DUBLIN, June 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/d7l4wh/canada_in_vitro) has announced the addition of GlobalData's new report "Canada In Vitro Diagnostics Market Outlook to 2018- Clinical Chemistry Genetic Testing, Haematology, Histology and Cytology, Immuno Chemistry, Infectious Immunology and Microbiology Culture" to their offering.

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This new report provides key market data on the Canada In Vitro Diagnostics market. The report provides value (USD million) data for each segment and sub-segment within seven market categories - Clinical Chemistry, Genetic Testing, Haematology, Histology And Cytology, Immuno Chemistry, Infectious Immunology and Microbiology Culture. The report also provides company shares and distribution shares data for each of the aforementioned market categories. The report is supplemented with global corporate-level profiles of the key market participants with information on company financials and pipeline products, wherever available.

This report is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research and in-house analysis by a team of industry experts.

Scope

- Market size and company share data for In Vitro Diagnostics market categories - Clinical Chemistry, Genetic Testing, Haematology, Histology And Cytology, Immuno Chemistry, Infectious Immunology and Microbiology Culture.

- Annualized market revenues (USD million) data for each of the segments and sub-segments within seven market categories. Data from 2004 to 2011, forecast forward for 7 years to 2018.

- 2011 company shares and distribution shares data for each of the seven market categories.

- Global corporate-level profiles of key companies operating within the Canada In Vitro Diagnosticsmarket.

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Canada In Vitro Diagnostics Market Outlook to 2018- Clinical Chemistry Genetic Testing, Haematology, Histology and ...

Woodstock, VT (PRWEB) June 26, 2013

New market research detailing food microbiology testing around the world is available from Strategic Consulting, Inc., a leading information resource for food safety and industrial diagnostics companies. Food Micro, Eighth Edition: Microbiology Testing in the Global Food Industry (Food Micro8) tracks and compares microbiology test volumes, market values and methods used in North America, Europe and Asia, and forecasts future volumes and market values through to 2018.

According to Food Micro8, the global food industry will conduct 966.5 million microbiology tests in 2013 to ensure the safety of food products and detect dangerous pathogens in food. The report provides detailed breakdowns by microorganisms, food segments (meat, dairy, fruit/vegetable and processed foods) and geographic regions, and summarizes key trends and concerns in microbiology testing in food production facilities around the world. The data is based on primary research interviews with more than 450 food producers in 19 countries, including the U.S., China and India.

Microbiology testing practices by food producers around the world vary extensively, according to Tom Weschler, president of Strategic Consulting and lead author of Food Micro8. The worlds food chain is becoming increasingly complex, with food shipments across borders growing at a very fast pace. Food safety officers for food companies using raw materials from around the world need to understand those variations, and establish expectations and practices with their suppliers and within their plants to ensure the safety of their food products, Weschler said.

In the U.S., imported food now represents 15-20% of all food consumed. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), total imports have increased 7% per year since 1999. In the past ten years, imports of animal-based foods have increased by 5% and plant-based foods have grown more than 8%.

Strategic Consultings research shows a continued increase in worldwide microbiology test volumes over the last 15 years. Total test volumes have increased 128%, and testing for specific foodborne pathogens like Salmonella and E. coli grew at an even faster rate. In 1998, pathogen testing represented just 13.7% of total food microbiology tests conducted, while today pathogen testing represents 23.2% of all such tests.

Food Micro8 is based on detailed interviews conducted by Strategic Consulting and integrated into its database of food microbiology diagnostics trends and practices, which has been built, analyzed and published in eight market research reports over the last 15 years. Delivering both extensive new data and a detailed historical perspective, Strategic Consulting market research reports are widely accepted by leading diagnostic manufacturers and investors as highly credible analyses of the industry.

For more information about Food Micro, Eighth Edition: Microbiology Testing in the Global Food Industry (Food Micro8) visit http://www.Strategic-Consult.com.

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Strategic Consulting, Inc. (SCI) provides market reports and business consulting on microbiology-based quality and safety testing for food, beverages, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, environmental water and industrial-process water. With more than 75 combined years of international management in the food safety testing and industrial diagnostics marketplaces, SCIs principals have proven success in working with venture capital backed start-ups, publicly traded companies, technology acquisitions, and transformation of underachieving companies. For more information on Strategic Consulting and its current market reports, visit http://www.strategic-consult.com or call 802-457-9933. Follow SCI president and industry expert Tom Weschler on LinkedIn or Twitter @TomWeschler.

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Food Safety Microbiology Testing Approaches 1 Billion Tests Worldwide

MURRIETA, Calif. , June 24, 2013 /CNW/ - The CHU de Quebec , one of the most important healthcare institutions in the province of Quebec and one of the biggest in Canada , and COPAN Diagnostics, Inc., announced today the full installation of WASPLab, the latest generation of full laboratory automation and digital microbiology system in Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus, one of the five hospitals forming the CHU de Quebec . This hospital and COPAN group worked closely and collaboratively to deliver North America's fastest seamless solution for full laboratory automation. This is a historic first installation of a full laboratory automation and digital bacteriology system operational in North America . The installation of WASPLab's hardware took place in an unprecedented time of less than a week. The speed of installation means that disruption to the routine laboratory operations is minimal and Go-Live time after install is dramatically shortened.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130624/LA37445)

"The Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus is the first healthcare services provider to install and implement WASPLab in North America . This technology allows us to be more effective and efficient in our lab, which is very important from a budget point of view. It also allows us to face the shortage of qualified staff and appoint them to value-added tasks. Like most microbiology labs, we have a limited amount of space but with COPAN's WASPLab solution however, it allows us to bring in the latest technology for specimen processing, robotics, image analysis and digital reporting without having to tear down our lab," said Jean-Francois Gagnon , Microbiology Laboratory Manager at Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus..

