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Lifebit, Medley Genomics Partner to Deliver Solution Supporting Diagnostic and Therapeutic Discoveries – HPCwire

November 14th, 2019 4:47 pm

LONDON, Nov. 14, 2019 Lifebit Biotech, a leading innovator in bioinformatics and cognitive software solutions, and Medley Genomics, a company focused on using advanced data analytics to support better diagnosis and treatment of complex diseases, announced today their partnership agreement. The Lifebit-Medley partnership aims at removing the barriers impeding progress in precision medicine where advanced biomedical analysis tools, like HotNet2, must be deployed over distributed and complex data to arrive at breakthrough insights.

Lifebit CEO, Dr Maria Chatzou Dunford, said, We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Medley Genomics, which allows us to bring advanced tools to the biomedical research community, advancing knowledge by powering the investigation of new diagnostic and therapeutic opportunities. Any company or researcher can now discover disease driver genes and novel pathways by utilising the high performance HotNet2 at enterprise scale and over distributed cohorts of patient data without needing to move the data.

Developed by Medley co-founder Dr Ben Raphael, HotNet2 assesses the complex heterogeneous genomic landscape across patient cohorts, including the long tail of disease relevant genes, by building significantly mutated gene subnetworks based on mutational frequencies and known interaction networks. Because HotNet2 comes with many dependencies, installation was complex without Lifebit CloudOS. To increase the power of analysis, experimental setups need to include as many samples as possible. Unless users have endless resources to spend on sequencing and data generation, they would need to combine disconnected data from various public and private sources, presenting a major obstacle to progress.

With Lifebit CloudOS, HotNet2 now runs over distributed data using federated capabilities, providing immediate access to infinite compute resources, said Dr Patrice Milos, Medley Genomics CEO. Increasingly our customers are applying HotNet2 to define subgroups within their patient disease cohorts and to reveal novel biological pathways. Our partnership with Lifebit enables us to reach countless more researchers across our shared communities helping them to simplify their work processes and ultimately bring important discoveries to patients faster.

By deploying HotNet2 with Lifebit CloudOS, analyses are seamlessly executed and distributed data is united through federated analysis data is never transferred and security is assured. This is critical as analyses can run at sample-level within the users cohort or across different patient cohorts, without compromising the data by moving them outside their secure environment. Detailed reports can be generated at scale, including visualizations for each run, and instantly shared for true collaboration across teams. The HotNet2 solution is available to anyone via the Lifebit CloudOS Marketplace.

About Lifebit

Leading life sciences organisations are accelerating their research and discoveries with Lifebit. Lifebit CloudOS is the federated, integrated solution for fully FAIR omics and biomedical analysis, allowing anyone to streamline and scale analyses faster, cheaper, and securely in their own data environments. Lifebit AI-Engine has deep-learned the biology behind drug response and is helping pharmaceutical companies repurpose drugs, validate targets and optimise vaccines by reasoning about omics data like humans would. Headquartered in London, UK, Lifebits ecosystem of employees, partners, and customers spans 15 countries. Visitlifebit.aiLifebit press contact:[emailprotected]

About Medley Genomics

Medley Genomics Inc., based in Providence, Rhode Island, US, provides cutting edge algorithms and software to deliver on the promise of individualization of therapy. The companys approaches provide deep insight into the heterogeneity of disease as well as defining unique disease mechanisms across disease cohorts. Applied first in oncology, these insights are necessary for optimizing targeted and combination therapies, personalized cancer vaccines and immunotherapies to effectively treat the total disease burden and offer hope of lasting cures for patients. Visit Medleygenomics.com Medley press contact:[emailprotected]

Source: Medley Genomics

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NEC and VAXIMM Announce Collaboration to Advance Personalized Neoantigen Cancer Vaccines – Business Wire

November 14th, 2019 4:47 pm

TOKYO & BASEL, Switzerland & MANNHEIM, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NEC Corporation (NEC; TOKYO: 6701), a leader in IT and network technologies, and VAXIMM AG, a Swiss/German biotech company focused on developing oral T-cell immunotherapies, today announced that the companies have signed a strategic clinical trial collaboration agreement and an equity investment agreement to develop novel personalized neoantigen cancer vaccines.

Under the terms of the collaboration agreement, which is non-exclusive to both parties, NEC will provide funding for a Phase I clinical trial. NEC and VAXIMM will co-develop personalized cancer vaccines using NECs cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) technology, which is utilized in its Neoantigen Prediction System, and VAXIMMs proprietary T-cell immunotherapy technology. The vaccines are planned to be evaluated in a Phase I clinical trial in various solid tumors. VAXIMM will be responsible for conducting the clinical trial, which is expected to be initiated in 2020.

NEC has the option for development and commercialization rights to the program worldwide, except for China and other Asian territories outside of Japan.

Osamu Fujikawa, Senior Vice President, NEC Corporation, said: Cancer is consistently one of the most serious healthcare challenges, with millions of new cases diagnosed worldwide annually. NECs core technology is well positioned for the development of personalized medicine, and we are strongly committed to delivering effective treatments for cancer patients. We are delighted to be working with VAXIMM in order to develop an optimal immunotherapy for each individual patient.

Heinz Lubenau, PhD, Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of VAXIMM, said: We are excited to enter this alliance with NEC and to have their strong support of VAXIMM. NECs novel AI technology will enable not only the identification but also the prioritization of neoantigens from each patient, facilitating the optimal potential treatment for each individual. Once the list of neoantigens is available, we will be able to apply our technology to quickly produce a personalized vaccine. Individualized therapy is at the cutting edge of cancer treatment today, and, with this collaboration, we are able to further contribute to this approach.

Notes:

About NECs AI Drug Development BusinessFor more information, please visit https://www.nec.com/en/global/solutions/ai-drug/

About NEC's Neoantigen Prediction SystemNECs neoantigen prediction utilizes its proprietary AI which is combined with NEC OncoImmunity ASs bioinformatics pipelines making it the leading neoantigen prediction system in the field. NEC comprehensively evaluates candidate neoantigens, which allows it to effectively prioritize numerous candidate neoantigens identified in a single patient.

Press release:NEC acquires Norwegian bioinformatics company, OncoImmunity AShttps://www.nec.com/en/press/201907/global_20190729_01.html

About NEC CorporationFor more information, visit NEC at http://www.nec.com.

About VAXIMMFor more information, please see http://www.vaximm.com.

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Trish Greenhalgh: Towards an institute for patient-led research – The BMJ – The BMJ

November 14th, 2019 4:47 pm

More powerful than the march of mighty armies is an idea whose time has come

Victor Hugo

The intellectual legacy of Rosamund Snow

Rosamund Snow was a social scientist with type 1 diabetes; she was an academic at the University of Oxford and a Patient Editor for The BMJ. She led the field in questioning conventional approaches to patient and public involvement in research and in mainstreaming a patient-led way of doing research.

Rosamunds PhD was entitled The role of patient expertise inside and outside the health system. She addressed, from the patients perspective and using critical social science methodology, what it was like to attend a diabetes clinic. [1] This work led to a widely-cited academic paper What happens when patients know more than their doctor? which addressed knowledge imbalances between educated patients and non-specialist GPs. [2] She was critical of partnership approaches to research priority-setting, which she viewed as both tokenistic and paternalistic (she claimed that patients had been accused, for example, of proposing the wrong kind of research questions). [3] At The BMJ, she led a radical re-engineering of processes for including the patient voice in the journal. She co-authored (with me) another highly-cited paper addressing the question of whether evidence-based medicine is biased against the patient. [4]

Tragically, Rosamund died on 2nd February 2017. Her parents made a significant financial donation to help create an institute in her memory; this funding is being used to pump-prime the initiative with some doctoral fellowships. The applications are still open until January 2020. [5]

Patient involvement in researcha brief history

There is a well-described mismatch between the research that is done on a particular condition and the research that patients themselves would like to see done. [4,6] Formal research priority-setting partnerships aim to reduce this mismatch by involving patients in the selection of topics for research. [7, 8] The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has strongly supported patient and public involvement (PPI) in research, produced national benchmarks for PPI,funded INVOLVE (www.invo.org.uk) which promotes patient involvement in all aspects of biomedical research, and written up some exemplar case studies.[9, 10, 11] Co-design and co-delivery of research with patients and communities using partnership models is increasingly popular. [12,13]

While these and similar approacheshave merits, all are designed and run by researchers (with greater or lesser efforts to achieve democratic governance); they are not led by patients. [14] Sarah White distinguishes nominal involvement of patients and the public (undertaken to confer legitimacy on a project), instrumental involvement (to improve its delivery and/or efficiency), representative involvement (to avoid creating dependency) and transformative involvement (to enable citizens to influence their own destiny). [15] Arguably, most of what is called patient involvement in medical research is nominal or instrumental in nature.

Transformative involvement of patients: a question of power

Social scientists have highlighted the persistence of power imbalances when well-meaning clinicians and scientists seek to involve patients in research. [16] In a paper called Beware Zombies and Unicorns, Mary Madden and Ewen Speed cautioned against aligning with an uncritical (instrumental) agenda for PPI and called for models of patient-led research that address fundamental questions about who holds the power and sets the agenda in research. [17] Helga Nowotny, past President of the European Research Council, has highlighted the need to democratise expertise when undertaking science with citizens (everyone is an expertin different aspects of the problem). [18] Such partnerships, run democratically and with careful attention to the processes of governance and power-sharing, would align well with Simon Locks call for a Peoples Research Council. [19]

A different kind of knowledge

Researchers in all fields become patients (and vice versa). Patient-led research may therefore include conventional forms of objective knowledge such as randomised controlled trials or bench science in the researchers own illness. More uniquely, patients bring experiential knowledgethe subjective, lived-body knowledge of what it is like to live with a particular illness or condition.

