Biotechnology and Developing Countries
Thursday, November 25th, 2010
In a well presented post, Greg Odogwu from Abuja, Nigeria, looks at the biotechnology scene and its significance for developing countries like Nigeria.
As he says, biotechnology has been around for a long time as in the making of cheese, wine and beer. Its modern applications include production of vaccines, insulin and the currently controversial genetically modified crops. The latter has become controversial owing to such products as the terminator seeds that can make farmers dependent on seeds from the market (instead of using part of the last crop as seeds).
While GM crops have become controversial, it is generally agreed that using existing practices, the world cannot provide food for its growing population. Eradicating hunger would need improved agricultural practices in developing countries. Crops like cassava that are consumed by the poor can benefit from biotechnology.
In addition to agriculture, healthcare is also benefiting from modern biotechnology. In addition to producing substances like human insulin and human growth hormone, it is theoretically possible to treat hereditary diseases through genetic engineering by working with the genes that make one prone to the disease.
The author of the blog wonders whether Nigeria is missing the biotechnology revolution. Read the blog post at the Daily Independent.
Tags: biotechnology, crop science, genetic engineering, GM crops, healthcare
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Cancer Treatment: A new Approach
Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010
Chemotherapy was the original treatment for cancer. In chemotherapy, fast growing cells are targeted and the tumour shrinks as a result. However, the effect is not always permanent; the cells often grow back and even become resistant to the therapy.
To overcome the resistance problem, chemotherapy is typically combined with other treatments that attack the tumour cells in different ways. Arriving at a right combination of treatments to ensure that they do not become too toxic is a task requiring caution and skill. In addition to prolonging life, the treatments should also improve the quality of the patient’s life. Cancer treatment has often made patients wonder whether it is the disease or treatment that is worse.
Now, a new form of treatment seems to be emerging. The treatment, known as oncolytic virotherapeutics, involves using viruses to infect and eliminate diseased cancer cells. The viruses do not affect normal cells.
A number of oncolytic viruses have been developed and are being tried out in clinical trials. These include the adenovirus, which is being tried out in multiple-engineered versions. Another, the Newcastle disease virus seems to minimize side effects when administered through slow infusion rather than injection. Poxviruses and even herpes simplex virus are all being researched.
Read the report at BioMedReports.
Tags: biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, cancer treatment
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Biologics: A new Class of Drugs for Arthritis and other Conditions
Monday, November 1st, 2010
Biologics is generally viewed as a class of medications that are produced using biological processes involving recombinant DNA technology. They might be:
* Similar to the body’s signaling proteins that, for example, stimulate blood production or growth
* Custom antibodies that counteract some specific substance in the body or target specific cell types
* Receptor constructs with detailed specificity such as the ability to interfere with the tumor necrosis factor in autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatology and oncology have benefited in particular from this class of medications by adding major new therapeutic options. In many cases, no effective options were available for the disease conditions until biologics appeared.
Arthritis patients, for example, had no effective therapy under modern medicine while alternative medicine did not provide full relief. These patients have benefited significantly from biologic therapies that arrived only recently. The new treatments do cause some problems such as higher risks of infection and there is a pressing need to develop therapies that can produce results and minimize the risks.
The market for arthritis therapy using biologics is huge as arthritis is a worldwide problem that seriously affects the productivity of the workforce, in addition to causing severe and continued pain to sufferers. The report titled Arthritis Therapeutics to 2016 – Biologics Revolutionize Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis and Psoriatic Arthritis looks at this market. What makes this market highly attractive is the fact that arthritis therapy has a strong pipeline of candidates in different phases of clinical trials.
Tags: biologics, biotechnology, recombinant DNA, therapies
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University Develops Treatment for better Cancer Outcomes
Wednesday, October 20th, 2010
University of Queensland in Australia has developed Theraphil that can prevent neutropenia in cancer patients undergoing high doses of chemotherapy. Neutropenia results when the chemotherapy destroys white blood cells that fight bacterial and fungal infections. As a result, the cancer patients become highly susceptible to infections that can often lead to death.
Theraphil was developed by UQ researchers working at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN). It is a cell based therapy that UniQuest, the university’s main commercialization company, will be promoting at the annual Ausbiotech Conference. UniQuest has been working with the researchers to create a commercially viable prospect for potential investors, according to the company’s Managing Director.
