GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is facing a police investigation in China over allegations that staff spent up to $490 million filtering money to travel agencies in order to facilitate bribes to doctors and officials to encourage use of its medicines. Now many Chinese doctors are refusing to meet GSK representatives and sales in the country have slumped 61% in the third quarter. Although China accounted for less than 4% of total GSK sales, nonetheless they had invested heavily in the country and Chief Executive Andrew Witty this week told reporters that: "This is a very important business to GSK. China is a critically important country of the future." The company had conducted its own internal audits, resulting in the dismissal of dozens of staff; however they remain at the centre of Chinese police investigations of multinational drug companies. They have seen their market share suffer particularly where other drug options are available.

Worldwide, GSK sales remained flat at £6.51 billion in the quarter. This resulted in higher-than predicted core earnings per share of 28.9 pence, 10% higher than a year ago. This higher-than-expected figure reflected the fact that several late-stage GSK clinical trials have come to an end and therefore less is being spent on research and development (R&D), a trend that is expected to continue into next year. Money was also saved on staff post-retirement healthcare benefits.

Despite the damage to its reputation due to the Chinese bribery scandal, GSK have some positive news as they have this year obtained approvals for several new treatments, including for lung disease, cancer and HIV. They have just last week rolled out a new lung drug called Breo in the USA. However, the economic policy emphasis in Europe on austerity is impacting on sales and profits, making it all the more frustrating for the company that their attempts to break into emerging markets like China have suffered this setback.

Sources

http://www.courant.com/business/sns-rt-u...UPDATES%29 [Accessed 24 October 2013].

http://web.orange.co.uk/article/news/cor...hina_sales [Accessed 24 October 2013].

http://www.irishtimes.com/business/secto...-1.1570684 [Accessed 24 October 2013].

There is new hope for safer and more effective treatment of patients suffering from genotype 1 Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. A group of government experts in the United States have recommended that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should approve simeprevir, an experimental hepatitis C drug from Johnson & Johnson which is taken as a simple daily pill. While the FDA is not obliged to follow the group’s recommendations, in practice it often does.

Simeprevir (TMC435), a second-generation protease inhibitor, follows in the footsteps first generation protease inhibitors such as telaprevir and boceprevir. These drugs, when administered with PEGylated interferon and ribavirin, have improved the cure rate for HCV. However, clinical trial data suggests that simeprevir is more easily used and has a lower adverse event incidence than the first-generation proteases, with no evidence of drug-drug interactions. Clinical trial data from Japan, for example, indicated that addition of simeprevir to a PEGylated interferon and ribavirin treatment regimen for drug-naïve HCV patients resulted in potent antiviral activity and a higher rate of sustained virologic response, while being generally safe and well tolerated. Simeprevir may be particularly beneficial in patients who have not responded positively to previous treatment. However, simeprevir still requires co-treatment with PEGylated interferon and ribavirin. Some individuals are interferon-intolerant. Therefore, future research aims should be to try to identify IFN-free regimens to treat HCV. The hope is that there may be potential to use simeprevir with other oral direct-acting agents without interferon.

A decision is expected from the FDA in about a month as to whether the recommendation to approve simprevir to treat HCV is accepted.

Sources

FLISIAK, R., JAROSZEWICZ, J. and PARFIENIUK-KOWERDA, A., 2013. Emerging treatments for hepatitis C. Expert Opinion On Emerging Drugs,

HAYASHI, N. et al., 2013. Once-daily simeprevir (TMC435) with peginterferon/ribavirin for treatment-naïve hepatitis C genotype 1-infected patients in Japan: the DRAGON study. Journal of gastroenterology,

YOU, D.M. and POCKROS, P.J., 2013. Simeprevir for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C. Expert opinion on pharmacotherapy

http://www.wboc.com/story/23782859/fda-a...tis-c-drug [Accessed 24 October 2013].

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ADVANCES IN BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOINFORMATICS (ICABB 2013)

Organisers: Dr. D. Y. Patil Biotechnology and Bioinformatics Institute

Dates: November 25th to 27th, 2013

Location: Hotel Le Meridian, Pune, Maharashtra, India

Website: http://icabb2013.dpu.edu.in/
The website gives all the necessary information on abstract submission, fees, registration, conference agenda, hotel, exhibitions and other important facts.

Purpose of the conference
To provide a platform for students, research scholars, academics and industry professionals to interact, present and share recent knowledge in the field of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics

Who should attend?
Participation is open to all involved in research, teaching, consultancy, planning, business etc. from all over the world. Oral presentations are by invitation only, however prospective participants are invited to contribute papers to be presented as posters. Research scholars and students are encouraged to participate and present their research at the conference.

Major theme
Advances in Biotechnology & Bioinformatics

Topics to be covered:
Plant Biotechnology
Microbial and Industrial Biotechnology
Animal and Medical Biotechnology
Nano-Biotechnology
Systems Biology and Bioinformatics
Biotechnology, Business and IPR

Speakers:

