Monthly Archives: July 2012

RIM wants to improve developer eco-system

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BlackBerry platform today has around 40 lakh developers working globally and the average earning of developers on the RIM platforms is about $3,000

BANGALORE,INDIA: Research In Motion (RIM) which recently announced hundreds of job cuts, wants to improve its developer eco system in a big way. For this, the Canadian cellphone maker has set apart a $100 million fund.

Alec Saunders, VP of developer relations for Research In Motion (RIM), says he sees his company's plan to cut jobs and improve the developer eco-system as two different issues. "The job cuts are happening as part of the company's restructuring plans in order to increase efficiency in operations," he said.

Saunders refutes the reports about developers increasingly abandoning RIM's BlackBerry platform. "The BlackBerry platform today has around 40 lakh developers working globally and the average earning of developers on the RIM platforms is about $3000. Developers can build applications for our platform at half the cost when compared to other platforms and revenue reward for developers is the second highest in the industry," he said.

"We have a fastest growing and most lucrative platform for developers. The RIM's fund to support the developer eco-system guarantees an amount of $10,000/per year for successful developers," he added.

We are seeing an impressive growth on the platform since last two years. We have registered a 226 per cent increase in applications on our platform during the last one year, our PlayBook platform has witnessed a 240 per cent growth. We are the fastest growing platform, he reasoned.

The delayed BlackBerry 10 is being built to ensure Flow, Connect and Extend, the RIM VP explained. Flow is where the apps will make use of our unique cascade framework, Connect is the social feature and Extend is the idea that your experience with the device extends beyond the device itself, he explained.

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RIM wants to improve developer eco-system

Bacteria levels make some Louisiana beaches dicey, environmental group warns

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Fourth of July revelers heading to the beach this week might want to check out a leading environmental groups report that found water quality at the nations vacation beaches last year was the third poorest in more than two decades. Louisianas beaches were rated the nations most contaminated, with 29 percent of water samples showing elevated bacteria levels, more than three times the national average of 8 percent, according to the annual study by the Natural Resources Defense Council.

The states ranking was dragged down by five beaches in Cameron Parish listed among the 15 worst repeat offenders for persistent contamination problems from stormwater runoff and sewage pollution, the report said.

High bacteria levels were found in 44 percent of water samples collected at the five Cameron Parish beaches. In Grand Isle, the public and state park beaches fared much better, with elevated bacteria counts found in 9 percent of nearly 250 samples collected at seven locations.

Testing results at some favorite beach getaways for New Orleans area residents along the Gulf Coast showed an 8 percent contamination rate in Bay St. Louis and no bad samples at Dauphin Island, Gulf Shores and Pensacola. In Gulf Shores, the public and state park beaches were five-star beaches across the country by the report.

The study was based on beach water testing at 3,000 locations for bacteria found in human or animal waste.

The number of days beaches were closed or were subject to water-quality advisories was the third highest since the environmental group began issuing annual reports 22 years ago. The second highest total of beach closures and warnings occurred in 2010, the report said. That was the year of the BP oil spill.

The report urges the federal Environmental Protection Agency to impose stricter water quality standards this fall when it revises criteria that have been in place since 1986.

If people were swimming in water that meets their proposed standards, approximately 1 in 28 risk getting sick, said Jon Devine, senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council. We think that is too much of a risk. EPA needs to go back and come up with a stronger standard that protects more people when they go to the beach and consider other health effects.

Devine said the most common ailments are gastrointestinal illnesses, including nausea, diarrhea and vomiting.

The 10-page report, titled Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches, and a searchable database of testing results can be viewed at http://www.nrdc.org/beaches.

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ASTRO, SAMFund join to promote cancer survivorship

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Public release date: 2-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Beth Bukata bethb@astro.org 703-839-7332 American Society for Radiation Oncology

As part of an initiative to give back to the cancer communities in the cities visited during its annual scientific meetings, the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is partnering with the Surviving And Moving Forward: The SAMFund for Young Adult Survivors of Cancer to raise awareness of cancer survivorship issues.

