Monthly Archives: September 2012

Enzymotec Presents Clinical Trials Strategy for Its Infant Nutrition Lipid Based Ingredients

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KFAR BARUCH, Israel, September 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Enzymotec Ltd. reports today that clinical trials for its lipid-based ingredient line for infant nutrition yielded positive results. This plan is part of a comprehensive business development strategy to develop and market directly or through its affiliated companies a line of products mimicking the vital lipids found in mother's milk, such as triglyceride, phospholipids and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA).

Enzymotec intends to publish four new scientific articles on its lipid-based ingredients for infant nutrition in peer-reviewed journals in the coming months. These large-scale clinical research trials were conducted on newborn term infants in several institutes worldwide. Clinical results already have been presented at leading professional conferences.

One of the studies recently completed was a controlled clinical trial on InFat. InFat is a beta-palmitate ingredient that successfully mimics the fat composition and properties of human milk fat. It enables easy digestion and optimized uptake of calcium, fat recovery and energy. InFat is marketed by Advanced Lipids, a joint venture of AAK and Enzymotec. The study was the first testing the positive effect of a commercial term-infant formula containing beta-palmitate on Chinese infants' well-being. It was conducted by Professor Chen Yu-Ming, the principle investigator at Sun Yat-Sen University and in collaboration with Enzymotec.

"The clinical trials plan represents Enzymotec's ongoing commitment to explore the special characteristics of human milk and demonstrate its lipid-based ingredients' health benefits on various infant populations," says Yael Lifshitz, PhD, Director of R&D, of Enzymotec Infant Nutrition. "We developed this innovative ingredient and educated the premium infant formula market over the last several years. Enzymotec invested 10% of its revenue in research and development-a percentage considered among the highest in the industry."

About Enzymotec

Enzymotec is a research-based biotech company that develops, manufactures and markets innovative lipid-based, bio-functional ingredients and final products. Enzymotec delivers innovative solutions under three divisions. The Enzymotec Infant Nutrition division develops lipid compositions that mimic human milk fat to facilitate healthy infant development.

About Advanced Lipids AB

Advanced Lipids is a joint venture between AAK and Enzymotec for the sales and marketing of InFat. Advanced Lipids offers InFat as a concentrate form or as any tailored oil blend enriched with beta-palmitate (high sn2). Advanced Lipids produces InFat at AAK's site in Karlshamn, Sweden, based on the enzymatic technology developed by Enzymotec.

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Enzymotec Presents Clinical Trials Strategy for Its Infant Nutrition Lipid Based Ingredients

Schiff Nutrition Announces Timing of Fiscal 2013 First Quarter Results

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SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Schiff Nutrition International, Inc., (SHF), announced it intends to discuss its fiscal 2013 first quarter results on Tuesday, September 18, 2012. The company will host a conference call at 11:00 a.m. ET, featuring remarks by Tarang Amin, chief executive officer and president, and Joseph Baty, chief financial officer and executive vice president, followed by a question and answer session.

The call will be webcast at http://www.schiffnutrition.com/press_conference_calls.asp. The webcast replay will be available for 90 days. If you do not have Internet access, the dial-in number will be 888-771-4371 for domestic callers and 847-585-4405 for international callers. The participant access code is 33249843. A replay of the call will be available by dialing 888-843-7419 for domestic callers and 630-652-3042 for international callers, and entering access code 33249843. The telephone replay will be available through September 25, 2012.

About Schiff Nutrition

Schiff Nutrition International, Inc. is a leading nutritional supplement company offering vitamins, nutritional supplements and nutrition bars in the United States and abroad. Schiffs portfolio of well-known brands includes MegaRed, Move Free, Airborne, Tiger's Milk, Digestive Advantage and Schiff Vitamins. Focused on quality for 75 years, Schiffs headquarters and award-winning manufacturing and distribution facility are based in Salt Lake City, Utah. To learn more about Schiff, please visit the web site http://www.schiffnutrition.com.

