's team collaborated with UCLA electrical engineer Prof. Aydogan Ozcan to integrate an antibody microarray with a lensfree holographic imaging device that takes only seconds to count the number of captured cells and amount of secreted cytokine molecules. The test returns results six to twelve times faster than traditional approaches and tests six parameters simultaneously, based on a small blood sample. The Revzin team published the results of their experiments in the May 2010 issue of Analytical Chemistry. With further refinements, the test will have wide potential use for multi-parametric blood analysis performed at the point of care in the developing world and resource-poor areas. Its affordability will also make it an attractive option in wealthier areas. Revzin has filed for a patent and is looking for ways to bring his test into clinical use.

Davis, CA (Scicasts) - UC Davis biomedical engineer Prof. Alexander Revzin has developed a "lab on a chip" device for HIV testing. Revzin's microfluidic device uses antibodies to "capture" white blood cells called T cells that are affected by HIV, according to a report from the Institute. In addition to physically binding these cells the test detects the types and levels of inflammatory proteins (cytokines) released by the cells.

Princeton, NJ (Scicasts) – Seemingly redundant portions of the fruit fly genome may not be so redundant after all, according to a report from Princeton University. New findings from a Princeton-led team of researchers suggest that repeated instructional regions in the flies' DNA may contribute to normal development under less-than-ideal growth conditions by making sure that genes are turned on and off at the appropriate times. If similar regions are found in humans, they may hold important clues to understanding developmental disorders.