The SAMFund for Young Adult Survivors of Cancer will work with ASTRO by participating in the Survivor Circle exhibit at ASTRO's 54th Annual Meeting, scheduled for October 28-31, 2012, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in Boston. The Survivor Circle was created to recognize those living with a diagnosis of cancer. This year, it will focus on the programs offered by Boston-area cancer organizations helping patients and their families cope with this disease. Within the Survivor Circle, there is a place for attendees to learn more about the SAMFund for Young Adult Survivors of Cancer. The SAMFund received this opportunity, along with a $10,000 grant, through the Survivor Circle Grant Program. They were one of two groups chosen from the applications received this year.

"The SAMFund is an outstanding organization that helps young adult cancer survivors whose lives have been financially impacted by cancer treatment," Michael Steinberg, MD, FASTRO, ASTRO President, said. "We must remember how these tough economic times can take a stressful toll on the sick and the recovering. Thankfully, organizations like the SAMFund help provide financial assistance to young cancer survivors, so that they may lead normal lives post-treatment. I am pleased to have this organization as part of the Survivor Circle."

"We are honored and grateful to receive this grant from ASTRO," Samantha Watson, the SAMFund's Executive Director and founder, said. "The financial impact of cancer treatment on young adults is one that is not often discussed but is arguably the most devastating. The piles of medical and other ongoing bills, together with depleted savings accounts and skyrocketing insurance premiums, make it close to impossible for young adults to consider moving forward with their lives. The SAMFund is proud to support them as they begin to take steps towards regaining their financial health and achieving the goals they set for themselves."

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ASTRO is the largest radiation oncology society in the world, with more than 10,000 members who specialize in treating patients with radiation therapies. As the leading organization in radiation oncology, biology and physics, the Society is dedicated to improving patient care through education, clinical practice, advancement of science and advocacy. For more information on radiation therapy, visit http://www.rtanswers.org. To learn more about ASTRO, visit http://www.astro.org.

The SAMFund is a unique nonprofit organization created to help young adult survivors of cancer recover from the financial aftereffects of treatment. Through three programs a free Webinar series called Moving Forward With Your Financial Health, an in-person Survivors Network and direct financial assistance The SAMFund helps young adults get back on their feet, regain their independence and keep themselves healthy and strong. For more information on The SAMFund for Young Adult Survivors of Cancer, please attend the ASTRO Annual Meeting October 28-31, 2012, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in Boston, or visit their website at http://www.thesamfund.org.

For more information about ASTRO's 54th Annual Meeting, please visit http://www.astro.org/Meetings-and-Events/2012-Annual-Meeting/Index.aspx.

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ASTRO, SAMFund join to promote cancer survivorship

U.S. unions greet Airbus with silence, wariness

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By Bill Rigby

SEATTLE (Reuters) - U.S. aerospace unions stayed largely quiet on Monday as Europe's Airbus announced plans to build its first airliner assembly plant in Mobile, Alabama, free of union representation.

Some welcomed the creation of jobs on U.S. shores, but expressed wariness that non-union work would drive down wages across the board in one of the last bastions of U.S. manufacturing.

"It's positive that Airbus is actually building a facility," said Paul Shearon, Secretary-Treasurer of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, a Washington, D.C.-based umbrella group for U.S. and Canadian engineering unions.

"But I think it's extremely unfortunate that a company that has been as successful as Airbus with a fully unionized workforce is choosing to go to a 'right-to-work' state to build that plant. It doesn't make sense."

Airbus, part of European aerospace group EADS, unveiled plans to build its first U.S. factory in Mobile, Alabama, on Monday, which it said would create some 1,000 jobs [ID:nL2E8I24XV].

Alabama is one of the two dozen U.S. states which uphold so-called 'right-to-work' laws, which prohibit compulsory membership of a union, making it very hard for a union to represent workers there.

Boeing Co's commercial aircraft unit made its biggest move into union-free manufacturing last year, when it opened a final assembly plant in South Carolina, also a 'right-to-work' state.

That move incensed unions in Boeing's heartland in the Puget Sound area around Seattle and led to a bitter legal battle between the company, workers and the National Labor Relations Board that was eventually settled with a four-year labor agreement [ID:nN1E7AT23A].

"Non-union employees aren't good for any workforce. It has a tendency to bring down wages," said Bill Dugovich, a spokesman for the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA), which represents more than 25,000 engineers at Boeing, or ex-Boeing, plants in the United States.