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Schiff Nutrition Announces Timing of Fiscal 2013 First Quarter Results

DNA leads to arrest in cemetery thefts

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Man admits to theft at cemetery

Investigators were able to use DNA evidence to track down a man who has been accused of stealing thousands of dollars worth of equipment from the Houston National Cemetery.

According to investigators, a burglar got away with a golf cart, two John Deere utility carts, tools and damaged two trucks in December of last year. The cemetery's losses totaled $36,000.

Harris County sheriff's deputies said the burglar left behind a drop of blood. Using a national database, the blood was matched to 32-year-old David Torres, a convict with arrests for theft, burglary and drugs that date back to 1997.

Torres was forced to submit a DNA sample during his last stay in jail.

"At that point, when the CODIS was done, he was brought in, presented with the evidence and he couldn't fight it. He pled guilty with no jury," said Deputy Thomas Gilliam with the Harris County Sheriff's Department.

Torres is now serving three years in prison for looting the Houston National Cemetery.

The same DNA evidence also showed that Torres was a suspect in a second burglary.

Copyright 2012 by Click2Houston.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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DNA leads to arrest in cemetery thefts

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Real-time observation of single DNA molecule repair

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ScienceDaily (Sep. 11, 2012) DNA is constantly being damaged by environmental agents such as ultraviolet light or certain compounds present in cigarette smoke. Cells unceasingly implement repair mechanisms for this DNA, which are of redoubtable efficacy. A team from Institut Jacques Monod (CNRS/Universit Paris Diderot), in collaboration with scientists from the Universities of Bristol in the UK and Rockefeller in the USA, has for the first time managed to follow real-time the initial steps in one of these hitherto little known DNA repair systems. Working in a bacterial model, and thanks to an innovative technique applied to a single molecule of DNA, the scientists were able to understand how several actors interact to ensure the reliable repair of DNA.

Published in Nature on 9 September 2012, their work aims to better understand the onset of cancers and how they become resistant to chemotherapies.

Ultraviolet light, tobacco smoke or even the benzopyrenes contained in over-cooked meat can cause changes to the DNA in our cells, which may lead to the onset of cancers. These environmental agents deteriorate the actual structure of the DNA, notably causing so-called "bulky" lesions (like the formation of chemical bonds between DNA bases). In order to identify and repair this type of damage, the cell can call on several systems, such as transcription-coupled repair (TCR), whose complex mechanism of action still remains poorly understood today. Abnormalities affecting this TCR mechanism -- which permits permanent monitoring of the genome -- are the cause of some hereditary diseases such as Xeroderma pigmentosum, sufferers from which are hypersensitive to the Sun's ultraviolet rays and are commonly referred to as "children of the night."

For the first time, a team from Institut Jacques Monod (CNRS/Universit Paris Diderot), in collaboration with scientists at the Universities of Bristol in the UK and Rockefeller in the USA, has succeeded in observing the initial stages of TCR repair mechanisms in a bacterial model. To achieve this, they employed a novel technique for the nanomanipulation of individual molecules[1] which allowed them to detect and follow real-time the interactions between the molecules in play in a single damaged DNA molecule. They elucidated the interactions between different actors during the first steps of this TCR process. A first protein, RNA polymerase[2], usually crosses DNA without mishap, but is stalled when it meets a bulky lesion (like a train blocked on its rails by a landslide). A second protein, Mfd, binds to the stalled RNA polymerase and removes it from the damaged "rail" so that it can then replace it with the other proteins necessary to repair the damage. Measurements of the reaction speeds enabled the observation that Mfd acts particularly slowly on RNA polymerase, pushing it out of the way in about twenty seconds. Furthermore, Mfd does indeed displace stalled RNA polymerase, but then remains associated with the DNA for a longer period (of about five minutes), allowing it to coordinate the arrival of other repair proteins at the damaged site.