Experiential knowledge can be systematically explored through phenomenology (the study of what we can discern through our consciousness and senses [20]) and auto-ethnography (the study of ones own experience in an unfamiliar world [21]). Experiential knowledge is complementary to knowledge generated in the laboratory or the clinical trial, potentially producing multiple realities as accounts of the patient experience clash with textbook descriptions of disease or the unsurfaced assumptions of clinicians and researchers. [22]

Another kind of knowledge that is unique to the patient experience (and ripe for research) is the collective knowledge generated by online communities. The growth of the social web has enabled the emergence of large (and increasingly research-aware) communities of individuals with a particular disease. Some of these communities share ideas for research and self-organise to undertake self-experimentation, self-surveillance and even analysis of their own genomic data. [23, 24]

Governing patient-led research: scientific rigour and ethics

If patient groups are to undertake and/or commission research, academic input (to match patients priorities and questions with appropriate theories and methodologies, and to support analysis and writing up) and capacity-building (training patients in research methods and techniques) are surely essential to ensure that patient-led research is scientifically defensible (and hence has credibility with clinicians and policymakers). [25,26]

The question of what counts as scientific rigour may itself be contested if the term is defined narrowly using the traditional scientific criteria of objectivity and distance. Martha Nussbaum, for example, has vigorously challenged the (arguably, flawed and gendered) view of science as necessarily dispassionate, uninvolved and emotionless; she considers emotion to be a dimension of scholarship without which science is impoverished and uncreative. [27]

Patient-led research raises both similar and different ethical challenges to conventional research. A comparison of patient-led research with standard research, for example, revealed six areas that are of potential relevance to ethical oversight: institutionalization, state recognition and support, incentive structures, openness, bottom-up approach, and self-experimentation. [23]

The productive role of conflict

In the best research programmes, the (productive) conflicts generated when patients experiential knowledge meets conventional research paradigms not only informs the wider research agenda, but transforms conventional researchers into more creative scientists who prioritise different questions and study them in imaginative and flexible ways. Vololona Rabeharisoa distinguishes between conventional researchers in the lab and patient groups, which she calls researchers in the wild. [22] Citing her own empirical work on the research interactions in rare diseases, she comments:

We witnessed the trajectory of scientists who had started on the bench as biologists, then, as they exchanged with patient organizations, oriented themselves towards the clinic, and then returned to the bench with new research questions stemming from their observations, enriched by patients observations.

Notwithstanding the potential for such creative conflict, a significant challenge for patient-led research is that it is often (understandably) underpinned by cognitive passionsthat is, deeply-held, emotionally-charged perspectives on a condition. While such passions give energy and focus to a patient-led research agenda, they may mean that patients find it difficult to approach research into their own condition with the equipoise expected in science. However, while one high-profile patient-scientist conflict seemed to generate negative tension (chronic fatigue syndrome [28]); there are many counter-examples of conflicts that were highly productive, including in rare diseases,HIV/AIDS, mental health,and breast cancer. [22,29,30,31]

In short, there are many questionsboth scientific (in the broad sense) and philosophicalthat could be taken forward by an institute for patient-led research.

Whilst substantial additional funds will need to be raised to create a full-blown institute, a preliminary vision for such an institute is set out in Box 1.

Such an institute would:

Trish Greenhalgh is professor of primary care health sciences at the University of Oxford.

Twitter: @trishgreenhalgh

References:

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With the help of Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, U of T researchers develop data tools to accelerate science – News@UofT

November 14th, 2019 4:47 pm

Which genetic changes predispose to disease? How do characters in a novel relate to each other? Which wine and cheese go well together?

Turns out, theres an app for that and its about to become far more versatile as University of Toronto researchers work to release it to a wider community with the support of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.

CalledCytoscape, the software in question is already an essential tool for viewing networks in biology, including gene networks that hold clues about how different genes co-operate to sustain health and how these networks change in disease. But like most research software, its currently a desktop application that has to be installed and updated, and doesnt work on phones or tablets.

Today, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative announced it is providingU of TsGary BaderandHannesRst, both researchers at the Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, with US$150,000 each to create a cloud-based Cytoscape and Open MS.Co-founded by Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg and his spouse, Priscilla Chan, the initiative seeks to harness technology to accelerate progress in science.

The future of data analytics should be that it is easier to do, easier to share information and it should be easier for people to collaborate, says Bader, a professor of computational biology who is cross-appointed to the department of molecular genetics in the Faculty of Medicine and the department of computer science in the Faculty of Arts & Science, andholds the Ontario Research Chair in Biomarkers of Disease.

Just as web-based cloud computing has transformed how we listen to music and store data, Bader, whose team is developing the web-based Cytoscape Explorer, says that freedom fromhaving to keep track of files and e-mail them back and forth will boost creativity and speed up science.

Because your document lives on the cloud, the latest version is already there, and you can access it anytime, anywhere. It makes it easier to see what everyone else is doing and youre exposed to more ideas that changes the way you do things in a positive way.

Initially designed for genomics researchers, Cytoscape incorporates the basic principles of network theory and can be easily adapted for other applications. Besides biology, it has been used in business, social studies and marketing, as well as mapping how characters in an epic science fiction novel relate to each other.

We are building the foundation for other people to do research,saysHannesRst,an assistant professor of computational biology at the Donnelly Centre(photo by Jovana Drinjakovic)

Bader even adapted the softwareto find optimal wine and cheese combinations for a dinner party.

Research analytics have been slow to move to the cloud because it is difficult to obtain funding purely for software development unless it promises to reveal new insights. Yet cloud analytics are desperately needed to support increasingly collaborative research often involving teams scattered around the world.

We are building the foundation for other people to do research, says Rst, an assistant professor of computational biology who is also cross-appointed to the departments of molecular genetics and computerscience, and whose team is developingOpenMS, a free tool for biomarker analysis.

With more than one million downloads since launching in 2001, Cytoscapes popularity is only likely to grow with the move to the cloud.

We really think that making this available on the web will allow users who never previously discovered the software, and never used it on the desktop, to easily access it, says Bader, who joined the Cytoscape team in the early 2000s and is leading the newly funded project with Dexter Pratt, a software engineer in the group of Trey Ideker, a professor at the University of California, San Diego, and a co-founder of Cytoscape.

If scientists knew what healthy looked like at the molecular level, they might be able to spot disease as it begins to develop and potentially halt it.

Molecular profiling of human tissue blood, for example produces vast amounts of complex data calling for sophisticated analysis tools such as OpenMS, a leading free software for the analysis of data produced by mass spectrometry, which identifies and counts molecules based on their unique mass-to-charge ratio.

Composed of a set of algorithms that can be rearranged into different workflows, Open MS can be tailored to individual user data. Butin its current form, it requires a certain level of coding knowledge, discouraging uptake among users without programming experience.

The cloud version will have no such obstacles.

We want to make OpenMS user-friendly, using a graphic user interface where users can click on buttons to start their analysis instead of typing commands on the command line, says Rst, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Mass Spectrometry-based Personalized Medicine.

Programming-savvy users will be able to inspect and modify the source code to their needs.

To set up OpenMS on the cloud, Rst will take advantage of so-called Docker containers, which are sets of code that enable standardized software packaging so that it runs the same way on any platform.

The software will be hosted on Niagara, a supercomputer cluster at U of T and part of ComputeCanada, the high-performance computing infrastructure established by the federal government.

The overarching goal of Rsts research is to identify early biomarkers of diabetes and cancer.

We want to take peoplesbody fluids and generate a metabolic profile that we can track over time how people change, he says.

His team recently acquired a state-of-the-art mass spectrometry instrument worth $1 million, with support from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and U of Ts Faculty of Medicine. The instrument, referred to among lab members as the space ship for its futuristic look, can detect trace amounts of biomolecules for more accurate profiling.

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Danbury Hospital Researchers On Track Developing Tool For More Precise Diagnosis Of Gynecologic Cancers – PR Web

November 14th, 2019 4:47 pm

The use of liquid biopsy and ctDNA is a promising tool designed to improve diagnostic, prognostic and predictive values in many types of tumors. We believe that ctDNA could be a powerful tool to help detect disease earlier and provide information and clarity when additional treatment is not needed.

DANBURY, Conn. (PRWEB) November 14, 2019

A promising new non-invasive diagnostic tool designed to detect womens cancers, even at the earliest stages of disease development or their recurrence, is attracting interest and attention.

Researchers at Danbury Hospitals Rudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research Institute (Ruggles Research Institute), now part of Nuvance Health, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have shown that an early detection tool for gynecological cancers, developed by the team, may also be used to determine whether chemotherapy and other invasive treatments are required for patients following an initial diagnosis. According to a just published study in the journal Cold Spring Harbor Molecular Case Studies, researchers believe that circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) biomarkers can provide an additional source of information that could help avoid both misdiagnoses and prevent overtreatment.

Ovarian cancer is among the most lethal cancers, with 70 percent of women experiencing a recurrence of the disease within 18 months. This poor outcome often follows a grueling treatment regimen which can include surgeries, multiple rounds of platinum-based chemotherapy, radiation, CT and PET scans, biopsies, blood draws and other tests and treatments that affect patients physical and emotional health, well-being and quality of life.

Often described as a silent killer, the majority of women are diagnosed at the later stages of the disease. Further, diagnosing ovarian cancer presents unique challenges for physicians as symptoms are often non-specific, such as abdominal bloating, indigestion, changes in appetite, and back pain. Researchers from the Ruggles Research Institute and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai believe that liquid biopsy, using personalized ctDNA biomarkers based on an individuals specific tumor genetic signature, would lead to greater diagnostic accuracy.

