StemCell Therapy

Evotec and co-investors support Dutch Facio Therapies BV with 4.8m to push development of Dux4 inhibitors to treat facioscapulohumeral dystrophy (FSHD), one of the most common forms of muscular dystrophy.

With its investement alongside unnamed Australian and North American investors, Evotec enters the field of musculoskeletal diseases.

Currently there is no causative treatment for the muscle wasting disease that affects 700,000 people worldwide. In a patient cell-based screening, Evotec and Facio Therapies (Leiden) have already identified some FSHD candidate drugs, which block the overexpression of the DUX4 protein in skeletal muscle cells that causes muscle atrophy and oxidative stress, hallmarks of the disease. About 20% of people with FSHD end up in a wheelchair.

Facio announced it will use the proceeds to select pre-clinical lead candidates for further development. According to the NIH, the field of muscular dystrophies received US$80m in funding in 2017. One tenth of the amount has been channeled into FSHD research.

Some companies have already started clinical testing of candidate drugs for treating FSHD. aTyr Pharma, Inc. is in Phase I/IIa testing of the protein drug Resolaris in early onset FSHD. Acceleron Pharma, Inc. has recently started Phase II testing of ACE083, an inhibitor of proteins of the TGF-beta family.

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Evotec invests in Facio Therapies - European Biotechnology - European Biotechnology

About Lilly's Biotechnology Center and the Company's Presence in San DiegoThe center features a new technologically-advanced laboratory and an additional 180,000 square feet of working space, which is an increase of 145 percent compared to the former facility. In addition to the center's established presence in preclinical and clinical immunology research, the new space allows for closer partnership between Lilly experts in biotechnology, discovery chemistry and research technologies while also fostering external collaborations.

"Being in the San Diego area for the last 13 years has been a game changer for us, specifically in the arena of discovering medicines for hard-to-treat autoimmune conditions," said Thomas F. Bumol, Ph.D., senior vice president of biotechnology and immunology research at Lilly. "With compounds such as Taltz (ixekizumab) for psoriasis, we've not only provided patients with a new treatment option, but we've also moved the needle for advancing science."

As a pioneer in automated organic synthesis, Lilly is creating the Lilly Life Science Studio in San Diego. Building upon Lilly's Automated Synthesis Laboratory in Indianapolis, the new facility will allow researchers across the globe to remotely design, synthesize and screen investigational molecules in an unprecedented manner. Using the power of automation, the Lilly Life Sciences Studio will shape the next generation of drug discovery and expand the reach of individual scientists to test new ideas, while reducing the cost and minimizing the environmental impact of our research activities.

"Investing in drug discovery and development is critical to maintaining an ecosystem that encourages and promotes innovation. Our expansion in San Diego is a prime example of investing in a research success story," said Jan Lundberg, Ph.D., executive vice president for science and technology and president of Lilly Research Laboratories. "Expanding our presence in San Diego will not only help us discover and deliver innovative medicines faster, but will also help us achieve our goal of launching 20 new medicines in 10 years."

San Diego has long been an important location for Lilly. In 2004 Lilly acquired Applied Molecular Evolution, Inc. before establishing the Lilly San Diego Biotechnology Center in 2009, located near the University of California, San Diego, among other prominent biomedical research institutes. Since its establishment, the center has created more than 100 jobs with more than 200 scientists currently working in various research activities.

"Congratulations to Lilly on the expansion of its new Biotechnology Center, which will double its drug research and development in San Diego, create high-quality jobs, and encourage collaboration on groundbreaking therapies that improve patient care and lower costs," said Representative Scott Peters (D-CA 52nd Congressional District). "San Diego's life sciences industry is changing the face of medicine and companies like Lilly are driving this innovation."

About Lilly's U.S. Research and Development InvestmentNearly $250 million of Lilly's $850 million capital investments will be dedicated to supporting its research and development centers around the U.S., including the center in San Diego, in 2017. Lilly's other U.S. research centers are located in Indianapolis, Indiana; Cambridge, Massachusetts; New York, New York; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In 2017, Lilly plans to spend approximately $5 billion on global R&D, nearly $4 billion of which will be invested in U.S. based programs, including projects with many of California's leading biomedical research institutions.

"This investment doesn't come without risk. America's biopharmaceutical leadership is driven by a free-market economy that rewards innovation," said Ricks. "Today, there are multiple public policy threats to our business that would discourage or reduce our investment in the U.S. and the state. We are committed to working with policymakers and stakeholders to ensure our efforts to deliver new innovative medicines to patients are not threatened."

AboutEli Lilly and CompanyLilly is a global healthcare leader that unites caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We were founded more than a century ago by a man committed to creating high-quality medicines that meet real needs, and today we remain true to that mission in all our work. Across the globe, Lilly employees work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. To learn more about Lilly, please visit us at http://www.lilly.com and http://www.lilly.com/newsroom/social-channels. C-LLY

This press release contains forward-looking statements (as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) about the benefits of the Lilly Biotechnology Center in San Diego, California and other planned capital projects, and reflects Lilly's current beliefs. However, as with any such undertaking, there are substantial risks and uncertainties in the processes of pharmaceutical research and development, and capital project implementation and completion. Among other things, there can be no guarantee that the projects will be completed on the anticipated timeline or at all or that Lilly will realize the expected benefits of the projects. For further discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties, please see Lilly's latest Forms 10-Q and 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, Lilly undertakes no duty to update forward-looking statements.

Nicole Hebert, hebert_nicole@lilly.com, (317) 701-9984 Jackie Shelton, sheltonj@lilly.com, (317) 719-5928

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eli-lilly-and-company-unveils-expanded-biotechnology-center-in-san-diego-300477395.html

SOURCE Eli Lilly and Company

http://www.lilly.com

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Eli Lilly and Company Unveils Expanded Biotechnology Center in San Diego - PR Newswire (press release)

By Michael Oche, Abuja

The New Initiative for Credible Leadership, a leading research and development based Civil Society Organization in Nigeria has hailed the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) under the leadership of Professor Mrs. Lucy Ogbadu for her innovations in biotechnology and genetic engineering in the country.

NABDA is an organization aimed at promoting, coordinating, and setting research and development priority in biotechnology for Nigeria.

NICreL noted the ongoing economic quandary in Nigeria as a result of fall in oil prices calls for all stakeholders to put on their thinking cap for the country to move away from its over dependency and focus on other sectors, particularly agriculture which was the mainstream of the countrys gross national earnings was booming before the advent crude oil.

Addressing newsmen on the activities of Nigerias research institutions in Abuja, Reverend Steven Onwu, Executive Secretary of the Centre, averred that NABDA within the last two years has continued to work assiduously hard under its mandate to put the nation at par with global realities through its various innovations, scientific breakthroughs in the field of genetics and intellectual acumen to move the country forward.

Onwu noted that Professor Ogbadu is demonstrating to Nigerians through her sterling leadership anchored on accountability, probity and transparency that our journey to the promised land is not a mirage if we put all hands on deck and the country first in all our dealings.

