Search Results for: Research

BY RICHARD HURST, in Johannesburg

THE PAINT and coatings industries in the Southern African states of Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Lesotho and Zambia are closely linked to that of the regional economic giant South Africa in the that the major manufacturing plants are located in the industrialised area of South Africa’s Gauteng province with branch offices in the neighbouring states acting as agents for the parent companies in South Africa.…

BY TAMARA VANTROYEN, in Hong Kong

CHINA looks to be a likely candidate for the first country in the world to approve genetically modified rice, despite the fact that the State Agricultural GM Crop Biosafety Committee, a technical body which evaluates GM rice for research, did not approve the idea at its three-day meeting in Beijing, December 10-12, 2005.…

BY DEIRDRE MASON
NURSES at Birmingham Heartlands hospital are excited about the potential time saved in spotting superbug infections through the ground-breaking electronic nose now on trial there. Charge nurse Peter Sutton, who works at the hospital’s intensive care unit, told the Nursing Standard:

“It’s still very much at the trial stage, but being able to spot an infection in 15 minutes rather than the standard 24 to 48 hours will make a great difference to patient control.…

BY DEIRDRE MASON
IRELAND’S Celtic Tiger economy may have lost a little of its bounce recently, with double-digit annual growth figures no longer predicted. However, the beast is still in fine fettle, as a recent Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) observer report notes: “The economy has bounced back.…

BY RAGHAVENDRA VERMA, in New Delhi

INDIA’S opening-up as a free market economy, along with the adoption of new technology, reformed laws, and the presence of vigilant media are curbing many commercial crimes in the world’s largest democracy, but criminals still find ways to make a dishonest Rupee.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE OFFICE International des Épizooties (OIE), the world animal health organisation, has reported an outbreak of Bonamia Ostreae amongst 580 oysters in Morocco. The OIE said that the oysters were destroyed at Khnifiss lagoon, Laayoune province, in the contested Western Sahara region.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Medicines Agency (EMEA) is to develop detailed guidance on the manufacture, market approval and use of drugs that can treat alcoholism, given that no such formal advice currently exists at a European Union (EU)-level. The guidance will focus on clearly defining target patients, treatment success (whether drugs should end alcoholism, or also reduce drinking), and drug research project organisation.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

TONY Blair has been attacked by the chairman of the European Parliament’s research committee for failing to secure a better deal for researchers within the European Union’s (EU) medium term ‘financial perspectives’ budget, that was agreed last Friday.…

KEITH NUTHALL
A EUROPEAN Union (EU) research project is seeking to improve knowledge of what causes food allergies, a significant problem for the seafood sector. The EuroPrevall project will try to identify risk factors (environmental, microbial, genetic) that cause allergic reactions, helping pinpoint the circumstances sparking these problems.…

BY MONICA DOBIE

TESTS on a nicotine vaccine currently being tested in the USA is showing very positive results in helping smokers kick the habit according to a University of Minnesota study, published in the journal Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics.
To date, NicVax appears safe and well-tolerated, with little or no side effects in 68 active smokers who received one of three different doses of the vaccine or a placebo during a 38 week trial.…