Public release date: 24-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Jia Liu liujia@genomics.cn BGI Shenzhen Research in the growing field of genomics which could lead to a new generation of personalised medical treatments will be boosted by an initiative that brings together scientific expertise from China and Edinburgh. A memorandum of understanding signed between the University of Edinburgh and BGI, the world's largest genomics organisation, will aim to build on both institutions' strengths in genomics. It will aim to enhance researchers' scientific understanding of the building blocks with which people and other living organisms are made. The partnership will lead to an expansion of genomics research in Edinburgh, including analysing hereditary information encoded in our DNA, which could help assess risks for particular diseases. It comes at a time of increasing interest in how better understanding of genes, through DNA sequencing facilities, will help to develop personalised medicines. Genomics also plays an important role in looking at how livestock can be bred with resistance to diseases to help produce food sustainably for a growing global population. The agreement between the University of Edinburgh and BGI will explore how research at three genomics facilities in Edinburgh GenePool Genomics Facility in … Continue reading →

OMAHA, Neb.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Transgenomic, Inc. (TBIO) today announced that National Government Services, the designated Medicare fiscal intermediary in Connecticut, has confirmed coverage for its proprietary Clopidogrel Genetic Absorption Activation Panel (C-GAAP, formerly PGxPREDICT:Clopidogrel). As a result of this coverage, the 48 million Americans currently covered by Medicare will have access to this genetic test. The C-GAAP is a clinically validated diagnostic test that identifies patients with genetic variations in CYP2C19, a gene whose effect is described in clopidogrels label, and ABCB1, a gene that is unique to Transgenomics panel and is covered by issued and pending patents owned by Transgenomic. The effectiveness of clopidogrel, the most widely prescribed antiplatelet drug used to reduce the risks of heart attack, stroke and death, is dependent on a patients ability to absorb the drug through their intestine and then activate the drug by enzymes produced in the liver. Two genes, ABCB1 and CYP2C19, encode proteins critical for this absorption and activation. Patients with dysfunctional CYP2C19 and ABCB1 genes treated with clopidogrel exhibit a 50% increase in major adverse cardiovascular event rates than do patients with normal CYP2C19 and ABCB1 genetic function. The seriousness of this problem prompted the FDA to add a black … Continue reading →

July 24, 2012 - Dr Craig Venter Genetic entrepreneur His team - and any other contenders - will be given 30 days to work out the full DNA code of 100 centenarians at a cost of no more than $1,000 per genome. The race will start in September 2013. Under the rules of the Archon Genomics X Prize, teams have until next May to register for the competition. Dr Rothberg's team from Life Technologies Corporation in California is the first to formally enter the race. Being able to sequence the full human genome at a cost of $1,000 or less is regarded as a milestone in science. It is seen as the threshold at which DNA sequencing technology becomes cheap enough to be used widely in medicine, helping in diagnosis and in matching drugs to a patient's genetic make-up. One hundred people aged 100 have donated their DNA for the project. Original post: Genetic entrepreneur to compete in Genomics X Prize … Continue reading →

GOLDEN, Colo., July 24, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vitro Diagnostics, Inc. (VODG), dba Vitro Biopharma, announced an expanded relationship with a key distributor of its stem cell-based products, privately-held Neuromics, Inc (www.neuromics.com). Vitro Biopharma officials recently met Neuromics principals at their corporate headquarters in Minneapolis, MN. Neuromics was formed in 2005 by Pete Shuster, a marketing and sales professional with extensive experience in the computer industry who is now focused on providing integral products to the life science industry. Neuromics competitive advantage is based on providing products that lower costs and raise the probability of successful outcomes and include bio-markers, growth factors, transfection reagents, apoptosis detection kits, primary cells and related media. They are designed to serve basic and drug discovery researchers focusing on finding root causes and therapies for neuro-degenerative, autoimmune, inflammatory response diseases and certain forms of cancer. Vitro Biopharma and Neuromics recently entered a distribution agreement whereby Vitro provides its stem cell-based products to Neuromics' customers. Stem cell research continues to grow, based on positive results from several studies showing potential clinical benefit of stem cell-based cellular therapy. There is a growing demand for adult stem cells known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Vitro Biopharma manufactures and … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (July 24, 2012) Researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center have found that a cancer gene linked to aggressive spread of the disease promotes breast cancer stem cells. The finding implies a new way to target the behavior of these lethal cells. The finding involves the cancer gene RhoC, which has previously been shown to promote metastasis of many types of cancer. RhoC levels increase as breast cancer progresses and high levels of RhoC are associated with worse patient survival. Cancer stem cells are the small number of cells within a tumor that are believed to fuel the tumor's growth and spread. Researchers believe traditional chemotherapy and radiation treatments often become ineffective because they do not kill the cancer stem cells, and that the key to future treatments is to develop drugs that target and kill these cells. This new study, which appears online in PLoS ONE, suggests a new way to get at the cancer stem cells. "Targeting the specific molecular cogs driving the cancer stem cell machinery responsible for the cancer spreading has potential for future treatments. Eliminating cancer stem cells may ultimately be necessary to cure certain cancers, but in the meantime, we may … Continue reading →

GOLDEN, Colo., July 24, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vitro Diagnostics, Inc. (VODG), dba Vitro Biopharma, announced an expanded relationship with a key distributor of its stem cell-based products, privately-held Neuromics, Inc (www.neuromics.com). Vitro Biopharma officials recently met Neuromics principals at their corporate headquarters in Minneapolis, MN. Neuromics was formed in 2005 by Pete Shuster, a marketing and sales professional with extensive experience in the computer industry who is now focused on providing integral products to the life science industry. Neuromics competitive advantage is based on providing products that lower costs and raise the probability of successful outcomes and include bio-markers, growth factors, transfection reagents, apoptosis detection kits, primary cells and related media. They are designed to serve basic and drug discovery researchers focusing on finding root causes and therapies for neuro-degenerative, autoimmune, inflammatory response diseases and certain forms of cancer. Vitro Biopharma and Neuromics recently entered a distribution agreement whereby Vitro provides its stem cell-based products to Neuromics' customers. Stem cell research continues to grow, based on positive results from several studies showing potential clinical benefit of stem cell-based cellular therapy. There is a growing demand for adult stem cells known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Vitro Biopharma manufactures and … Continue reading →