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Aldec Invited to Present ‘FPGA Level In-Target Testing for DO-254 Compliance’ at Avionics Conference in South Korea

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KYUNGJU, South Korea--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Aldec, Inc. joins Korean Air, Korean Aerospace Industries, Thales, Rockwell Collins, and other top tier exhibitors and presenters at the Avionics System Symposium (ASSK 2012) in KyungJu, South Korea. The Symposium, serving the Aerospace Electronics Technology industry, runs July 5-6, 2012, and will showcaseleading researchin the form of technical papers and presentations.Aldec, recently receiving global recognition for supporting several avionics projects in achieving DO-254 compliance, has been invited to take part in the conference where Louie De Luna, Aldec DO-254 Program Manager, will present FPGA Level In-Target Testing for DO-254 Compliance.

FPGA Level In-Target Testing with DO-254/CTS provides a feasible means to increase target FPGA verification coverage by test, satisfying the verification objectives of the DO-254/ED-80 specification. It allows reuse of the simulation testbench as test vectors for at-speed testing to ensure that the device testing meets the requirements and performs as to what the RTL implementation intended.

About DO-254/CTS

DO-254/CTS consists of a fully customized hardware and software package that facilitates target device testing early in the process without the final target board. It enables a single and automated environment to test all FPGA level requirements at-speed in the target device with full visibility and controllability at the FPGA pin level. For more details on DO-254/CTS, including a Video Overview, Flow Charts, and Features, visit http://www.aldec.com/Products/DO-254.

About Aldec

Aldec Inc., headquartered in Henderson, Nevada, is an industry leader in Electronic Design Verification and offers a patented technology suite including: RTL Design, RTL Simulators, Hardware-Assisted Verification, Design Rule Checking, IP Cores, DO-254 Functional Verification and Military/Aerospace solutions. http://www.aldec.com

About ASSK

The Avionics System Symposium (ASSK) serves the Aerospace Electronics Technology industry, promoting collaboration and exchanges between aerospace electronics sector institutions and companies. http://www.ksas.or.kr

Aldec is a registered trademark of Aldec, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are property of their respective owners.

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Aldec Invited to Present ‘FPGA Level In-Target Testing for DO-254 Compliance’ at Avionics Conference in South Korea

Eaton Names Uday Yadav President, Aerospace Group; Brad Morton to Retire

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CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation today announced that Uday Yadav has been named president, Aerospace Group reporting to Craig Arnold, vice chairman and chief operating officer for the Industrial Sector, effective August 1, 2012. Yadav will be based in Irvine, California. He succeeds Brad Morton, who will retire from Eaton on November 1, 2012.

Uday is a talented leader with a strong track record whose diverse experiences will serve the aerospace business well, said Arnold. During his leadership of the Eaton Business System, he has moved our capability to the next level by enabling EBS to achieve greater impact across the corporation. We are looking forward to his contributions in leading the aerospace team.

Most recently, Yadav was executive vice president, Eaton Business System. He joined Eaton in 1994 and has held the roles of president, Hydraulics business in Asia Pacific, vice president of Supply Chain Management for the Fluid Power Group, director and general manager of Eatons Global Hose Division, local managing director for Eaton in India, as well as leadership positions in the Automotive business and Aeroquip's European Operations. Prior to joining Eaton, he worked with Lucas Engineering and Systems in the United Kingdom where he worked extensively in the aerospace industry.

Yadav holds a double degree with honors in engineering and business from Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom.

Arnold continued, Brad has been instrumental in helping Eaton transform into a comprehensive supplier of hydraulic, fuel, pneumatic and electrical products for commercial and military aircraft. Under his leadership, the aerospace business has grown organically and through acquisition into the organization it is today. We are grateful for his contributions during his career with Eaton and wish him the very best for his retirement.

Morton joined Eaton in August of 2002 as the vice president and general manager for Aerospace Fluid Systems. He was named to his current role in 2003.