His words, The organization is patriotically driving the change agenda by blazing the trail in this uncommon field and the agency deserves a better funding support to do more.

No country in the world is as naturally endowed as Nigeria in terms of 21st century resources that are scattered across the various locations in the country and would require the needed intellectual drivers to achieve that amount of greatness which is commensurate with our resources.

The NICreL executive, while calling on the Nigerian Government to support the Ogbadu-led NABDA, noted that the agency needed more encouragement to continue to promote biotechnology activities that positively respond to national aspirations on food security, job/wealth creation, affordable healthcare delivery and sustainable environment.

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NICreL Seeks FG's Support For NABDA To Boost Biotechnology ... - Leadership Newspapers

On eve of biotech's big convention, Biotechnology Innovation ... San Francisco Business Times Ahead of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization's annual convention in San Diego, we talk to Jim Greenwood, the president and CEO of the industry trade ... The BIO International Convention Kicks Off Four Days of ...Business Wire (press release) all 3 news articles »

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On eve of biotech's big convention, Biotechnology Innovation ... - San Francisco Business Times

Sifelani Tsiko recently in Lilongwe, Malawi

An industrial development strategy could be built on the back of Africas agricultural sector underpinned by the adoption of new and emerging technologies such as biotechnology to support improved yields, value addition and services that feed into the whole agro-processing value chain, a top Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) official says.

Getachew Belay, a senior biotechnology policy advisor told Zimpapers Syndication recently on the sidelines of a communication training workshop for journalists on biotechnology and biosafety, that the adoption of genetically modified cotton developed using a bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) which naturally produces a chemical harmful only to a small fraction of insects such as the bollworm, could increase yields and enhance competitiveness.

He says cotton farmers in Africa suffer huge losses due to pest problems.

The most destructive of pests is the African bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera), which can cause severe losses of up to 100 percent like we saw on some cotton fields in Salima here in Malawi, the Comesa biotech policy advisor says.

In unprotected fields pest damage can be very severe and when you look at Bt cotton crop on trial you can see hope that its possible for African farmers to increase their yields and competitiveness of their crop on the market.

Using Bt cotton developed using bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, which naturally produces a chemical harmful only to a small fraction of insects such as the bollworm, experts say reduction in pest infestations can increase yields and improve the livelihoods of cotton growers.

The Bt toxin is inserted into cotton, causing cotton, called Bt cotton, to produce this natural insecticide in its tissues.

Biotechnology experts argue that cotton farmers in Zimbabwe, Malawi and most other African countries, can effectively reduce input costs and control damage from bollworms and other insects that frequently damage cotton by adopting Bt cotton.

For several decades, has lagged behind in terms of the industrial dynamism required to boost farmer earnings, employment, economic growth and competitiveness on the global market.

But in recent years, there is a growing realisation of the importance of industrialisation.

In 2016, the UNs Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) published a major report on industrialization in Africa where it asserts that structural transformation in Africas economies remains the highest priority and industrialization is the top strategy for achieving it in practice.

And, Belay says, biotechnology is one of the major tools for achieving industrialisation.

Im convinced that biotechnology has many opportunities to drive Africas industrialisation, he says.

We have Bt cotton, Bt maize and soya and biotechnology can enhance the competitiveness of our crops and agricultural products especially when it comes to value addition and beneficiation as it was stipulated in our African industrialisation agenda.

Already we are seeing the benefits of adopting biotech crops in South Africa. Livestock feed sectors in Zambia and even Zimbabwe cannot compete with SAs GM stock feed which is produced cheaply. We need to adopt this new technology to cut costs.

Europe relies heavily on GM soya for its livestock feed industry and this has enhanced its competitiveness.

Africa has a low uptake of biotech food crops due to lack of awareness and stiff resistance, scientists say.

International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) AfriCenter director Margaret Karembu told journalists at the workshop that adoption of agricultural biotechnology has lagged behind compared to the rapid rates seen in the medical and health sectors.

Where are we as Africans? This is the question, we need to think seriously about the good work (on agricultural biotechnology) going on in our labs, she said. What is our place in the global biotechnology space? We need reclaim it and improve the livelihoods of our farmers across the continent.

Karembu said lack of awareness and a constrained regulatory environment had also slowed down the uptake of agricultural biotechnology.

Lack of awareness of the benefits and the regulatory framework has affected the tide towards the adoption of biotechnology. The victim mentality has been largely to blame for this.

We think of ourselves as victims of the technology. The fact is that our public institutions and universities have been doing research on biotech crops for years and this has not moved to the commercialization stage, she says. She says Africa needs to diffuse myths and misconceptions around GMO crops.

The media has a big role to play in clearing some of the misconceptions about biotechnology and GMOs, the ISAAA director says.

When media demonises the science, it becomes difficult to correct the mistakes. There is a lot of unfamiliarity with the technology and having fixed mind sets will not help our struggling farmers.

The farmers you saw in Salima are poor and they are struggling. Why should we block them from accessing the Bt cotton varieties that can significantly boost their yields and income? Farming should not be for leisure, its a business and it should be there to improve the quality of livelihoods of the farmers.

Biotechnology is one of the tools we can use to first of all improve crop yields and secondly to support Africas industrialisation goals for value addition and beneficiation.

Karembu urged the media to encourage dialogue and to correct misinformation.

The information we generate should be guided by credible scientific evidence and not unverified Google information, she says. If you have a headache people just Google and Google has become the answer. The world is polluted by a lot of unsubstantiated facts. We need to change the narrative and challenge the myth that Africa enjoys being poor the romanticisation of poverty.

Stringent and expensive regulatory process in Africa has slowed down uptake of biotechnology crops.

Biotech experts say the regulatory process is burdensome and makes everything unpredictable while in some African countries there is fear of change and challenging of the status quo when it comes to biotechnology.

According to ISAAA, the production of biotech crops increased 110-fold from 1996 with countries now growing the crops on 2,1 billion hectares worldwide.

The global value of the biotech seed market alone was US$15,8 billion in 2016. A total of 26 countries, 19 developing and 7 industrial grew biotech crops.

By 2016, at least four countries in Africa had in the past placed a GM crop on the market. These included Egypt, South Africa, Burkina Faso and Sudan.

But due to some temporary setback in Burkina Faso and Egypt, only South Africa and Sudan planted biotech crops on 2,8 million hectares

South Africa is one of the top 10 countries planting more than one million hectares in 2016 and continued to lead the adoption of biotech crops on the African continent.

Kenya, Malawi and Nigeria have transitioned from research to granting environmental release approvals while six others Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Swaziland and Uganda made significant progress towards completion of multi-location trials in readiness for considering commercial approval, ISAAA reported.

But the road to the adoption of Bt cotton technologies in Africa still faces stiff resistance.

Supporters of GM crops have to grapple with vocal anti-GMO activists, limited capacity to deal with the processing of GM research applications, bureaucratic delays in approving field trials, mistrust and resistance from key decision makers in Government and limited public awareness of the issues surrounding research and development of GM crops.