1. Agsar Dayanand, Gulbarga University, Gulbarga, India
2. Ara Ismet, King Saud University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
3. Bagyaraj DJ, Centre for Natural Biological Resources, Bangalore, India
4. Ball Andrew S, Applied Sciences, RMIT University, PO Box 71, Bundoora, Victoria 3083, Australia
5. Banerjee Anjan, IISER, Pune, India
6. Bapat Sharmila, NCCS, Pune, India
7. Barbuddhe SB, NIO, Goa, India
8. Baskar G, St Joseph College, Chennai, India
9. Bekatorou Argyro, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
10. Bezidzoglou Evgenia, University of Thrace, Department of Agricultural Development, Orestiada, Greece
11. Bhardwaj Ashima, Indian Institute of Advanced Research, Gandhinagar, India
12. Bodas Manish, IGIB, New Delhi, India
13. Boopathy Ramaraj, Department of Biological Sciences, Nicholls State University, Thibodaux, LA 70310, USA.
14. Borole Abhijeet P, Research Scientist, Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, USA
15. Bosnea Loulouda, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
16. Das Debabrata, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India
17. Deobagkar Deepti, University of Pune, Pune, India
18. Dhakephalkar Prashant, Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), Pune, India
19. Drouza Chrysoula, Cyprus University of Technology, Limassol, Cyprus
20. Ebitani Kohki, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Ishikawa, Japan
21. Eriksson Cecilia, School of Life Sciences, University of Skövde, Box 408, SE-54128, Skövde, Sweden
22. Fukuoka Atsushi, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido, Japan
23. Gayatri Archana, MS University of Baroda, Vadodara, India
24. Ghorbel Sofiane, Ecole Nationale D'Ingenieurs de Sfax, Tunisia
25. Gratchev Alexei, Department of Dermatology, University Medical Centre Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
26. Gupta AB, Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, India
27. Hatziloukas Efstathios, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece
28. Hmidet Noomen, Enzyme Engineering and Microbiology Laboratory, National School of Engineering, Sfax, Tunisia
29. Janecek Stefan, Institute of Molecular Biology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
30. Jangid Kamlesh, MCC, NCCS, Pune, India
31. Kalamdhad Ajay, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, India
32. Kanellaki Maria, University of Patras, Patras, Greece,
33. Kapadnis BP, University of Pune, Pune, India
34. Karthikeyan M, Bioinformatics, NCL, Pune, India
35. Kataki Rupam, Tezpur University, Tezpur, India
36. Khanal Samir Kumar, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
37. Khare Sunil K, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, India
38. Kodam Kisan M, University of Pune, Pune, India
39. Kondal Reddy K, S V Veterinary University, Hyderabad, India
40. Konde Viren, Science and Technology Park, University of Pune, India
41. Kontro Merja, University of Helsinki, Lahti, Finland
42. Korkoutas John, University of Thrace, Department of Molecular Biology, Alexandroupolis, Greece
43. Koytinas Athanasios, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
44. Koytinas Michail, Cyprus University of Technology, Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Limassol, Cyprus
45. Kumar Praveen, Arunai Engineering College, Tiruvannamalai, India
46. Kusari Souvik, Technical University, Dortmund, Germany, and University of Oxford, UK
47. Lahiri Mayurika, IISER, Pune, India
48. Larroche Christian, Clermont Université, Université Blaise Pascal, Polytech Clermont-Ferrand, 63174 Aubière cedex, France
49. Mahajan Girish B, Piramal Enterprises Limited, Mumbai, India
50. Mandal Abul, School of Life Sciences, University of Skövde, Box 408, SE-54128, Skövde, Sweden
51. Manhas Rajesh Kumari, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, India
52. Min Booki, Environmental Science and Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, Korea
53. Morya VK, Biological Engineering, Inha University, South Korea
54. Mukhopadhyay Sami, Principal Application Scientist from VLife Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Pune, India
55. Mullai P, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, India
56. Nakajima M, University of Tsukuba, Japan
57. Nigam P, University of Ulster BT52 1SA, N. Ireland, UK
58. Paknikar KM, Agharkar Research Institute, Pune, India
59. Panesar PS, SL Institute of Engineering & Technology, Longowal, India
60. Pant Deepak, VITO - Flemish Institute for Technological Research, Belgium
61. Papamichael Emmanuel, University of Ioannina, Department of Chemistry, Ioannina, Greece
62. Prasad GS, Institute of Microbial Technology, Chandigarh, India
63. Prasad MNV, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
64. Saraph Arundhati, Senior scientist, TCS, Pune, India
65. Sarma Priyangshu Manab, The Energy and Resources Institute, New Delhi, India
66. Sawant Indu, National Research Centre for Grapes, Pune, India
67. Shibu Jose, University of Missouri, USA
68. Shirai M, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Sendai, Japan
69. Singh HB, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
70. Singh RS, Punjabi University, Patiala, India
71. Singh S, Computational and Systems Biology Laboratory, NCCS, Pune, India
72. Sobti RC, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Lucknow, India
73. Soupioni Magdalini, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
74. Teong Lee Keat, Director of Research Creativity & Management Office, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia
75. Thallada Bhaskar, Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun, India
76. Trably Eric, Laboratory of Environmental Biotechnology, French National Institute for Agricultural Research, INRA, Narbonne, France
77. Tsaousi Konstantina, Cyprus University of Technology, Department of Food Science, Agriculture and Biotechnogy, Limassol, Cyprus
78. Tyagi RD, INRS-ETE University of Quebec, Quebec, Canada
79. Venkata Mohan S, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, India
80. Vijaylakshmi M, Acharya Nagarjuna University, Guntur, India
81. Wang A J, Harbin Institute Technology, Harbin, China
82. Wangikar PP, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, India
83. Janecek Stefan, Institute of Molecular Biology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia

Publication opportunity: Papers accepted and presented in the conference will be published in the special issue of the following journals:
•Biologia (Impact factor 0.6)
•Bioresource Technology (Impact factor 5.1)
•Indian Journal of Biotechnology (Impact factor 0.55)

Use of the zebrafish for drug testing has received a boost as the first drug developed using zebrafish in the initial testing stages has now passed Phase 1 trials of safety and has now entered Phase 2 trials of efficacy. The drug in question is named ProHema® and is being developed by Fate Therapeutics after its initial discovery in the laboratory of Dr. Leonard Zon in Boston Children’s Hospital. ProHema® is chemically derived from the prostaglandin PGE2, specifically 16,16 dimethyl prostaglandin E2 (dmPGE2). It is being developed as a drug to help improve hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) count from umbilical cord blood (UCB) in order to improve outcomes of UCB-derived stem cell engraftment. A recent paper in Blood from Dr Zon’s research group outlined the result of the Phase 1 trials (Cutler et al. 2013).

