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Washington U. researchers discover plague's weakness
The scourge of the Middle Ages continues to plague Africa; terrorism another major fear; researchers disable Yersinia pestis by removing a clot-inhibiting protein
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Iomai wins $128 million HHS contract for patch-based flu vaccine
Innoculation method could be mailed to patients; adjuvant stimulants allow the company to stretch out the nation’s vaccine supply; company looks for distribution partners, but many already see MedImmune as the most promising candidate
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Massachusetts researchers add nanotransmitters to microfluidic arrays
Technique used to quickly identify pathogens such as anthrax; cuts down on the size of handheld and static detection devices; waveguide and nanoantennas focus light to a spot size smaller than half its wavelength
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Biophotonics market to emerge in 2011
Experts predict a $2 billion industry in a few years; intrinisc and extrinsic sensors try to prove themselves in the drug industry but with limited success; breakthroughs needed in microarrays before major homeland security applications will be possible
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Raman spectroscopy used to identify counterfeit drugs
Breakthrough approach can identify fakes while inside their packaging; researchers at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory adjust the collection point a few millimeters in front of the laser signal; tests on paracetamol and ibuprofen prove the concept
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Weather found to be a good predictor of epidemics
NASA climatologists provide Kenyan authorities a four month warning about a Rift Valley Fever outbreak; heat and moisture are strong indicators of a pathogen’s virulence; for countries unable to afford large-scale epidemiological surveys, weather provides a cheaper indicator
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Affymetrix licenses its microarray technology to Tessarae
Tessarae will use the arrays to improve its epidemic monitoring products; authorities believe test will help identify influenza mutations in their infancy; approach relies on multiplexed genotypic signatures rather than phenotypes to identify strains
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British Home Office imposes strict new pathogen controls
Private and university laboratories will now have to inventory their stocks of 100 named viruses and bacteria; government order reports of all employees with access to such stores
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E. coli able to detect arsenic
From foe to friend, mankind’s enemy lends a hand in the fight against arsenic poisoning in the third world; Edinburgh researchers rely on synthetic biology to develop this easy to use, field-portable test
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Microwave ovens shown to kill anthrax
Florida researchers prove a concept already known to housewives worldwide; four minutes with a wet sponge is sufficient to disable spores; technique unlikely to work on dry envelopes
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Lockheed wins $135 million CDC support contract
Company will provide operational and logistical services for various offices with COPTER; office provides strategic direction to CDC on all terrorism preparedness issues
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iJet releases study on business impact of avian flu pandemic
Using data drawn from its World Pandemic monitoring system, research firm lays out preparation strategies for business; free report available by contacting company
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"Home brew" polymerase tests lead to pseudo-epidemics
With commercial tests only now coming to the market, many ad-hoc methods suffer from unknown error rates and high numbers of false positives; whooping cough epidemic at Dartmouth provides an interesting case study; lack of best practices a major concern
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Somark's inkless RFID tattoos could keep troops safe
Yesterday’s attack in Iraq proves uniforms may not be the best way to distinguish friend from foe; technology intended for tracking cattle could prove a lifesaver for humans; passive RFID is perfectly harmless and does not require line of sight to be read
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ICx acquires bio-sensor firm GHC Technologies
Deal follows an earlier acquisition of Griffin Analytical Technologies; GHC an expert in pathogen detection for both infrastructure and city-wide surveillance; industry consolidation continues
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The long view
Huge Areas May Face Possibly Fatal Heat Waves if Warming Continues
A new assessment warns that if Earth’s average temperature reaches 2 degrees C over the preindustrial average, widespread areas may become too hot during extreme heat events for many people to survive without artificial cooling.