Although the scientists were able to explain how this system can achieve almost 100% reliability, a even clearer understanding of these repair processes is still essential in order to determine how cancers appear and subsequently may become resistant to chemotherapies.

Notes:

[1] During these nanomanipulation experiments, damaged DNA was grafted onto a glass surface on one side and a magnetic microbead on the other. The bead surface enabled the perpendicular extension of the DNA and measurement of this end-to-end extension using videomicroscopy. The binding to DNA of different proteins, and their action, is identifiable from the modification the protein generates in the structure or conformation of the DNA. This technique enables an extremely detailed structural and kinetic analysis of in vitro biochemical reactions.

[2] RNA polymerase is responsible for the reading of DNA by a gene and its rewriting in an RNA form, a process known as transcription. It has been shown that RNA polymerase does not only transcribe genes, but also the DNA between genes (until recently referred to as "junk" DNA), allowing, for example, polymerase RNA to perform its quality control by TCR on the entire genome of an organism.

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Posted in DNA

Ex-professor pleads guilty to fatally shooting 3 colleagues at Ala. university faculty meeting

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. A former biology professor accused of pulling a gun from her purse and opening fire at a faculty meeting pleaded guilty Tuesday to killing three colleagues and wounding three others at the University of Alabama in Huntsville in 2010.

Amy Bishop, 47, pleaded guilty to one count of capital murder involving two or more people and three counts of attempted murder during a hearing in Huntsville. She had earlier pleaded not guilty, and her lawyers said she planned to use an insanity defense.

Prosecutors agreed to recommend a sentence of life without parole for the capital charge, and three life sentences for the attempted murder charges. Sentencing will follow a brief trial on Sept. 24 before Madison County Circuit Judge Alan Mann.

Prosecutors say Bishop opened fire at the meeting on Feb. 12, 2010. Her attorneys say Bishop had mental problems; she signed a plea agreement with a barely legible scrawl.

Bishop, who lived with her family in Huntsville before the shootings, also is charged with killing her brother in Massachusetts in 1986. The shooting of 18-year-old Seth Bishop had been ruled an accident after Amy Bishop told police she shot him in the family's Braintree home as she was trying to unload her father's gun.

But the Alabama slayings led to a new investigation and charges.

In the school shooting, police and people who knew Bishop have described the Harvard University-educated researcher as being angry over UAH's refusal to grant her tenure, a decision that effectively would have ended her employment in the biology department.

The gunfire killed Bishop's boss, biology department chairman Gopi Padila, plus professors Maria Ragland Davis and Adriel Johnson. Professors Joseph Leahy, staff aide Stephanie Monticciolo and assistant professor Luis Cruz-Vera were shot and wounded.

Debra Moriarity was in the faculty meeting at the time of the shooting and is now biology chairman at the school. Prosecutors who met with potential witnesses last Friday said there was a possibility of a plea agreement before the trial began on Sept. 24, she said.

"So I'm not totally surprised by it, but I am surprised it happened this soon," she said.

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The Contrarian: Set Scientists Free to Create New Life-Forms | DISCOVER Magazine

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UT Austin 2004 Synthetic Biology competition photo.

Courtesy of Jeff Tabor and Randy Rettberg via Wikipedia

CONVENTIONAL WISDOMSynthetic biology could destabilize the environment and revive viral terrors like the killer flu of 1918.

THE CONTRARY VIEWSynthetic life is proven safe and should be unleashed.

Synthetic biology is based on identifying DNA sequences that code for specific traits and transferring them from one life-form to another, such as from fish to bacteria. The goal is to create new living things with specialties that help humans and the Earth. Sequences are catalogued, and innovators can then request one that confers special traits as simply as ordering a book online.

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Off-the-shelf molecular parts could allow synthetic biologists to create new medications and biofuels or to make microbes with the capacity to destroy pollutants and other nuisances. Researchers have built a potential malaria medication, and students have developed a prototype of a new vaccine to stop ulcers.

