Life Science Technology Research Articles

Mobile economics and pricing of health care services

This paper presents tools and concepts to analyze the business environment of the biopharmaceutical industry. It was presented at MEDETEL 2010. Emerging paradigms appear in that industry and new ways to value life science technologies are developed especially using mobile economics analysis. At a time, mobile computing technologies revolutionize the field of health care, this paper contributes to show how the value chain concept can be useful to analyze the value system in a mobile computing environment. It is also a milestone for the designs of future technology platforms and of health care infrastructure, in order to retain enough value between innovators, new and traditionnal players from life science, IT and other new comers, in a fragmented global competitive environment.

Mass Spectrometry–Based Proteomics and Network Biology

In the life sciences, a new paradigm is emerging that places networks of interacting molecules between genotype and phenotype. These networks are dynamically modulated by a multitude of factors, and the properties emerging from the network as a whole determine observable phenotypes. This paradigm is usually referred to as systems biology, network biology, or integrative biology. Mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics is a central life science technology that has realized great progress toward the identification, quantification, and characterization of the proteins that constitute a proteome. Here, we review how MS-based proteomics has been applied to network biology to identify the nodes and edges of biological networks, to detect and quantify perturbation-induced network changes, and to correlate dynamic network rewiring with the cellular phenotype. We discuss future directions for MS-based proteomics within the network biology paradigm.

LIFE SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES: Innovation in Japan Results from Reforms

Japanese academic reforms over the last decade have encouraged entrepreneurship and technology transfer from universities to industry. These reforms are now yielding results. Science and business leaders hope these changes push Japan into the next phase of innovation development, with increased flexibility and transparency, a more global focus, and more national and international collaboration. Japanese scientists are ready. After delays caused by the March 2011 triple disaster of earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear power plant failure, the lights are on again in Japanese research laboratories. Although recovery and reconstruction are priorities, the long-term goals of developing sustainable energy sources and solving the health challenges of an aging population continue to be major focus areas.

Search for an aetiological virus candidate in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia by extensive transcriptome analysis

SummaryAs an approach to determining the aetiology of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), we searched for a virus expressed in human CLL B‐cells by combining high‐throughput sequencing and digital subtraction. Pooled B‐cell mRNA transcriptomes from five CLL patients and five healthy donors were sequenced with 454 Life Sciences technology. Human reads were excluded by BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) and BLAT (BLAST‐like alignment tool) searches. Remaining reads were screened with BLAST against viral databases. Purified B‐cells from two CLL patients, with and without stimulation by phorbol‐esters, were sequenced using Illumina technology to achieve depth of sequencing. Burrows‐Wheeler Aligner mapping and BLAST searches were used for the Illumina data. Pyrosequencing resulted in about 400 000 reads per sample. No viral candidate could be found. Illumina single‐end sequencing for 115 cycles yielded an average of 26 ± 2·5 million filtered reads per sample, of which 2·2 ± 0·6 million remained unmapped to human references. BLAST searches of these reads against viral and human databases assigned nine reads to an Epstein‐Barr virus origin, in one sample following phorbol‐ester stimulation. Other reads showing a putative viral origin were dismissed after further analysis. Despite an in‐depth analysis of the CLL transcriptome reaching more than 100 million sequences, we have not found evidence for a putative viral candidate in CLL.

Abstracts of the 17th International Symposium on Bioluminescence and Chemiluminescence ‐ (ISBC 2012)

WARNING : The light-emitting molecular structures responsible for the chemiluminescence and fluorescence phenomena are not necessarily the same!

BiotecVisions 2012, March

BiotecVisions 2012, March

Biotechnologiczne spółki spin-off Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego jako mechanizm transferu technologii

Spin-off companies constitute an interesting subject of research for economic geographers. The significance of local knowledge networks, tacit knowledge flows and strong links with local social and economic environment are their most important features. Academic spin-offs, created by employees of higher education and R&D establishments, form a specific subgroup among these firms. Spin- -off companies are acknowledged as a most important technology transfer mechanism in the highly innovative modern biotechnology sector. This paper deals with the creation and functioning of the Jagiellonian University’s biotech spin- -off companies in the contemporary business environment of Poland. Most of these companies are in an initial phase of development, facing many problems with financing and bureaucracy. The most important barriers to popularization of spin-off activity among researchers are: lack of financing, complicated IP law system, lack of business knowledge among scientists and general focus only on scientific activity among research personnel. The role of Jagiellonian University’s technology transfer and entrepreneurship support agencies (i.e. the Jagiellonian Centre of Innovation and the Life Science Technology Park and Cluster) is also discussed.

