12 2010
Six-day conference on marine biotechnology held in Italy, June 2010
A six-day conference on marine biotechnology will be held in Acquafredda di Maratea, Italy from 20 to 25 June 2010.
This conference is designed to promote scientific excellence in marine biotechnology, give a platform for leading scientists and young researchers to present their work and discuss the future of the field in Europe. Organised around seven-half day sessions, event topics will include:
- algae and seaweed biomass;
- aquaculture;
- bioprospecting;
- human and environmental health;
- enzymes;
- marine bionanotechnology and biomaterials;
- marine models;
- pollution and bioremediation;
- bioinformatics and research infrastructures
31 2010
Collaboraton working with deep sea microorganisms for agriculture solutions
Marrone Bio Innovations, Inc. (MBI), is collaborating with the laboratories of research microbiologist Dr. Paul Jensen and Professor William Fenical at the University of California at San Diego, Scripps Institute, to find deep sea microorganisms with potential applications for pest management. UC’s Industry University Cooperative Research Program (IUCRP) awarded Dr. Jensen’s Lab a Discovery Grant for the joint project.
Dr. Jensen’s lab collaborates with the lab of Dr. William Fenical who is internationally recognized for significant discoveries of new pharmaceutical compounds from naturally occurring marine microorganisms. MBI is also developing a novel marine microorganism discovered by Dupont and Biomar, S.A. for use as a rice herbicide.
28 2010
Federal stimulus dollars go to cooperative group targeting discovery of marine-derived anticancer leads
The overall goal of the National Cooperative Drug Discovery Group (NCDDG) program is to discover marine natural product leads for cancer chemotherapy. There are four laboratory programs operating in a close and synergistic fashion as follows:
- Lab Program #1 led by Prof. Phillip Crews (PI of this NCDDG), University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC)
- Lab Program #2 led by Prof. William Gerwick, Oregon State University (OSU)
- Lab Program #3 led by Dr. Amy Wright, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (HBOI)
- Lab Program #4 led by Prof. William Fenical, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego (SIO-UCSD).
| Amount of Award: | $273,147 |
| Award Date: | 09/25/2009 |
14 2010
Protective Effects of Squid Ink Extracts
As reported in Marine Drugs, researchers in China recently ran a study in mice to investigate the protective effects of squid ink in chemotherapy.
Although the squid ink extract had little effect on hemopoiesis of marrow in natural mice, elevation of antioxidant ability of the spleen in natural mice was induced by the marine extract, which implied that squid ink may be conducive to improved hemopoietic function of natural mice by improving the function of the spleen.
The data suggest that squid ink extract can protect the hemopoietic system from chemotherapeutic injury and could be employed to develop cell-protective drugs for use in clinical treatment of tumors.
16 2009
Tasmanian company Marinova Pty Ltd wins Technology and Innovation Award
Marinova was nominated in two categories, the Innovation in New and Emerging Industries Award, sponsored by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, and the Technology and Innovation Award, sponsored by the Australian Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology.
Since 2006, Marinova’s Cambridge extraction facility has been developing medical and nutritional applications from brown seaweed harvested in Tasmania, Canada and Argentina.
11 2009
New Activity Found For A Potential Anti-cancer Agent From Marine Sponges
Pateamine A (PatA), a natural product first isolated from marine sponges, has attracted considerable attention as a potential anti-cancer agent, and now a new activity has been found for it, which may reveal yet another anti-cancer mechanism. That’s the assessment of Daniel Romo, a Texas A&M chemistry professor, and his colleagues at Johns Hopkins University who are pioneers in research involving this novel marine natural product.
04 2009
New marine extract containing food supplement tested for treatment of hereditary androgenic alopecia in young males
A controlled, randomized, double-blind, parallel-group study by Department for Dermatological Research, ARS-Medicina, Helsinki, Finland, compared the effects of Viviscal® (a new food supplement incorporating special marine extracts and a silica compound) with those of a fish extract in the treatment of young males with hereditary androgenic alopecia. The pretreatment histological diagnosis was alopecia with a mild to moderate perifollicular inflammation zone. The study consisted of 20 subjects who received two tablets of Viviscal® once daily and 20 who received two tablets of fish extract once daily for 6 months.
After 6 months’ treatment, patients receiving Viviscal® showed a mean increase in non-vellus hair of 38% compared with a 2% increase in the fish extract treatment group (P<0.0001). In the Viviscal group, 19 (95%) subjects showed both clinical and histological cure, whereas none treated with fish extract showed any clinical or histological difference after 6 months’ treatment (P <0.0001).
11 2008
Bacterial Adhesion to Stainless Steel is Reduced by Aqueous Fish Extract Coatings
A study conducted by the Danish Institute for Fisheries Research concludes that coating a stainless steel surface with a non-toxic fish extract is more effective in preventing microbial adhesion and biofilm formation than uncoated surfaces or surfaces coated with tryptone soy broth. Microbial adhesion and biofilm formation on surfaces pose major problems and risks to human health. In the study, bacterial attachment was quantified by different methods including (a) direct fluorescence microscopy, (b) removal by ultrasound and subsequent quantification of the adhered bacteria, and (c) re-growth of the adhered bacteria measured by indirect conductometry. Surprisingly, the bacterial counts on surfaces coated with aqueous fish extract were 10-100 times lower than on surfaces coated with laboratory broths when surfaces were submerged in bacterial suspensions. The bacteria grow well in the fish extract; hence a general bacteriocidal effect is not the reason for the antifouling effect. The research concludes that coating the stainless steel surface with fish extract results in a thin protein layer that reduces bacterial adhesion significantly.
11 2008
Deep Sea Treatment for Superbug Holds Promise, Yet Still Poses Challenges.
A group of United Kingdom scientists recently discovered a bacterium found in Japanese seabeds with the ability to kill MRSA. The new species produces a unique antibiotic that has the potential for treating humans. William Fenical, a pioneer of marine microbiology at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, supports that scientists need to look elsewhere to discover new antibiotics with new structure types because they aren’t finding enough new breakthroughs on land. However, finding enough money to support this research could prove challenging
The search for an antibiotic on the bottom of the ocean makes sense because sea-dwelling microorganisms haven’t come into contact with disease-forming bacteria on land. Special living conditions and functions within the ocean’s ecosystem force them to produce a vast number of enzymes that have potential therapeutic benefits to humans.
11 2008
U.S. Seafood Processors Missing Out on Opportunity for Additional Value and Revenue With Byproducts
Strategro International, a market entry and business growth consultancy, spoke to a packed room of seafood processors at the International Boston Seafood Show recently offering examples of how companies and researchers worldwide are developing valuable products from seafood processing waste streams.
For the unenlightened seafood company, seafood byproducts can pose a headache and a significant cost item for disposal, storage, or dumping (which in many areas is illegal). For those involved in further processing of seafood byproducts, desirable compounds can be extracted and purified into high value ingredients with application in the feed, food, health and nutrition, cosmeceuticals, and the research and diagnostic markets.
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