Eaton Corporation is a diversified power management company with more than 100 years of experience providing energy-efficient solutions that help our customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power. With 2011 sales of $16.0 billion, Eaton is a global technology leader in electrical components, systems and services for power quality, distribution and control; hydraulics components, systems and services for industrial and mobile equipment; aerospace fuel, hydraulics and pneumatic systems for commercial and military use; and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems for performance, fuel economy and safety. Eaton has approximately 72,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit http://www.eaton.com.

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Eaton Names Uday Yadav President, Aerospace Group; Brad Morton to Retire

Nutrition: Learning moderation is critical to a healthful diet

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Mixed salted nuts are a better snack choice than sugary candy. (Craig F. Walker, Denver Post file)

It was dinnertime on the flight home from visiting family for two weeks. The stewardess offered the usual beverages ... juice, sodas, coffee.

Anything to eat? I inquired.

"Chips ... M&M's ... Chex Mix," she offered.

Note to self: Next time, remember to bring nuts and dried fruit for in-flight hunger pangs.

So as we bounced over the Rocky Mountains toward home, I was reminded that changes in routine often require flexibility especially with food. Maybe orange juice and Chex Mix isn't the best "dinner" I've ever had. But in the wise words of 16th-century bishop St. Francis de Sales: "A habitual moderation in eating and drinking is much better than certain rigorous abstinences made from time to time."

Moderation in eating and drinking. What an interesting concept.

My mind went back to the previous week's "Doggie Dash." It's an annual event hosted by my daughter's in-laws in their small midwestern town. Dogs of seemingly every size and breed walk with their owners through town while the local radio station plays songs such as "Hound Dog" and "How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?" When they arrive at the sponsoring veterinary clinic, the dogs are greeted with bandanas and bowls of fresh water, and the owners receive T-shirts and hot dogs.

"Isn't this a conflict of interest for you?" one of the veterinarians asked me as she eyed the lunch fare.

Not really. According to the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the most important focus of a healthful eating style is our "overall pattern" of eating. "All foods can fit within this pattern," says the Academy, "if consumed in moderation with appropriate portion size and combined with regular physical activity."

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Nutrition meets fine dining

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Michelin-rated restaurant Rouge Tomate in New York City brings diners a modern twist on American cuisine.

Using SPE guidelines sourcing, preparation and enhancement the restaurant relies primarily on local ingredients to prepare its food. Executive Chef Jeremy Bearman and Executive Pastry Chef James Distefano works directly with culinary nutritionist, Kristy Lambrou, to provide a combination of fine dining and nutritious food at their restaurant.

The first Rouge Tomate opened in Brussels in 2001, explained Lambrou. The owner, Emmanuel Verstraeten, really wanted to show that nutrition and gastronomy could be combined and do not need to be mutually exclusive.

The philosophy of the restaurant follows the SPE charter, which Lambrou explains in Latin, sanitas per escam health through food. To ensure this philosophy flows throughout the menu, the chefs at Rouge Tomate do not add any butter or cream to appetizers or entrees and do not fry or grill any of the food.

"We want the guest to have about three servings of fruits and vegetables, Lambrou said So in order to do that we have criteria for each course; appetizers have to have a certain amount, entrees, and desserts."

Together Bearman, Distefano and Lambrou confer about combinations of ingredients, nutritional values and textures to ensure complete customer satisfaction. The chefs work with Lambrou to learn about the nutritional values of their dishes.

The first step of SPE is the S which stands for sourcing or where the products come from. The chefs first look for ingredients they want to use in their dishes that have beneficial nutrients, from local farmers and producers.

Once the specific ingredients are chosen, they decide how to prepare the food.

SPE is really taking these wonderful ingredients that we have and preparing them in a way that not only makes it taste really wonderful, but also keeps the nutritional integrity of the food, Bearman said. It is really important to us and really makes us different from a lot of other restaurants.

Finally, the restaurant pulls the different elements of the meal together before presenting it to the diner.

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UQ celebrates 50 years of microbiology

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This week UQ is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of a Department of Microbiology, with an alumni dinner to be addressed by an eminent scientist working on polio a remerging disease.

Lectures in bacteriology were introduced to the UQ medical course in the late 1930s, the time of a polio epidemic in Australia.

The post-war years saw the evolution of teaching and research from clinical bacteriology to the wider discipline of microbiology.