Editorial: Biosensors and microfluidics – opportunities and challenges in life science engineering

Editorial: Biosensors and microfluidics – opportunities and challenges in life science engineering

Nanobiochips.

The actual progress towards biological chip devices consisting of nanostructured functional entities is summarized. The practical aspects of molecular nanobiochips are discussed, including the main surface chemistry platforms, as well as conventional and unconventional fabrication tools. Several successful biological demonstrations of the first generation of nanobiochip devices (mainly, different nanoarrays) are highlighted with the aim of revealing the potential of this technology in life sciences, medicine, and related areas.

Bacteria on Human Skin

Problem statement: Human skin is a large (~ 1.75 m2) organ containing a large number of ecologically distinct sites. These sites harbor a variety of distinct microbiomes. One challenge is to define the microbiome at every site. We chose two interesting sites: the base of the Front of the neck and the base of the Back of the neck (the nape) and enrolled forty volunteers. These two sites are interesting because the bacteria therein must interact with the skin and its microbiome and with clothing and hair and the external environment. Approach: The volunteers took their own neck swabs. Total DNA was prepared from each swab. That DNA was employed as a template in separate PCR reactions to amplify the V6 and V3 regions of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene. The V6 and V3 regions were pyrosequenced using Roche 454 Life Sciences technology. To identify the bacteria, the sequences were compared to the data in the Ribosomal Database Project. Results: From the sequences of the V6 region, it was found that all of the swabs contained at least 1% of the reads as Actinobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria. The substantial majority of the swabs contained at least 1% of the reads as Alphaproteobacteria, Bacilli and Betaproteobacteria. About half of the swabs contained at least 1% of the reads as Flavobacteria and Sphingobacteria. A few swabs contained Clostridia or Cyanobacteria at least at the 1% level. The Class of Gammaproteobacteria was supported by the most reads for 94% of the swabs. Conclusion: As a measure of bacterial diversity, the Shannon Diversity Index was computed from the V6 data for each swab and considered as a function of the number of reads. The Front and Back curves were indistinguishable. To determine how close the data were to saturation, the Chao1 curves for the Front and Back swabs were constructed. The two curves were indistinguishable. Neither curve appeared close to saturation.

A glance at DNA microarray technology and applications.

Because of huge impacts of "OMICS" technologies in life sciences, many researchers aim to implement such high throughput approach to address cellular and/or molecular functions in response to any influential intervention in genomics, proteomics, or metabolomics levels. However, in many cases, use of such technologies often encounters some cybernetic difficulties in terms of knowledge extraction from a bunch of data using related softwares. In fact, there is little guidance upon data mining for novices. The main goal of this article is to provide a brief review on different steps of microarray data handling and mining for novices and at last to introduce different PC and/or web-based softwares that can be used in preprocessing and/or data mining of microarray data. To pursue such aim, recently published papers and microarray softwares were reviewed. It was found that defining the true place of the genes in cell networks is the main phase in our understanding of programming and functioning of living cells. This can be obtained with global/selected gene expression profiling. Studying the regulation patterns of genes in groups, using clustering and classification methods helps us understand different pathways in the cell, their functions, regulations and the way one component in the system affects the other one. These networks can act as starting points for data mining and hypothesis generation, helping us reverse engineer.

