NASA Looking To Commercial Sector For New Technology And Materials

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Mon, Oct 07, 2013

It costs $50,000 to launch a gallon of water into space. To reduce costs, NASA partners with the private sector for specialized research and to develop new materials. Speaking on behalf of NASA on October 15, 2013, Mayur Ahuja, Deputy Director of Engineering at Jacobs Engineering Group, will share insights on the roadmap for upcoming projects to guide companies interested in supporting future projects.

"NASA wants to develop new technologies and extend existing ones by partnering with the commercial sector to advance long-range missions," Ahuja said. "The goal is to lower the cost of operating in space and of sustaining that operation, as well as to increase the performance of space hardware."

NASA seeks fresh perspectives to its daily challenges from all types of organizations. Where possible, it uses items that are commercially available and have been well researched and tested. Ahuja will present in the Tech Theater, located on the tradeshow floor, at The Texas Advanced Manufacturing Expo. The Tech Theater is part of UBM Canon's commitment to providing attendees with relevant, free educational material. Presentations highlight the latest technological innovation, industry developments and trends.

The Texas Advanced Manufacturing Expo and Conference takes place October 15-16, 2013 at the Reliant Center in Houston. Thousands of area manufacturers will have the opportunity to see demonstrations from more than 350 exhibitors showcasing new products, technologies and service offerings. Attendees will find ample opportunities to meet new customers and suppliers to make their operations globally competitive.

The event is supported by local manufacturing organizations and universities including the Houston Bulk Materials Handling Society, Society of Plastics Engineers, Rice University, Greater Houston Manufacturers Association, and Process Equipment Manufacturers Association.

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NASA Looking To Commercial Sector For New Technology And Materials

Cellular breakthrough earns trio Nobel for medicine

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A trio of American scientists won the Nobel Prize for Medicine for pioneering work on the body's cell transport system, unlocking insights into diabetes, immune disorders and other diseases.

James Rothman, Randy Schekman and Thomas Suedhof shared the prize for discovering how molecules vital to cellular functioning are shunted around in an internal freight system, tucked inside sacs called vesicles.

They also helped resolve how the vesicles arrive on time and in the right place -- a major riddle, given that this takes place in a microscopic environment humming with movement.

If the package fails to show up at the right time, or goes to the wrong location, this can cause cellular malfunction.

"Through their discoveries, Rothman, Schekman and Suedhof have revealed the exquisitely precise control system for the transport and delivery of cellular cargo," the Nobel panel said.

"Without this wonderfully precise organisation, the cell would lapse into chaos."

Suedhof, a professor of molecular and cellular physiology at Stanford University in California, was driving a car "in the middle of Spain" when reached by the Nobel Committee several hours after the announcement.

"Are you serious? Oh, my God," he said when given the news, according to a recording carried on the official Nobel website.

Suedhof, who was born in 1955 in Germany but is now a US citizen, welcomed sharing the prize with two others, saying "one tends to overestimate oneself, but I think it's more than fair".

When asked about his capacity for work, he answered: "My wife thinks I am crazy. I don't know. I am incredibly driven."

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Cellular breakthrough earns trio Nobel for medicine

Americans, German win Nobel in medicine for cell research

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STOCKHOLM Americans James Rothman and Randy Schekman and German-born researcher Thomas Suedhof won the 2013 Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for discoveries on how hormones, enzymes and other key substances are transported within cells.

This traffic control system keeps activities inside cells from descending into chaos and has helped researchers gain a better understanding of a range of diseases including diabetes and disorders affecting the immune system, the committee said.

Working in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, the three researchers made groundbreaking discoveries about how tiny bubbles called vesicles act as cargo carriers inside cells. Above all, their work helps explain how this cargo is delivered to the right place at the right time the committee said.

Imagine hundreds of thousands of people who are traveling around hundreds of miles of streets; how are they going to find the right way? Where will the bus stop and open its doors so that people can get out? Nobel committee secretary Goran Hansson said. There are similar problems in the cell.

The discoveries have helped doctors diagnose a severe form of epilepsy and immune deficiency diseases in children, Hansson said. In the future, scientists hope the research could lead to medicines against more common types of epilepsy, diabetes and other metabolism deficiencies, he added.

Rothman, 62, is a professor at Yale University, while Schekman, 64, is at the University of California, Berkeley. Suedhof, 57, joined Stanford University in 2008.

Schekman said he was awakened at 1 a.m. at his home in California by the chairman of the prize committee and was still suffering from jetlag after returning from a trip to Germany the night before.

I wasnt thinking too straight. I didnt have anything elegant to say, he told The Associated Press. All I could say was Oh my God, and that was that.

He called the prize a wonderful acknowledgment of the work he and his students had done and said he knew it would change his life.

I called my lab manager and I told him to go buy a couple bottles of Champagne and expect to have a celebration with my lab, he said.