In addition, they have to contend with issues related to disease resistance, bottlenecks encountered when co-ordinating with other line ministries, trade-related restrictions, biosafety regulation and the overwhelming influence of multinational companies, Governments and their sidekicks NGOs. And, despite the threats, biotechnology experts say benefits from the biotech agro-linked industrial development outweigh the threats.

SADC drew up its Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap which seeks to speed up industrialisation by strengthening the comparative and competitive advantages of the economies of the region.

The strategy which covers the period 2015 2063 is anchored on three pillars industrialisation, competitiveness and regional industrialisation.

The whole industrialisation agenda aims to help SADC member states to achieve high levels of economic growth, competitiveness, incomes and employment.

To access the funds, SADC countries have set up committees made up of government and private sector players to identify priority areas for funding.

At regional level, three areas have been prioritised, namely agro processing, mining and downstream processing.

For all this, biotechnology could be a useful tool to drive the regions industrialisation agenda, Belay says.

Its not a silver bullet, but its one of the many tools we can use to drive the continents industrialisation strategy. Agriculture is fundamental to Comesa member states in terms of improving food and nutrition security, increasing rural income, employment and contributions to GDP and expert earnings.

We need to explore ways of enhancing the use of biotechnology to drive industrialisation and improved livelihoods for farmers in Africa.

Analysts say Africa badly needs increased investment in infrastructure of all kinds reliable clean energy and water systems, medical clinics, technical colleges, railways, roads, bridges, fiber optic networks, and factories of many kinds.

Industrialisation can benefit the expansion of intra-African trade by supporting a more diversified export economy, wrote an economic analyst.

In particular, the development of rural and food processing industries could help to lift significant numbers from poverty. But, to facilitate trade in goods and services, it is essential to reduce distribution costs by improving and expanding road, rail and other communication infrastructure. -Zimpapers Syndication

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Biotechnology could spur Africa's industrialisation - Southern Times Africa

June should be national cancer month.

Each year around this time, oncology groups and Wall Street brokerages hold a rash of conferences where researchers reveal the latest, greatest potential cancer cures.

This year has been no exception. Above all, we learned about remarkable advances in two exciting cancer therapies and three great companies that will benefit.

Heres more detail. (Ive kept the technical language to a minimum.)

Tumors are smart. They know how to trick the immune system into missing them. But scientists are wising up to their tricks. In one evasive strategy, tumors release an enzyme that renders them invisible. If you block the enzyme, your immune system can find tumors and destroy them with the help from cancer drugs. This is the key to an early-stage cancer weapon you should invest in, known as IDO inhibitors.

IDO stands for Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase, an enzyme released by tumors to blind the bodys immune system. IDO is a strange drug target, because IDO inhibition by itself has no noticeable anti-cancer effect, says Tanguy Seiwert, a cancer-therapy researcher and medical doctor who teaches at the University of Chicago. Suppressing IDO, however, makes tumors vulnerable.

The best pure play in IDO inhibitors is a company whose shares I own, and have suggested since December 2011 in my stock newsletter, Brush Up on Stocks. Were up 750% in this company since 2011 ($14 to $120). But I think this stock is still a hold because there are bigger gains ahead.

Incyte Corp. INCY, +3.58% just released excellent data on its IDO inhibitor, called epacadostat, at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) conference. In combination with cancer therapies from Merck & Co. MRK, +1.13% and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. BMY, +1.40% it showed excellent results against several kinds of cancer.

It looks really good. I think this was a coming-out party for IDO inhibitors, says Seiwert. Besides effectiveness, one of the main positives is that epacadostat is safe. This means it can be readily used to assist many other cancer drugs. You can add it to a ton of things because the cost is low, in terms of toxicity.

Incyte is an ideal biotech company for investors because it is self-funding. It has a very profitable drug called Jakafi, for a rare blood disorder, which supports research on new drugs like the IDO inhibitor. So investors dodge dilutive financings.

So why hasnt Incytes stock shot up? Investors have three main worries. But they look like false fears.

One bit of fake news circulating is that Incyte showed success, in part, only because it omitted patients from some results, which drove up the percentage of success stories. But this is a dubious critique for two reasons. Even if you included the three patients left out, it would only lower the success rate by a few percentage points, notes J.P. Morgan analyst Cory Kasimov. Second, Incyte offered several separate data sets showing success in many types of cancer, but the omission only affected one subgroup, says Seiwert. I think this was way overblown.

The next fear: Competitor NewLink Genetics Corp. NLNK, +3.27% recently announced Roche AG RHHBY, +0.21% handed back development rights to its IDO, following lousy results in a Roche study. Some investors take this as a sign that IDO is malarkey. But William Blair analyst Katherine Xu thinks this is bullish for Incyte, since it signals a competitor may be gone. NewLinks IDO may have fared poorly because it works differently than Incytes IDO, or because Roche used an extremely sick patient population. Neither scenario reflects poorly on Incyte.

The third knock on Incyte is the one to watch. While Seiwert is impressed with Incytes IDO results, he points out the Phase II results are early-stage, and longer-term studies are needed to learn more about patient survival. Those studies are in the works. Incyte has nine Phase III studies planned with Merck and Bristol-Myers Squibb, says Xu. The outcomes here are key, since about $50 worth of the current $120 Incyte stock price is linked to IDO.

In another key advance in cancer therapy in the past two years, doctors have learned how to extract a patients blood and genetically tweak white blood cells so they override evasive tactics used by tumors.

Then the cells are reproduced in a lab to expand the supply, and put back in the patients body so they can move in for the kill. Hopefully, the cells then continue to proliferate and thrive and stay on hand to fight any more cancer that comes along.

Known as chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy (CAR-T), this approach has produced remarkable results against blood cancers in patients who otherwise had almost no hope of survival. CAR-T works by unblocking cancer cell receptors normally sought out by the immune system.

This is one of the most exciting therapies in immunotherapy, said Jae Park, a Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center cancer researcher and medical doctor, at the Jefferies 2017 Global Healthcare Conference in early June.

Probably the best pure play here is Kite Pharma Inc. KITE, +1.64% At the Jefferies conference, Kite CEO Arie Belldegrun showed images of a patients body riddled with tumors, which disappeared about a month after treatment began. The patient showed no sign of the disease a year later.

Kite has a product coming on the market by the end of this year, and probably many more on the way, says Brad Loncar, the cancer research expert behind the Loncar Cancer Immunotherapy CNCR, +2.93% exchange traded fund. This is pretty good progress for a therapy that was considered science fiction two years ago.

I suggested Kite in my stock letter at around $71 on May 17, and I think its still a hold even though it has already risen to $87, because this promises to be a blockbuster therapy. At the time, insiders were big buyers as the stock sold off on news of the death of a patient in one of its studies.

That unfortunate death highlights one of the key risks here. CAR-T patients have died because the therapy can cause brain swelling. Doctors are getting better at staving off adverse side effects, says Park. But they still dont fully understand what causes them, which should raise a yellow flag for investors.