Patient Discomfort Associated with the Use of Intra-arterial Iodinated Contrast Media: A Meta-Analysis of Comparative Randomized Controlled Trials

BackgroundDiscomfort characterized by pain and warmth are common adverse effects associated with the use of intra-arterial iodinated contrast media (CM). The objective of this review was to pool patient-reported outcomes available from head-to-head randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and to compare the discomfort rates associated with iso-osmolar contrast media (IOCM; i.e., iodixanol) to those reported with various low-osmolar contrast media (LOCM).MethodsA review of the literature published between 1990 and 2009 available through Medline, Medline Preprints, Embase, Biological s, BioBase, Cab s, International Pharmaceutical s, Life Sciences Collection, Inside Conferences, Energy Database, Engineering Index and Technology Collection was performed to compare rates of discomfort associated with the use of the IOCM (iodixanol) vs. various LOCM agents in head-to-head RCTs. All trials with a Jadad score ≥2 that reported patient discomfort data following intra-arterial administration of CM were reviewed, coded, and extracted.ResultsA total of 22 RCTs (n = 8087) were included. Overall discomfort (regardless of severity) was significantly different between patients receiving IOCM and various LOCMs (risk difference [RD] -0.049; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.076, -0.021; p = 0.001). IOCM was favored over all LOCMs combined with a summary RD value of -0.188 (95% CI: -0.265, -0.112; p < 0.001) for incidence of pain, regardless of severity. A greater reduction in the magnitude of pain was observed with IOCM (iodixanol), particularly with selective limb and carotid/intracerebral procedures. Similarly, the meta-analysis of warmth sensation, regardless of severity, favored IOCM over LOCMs with an RD of -0.043 (95% CI: -0.074, -0.011; p = 0.008). A positive linear relationship was observed between the discomfort effect size and age and a negative relationship with increasing proportion of women. The opposite trends were observed with warmth sensation.ConclusionsIOCM was associated with less frequent and severe patient discomfort during intra-arterial administration. These data support differences in osmolality as a possible determinant of CM discomfort.

University‐industry collaboration in Japan by technology fields

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to clarify how university‐industry (U‐I) collaboration differs by technology fields in Japan.Design/methodology/approachAn analysis of the research resource allocation in the Japanese national universities in the Japanese national innovation system is followed by the analysis of U‐I collaboration by technology fields. The fields analyzed are life science, information and communication technology (ICT), environment science, nanotechnology and material science, which have been designated as strategically important fields by the Second Japanese Science and Technology Basic Plan. The analysis was conducted in a quantitative way using government data of R&amp;D expenditure, researchers, patent application, joint research, contract research and university spin‐offs.FindingsSome characteristics of U‐I collaboration have been quantitatively found by technology fields. Though the national universities occupy large R&amp;D expenditure shares in life science and nanotechnology/material science in the Japanese national innovation system, their joint research and contract research are fairly active in environment science as well as in life science and in nanotechnology/material science. For university spin‐offs, the national universities are active in life science and ICT.Originality/valueThis paper quantitatively clarifies U‐I collaboration by technology fields showing relative importance of U‐I collaboration by technology fields. The results provide information input to policy makers when they formulate policies to promote U‐I collaboration by technology fields and to corporate managers when they make U‐I collaboration strategies by technology fields as a part of open innovation strategies.

Cover Picture: Engineering in Life Sciences

AbstractMicrotechnology for life science engineering. This issue of Engineering in Life Sciences edited by Michael Köhler, TU Ilmenau, Germany, features articles covering the large spectrum of recent developments using miniaturized systems in biotechnology, e.g. biomedical diagnostics, miniaturized bioreactors for 3D cell cultivation, microlithography and microfluidics. Cover image by Michael Köhler with illustrations from this issue showing a miniaturized PCR chip for disease detection and a PTFE‐based microsystem for encapsulation of Langerhans' islet cells.

The European patent system: dealing with emerging technologies

In light of recent controversial patent decisions in biotechnology, this article argues that the current European patent examination and opposition procedures do not suffice to balance the patent system These procedures do not provide sufficient guidance for patent examiners to deal effectively with the emerging life science technologies. The European Patent Office needs to instill more self-reflection into the patent system and foster interaction between the Office and patent stakeholders. In this respect, we propose that the EPO should establish an ex-ante, patent-granting advisory body that would consist of multidisciplinary staff drawn from various technical fields, and collaborate closely with the scientific community and other national bodies. It is expected that such an advisory body would provide an input to the existing patent system, since it would anticipate, control and reduce the possibility that patent examiners would issue low-quality patents with huge socio-economic consequences.