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Americans, German win Nobel in medicine for cell research

Victor Ambros of University of Massachusetts Medical School wins 2013 Keio Medical Science Prize

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Public release date: 7-Oct-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Mark Shelton mark.shelton@umassmed.edu 508-856-2000 University of Massachusetts Medical School

WORCESTER, MAThe 18th Keio Medical Science Prize has been awarded to Victor R. Ambros, PhD, professor of molecular medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and the Silverman Chair in Natural Science; and Shigekazu Nagata, PhD, professor of medical chemistry in the Graduate School of Medicine at Kyoto University.

Keio University annually awards the Keio Medical Science Prize "to recognize researchers who have made an outstanding contribution to the field of medicine or life sciences."

It is the only prize of its kind awarded by a Japanese university, and six previous winners have gone on to win the Nobel Prize.

Keio Medical Science Prize Laureates receive a certificate of merit, medal, and a monetary award at a ceremony and lecture in Tokyo on November 27.

"The world has taken notice of the landmark discoveries made by Professor Ambros, as the prestigious Keio Prize demonstrates," said Terence R. Flotte, MD, executive deputy chancellor, provost and dean of the school of medicine. "The impact of his discovery of miRNA is still reverberating in every corner of the scientific community."

"I feel deeply honored to be selected for the Keio Medical Science Prize," said Ambros. "It is particularly gratifying that the selection committee has chosen to highlight a discovery that emerged from basic sciences research using the nematode C. elegans. Our research was conducted with the aim of achieving a better understanding of the genetic mechanisms that regulate the timing of events in animal development. The discovery of the microRNA product of the gene lin-4 was a serendipitous result of those studies. I hope that this award will help to encourage other life scientists that by following their curiosity, they will be led towards novel and unexpected landscapes of knowledge."

Ambros first discovered microRNAs (miRNAs) in 1993, while studying the molecular genetics of C. elegans. His group cloned the lin-4 gene, which affects the timing of developmental events by regulating a protein called "lin-14." But in a surprise, lin-4's gene product turned out not to be a protein at all, but instead a small (22-nucleotide) RNA. Further work determined that lin-4 regulates lin-14 translation via a direct RNA-RNA interaction.

Thousands of miRNAs have since been found, including in humans, and miRNAs are shown to be linked to many diseases, including cancer and neurological diseases. The application of miRNAs to target disease genes and the technology to block action of miRNAs are emerging as new therapeutic approaches.

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Victor Ambros of University of Massachusetts Medical School wins 2013 Keio Medical Science Prize

The Arnold P. Gold Foundation International AIDS Advocate Mary Fisher and Harvard Medical School Professor, Ronald …

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Newswise Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 7, October, 2013- International AIDS advocate, artist, and author, Mary Fisher, and nationally known and beloved Daniel D. Federman Professor of Medicine and Medical Education at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Master of HMS Peabody Society, Ronald A. Arky, M.D., each received The Arnold P. Gold Foundations Humanism in Medicine Award for their exemplary work as advocates for compassionate healthcare. A standing room only crowd of nearly 400 gathered at WGBH in Boston on October 1, 2013 to celebrate the notable achievements of the honorees at The Gold Foundations inaugural event, The Golden Thread: Weaving Science and the Human Side of Medicine.

During the event, award-winning actress, Judith Light, read a poem written in tribute to her friend, Mary Fisher, by Harvard physician and poet Rafael Campo. Other notable performances included the Longwood Symphony String Quartet comprised entirely of medical professionals, Docapella, the Tufts University Medical School a capella group and dramatic monologs by Harvard medical student actors portraying some of the moving stories that illustrate the work of The Arnold P. Gold Foundation.

Mary Fishers moving acceptance speech talked about the value of each human life: The promise of humanism is this: We can make a difference. Knowing that all is not well, you who are the healers will rise in the morning to love your patients, to comfort their families, to assure them that, so long as they breathe, they matter. In remarking on his award, Dr. Arky said, I was greatly honored by the recognition bestowed upon me as a leader in furthering humanism in the practice of medicine and in the education of young people entering the field of medicine. It was touching, gratifying and on a personal level deeply meaningful. The Golden Thread event embodied the mission of the Gold Foundation the promotion of compassion, empathy and understanding in the care of every sick and disabled person.

When healthcare delivery is at its best, the gold threads of humanism and biological science are inextricably woven into the fabric of medical practice. If we lose the thread of humanity that has connected practitioners with their patients and families for the past 2,500 years, then we lose the opportunity to achieve optimal healthcare in this Century of Biology, remarked Richard I. Levin, MD, President and CEO of the Gold Foundation.

Funds raised by the event will support the Gold Foundations programs in Bostons medical schools and affiliated hospitals, including the foundations Research Institute for humanism in medicine housed at the Cambridge Health Alliance.

About the Arnold P. Gold Foundation: The Arnold P. Gold Foundation, established in 1988, is a not-for- profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of healthcare by enhancing the healthcare professional-patient relationship. It encourages the development of physicians who combine the high tech skills of cutting-edge medical science with the high touch skills of communication, empathy and compassion. Learn more at humanism-in-medicine.org.

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The Arnold P. Gold Foundation International AIDS Advocate Mary Fisher and Harvard Medical School Professor, Ronald ...