"COPAN values the close and collaborative relationships that enable us to innovate together by understanding our customers' needs and delivering solutions that achieve their highest goals for improving the ultimate quality of patient care," said Norman Sharples , CEO of COPAN Diagnostics, Inc. "WASPLab moves microbiology from what was essentially a batch process to an efficient and continuous automated flow from sample processing to incubation, reading, interpretation, work-up and reporting," added Sharples.

"WASPLab solution allows standardization of the planting and streaking and specimen processing, decreases risk of errors, and also lowers repetitive stress related to repeated movement for our staff" said Dr. Alain Paradis , Chief Microbiologist and Infectious Disease Specialist for Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus, CHU de Quebec .

"We are excited to partner with the CHU de Quebec to help them achieve their goals. WASPLab's modular design and small footprint allowed us to customize it to Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus needs in terms of technology and laboratory space constraints. WASPLab's small, high efficiency footprint eliminates unnecessary track that increases speed of positive culture plate availability, saves costs, reduces maintenance and avoids the artificial barriers extensive track creates within the lab," concluded Sharples.

COPAN will showcase WASPLab during AACC Clinical Lab Expo in Houston , Texas in July 2013 .

About the CHU de Quebec Consist of the CHUL, L'Hotel-Dieu de Quebec and hospitals l'Enfant-Jesus, Saint-Francois d'Assise and du Saint-Sacrement, the CHU de Quebec is the most important health care institution in the province of Quebec and one of the biggest in Canada . The CHU de Quebec offers general and specialized care, but mostly ultra-specialized care throughout Eastern Quebec , which represents nearly two million persons. In partnership with Universite Laval and focused on the future, the CHU de Quebec also has core missions in teaching, in research in many fields of excellence, and in the evaluation of health technologies and professional practices.14,000 employees, 1,700 doctors, dentists and pharmacists, and also 500 researchers are needed to accomplish those missions.

About Copan Diagnostics, Inc. With a reputation for innovation, Copan is the leading manufacturer of collection and transport systems in the world. Copan's collaborative approach to preanalytics has resulted in Flocked Swabs, ESwab, Universal Transport Medium and modular laboratory automation, WASP and WASPLab. For more information about Copan Diagnostics, visit http://www.copanusa.com.

SOURCE: Copan Diagnostics, Inc.

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The CHU de Quebec and COPAN Achieve Landmark First Installation in North America of Next Generation Full Laboratory ...

Public release date: 25-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Jim Sliwa jsliwa@asmusa.org 202-942-9297 American Society for Microbiology

A new palm-sized microarray that holds 1,200 individual cultures of fungi or bacteria could enable faster, more efficient drug discovery, according to a study published in mBio, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

Scientists at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research at Fort Sam Houston have developed a microarray platform for culturing fungal biofilms, and validated one potential application of the technology to identify new drugs effective against Candida albicans biofilms. The nano-scale platform technology could one day be used for rapid drug discovery for treatment of any number of fungal or bacterial infections, according to the authors, or even as a rapid clinical test to identify antibiotic drugs that will be effective against a particular infection.

"Even though we have used the antifungal concept for development, it is a universal tool," says co-author Jose Lopez-Ribot of the University of Texas at San Antonio. "It opens a lot of possibilities as a new platform for microbial culture. Any time you need large numbers of cultures, this has a big advantage over other methods."

"The possibility exists to use this same technology for pretty much any other organism," he says.

Microbiology and medicine have become increasingly reliant on micro- and nano-scale technologies because of the increased speed and efficiency they can offer, but until now the cultivation of microorganisms has mostly been conducted on larger scales, in flasks and in trays called micro-titer plates. The microarray technology enables the user to rapidly compare hundreds or thousands of individual cultures of bacteria or fungi, a big benefit in the search for new drugs to treat infections. And like many nano-scale techniques, the nano-culture approach described in the mBio study is also automated, a feature that saves time, improves reproducibility, and prevents some types of user error.

To test the technique, the authors embedded cells of the opportunistic pathogen C. albicans in each of the 1,200 tiny dots of alginate on the surface of the microarray. Under the microscope, these nano-biofilms of C. albicans, each of which was only 30 nanoliters, exhibited the same growth habits and other outward characteristics as conventional, macroscopic biofilms, and achieved maximum metabolic activity within 12 hours. The tiny cultures were then treated with a wide range of candidate drugs from the National Cancer Institute library, or with different FDA-approved, off-patent antifungal drugs in combination with FK506, an immunosuppressant, for identifying individual or synergistic combinations of compounds effective against biofilm infections. Co-author Anand Ramasubramanian of the University of Texas at San Antonio says that the tests prove the utility of the technology in screening combinations of drugs.

"The antifungal screening results were similar to results in larger macroscale techniques. That gives us confidence that it could be used as a tool to replace existing techniques," says Ramasubramanian.

Going forward, Ramasubramanian says he and his colleagues are testing the microarrays with polymicrobial cultures - mixtures of fungi and bacteria - to see whether the technology can be used to explore treatments for mixed infections. They are also exploring clinical applications for the technique, testing patient samples against an array of drugs or combinations of drugs to develop tailored therapies.