Dr Zon’s research group has been examining the potential of PGE2 in HSC transplant since first publishing a Nature paper in 2007, in which zebrafish were used as a model to screen a panel of biologically active compounds for effects on stem cell induction in the zebrafish aorta-gonad-mesonephros region. The study revealed that chemicals that enhanced PGE2 synthesis stimulated HSC numbers, while inhibitors of PGE2 synthesis decreased stem cell numbers. A stable derivative of PGE2 was examined and a conserved role for PGE2 in regulation of vertebrate HSC homeostasis was confirmed, opening up the possibility of development for therapeutic stimulation of HSC numbers. Subsequent work by the group showed that PGE2 acts through EP4 in the process of zebrafish lymphoid precursor development while interaction of PGE2 with the Wnt signaling pathways controls HSC engraftment. The recent Blood paper examined the safety of carrying out ex vivo modulation of UCB with dmPGE2 followed by reduced intensity, double UCB transplantation. The results of this Phase 1 trial indicated clear safety along with durable, multilineage engraftment of dmPGE2-treated UCB units. Efficacy trends were also encouraging, as 10 out of 12 treated subjects experienced preferential, long-term engraftment of the dmPGE2 treated UCB.

The process of this work from the initial concept paper in 2007 to successful phase 1 trial data in 2013 indicates the efficacy of the zebrafish as a drug development model which will hopefully be successfully utilised in the future for other drugs.

Sources

CUTLER, C. et al., 2013. Prostaglandin-modulated umbilical cord blood hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Blood, 2013

DURAND, E.M. and ZON, L.I., 2010. Newly emerging roles for prostaglandin E2 regulation of hematopoiesis and hematopoietic stem cell engraftment. Current opinion in hematology, 17(4), pp. 308-312

GOESSLING, W. et al., 2009. Genetic interaction of PGE2 and Wnt signaling regulates developmental specification of stem cells and regeneration. Cell, 136(6), pp. 1136-1147

NORTH, T.E. et al., 2010. PGE2-regulated wnt signaling and N-acetylcysteine are synergistically hepatoprotective in zebrafish acetaminophen injury. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 107(40), pp. 17315-17320

NORTH, T.E. et al., 2007. Prostaglandin E2 regulates vertebrate haematopoietic stem cell homeostasis. Nature, 447(7147), pp. 1007-1011

The delicious flavors and mind blowing aromas from spices like Vanilla, Patchouli, saffron derived from spice specific floras is always been products of demand in the market. Since ages spices of flavors and fragrance is derived from plants by cultivating such plants. But how about producing products similar to that of the natural ones from genetically engineered Yeast?

Yes, Yeast, known for its diverse application in food industries from bakeries to breweries is now reprogrammed to yield products of exotic flavors and fragrances. Amyris, the pioneers in delivering yeast derived products is looking into this new perspective which will definitely revolutionize the aromatic spice market.

Reconstructed Yeast to deliver such products will benefit the community of food and cosmetic industries and even the consumers as this method will render high quality, desired quantity and cost effective products in the market. Also products obtained from this process are of similar nature to the original plant derived products.

Some of the instances of such yeast derived products are quoted here,
Synthesis of anti malarial drug by a Pharma unit called Sanofi using Amyris’s genetically engineered yeast replacing the actual ingredient of plant origin.

Synthesis of moisturizer by Amyris to be used in cosmetics

Swiss based company, Evolva is all set to market the major component of Vanilla, the Vanillin made from yeast and its next product would be saffron.

The production of the flavoring agent valencene originally derived from oranges by the companies like Isobionics and Allylix is another example. The CE of Isobionics, Toine Janssen emphasizes the sustainability and eco friendly nature of the process.

Also there is evidence of growing partnerships between the companies which are into making products using yeast. Amyris join hands with Michelin to develop rubber products, joint venture of Amyris and Firmenich (Swiss based flavors and fragrant company) to produce Patchouli and combination of the companies, Evolva and Cargil to produce a special sweetener called Stevia.

Though any such attempt of making commercial products from genetically reconstructed yeast, in spite of having positive outcomes like comparatively low cost, high quality and the production ability to meet the market demands is also facing questions from criticizers like status of the farmers depending on the special spice plants for their living, whether such yeast derived products to be categorized as GM foods or natural products and the economy of many developing countries cultivating such special spice plants.

The direction of research is determined largely by many factor including current social need and key scientific problems in specific areas. We witnessed a prolific development in all areas of science. For the first time in human history the generation of data becomes enormous and is very difficult to manage. There has been growing need to interpret the data that is being generated. The development of data in different field of biological science has been reflected in the emergence of new discipline described by 'omics'. This became feasible because of the development of high throughput technology such as micro-array and metabolomics . At this junction it is relevant to ask the question whether we are the on the right direction in term the focus of current scientific development?

One of the main key factor in determining the direction of research is the profitability of the investment. There has been huge investment in the areas of science where there is scope of high return. As a result there are areas which becomes neglected. The question is whether we continue to afford the market driven research.

One of the fundamental area in biology is the metabolic regulation. Currently the understanding of human metabolism and physiology is based on the research done on rodent for example in rat and mice. Most of the current understanding of metabolic regulation came from the studies done on the rodent. Since the basic metabolism is similar across the species, so these studies has become corner stone for human biology. This area has been considered as has been understood and not much attention is being paid about the presence of difference in metabolic regulation across the species. Probably this is the single most reason for failure of many new drugs during clinical trial.

Though there is much similarity among the different species because of the evolution. The basic metabolic machinery across the species is by and large is the same. But this may not be true for the way they process the environmental signal. That means that metabolic regulation might be different among the species. Rats do not have a gall bladder which makes this species different from human in term of bile processing and consequently there exits difference in metabolic regulation in the processes which are dependent on bile. Similarly the lipoprotein profile in rat and human are different. Rat's plasma lipoprotein profile is characterized by high high density lipoprotein (HDL) where in human low density lipoprotein (LDL) is predominant. This points to the fact that there exits a difference in the metabolic regulation which mediates this phenotype, Without understanding these difference, can we say that we know the metabolism of the species to a fair degree?