Victor Skerman was appointed in 1950 and became the foundation professor of microbiology in 1962, heading the new Department of Microbiology.

The Department prospered over succeeding years, eventually moving from the University's Herston campus to a purpose-built building at St Lucia in 1972.

The building was renamed the Skerman Building in 1988, in honour of the man who led the departments of bacteriology and microbiology for 32 years.

Today, microbiology at UQ continues to prosper as part of the School of Chemistry & Molecular Biosciences.

Professor Ralph Tripp of the University of Georgia, USA, will present the annual Skerman Lecture on 5 July at Hillstone St Lucia.

He will speak on the development of enhanced vaccine cell lines for the eradication of poliovirus and other vaccine preventable diseases.

Despite a cessation of poliomyelitis in most areas of the world, outbreaks continue in nations where polio is endemic and in countries previously free of polio.

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DNA sequenced for parrot's ability to parrot

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ScienceDaily (July 2, 2012) Scientists say they have assembled more completely the string of genetic letters that could control how well parrots learn to imitate their owners and other sounds.

The research team unraveled the specific regions of the parrots' genome using a new technology, single molecule sequencing, and fixing its flaws with data from older DNA-decoding devices. The team also decoded hard-to-sequence genetic material from corn and bacteria as proof of their new sequencing approach.

The results of the study appeared online July 1 in the journal Nature Biotechnology.

Single molecule sequencing "got a lot of hype last year" because it generates long sequencing reads, "supposedly making it easier to assemble complex parts of the genome," said Duke University neurobiologist Erich Jarvis, a co-author of the study.

He is interested in the sequences that regulate parrots' imitation abilities because they could give neuroscientists information about the gene regions that control speech development in humans.

Jarvis began his project with collaborators by trying to piece together the genome regions with what are known as next-generation sequencers, which read chunks of 100 to 400 DNA base pairs at a time and then take a few days to assemble them into a draft genome. After doing the sequencing, the scientists discovered that the read lengths were not long enough to assemble the regulatory regions of some of the genes that control brain circuits for vocal learning.

University of Maryland computational biologists Adam Phillippy and Sergey Koren -- experts at assembling genomes -- heard about Jarvis's sequencing struggles at a conference and approached him with a possible solution of modifying the algorithms that order the DNA base pairs. But the fix was still not sufficient.

Last year, 1000 base-pair reads by Roch 454 became available, as did the single molecule sequencer by Pacific Biosciences. The Pacbio technology generates strands of 2,250 to 23,000 base pairs at a time and can draft an entire genome in about a day.

Jarvis and others thought the new technologies would solve the genome-sequencing challenges. Through a competition, called the Assemblathon, the scientists discovered that the Pacbio machine had trouble accurately decoding complex regions of the parrot, Melopsittacus undulates, genome. The machine had a high error rate, generating the wrong genetic letter at every fifth or sixth spot in a string of DNA. The mistakes made it nearly impossible to create a genome assembly with the very long reads, Jarvis said.

But with a team, including scientists from the DOE Genome Science Institute and Cold Spring Harbor in New York, Phillippy, Koren and Jarvis corrected the Pacbio sequencer's errors using shorter, more accurate codes from the next-generation devices. The fix reduces the single-molecule, or third-generation, sequencing machine's error rate from 15 percent to less than one-tenth of one percent.

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Addex Appoints Dr. Graham Dixon as Chief Scientific Officer and Head of Research

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Geneva, Switzerland, 3 July 2012 - Addex Therapeutics(ADXN.SW), a leading company pioneering allosteric modulation-based oral small molecule drug discovery and development, announced today the appointment of Dr. Graham Dixon to the newly created position of Chief Scientific Officer and Head of Research. Dr. Dixon will report directly to Dr. Bharat Chowrira, CEO of Addex, and will be responsible for leading all aspects of research and non-clinical development activities at Addex.

