Scientists are a step closer to developing a vaccine against a fatally infectious parasite carried in the bite of sandflies. [ + ]

Advances in biotechnologies and computer software have helped make genome sequencing much more common than in the past. But still in question are both the accuracy of different sequencing methods and the best ways to evaluate these efforts. Now, computer scientists have devised a tool to better measure the validity of genome sequencing. [ + ]

Researchers have discovered a new compound that restores the health of mice infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), an otherwise dangerous bacterial infection. [ + ]

Research into a cost-effective biomimetic that has the potential to treat many bone diseases such as osteoporosis will be pioneered through a joint venture between Cardia Bioplastics and the University of Sydney. [ + ]

Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida have identified a new target to improve treatment of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cancer, which accounts for more than 95% of pancreatic cancer cases. [ + ]

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have achieved a feat in synthetic chemistry by inventing a scalable method to make complex natural compounds - polyhydroxylated steroids. These compounds, used in heart-failure medications and other drugs, have been notoriously problematic to synthesise in the laboratory. [ + ]

A team of researchers from Scotland has now demonstrated a way to easily distinguish undifferentiated embryonic stem cells from later-stage stem cells. [ + ]

Medical research designed to benefit humans may, in the future, also be carried out on plants, according to Associate Professor Sureshkumar Balasubramanian of the School of Biological Sciences at Monash University. [ + ]

Lack of investor interest has caused Alchemia to abandon plans to spin off its cancer business into a separate company, Audeo Oncology. [ + ]

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals has commenced a phase I trial of Bionomics’ (ASX:BNO) anti-anxiety drug, BNC210. [ + ]

Researchers are working on a solution for a large number of breast cancer patients who do not respond to chemotherapy, thanks to $5 million in funding. [ + ]

Researchers at Imperial College London have developed an artificially intelligent (AI) computer program that has itself designed a video game for the Christmas season, which can be downloaded for free. [ + ]

The University of New South Wales (UNSW) has secured funding for one of six new Australia-China joint research centres, which aims to meet the challenges facing the minerals, metallurgy and materials industries in both countries. [ + ]

Sirtex Medical (ASX:SRX) will be added to the S&P/ASX 200 after Integra Mining Limited (ASX:IGR) was dropped from the list. [ + ]

The University of Texas at Arlington and Thermo Fisher Scientific have been granted a United States patent for a novel charge detector for ion chromatography that they developed together. [ + ]