Biotechnology techniques are being used to exploit the similarity in the metabolism across species. This techniques can be used in understanding the difference in the metabolic regulation operating across the species. At present the research community use different disease model to understand the different problem such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It is doubtful how much successful this strategy is in the development of the therapeutic interventions. The enormous amount of data are being generated by high throughput technology. At present there has not been a convincing framework to analyze the data. This has a negative impact on the decision making process. One of the reasons for the lack of convincing framework is the lack of understanding about the metabolic regulation.

The understanding of metabolic regulation across the species will help us to understand the pathological state in human. It will guide us to decide when and how we should extrapolate the findings on different species to human. This underlines the need to develop a integrated model of metabolism. In absence of proper understanding of difference of regulation among across the species, there can not be a thorough understanding of the data being generated. This is also true for the understanding of the relation between genotype and phenotype. This will help to analyze the genomic data better.

The current state of over dependence on some particular species for the data generation may not yield the correct solution. We need to focus on the difference existing across the species in term of regulatory mechanism. We should give the proper concentration on the areas which need attention. There should be a realization to identify the issues in the decision making processes which affects the development of the solution society is looking for. This should strengthened the ability to design new approach to address the difficult problems. It is always easy to state the problem rather than to provide the solution. The direction of the research should not be heavily determined by the market consideration but due attention also need to be given for the fundamental research.

Stem cell transplantation therapy has emerged as a potentially promising way forward in the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. However, the field is fraught with practical difficulties, including the tendency of stem cells not to survive in the long-term after transplantation and the difficulty in inducing robust differentiation of stem cells in vivo. A recent paper in Stem Cells Translational Medicine may point the way to overcoming some of these obstacles. In this paper, research groups from Uppsala University, Sweden, the RIKEN Brain Science Institute, Japan and Copenhagen University, Denmark describe the use of specifically designed silica nanoporous particles to deliver trophic factor mimetics to transplanted embryonic stem cells in animal models. This induced both a robust functional differentiation of motor neurons from transplanted embryonic stem cells and enhanced their long-term survival.

Nanoparticles are an area of intense research interest in the field of gene delivery in many areas beyond neurodegeneration, for example in cancer and in acute liver failure (ALF). Studies on Chinese experimental mini-swine suffering from ALF, for example, showed that administration of IL-1Ra chitosan nanoparticles in conjunction with mesenchymal stem cell transplant resulted in synergistic effects on inflammation suppression and elevation of growth factors. Meanwhile, bone marrow hematopoietic stem cell-based gene therapy is being viewed as a potential way to overcome the difficulty in delivering trophic factors across the blood-brain barrier in Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. For example studies in mice showed that when bone marrow cells were transduced ex vivo with lentivirus expressing the neurturin (NTN) gene and then transplanted into mice, the mice were protected from the neurodegenerative effects of subsequent neurotoxin administration. Thus current research is considering both delivery of trophic factors to transplanted stem cells via nanoparticles and the use of transplanted stem cells as delivery systems for trophic factors in different models.

In the recent Stem Cells Translational Medicine paper, the authors used their mesoporous nanoparticles to deliver Cintrofin, a peptide mimetic of ciliary neurotrophic factor and Gliafin, a peptide mimetic of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor to transplanted embryonic stem cells in mice with positive effects for stem cell differentiation. This opens the way for improvements in stem cell therapy implementation in neurodegenerative diseases. However, further animal studies and future human clinical trials will determine how widely applicable this new delivery technology will prove to be. News reports suggest that the researchers are in negotiations to have their innovative approach commercialised.

Sources

BIJU, K.C. et al., 2013. Bone marrow-derived microglia-based neurturin delivery protects against dopaminergic neurodegeneration in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease. Neuroscience letters, 535, pp. 24-29

GARCIA-BENNETT, A. et al., 2013. Delivery of Differentiation Factors by Mesoporous Silica Particles Assists Advanced Differentiation of Transplanted Murine Embryonic Stem Cells. Stem Cells Translational Medicine, 2013

XIAO, J. et al., 2013. Administration of IL-1Ra chitosan nanoparticles enhances the therapeutic efficacy of mesenchymal stem cell transplantation in acute liver failure. Archives of Medical Research, 44(5), pp. 370-379

Stockholm University. "New take on efficient delivery in regenerative medicine." ScienceDaily, 22 Oct. 2013. [Accessed 23 Oct. 2013].

2014 International Biotechnology, Chemical Engineering and Life Science Conference (IBCELC)

Dates: 14th -16th February 2014

Location: Hyatt Place-Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

Website:
http://www.ibcelc.org/index.asp?id=1

The website gives all the necessary information on abstract submission, fees, registration, conference agenda, hotel, exhibitions and other important facts.

Important Dates
Abstract/Full Paper Deadline 31st October 2013
Acceptance Notification 20th November 2013
Registration Deadline 5th December 2013

Purpose of the conference
To provide a platform for researchers, engineers, academics and industrial professionals to present their research results and development activities in Networking and Digital Society. There will be opportunities for the delegates to network, exchange new ideas and find global partners for future collaboration. Papers are welcomed from multiple topics within life sciences, biotechnology and chemical engineering, as detailed in the website.

Publication opportunity:
Computational and Structural Biotechnology Journal (ISSN 2001-0370)
Biotechnology and Molecular Biology Reviews (ISSN :1538-2273)

Patexia is hosting a new alternative energy patent study. We are offering a prize pool of $4,000 for qualified submissions. You can view the contest here: http://bit.ly/GQaKw3.

Event: 2014 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology

Organizers: Bio Industry Organisation (BIO)

Co-Organizers: The Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PCVB)

When: 12th May – 15th May 2014

Venue: Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Invitees: Pioneers in Biotechnology industry, Chemical Industry and Agriculture sector, Academic scientists, Policy makers (Government), Non government Science sector, Stakeholders and investors.

BIO calls for the Proposals and Papers from scientists from academia, biotechnology industry and science community. Abstracts can be either in the form of panel submission or individual paper submission.