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New palm-sized microarray technique grows 1,200 individual cultures of microbes

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Jim Sliwa jsliwa@asmusa.org 202-942-9297 American Society for Microbiology

A team of researchers from Texas and Colorado has identified a variety of factors that influence the likelihood of E. coli contamination of spinach on farms prior to harvest. Their research is published in the July 2013 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology.

"Microbial contamination of produce seems strongly influenced by the time since the last irrigation, the workers' personal hygiene and the field's use prior to planting of produce," says first author Sangshin Park of Texas A&M University, College Station. "These factors, together with the role of weather in produce contamination should be the targets of future research efforts to design cost-effective strategies for control of produce contamination."

E. coli contamination of spinach on farms in Colorado and Texas was 172 times more likely if the produce field was within 10 miles of a poultry farm, and 64 times more likely if irrigated by pond water, says Park.

As E. coli is commonly used as an indicator of fecal contamination with food-borne pathogens, the practice of hygieneavailability of portable toilets and hand-washing stations for workers in the fields and the absence of grazing or hay production on the fields prior to planting spinach, reduced the risk seven-fold.

Other potential risk factors tested in the study included numbers of workers, farm size, organic vs. conventional production, the use of chemical fertilizers, compost, and manure, says Park. The researchers assayed 955 spinach samples from 12 farms in the two states, finding that generic E. coli was present on 63 of them (6.6 percent).

Of particular note, the researchers tested their statistical model for spinach contamination to determine how accurately it was able to pinpoint the level of contamination. "The assessment of the predictive performance of a developed statistical model is largely omitted from food safety studies," says Park. Their methodology may serve as a useful template for future investigations of contamination on farms, he says.

"Because produce is commonly consumed raw, it would be best to prevent pre-harvest contamination by food-borne pathogens all together or at least to reduce it," says Park.

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Originally posted here:
Researchers determine factors that influence spinach contamination pre-harvest

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Diana Kenney dkenney@mbl.edu 508-289-7139 Marine Biological Laboratory

WOODS HOLE, Mass.The MBL Microbial Diversity course is being honored as a "Milestones in Microbiology Site" by the American Society for Microbiology (ASM).

"Milestones in Microbiology" recognizes places where major developments in microbiology occurred and/or where outstanding microbiologists made seminal discoveries.

The course will receive the "Milestones in Microbiology Site" designation on Saturday, June 22, at 4:30 PM in the MBL Club, 100 Water Street, following the Microbial Diversity Course Symposium, which is from 9 AM to 4 PM in Redfield Auditorium.

"The MBL Microbial Diversity course has trained many outstanding microbiologists from around the world, providing scientific tools that they have used to make many important discoveries," says Stanley Maloy, a past president of ASM. "MBL has been a major place where scientists have gathered (mostly over the summer) to discuss and do research on marine biology, ecology, and developmentand microbiology has influenced and been influenced by each of these areas. MBL, including the Microbial Diversity course, has had an important impact on our understanding of the critical role that microbes play in the environment, from the characterization of microbes that use unusual sources of nutrients to the discovery of microbes that live in unique ecosystems in the depths of the ocean."

The Microbial Diversity course was founded at the MBL in 1971. At the time, the MBL offered several summer courses focused on biological research, all taught by leading scientists from around the world, but it had no course in microbiology. Several prominent microbiologists at the MBL and at its neighboring organization, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), participated in the establishment of the Microbial Diversity course and its subsequent flourishing. Yet one can point to four key scientists whose contributions were essential.

The first was Holger Jannasch of WHOI, a scientific grandfather for the field of microbial ecology. At the invitation of MBL leadership, Jannasch initiated the Microbial Diversity course (then called Marine Ecology) at the MBL and gathered an elite group of instructors for the first session. The course was an instant success.

The next two scientists who were vital to the course's success were Selman and Byron Waksman. Selman had been a microbiologist and trustee at WHOI, and he recognized the importance of the Microbial Diversity Course. At a key time when it might have ended due to lack of funding, he stepped forward to offer support from the Waksman Foundation for Microbiology, which he had founded a year before his 1952 receipt of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. After Selman's death, his son, Byron, helped to realize the foundation's support of the course.

The fourth key scientist was Harlyn Halvorson, who succeeded Jannasch as the course's director in 1981. Halverson had been introduced to the MBL by his father, H. Orin Halvorson, a noted microbiologist. Harlyn continued Jannasch's course model of collecting a group of internationally recognized microbiologists to serve as course faculty. He also secured continued financial support for the course through a variety of granting agencies. (Halverson later served as MBL director from 1987 to 1991.)

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MBL Microbial Diversity course to receive 'Milestones in Microbiology Site' designation

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Garth Hogan ghogan@asmusa.org 202-942-9389 American Society for Microbiology

Washington, D.C. June 18, 2013 Ken Cadwell, Ph.D., New York University School of Medicine, has been given a 2013 ICAAC Young Investigator Award for his exceptional work in the fields of infectious diseases and pathogenesis. His nominator, Heran Darwin, notes that Cadwell's findings have already had a "profound impact on the fields of infectious disease and immunity."

Cadwell received his undergraduate degree in Biology, with Honors, from Northwestern University. He then joined the laboratory of Laurent Coscoy in the Department of Molecular Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley where he received his Ph.D. Coscoy describes Cadwell as an exceptional scientist and quick learner who has a "real passion for science and a genuine concern for his peers." As part of his dissertation research, he identified a novel type of protein modification catalyzed by the Kaposi's Sarcoma Herpesvirus. Following the completion of his Ph.D., he joined the laboratory of Herbert "Skip" Virgin at Washington University School of Medicine where he received an esteemed postdoctoral fellowship from the Damon Runyon Cancer Foundation to investigate how aberrant host-pathogen interactions lead to inflammatory disease.

