pSivida (ASX:PVA) licensee Alimera Sciences has announced that the first UK NHS patient has been implanted with its Iluvien diabetic macular edema (DME) treatment. [ + ]

Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research has been chosen as one of the first facilities in the world to acquire machines that can sequence a whole human genome at a base cost below US$1000. [ + ]

NHS Wales has completed the first phase of the national rollout of InterSystems TrakCare Lab, a comprehensive, multidisciplinary laboratory information management system (LIMS). The product is designed to support modern laboratories that provide consolidated, comprehensive pathology services. [ + ]

Hepatitis C researcher Rowena Bull and her colleagues have provided an intimate account of the surprising behaviour of the hepatitis C virus during the first 100 days of infection. Their findings point towards new strategies to prevent chronic HCV infection, cirrhosis and liver cancer. [ + ]

The new year has dawned with news that biotechnology has become a "20-year overnight success", with The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald (4/1/14) reporting that "biotech has finally boomed". The article reported the array of successes of 2013, which included IPOs, four- to nine-fold surges in share prices for a number of companies, high-profile investors turning their attention to biotech and a steady flow of capital raisings that totalled $739.1 million (Biotech Daily, 2/1/14), the highest amount since 2007. [ + ]

The Australian listed biotech sector handily outperformed both the All Ordinaries and the Health Care Index last year, analysis from Bioscience Managers shows. [ + ]

Professor Martin Pera, Program Leader of the ARC-supported national research consortium Stem Cells Australia, reflects on his involvement in the discovery of human embryonic stem cells and where the research field is at today. [ + ]

Researchers from the University of Warwick in the UK and York University in Canada have created a molecular communications system which can be used for the transmission of messages and data in challenging environments. [ + ]

The NSW Ministry of Health will soon start taking applications for the second round of a $5m per year grant program for medical device companies. [ + ]

Researchers have noted that the villains of fantasy literature have a tendency to dwell in darkness and eat a poor diet. From this, they theorise that the creatures are left lacking in vitamin D. [ + ]

Intellectual assets can be commercialised but the road from idea to marketplace success can be fraught. Frequently those with the original genius idea are not by nature entrepreneurial or commercially savvy - this is especially true with those from a research or academic background and turning an intellectual asset into something tradable is not a simple, straightforward process. [ + ]

The purpose of the University of Queensland's Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis (CMM), located at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), is to promote, support and initiate research and teaching in the applications of microscopy and microanalysis. Appropriately, the centre is now home to Australia's first in-situ sectioning electron microscope. [ + ]

The seaside town of Lorne, less than two hours' drive from Melbourne, will soon host its traditional series of life sciences conferences. The Mantra Lorne offers beachfront accommodation surrounded by 12 acres of landscaped gardens, making it an ideal setting for the two-week conference series. [ + ]

University of Queensland scientists have discovered a way of converting large proteins into small molecules suitable for drug development, while retaining their key properties. [ + ]

Facilities that store human brain tissue, so-called 'brain banks', are finding it harder than ever to get a share of the medical research dollar in Australia. Yet they remain an incredibly important, relevant and valuable resource for many studies in neuroscience, and Tasmanian neuroscientist James Vickers is keen to explain why. [ + ]