Kite also faces competition from other companies developing CAR-T, including power players like Novartis AG NVS, +0.75% Pfizer Inc. PFE, +0.76% Johnson & Johnson JNJ, -0.21% and GlaxoSmithKline PLC GSK, -0.09% as well as Juno Therapeutics Inc. JUNO, +3.91% Cellectis SA CLLS, +0.00% Adaptimmune Therapeutics PLC ADAP, -0.44% and two privately held companies called Poseida Therapeutics and Nanjing Legend Biotech.

Any of these efforts may pan out nicely, but my pick as a third CAR-T play is bluebird bio BLUE, +3.59% which is partnering with Celgene Corp. CELG, +2.29% Bluebird just announced really impressive results for its CAR-T candidate called bb2121. In early studies, just released at ASCO, this therapy produced an overall response rate of 90% to 100% among hospice-type patients whose cancer was so bad that seven different attempts to cure them, on average, had failed.

To generate efficacy data on this level with an overall very tolerable safety profile is highly impressive, says Kasimov, at J.P. Morgan. With more key updates to come in 2017, we would continue to add to positions in bluebird bio.

At the time of publication, Michael Brush held INCY. Brush has suggested INCY and KITE in his stock newsletter Brush Up on Stocks. Brush is a Manhattan-based financial writer who has covered business for the New York Times and The Economist group, and he attended Columbia Business School in the Knight-Bagehot program.

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Opinion: Three must-own cancer stocks for your biotechnology portfolio - MarketWatch

Dustin Rhoads of Trumann is participating in Biotechnology Research Internship at Arkansas Biosciences Institute. (Photo provided)

Five Arkansas State University students are pursuing their interest in science this summer through the Biotechnology Research Internship Program at the Arkansas Biosciences Institute (ABI) facility on campus. One of those students, Dustin Rhoads, is from Trumann.

The program provides basic support for A-State undergraduate science majors who want research experience in life sciences or applications of life sciences during the summer of their sophomore or junior years.

Each student is matched with a faculty mentor who is conducting research related to biotechnology or biology from one of several departments and colleges, based largely on the student's interests. Selection also is based on academic credentials.

The students, along with their future plans and comments from their applications are:

Dustin Rhoads plans to go to dental school after completing his degree at A-State. His faculty mentor also is Dr. Malathi Srivatsan.

"I chose to apply for this internship mostly because of my interest in the field," Rhoads said. "Neurology has always been and interest of mine. Furthermore, the research we are doing at Dr. Srivatsan's Lab could be used to help so many people. Neuroregeneration could impact the lives of millions, and to be a part of something that could do that is very special to me. What sparked my interest in science was the way it's completely unique from all other academic fields, it has no sense of complacency, and is forever evolving. Im the kind of person who would rather study how things work as opposed to memorizing hard set facts, so the sciences are definitely for me regarding that aspect. I chose Arkansas State University because growing up I was always around it, almost developing it as a second home before even leaving high school, also accompanied with the report of its programs, made it a complete match for me."

The other students are Madalyn Rose Weiner of Little Rock, Oliver Dozier of Paragould, Kayleigh Nelson of Marion, and Aylin Villalpa-Arroyo of Hidalgo, Mexico.

Each internship is valued at $2,500. The students work 20 hours per week for 10 weeks. An additional $500 is provided to the supporting laboratory for research supplies.

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Trumann student starting ABI biotechnology research internship - Democrat Tribune

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS--(Marketwired - June 15, 2017) - Nerium Biotechnology, Inc. ("Nerium" or the "Company") today announces that it is mailing a letter to shareholders in advance of the Company's annual meeting on June 29, 2017. The shareholder letter which is reproduced below, provides important information for shareholder consideration regarding the election of directors at the annual meeting. This is an important meeting for shareholders as the decisions made with respect to the election of the Company's board of directors will determine Nerium's future.

Nerium is pleased to confirm the support of its largest shareholders for the re-election of the current board of directors (the "Board"). The shareholder letter, as well as a letter received by Nerium from Crandell Addington, a large shareholder of Nerium and CEO, Chairman and Director of Phoenix Biotechnology, will be mailed to shareholders today. A copy of the shareholder letter and other materials is available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR and on the Company's website http://www.nbiinvestors.com.

Your Board needs your support, please vote using only the GREEN proxy FOR Dennis R. Knocke, Gustavo A. Ulloa, Jr., Richard J.G. Boxer, Michael Burke, Kerry Mitchell and Peter A. Leininger, M.D.

Shareholders are encouraged to vote via the internet at http://www.voteproxyonline.com and enter the 12 digit control number located on your GREEN proxy, to ensure your vote is received in advance of the proxy deadline of June 27, 2017 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time). Shareholders may also vote by sending their signed GREEN proxy to TSX Trust Company via fax: 416-595-9593 or email: tmxeproxysupport@tmx.com or by mail in the envelope provided.

The Company also announces that it has commenced selling its over-the-counter product, NeriumAD Advanced, in Mexico. This represents the effective development of a new distribution channel for the Company's products and a source of future revenue that does not depend upon the cooperation of the Company's distributor, Nerium International LLC (the "Distributor").

It has come to the Company's attention that the amount of the Distributor's sales in 2015 and 2016 were incorrect in the Company's June 2, 2017 management information circular (the "Circular"). The Company received multiple versions of the Distributor's 2015 financial statements, each containing different numbers. The Company mistakenly included as the amount of the Distributor's 2015 sales an amount provided in an earlier version of the Distributor's 2015 financial statements and included the amount from a later version of the Distributor's 2015 financial statements as the 2016 sales amount. In fact, the Distributor's 2015 sales were US$496,838,912. The Company has never received a final version of the Distributor's financial statements for 2016, but based on a draft version of the Distributor's 2016 financial statement, the Distributor's 2016 sales were US$336,331,483. Corrected versions of the tables included on pages 19 and 20 of the Circular are provided below. The Company does not believe the updated information changes in any material respect the issues raised by it in the Circular.

Year

In response to the group of dissident shareholders retaining a proxy solicitation agent in connection with the Company's upcoming annual meeting, the Company has retained Shorecrest Group to act as proxy solicitation agent on behalf of the Company for a fee of approximately US$75,000 and reimbursement of its reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. All costs of solicitation by management will be borne by the Company.

YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT. To support your current Board, please vote using only your GREEN proxy. Please disregard any other proxy received. If you have already voted using the dissident proxy and wish to vote FOR the current directors, please vote using the GREEN proxy sent to you. This will automatically revoke any previous proxies submitted. If you have any questions or require assistance in voting, please contact the proxy solicitation agent Shorecrest Group toll free at 1-888-637-5789 or direct 647-931-7454.

About Nerium Biotechnology, Inc.

Nerium Biotechnology, Inc. is a biotechnology company involved in the research, product development, manufacture and marketing of Nerium oleander-based products. The Company's shares are not listed on any stock exchange or quotation system.