As part of his postdoctoral research, he generated and characterized mice with a mutation in Atg16L1, a gene that is linked to inflammatory bowel disease and essential for the cellular pathway of autophagy. He found that these mice developed intestinal pathologies similar to the human disorder, but only upon infection with a norovirus. Virgin calls this discovery a "new paradigm for understanding how complex inflammatory diseases can be induced in a combinatorial fashion." In recognition of this finding, he received the Dale F. Frey Award for Breakthrough Scientists, which is awarded by the Damon Runyon Foundation for individuals with great potential.

In 2010, he joined the Department of Microbiology at New York University School of Medicine as a faculty member of the prestigious Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine. Using the tools that he previously established, he is continuing to examine the role of Atg16L1 and autophagy in immune responses to pathogens. In addition to examining the mechanism by which a virus triggers intestinal disease, he is also investigating how autophagy deficiency alters resistance to bacterial infections. He is especially interested in revealing new roles for autophagy during inflammation that can be exploited for improving treatment of infectious and immunological disease.

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The ICAAC Young Investigator Award will be presented during ASM's 53rd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), September 10-13, 2013 in Denver, Colorado. ASM is the world's oldest and largest life science organization and has more than 40,000 members worldwide. ASM's mission is to advance the microbiological sciences and promote the use of scientific knowledge for improved health, economic, and environmental well-being.

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

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The American Society for Microbiology honors Ken Cadwell

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Garth Hogan ghogan@asmusa.org 202-942-9389 American Society for Microbiology

The winner of the esteemed Cubist-ICAAC Award is George L. Drusano, M.D., Institute for Therapeutic Innovation of the University of Florida, for his application of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modeling to antiviral and antimicrobial drug development. According to his nominator, Michael Dudley, Rempex Pharmaceuticals, "Drusano and his colleagues have published groundbreaking work using pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics to simulate and then validate dosing regimens to maximize the safety and efficacy of antibiotics. The breadth and importance of his work is remarkable."

After graduating magna cum laude, from the Honors Program at Boston College, Drusano received his M.D. from the University of Maryland School of Medicine where he graduated cum laude, . He completed his medical internship and residency at the University of Maryland Hospital, where he was Chief Resident and also a Fellow in Medicine in Infectious Diseases.

Drusano, a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), is an active reviewer and has served as editor of the section of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics for Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy for 10 years. Currently he is an Editor for mBio. He has authored over 290 articles.

Also an active volunteer, Drusano was a member of the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapeutics (ICAAC) Program Committee and the IDSA Program Committee. He has served on multiple National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Review Groups and as an ad hoc member of NIAID Council on two occasions to support issues regarding emergence of bacterial resistance. He also serves as a consultant to NIAID and CDC on Biodefense issues. Drusano has been a member of the Subcommittee on Guidelines for Bacteremia and Endocarditis of the Antimicrobial Agents Use Committee, a joint effort of the IDSA and the Food and Drug Administration. In 2010, he was Chair of the Gordon Conference on New Antimicrobial Discovery and Development. He has won a number of awards, including being named Distinguished Investigator of the Year (2003) by the American College of Clinical Pharmacology. Most recently, he was named recipient of the Maxwell Finland Award for Scientific Achievement for 2012 from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.

An active researcher, Drusano has focused on mathematical modeling and the pharmacodynamics of anti-infective chemotherapy, especially the pharmacodynamics of fluoroquinolone antimicrobials, anti-tuberculosis agents, multiple anti-viral agents and the therapy of biodefense pathogens. Paul G. Ambrose, Institute for Clinical Pharmacodynamics, says, "Drusano is a distinguished scholar and scientist who pioneered work in anti-infective pharmacology and antimicrobial resistance, and helped redefine infectious disease chemotherapy as we know it today."

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The Cubist-ICAAC Award will be presented during ASM's 53rd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), September 10-13, 2013 in Denver, Colorado. ASM is the world's oldest and largest life science organization and has more than 40,000 members worldwide. ASM's mission is to advance the microbiological sciences and promote the use of scientific knowledge for improved health, economic, and environmental well-being.

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The American Society for Microbiology honors George L. Drusano

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Garth Hogan ghogan@asmusa.org 202-942-9389 American Society for Microbiology

Baligh Yehia, M.D., M.P.P., M.S.H.P., Department of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion (CHERP), has received a 2013 ICAAC Young Investigator Award for his innovative work and leadership in the field of HIV health services and quality research. His teaching and scholarship focus on health outcomes of individuals living with chronic viral diseases and policies that affect those outcomes.

Yehia received his undergraduate and medical degrees with honors from the University of Florida, where he was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha, the national medical honor society, and the Gold Humanism Honor Society, for his excellence in clinical care, leadership, compassion, and dedication to service. After medical school, he completed an internal medicine residency on the Osler Medical Service at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, followed by a fellowship in infectious diseases at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. During his fellowship, he was award the Robert Austrian Award for his scholastic excellence and leadership. Yehia also holds a Master of Science in Health Policy Research from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master in Public Policy from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. Nominator, Ebbing Lautenbach, University of Pennsylvania, says, "Yehia has an exceptional academic background and possesses a unique skill set which blends clinical medicine, health behavior research, and public policy. These tools have allowed him to cross disciplines and pursue innovative ideas."