Shamefully, accolades that resounded a generation ago for biotechnology advancesfor instance, recombining DNA to develop human-derived insulin, which is much safer than the animal-derived products that came beforehave been drowned out by a misinformed coalition of 114 organizations, including ETC Group and Friends of the Earth. They argue the research must stop until enforceable regulations specific to synthetic biology are in place, and they insist that all alternatives to synthetic biology be considered before an experiment can advance. These demands could halt projects like those of J. Craig Venter, the biotechnologist who built the first self-replicating synthetic bacterium. He is now working on microbes that eat pollution, excrete biofuels, and more. If the coalition has its way, the world will never find out whether these organisms can help us generate energy or clean the air.

There is no documented danger from synthetic biology, yet merchants of doom emphasize fears of molecular Frankenbots instead of benefits like new drugs and energy sources. Worries about monster species are particularly absurd. It is extraordinarily difficult to construct novel organisms, and countless attempts to do so have failed.

Brent Erickson, executive vice president of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, believes at the core of the opposition is a phobia of technology and genetically modified crops. They see synthetic biology as a gateway to biofuels and consider that a Trojan horse for genetically modified crops. Thats a very tangled fearmany of its products are good for humanity, he says.

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The Contrarian: Set Scientists Free to Create New Life-Forms | DISCOVER Magazine

Johns Hopkins biology professor wins top research award

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Donald Brown (Courtesy of Johns Hopkins, Baltimore Sun / September 11, 2012)

5:03 p.m. EDT, September 11, 2012

Brown, who also is director emeritus of the Carnegie Institution for Science Department of Embryology, was recognized for work he and others did in gene amplification, one process that is responsible for runaway growth of chemotherapy-resistant cancer cells. He has made other discoveries about the nature of genes but today focuses on metamorphosis in frogs.

"We were one of the first groups to purify genes of any kind," Brown said in a statement. "We learned a lot about their structure, function, and evolution before the era of recombinant DNA."

Another Hopkins affiliated biologist, Joseph Gall, won the Lasker Award in 2006 for his role as a "founder of modern cell biology." Four other Hopkins faculty have won the award for work including on brain chemistry and the discovery that vitamin A prevents blindness and infections in children in poor countries.

meredith.cohn@baltsun.com

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Johns Hopkins biology professor wins top research award

Partnership enhances biology teaching at California community colleges

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Public release date: 11-Sep-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Elaine Bible ebible@sfsu.edu 415-405-3606 San Francisco State University

When student Jeff Schinske took part in a graduate teaching fellowship through Associate Professor of Biology Kimberly Tanner's lab at San Francisco State University, the experience inspired him to teach biology. But when he graduated and became a community college instructor, Schinske found there was little professional support.

Schinske and Tanner are collaborating on a project that meets that need. With funding from the National Science Foundation, they are bringing together Bay Area community college biology instructors and helping them find innovative ways to refine their teaching.

"It can be isolating to be a community college instructor," said Schinske, who teaches biology at De Anza College in Cupertino, Calif. "Unlike K-12 teachers or university professors, you don't have a professional community centered on the grade level you teach or your field of research."

A lack of professional community isn't the only challenge.

"Much like university faculty, community college biology instructors are trained to conduct scientific research but they aren't trained how to teach," Tanner said.

She runs a range of programs for current and aspiring science educators through SF State's Science Education Partnership and Assessment Lab (SEPAL).

"I teach science instructors to be the best teachers that they can be," Tanner said. "This community partnership is an extension of that work." Community College Biology Faculty Enhancement through Scientific Teaching (CCB FEST) began in in 2010 and just received another NSF grant to support it for the next four years. The program includes monthly workshops, a summer intensive session, discussion groups and opportunities for community college faculty to partner with SF State graduate students.

The program encourages community college instructors to apply the rigor of scientific research to their teaching, collecting evidence from students about what they are learning and using that to refine how they teach. The approach is called scientific teaching.