Forward Looking Statements: Statements made in this press release that relate to future plans, expectations, events or performances, including with respect to the future distribution and sales of the Company's products and possible revenue, are forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not based on historic facts, but rather on current expectations regarding future events. They are based on information available to management and/or assumptions management believes are reasonable. Many factors could cause future events and outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements are based on what management believes are reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure shareholders that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof and, except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise such forward-looking statements. More information about the Company is available in its disclosure documents, all of which are available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com

To view the shareholder letter and the letter received by Nerium from Crandell Addington please click the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/NeriumLetter.pdf

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Nerium Biotechnology Issues Shareholder Letter and Commences Selling NeriumAD Advanced in Mexico - Marketwired (press release)

(CALIFORNIA)

Thebirthplace of biotechnology is to receive$10 million for a pioneering precision medicine programme.

It was announced this week thatthe California Initiative to Advance Precision Medicine (CIAPM) has been awarded the money from the local governments budget, a decision welcomed by theCalifornia Life Sciences Association (CLSA).

Sara Radcliffe, President & CEO, CLSA, said:California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) applauds Governor Jerry Brown, California State Senate and California Assembly leaders for their strong support of life sciences innovation, as demonstrated again in this years 2017-2018 budget deal which allocates a $10 million investment in precision medicine research. California is the birthplace of biotechnology and today the states life sciences sector employs over 287,200 people working to develop innovative new medicines, technologies and therapies needed to treat and cure patients.

The Californian city of San Diego ishostingtheBIO International Conventionalthe global event for biotechnology next week. It will celebrate the industrys many breakthroughs and on going impact on society.It will take place at the San Diego Convention Center between 19 and 22 June.

BIO International ConventionalCalifornia Initiative to Advance Precision Medicine

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$10M for birthplace of biotechnology - Innovators Magazine

The American Soybean Association (ASA) submitted comments this week to both the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding regulations in response to advances in genetic engineering.

ASA included in comments to USDA, that biotechnology is an essential tool in farmers quest to produce enough food to meet the needs of 9.7 billion people by 2050, creating the need for a clear, science-based regulatory system in the U.S. as an example and standard for regulatory systems of biotechnology internationally.

While applauding USDAs efforts to reduce the burden on regulated entities, ASA expressed concern that aspects of the rule as proposed will increase the regulatory burden and stifle research and innovation.

Additionally, ASAs comments to FDA cheered USDAs proposal to exclude certain genome-editing techniques from requiring pre-market approvals because they are low risk and could be found in nature or achieved through traditional breeding methods.

ASA concluded its support saying, Technological advancements such as genome editing offer an additional tool to combat threats while also improving sustainability in production agriculture.

Full comments to USDA and FDA can be found here and here, respectively.

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ASA Provides Input to USDA, FDA on Advances in Biotechnology - KTIC

As a group of visiting scientists prepared to board a plane in Hawaii that would take them back home to China, U.S. customs agents found rice seeds in their luggage. Those seeds are likely to land at least one scientist in federal prison.

Agriculture today is a high-tech business, but as that technology has developed, so has the temptation to take shortcuts and steal trade secrets that could unlock huge profits. The FBI calls agricultural economic espionage a growing threat and some are worried that biotech piracy can spell big trouble for a dynamic and growing U.S. industry.

Had they succeeded in stealing the gene-spliced rice, the scientists may have been able to reverse-engineer it and ultimately undercut [US company] Ventrias market. [Ventria President and CEO Scott] Deeter says it could have driven his company out of business.

Where the commodity in question is grown in open fields, its sometimes difficult, [Jason] Griess [the assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Iowa] says.

Theft of intellectual property costs the U.S. economy hundreds of billions of dollars each year, according to a recent report from the Commission on the Theft of American Intellectual Property, a Washington, D.C.-based ad-hoc panel formed to study intellectual property theft. China, the authors say, is the biggest offender.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post:Spies In The Field: As Farming Goes High-Tech, Espionage Threat Grows

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FBI says Chinese spying, theft of US agricultural biotechnology is 'a growing threat' - Genetic Literacy Project

Ira Pastor, CEO of Bioquark, a Philadelphia-based biotechnology company, believes we will on day be able to reset the brain of patients declared brain-dead using a series of stem cell injections and nerve stimulations.

Until recently, death was medically defined as a loss of heart and lung function but as medical technology has advanced so has the qualifications. Now, since both heartbeat and breathing functions can be performed for a patient by machine, death is almost universally declared when there is a loss of activity in the brain stem. However, Pastor does think that this loss of brain function is as irreversible as weve come expect.

Initially, Bioquark was slated to start trials for the procedure last year in India but, due to strong opposition by the Indian Council of Medical Research, those studies were canceled. Nevertheless, Ira Pastor and his collaborator Himanshu Bansal, an orthopedic surgeon, remain undaunted and have announced a new series of test to happen soon in a nameless South American country.

Although they have not released the details of the revolutionary procedure, we can gather a general idea of their plan to reanimate the brain-dead from the papers regarding their original canceled trial.

Originally, the researchers wanted brain-dead subjects between the ages of 12 and 65. Ideally, the cause of the brain damage would be due to traumatic injury. Scientists would look at MRIs to determine eligibility, then brain cells would be harvested from the patients blood. After the stem cells are injected, the patients would get another injection, this time peptides, directly to the spinal column. The series of injections is followed by two weeks of nerve stimulation, specifically the median nerve, by lasers, which Bioquark thinks is the key to reversing brain death.

Bioquark has not clarified how it intends to obtain consent from technically dead patients but in spite of the controversy, this study is not alone. The work at Bioquark is part of a larger program concerning neuro-reanimation and regeneration called ReAnima.

Pastor, who also serves on the advisory board for the project, told the Daily Mail: The mission of the ReAnima Project is to focus on clinical research in the state of brain death, or irreversible coma, in subjects who have recently met the Uniform Determination of Death Act criteria, but who are still on cardio-pulmonary or trophic support a classification in many countries around the world known as a living cadaver.

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This Biotechnology Company Wants to Reanimate the Brain-Dead - TrendinTech

An internationally renowned biotechnology scientist, Professor Rocky Tuan Sung-chi, has been recommended to succeed Joseph Sung Jao-yiu as Chinese University vice-chancellor.

Born in Hong Kong and educated in the United States, Tuan is currently working at the University of Pittsburgh as director of the institutions cellular and molecular engineering lab, executive vice-chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and a professor in the Department of Bioengineering.

He has been serving as a distinguished visiting professor and director of the Institute for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine at Chinese University.

The institutions council said on Thursday that it would recommend Tuan to be the next vice-chancellor. It will hold a consultation of up to six weeks with staff, students and alumni, but the universitys teachers association vowed to boycott it, saying the council had fooled it by saying it was not sure who the candidate was.

In May 2016, Tuan was one of the 10 Carnegie Science Award winners for his extensive experience in applying adult stem cells for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

Hes a good scientist, professionally speaking, with a major interest in bone and tendon regeneration, Professor Chan Wai-yee of the universitys School of Biomedical Sciences said. He used to chair the biology and medicine panel of the Research Grants Council so he should know better than others what improvements can be made to develop Hong Kongs scientific research.