The case study focused on a patient who initially presented with an unexplained whole-body rash and multiple uninformative dermatologic examinations, biopsies and treatments which eventually led to a diagnosis of ovarian cancer and surgery. Within a day following her debulking surgery, the rash which the patient had endured over a three-month period resolved. The patient received chemotherapy and she was clinically diagnosed as cancer free. Surprisingly and unexpectedly, one year later the rash reappeared, prompting speculation of tumor recurrence and a concern to initiate aggressive secondary treatment. However, the gynecologic oncology research team sought to use cutting-edge molecular techniques to better examine if her cancer had truly recurred. Using genomics-based testing and bio-banked tumor and blood samples which had been stored from the patient throughout the course of her care, researchers developed exquisitely sensitive and patient-specific ctDNA biomarkers which could detect even traces of her cancer if they were present in her bloodstream. Using these markers, they could demonstrate that no traces of cancer were detectable despite the presence of the patients unexplained rash. No additional treatment or chemotherapy would be prescribed. Now, two years after the patients original surgery, and with additional negative ctDNA findings, the patient remains healthy with no evidence of disease recurrence.

According to Dr. John Martignetti, Director of the Laboratory for Translational Research at the Ruggles Biomedical Research Institute and an expert in human genetics and genomic sciences who led the research team, these results from a preliminary single-case study are encouraging.

The use of liquid biopsy and ctDNA is a promising tool designed to improve diagnostic, prognostic and predictive values in many types of tumors, he said, Based on these results, as well as our longitudinal precision medicine study which includes biobanking of tumor and blood samples from our patients, we believe that ctDNA could be a powerful tool for not only helping to detect disease earlier but just as importantly, to provide information and clarity on when additional treatment is not needed.

Catch up on the latest news at Danbury Hospital.

CONTACTAmy ForniManager, Public Relations203-739-7478Amy.Forni@nuvancehealth.org

Andrea RynnDirector, Public & Government Relations203-739-7919Andrea.Rynn@nuvancehealth.org

About John Martignetti, MD, PhDThe Rudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research Institutes Laboratory for Translational Medicine is headed by Dr. John Martignetti. He has assembled a research group here at the institute and with his clinical and research colleagues here and at the Mount Sinai Health System has established a state-of-the-art precision medicine program linking gynecologic/oncology patient clinical care and genomic information to improve treatment and surveillance.

About the Rudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research InstituteRudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research Institute at Western Connecticut Health Network, now part of Nuvance Health, aims at advancing the health of our community by performing innovative translational research with the goal of improving the current standard of patient care. The Rudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research Institute includes a team of renowned scientists known for their groundbreaking work and expertise in various research disciplines that include Cancer and Lyme disease. The research institute encourages scientific collaboration/partnerships with other research organizations in an effort to pioneer discovery and foster creative thinking. Research institute's leadership and management team are committed to promoting excellence in research by attracting highly qualified researchers, residents and physicians to the institution.

About Nuvance HealthNuvance Health is a family of award-winning nonprofit hospitals and healthcare professionals in the Hudson Valley and western Connecticut. Nuvance Health combines highly skilled physicians, state-of-the-art facilities and technology, and compassionate caregivers dedicated to providing quality care across a variety of clinical areas, including Cardiovascular, Neurosciences, Oncology, Orthopedics, and Primary Care.

Nuvance Health has a network of convenient hospital and outpatient locations Danbury Hospital, New Milford Hospital, Norwalk Hospital and Sharon Hospital in Connecticut, and Northern Dutchess Hospital, Putnam Hospital Center and Vassar Brothers Medical Center in New York plus multiple primary and specialty care physician practice locations, including The Heart Center, a leading provider of cardiology care, and two urgent care offices. Non-acute care is offered through various affiliates, including the Thompson House for rehabilitation and skilled nursing services, and the Home Care organizations. For more information about Nuvance Health, visit our website.

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Washington State’s Veterinary Association Announces Annual Award Winners – KHQ Right Now

November 13th, 2019 7:47 pm

SNOQUALMIE, Wash., Nov. 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --The Washington State Veterinary Medical Association (WSVMA) held the Pacific Northwest Veterinary Conference in Tacoma, Wash., Sept. 27 Sept. 29. Veterinarians, veterinary staff, and citizens were honored at WSVMA's award ceremonies on Friday, Sept. 27.

Dr. Christine Wilford, veterinarian at Island Cats Veterinary Hospital in Mercer Island, Wash., received the 2019 Veterinarian of the Year Award. The award is presented in recognition of an outstanding career in veterinary medicine and contributions made to their practice, stakeholders, and other service directly benefiting their community. Dr. Wilford is a consummate, caring, and dedicated professional who created the national model to address the free-roaming cat reproduction and resulting kitten mortality through her founding of the Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project, based in Lynnwood, Wash. She also served the Western Washington veterinary community through service in the Puget Sound Veterinary Medical Association as president and chair of their long-time, high-quality continuing education program.

Dr. Bryan K. Slinker, interim Provost of Washington State University (WSU) and former Dean of WSU's College of Veterinary Medicine, received the 2019 Distinguished Achievement award. The award was presented to recognize Dr. Slinker's dedication and outstanding contributions to the veterinary profession and Washington veterinarians through multiple accomplishments, including the work of the Paul G. Allen School to eliminate rabies by 2030, growing the College through new departments and capital projects, enhancing training for veterinary students by developing partnerships with humane societies, and establishing a One Health partnership with Univ. of Washington to provide side-by-side healthcare for people with pets who are experiencing homelessness.

The Clinical Simulation Center Team at Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine was awarded the 2019 Faculty Member of the Year Award. The Center is led by Dr. Julie Cary and team members Dr. Robert Keegan and Lethea Russell, LVT. The Clinical Simulation Center includes experiential, simulation training in clinical communication, basic surgical skills, anesthesia and critical care activities, and ultrasound and endoscopy diagnostic skills.

Jess Hanson, licensed veterinary technician at Olympia Veterinary Specialists The Cancer Center, received the 2019 Distinguished Veterinary Staff Award. Mr. Hanson is recognized for his outstanding animal handling skills, exceptional technical skills, compassionate and educational interactions with animal families and staff, and his unparalleled high level of staff leadership.

Veterinarians, technicians and staff from the organization Feral Cats Spay/Neuter Project (FCS/NP), Lynnwood, Wash., were presented the 2019 WSVMA Humane Animal Welfare Award in recognition of their exemplary service to the organization and the community. FCS/NPwas the first free standing clinic that is dedicated to providing free spay/neuter surgery for free-roaming cats in a safe, high quality, humane environment.

Jay Jones, long-tenured professional at Hill's Pet Nutrition in Kent, Wash., received the 2019 Allied Industry Partner Award in recognition of his quiet, yet dedicated and faithful service to Washington veterinarians and their patients.

The WSVMA is a statewide, not-for-profit, professional organization for the benefit of veterinary medicine. The WSVMA has over 1,800 members, representing veterinarians, veterinary students and a broad spectrum of veterinary practice. The Association's mission is to "advance the cause of veterinary medicine to better the lives of those touched by it." Visit the WSVMA Web site, http://www.wsvma.org, to learn more about the association, veterinary medicine, and animal care.

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Can Dogs Eat Spaghetti Like in ‘Lady and the Tramp’? We Asked a Vet – Decider

November 13th, 2019 7:47 pm

Since the launch of Disney+ on Tuesday, there have been a lot of questions swirling around the internet about how to use the app, how to get your Verizon free trial, and what the heck MacClunkey means. But so far, I havent seen anyone asking the most pressing question of all: Can I feed my dog spaghetti to recreate the famous spaghetti dinner scene in The Lady and the Tramp?

Dont worry Even though you didnt ask, we here at Decider are ever vigilant, so we called up a vet to get the definitive answer. Karyn Bischoff, 50, is a licensed veterinarian and an associate professor at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, where she is also the diagnostic toxicologist at Cornell Animal Health Diagnostic Center. Basically, that means people from all over the world go to her to figure out if whatever food-substance their pet got into is going to be dangerous for them. The only person who gets weirder questions than me, I think, is probably the parasitologist, said Bischoff.

I was surprised to learn that Bischoff has never before been asked if its safe for pet-owners to feed their dog a candlelit spaghetti-and-meatball dinner, as Academy Award-winning actor F. Murray Abraham did in the 2019 live-action remake of The Lady and the Tramp, which is now streaming on Disney+. Bischoff, who is clearly an excellent vet, generously offered to test some safe spaghetti on her own doggo, a five-year-old black rescue dog named Simon Puppychan. I eagerly accepted the offer and asked Bischoff to snap some pictures to document her findings.

So if you want to know how to safely recreate The Lady and the Tramp spaghetti scene on your own dog, heres the best way to do that, in Bischoffs expert opinion.

In The Lady and the Tramp, the Italian restaurant owner Tony (Abraham) and his waiter (Arturo Castro) bring our fuzzy heroes a heaping plate of the spaghetti special. Bischoff advises pet owners to stick to small portions. I only give him about a half a cup of spaghetti. Hes got a regular diet, I dont want him to get overweight, and hes not used to eating people food, so I dont want him to upset his stomach. So I gave him a puppy-sized portion.

Its impossible to know what exactly is in the sauce of Tonys specialit appears to be standard marinarabut heres where Bischoff warns pet owners to proceed with caution. The biggest concern, Bischoff stressed, is to avoid onions and garlic.

[Onions and garlic] damage blood cells in dogs. Very small amounts are alright there was probably a little bit of garlic in the tomato sauce he got, but not very much so I would stay away from the scampi sauces and pesto sauces. Stick with a tomato-vegetable sauce that doesnt have very much onions or garlicor preferably no onions or garlic in it. The other thing I would avoid would be the hot sauces, the Arrabbiata sauces, and anything too much capsaicin in themred pepper and things like that. Most animals dont like spicy food at all, and too much spicy food in someones whos not used to it can cause inflammation. I just used a little bit of canned marinara. A little bit of parmesan cheese on top is OK.

