Sirtex Medical is on track to achieve its goal of rolling out its SIR-Spheres cancer treatment in ten US hospitals by the end of the year, according to CEO Colin Sutton, with the ninth centre at Emory University Hospital treating its first two patients last week. [ + ]

A Monash University researcher is helping improve forecasting and our understanding of weather patterns by using global positioning system (GPS) satellites to measure water vapour in the atmosphere.

Prof Peter Darvall has resigned from his board position at Melbourne drug discovery company Metabolic Pharmaceuticals due to his commitments as vice-chancellor of Monash University. [ + ]

Research which aims to make laboratory-grown leukaemia cells change form and used to prime a patient's immune system to kill malignant cells has begun in Edinburgh, Scotland. If successful, the project could give clinicians a way of destroying residual leukaemic cells which are undetectable by microscope.

The University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) has appointed eminent American parasitologist Prof Michael Wallach as director of its new Institute for the Biotechnology of Infectious Diseases. [ + ]

A new array of ocean robots has begun working deep in the Indian Ocean to help scientists understand Australia's changing climate.

Melbourne-based Metabolic Pharmaceuticals has begun a Phase IIA clinical trial for its obesity drug AOD9604 to investigate safety of daily dosing in preparation for the Phase IIB weight reduction study scheduled for next year. [ + ]

Encouraging results are flowing for Australian researchers using computer graphics to find inhibitors of a protein that plays a pivotal role in the life cycle of the parasite that causes malaria. [ + ]

Adelaide biotechnology company BresaGen has fitted the keystone into the archway of its ambition to be a substantial player in embryonic stem cell (ES cell) therapy, by acquiring valuable patents on the methodology for isolating pluripotent stem cells. [ + ]

Melbourne's Bio21 project looks to be back on track with a restructured board, a newly approved business plan and orders in for some key new equipment. [ + ]

How does a soybean plant's leaves communicate with its roots, hidden beneath the ground? [ + ]

The world's largest combined solar hot water and electricity system is coming to the Australian National University in Canberra.

A protein involved in the detection of the most lethal form of DNA damage and which is also linked with a rare genetic disorder has attracted the largest single slice of the NHMRC's latest project funding round for Queensland. [ + ]

Western Australian company Chemeq has signed an agreement with renowned University of Western Australia researcher Prof Barry Marshall to investigate the use of its CHEMEQ polymeric antimicrobial to treat ulcers caused by Helicobacter pylori. [ + ]

Adelaide's BresaGen Ltd is about to launch its new ProtEcol service to manufacture recombinant proteins and peptide therapeutics for client biotech companies in Australia and overseas. [ + ]