I have high expectations of him. As a successful scholar who has worked for the Research Grants Council for so many years, he could at least reflect our wish for more funding and resources.

However, Professor Chan King-ming, president of the Chinese University Teachers Association, said he was angry about the announcement and that staff and students were being played by the universitys top administration, who two weeks ago told the association they were still not sure about the candidate.

Chan King-ming also said Tuan lacked outstanding academic status and administrative experience. Seldom were his papers published by top journals and he has never served at the level of deputy vice-chancellor or dean in any university, the biochemistry scholar said.

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Biotechnology expert proposed for top Chinese University of Hong Kong post - South China Morning Post

Vontobel Swiss Wealth Advisors AG Acquires 4956 Shares of iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) The Cerbat Gem iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund logo Vontobel Swiss Wealth Advisors AG increased its position in shares of iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (NASDAQ:IBB) by 36.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the ... Ken Stern & Associates Inc. Has $318000 Stake in iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB)Stock Observer iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund - Receive News & Ratings DailyBBNS The Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB)BangaloreWeekly all 7 news articles »

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Biotechnology company opens mosquito factory in Lexington ... Lexington Herald Leader A Lexington biotechnology company aimed at fighting mosquito-borne diseases such as the Zika virus opened a mosquito factory Friday on Malabu Drive. and more »

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Biotechnology company opens mosquito factory in Lexington ... - Lexington Herald Leader

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Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Expected to Post Earnings of -$2.13 Per Share The Cerbat Gem Puma Biotechnology logo Equities analysts expect that Puma Biotechnology Inc (NYSE:PBYI) will announce earnings of ($2.13) per share for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Zero analysts have issued estimates for Puma ... Right After Earnings, The Intelligent Options Trade in Puma Biotechnology IncCML News Puma Biotechnology's (PBYI) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Stifel NicolausSports Perspectives The Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Downgraded by Zacks Investment Research to HoldBangaloreWeekly BBNS -Transcript Daily -Chaffey Breeze -SEC.gov all 88 news articles »

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Puma Biotechnology Inc (PBYI) Expected to Post Earnings of -$2.13 Per Share - The Cerbat Gem

1. What is Agricultural Biotechnology?

Agricultural biotechnology is a range of tools, including traditional breeding techniques, that alter living organisms, or parts of organisms, to make or modify products; improve plants or animals; or develop microorganisms for specific agricultural uses. Modern biotechnology today includes the tools of genetic engineering.

2. How is Agricultural Biotechnology being used?

Biotechnology provides farmers with tools that can make production cheaper and more manageable. For example, some biotechnology crops can be engineered to tolerate specific herbicides, which make weed control simpler and more efficient. Other crops have been engineered to be resistant to specific plant diseases and insect pests, which can make pest control more reliable and effective, and/or can decrease the use of synthetic pesticides. These crop production options can help countries keep pace with demands for food while reducing production costs. A number of biotechnology-derived crops that have been deregulated by the USDA and reviewed for food safety by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and/or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have been adopted by growers.

Many other types of crops are now in the research and development stages. While it is not possible to know exactly which will come to fruition, certainly biotechnology will have highly varied uses for agriculture in the future. Advances in biotechnology may provide consumers with foods that are nutritionally-enriched or longer-lasting, or that contain lower levels of certain naturally occurring toxicants present in some food plants. Developers are using biotechnology to try to reduce saturated fats in cooking oils, reduce allergens in foods, and increase disease-fighting nutrients in foods. They are also researching ways to use genetically engineered crops in the production of new medicines, which may lead to a new plant-made pharmaceutical industry that could reduce the costs of production using a sustainable resource.

Genetically engineered plants are also being developed for a purpose known as phytoremediation in which the plants detoxify pollutants in the soil or absorb and accumulate polluting substances out of the soil so that the plants may be harvested and disposed of safely. In either case the result is improved soil quality at a polluted site. Biotechnology may also be used to conserve natural resources, enable animals to more effectively use nutrients present in feed, decrease nutrient runoff into rivers and bays, and help meet the increasing world food and land demands. Researchers are at work to produce hardier crops that will flourish in even the harshest environments and that will require less fuel, labor, fertilizer, and water, helping to decrease the pressures on land and wildlife habitats.

In addition to genetically engineered crops, biotechnology has helped make other improvements in agriculture not involving plants. Examples of such advances include making antibiotic production more efficient through microbial fermentation and producing new animal vaccines through genetic engineering for diseases such as foot and mouth disease and rabies.

3. What are the benefits of Agricultural Biotechnology?

The application of biotechnology in agriculture has resulted in benefits to farmers, producers, and consumers. Biotechnology has helped to make both insect pest control and weed management safer and easier while safeguarding crops against disease.

For example, genetically engineered insect-resistant cotton has allowed for a significant reduction in the use of persistent, synthetic pesticides that may contaminate groundwater and the environment.

In terms of improved weed control, herbicide-tolerant soybeans, cotton, and corn enable the use of reduced-risk herbicides that break down more quickly in soil and are non-toxic to wildlife and humans. Herbicide-tolerant crops are particularly compatible with no-till or reduced tillage agriculture systems that help preserve topsoil from erosion.

Agricultural biotechnology has been used to protect crops from devastating diseases. The papaya ringspot virus threatened to derail the Hawaiian papaya industry until papayas resistant to the disease were developed through genetic engineering. This saved the U.S. papaya industry. Research on potatoes, squash, tomatoes, and other crops continues in a similar manner to provide resistance to viral diseases that otherwise are very difficult to control.

Biotech crops can make farming more profitable by increasing crop quality and may in some cases increase yields. The use of some of these crops can simplify work and improve safety for farmers. This allows farmers to spend less of their time managing their crops and more time on other profitable activities.

Biotech crops may provide enhanced quality traits such as increased levels of beta-carotene in rice to aid in reducing vitamin A deficiencies and improved oil compositions in canola, soybean, and corn. Crops with the ability to grow in salty soils or better withstand drought conditions are also in the works and the first such products are just entering the marketplace. Such innovations may be increasingly important in adapting to or in some cases helping to mitigate the effects of climate change.

The tools of agricultural biotechnology have been invaluable for researchers in helping to understand the basic biology of living organisms. For example, scientists have identified the complete genetic structure of several strains of Listeria and Campylobacter, the bacteria often responsible for major outbreaks of food-borne illness in people. This genetic information is providing a wealth of opportunities that help researchers improve the safety of our food supply. The tools of biotechnology have "unlocked doors" and are also helping in the development of improved animal and plant varieties, both those produced by conventional means as well as those produced through genetic engineering.

4. What are the safety considerations with Agricultural Biotechnology?

Breeders have been evaluating new products developed through agricultural biotechnology for centuries. In addition to these efforts, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) work to ensure that crops produced through genetic engineering for commercial use are properly tested and studied to make sure they pose no significant risk to consumers or the environment.