"We are delighted to have Graham join the Addex team. Graham has a strong background and an impressive track record in small molecule pharmaceutical research and development. He has been responsible for the discovery of novel drugs and steering their development from basic science into clinical development, as well as bringing products through mid-stage proof-of-concept clinical trials." stated Dr. Bharat Chowrira, CEO of Addex. "Addex` strength lies in our leading allosteric modulation technology and the ability to leverage this platform to develop drug candidates against previously undruggable but important validated biological targets. Graham`s experience and R&D leadership will be instrumental as we execute on our core strategy and continue to build a robust proprietary pipeline of high value drug discovery and development programs and rapidly advancing these drug candidates towards the clinic"

Dr. Dixon joins Addex with more than 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical researc, most recently as Chief Scientific Officer at Galapagos NV. In this role, Dr. Dixon was responsible for all research & early development within the company in multiple therapeutic areas as well as the management of more than 260 scientific personnel across three sites in the Netherlands, Belgium and France. Prior to Galapagos, Dr. Dixon was Chief Scientific Officer at Entomed SA, a developer of natural anticancer and anti-infective agents. Dr. Dixon joined Entomed from a similar role at antifungal therapeutic company, F2G Ltd. Before joining F2G, Dr. Dixon held several roles at AstraZeneca starting as a project manager in anti-infective research and culminating in the role of Global Product Director in the oncology division. He started his career as Head of Biochemistry at Dowelanco (UK) Ltd. Dr. Dixon earned his PhD in biochemistry from the University of Swansea and a BSc in applied biology from the University of Bradford.

"I am excited about joining Addex, the recognized industry leader in allosteric modulation-based oral small molecule drug discovery and development," said Dr. Dixon. "I look forward to building on the significant progress made by the world-class scientists at Addex and applying this powerful platform towards creating an attractive engine of innovative product candidates for the treatment of serious diseases and indications with a huge unmet medical need."

Addex Therapeutics (www.addextherapeutics.com) discovers and develops an emerging class of small molecule drugs, called allosteric modulators, which have the potential to be more specific and confer significant therapeutic advantages over conventional "orthosteric" small molecule or biological drugs. The Company uses its proprietary discovery platform to address receptors and other proteins that are recognized as attractive targets for modulation of important diseases with unmet medical needs. The Company`s two lead products are being investigated in Phase 2 clinical testing: dipraglurant (ADX48621, an mGluR5 negative allosteric modulator or NAM) is being developed by Addex to treat Parkinson`s disease levodopa-induced dyskinesia (PD-LID); and ADX71149 (mGluR2 positive allosteric modulator or PAM) is being developed by Addex` partner Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. to treat schizophrenia and anxiety seen in patients suffering from major depressive disorder. Addex also is advancing several preclinical programs including: GABA-BR PAM for overactive bladder, pain and other disorders; mGluR4 PAM for Parkinson`s, MS, anxiety and other diseases; GLP1R PAM for type 2 diabetes; and mGluR2 NAM for treating Alzheimer`s disease and depression. In addition, Addex has discovery programs to identify allosteric modulators of: receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) superfamily, including TrkB PAM for treating neurodegenerative diseases (e.g. Alzheimer`s, Parkinson`s and Huntington`s diseases); and TNF receptor superfamily, including TNFR1 NAM for inflammation (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis) and other diseases.

Mike Sinclair Halsin Partners Tel: +44 30 7318 2955 msinclair(at)halsin.com

Disclaimer: The foregoing release may contain forward-looking statements that can be identified by terminology such as "not approvable", "continue", "believes", "believe", "will", "remained open to exploring", "would", "could", or similar expressions, or by express or implied discussions regarding Addex Therapeutics, formerly known as, Addex Pharmaceuticals, its business, the potential approval of its products by regulatory authorities, or regarding potential future revenues from such products. Such forward-looking statements reflect the current views of Addex Therapeutics regarding future events, future economic performance or prospects, and, by their very nature, involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, whether known or unknown, and/or any other factor that may materially differ from the plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Such may in particular cause actual results with allosteric modulators of mGluR2, mGluR4, mGluR5, GABABR, GLP1R, TNFR1, TrkB or other therapeutic targets to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. There can be no guarantee that allosteric modulators of mGluR2, mGluR4, mGluR5, GABABR, GLP1R, TNFR1, TrkB or other therapeutics targets will be approved for sale in any market or by any regulatory authority. Nor can there be any guarantee that allosteric modulators of mGluR2, mGluR4, mGluR5, GABABR, GLP1R, TNFR1, TrkB or other therapeutic targets will achieve any particular levels of revenue (if any) in the future. In particular, management`s expectations regarding allosteric modulators of mGluR2, mGluR4, mGluR5, GABABR, GLP1R, TNFR1, TrkB or other therapeutic targets could be affected by, among other things, unexpected actions by our partners, unexpected regulatory actions or delays or government regulation generally; unexpected clinical trial results, including unexpected new clinical data and unexpected additional analysis of existing clinical data; competition in general; government, industry and general public pricing pressures; the company`s ability to obtain or maintain patent or other proprietary intellectual property protection. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Addex Therapeutics is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable laws.