Through his active research on how health care delivery is organized, he has contributed to the development of policy on healthcare reform, access to medical care, performance measurement, and public health. Kelly Gebo, Johns Hopkins University, goes on to explain, Yehia "described the organization of care in HIV clinics to determine areas for improvement; evaluated inpatient utilization to identify modifiable factors for reducing hospitalization rates; and examined antiretroviral medication errors in an effort to prevent adverse drug events and improve patient safety." Yehia's scholastic achievements were recognized by a career development award from the NIH/NIMH to study the relationship between retention in care and clinical HIV outcomes and to identify health system and patient factors influencing retention in care, a special citation for fellows-in-training from the Infectious Diseases Society of America, and was inducted into the University of Florida Hall of Fame.

In addition to being an outstanding researcher, he is also an active volunteer. He currently serves on the Clinical Affairs Committee of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and is a member of the American Medical Association GLBT Advisory Committee. He is past National Chair of the American College of Physicians Council of Associates and past National Chair of the American Medical Association Resident and Fellow Section. He has served on the American Medical Association Council on Medical Education, American College of Physicians Board of Regents, and on the Maryland State Medical Society Board of Trustees. His leadership has been recognized by national, state, and local organizations.

He resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he maintains an active research program and cares for patients at the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases; and is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians.

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The ICAAC Young Investigator Award will be presented during ASM's 53rd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), September 10-13, 2013 in Denver, Colorado. ASM is the world's oldest and largest life science organization and has more than 40,000 members worldwide. ASM's mission is to advance the microbiological sciences and promote the use of scientific knowledge for improved health, economic, and environmental well-being.

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The American Society for Microbiology honors Baligh Yehia

Public release date: 20-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Garth Hogan ghogan@asmusa.org 202-942-9389 American Society for Microbiology

Washington, D.C. June 18, 2013 Frank Leo van de Veerdonk, M.D., Ph.D., Nijmegen Medical Centre Radboud University (RUNMC) and Nijmegen Institute for Infection, Inflammation and Immunity (N4i), has received a 2013 ICAAC Young Investigator Award for his work in the field of fungal immunology. Charles Dinarello, University of Colorado, says, "I see Frank as one of the new generation of innovative thinkers in the field of cytokine biology, particularly as it applies to infection."

Van de Veerdonk earned his medical degree in 2001 from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. He started as a resident in Internal Medicine at Jeroen Bosch Hospital in s' Hertogenbosch under the supervision of Paetrick Netten. In 2006, he continued his training in Internal Medicine at Radboud University in Nijmegen where he was supervised by Jos van der Meer. He began his Ph.D. in 2007, and under the supervision of Mihai Netea, he studied pattern recognition receptors and pathogen associated molecular patterns of Candida albicans and Candida-specific innate and adaptive immune responses. During this time new insights in Th17 biology were discovered and van de Veerdonk found that mutations in STAT1 that lead to gain of function are responsible for autosomal dominant chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis. Mihai Netea, Radboud University Nijmegen, considers this discovery, "a major breakthrough in the diagnosis of immunodeficiencies with fungal infections."

While completing his Ph.D., he worked at St. Jude's Children Research Hospital in the laboratory of Thirumala Kanneganti, where he studied the role of the inflammasome in invasive candidiasis. After receiving a Niels Stensen Stipend in 2010, he went to the University of Colorado to study the role of the new interleukin-1 (IL 1) family members IL-36, IL-37 and IL-38 under the supervision of Charles Dinarello. Dinarello considers van de Veerdonk "a gifted physician/scientist who always has his eye focused on what we can learn from patients." While van de Veerdonk was at the University of Colorado, he discovered that IL-38 binds to the IL-36R and acts similar to IL-36Ra on immune cells. After returning to Nijmegen he finished his Ph.D. and graduated cum laude from Radboud University.

In 2011 van de Veerdonk completed his fellowship in infectious diseases. Then in 2012 he became a faculty member at Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre where he works as an internist-infectious diseases specialist. He received a grant from the Nijmegen Centre for Molecular Life Sciences (NCMLS) and a Veni grant from Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO) to build his own research group in the laboratory of Mihai Netea and Leo Joosten. Van de Veerdonk is focusing his research on the host defense against Aspergillus and the functional biology of the new IL 1 family members IL-36, IL-37 and IL-38.

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The ICAAC Young Investigator Award will be presented during ASM's 53rd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), September 10-13, 2013 in Denver, Colorado. ASM is the world's oldest and largest life science organization and has more than 40,000 members worldwide. ASM's mission is to advance the microbiological sciences and promote the use of scientific knowledge for improved health, economic, and environmental well-being.

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

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The American Society for Microbiology honors Frank Leo van de Veerdonk

Invite Microbiology Group
An invitation to join the Microbiology Group on http://community.theaquaponicsource.com/group/microbiology.

By: Bob Campbell

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Invite Microbiology Group - Video

TAINAN, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The Vice Dean of National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) College of Medicine, Dr. Jiunn-Jong Wu, who is also distinguished professor at the NCKU Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology and Institute of Molecular Medicine, has been awarded the Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology to commend his excellent achievements and influence in medical microbiology.

Most people at the NCKU College of Medicine notice that Dr. Wu is always the first person to arrive at the office, at around 3 or 4 oclock in the morning, and the last person to leave.

Despite working for long hours, he always shows great spirits and joy during work. Im dedicated to work and I never feel tired of what Im doing, said Dr. Wu.

Dr. Wu received his PhD degree at the Pennsylvania Temple Universitys Department of Immunology and Microbiology, focusing on clinical microbiology, bacterial pathogenesis, bacterial resistance, epidemiology, nosocomial infection and others. Till now, Dr. Wu has published more than 250 Science Citation Index (SCI) papers.