Time limit for paper presentation: 15 minutes and the length of the abstract should be 3500 characters.

The proposals and papers should be highly initiating with novel ideas in the following areas.
Advanced Biofuels and Biorefinery, Algae, Speciality crops and Biomass supply, Renewable chemical platforms and Biobased products, Speciality chemicals, Pharma intermediates and Food ingredients, Marine Biotechnology, Feedstock sustainability, Synthetic Biology and Genomics Research.

If you are ready with your paper or proposal then make sure that you submit your abstract online on or before 21st November 2013.

Also there will be a poster presentation segment and the last date to submit your presentation is 1st April 2014.

Programs scheduled: The conference will hold various programs like Breakout program, Plenary sessions, Workshops, Poster presentations, Clean Tech Investor session, Networking Reception, Exhibitions and George Washington Carver Award.

The special session of the conference will be the presentation of the George Washington Carver Award and the nomination for this award for 2014 conference is open from October 2013 to January 2014. This award is given every year in this conference to honor George Washington Carver who applied science in agriculture producing day to day products and thus gave a new dimension to agri economics and sustainability.

The attendees will have a chance to meet high cadre business and industrial people, government policy makers, Research fellows and scientists. The details of registration, travel and accommodation are available in BIO's website.

This conference is organized every year by BIO to emphasis the development of industrial biotechnology and to showcase the significance of industrial biotechnology and environmental biotechnology in creating greener markets and jobs. Also with an aim to build biobased industries delivering greener products by adopting clean techniques.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder which is the leading international cause of senile dementia. There is currently no cure for this disease. It is known that the E4 allele of the apolipoprotein E (ApoE4) is the major genetic risk factor for development of AD. It has also been recognised that a group of proteins known as sirtuins have protective effects against age-related diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases. One of these sirtuins is targeted for up-regulation and release from suppression by resveratrol, a polyphenol found mainly in grapes and red wine. In research published this week in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a possible link between APOE4 and SIRT1 has been uncovered that may offer future hope to ApoE4 gene carriers for new therapeutics.

In mammals there are seven sirtuins, SIRT1-7. They are NAD-dependent protein deacetylases with a variety of subcellular localisations and functions. SIRT1 has been shown to have a connection with lifespan extension linked to its role in calorie restriction. Research in the SAMP8 mouse model of age-related AD showed that dietary resveratrol supplements had positive effects including increased mean life expectancy and maximal life span and neuroprotective effects, including on the SIRT1 pro-survival pathway. It decreased the amyloid burden and reduced tau hyperphosphorylation. In vitro studies on PC12 cells have also shown that neurotoxicity of β-amyloid peptide 25-35 (Aβ(25-35)) could be ameliorated by addition of resveratrol to the culture medium via up-regulation of SIRT1 and consequent negative regulation of downstream signal molecule, ROCK1. Interestingly in the context of the present PNAS paper, SIRT1 has recently been shown to attenuate amyloidogenic processing of amyloid-β protein precursor (APP) both in vitro and in transgenic mouse models of Alzheimer's disease. SIRT1 increased production of the α-secretase enzyme via activation of the α-secretase gene ADAM10. Importantly, α-secretase mediates non-amyloidogenic cleavage of APP, thus its up-regulation would tend to reduce A beta species accumulation that is associated with AD. A beta species are associated with the sticky plaques which are a feature of AD.

In the current PNAS paper, researchers from the Buck Institute in the USA showed that both in cultured neural cells and in brain samples from patients with ApoE4 and AD, APOE4 reduced SIRT1 dramatically. Consistently with the studies linking SIRT1 to ADAM10 and non-amyloidogenic cleavage of APP, APOE4 favoured formation of the A beta peptide. Encouragingly, the PNAS paper showed that abnormalities associated with APOE4 and AD, including creation of phospho-tau and A beta peptide could be blocked by increasing SIRT1. Thus drug candidates that would have this effect would be promising future AD therapies, in particular for the high-risk ApoE4 gene carriers. Perhaps resveratrol or similar compounds may help point the way forward in AD therapeutic research.

Sources

BONDA, D.J. et al., 2011. The sirtuin pathway in ageing and Alzheimer disease: mechanistic and therapeutic considerations. Lancet Neurology, 10(3), pp. 275-279

BRAIDY, N. et al., 2012. Sirtuins in cognitive ageing and Alzheimer's disease. Current Opinion In Psychiatry, 25(3), pp. 226-230

DONMEZ, G. and OUTEIRO, T.F., 2013. SIRT1 and SIRT2: emerging targets in neurodegeneration. EMBO Molecular Medicine, 5(3), pp. 344-352

FENG, X. et al., 2013. Resveratrol inhibits β-amyloid-induced neuronal apoptosis through regulation of SIRT1-ROCK1 signaling pathway. Plos One, 8(3), pp. e59888-e59888

GUO, W. et al., 2011. Sirt1 overexpression in neurons promotes neurite outgrowth and cell survival through inhibition of the mTOR signaling. Journal of neuroscience research, 89(11), pp. 1723-1736

KUMAR, R. et al., 2013. Sirtuin1: a promising serum protein marker for early detection of Alzheimer's disease. Plos One, 8(4), pp. e61560-e61560

PORQUET, D. et al., 2013. Dietary resveratrol prevents Alzheimer's markers and increases life span in SAMP8. Age (Dordrecht, Netherlands), 35(5), pp. 1851-1865

RAO, R. et al., 2013. Neuroprotective Sirtuin ratio reversed by ApoE4. PNAS, October 2013

Buck Institute for Age Research. "Major Alzheimer's risk factor linked to red wine target." ScienceDaily, 21 Oct. 2013. [Accessed 21 Oct. 2013]

http://www.buckinstitute.org/buck-news/m...ine-target [Accessed 21 Oct. 2013].

Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular parasite which can normally be cleared without complications in adult humans. However it can cause serious issues in patients who are immunosuppressed, for example upon undergoing organ transplants or cancer chemotherapy or suffering from AIDS. If contracted during pregnancy, congenital toxoplasmosis can occur with serious consequences for the foetus. Toxoplasma gondii can highjack the host melvalonate pathway, used for isoprenoid synthesis; this was one of the results of a recent study in Plos Pathogens from a research group in the University of Georgia in the USA. Fortunately the group also found that in mice, the parasite can be thwarted in this usurping of the host cell machinery by treatment with a combination of two drugs that already are known to be well-tolerated and safe in most people. The drugs used were the anti-cholesterol statin drug atorvastatin (Lipitor) and the osteoporosis bisphosphonate medication zoledronic acid (Zometa).

Isoprenoids are lipid compounds with essential roles in cell signalling, trafficking, energy metabolism, and protein translation. They are the targets of therapeutic agents in a range of diseases including cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and bone metastases. Toxoplasma gondii has its own prokaryotic-type 1-deoxy-D-xylulose-5-phosphate (DOXP) pathway for synthesis of isoprenoids such as isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP) and dimethyallyl diphosphate (DMAPP). The authors of the Plos Pathogens paper had previously shown that the key enzyme of downstream isoprenoid synthesis in T. gondii was an enzyme called farnesyl diphosphate synthase (TgFPPS), which is a dual purpose enzyme that can catalyse the condensation of IPP with three allylic substrates: DMAPP, geranyl diphosphate (GPP), and farnesyl disphosphate (FPP). However, in this study they found that when Toxoplasma gondii mutants null for this enzyme were used to infect mice they grew healthily and had an isoprenoid composition similar to their wild type counterparts. It was only when they were grown extracellularly that the effect of the mutation on growth phenotype became apparent, which suggested to the researchers that the parasite was using the host’s farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) and/or geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) in order to continue making isoprenoids and growing normally. This gave the researchers the idea of targeting both the host and parasite pathways with statin and bisphosphonate respectively, hence the use of Lipitor and Zometa. This combination of therapies resulted in cure of mice with lethal infection with the TgFPPs mutant. The authors suggest that this kind of double-hit strategy could have wider applicability in therapies directed against other parasites in the Apicomplexan family to which Toxoplasma gondii belongs. This includes the Plasmodium parasites which cause malaria and the Cryptosporidium parasites.

The theory needs to be researched further and subjected to rigorous testing in animals and humans before it could be adopted in human therapy for parasites, but if the results of this study are borne out it would be an attractive option as it involves already approved drugs known to be safe for humans. The signs are hopeful, for example early research suggests that combining atorvastatin with fosmidomycin, an antibiotic effective against malaria parasites, is more potent in combating malaria and may help lessen reduce drug resistance issues. The research continues.

Sources

LI, Z.-H., RAMAKRISHNAN, S., STRIEPEN, B. and MORENO, S.N.J., 2013. Toxoplasma gondii Relies on Both Host and Parasite Isoprenoids and Can Be Rendered Sensitive to Atorvastatin. PLoS Pathogens, 9 (10): e1003665 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1003665

LING, Y., LI, Z.-H., MIRANDA, K., OLDFIELD, E. and MORENO, S.N.J., 2007. The farnesyl-diphosphate/geranylgeranyl-diphosphatesynthase of Toxoplasma gondii is a bifunctional enzyme and a molecular target of bisphosphonates. J. Biol. Chem. 282, pp. 30804–30816.

University of Georgia. "Statin, osteoporosis drug combo may help treat parasitic infections." ScienceDaily, 17 Oct. 2013. [Accessed 19 Oct. 2013].

We are pleased to inform you that, The Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Padmashree Dr D. Y. Patil University, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, is organizing “The National Conference on Frontiers Biotechnology and Bioinformatics (NCFIBB2014)” with a thrust on “Macromolecular Interactions in Biology” 30th - 31st Jan 2014 and Bioinformatics Workshop On “Biomolecular Interactions” 28th - 29th Jan 2014.

Attached here with is the brochure for registration and detail information. Please give wide publicity of the Conference by sending the E-copy of the Brochure to all the Research Scientist, Academicians and other acquaintances in the field of Biology.
Or
Kindly download the brochure,registration form and related information from the following link:
http://dypatil.in/collegelinkdetails.asp...lcmsid=112
[b]
Kindly also forward the following information: For registration the money can be transferred electronically and the soft copy of receipt of the electronic transaction needs to be mailed along with registration form & abstract to ncfibb2014@gmail.com.

Account- Dr. D. Y. Patil University- DBB
CANARA BANK, Navi Mumbai- 400614
A/ C no: 3044101001667
IFSC Code: CNRB0003044
MICR Code: 400015138

Prof. Debjani Dasgupta
Convener, NCFIBB2014.
Professor & Head, Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics,
Padmashree Dr. D. Y. Patil University, Sector-15, Plot-50, CBD Belapur,
Navi Mumbai - 400614. INDIA

Could one’s stool be a remedy for another’s infection. Yes, stool therapy is the most commonly used one to treat Clostridium difficile infected patients. Clostridium difficile, the spore forming bacteria infects the gut and this infection is a disastrous one killing about 14K people every year. This gut related infection deteriorates the health of the infected individual and there is always several episodes of recurrence in spite of treating with the available antibiotics.

Clostridium difficile is mostly prevalent in hospitals and generally patients in hospitals are more susceptible to this infection whose normal gut flora is disturbed by their intake of antibiotics. Hence it is also called as a “hospital superbug”. This bacterium entering an individual resides in the gut in a dormant state unable to compete with the normal gut flora and becomes active in a condition where the gut flora is destructed by antibiotics. Once active, it is really hard to get rid of this microbe.

The transplantation of stool from a healthy donor to the infected person through colonoscopy and enema to establish gut microflora in the infected person to suppress the activity of the deadly microbe is one of the treatment method. As a next level of this treatment the infectious disease specialist Thomas Louie recently discovered an advanced method by developing “Stool Pills”.