The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: Addex Therapeutics via Thomson Reuters ONE HUG#1623513

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Addex Appoints Dr. Graham Dixon as Chief Scientific Officer and Head of Research

MU Researcher Receives NIH MERIT Award

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COLUMBIA The bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli) has a rudimentary molecular "memory" that allows it to swim toward the richest sources of food. MU biochemistry professor Gerald Hazelbauer's discoveries about bacteria could shed light on human and animal sensory, memory and response systems.

"When I began my work as a researcher in the late 1960s, studying bacterial behavior was a curiosity and its significance unclear," Hazelbauer said. "Now, decades later, the research done by my group and others has grown into a body of knowledge about the fundamental processes used by all living things to recognize, remember and respond to changes in their environments."

The National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) recently recognized and rewarded Hazelbauer's scientific contributions by granting him a "Method to Extend Research in Time" (MERIT) Award. The award, which is worth at least $5.5 million over 10 years, will allow him to continue his research without re-applying for funding. Hazelbauer joins only 11 other MU researchers who have received the MERIT award, including his wife, Linda Randall, who is also a biochemistry professor.

MERIT awards are intended to foster creativity and allow researchers to take more time to develop new techniques.

The awards are given only to scientists who have proven themselves by succeeding in at least 10 years of previous NIGMS-funded research and who seem likely to continue making valuable contributions to their field.

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Anatomy of a farce: rights and the wrongs of a DJ dalliance

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The withdrawal of a $1.65 billion takeover bid for national retailer David Jones has bought to a close one of the most bizarre chapters in the companys 174-year history.

In our step-by-step analysis of the bidmade by little-known private equity company EB Private Equitywe unravel the complexities facing David Jones chair Bob Savage, his board and management.

The takeover bid

On May 28, the David Jones board received an email, dated May 22, with an unconditional but incomplete bid for the company. According to The Australian Financial Review, David Jones chairman Bob Savage thought the deal didnt feel right. He emailed the bidder asking for more information. It would be a month before he received any response.

The bidder was John Edgar, representing EB Private Equity, a private equity group that claims to have a focus on property.

The David Jones board was faced with three possibilities: saying nothing until further details were forthcoming; making an announcement; or going into a trading halt.Usually, you would expect the board to quickly make an announcement about a bid, says the chief executive of Chartered Secretaries Australia, Tim Sheehy.

My hunch is that they hesitated because they had doubts about the legitimacy of the bid, he told LeadingCompany. In a perfect world where a bid came through a well-known, recognised investment bank, and was legitimate, they would have to disclose relatively quickly. This one didnt seem bona fide from the start, and they set about investigating.

The David Jones board was under no obligation to reveal the bid by EB Private Equity, says professor Ian Ramsay, director of the centre for corporate law and securities regulation at Melbourne University. Ramsay was responsible for the review that led to changes in corporate law in 2004 in the wake of corporate collapses such as HIH insurance in 2001.

The ASX requires under listing rules disclosure of material information [that will affect the share price], but there is a carve out and that includes an incomplete proposal, he said.

On June 28, a day before David Jones finally revealed the offer, EB Private Equity responded to Savages request for more information. The email contained few new details about the bidder, but did update the offer to $1.65 billiona 40% premium on the companys then market value.

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Anatomy of a farce: rights and the wrongs of a DJ dalliance

Life-sciences team forms new partnerships at US event

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Home national Life-sciences team forms new partnerships at US event

The Nation July 3, 2012 1:00 am

The collaborative project with the US is aimed at developing "probe capture assay" applications on next-generation DNA-sequencing technologies for HIV-1 pharmacogenomics, the most advanced of its kind in the world. It will put new tools for diagnosing both human and virus genomes in the hands of front-line physicians, and bring clear benefits to patients.