Of course, Tony decides to go heavy on the meatballs for his furry friends, butBischoff decided to skip the meatballs, and suggests meat be used sparingly. I would use moderation with any kind of meatballs or sausage or anything that might be really fatty because dogs who are on a regular diet of dog food, she said. Theyre not going to be used to the high amount of fat in people food. And be cautious about using meatballs that have a lot of garlic, just like the sauce.

What about the complimentary Italian breadsticks that come with Lady and Tramps meal? Again, be cautious with garlic bread, but just a little bit of breadsticksif its not really greasy or really spicyshouldnt be a problem.

Lady and Tramp dig into their piping hot meal right away, accompanied by an accordion and mandolin serenade. But Biscoff says you should wait to serve your guests at home. Make it cold for them, said Bischoff. They dont need really hot food. I didnt want him to eat spaghetti that was way too hot, so he got to eat his spaghetti after I was done with mine.

Im not pointing fingers at any possibly insane Italian restaurant owners, but that sounds like a much more normal way to feed a dog spaghetti.

The dogs in the new Lady and the Tramp had CGI mouths to help them slurp spaghetti, but Bischoff said thats not biologically accurate. Adult dogs cant suck up noodles the way people do, they have to use other mechanical forces. Simon Puppychan used momentum and gravity: He would grab a noodle in his mouth and then jerk his head back to get the noodle airborne and catch the noodle in his open mouth. He seemed to like the sauce more than the noodles.

Though he didnt fall in love with any lady puppychans, Bischoff said Simon Puppychan thoroughly enjoyed his special meal with no negative side effects. He ate the whole thing, and he was fine this morning. He went up to doggy daycare and was his normal self today. He had no ill-effects from having his little cup of spaghetti last night.

There you have it, folks! Dogs can eat spaghetti, and it is very possible to safely recreate the Lady and the Tramp spaghetti scene, according to a licensed vet and diagnostic toxicologist. Just dont do it all the time, maybe skip the dessert, and definitely skip the wine.

Watch The Lady and the Tramp on Disney+

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CSU lands $1.2 million in NIH funding to advance work on a new tuberculosis vaccine – Source

November 13th, 2019 7:47 pm

At CSU, the research will include a multidisciplinary team of at least 20 researchers, students and staff, including Assistant Professors Michael Lyons and Brooke Anderson, Research Scientists Carolina Mehaffy and Andres Obregon Henao, Associate Professor Diane Ordway, and Corey Broeckling, director of the Proteomics and Metabolomics Facility.

Henao-Tamayo, whose TB research has been focused on vaccines, said the project aims to combine expertise from all over the world. It will include experiments to better understand previous research she conducted in collaboration with the late Ian Orme, a CSU University Distinguished Professor, to study environmental mycobacteria, which live in water and soil, and how these organisms may interfere immunologically with the protection that the BCG vaccine provides against TB.

Podell, who earned doctorates in veterinary medicine and pathology from CSU, said the initiative will be perhaps the most comprehensive pathology assessment of vaccine and TB immunity ever done.

Podell and Henao-Tamayo said that the award reflects not only the outstanding reputation of CSUs Mycobacteria Research labs, but also provides a boost of recognition for the program.

Brendan and I were both trained in these labs, and were now leading the charge on this new research, said Henao-Tamayo.

Additional partners include Oxford University; Public Health England; Statistical Center for HIV/AIDS Research and Prevention at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center; Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard; Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center; National Jewish Health in Denver, and La Jolla Institute for Immunology.

NIAID recently awarded contracts totaling $30 million for the first year to provide up to seven years of support for three Immune Mechanisms of Protection Against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (IMPAc-TB) Centers. The Centers aim to better explain the immune responses required for protection from TB-causing Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Seattle Childrens Hospital will lead research for the other two centers.

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How to take care of newborn puppies – Mother Nature Network

November 13th, 2019 7:47 pm

If you have newborn puppies either in your home or on the way, you're likely "nesting," getting ready for the tiny, squeaking balls of fur. Where will they sleep? How often will they eat? Will they need blankets? How will you know if they're healthy?

Yes, in an ideal world, spay and neuter programs would be everywhere, but sometimes puppies happen. Maybe you're fostering a pregnant dog or are taking care of orphaned puppies. In any case, the puppies are here, so this is how to care for your newborn canine babies.

Dogs are pregnant for about nine weeks, so that's how long puppies have to develop inside their mothers. When they're born, they still have a lot of work to do. In the sense of development, "a newborn puppy is not unlike a premature child," Dr. Margret Casal, associate professor of medical genetics at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine, explains to PetMD.

Puppies are born blind and mostly deaf and without any teeth. But even though they can't see or hear very well, they can make noise. They make mewling, little sounds.

Newborn puppies will open their eyes usually between 10-14 days old. Their eyes are a bluish-gray, hazy color and they can't see very well at first, reports Spruce Pets. A puppy's vision will gradually improve and his eyes will turn their true color between 8-10 weeks of age.

Newborn puppies eat every couple of hours. (Photo: Nooper/Shutterstock)

A mother dog's milk gives puppies everything they need for the first four weeks of their lives. Although newborn puppies can't walk, they scoot around on their bellies and instinctively find their mother's milk.

Puppies usually nurse every couple of hours and sleep the rest of the time. To make sure puppies are getting enough milk, check them every few hours to make sure they are warm and nursing.

If any puppies are crying or seem cold, VCA Hospitals recommends putting them on the mother's back teats because they have the most milk. Also check often to make sure they aren't being pushed away by other puppies.

You also can weigh newborn puppies every few days to make sure they are gaining weight. Use a kitchen scale when they are tiny. It depends on the breed, but most puppies should double their birth weight in the first week, says PetMD. They should gain 10% to 15% of birth weight daily, according to WebMD.

Keep puppies on their stomachs when feeding them from a bottle. (Photo: Olga Mazina/Shutterstock)

If something has happened to the mother, raising orphaned puppies can be very heart-warming, but also difficult to do. The puppies must be fed every couple of hours. If you've never done it before, work with your veterinarian or a rescue group that specializes in puppies for advice.

You'll feed newborn puppies milk replacement formula that is made just for puppies. Prepare the formula as directed on the package and use the guidelines suggesting how much to give the puppy. Generally, it's 1 cc of formula for every ounce of body weight, according to Best Friends Animal Society.

Don't feed cow's milk to puppies. It doesn't have the same nutrients as dog's milk, points out the AKC, and doesn't have enough calories, calcium or phosphorus for growing puppies.

Feed the puppy with a bottle or syringe, slowly offering milk while the puppy is on his stomach. Don't feed him on his back or he could get milk in his lungs. Be careful not to feed him quickly, which could cause choking. Burp the puppy at the end of each feeding by putting him on your shoulder and slowly rubbing his back until he releases air.

For step-by-step tips, visit Best Friends for newborn puppy feeding and care instructions.

Puppies sleep in a pile to keep warm. (Photo: Anna Hoychuk/Shutterstock)

It's very important that the puppies stay in a warm room. If they are with their mother, they will try to stay snuggled up with her and rely on her body heat and each other to stay warm. They can't regulate their own body temperature, so they depend on outside sources for warmth. Have you ever seeing a pile of puppies? They like to snuggle for the warmth and comfort.

When mom leaves to go outside or just get a break, it's important that they have another source for heat. You can either keep the room warm or put a heat lamp over the area where the puppies are being kept.

VCA suggests that the temperature be around 85 to 90 degrees F (29.5 to 32 degrees C) for the first few days. After that, it can be lowered to about 80 F (26.7 C) by the end of the first week or so to about 72 F (22.2 C) by the end of the fourth week.

A mother dog takes care of her puppies' bodily functions. (Photo: WilleeCole Photography/Shutterstock)

Newborn puppies need help to go to the bathroom. Their mother does this by licking them, which stimulates them to urinate and defecate. If the puppies are orphaned, you can help them by dipping a washcloth or cotton ball in warm water, then gently massaging their bottoms after feeding.

It's very important that you do this because puppies can't do this without help until they are about 3 or 4 weeks old.

You no doubt will be wondering when newborn puppies can go outside to the bathroom and play.

Puppies need a lot of upbeat interaction with other dogs especially during the key socialization period when they're between 9 and 14 weeks. But they are also susceptible to illnesses before they are fully vaccinated, which usually isn't until they are around 16 weeks old.

Your vet likely will say it's OK for your puppy to be outdoors in your own yard as long as you haven't had a lot of other dogs around. But you'll want to carry your puppy when going for walks or going in and out of the vet's office until he's had all his shots.

Mary Jo DiLonardo writes about everything from health to parenting and anything that helps explain why her dog does what he does.

How to take care of newborn puppies

Puppies are born blind and mostly deaf, so they rely on you to meet all of their needs. From feeding to warmth, here's how to care for a newborn puppy.

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Nanoform Wins Award for Drug Development and Delivery – AZoNano

November 13th, 2019 7:46 pm

Image Credit: phive/Shutterstock.com

Nanoform, a Finnish nanotechnology and drug particle engineering company, has won the prestigious Excellence in Pharma Award for Formulation at the 16th CPhI Pharma Awards which took place in Germany this November.

The prize sees world-renowned innovative companies competing against one another. This year Nanoforms ingenious medicine enabling nanotechnology, in the form of its CESS nanonization technology, won the highly contested award.

Who are Nanoform?

International pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are well aware of the work that Nanoform dedicates itself to. Nanoform partners with businesses with the aim to boost their molecules formulation performance as well as to reduce clinical attrition. Nanoform is committed to working with international companies to provide them with cutting-edge, innovative solutions for the development and delivery of drugs.

The technology that won it the esteemed prize at the CPhI Pharma Awards was its multi-patented nanonization process which was designed with the capability of substantially improving dissolution rates and bioavailability, having the impact of doubling the number of drug compounds reaching clinical trials. In addition, the innovation has been shown to add value to the drug delivery spaces of pulmonary, transdermal, ocular and blood-brain barrier.

For this innovative new process, Nanoform surpassed the efforts of other respected companies such as Cambrex, Lonza Capsugel, and Glatt Pharmaceutical Services, who had also entered in the same category.

The Innovation

The new CESS, short for Controlled Expansion of Supercritical Solutions, nanonization technology has multiple patents for its unique design. It creates designed-for-purpose, nano-sized active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) particles, using a process that can control the particles shape, increasing uniformity. The system also has the ability to produce nanoparticles as small as 10 nm.

The method works by controlling the solubility of an API in supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) through a bottom-up method of recrystallization. Previous alternatives had been limited, and the CESS system surpasses those due to its utilization of controlled mass transfer, pressure reduction and flow. Another benefit of the system is that it is green, its process is free from using excipients and organic solvents.

Through Nanoforms innovation, novel opportunities are opening up to the field of drug research and development.

The Significance of the CESS System

Nanomaterials have unique properties that differ from their bulk material counterparts. These different properties have made them of special interest to a number of scientific fields, which has boosted exploration into nanoparticles over recent years. It has been found that these unique properties have potential applications in the areas of nanomedicine, therapeutics, medical devices and more. They have been identified as vectors for medical imaging, biological diagnostics and therapeutics.

What has been achieved by Nanoform is that another avenue of potential use has been opened up for nanoparticles. Nanoform has developed a reliable system that allows the benefits of nanoparticles to be harnessed in drug research and development. The unique properties of nanoparticles will be able to be put to use in developing new therapeutic treatments, which could induce a significant shift in the pharmaceutical sector.

It is generally accepted that advancements in the use of nanoparticles in this area would significantly influence the advancement of human therapeutics. Now pharmaceutical companies have access to a system that allows them to tailor-make nanoparticles, the innovation of new therapies that previously would not have been possible could be on the horizon.

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NTT Research and Technical University of Munich (TUM) Enter Joint Research Agreement to Collaborate on Technologies to Affect the Future of Patient…

November 13th, 2019 7:46 pm

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NTT Research, Inc., a division of NTT (TYO:9432), today announced that its Medical and Health Informatics (MEI) Lab has entered a joint research agreement with the Technical University of Munich (TUM) to work on three-dimensionally transformable and implantable electrodes. Dr. Hitonobu Tomoike (M.D., Ph.D.), a renowned scientist and medical researcher, directs the MEI Lab, which will be collaborating with Dr. Bernhard Wolfrum, Professor of Neuroelectronics at TUM in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Munich School of BioEngineering (MSB). The scope of work for this multi-year project includes screening and optimizing functional materials, assembling 3D structures, and evaluating their biocompatibility.

Charged with discovering technologies that can revolutionize patient care, the NTT Research MEI Lab is focusing on the transformation and miniaturization of medical device components. This joint research will address the tendency of conventional electronics to work against and at a relative distance from, rather than with and alongside their targeted organ or tissue. The flexible micro- or nano-scale electrodes envisioned as an outcome of this project are expected to minimize the negative impact that rigid and planar electrode materials have on soft and curvilinear biological samples.

In order to acquire in vivo biological signals stably, with a high accuracy for a long period of time, a flexible electrode with high biocompatibility is required, said Dr. Tomoike. To achieve this, we will use nano and micro-scale conductive polymer thin films that are friendly to living bodies and consider the use of in vivo implant electrodes, as well as the control of structural changes of the functional electrodes in the body.

The two principal researchers bring considerable expertise to this project. Dr. Tomoike, former Director of the Sakakibara Heart Institute, Director Emeritus at the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center in Japan, and former Professor of Cardiology at Yamagata University, is known for his work in precision medicine involving bio-sensors and analytics. Dr. Wolfrums research focuses on neuro- and bioelectronics. He has developed electrochemical sensor arrays and interfaces to cellular networks and employed microfabrication techniques, advanced printing technologies, and microfluidic cell culture methods with the goal of establishing neuroelectronic hybrids and systems for on-chip neuroscience and bioelectronic medicine.

The Technical University of Munich has strengths in neuron growth control and electrophysiological measurement and has recently accumulated know-how and knowledge of printing technology for bioelectronics, said Dr. Tomoike, who is also a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology and of the American Heart Association. We are aiming for breakthroughs in fundamental material science and unprecedented technologies for diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical functions.

Along with pursuing ambitious research targets, this agreement also advances NTT Researchs goal of engaging with partners around the world. As part of this project, NTT Research MEI Lab will send two of its researchers to Munich. The MEI Lab also plans to open an office in Germany. The research will officially launch in Q1 2020; the first phase of the project may take as long as three years.

We are very pleased to have entered this long-term joint research agreement with the MEI Lab of NTT Research and believe our combined strengths will lead to promising advances in a critically important field of bioengineering, said Dr. Wolfrum, who conducted postdoctoral research in nanoscience at Delft University, has led a research group at the Peter Grnberg Institute in Jlich, lectured at Aachen University, and conducted research as a visiting associate professor at Tohoku University in Sendai.

Throughout this interdisciplinary research project, the two organizations are expected to leverage their respective strengths. The Technical University of Munich, which is a member of the TU9 alliance of nine leading German institutes of technology, will be involved through its Neuroelectronics Group (NEL), Munich School of BioEngineering, in the investigation, characterization, and micro/nanofabrication of materials. For its part, the MEI Lab will design experiments and research targets and conduct data analysis based on IoT and AI technologies. Each party will assume roles in evaluating the biocompatibility of fabricated devices.

One notable aspect of this project, according to Dr. Tomoike, is its focus on the physics of soft nanomaterials, the self-assembly of which allows not only for precise control of 3D structures but also reversible transformation of electrodes that interface and function with cells and tissues. Possible applications involve sensing and stimulation electrodes for the brain and heart, brain-machine interfaces, multi-array electrodes for neuronal analysis, and new approaches to vasodilation.

About NTT Research

NTT Research opened its Palo Alto offices in July 2019 as a new Silicon Valley startup to conduct basic research and advance technologies that promote positive change for humankind. Currently, three labs are housed at NTT Research: the Physics and Information Science (PHI) Lab, the Cryptography and Information Security (CIS) Lab, and the Medical and Health Informatics (MEI) Lab. The organization aims to upgrade reality in three areas: 1) quantum information, neuro-science and photonics; 2) cryptographic and information security; and 3) medical and health informatics. NTT Research is part of NTT, a global technology and business solutions provider with an annual R&D budget of $3.6 billion.

NTT and the NTT logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION and/or its affiliates. All other referenced product names are trademarks of their respective owners. 2019 NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION

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Micromotors move single cells using magnets and ultrasound – CMU The Tartan Online

November 13th, 2019 7:46 pm

A new type of micromotor has been developed. Directed by magnets and powered by ultrasound, these micromotors are capable of traveling across microscopic particles and cells in very crowded areas without causing any damage.

These microswimmers provide a new way to manipulate single particles with precise control and in three dimensions, without having to do special sample preparation, labeling, surface modification, said Joseph Wang, a professor of nanoengineering at University of California San Diego (USCD), in a UCSD press release.

Wang, Thomas Mallouk, a professor of chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania, and Wei Wang, professor of materials science and engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology, are credited as senior authors of a paper detailing the development of these micromotors. The study was published on Oct. 25 in Science Advances.

Researchers tested the technology by moving HeLa cells the oldest and most commonly used cell line for scientific research and silica particles in aqueous media with micromotors. They accomplished this task without damaging nearby particles and cells. In one test, the researchers were able to create letters by pushing particles with the micromotors. In another, they exerted control over the micromotors, making them climb up microscopic blocks and stairs. This test demonstrated that they were capable of navigating over three-dimensional objects.

The micromotors are essentially gold-coated hollow polymer structures that are shaped like a half capsule. Within the body of the micromotor is a tiny magnetic nickel nanoparticle, allowing them to be steered with magnets. The inside surface is treated so it can repel water, so when the micromotor is submerged in water, an air bubble is trapped inside the device. This trapped bubble is integral to the functioning of the micromotor, as it allows the micromotor to respond to ultrasound. Upon receiving ultrasound waves, the trapped bubble begins to oscillate, forming forces that give it an initial push to movement. By applying an external magnetic field, it can move continuously, while altering the direction of the field allows researchers to control the speed and trajectory of the micromotors.

We have a lot of control over the motion, unlike a chemically fueled micromotor that relies on random motion to reach its target, said Fernando Soto, a nanoengineering Ph.D. student studying at UC San Diego. Also, ultrasound and magnets are biocompatible, making this micromotor system attractive for use in biological applications.

The authors plan on making improvements to the micromotors in the coming years. For example, they want to make them more biocompatible using biodegradable polymers and a magnetic material that is less toxic, such as iron oxide. Thanks to this technology, the researchers have opened new possibilities for nanomedicine, tissue engineering, targeted drug delivery, regenerative medicine, and other applications in the field of biochemistry.

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Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Needs and Demand Analysis 2019 to 2025 – The Chicago Sentinel

November 13th, 2019 7:46 pm

The Healthcare Nanotechnology Market report delivers a comprehensive overview of the crucial elements of the market and elements such as drivers, current trends of the past and present times, supervisory scenario & technological growth. The report provides useful insights into a wide range of business aspects such as pillars, features, sales strategies, planning models, in order to be enable readers to gauge market scope more proficiently.