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Cytokinetics Congratulates Its Founders, James A. Spudich, Ph.D. and Ronald D. Vale, Ph.D., on their Receipt of the …

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Lasker Award Winners` Research into Molecular Motors Formed the Foundation of Company`s Research and Development Activities

South San Francisco, CA, September 11, 2012 - Cytokinetics, Incorporated (CYTK) extends congratulations to Dr. James Spudich and Dr. Ronald Vale, winners of the 2012 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research. The Lasker Awards are among the most respected science prizes in the world. Since 1945, the Lasker Awards Program has recognized the contributions of scientists, physicians, and public servants who have made major advances in the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, cure, and prevention of human disease.

Drs. Spudich and Vale share this award for their innovative research relating to cytoskeletal motor proteins, the protein machines that transport cargoes within cells, segregate chromosomes and divide cells, contract muscles, and enable cell motility. Dr. Spudich is the Douglass M. and Nola Leishman Professor in Cardiovascular Disease and Professor of Biochemistry and Developmental Biology at Stanford University. Dr. Vale is the William K. Hamilton Distinguished Professor of Anesthesia and Professor and Vice Chair of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology at the University of California, San Francisco. Drs. Spudich and Vale are co-founders of Cytokinetics.

"Today, we extend congratulations to our founders in connection with their receipt of the prestigious Lasker Award," stated Robert I. Blum, Cytokinetics` President and Chief Executive Officer. "Their pioneering research in the biochemistry and biophysics of molecular motors formed the cornerstone of our initial discovery research at Cytokinetics. It is our company`s privilege to now carry forward biopharmaceutical programs into later stage research and development that are directed towards grievous illnesses and that continue to benefit from their valued contributions as scientific advisors."

About Cytokinetics

Cytokinetics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel small molecule therapeutics that modulate muscle function for the potential treatment of serious diseases and medical conditions. Cytokinetics` lead drug candidate from its cardiac muscle contractility program, omecamtiv mecarbil, is in Phase II clinical development for the potential treatment of heart failure. Amgen Inc. holds an exclusive license worldwide (excluding Japan) to develop and commercialize omecamtiv mecarbil and related compounds, subject to Cytokinetics` specified development and commercialization participation rights. Cytokinetics is independently developing tirasemtiv (formerly CK-2017357), a skeletal muscle activator, as a potential treatment for diseases and conditions associated with aging, muscle wasting or neuromuscular dysfunction. Tirasemtiv is currently the subject of a Phase II clinical trials program and has been granted orphan drug designation and fast track status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and orphan medicinal product designation by the European Medicines Agency for the potential treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a debilitating disease of neuromuscular impairment in which treatment with tirasemtiv produced potentially clinically relevant pharmacodynamic effects in Phase II trials. Cytokinetics is also conducting research on compounds that inhibit smooth muscle contractility and which may be useful as potential treatments for diseases and conditions associated with excessive smooth muscle contraction, such as bronchoconstriction associated with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. All of these drug candidates and potential drug candidates have arisen from Cytokinetics` research activities and are directed towards the cytoskeleton. The cytoskeleton is a complex biological infrastructure that plays a fundamental role within every human cell. Additional information about Cytokinetics can be obtained at http://www.cytokinetics.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Act"). Cytokinetics disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements, and claims the protection of the Act`s Safe Harbor for forward-looking statements. Examples of such statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to Cytokinetics` research and development activities, including the properties and potential benefits of Cytokinetics` drug candidates and potential drug candidates. Such statements are based on management`s current expectations, but actual results may differ materially due to various risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, potential difficulties or delays in the development, testing, regulatory approval and production of Cytokinetics` drug candidates and potential drug candidates that could slow or prevent clinical development or product approval, including risks that current and past results of clinical trials or preclinical studies may not be indicative of future clinical trials results and that Cytokinetics` drug candidates and potential drug candidates may have unexpected adverse side effects or inadequate therapeutic efficacy. For further information regarding these and other risks related to Cytokinetics` business, investors should consult Cytokinetics` filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contact: Jodi L. Goldstein Manager, Marketing & Corporate Communications (650) 624-3000

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.