The 2012 BIO International Convention held last week in Boston, Massachusetts drew 20,000 participants including researchers, scientists, investors and businessmen from both the public and private sectors. TCELS led a team of Thai delegates from allied agencies including the Board of Investment (BoI), National Nanotechnology Centre (Nanotec) and Naresuan University. Works by Thai researchers were presented at the Thai Pavilion.

TCELS presented projects under its support including a whitening product made from natural latex extracted by Prince of Songkla University; the discovery of genes allergic to the anti-retroviral drugs Nevirapine and d4T (a world first discovery by the Pharmaco-genomics Project at Ramathibodi Hospital with Mahidol University); and other pre-clinical and clinical research developments that meet international standards. This is to prove the country's potential in research collaboration and services.

TCELS acting head Kamchorn Balangura said that over the four-day event, more than 700 visitors showed their interest and sought details about Bio-Nanotechnology investment, standard clinical research and development, as well as Thai life-science products.

Kamchorn said the event was a great success for Thailand, as the team was able to establish tie-ups with counterparts from major countries in the field like South Korea and the US. The Chuncheon Bioindustry Foundation (CBF), a South Korean regional industrial estate, is interested in integrating research in the industry, and has already signed an MoU with Thailand.

US biotechnological firm Pathogenica, which works on advanced DNA-sequencing technologies, also agreed to sign an MOU to collaborate with the TCELS-supported Pharmaco-genomics Project.

Prof Wasun Chantratita, head of the Pharmacogenomics Project, said Dr Yemi Adesokan, the chief of Pathogenica, had followed Thai research on pharmacogenomics for a while and expressed an interest in establishing a collaboration. After learning that the Pharmaco-genomics team was at the convention, talks were held and the groups agreed to work together.

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Life-sciences team forms new partnerships at US event

Nanotechnology switches back to vacuum transistors at low voltage

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July 03, 2012 // Peter Clarke

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh have come up with a device structure that allows a switch back to vacuum, in contrast to the solid-state, as the medium for electron transport in transistors.

The team is proposing a MOS vertical structure with a triple layer of metal/silicon dioxide/silicon exposed on the side by a deep trench. The metal and silicon layers form the anode and cathode of the device, separated by the insulating silicon dioxide, and the electron transport occurs in the vertical direction through the vacuum.

The work is discussed in a research paper entitled Metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor with a vacuum channel, published in Nature Nanotechnology July 1.

The work represents a return to the roots of electronics. The solid-state transistor was invented in 1947 as a replacement for the bulky, unreliable vacuum tube. Vacuum tube style electronics in miniature made using solid-state semiconductor manufacturing techniques have been tried before, but the concept has struggled to overcome requirements for high voltage and issue of compatibility with the incumbent solid-state CMOS technology.

A team under Hong Koo Kim, principal investigator on the project and a Professor in the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering, has redesigned the structure of the vacuum electronic device. With the assistance of PhD candidate Siwapon Srisonphan and postdoctoral fellow Yun Suk Jung Kim and his team discovered that electrons trapped inside a semiconductor at the interface with an oxide or metal layer can be easily extracted out into the air. The electrons at the material interface form a sheet of charges, a two-dimensional electron gas and Kim found that the Coulombic repulsion of the electrons for each other enables the easy emission of electrons out of the silicon.

This allows the creation of a low-voltage device in which the electrons travel ballistically in air in a nanometer-scale channel without any collisions or scattering.

The channel length is of the order of 20-nm and the team measured a transconductance of 20-nS per micron and an on/off ratio of 500 and turn-on gate voltage of 0.5-V under ambient conditions, according to the paper's abstract.

"The emission of this electron system into vacuum channels could enable a new class of low-power, high-speed transistors, and it's also compatible with current silicon electronics, complementing those electronics by adding new functions that are faster and more energy efficient due to the low voltage," said Professor Kim, in a statement.

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Nanotechnology switches back to vacuum transistors at low voltage