Awarding Dr. Wu the Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology was an effort initiated by the Dean of School of Medicine at Temple University, in order to show recognition for Dr. Wus outstanding performance and lifelong contributions to the field of microbiology for 30 years.

In Taiwans medical field, former NCKU President Dr. Michael Lai has also been given this award while carrying research at the University of Southern California in 2002.

The American Academy of Microbiology (AAM) is a worldwide organization. Every year, three AAM fellows will nominate researchers from all over the world to receive this honor.

After going through detailed review of nominees, 87 researchers were awarded the Fellow of AAM in 2013. Dr. Wu accepted the award at the end of May.

Being awarded this honor is the recognition for my lifelong contribution to academics, said Dr. Wu, who would like to share this honor with NCKU as well as show his gratitude to his teachers and advisors for giving him education and guidance.

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NCKU Professor Awarded Fellow of American Academy of Microbiology

Public release date: 19-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Garth Hogan ghogan@asmusa.org 202-942-9389 American Society for Microbiology

Washington, DC The Microbial Diversity Course at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), Woods Hole, Massachusetts, has been named a Milestones in Microbiology site by the American Society for Microbiology (ASM). The ASM Milestones in Microbiology program recognizes institutions and the scientists who worked there that have made significant contributions toward advancing the science of microbiology. A ceremony unveiling the plaque that will mark the site is scheduled for Saturday, June 22, 2013, at 4:30 pm in the MBL Club during the Microbial Diversity Course. Jeffery Miller, President of the ASM, will present the plaque on behalf of the Society.

The Course is an intensive six-and-a-half-week research and training experience for graduate and postdoctoral students, as well as established investigators, who want to become competent in microbiological techniques for working with a broad range of microbes, and in approaches for recognizing the metabolic, phylogenetic, and genomic diversity of cultivated and as yet uncultivated bacteria. Admission is limited to 20 students.

"Since its creation in 1971 by Holger Jannasch, the MBL Microbial Diversity Course has trained many outstanding microbiologists from around the world, providing scientific tools that they have used to make many important discoveries," said Stanley Maloy, a past-President of ASM. "MBL has been a major place where scientists have gathered (mostly over the summer) to discuss and do research on marine biology, ecology, and development and microbiology has influenced and been influenced by each of these areas. MBL, including the Microbial Diversity Course, has had an important impact on our understanding of the critical role that microbes play in the environment, from the characterization of microbes that use unusual sources of nutrients to the discovery of microbes that live in unique ecosystems in the depths of the ocean. For example, work by Jannasch led to the discovery of bacteria that live adjacent to deep-sea hydrothermal vents and use sulfur as an energy source. Research on microbial ecology and physiology has led to many practical applications, from novel enzymes in laundry detergents to enzymes used for genetic engineering, from bioremediation to energy production, from novel antibiotics to phage therapy, and from environmental health to animal and human health."

One feature of the MBL summer courses, including Microbial Diversity, is that every four or five years, a new set of directors brings a fresh approach and a new set of tools to the course. "Each year, the Course has a different 'menu,' because during the winter months, directors become 'chefs', developing elaborate plans for each microbial 'feast of the week', deciding which areas to feature and whom to invite for the 20 or more guest lectures," writes Ralph S. Wolfe in a brief history of the course.

Many leading microbiologists have served as directors of the Microbial Diversity Course over the years, including course founder Holger Jannasch, Harlyn Halvorson, Ralph Wolfe, E. Peter Greenberg, Martin Dworkin, John Breznak, Edward Leadbetter, Abigail Salyers, Caroline Harwood, Alfred Spormann, William Metcalf, Thomas Schmidt, and current co-directors Daniel Buckley and Stephen Zinder.

The Microbial Diversity Course has shaped the careers of generations of outstanding microbiologists, and continues to be a premier site for advanced training at the leading edge of microbiological investigation.

In recognition of these contributions, the American Society for Microbiology is pleased to designate the Marine Biological Laboratory Microbial Diversity Course as a Milestones in Microbiology site. By placing plaques at Milestones sites, ASM hopes to increase professional and public recognition and appreciation of the significance of the science of microbiology.

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Microbial diversity course designated as a 'Milestones in Microbiology' site

When it came time to take their wedding photos, FuiBoon Kai and Andrew Leidal knew that one location had to be on their list: the Microbiology labs in which they met.

Kai, who just graduated with her PhD in Microbiology from Dal, met her future husband while working in side-by-side labs.

She was having trouble a technique in her lab and I made excuses to try and assist her with what she was doing, says Leidal. My motives werent just to help with the science, he jokes.

Leidal grew up on a farm in southern Ontario. He completed his undergrad at the University of Toronto before coming to Dal to study viruses and cancers. Kai is from Malaysia and does research on prostate cancer.

When it came to the proposal wedding proposal, that is, not a research one Kai admits to being a little difficult.Leidal first had the impulse to propose when he spotted a massive rainbow near the Bedford Basin after a major storm. She would say, Havent you seen a storm before? I want to go home and do my work. When Leidal planned on proposing with breakfast in bed, Kai was more worried about getting crumbs on the sheets until he pointed out there was something else on the tray. He then got down on one knee and popped the question.

The couple had two weddings: one in Malaysia and one in Canada. The Malaysian wedding was first. It consisted of many traditions and had 700 guests, including Leidals family and friends from the lab. There was a traditional Chinese ceremony which involved Leidal paying a dowry, which included a roasted pig. In a traditional Chinese wedding, the members of the brides immediate family are given their invitations by hand from the groom with a slice of the roasted pork and a slice of cake. The brides family get the choice cuts of the pig and the grooms family get the butt and the head.

