The liver is an organ that performs several key roles in the body, its cells are able to synthesize, break down or store a large number of substances. Furthermore, it has the peculiarity of being the only human internal organ to possess regenerative capacity scope: a liver can regenerate itself fully after amputation of more than two thirds of its mass. Indeed, the liver cells (hepatocytes or) may need to leave their quiescent state (outside of the cell cycle) to proliferate rapidly. However, hepatocytes bit multiply, and die rapidly when cultured in vitro. The adult liver also contains stem cells, called hepatic regenerative process involved in when the proliferative capacity of hepatocytes is impaired. So far, no one is able to induce a stable colony cells from liver stem cells iPS [1] or embryonic stem cells.

The team of Professor Ishikawa introduced three genes into skin cells and stomach. After three weeks, these have become stem cells capable of producing proteins characteristic of liver cells. The researchers are then able to grow these cells for 200 days. They have even managed to regain the culture after freezing and thawing cells.

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They published their findings in the scientific journal Microbial Cell Factories “in line [1], and thus enable free access to such information that are not under patent protection.

Diabetes affects 285 million people worldwide. With 50 million diabetics, India is the country with the most affected individuals. In Europe, Germany which has the highest percentage, with nearly 8 million diabetics. Ursula Rinas, project manager at HZI, said his team has chosen to put the method of manufacture of insulin available to all, as they had done previously for the vaccine against hepatitis B in order that people in poorer countries can also have access to these drugs.

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This new chip has several notable features including:
- Its miniaturization: the chip measures only 8mm 7mm
- Coverage: it is able to detect 21 types of fungi and aerobic bacteria [4] considered allergens
- Its speed: the test is done in 3-5 days, which is sufficient for many uses,
- Reliability: According to its creators the chip is reliable to 98%
- Its reusability: the chip is not disposable but can be reused several times,
- Its cost: a chip costs about 100 new Taiwan dollars, or 2.5 euros.

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Adult stem cells are the basis for regeneration and tissue repair, providing new cells to replace cells damaged or dead. Given that stem cells reside in tissues for long periods, they pose a significant risk of accumulating mutations that may lead to development of cancer or aging. The manner in which stem cells perceive and respond to damage their DNA is not well known.

Panagiota Sotiropoulou and Aurelie Candi, two researchers from the group of Cedric Blanpain IRIBHM at the Free University of Brussels, have defined the functional consequences and molecular mechanisms by which stem cells from hair follicles respond to DNA damage vivo. They have shown that adult stem cells from the skin are extremely resistant to cell death (Apoptosis) induced DNA damage.

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The new research projects cover the fields of medicine, agriculture and industry:
- Discovery of new antibiotics against bacterial infections, by genetic analysis of streptomycetes (antibiotic-producing bacteria);
- Optimization of Corynebacterium glutamicum amino acid-producing bacteria that are used as feed additives for livestock;
- Analysis of molecular mechanisms of defense against the fungus Rhizoctonia solani which affects crops (such as beets, potatoes, carrots, salad …) to reduce the use of agrochemicals.

Much of the funding (approximately 1.85 million euros) will be invested in the “technology platform for bioinformatics” of CeBiTec. The platform, a unique structure in Germany, will have computing capabilities and storage increased, and thus reinforced its prominence.

The CeBiTec had obtained in 2009 already funding two other projects under the initiative “Industrial Biotechnology Cluster. One project aims to develop a “technology platform for genomics (genome sequencing, transcriptome analysis, proteomics and metabolomics research), the other the establishment of a cluster comprising 28 PhD PhD in the field of industrial biotechnology.

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As explained Horst Kessler, a professor at the Institute for Advanced Studies at the Technical University of Munich (TUM-IAS), the son of a spider have extreme elasticity and resistance that we can not breed in clean fibers of spider silk proteins synthesized in the laboratory. How come the spider does to produce the son in a split second from silk proteins stored in its branches [2]? The son of spider are made of protein molecules, which are actually long chains themselves composed of thousands of building blocks: amino acids. Analysis by X-ray diffraction show that the son is structured in different areas, some are very stable due to the physical links between proteins, others do not have such dense networks and provide elasticity to the son of a spider. In streams, the silk proteins are stored in a solution to very high concentrations, and so they do not aggregate.

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The German companies specialized in biotechnology have not lost their power of innovation despite the financial crisis. The R & D remained at a high level in 2009, with a total of about one billion euros. The latest figures on key biotechnology in Germany were presented at the Forum 2010 Day of German biotechnology, 21 and 22 April 2010 in Berlin [1]. State Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), Georg Schütte said on that occasion: “The number of employees in the biotechnology business has never been higher. This shows how innovative technologies are important as an engine of growth for Germany “. BMBF in 2010 provides a total budget of 270 million euros to finance projects in biotechnology. The share of the budget allocated to plant biotechnology should be increased to 50 million euros for the next 3-5 years.

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The development of devices for cell analysis and sorting is currently accelerating in Japan. As their name implies, these machines are then separated according to culture some cells. There are many applications: diagnosis by identifying abnormal cells, isolation and culture of diseased cells to study their metabolism and search more targeted treatments, regenerative medicine … The biotechnology and health is considered as promising as that of the environment for industrial growth in Japan. Japan wants to catch up with Western countries, which currently ahead in the development of such tools, while making the most of its technological advantages, such as its expertise in miniaturization.

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For over two months Indeed, many scientists had feared that, with the Bankruptcy the American company deCODE, is lost an unrivaled source of medical and genetic data: the database of genes of the Icelandic population has amassed more than a decade. Now, January 15, the Delaware court approved the purchase of this company Investments by Saga. Through this transaction, the company sells its genetic testing services and drug development.

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A team of researchers from RIKEN (Institute for Research in Physics and Chemistry) and University of Tokyo has identified compounds that inhibit the action of a plant hormone called auxin, which allowed them of information on the synthesis of this substance essential for plant development. Discovered in 1926, the auxin (or indole-acetic acid) is among the first identified plant hormones. Present throughout the plant kingdom, it plays an essential role in the process of plant growth depending on its concentration and the body on which it acts, it is involved in cell elongation, the formation of roots or bud formation. If auxin is well known to researchers, the process of bio-synthesis of this hormone remains obscure.

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