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Cytokinetics Congratulates Its Founders, James A. Spudich, Ph.D. and Ronald D. Vale, Ph.D., on their Receipt of the ...

U.S. boosts funding for nanotech deployment

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NSF (Arlington, Va.) said this week it is awarding $55.5 million to three university consortia to work with U.S. industry to advance nanotechnology science and engineering and transfer innovations to manufacturers. "Our understanding of nanoscale phenomena, materials and devices has progressed to a point where we can make significant strides in nanoscale components, systems and manufacturing, Thomas Peterson, NSFs assistant director for engineering, said in a statement on Monday (Sept. 10).

Along with research on electromagnetics and manufacturing, the new engineering research centers in North Carolina, Texas and California also will focus on the human health and environmental implications of nanotechnology.

A research center at the University of California Los Angeles will focus on reducing the size and increasing the efficiency of electromagnetic components and systems.

North Carolina State engineers will concentrate on wearable computers with integrated environmental and health sensors.

A third nanotechnology engineering center at the University of Texas (Austin) will pursue nanomanufacturing processes and demonstrate the manufacture of mobile nanodevices.

The new engineering centers will be linked to NSFs Network for Computational Nanotechnology for distribution of computational and simulation tools. The centers will also be a component of the National Nanotechnology Initiative launched in 2000.

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U.S. boosts funding for nanotech deployment

UGA chemistry discovery could have major medical implications

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Public release date: 10-Sep-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Michael K. Johnson mkj@uga.edu 706-542-9378 University of Georgia

Athens, Ga. The study of an oxygen-sensing bacterial regulatory protein by chemistry researchers at the University of Georgia has provided molecular insight into the oxygen sensing mechanism, which could ultimately lead to a better understanding of the ageing process and new treatments for human diseases such cancer, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Michael Johnson, a distinguished research professor of chemistry in the UGA Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, and Bo Zhang, a UGA chemistry doctoral candidate, have discovered that the fumarate and nitrate reduction regulatory protein, or FNR, in E. coli senses oxygen by a new type of reversible structural change in an iron-sulfur cluster. The work was carried out in collaboration with Nick Le Brun and coworkers from the University of East Anglia. The results were published Sept. 10 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA.

Iron-sulfur clusters are abundant biological cofactors that play crucial roles in almost all of fundamental life processes, including respiration, photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation, DNA replication and repair. "Everyone has trillions of iron-sulfur clusters associated with enzymes and proteins in their bodies," Johnson said. "The problem is that they readily degrade in the presence of oxygen and other species that are associated with oxidative stress, leading to loss of protein function."

The research conducted at UGA and UEA focused on FNR, which senses the presence of oxygen in the environment and "switches" off and on specific genes in pathogens, such as E. coli, when there is no oxygen presentconditions often found in the human intestinal tract. Oxygen is sensed by FNR via its iron-sulfur clusterthat undergoes conversion from one form to another, smaller one, thereby causing the protein to change shapethe "switch"and leading to the turning off of genes associated with growth without oxygen.

"E. coli can decide what lifestyle to live, with or without oxygen," said Johnson. "We can't decide to change our need for oxygen, but understanding the mechanisms for reassembly and repair of iron-sulfur clusters in response to oxidative stress is crucial for understanding a host of human diseases as well as the ageing process."

By revealing the structure of the oxygen-damaged cluster in FNR and showing that it can be readily repaired by the addition of iron, this research has discovered a major mechanism for the repair of iron-sulfur clusters. Moreover, preliminary results on other iron-sulfur cluster containing enzymes suggest that this type of iron-sulfur cluster oxygen-damage and repair mechanism is widespread in biology.

