Katarina Wikstrom has worked for over 20 years in the field of translational molecular oncology and holds the position of VP global product development at Almac Diagnostic Services.
Kate Broderick takes us on her intriguing journey - from being drawn to how science was applied within a medical setting, to the enormous challenge of working around the clock when the pandemic began.
Sigma-Aldrich has signed an exclusive agreement with Roche to distribute its biochemical reagents product portfolio via Sigma’s eCommerce and supply chain capabilities. The companies did not disclose any of the financial details of the deal.
Contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) Almac has invested $7m (€5.5m) in a biocatalysis R&D partnership with Queens University Belfast.
Eurofins Genomics has installed next generation DNA and RNA sequencing systems by Roche and Illumina, citing growing sponsor demand for high throughput services.
Thermo Fisher Scientific has set up a unit for molecular biology techs at its site in Lithuania, citing pharmaceutical R&D labs in Eastern Europe as a target.
Almac says its first leap into Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) data analysis services is a much needed-change from the industry’s current “one-size-fits-all” offering.
DNA sequencing specialist Genewiz has added gene synthesis to its service portfolio, providing researchers with a time- and cost-saving alternative to techniques such as molecular cloning and protein engineering.
Clinical Data is to sell Cogenics division, which provides services including sequencing and gene expression, to Beckman Coulter’s Agencourt Biosciences' business for $17m.
The MicroSEQ detection platform, developed by Applied Biosystems, looks set to revolutionise the detection of bacterial Mycoplasma in industrial scale biopharmaceutical manufacturing.
Despite the credit crunch, Invitrogen’s acquisition of ABI (Applied Biosystems) is expected to be complete by early November and details of how the merged entity will be structured have just been released.
UK laboratory services firm LGC has brought the first BioMark system into the UK in order to accurately quantify rare gene sequences for its pharmaceutical customers.
Caliper Life Sciences has launched two new microfluidic-based electrophoresis instruments designed to address the separation needs of proteomic and genomic researchers.
Sigma-Aldrich has introduced a new high-throughput (HT) plasmid DNA
purification kit for transfection applications in pharmaceutical
and biotechnology research.
Lab901 has raised £3.5m in funding, which will go towards expanding
its sales efforts and new products for RNA and Protein
Electrophoresis - a market that is currently worth $1.3bn worldwide
and expected to increase to over $1.6bn.
Microarray expert Affymetrix is to buy molecular biology reagent
firm USB Corporation for $75m (€52m) in a bid to accelerate the
development of new genetic analysis tools.
Researchers have developed a nanoparticle signalling system that
can be used as cellular 'nano-flares' that enable the visualisation
and quantification of RNA in living cells.
Analytical laboratory LGC has set up an initiative to develop a new
approach to training for analysts working in molecular
laboratories, with a novel e-learning tool.
ESA Analytical introduces its latest ultra-high sensitivity
detector for fast HPLC, which provides laboratories with the
ability to monitor HPLC eluants down to miniscule detection levels.
Plastic labware manufacturers Nalge Nunc have launched its range of
RNase/DNase-free products and capabilities specifically designed to
support molecular biology research from microwell plates to
packaging.
SuperArray Bioscience has made available a range of pathway-focused
real-time PCR gene panels that allow scientists to use their
real-time PCR instrument just like a microarray in the multiple
stages involved in drug discovery and...
Millipore has made available Protein Blotting Sandwiches that offer
convenience and time savings for high throughput labs using
chemiluminescent or chromogenic detection methods.
Researchers at Michigan State University have found that
second-generation taxols, which currently rely on assembly by
semisynthetic organic chemistry approaches, can be produced in a
cheap and environmentally friendly fashion using...
FEI and Sidec have entered into an agreement to commercialise a
range of Protein Tomography solutions that could provide drug
companies with services that could increase the chances of success
in early stage drug development.
Agilent introduces its next generation of assay kits for its 2100
Bioanalyser Lab-on-a-Chip platform that aims to replace
labour-intensive SDS-PAGE and capillary gel electrophoresis (CGE)
methods providing faster microfluidic analyses.
Genevac announces the launch of a new second-generation version of
its EZ-2 centrifugal evaporator, which is able to take tubes,
flasks and vials directly from the synthesis process, providing
flexibility for those switching their...
Sigma Aldrich has launched a new integrated lysis and affinity
purification (iLAP) column, which greatly simplifies the process of
cell lysis and histidine-tagged protein purification into one step,
allowing fast, efficient and non-denaturing...
A small interfering RNA (siRNA) library developed by Ambion has
been used to provide a detailed analysis of endocytosis, the
process by which cells internalise nutrient, cell signalling, and
other molecules.
Topigen Pharmaceuticals has launched a new 3rd generation chemistry
technology, which has been designed for improving
oligonucleotide-based therapeutics that has the potential for broad
gene-targeting drug applications.
Suppliers in the RNA purification market seeking to win market
share are posed with the challenge of overcoming strong levels of
customer loyalty. A survey reveals that Qiagen and Invitrogen came
out top as to primary suppliers to...
UK company ML Laboratories has won a new customer for its gene
expression technology - UCOE - used to improve the production of
proteins for drug discovery and use as therapeutics.
A US company has revealed a unique method in drug development that
uses transgenic tobacco plants to cultivate the human protein
CaroRx, which could prevent tooth decay in the future.
GWC Technologies claims that its new SpotReady chips enable labs to
carry out label-free array analysis of proteins and other
biomolecules, reports Anthony Fletcher.
Beckman Coulter has launched a gene analysis system that aims to
deliver high-throughput, cost effective gene expression via
scalable, multiplexed PCR and overcome the biases that limit
standard PCR analyses to just a few genes...
BioGenex announces the launch of the Xmatrx, a walk-away system
that automates molecular diagnostics and drug target identification
and validation. The system is specifically designed to enable drug
discovery companies to customise...
UK-based biotechnology firm Biotica Technology and the University
of Cambridge have secured funding for a collaborative research
initiative into new expression systems for the production of
polyketides.
Boehringer Ingelheim Austria has been selected to win a Technology
Leadership award by Frost & Sullivan for its activities in the
contract manufacture of biotherapeutic proteins, and particularly
plasmid DNA.
Serologicals has completed its acquisition of Upstate Group,
acquiring the privately held company for $205 million (€166m) in
cash ($102.5m) and stock.
German biotechnological company SIRS-Lab, has introduced the
Lab-Arraytor 60-inflammation, a biochip that comprises a total of
780 inflammation-defined genes, specifically to understand the
molecular framework of acute inflammatory...
A team of researchers has issued a plea that that
microarray-derived gene expression data should be available in a
public repository in the same way that gene sequence data is
collated for use by all.
In a joint project with the Max-Planck-Institute for Molecular
Genetics, Germany's Scienion is adapting its nucleic acid chip
technology to handle protein applications. The project aims to
develop antibody chips for the analysis...
Oxford BiomMedica has entered into a partnership with a US company
to try to overcome the primary obstacles to producing recombinant
proteins in eggs, the low level of expression of the gene
transcript coding for the target protein...