His research involves extraction of microbes from the stool of a healthy donor (generally related to the patient) under laboratory conditions and encapsulating the microbes with trilayers of gel as a pill so that the microbes get released only in the colon when the pill is ingested by the patient. To take the pill patients are prepared several days before by giving them C difficile antibiotic and given enema on the day of the treatment so that the new microbes taken in the form of pills will have a healthy environment to establish in the gut. On an average about 24 to 34 pills are required by a patient to recover the lost microflora of the gut. Also the pills are to be made separately for each patient as their donors differ.

Freezing the stool sample for extraction of the microbes and isolating the particular bacteria effective against C difficile are some of the studies in pipeline.

Also in another study by the researchers at the university of Leicester headed by Dr.Martha Clokie reports the identification of the bacteriophage (Virus) that is effective against Clostridium difficile.

With antibiotic resistance shown by microbes being the greatest threat to the community, research studies involving discovery of bio medication is promising to overcome this threat.

• Title: Research Projects in Bioinformatics for Final Year Life Sciences/ Pharma/computer Science students
• Main focus of program: Developing scientific research abilities of students in the area of Bioinformatics and Drug Discovery through live-projects holding real world significance
• Duration: 45 days
Day 1-10: Student will learn bioinformatics tools and complete related
assignments
Day 11-30: Student will generate data for project and analyze results
Day 31-45: Student will submit Project Report (~15 pages) to Malkolak and their own institute
• Requirements from students: (i) Students will perform projects individually at their institute or at Malkolak-Institute of Life Sciences, 101 Maithrivanam,
Ameerpet, Hyderabad (ii) Students will print their final Project Report in 3 copies (one for themselves, one for their institute and one for Malkolak)
• Malkolak will offer: (i) Expert training through academy and industry
experienced scientists (ii) All study materials, softwares and instructions for
project, corrections and advice on student written reports (iii) Certificate of
Project Completion.
• Added benefit: If the data generated by student is selected for publishing, then student will gain authorship and both Malkolak and the student’s college will be mentioned in the publication.
• Study Mode: All materials related to learning bioinformatics, performing
assignments and performing projects will be provided to students by Research Scientists at Malkolak-Institute of Life Sciences. Timings will be 10 am to 1 pm or 2 pm to 5 pm Mon-Thu. If these timings are a constraint, then an online study mode can be made available.
• Total Fees: Rs. 7500 per student (to be paid in full at the time of registration).


Contact:
Jaya Lakshmi Thadishetty,
Bioinformatics Consultant,
Malkolak Centre For Bioinformatics (M-CBI),
MILS, Malkolak Knowledege Centre
Ameerpet, Hyderabad
www.malkolak.in
040-23753765,040-40126777, (040) 40268262/63/64
REGISTRATIONS ARE OPEN


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Escherichia coli known for its versatile applications in biotech industries have created yet another mile stone in biofuel production. The fabulous discovery by the Korean scientist crew published in the “Nature” journal reports the production of gasoline by the genetically modified E coli.

The discovery of petrol production using genetically engineered E coli is a major breakthrough in the field of biofuel production heading towards sustainable development and greener living.


The direct conversion of glucose molecules into gasoline by the employed E coli is the highlight of the research. The genetically reprogrammed bacterium E coli is allowed to act upon the glucose from either edible or non edible plant source. The conversion of the glucose into gasoline is purely governed by the enzymes produced by the bacteria E coli. Yes, the reaction of the conversion of glucose to the end product hydrocarbon with fatty acid as an intermediate product is catalyzed by the enzymes produced by recombinant E coli.

Scientists claim that thus produced gasoline can replace petrol in the automobiles for its physical and chemical characteristics are identical to that of the currently used fuel, petrol. With this basic discovery the research team is working towards taking it to the next level of mass production. In the present study they were able to derive 580 milligram of gasoline per liter of glucose and genetically engineered E coli mixture and their target is to achieve 3 grams of gasoline from glucose culture volume of about 1 liter in an hour and if this turns out to be successful they will work towards 10 – 20 grams of gasoline production, thus trying to increase the yield gradually.

Inspite of lots of time and effort to be put in achieving high yield, if they are able to make it to the expected outcome then it will give a new dimension to the biofuel production and its usage for it will be a greener energy source alternative to the currently used fuels which are sources of carbon emissions right from its production to usage.

Place of Research: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Research Head: Prof. Sang Yup Lee.

A study published today in the journal Cell Host & Microbe describes dismaying results on the effects of a toxin unleashed on the immune system by the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. S. aureus is a highly dangerous bacterium which causes potentially deadly infections in many organs such as the heart and contributes to, for example, biofilm formation in cystic fibrosis patients. While it has been known for many years that S. aureus releases a battery of toxins, the mechanisms of action of these toxins is only beginning to be understood. Meanwhile, S. aureus, like so many other bacterial infections, is developing multi-drug resistance to antibiotics, making it imperative that we develop our understanding of its actions so we can target them with new therapeutic agents.

In the current Cell Host & Microbe study, a research group from NYU Langone Medical Centre looked at an S. aureus toxin called Leukotoxin ED (LukED). The same group had previously shown that LukED could bind to the CCR5 receptor on white blood cells including T cells, the backbone of the acquired immune response, macrophages, which phagocytose microbes, and dendritic cells, which are essential for presenting antigen to T cells. LukED could consequently destroy all these essential immune cells by lysis. However, there was a mystery associated with LukED; it could also kill neutrophils, which do not express CCR5. Neutrophils are granulocytic leukocytes that are the first line of defence against invading pathogens; they kill microbes by phagocytosis and by degranulation to release hydrolytic enzymes. Neutralising them seriously handicaps the rest of the immune response. But how does LukED target neutrophils in the absence of CCR5 expression? The results of the Cell Host & Microbe study show that not only can LukED block CCR5 but it can also block CXCR1 and CXCR2 receptors, which are expressed on neutrophils. These receptors respond to and bind mediators known as CXC- chemokines, which is essential for recruitment of neutrophils to sites of infection. So by blocking CXCR1 and CXCR2, LukED can prevent neutrophils being recruited by chemoattraction to the site of infection.