The Canadian wedding was a traditional Catholic wedding held at the St. Thomas Aquinas Church on Oxford street with a reception at the Lord Nelson. The brides immediate family came from Malaysia and everyone from the lab attended the wedding. All of the bridesmaids and groomsmen were members of the labs. With the exception of immediate family, everyone there was from lab, says Leidal. And, of course, there were photos taken in the lab as well.

The bride and groom both come from very different backgrounds, but have found common ground here at Dalhousie.

Were both very thankful to have come to Dal and met each other. Its really destiny that weve met, says Kai.

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A lab love connection

Public release date: 18-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Jim Sliwa jsliwa@asmusa.org 202-942-9297 American Society for Microbiology

Patients in Vietnam and other locations with central nervous system infections may well be suffering from the effects of a newly discovered virus, according to a study to be published in mBio, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology. Researchers have detected the virus in spinal fluid from 4 percent of 642 patients with central nervous system infections of unknown cause, and in an average of 58 percent of fecal samples from pigs and poultry, suggesting animals may serve as reservoirs for transmission to humans. The virus, called CyCV-VN, belongs to the Cyclovirus genus, a group that has never before been implicated in human or animal disease.

"The detection of CyCV-VN in a usually sterile material like cerebrospinal fluid is remarkable and may point to a pathogenic role of this virus as a single or a co-infecting pathogen," says corresponding author Tan Le Van of the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The results in this study, Van cautions, do not provide absolute proof of disease causation, and further work is needed to see whether the virus poses a threat to human and animal health.

Acute central nervous system infections are responsible for illnesses and deaths around the world, but they are a particular problem in tropical regions. These infections can be caused by any of a number of bacterial, parasitic, fungal or viral pathogens, but the majority of cases go undiagnosed despite extensive efforts to identify a cause. "One of our particular interests is to improve patient diagnosis," says Van. Proper diagnosis "is essential to improve clinical management and prevention of these devastating diseases, he continues.

Inspired by the high incidence of acute central nervous system infections in Vietnam, Van and his colleagues set out to identify previously uncharacterized viruses in undiagnosed patients. Using fluid samples from more than 1,700 patients with suspected central nervous system infections or suspected viral encephalitis, the researchers generated 161,000 DNA sequence reads for further analysis.

Among these thousands of sequences, the researchers identified a sequence from a member of the Cyclovirus genus that was present in two patients, one adult and one child, both with acute central nervous system infections of unknown cause. Follow-up work with a technique called inverse PCR used that short sequence to determine the entire genome sequence of the virus present in one of the samples. CyCV-VN is a unique new species of Cyclovirus, a group that includes no known pathogens.

With the full genome in hand, the researchers went back to 642 samples from patients with suspected acute central nervous system infections and were able to detect the virus in samples from 26 patients (4 percent). The virus was not detected at all in samples from patients with non-infectious conditions of the central nervous system, like multiple sclerosis, a fact that argues that the virus could well be a human pathogen.

The virus was also detected in samples from farm animals in the province where the index patient lived: between 42 percent and 100 percent of fecal samples from pigs, ducks, and chickens in that region harbored viruses that are extremely closely related to CyCV-VN. This raises the possibility - but not certainty - say the authors, that livestock could represent a source for human infection with the virus.

Van also cautions that it is too soon to point an accusing finger at CyCV-VN. "Detection of a virus in human samples alone is insufficient to provide a direct link with an ongoing infection," he says. "Addressing the question of causation requires extensive effort."

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New virus discovered in patients with central nervous system infections

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/qrxghc/canada_in_vitro) has announced the addition of the "Canada In Vitro Diagnostics Market Outlook to 2018- Clinical Chemistry Genetic Testing, Haematology, Histology and Cytology, Immuno Chemistry, Infectious Immunology and Microbiology Culture" report to their offering.

"Vitro Diagnostics in Canadian Market Forecast to 2018- Clinical Chemistry Genetic Testing, Haematology, Histology and Cytology, Immuno Chemistry, Infectious Immunology and Microbiology Culture", provides key market data on the Canada In Vitro Diagnostics market.

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This research is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research and in-house analysis by our team of industry experts.

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1. List of Tables and List of Figures

2. Introduction

3. In Vitro Diagnostics in Canada

4. Clinical Chemistry in Canada

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Research and Markets: Vitro Diagnostics in Canadian Market Forecast to 2018- Clinical Chemistry Genetic Testing ...

Public release date: 18-Jun-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Garth Hogan ghogan@asmusa.org 202-942-9389 American Society for Microbiology

Washington, D.C. June 18, 2013 Joshua Obar, Ph.D., Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Montana State UniversityBozeman, has been honored with a 2013 ICAAC Young Investigator Award for his research on factors affecting the regulation of immunological memory responses to infection.

Obar earned his B.A. in Microbiology from Ohio Wesleyan University in 2001 and went on to complete his Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from Dartmouth College in 2006. He performed his Ph.D. thesis research in Edward Usherwood's laboratory at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, where his graduate work focused on understanding how latent viral infections affect the formation, maintenance, and function of memory CD8 T cells. Of Obar, Usherwood says, "I have encountered very few young scientists at his level who have such a depth of perception into their chosen field, combined with the intellectual drive and rigor to pursue projects through to completion." In 2005, his graduate work was recognized by the American Association of Immunologists (AAI) with the Huang Foundation Trainee Achievement Award (now the Life Technologies Trainee Achievement Award). The following year Obar joined Leo Lefranois' laboratory at the University of Connecticut Health Center as a postdoctoral fellow, where he received a NRSA postdoctoral fellowship in 2007. During his postdoctoral research he developed the methodology necessary to quantify the number of antigen-specific nave CD8 T cells within a polyclonal population, which he used to study early events regulating effector and memory CD8 T cell development during numerous infectious diseases.