Bo Zhang, the lead author on paper said that the iron-sulfur cluster switching mechanism in response to oxygen is smart. "They don't panicthey calmly keep their extra sulfurs and wait to be repaired," said Zhang. She said that any medical applications of the research could take 10 to 20 years for development. The next step is to discover how the repair process works in the cell. Johnson and Zhang are currently working on in vitro models to mimic this biological repair process.

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Chemistry renovation could create more labs

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Future University of Wisconsin-Madison students may have an easier time registering for introductory chemistry courses and be able to conduct more experiments in new lab facilities if building project plans receive additional funding from the UW System.

The UW System Board of Regents approved the 2013-15 Biennial Capital Budget in their August meeting, but it remains subject to further approval by Gov. Scott Walker and the state legislature.

According to Regent Katherine Pointer, the student representative on the Board, the project focuses on correcting a current lack of general chemistry lab space, which prohibits the university from offering more courses.

Pointer said the extra chemistry building could especially benefit general chemistry classes such as Chemistry 103 and 104, which are the two courses with the highest enrollment during the fall and spring semesters.

The courses currently lack sufficient lab space to accommodate the number of students who wish to enroll, according to Pointer.

Pointer said while the $103.5 million project focuses on increasing lab space, it would also provide additional offices, classrooms and lecture halls.

UW-Madison Chemistry professor Fleming Crim said the building is severely out-of-date and has needed improvments for more than a decade.

Crim said lecture halls in the chemistry building are like something out of Dickens and it is challenging to teach 21st century chemistry in a building constructed in 1967.

The laboratories were built at a time when the way you taught chemistry was more like going and turning the crank, Crim said. Now [teaching] is a lot more interactive with people working together, and you want people involved with each other and with teaching assistants.

According to Crim, the physical layout of the labs is inadequate due to insufficient air circulation throughout the labs, which prevents students and professors from conducting most experiments involving hazardous materials.

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Chemistry renovation could create more labs

Grey's star in trouble for posting spoiler

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Patrick Dempsey has confirmed reports suggesting he was reprimanded by Grey's Anatomy bosses after giving away plot secrets by posting a photo of a castmate online.

The actor admits he wasn't thinking about the impact of what he was doing when he tweeted shots of Eric Dane on the set of the medical drama.

Dane's character, Mark Sloane, was left for dead at the end of the last season of the medical drama.

In a pre-taped interview with chat show host Ellen DeGeneres, Dempsey explains, "I tweeted some pictures of this season and they were like a spoiler alert. All of the sudden I got all these phone calls from (the network) ABC, like, 'You have to take this picture down!'"

"I was just enthusiastic: 'This is a great image, I should shoot this.'"

But the damage was already done before Dempsey removed the shot of Dane: "Now we know he survives and comes back and he was just napping in between takes."

But Dane is planning an exit from the show - earlier this summer, the actor announced the upcoming ninth season of the show will be his last.

The new season of Grey's Anatomy is set to debut in the US later this month.

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Grey's star in trouble for posting spoiler

Patrick Dempsey in trouble for Grey's Anatomy spoiler alert

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Patrick Dempsey has confirmed reports suggesting he was reprimanded by Greys Anatomy bosses after giving away plot secrets by posting a photo of a cast-mate online.

The actor admits he wasn't thinking about the impact of what he was doing when he tweeted shots of Eric Dane on the set.

Dane's character, Mark Sloane, was left for dead at the end of the last season of the medical drama.

In a pre-taped interview with chat show host Ellen DeGeneres, which will air this week, Dempsey explains, "I tweeted some pictures of this season and they were like a spoiler alert. All of the sudden I got all these phone calls from (the network) ABC, like, 'You have to take this picture down!'

"I was just enthusiastic: 'This is a great image, I should shoot this.'"

But the damage was already done before Dempsey removed the shot of Dane: "Now we know he survives and comes back and he was just napping in between takes."