UniQuest is seeking an investment or licensing partner to get the product into hospitals. The product incorporates valuable intellectual property and now needs a partner with requisite financial strength to see it through clinical trials and marketing. It can produce financial, clinical and economic returns to the partner, University, Australia’s biotech industry and the health services sector, according to UniQuest MD.
UniQuest hopes to announce the partner at the Ausbiotech Conference scheduled this week. The partner will be benefiting patients in critical need according to UniQuest.
Read the news at UUQ News website.
Tags: biopharmaceuticals, biotechnology, cancer treatment, nanobiotechnology
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DNA Sequencing has Applications in Numerous Fields
Sunday, October 17th, 2010
DNA sequencing identifies the order of nucleotides (building blocks of DNA) in a segment of DNA. Knowledge of this order can help identify the genetic makeup of an organism. Researchers have been able to associate vulnerability to certain diseases with specific genetic makeup. The DNA sequence of individuals can help determine their vulnerabilities, as well as the type of treatment that will work for them. Such personalized treatment is the future of medicine.
Genetic therapy that replaces defective genes with healthy ones is another medical application.
DNA sequences are unique for individuals and this characteristic has been used in forensics to identify the presence of individuals at crime scenes. Hair, nail, skin or blood samples can be analyzed and the DNA sequence can be compared with that of suspect’s. DNA sequencing is also used to determine paternity.
And genetically modified crops with higher yields, better resistance to pest attacks and even greater nutritional value have become possible with the help of DNA sequencing and manipulation.
Scientific projects such as the human genome project involved extensive DNA sequencing. It is this project that helped researchers identify the relationship between disease and genetic makeup.
DNA sequencing has several applications and the industry is growing fast. A report goes into specific detail starting with a look at DNA, the methods used for DNA sequencing and an analysis of the market for DNA sequencing industry by methods, applications and regions.
Tags: biotechnology, dna, dna sequencing, personalized medicine
Posted in biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, crop science, diseases, genetic modification | 1 Comment »
Epigenetic Therapy for Cancers
Sunday, October 3rd, 2010
Genes work by expressing themselves as proteins that build our cells and organs. Each gene expresses itself by making unique and specialized proteins and in normal situations this leads to the development of healthy organisms. Epigenetics is a phenomenon that results in modifying the molecular protein expression.
Epigenetic modification of gene expression can lead to diseases by, say silencing tumor suppressing genes. Such silencing can lead to development of disease, cancer in this case. One serious issue is that epigenetic changes can be passed on to progeny.
Epigenetic therapy is a field that is expanding. In 2009, the value of epigenetic therapeutic drugs sold has been estimated at $517 million. Annual cost of cancer therapy with epigenetic drugs has been estimated between $45,000 and $50,000. Epigenetic Therapeutics is thus a highly profitable field for drug makers.
A market report titled Epigenetics Therapeutics to 2017 – High Market Potential for Epigenetics Drugs in Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Multiple Myeloma and Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma reviews the scenario up t 2017. One drug, Vidaza, is in the late stage of clinical trials for the treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). As Vidaza is approved for MDS, which is a precursor to AML, it is expected to be widely accepted after being approved for AML.
Tags: biotechnology, disease, epigenetic therapy, genetics
Posted in biotechnology, diseases | 1 Comment »
A Cure for Type I Diabetes?
Wednesday, September 29th, 2010
Type I Diabetes is an auto-immune disease in which the insulin producing beta cells (one type of islet cells) of the pancreas are destroyed over time by antibodies. When insulin production goes down, the body is unable to process the glucose in the blood and diabetic problems appear. Treatment has been attempted through transplantation of islet cells from external donors.
Such transplantation poses two problems. One is the shortage of donor pancreases for extracting islet cells. Two is the rejection of foreign cells by the body which sees them as it sees disease-producing viral organisms, and destroys the foreign intruders. To counteract this tendency, the transplantation must be accompanied by immunosuppressant drugs.
A new treatment seeks to use the patient’s own stem cells to regenerate islet cells. Stem cells are master cells from which all specialized cells such as the islet cells in the pancreas are created. Differentiation of stem cells into islet cells has been achieved in labs and this holds the potential to tackle the problems of transplantation.