Editorial: Call for a knowledge‐based bio‐economy in life science engineering

Editorial: Call for a knowledge‐based bio‐economy in life science engineering

Modeling flavor development in cereal based foams under thermal treatment

Foam materials play an important role in several industrial fields, especially in life science engineering, the texture and flavor release of food products is of major importance for taste, food quality and product acceptance by the consumers. Under the influence of heat, material characteristics of cereal based foam changes according to a chain of physical and biochemical processes including structural transformation, phase changes and the development of color and flavor. In the proposed material, surface color and flavor develop temperature dependent according to the Maillard reaction. The present research focuses on the flavor development in cereal based foams under thermal treatment and modeling the corresponding chemical reaction kinetics by the use of 3-D-Lattice-Boltzmann-Methods (LBM). The pathway for the development of the primary compound, 2-Acetyl-1-pyrroline, accounting for the typical aroma of the proposed products, is modeled according to a simplified reaction kinetic approach [1]. In addition, the heat flux through the material is modeled by introducing two differing thermal diffusivities for solid phases and gaseous phases, respectively. The results show the temperature dependent flavor formation occurring mainly in the boundary layer of the model foam material due to the higher temperature (T ∼ 150°C) compared to the inner product (T ∼ 100°C).

LIFE SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES: EBB AND FLOW: Cytometry For The Next Generation

Think there's nothing new in the world of flow cytometry? Think again. As industry powerhouses like BD Biosciences and Beckman Coulter continually redefine the technology's bleeding edge, upstarts have emerged with innovative technologies of their own. And not only upstarts. No less a corporate brand than Sony entered the fray this past February with the purchase of flow cytometry firm iCyt. As Richard Konz, director of the University of Massachusetts Medical School Flow Cytometry Core Facility, explains, the technology has shaken off its immunology roots to become a multidisciplinary tool. "Literally every department is using flow for something, and that for me is very exciting," Konz says. "It's basically never a dull moment."

Nodeomics: Pathogen Detection in Vertebrate Lymph Nodes Using Meta-Transcriptomics

The ongoing emergence of human infections originating from wildlife highlights the need for better knowledge of the microbial community in wildlife species where traditional diagnostic approaches are limited. Here we evaluate the microbial biota in healthy mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) by analyses of lymph node meta-transcriptomes. cDNA libraries from five individuals and two pools of samples were prepared from retropharyngeal lymph node RNA enriched for polyadenylated RNA and sequenced using Roche-454 Life Sciences technology. Protein-coding and 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequences were taxonomically profiled using protein and rRNA specific databases. Representatives of all bacterial phyla were detected in the seven libraries based on protein-coding transcripts indicating that viable microbiota were present in lymph nodes. Residents of skin and rumen, and those ubiquitous in mule deer habitat dominated classifiable bacterial species. Based on detection of both rRNA and protein-coding transcripts, we identified two new proteobacterial species; a Helicobacter closely related to Helicobacter cetorum in the Helicobacter pylori/Helicobacter acinonychis complex and an Acinetobacter related to Acinetobacter schindleri. Among viruses, a novel gamma retrovirus and other members of the Poxviridae and Retroviridae were identified. We additionally evaluated bacterial diversity by amplicon sequencing the hypervariable V6 region of 16S rRNA and demonstrate that overall taxonomic diversity is higher with the meta-transcriptomic approach. These data provide the most complete picture to date of the microbial diversity within a wildlife host. Our research advances the use of meta-transcriptomics to study microbiota in wildlife tissues, which will facilitate detection of novel organisms with pathogenic potential to human and animals.

A Study of Postinvestment Monitoring Practices in Life Science Venture Capital Firms

Life science and biomedical technology start ups are a major focus for the establishment of innovation and knowledge-based economies. This article describes themes and practices in the monitoring of private company investments by life science-oriented venture capital firms and the possible relevance to this of project management concepts and techniques. A qualitative approach was adopted, using semistructured interviews with a small number of life science-oriented venture capital firms in the northeastern United States “biotech” corridor. The results are summarized as alternative “rational-explicit” and “complex behavioral” models of monitoring that are described and also compared to process groups found in project management literature.