Crops produced through genetic engineering are the only ones formally reviewed to assess the potential for transfer of novel traits to wild relatives. When new traits are genetically engineered into a crop, the new plants are evaluated to ensure that they do not have characteristics of weeds. Where biotech crops are grown in proximity to related plants, the potential for the two plants to exchange traits via pollen must be evaluated before release. Crop plants of all kinds can exchange traits with their close wild relatives (which may be weeds or wildflowers) when they are in proximity. In the case of biotech-derived crops, the EPA and USDA perform risk assessments to evaluate this possibility and minimize potential harmful consequences, if any.

Other potential risks considered in the assessment of genetically engineered organisms include any environmental effects on birds, mammals, insects, worms, and other organisms, especially in the case of insect or disease resistance traits. This is why the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the EPA review any environmental impacts of such pest-resistant biotechnology derived crops prior to approval of field-testing and commercial release. Testing on many types of organisms such as honeybees, other beneficial insects, earthworms, and fish is performed to ensure that there are no unintended consequences associated with these crops.

With respect to food safety, when new traits introduced to biotech-derived plants are examined by the EPA and the FDA, the proteins produced by these traits are studied for their potential toxicity and potential to cause an allergic response. Tests designed to examine the heat and digestive stability of these proteins, as well as their similarity to known allergenic proteins, are completed prior to entry into the food or feed supply. To put these considerations in perspective, it is useful to note that while the particular biotech traits being used are often new to crops in that they often do not come from plants (many are from bacteria and viruses), the same basic types of traits often can be found naturally in most plants. These basic traits, like insect and disease resistance, have allowed plants to survive and evolve over time.

5. How widely used are biotechnology crops?

According to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), biotechnology plantings as a percentage of total crop plantings in the United States in 2012 were about 88 percent for corn, 94 percent for cotton, and 93 percent for soybeans. NASS conducts an agricultural survey in all states in June of each year. The report issued from the survey contains a section specific to the major biotechnology derived field crops and provides additional detail on biotechnology plantings. The most recent report may be viewed at the following website: https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/adoption-of-genetically-engineered-crops-in-the-us.aspx

For a summary of these data, see the USDA Economic Research Service data feature at: https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/adoption-of-genetically-engineered-crops-in-the-us.aspx

The USDA does not maintain data on international usage of genetically engineered crops. The independent International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA), a not-for-profit organization, estimates that the global area of biotech crops for 2012 was 170.3 million hectares, grown by 17.3 million farmers in 28 countries, with an average annual growth in area cultivated of around 6 percent. More than 90 percent of farmers growing biotech crops are resource-poor farmers in developing countries. ISAAA reports various statistics on the global adoption and plantings of biotechnology derived crops. The ISAAA website is https://www.isaaa.org

6. What are the roles of government in agricultural biotechnology?

Please note: These descriptions are not a complete or thorough review of all the activities of these agencies with respect to agricultural biotechnology and are intended as general introductory materials only. For additional information please see the relevant agency websites.

Regulatory

The Federal Government developed a Coordinated Framework for the Regulation of Biotechnology in 1986 to provide for the regulatory oversight of organisms derived through genetic engineering. The three principal agencies that have provided primary guidance to the experimental testing, approval, and eventual commercial release of these organisms to date are the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Department of Health and Human Services' Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The approach taken in the Coordinated Framework is grounded in the judgment of the National Academy of Sciences that the potential risks associated with these organisms fall into the same general categories as those created by traditionally bred organisms.

Products are regulated according to their intended use, with some products being regulated under more than one agency. All government regulatory agencies have a responsibility to ensure that the implementation of regulatory decisions, including approval of field tests and eventual deregulation of approved biotech crops, does not adversely impact human health or the environment.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is responsible for protecting U.S. agriculture from pests and diseases. APHIS regulations provide procedures for obtaining a permit or for providing notification prior to "introducing" (the act of introducing includes any movement into or through the U.S., or release into the environment outside an area of physical confinement) a regulated article in the U.S. Regulated articles are organisms and products altered or produced through genetic engineering that are plant pests or for which there is reason to believe are plant pests.

The regulations also provide for a petition process for the determination of non-regulated status. Once a determination of non-regulated status has been made, the organism (and its offspring) no longer requires APHIS review for movement or release in the U.S.

For more information on the regulatory responsibilities of the FDA, the EPA and APHIS please see:

https://www.fda.gov

https://www.epa.gov

APHIS Biotechnology Regulations

Market Facilitation

The USDA also helps industry respond to consumer demands in the United States and overseas by supporting the marketing of a wide range of agricultural products produced through conventional, organic, and genetically engineered means.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and the Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) have developed a number of services to facilitate the strategic marketing of conventional and genetically engineered foods, fibers, grains, and oilseeds in both domestic and international markets. GIPSA provides these services for the bulk grain and oilseed markets while AMS provides the services for food commodities such as fruits and vegetables, as well as for fiber commodities.

These services include:

1. Evaluation of Test Kits: AMS and GIPSA evaluate commercially available test kits designed to detect the presence of specific proteins in genetically engineered agricultural commodities. The agencies confirm whether the tests operate in accordance with manufacturers' claims and, if the kits operate as stated, the results are made available to the public on their respective websites.

GIPSA Link: https://www.gipsa.usda.gov/fgis/rapidtestkit.aspx

GIPSA evaluates the performance of laboratories conducting DNA-based tests to detect genetically engineered grains and oilseeds, provides participants with their individual results, and posts a summary report on the GIPSA website. AMS is developing a similar program that can evaluate and verify the capabilities of independent laboratories to screen other products for the presence of genetically engineered material.

2. Identity Preservation/Process Verification Services: AMS and GIPSA offer auditing services to certify the use of written quality practices and/or production processes by producers who differentiate their commodities using identity preservation, testing, and product branding.

GIPSA Link: https://www.gipsa.usda.gov/fgis/inspectionweighing.aspx

AMS Link: https://www.ams.usda.gov/fv/ipbv.htm

Additional AMS Services: AMS provides fee-based DNA and protein testing services for food and fiber products, and its Plant Variety Protection Office offers intellectual property rights protection for new genetically engineered seed varieties through the issuance of Certificates of Protection.

Additional GIPSA Services: GIPSA provides marketing documents pertaining to whether there are genetically engineered varieties of certain bulk commodities in commercial production in the United States. USDA also works to improve and expand market access for U.S. agricultural products, including those produced through genetic engineering.

The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) supports or administers numerous education, outreach, and exchange programs designed to improve the understanding and acceptance of genetically engineered agricultural products worldwide

1. Market Access Program and Foreign Market Development Program: Supports U.S. farm producer groups (called "Cooperators") to market agricultural products overseas, including those produced using genetic engineering.

2. Emerging Markets Program: Supports technical assistance activities to promote exports of U.S. agricultural commodities and products to emerging markets, including those produced using genetic engineering. Activities to support science-based decision-making are also undertaken. Such activities have included food safety training in Mexico, a biotechnology course for emerging market participants at Michigan State University, farmer-to-farmer workshops in the Philippines and Honduras, high-level policy discussions within the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation group, as well as numerous study tours and workshops involving journalists, regulators, and policy-makers.