Healthcare Nanotechnology Report is based on exploratory techniques like qualitative and quantitative analysis to uncover and present data on the target market. Efficient sales strategies have been mentioned that would business and multiply customers in record time.

The major manufacturers covered in this report:

Amgen

Teva Pharmaceuticals

Abbott

UCB

Roche

Celgene

Sanofi

Merck & Co

Biogen

Stryker

Gilead Sciences

Pfizer

3M Company

Johnson & Johnson

Smith & Nephew

Leadiant Biosciences

Kyowa Hakko Kirin

Shire

Ipsen

Endo International

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https://www.marketinsightsreports.com/reports/01161054970/global-healthcare-nanotechnology-market-size-status-and-forecast-2019-2025/inquiry?source=MW&mode=82

Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Product Type:

Nanomedicine

Nano Medical Devices

Nano Diagnosis

Other

Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Applications:

Anticancer

CNS Product

Anti-infective

Other

Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Report has been studied and presents an actionable idea to key contributors working in it. The report integrates several drivers as well as factors that impede the growth of this market during the forecast to 2019-2025. An extensive qualitative analysis of factors responsible for driving the market growth and future opportunities has been provided in the market overview section.

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This report covers regional analysis including several regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa and Latin America. It focuses on the leading and the progressing countries from every region in detail. South East Asia, Japan, China, and India are also predictable to witness vigorous growth in their respective markets for Global Healthcare Nanotechnology Market in the near future, states the research report.

Important Features that are under Offering and Key Highlights of the Reports:

Detailed overview of Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Changing market dynamics of the industry In-depth market segmentation by Type, Application etc. Historical, current and projected market size in terms of volume and value Recent industry trends and developments Competitive landscape of Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Strategies of key players and product offerings Potential and niche segments/regions exhibiting promising growth

Browse Full Report at:

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A thorough study of the competitive landscape of the Global Healthcare Nanotechnology Market has been given, presenting insights into the company profiles, financial status, recent developments, mergers and acquisitions, and the SWOT analysis. This research report will give a clear idea to readers about the overall market scenario to further decide on this market project.

We also offer customization on reports based on specific client requirement:

1- Country level analysis for any 5 countries of your choice.

2- Competitive analysis of any 5 key market players.

3- 40 analyst hours to cover any other data points

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Triple Negative Breast Cancer Treatment Market Rapid Industrialization To Boost Growth By 2018 to 2026 – Zebvo

November 13th, 2019 7:46 pm

Ongoing advancements in cancer research continue to lead to the introduction of newer and better treatment options including drug therapies. The provision of newer drugs and treatments is expected to improve the diagnostic and treatment rate for triple-negative breast cancer. Some of the recent clinical efforts are being targeted at the molecular level characterization of triple-negative breast cancer across emerging therapeutic targets such as epigenetic proteins, PARP1, androgen receptors, receptor and non-receptor tyrosine kinases, and immune checkpoints. These initiatives are anticipated to boost revenue growth of the triple-negative breast cancer treatment market. In a new research study, Persistence Market Research estimates the globaltriple-negative breast cancer treatment marketrevenue to cross US$ 720 Mn by 2026 from an estimated valuation of just under US$ 505 Mn in 2018. This is indicative of a CAGR of 4.7% during the period 2018 to 2026.

Development of generics is another key opportunity area in the triple-negative breast cancer treatment market. With the rapidly expanding number of cancer cases across the world, there is a need for effective cancer management, including the provision of better and more efficient drugs. Developing economies are faced with challenges on several fronts including paucity of funds and lack of proper treatment options, calling for more innovative approaches to affordable healthcare. The availability of biosimilars and affordable generic anti-cancer drugs in developing regions is expected to significantly reduce the burden of cancer care. A projected cost reduction to the tune of more than 30% 40% and extended use of generic drugs is expected to reduce overall cancer treatment costs, thereby increasing the treatment rate for triple-negative breast cancer. This is further anticipated to create lucrative growth opportunities in the global triple-negative breast cancer treatment market.

Advances in Cancer Treatment and Introduction of Innovative Cancer Treatment Drugs to Boost Revenue Growth of the Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Treatment Market

Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in women, and over the years, pharmaceutical and life sciences companies have been conducting advanced research and development activities to devise newer treatment options and drugs to treat breast cancer. Several new drug formulations are currently in the pipeline in different stages of clinical development and this is expected to bode well for the triple-negative breast cancer treatment market. Innovation in oncology therapeutics has shifted focus towards an outcome based approach to cancer care, with an increasing emphasis on combination drugs and newer therapeutic modalities. This is further likely to put the global triple-negative breast cancer treatment market on a positive growth trajectory in the coming years.

Combination Therapy and Advancements in Nano Medicine Research Trending the Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Treatment Market

One of the biggest trends being observed in the global market for triple-negative breast cancer treatment is the shift towards combination therapy. Companies in the global triple-negative breast cancer treatment market are conducting clinical trials for combination therapies by collaborating with other players in the market. Combination therapies are the latest innovation in the field of oncology and the combination of therapeutic drugs with chemotherapy is said to be an effective protocol for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer.

Another huge trend in the triple-negative breast cancer treatment market is the emergence of nanotechnology as an efficient tool in the clinical management of critical diseases such as triple-negative breast cancer. It has been observed that the combination of gold nanoparticles and folic acid results in higher cell entry rate in both in-vitro and in-vivo models, indicative of the fact that folate receptors are effective targeted therapies for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer. Nanoparticles facilitate systematic and efficient delivery of drugs and agents to the site of the tumor. Advanced R&D in nanotechnology and nano medicine is one of the top trends likely to impact the global triple-negative breast cancer treatment market in the years to come.

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Paper Used in Creationist Teaching Retracted After 30 Years – The Scientist

November 13th, 2019 7:45 pm

A 1989 paper by Russian researcher Dmitrii Kuznetsov on the genetics of wild timber voles has been retracted, decades after a scientist alerted the journal to concerns, according to Retraction Watch. The paper, published in the International Journal of Neuroscience, has been touted by creationists as evidence of their beliefs, and Kuznetsov has repeatedly been accused of scientific misconduct, The Scientist reported in 2013.

In the paper, Kuznetsov reportedly identified an mRNA from one vole species that blocked protein synthesis in a related vole species. That same mRNA, however, did not block translation in the original vole species or another species that was more distantly related. The finding, Kuznetsov wrote in his report, supported the general creationist concept on the problems of the origin of boundless multitudes of different and harmonically functioning forms of life.

Five years after the paper was published, Dan Larhammar, a cell and molecular biologist at Uppsala University in Sweden, wrote to the journal editors discounting Kuznetsovs paper, saying his approach goes against established scientific experience and his claimed results are not qualitatively demonstrated, and that Kuznetsovs critique of a modern molecular-genetic concept of biological evolution has no scientific basis whatsoever. Larhammar learned last year that despite his criticism more than two decades earlier, Kuznetsovs paper was still available without a retraction label, he tells Retraction Watch, which was especially concerning given that repeated accusations of fraudallegedly making up citations and fabricating the sources of samplesled to Kuznetsovs ouster as editor-in-chief of two journals in 2013.

After a series of emails between Larhammar, now president of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and the International Journal of Neurosciences editor, the Kuznetsov paper now has a retraction stamp, which states: The above article has been retracted due to the unreliable nature of the experimental results presented.

Ashley Yeager is an associate editor at The Scientist. Email her at ayeager@the-scientist.com.

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Important New Joint Consensus Recommendation from the ACMG and ClinGen Provides Technical Standards for the Interpretation and Reporting of…

November 13th, 2019 7:45 pm

BETHESDA, Md., Nov. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --The American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) and the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen) have released an important new joint consensus recommendation that will guide the evaluation of constitutional copy number variants (CNVs), encourage consistency and transparency across clinical laboratories, and lead to improved quality of patient care.

The extensive and detailed recommendation, "Technical standards for the interpretation and reporting of constitutional copy number variants: a joint consensus recommendation of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) and the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen)," is the result of a joint collaborative working group of ACMG and ClinGen, working together since 2015, to update the existing ACMG clinical laboratory practice standards for evaluating CNVs. Copy number analysis is recommended as a first-tier approach for the evaluation of individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders, such as intellectual disability, developmental delay and autism spectrum disorder, as well as for individuals with multiple congenital anomalies and for fetuses with ultrasound abnormalities.

"It is our hope that having standards that are widely available, up to date, and flexible enough to incorporate lessons learned from the ever-evolving clinical genomics knowledge base will help to reduce discordance in clinical classifications and will improve clinical care," said Christa Lese Martin, PhD, FACMG, the paper's senior author.

The recommendation represents a significant update from previous recommendations published in 2011 entitled "American College of Medical Genetics standards and guidelines for interpretation and reporting of postnatal constitutional copy number variants," and is intended to complement the widely cited 2015 paper for sequence variants, "Standards and Guidelines for the Interpretation of Sequence Variants: A Joint Consensus Recommendation of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics and the Association for Molecular Pathology."

The updated technical standards include several major changes from the previous document. The first major change is using the same five-tier system used in sequence variant classification: pathogenic, likely pathogenic, uncertain significance, likely benign, and benign. The previous standards recommended utilizing "likely pathogenic" and "likely benign" as sub-categories under "uncertain significance" (essentially a 3-tier system). Harmonizing copy number and sequence variant terminology will become increasingly important as the identification and classification of both types of variants within a single platform becomes more commonplace.