In 2010, Obar joined the faculty in the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases at Montana State University Bozeman. Since starting his own laboratory he has been studying the innate immune response in the respiratory tract following viral and fungal infections by trying to understand what regulates the balance of immunity and immunopathology during these infections. Obar's nominator and Chair of his department at Montana State University, Mark Quinn, said "since coming to Montana State University, Josh has continued to excel in his research on understanding the role of T cells and other leukocytes in the immune response to viral pathogens." In addition to the Huang Foundation Trainee Achievement Award, Obar has also won a NIH K22 Award and in 2012, he was selected by the AAI Public Policy Fellowship Program. Quinn concludes by saying, "Overall, Obar is an outstanding young investigator with amazing potential for a stellar career in microbiology and infectious diseases."

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The ICAAC Young Investigator Award will be presented during ASM's 53rd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC), September 10-13, 2013 in Denver, Colorado. ASM is the world's oldest and largest life science organization and has more than 40,000 members worldwide. ASM's mission is to advance the microbiological sciences and promote the use of scientific knowledge for improved health, economic, and environmental well-being.

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

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The American Society for Microbiology honors Joshua Obar

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/6h74b7/thermo_fisher) has announced the addition of the "Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. Market Share Analysis" company profile to their offering.

The new report, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. Market Share Analysis provides in-depth information on Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.'s market position in the different medical equipment markets it operates in. The report provides Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. market share information in five key market categories - Infectious Immunology, Microbiology Culture, Immuno Chemistry, Clinical Chemistry and Histology And Cytology. The report also provides data and information on the overall competitive landscape of the markets, the company operates in. The report is supplemented with global corporate-level profile with information on the company's business segments, major products and services, competitors, locations and subsidiaries, financial deals and other key developments.

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- Global company shares (in Revenues) information for the key markets Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. operates in - In Vitro Diagnostics

- Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.'s company shares (in Revenues) information for all the key countries the company has presence in - Brazil, Japan, Germany, France, Canada, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, United States, Australia, China and India.

- Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.'s company shares (in Revenues) information for all the key market categories the company has presence in - Infectious Immunology, Microbiology Culture, Immuno Chemistry, Clinical Chemistry and Histology And Cytology.

- All the key data-points are for 2011 and cover all the key regions - North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), South and Central America and Middle East and Africa.

- The company profile is also supplemented with a SWOT Analysis with in-depth information and analysis of the company's value proposition and the business climate it operates in.

- Comprehensive coverage of the latest financial deals involving the company and its subsidiaries.

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Research and Markets: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. Market Share Analysis - 2013 Report Out Now

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/fj8w5l/biorad) has announced the addition of the "Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. Market Share Analysis" company profile to their offering.

The new report, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. Market Share Analysis provides in-depth information on Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.'s market position in the different medical equipment markets it operates in. The report provides Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. market share information in five key market categories - Microbiology Culture, Genetic Testing, Haematology, Infectious Immunology and Immuno Chemistry. The report also provides data and information on the overall competitive landscape of the markets, the company operates in. The report is supplemented with global corporate-level profile with information on the company's business segments, major products and services, competitors, locations and subsidiaries, financial deals and other key developments.

Scope

- Global company shares (in Revenues) information for the key markets Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. operates in - In Vitro Diagnostics.

- Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.'s company shares (in Revenues) information for all the key countries the company has presence in - Australia, India, Japan, China, France, Spain, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, United States and Brazil.

- Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.'s company shares (in Revenues) information for all the key market categories the company has presence in - Microbiology Culture, Genetic Testing, Haematology, Infectious Immunology and Immuno Chemistry.

- All the key data-points are for 2011 and cover all the key regions - North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South and Central America and Middle East and Africa.

- Global corporate-level profile with information on the company's business segments, major products and services, competitors, and locations and subsidiaries.

- The company profile is also supplemented with a SWOT Analysis with in-depth information and analysis of the company's value proposition and the business climate it operates in..

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Research and Markets: Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. Market Share Analysis - 2013 Out Now

Jun 14 2013

Renowned bacteriologist Professor Hugh Pennington has told of his surprise at being made a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours.

The Emeritus Professor of Bacteriology at Aberdeen University is honoured for services to microbiology and food hygiene.

"It was a very pleasant surprise when the letter came," he said. "It's nice to be recognised for the work one's been doing over the years in microbiology and food safety. It's a top award and it shows one has been working hard."

The professor was chair of bacteriology at Aberdeen University from 1979 until his retirement with Emeritus status in 2003.

He is best known for chairing an inquiry into the outbreak of E.coli in Lanarkshire in 1996 and leading another inquiry into an outbreak of the bug in Wales in 2005.

Looking back over his career, he said: "Over the years I've had some really very good mentors and people supporting career development.

"I've worked in London, the US, Glasgow and Aberdeen, and each place has been very good for the sort of interests that I've developed.

"I have also been lucky in the way that technology has developed as well, which has allowed us to get to grips with some of these bugs.

"People said bugs are finished, they are not a problem any more. With the benefit of hindsight it was wise to reject that advice, and it all followed from there."

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Scottish News: Pennington surprised at honour