The multiple chemokine receptor-blocking activity of LukED is bad news as it gives S. aureus a multi-pronged strategy for attacking the immune system at a number of different stages. However, the good news is that the more we understand about how S. aureus targets the immune system, the better equipped we are to begin to develop therapeutic agents to combat it. The strategy must be to try to target the toxin in order to interfere with its chemokine receptor-binding capacity.

Sources

ALONZO, F.,3RD et al., 2012. Staphylococcus aureus leucocidin ED contributes to systemic infection by targeting neutrophils and promoting bacterial growth in vivo. Molecular microbiology, 83(2), pp. 423-435

ALONZO, F.,3RD et al., 2013. CCR5 is a receptor for Staphylococcus aureus leukotoxin ED. Nature, 493(7430), pp. 51-55

Reyes-Robles, T., et al, 2013. Staphylococcus aureus Leukotoxin ED Targets the Chemokine Receptors CXCR1 and CXCR2 to Kill Leukocytes and Promote Infection. Cell Host & Microbe, 14 (4): pp. 453; DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2013.09.005

NYU Langone Medical Center / New York University School of Medicine. "Study shows how Staph toxin disarms the immune system." ScienceDaily, 16 Oct. 2013. [Accessed 16 Oct. 2013].

A study published today in the Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry claims that spraying broccoli with a plant hormone called methyl jasmonate, normally used in plant defence, can intensify its anti-cancer potential. Broccoli is known as a ‘super food’, contributing positively to a healthy diet. There are many claims, backed up by studies including animal models, that broccoli and broccoli sprouts can be protective against cancer. Some studies suggest that eating broccoli regularly can lead to lower rates of prostate, colon, breast, lung and skin cancers, although it should be noted that it can be difficult to be unambiguous about claims that eating broccoli can directly affect cancer incidence or progression.

These claims have centred mainly on the phytonutrient glucoraphanin (4-methylsulfinylbutyl glucosinolate), which is present in significant amounts in broccoli and is metabolised in vivo to the biologically active sulforaphane. Sulforaphane has been shown to target self-renewal in cancer stem cells (CSCs) in different cancer types via modulation of signalling intermediates including NF-κB, SHH, epithelial-mesenchymal transition and Wnt/β-catenin. Sulforaphane has also been tested pre-clinically in combination with chemotherapy with promising results. Such studies have led to interest in developing broccoli varieties which are enriched in glucoraphanin and therefore capable of making more sulforaphane.

In the current Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry study, sprays of methyl jasmonate were used in an attempt to alter glucosinolate composition, including glucoraphanin levels, in five commercial broccoli hybrids. The researchers from the University of Illinois in the USA found that sprays of methyl jasmonate significantly increased expression of several glucosinolates, including glucoraphanin, and of their hydrolysis products, including sulforaphane and several other glucosinolate derivatives with likely cancer-fighting potential. This was associated with increased quinone reductase (QR). QR is a member of the family of phase II enzymes which mediate detoxification processes of chemical carcinogens which can prevent the start of carcinogenesis. As well as the effect of methyl jasmonate, year-associated weather variables were also important.

These studies offer potential to maximise the cancer-fighting enzymes levels of broccoli and gives insight into the environmental elements that impact on this process. It seems there are potentially very compelling reasons why we should ‘eat our greens’.

Sources

KU, K.M, JEFFERY, E.H. and JUVIK, J.A. , 2013. Influence of Seasonal Variation and Methyl Jasmonate Mediated Induction of Glucosinolate Biosynthesis on Quinone Reductase Activity in Broccoli Florets. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2013; DOI: 10.1021/jf4027734

DE FIGUEIREDO, S.,M. et al., 2013. The anti-oxidant properties of isothiocyanates: a review. Recent Patents On Endocrine, Metabolic & Immune Drug Discovery, 7(3), pp. 213-225

JAMES, D. et al., 2012. Novel concepts of broccoli sulforaphanes and disease: induction of phase II antioxidant and detoxification enzymes by enhanced-glucoraphanin broccoli. Nutrition reviews, 70(11), pp. 654-665

LI, Y. and ZHANG, T., 2013. Targeting cancer stem cells with sulforaphane, a dietary component from broccoli and broccoli sprouts. England: Future Medicine Ltd.

American Chemical Society. "Maximizing broccoli's cancer-fighting potential." ScienceDaily, 16 Oct. 2013. [Accessed 16 Oct. 2013].

NXT-Dx launches its H2G2 Genome Browser - The hitchhiker's guide to the genome.

NXT-Dx launches its H2G2 Genome Browser software (www.H2G2genomebrowser.com) to genomics-researchers worldwide. For the past 2 years NXT-Dx has offered use of its H2G2 Genome Browser software exclusively to its service customers. Now the software is made available to any researcher worldwide.

"Over the past few years the data generation from sequencing experiments has drastically increased and improved. This increase in throughput and ease of data generation has resulted in data-analysis becoming the bottleneck for most experiments. We believe that with the H2G2 Genome Browser we have got an indispensable tool to help researchers with their data-analysis. Therefore we are proud we can now launch the software to the global research community". (Maarten Braspenning: Operational and commercial director).

NXT-Dx's H2G2 Genome Browser is a web-based visualization and analysis software for sequencing data allowing its users to access and analyze their data from any computer with an internet connection, while the data is safely stored at NXT-Dx’s secure servers. The software allows uploading, storage and visualization of both raw and/or mapped data from any type of sequencing experiment. Users can visualize and browse their data, compare between samples, incorporate publicly available data, export data to excel, etc.

The H2G2 Genome Browser is an easy-to-use visualization software which will help researchers worldwide to make sense from their sequencing data in a simple and intuitive way.

Emailed by: (Pdf version from the company is attached)
Maarten Braspenning
NXT-Dx
+32 9 265 02 52
Maarten.braspenning@nxt-dx.com
http://www.nxt-dx.com