The second major change encourages laboratories to uncouple the classification of the variant from the clinical significance for the patient. While the patient's phenotype may be an important piece of evidence to consider when determining the classification of the variant, it should not override other evidence for or against the pathogenicity of the variant, and it should not be used to justify different classifications of the same variant in different individuals. For example, loss of function variants in a particular gene are known to cause hearing loss; there is enough evidence to warrant calling deletions of this gene pathogenic. A deletion of this gene in an individual not reported to have hearing loss should not be called "uncertain significance" solely because hearing loss was not their reason for referral; this could represent an incidental finding with potential implications for the individual's future health, or a cause for a phenotype that was not reported. The practice of changing the variant classification based on whether it explained the stated reason for referral has the potential to result in both inter- and intra-laboratory variant classification discrepancies; this change is intended to help reduce this issue.

The most substantial change is the incorporation of points-based scoring metrics to systematically guide laboratories through the classification of copy number losses and gains. In this scoring system, the various types of evidence considered when evaluating CNVs are awarded points based on their relative strengths, with positive point values for evidence for pathogenicity and negative point values for evidence against pathogenicity. At the end of the evaluation, the sum of all accumulated points leads to a suggested classification. "The scoring metrics are intended to be a guide to provide more structure and transparency to the CNV evaluation," said Erin Rooney Riggs, MS, CGC, the paper's lead author. "We have developed this type of quantitative metric for other types of curation within ClinGen which are being used successfully to increase consistency in data interpretation. With education and experience, we anticipate that the use of these metrics, as well as the other recommendations in these updated technical standards, will lead to increased consistency in constitutional CNV classification."

The recommendation states, "Although these standards attempt to comprehensively incorporate commonly available resources and processes used in CNV classification and interpretation, it is important to recognize that no singular algorithm will be applicable in all potential scenarios.The semi-quantitative scoring framework is meant to serve as a guide. Professional judgment should always be used when evaluating the evidence surrounding a particular genomic variant and assigning a classification."

The working group and authors on the new joint consensus recommendations include: Erin Rooney Riggs, MS, CGC; Erica F. Andersen, PhD; Athena M. Cherry, PhD; Sibel Kantarci, PhD; Hutton Kearney, PhD; Ankita Patel, PhD; Gordana Raca, MD, PhD; Deborah I. Ritter, PhD; Sarah T. South, PhD; Erik C. Thorland, PhD; Daniel Pineda-Alvarez, MD; Swaroop Aradhya, PhD and Christa Lese Martin, PhD.

About the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) and ACMG Foundation for Genetic and Genomic Medicine

Founded in 1991, the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) is the only nationally recognized medical society dedicated to improving health through the clinical practice of medical genetics and genomics and the only medical specialty society in the US that represents the full spectrum of medical genetics disciplines in a single organization. The ACMG is the largest membership organization specifically for medical geneticists, providing education, resources and avoice for more than 2,300 clinical and laboratory geneticists, genetic counselors and other healthcare professionals, nearly 80% of whom are board certified in the medical genetics specialties. ACMG's mission is to improve health through the clinical and laboratory practice of medical genetics as well as through advocacy, education and clinical research, and to guide the safe and effective integration of genetics and genomics into all of medicine andhealthcare,resulting in improved personal and public health. Four overarching strategies guide ACMG's work: 1) to reinforce and expand ACMG's position as the leader and prominent authority in the field of medical genetics and genomics, including clinical research, while educating the medical community on the significant role that genetics and genomics will continue to play in understanding, preventing, treating and curing disease; 2) to secure and expand the professional workforce for medical genetics and genomics; 3) to advocate for the specialty; and 4) to provide best-in-class education to members and nonmembers. Genetics in Medicine, published monthly, is the official ACMG peer-reviewed journal. ACMG's website (www.acmg.net) offers resources including policy statements, practice guidelines, educational programs and a 'Find a GeneticService' tool. The educational and public health programs of the ACMG are dependent uponcharitable gifts from corporations, foundations and individuals through the ACMG Foundation forGenetic and Genomic Medicine.

About the Clinical Genome Resource

The Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen)is a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded resourcededicated to building an authoritative central resource that defines the clinical relevance of genesand variants for use in precision medicine and research. Since 2012, ClinGen has worked tofacilitate responsible genomic and phenotypic data sharing between clinicians, clinicallaboratories, researchers, and patients; to develop and implement standards to support clinicalannotation and interpretation of genes and variants; to enhance and accelerate expert review ofthe clinical relevance of genes and variants; and to disseminate and integrate ClinGen knowledgeand resources to the broader community. ClinGen is primarily funded by the National HumanGenome Research Institute (NHGRI) through the following three grants: U41HG006834,U41HG009649, and U41HG009650.

Kathy Moran, MBA

kmoran@acmg.net

SOURCE American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics

http://www.acmg.net

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I Still Live Off the Land – Havana Times

November 13th, 2019 7:45 pm

By Osmel Ramirez Alvarez

HAVANA TIMES I have quite a few intellectual projects on the backburner because Ill have a bit more time in the future: many interesting and useful books that I would like to read and I cant get a few pages in; jobs around the house that demand my attention; and dozens of other things that I put off for a bit or entirely because I prioritize whats important, urgent.

The three most pressing things right now are:

First of all, support my family with the basic, at least, because I have three children, a wife who depends on me financially, and I even have to support my parents from time to time. A great odyssey, theres no doubt about that, in this difficult country, where peoples work is the only dirt-cheap thing there is here.

Secondly, trying to be useful to my country, to the change that Cuba needs to move towards a democracy, contributing ideas, pushing consensus among Cubans, helping people to understand our complex reality and cooperating to try and get our citizens active in public affairs.

Its just that I dream of a better country, where we wouldnt need to emigrate or steal in order to have what we dream of and in order for that to be a possibility, we have to stop delegating responsibility and learn to take part ourselves.

Third of all, its my life mission to be happy, or as happy as I can be amidst all of these problems. Keeping myself as healthy as I can in both body and mind, without hate, resentment, regrets and resignation. On the contrary, with a lot of resilience, faith in the future and confidence in the value of what I and we do. Without such a life philosophy, youd get dragged into the daily confusion and being efficient and proactive becomes impossible.

And where does farming come into all of this?

I really like agriculture, but more as a hobby. If I do it commercially, or to make a living, its because tough economic times force me to. As a result, it fits in with my three life priorities, which are the foundation of my life strategy.

I farm as an extra to make ends meet and support my family, because what I earn from my intellectual endeavors would only be enough to support myself, and it wouldnt be enough for my large family. But, its not a burden. My family is my oasis. My childrens and wifes love is an incomparable refuge. As well as my parents company, who live next to me or my sisters and nephews and nieces, cousins, aunts and uncles, everything, is extra. This is how I live my life, surrounded by family and I feel loved.

Quite regularly, someone who knows me will talk sadly when they see me farming, dirty sometimes, with my old palm leaf hat and old work clothes. They say things like: With everything you studied, its a crime that youre out here working the land. But I tell them that Im as happy out here in the field as I am when I was behind a microscope or a laminar flow bench in the labs when I worked as a biologist. I even sing when Im farming. But they dont get me.

I understand crops and the work it takes to get a good harvest, just like I know about the human anatomy, molecular genetics or ecology. I dont really think of myself as a farmer, because thats not my main identity. However, I have always had the countryside around me, ever since I was born. Even though my father and grandfather were workers, of trades and at a sugar mill respectively, they never broke all ties with farming.

We inherited two hectares of land from my grandmother, which she had inherited herself from her father, and he from his, my great-great-grandfather called Ramon Segura, a son of the Spanish who didnt support the Mambises in their cause, because he preferred to keep ties with Spain. That was his right. The 1902 Republic respected private property and it is still privately-owned today, being a horse ranch, and then divided among the descendants.

The alluvial soil is very fertile, one of the best in Cuba for tobacco farming (and Im not exaggerating). My plot isnt very big, in commercial terms, but it helps us to get by. It would be a great help if we were able to sow what we need to, but we cant because of high theft rates. Only tobacco, which you cant eat, and is hard to steal because of the process it needs to be of high commercial value, and little patches of other things.

I will plant tobacco again this year. My problems from two or three years ago still havent been completely resolved, which made this business riskier than gambling for me and I was forced to retire. However now the most important thing is that the company is valuing the product a lot more fairly because of a lapse in its production. And because there are very few options to invent on the side, Im trying to get a loan for a small plot, which is hard to do amid so much bureaucracy.

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Gene patenting reform in the US and the knock-on effect in Europe – Health Europa

November 13th, 2019 7:45 pm

This year there has been quite some talk about patenting the discovery of new genes. The patency eligibility criteria for this is set to undergo major reform in the US, which is likely to have a huge impact on a number of companies offering genetic testing kits, including 23andMe and AncestryDNA. Here, McDowell of EIP, an IP and patent law firm, shares her thoughts on the reform and the potential far-reaching impact it might have in the world of genetics, gene patenting and beyond.

The question of what should and should not qualify as patent eligible subject matter has, for several years, drawn sharp debate in the United States. Since 2012, the US Supreme Court has operated under the Alice/Mayo framework, which has sought to prevent patenting of abstract ideas and naturally occurring phenomena. This has had broad repercussions within the biotechnology sector and beyond; for example, resulting in the widespread proliferation of mail-order spit-kit operations like 23andMe.

Reform of the Alice/May framework has seen strong support from parts of the biotech industry, citing lack of investment as a barrier to greater research into diagnostic methods. However, a more general concern from stakeholders in the United States is that the unpredictability caused by the Alice/Mayo framework puts the US at a disadvantage compared to International competitors; particularly in respect of some of the most cutting-edge technologies, such as AI and molecular diagnostics. A lack of patent availability is allegedly driving investment to other countries, where such inventions are more clearly patent-eligible.

