Archive by date | September 2010

Foundations dedicate $75 million to plant research

Foundations dedicate $75 million to plant research

A few lucky plant biologists are about to receive admittance to one of the most elite biomedical clubs in the United States: the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). HHMI and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation announced today that they have teamed up to make a $75 million contribution to the plant sciences by supporting up to 15 plant researchers.  Read more

Amyris goes public

Posted on behalf of Yana Balling Amyris Inc, a start-up biotech company specialising in biofuels, raised $85 million in its first public offering yesterday. An estimated 5.3 million shares were sold throughout the day on the NASDAQ Global Market. The company, based in Emeryville, California, had hoped to raise $100 million. Analysts ascribe the disappointing performance to Amyris entering the market too early, before it has commercialised any of its renewable products. But Biofuels Digest declared the glass half-full, saying that the money raised was a ‘hallmark of faith’ in the potential of biofuel technology. Amyris, now with 200 employees,  … Read more

Appeals court grants stay, stem cell funding continues for now – UPDATED

Appeals court grants stay, stem cell funding continues for now - UPDATED

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit granted a stay late this afternoon, allowing US government funding of human embryonic stem cell research to continue unimpeded while a lawsuit challenging its legality works its way through the courts.  Read more

Most NIH-approved stem cell lines predate Obama order, Court told

Most NIH-approved stem cell lines predate Obama order, Court told

Both sides in the ongoing court case over government funded human embryonic stem cell research are sharpening their arguments this week and maneuvering for what could be a swift judgment in the coming days. Yesterday, for example, Story Landis (pictured), the chair of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Stem Cell Task Force filed a declaration that seems to directly answer assertions that the agency’s funding guidelines are providing an incentive for new stem cell lines to be derived, causing more embryos to be destroyed. In fact, wrote Landis to the US District Court for the District of Columbia, of  … Read more

Nestlé announces half-billion-dollar research institute

Swiss food giant Nestlé said on Monday that it would invest 500 million Swiss francs (US$507 million) over ten years in an Institute of Health Sciences currently being built at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) in Lausanne, where the company (based in Vevey) already endows research chairs.

Fresh broadsides against UK science cuts

Fresh broadsides against UK science cuts

Continuing the pre-emptive strike by British scientists against forthcoming research budget cuts, the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) today released a report commissioned to estimate the value of chemistry research to the UK economy.

African countries develop GMO policies

The 19 African nations, including Uganda and Egypt, that are members of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) – a free trade zone – have begun consulting on plans to harmonise their polices and guidelines on the commercial planting and trade in genetically modified crops.