Boston’s Biotech Moment The future is moving out of dusty library stacks and into pristine laboratories on both sides of the Charles River, making this area the national leader in biotechnology. The boom is driven by a new breed of intellectual wearing a white lab coat and using science to breach the barrier between academia […]
Professor, Biotech Butt Heads Ignacio Chapela, an ecologist known for his controversial research on genetically modified corn, is turning a career setback into a call for action among scientists opposed to the influence of corporate interests on academic research. Chapela, who was denied tenure last month at the University of California at Berkeley, is now […]
Tech Transfer: The Ties That Bind Did you know that the lack of an IPO window, depressed market conditions and a downturn in venture financing affect not only companies but also universities? That’s because so many academic institutions are tied to the fortunes of companies, both small and large, through their technology transfer agreements.
Drug companies make patent concessions AIDS activists hailed a breakthrough agreement with two of the largest drug companies in South Africa Wednesday, saying it will help more poor people get vital medicines. They cited the Canadian government’s decision to override patent law for essential drugs for Africa as one key factor in persuading the pharmaceutical […]
Dutch Official Calls on Europe to Open Markets to Biotech Foods Europe should no longer exclude genetically modified agricultural products from the U.S., in the view of Economic Affairs Minister Laurens-Jan Brinkhorst. ‘The U.S. rightly complains about trade barriers,’ he said yesterday in The Hague during a University of Leiden meeting.
Financial Snapshot For November 2003: Hangin’ In There
A dietary magic bullet? Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow you can throw down a Longevinex pill, the new foe of culinary hedonism.
FDA, Industry Collaborate On Genomics Guide Last month, the FDA issued its long-awaited draft guidelines for pharmacogenomic data submission. Companies large and small have been anxious to get their hands on these guidelines, for they are a critical starting point in the agency’s efforts to come up with the most appropriate requirements for pharmacogenomic data […]
Canola Case Tests GMO Patent The future of genetically modified crops in North America is in the hands of a 73-year-old Canadian canola farmer named Percy Schmeiser. Schmeiser already has lost two court cases dealing with his use of seed designed by Monsanto, but he and his supporters have made it to the Supreme Court […]
Food Biotech Is Risky Business The genetically modified food industry has battled opposition from consumer and environmental groups to get its food on the table. Its lobbyists have cajoled skeptical politicians; its scientists have produced studies contradicting other studies suggesting the food is somehow tainted. Now the industry faces another hurdle with long-range, dire consequences: […]