But Dane is planning an exit from the show - earlier this summer, the actor announced the upcoming ninth season of the show will be his last. The new season of Grey's Anatomy is set to debut in the US later this month.

WENN.com

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Patrick Dempsey in trouble for Grey's Anatomy spoiler alert

Space Shuttle Endeavour To Make National Ferry Flight

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LOS ANGELES, Sept. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA has announced that Space shuttle Endeavour, mounted atop NASA's modified 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), will make the final ferry flight of the Space Shuttle Program era when it departs Monday, Sept. 17, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida headed  to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).On Oct. 11, 2011, NASA transferred ...

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Crouse Hospital steps up its sports medicine game

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Syracuse, N.Y. -- Crouse Hospital is launching a sports medicine program led by the team doctors for Syracuse University, the Syracuse Crunch and other orthopedic experts.

As part of the program, Crouse plans to open an after-hours walk-in clinic called SportsCare Express later this month for sports injuries and other orthopedic problems that do not require hospital emergency room care.

Crouse is entering a crowded playing field. Syracuses two biggest orthopedic groups Syracuse Orthopedic Specialists and Upstate Orthopedics have sports medicine specialists. Those groups also operate similar after-hours programs that opened last year.

There is a lot of competition locally, but we think we have a good product and great physicians affiliated with us, said Bob Allen, a Crouse vice president.

Crouses sports medicine team includes Dr. Irving Raphael, head team doctor for Syracuse University athletics, and his son, Dr. Bradley Raphael, assistant team doctor for SU. Also on the team are Dr. Daniel Christina, head team doctor for the Syracuse Crunch, and Dr. Michael Wiese, an orthopedic consultant to Christian Brothers Academy, Le Moyne College and the Crunch. Dr. Paul Klawitter, a concussion management expert from Ithaca, will join the group next month.

They are among the Syracuse areas few independent orthopedic doctors not part of Syracuse Orthopedic specialists or Upstate Orthopedics.

The independent doctors are partnering with Crouse. The SportsCare Express clinic will operate out of Raphaels office at 5823 Widewaters Parkway, DeWitt.

Allen said the sports medicine program will enhance its partnership with its neighboring institution, SU. Crouse is the official hospital of SU Athletics. Injured SU athletes get top priority when they seek care at Crouses urgent care center, PromptCare, which is across the street from the hospital.

Over time Crouses goal is to develop a comprehensive sports medicine program that will include cardiology, general surgery, pain management, physical therapy and other services.

The program will serve professional, college and high school athletes as well as weekend warriors who get injured hiking, jogging or performing some other activity, Allen said.

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Crouse Hospital steps up its sports medicine game

Told no, Libertarian candidate's camp crying foul over candidate forum

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AT A GLANCE

Candidate forums will take place at 6:30 p.m. on both Sept. 25 and Sept. 27, with doors opening at 6 p.m., at Cleary University's Johnson Center, 3750 Cleary Drive in Genoa Township.

On Sept. 25, state 42nd House District candidates incumbent Rep. Bill Rogers, R-Genoa Township, and Democratic challenger Shanda Willis; state 47th House District seat incumbent Rep. Cindy Denby, R-Handy Township, and Democratic challenger Shawn Lowe Desai; and U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, and Democrat Lance Enderle will discuss the issues.

On Sept. 27, Republican county prosecutor candidate William Vailliencourt and Democratic candidate Matt Evans; and county probate judge candidates Miriam Cavanaugh and Lori Marran will debate.

The forums are sponsored by the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus; Cleary University; Voter's Voice; the Howell Area, Greater Brighton Area and Hartland Area chambers of commerce; and the Howell Carnegie District, Brighton District, Pinckney Community Public, Hamburg Township, Fowlerville District and Hartland Cromaine District libraries.

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Told no, Libertarian candidate's camp crying foul over candidate forum

Libertarian Party appealing decision keeping presidential candidate off Michigan ballot

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Libertarian Party appealing decision keeping presidential candidate off Michigan ballot