3. Cochran Fellowship Program: Supports short-term training in biotechnology and genetic engineering. Since the program was created in 1984, the Cochran Fellowship Program has provided education and training to 325 international participants, primarily regulators, policy makers, and scientists.

4. Borlaug Fellowship Program: Supports collaborative research in new technologies, including biotechnology and genetic engineering. Since the program was established in 2004, the Borlaug Fellowship Program has funded 193 fellowships in this research area.

5. Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops (TASC): Supports technical assistance activities that address sanitary, phytosanitary, and technical barriers that prohibit or threaten the export of U.S. specialty crops. This program has supported activities on biotech papaya.

Research

USDA researchers seek to solve major agricultural problems and to better understand the basic biology of agriculture. Researchers may use biotechnology to conduct research more efficiently and to discover things that may not be possible by more conventional means. This includes introducing new or improved traits in plants, animals, and microorganisms and creating new biotechnology-based products such as more effective diagnostic tests, improved vaccines, and better antibiotics. Any USDA research involving the development of new biotechnology products includes biosafety analysis.

USDA scientists are also improving biotechnology tools for ever safer, more effective use of biotechnology by all researchers. For example, better models are being developed to evaluate genetically engineered organisms and to reduce allergens in foods.

USDA researchers monitor for potential environmental problems such as insect pests becoming resistant to Bt, a substance that certain crops, such as corn and cotton, have been genetically engineered to produce to protect against insect damage. In addition, in partnership with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the Forest Service, the Cooperative States Research, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) administers the Biotechnology Risk Assessment Research Grants Program (BRAG) which develops science-based information regarding the safety of introducing genetically engineered plants, animals, and microorganisms. Lists of biotechnology research projects can be found at https://www.ars.usda.gov/research/projects.htm for ARS and at https://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding-opportunity/biotechnology-risk-assessment-research-grants-program-brag for NIFA.

USDA also develops and supports centralized websites that provide access to genetic resources and genomic information about agricultural species. Making these databases easily accessible is crucial for researchers around the world.

USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) provides funding and program leadership for extramural research, higher education, and extension activities in food and agricultural biotechnology. NIFA administers and manages funds for biotechnology through a variety of competitive and cooperative grants programs. The National Research Initiative (NRI) Competitive Grants Program, the largest NIFA competitive program, supports basic and applied research projects and integrated research, education, and/or extension projects, many of which use or develop biotechnology tools, approaches, and products. The Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) funds competitive grants to support research by qualified small businesses on advanced concepts related to scientific problems and opportunities in agriculture, including development of biotechnology-derived products. NIFA also supports research involving biotechnology and biotechnology-derived products through cooperative funding programs in conjunction with state agricultural experiment stations at land-grant universities. NIFA partners with other federal agencies through interagency competitive grant programs to fund agricultural and food research that uses or develops biotechnology and biotechnology tools such as metabolic engineering, microbial genome sequencing, and maize genome sequencing.

USDA's Economic Research Service (ERS) conducts research on the economic aspects of the use of genetically engineered organisms, including the rate of and reasons for adoption of biotechnology by farmers. ERS also addresses economic issues related to the marketing, labeling, and trading of biotechnology-derived products.

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iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) Stock Rating Upgraded by Vetr Inc. The Cerbat Gem iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund logo Vetr upgraded shares of iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (NASDAQ:IBB) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday, May 17th. They currently have $303.00 target price on the ... The iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB) Position Boosted ...BangaloreWeekly iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) Position ...BBNS iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) Position Raised by Pinnacle Associates Ltd.Transcript Daily Chaffey Breeze -Stock Observer all 11 news articles »

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Preparing competent, competitive, and ethical leaders, Azusa Pacifics new Master of Science in Biotechnology equips graduates to make significant contributions to and profoundly influence this emerging science field. Set to launch in fall 2017 with a cohort of 24, the advanced degree distinguishes itself from counterparts at other institutions by approaching the discipline from a distinctly Christian worldview and instilling in students the ability to synthesize human need, potential, and responsibility.

Graduates with this level of training find a wide-open marketplace eager to hire. Jobs in the biomedical industry show an upward trend throughout the country, and particularly in California, home to more than 50 percent of these companies. According to a 2014 report from Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News, the industry expects significant job growth over the next decade in the areas of epidemiology, bioinformatics and genetic counseling, microbiology, biomedical engineering, and biomedical research. Nestled in the heart of the countrys second-largest cluster of bioscience businesses, APU offers students a distinct advantage that surpasses traditional internships and networking. A collaborative enterprise, this program partners APU with local bioscience companies, including Grifols Biologicals, Gilead Sciences, Johnson & Johnson, Allergan, and others. In addition to technical proficiency, APUs program also provides industry-critical skills, such as project and program management, communication skills, teamwork, business ethics, and leadership, which produces graduates who are productive employees on the first day of hire in a corporate setting.

Open to students and professionals with bachelors degrees in molecular or cellular biology, biochemistry, applied mathematics, statistics, engineering, or computer science, the M.S. in Biotechnology offers a unique approach to the field through the lens of Christian faith and imparts a clear understanding of how believers can participate in and provide guidance to the industry in a way that advances science and glorifies God.

Posted: June 12, 2017

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= By ANGELA OKETCH More by this Author 3 hoursago

The chemicals that farmers spray on their crops in form of pesticides to kill pests and prevent diseases have always been a bone of contention, with researchers trying to find safer alternatives. A new variety of rice that fights multiple pathogens with no effect on the yield of the crop, is thus a welcome relief for both farmers and scientists.

The discovery is based on a study of the plants immune system. Plants use receptors on the outside of their cells to identify molecules that signal a microbial invasion, and respond by releasing antimicrobial compounds. Therefore, identifying genes that kickstart this immune response yields disease-resistant plants.

Just like sick humans who are unproductive at work, plants grow poorly and produce unfavourable yields when their immune systems are overloaded. For a long time, scientists have focused on the NPR1 gene from a small, woody plant called Arabidopsis thaliana, to boost the immune systems of rice, wheat, tomatoes and apples.

However, NPR1 is not very useful for agriculture because it has negative effects on plants. To make it useful, researchers needed a better gene that would activate the immune response only when the plant is under attack. Rice with the gene was able to combat rice blast which often causes an estimated 30 per cent loss of rice crop worldwide, every year.

A segment of DNA called the TBF1 cassette acted as a control switch for the plants immune response. When the TBF1 cassette from the Arabidopsis genome was copied and pasted alongside and in front of the NPR1 gene in rice plants, it resulted in a strain of rice that could fend off offending pathogens without causing stunted growth seen in previously engineered crops.

The researchers tested the superiority of engineered rice over regular rice by inoculating crop leaves with the bacterial pathogens that cause rice blight and leaf streak, as well as the fungus responsible for blast disease. Whereas the infections spread on the leaves of wild rice plants, the engineered plants confined the invaders to a small area.

The researchers say this innovation could come in handy in the developing world where farmers with no access to fungicide often lose their entire crop to disease. The study was published in Nature.

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