Battle lines have been drawn between the biotechnology and software industries, with calls for less restrictive eligibility criteria coming from the former. The financial input needed to develop new technologies differs substantially between these industries. Lone inventors and small businesses in the software industry, with the ability to develop their products cheaply, felt stifled by overbroad patents granted to others before 2012.

Meanwhile, even small players in the biotech industry rely on high value investment before diagnostic and curative treatments can be brought to patients. Intellectual property protection is key to ensuring that investors in this sector feel secure that the vast sums of money they contribute will be recouped through effective commercialisation.

The Executive Director of Cleveland Clinic Innovations recently explained that: Ability to gain patent protection is the first factor in our assessment of whether a product can reach the market; if an invention cannot get intellectual property protection, usually that is a fatal flaw and the invention is canned at that point.

With this being a widespread stance in the pharmaceutical and diagnostics industries, it is easy to see how the current restrictions to patentability could lead to fewer treatments being developed in the US. What is more, Internationally, the US is no longer top of the list for biopharma companies launching their products; with companies citing inability to protect their ideas as a key reason for not entering the US market.

On the other hand, there are those within the biotechnology sector who side with the software industry in favouring the status quo. Genetic testing companies have reaped the benefits of a restrictive patent eligibility criteria, which has resulted in the invalidation of patents to isolated gene products, and so removed the barriers to developing genetic testing kits.

Since 2013, aided by this provision, the cost of genetic testing kits has decreased significantly leading to a boom in popularity and numerous spit-kit companies have crowded the genetic testing market. This new Bill, if enacted, will likely prove problematic for US companies such as 23andMe, who offer customers the ability to test their DNA to uncover their ancestry or genetic vulnerabilities. Consequently, this might open the door for a widespread change in the industry.

The proposed Bill stuttered when a sticking point emerged during consultations with stakeholders. A last-minute amendment to 35 U.S.C. 112F, which governs how patentees may claim their invention in functional terms (as opposed to reciting specific physical structures), has been criticised by members of the biotech industry for watering down patent protections.

The draft Bill provided that, if any patent claim element is expressed as a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, then that claim element will be limited to the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and their equivalents.

This was offered to assuage concern that overruling the patent-eligible-subject-matter case law would herald a return of nuisance patents directed to business methods and software, which often contain functionally defined terms. However, rather than reassuring stakeholders in the software industry, the proposal seems to have succeeded mainly in frightening the biotechnology sector.

Several witnesses from both sides of the debate raised concerns about the burden that drafters and inventors will face from having to enumerate every way of carrying out a claimed method under the proposed amendment to 112F.

Conflicting views on the draft proposal has meant that the initial momentum for reform has been lost for the time being. This will frustrate those in the biotech industry who are keen to see a return the ability to obtain patent protection for their products and processes, which they hope will boost research, and drive investment back into the United States.

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Method for Measuring Animal Personality Developed to Explore Connections Between Genes and Behavior – SciTechDaily

November 13th, 2019 7:45 pm

We might refer to someones personality as mousy, but in truth, mice have a range of personalities nearly as great as our own. Prof. Alon Chen and members of two groups he heads one in the Weizmann Institute of Sciences Department of Neurobiology and one in the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich, Germany decided to explore personality specifically in mice. This would enable the scientists to develop a set of objective measurements for this highly slippery concept. A quantitative understanding of the traits that make each animal an individual might help answer some of the open questions in science concerning the connections between genes and behavior. The findings of this research were published in Nature Neuroscience.

Each mouse could be seen to have a unique, individual personality that consistently informed its behavior.

Dr. Oren Forkosh, then a postdoctoral fellow who led the research in Prof. Chens group in Germany, explains that understanding how genetics contribute to behavior has remained an open question. Personality, scientists hypothesized, might be the glue that binds the two together: both genes and epigenetics (which determines how the genes are expressed) contribute to personality formation; in turn, ones personality will determine, to a great extent, how one behaves in any given situation.

Personality is, by definition, something that is individual for each animal and something that remains fairly stable for an animal over its lifetime. Human subjects are generally given personality scores based on multiple-choice questionnaires, but for mice, the researchers needed to start with their behavior and work backward. The mice were color-coded for identification, placed in small groups in regular lab environments with food, shelter, toys, etc. and allowed to interact and explore freely. These mice were videoed over several days, and their behavior analyzed in depth. All together, the scientists identified 60 separate behaviors, including approaching others, chasing or fleeing, sharing food or keeping others away from food, exploring or hiding.

Four mice in a well-stocked cage exhibited around 60 different behaviors for evaluation. Credit: Weizmann Institute of Science

Next, the team created a computational algorithm to extract personality traits from the data on the mices behavior. This method works something like the five-part personality score used for humans in which subjects are graded on sliding scales that rate extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience. For mice, the algorithms the group developed revealed four such sliding scales, and although the researchers refrained from assigning anthropomorphic labels to these ratings, they can be applied very much like the human ones. That is, each scale is linear, with opposites at either end; when the group assigned the mice personality types based on their scores for these traits, they found that each mouse could be seen to have a unique personality that consistently informed its behavior. To see if these traits were indeed stable, the researchers mixed up the groups a stressful situation for the mice. They found that some of the behaviors changed sometimes drastically but what they had assessed as personality remained the same.

What can now be learned from a method for assessing a mouses personality? Working with Prof. Uri Alon of the Institutes Department of Molecular Cell Biology, the team used the linear scales they had developed to plot a personality space in which two of the traits were compared. This sort of analysis yields a triangle in which archetypes inhabit the corners (for example, highly dominant and non-commensal [country mice that are not human-friendly], dominant but commensal [city mice], and subordinate).

When traits are viewed this way, they can point to evolutionary tradeoffs for example, in the need to survive and thrive in a dominance hierarchy. In fact, says Dr. Forkosh, we see that these archetypes and all the shades in between are quite natural. These traits have not been bred out of our mice, even though they have lived for generations in labs and could probably not survive in the wild.

The researchers also mapped gene expression patterns in the brains of these mice, and found that they could identify a number that were associated with certain personality traits they had identified.

Based on the 60 behaviors, an algorithm found those relevant to personality, and mapped out four scales for assessing mouse personality. Credit: Weizmann Institute of Science

This method will open doors to all sorts of research, says Dr. Forkosh. If we can identify the genetics of personality and how our children inherit certain aspects of their personalities, we might also be able to diagnose and treat problems when these genes go wrong. We might even, in the future, be able to use these insights to develop more personalized psychiatry; for example, to be able to prescribe the proper treatments for depression. In addition, we can use the method to compare personality across species, and thus to gain insight into the animals that share our world.

###

Reference: Identity domains capture individual differences from across the behavioral repertoire by Oren Forkosh, Stoyo Karamihalev, Simone Roeh, Uri Alon, Sergey Anpilov, Chadi Touma, Markus Nussbaumer, Cornelia Flachskamm, Paul M. Kaplick, Yair Shemesh and Alon Chen, 4 November 2019, Nature Neuroscience.DOI: 10.1038/s41593-019-0516-y

Prof. Alon Chen is the President-Elect of the Weizmann Institute of Science. Also participating in this research were Stoyo Karamihalev, Sergey Anpilov, and Yair Shemesh of the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; Markus Nussbaumer, Cornelia Flachskamm, Paul M. Kaplick, and Simone Roeh of the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; and Chadi Touma of the University of Osnabrck, Germany.

Prof. Alon Chens research is supported by the Vera and John Schwartz Professorial Chair in Neurobiology; the Ruhman Family Laboratory for Research in the Neurobiology of Stress; the Perlman Family Foundation, founded by Louis L. and Anita M. Perlman; the Fondation Adelis; Bruno Licht; and Sonia T. Marschak.

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Enlivex Therapeutics To Present At The 10th Annual Jefferies 2019 London Healthcare Conference – Yahoo Finance

November 13th, 2019 7:44 pm

Nes-Ziona, Israel, Nov. 12, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Enlivex Therapeutics Ltd. (ENLV), a clinical-stage immunotherapy company, today announced that company management will make a corporate presentation and host 1x1 meetings at the 10th Annual Jefferies 2019 London Healthcare Conference, being held in London on November 20 & 21. The presentation is scheduled for November 20 2019 at 8:00am local time.

ALLOCETRATMby Enlivex was designed toprovide a novel immunotherapy mechanism of actionthat targets life-threatening clinical indications that are defined as unmet medical needs, includingprevention or treatment of complications associated with bone marrow transplantations (BMT) and/or hematopoietic stem cell transplantations (HSCT); organ dysfunction and acute multiple organ failure associated with sepsis; and enablement of an effective treatment of solid tumors via immune checkpoint rebalancing.

Enlivex announced on November 4, 2019 positive interim safety and efficacy data from an ongoing trial of off-the-shelf universal Allocetra in patients with severe sepsis. The interim analysis comparing Allocetra-treated patients with 37 severe sepsis patients with equivalent source of infection and disease severity who were hospitalized at the same hospital, demonstrated the potential of Allocetra as therapy for prevention of sepsis-associated organ failure and mortality.

For more information about the 10th Annual Jefferies 2019 London Healthcare Conference, visit http:// https://www.jefferies.com/IdeasAndPerspectives/Conferences/325/112019.

ABOUT ENLIVEXEnlivex is a clinical stage immunotherapy company, developing an allogeneic drug pipeline for immune system rebalancing. Immune system rebalancing is critical for the treatment of life-threatening immune and inflammatory conditions which involve an out of control immune system (e.g. Cytokine Release Syndrome) and for which there are no approved treatments (unmet medical needs), as well as solid tumors immune-checkpoint rebalancing. For more information, visit http://www.enlivex.com.

ENLIVEX CONTACT:Shachar Shlosberger, CFOEnlivex Therapeutics, Ltd.shachar@enlivex-pharm.com

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