And now a company is seeking partners to test a drug developed by it. The company believes that by adding its product to the transplanted islet cells (regenerated from stem cells as above) the success of the transplantation can be improved.
Read the news release at MarketWatch.
Tags: biomedicine, biotechnology, stem cell treatment
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Insights into Biotech Pharmaceuticals Scenario
Saturday, September 11th, 2010
A market research report into biotechnology pharmaceuticals market in the US provides insight into the drivers that propel the growth of this industry. One conclusion the report has is that Blood Modifiers will account for as much as 36.3 percent of the market. Blood modifiers can either enhance or inhibit the clotting or thinning of blood.
What are the drivers that help the expected 7.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for this industry? The report mentions the following:
* Biotechnology drugs with greater efficiency and safety are catching people’s attention and becoming ever more popular
* Government is adopting policies and regulatory frameworks that encourage companies engaged in biotechnology research and development; for example, proposals are under way for speeding up the time to market after all regulatory approvals
* An ageing population with chronic and age-related diseases is increasing the demand for biotechnology pharmaceuticals
Some experts are even arguing that biotechnology can provide a solution to the problem of an ageing population, i.e. a population where aged people form an increasing percentage. Aged people need more healthcare costing money, and are typically unable to engage in wealth-producing activities. Biotechnology with promises such as genetic therapy that targets genes underlying disease conditions (instead of working on symptoms) should be able to help tackle the problem better.
Read the report at BioMed Reports.
Tags: ageing population, biopharmaceutical industry, regulatory approvals process
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Modern Biotechnology’s Significance to Current Agricultural Scenario
Monday, September 6th, 2010
Our world is threatened by food shortage (among other threats) resulting from climate change and population growth. Climate change is making yields of food crops unpredictable as they depend on the weather under traditional farming practices. And population growth is tending to push up demand for food beyond availability.
A solution to the problem under such a scenario might lie in the adoption of modern biotechnology in traditional societies. For example, Professor Walter Sandow Alhassan, Project Coordinator for Safe Biotechnology Management in Sub-Saharan Africa (SABIMA) under the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), recently called upon the people of Ghana, Africa, to adopt modern biotechnology in farming.
Modern biotechnology is seeking to tackle several issues related to farming. The following are some of the major issues biotechnology is seeking to help with:
* Expansion of arable land by developing crops that can grow in areas formerly unfit for the crops
* Increasing the yield of crops through genetic modification of the crops
* Preventing pollution of human and animal habitats that occurs now from agro-chemical runoffs
* Finding a way to tackle the crop pests that have so far proven intractable
* Finding cures for the diseases that affect plants and animals
* Developing alternatives for fossil fuels used in agricultural operations, as the fuel supplies are not only getting exhausted but also becoming costlier
* Tackling the stresses resulting from climate change
Read the news story at GhanaWeb.
Tags: biotechnology, climate change, food crops, food shortage
Posted in biotechnology, crop science, diseases, genetic modification | No Comments »
Market Reports on Biochips, Stem Cell Research and more
Monday, August 16th, 2010
Market Publishers Ltd has just announced release of new market reports on drugs and biotechnology. The new reports cover Biochips, Stem Cell Research, Prions, Intravenous Solutions and Bionanotechnology.
Biochips: Biochips is a major thrust area under biotechnology along with such areas as genomics, protenomics and pharmaceuticals. Combining the understanding of cell functioning gained from the latter studies and the advanced micro-miniaturization capabilities of the semiconductor industry, one can develop biochips that act as sensors inside the body, where they can perform even thousands of biochemical reactions. Biochips have applications in various fields including disease diagnosis to detection of bioterrorism agents.
Stem Cell Research: Stem cells are cells in the body that can renew themselves through miotic cell division and grow into specialized cell types. Such specialized cells can help repair damaged organs by replenishing dead cells, for example. Embryonic stem cells can differentiate into cells of all the embryonic tissues while adult stem cells are more specialized. Bone marrow transplant is an example of adult stem cell therapy. Researchers hope to treat diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s, and more using stem cell therapy in the future.
The above and other market reports from the publishers provide the type of information that prospective entrepreneurs need.
Read the news release at Market Publishers Website.
Tags: biochips, bionanotechnology, biotechnology, stem cell research
Posted in biotechnology, diseases, stem cell research | 7 Comments »
