It might not have been quite as exhilarating as his former life as a fighter pilot, but Iatia managing director Philippe Cussinet said the float of his company today was pretty exciting nonetheless. [ + ]

Prestigious scientific journal Nature has been forced to back away from its support of a controversial study claiming that transgenic DNA sequences from GM corn contaminated native maize in Mexico. [ + ]

Tests of an Australian cancer drug intended to block angiogenesis have progressed with the announcement of a third patient commencing treatment under the phase II study. [ + ]

Australian scientists and ethicists have expressed dismay and disbelief at reports a woman is eight weeks pregnant with the world's first human clone. [ + ]

G2 Therapies, a recent spin-off company from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, will be launching into clinical trials of monoclonal targets to treat inflammatory diseases and cancer after raising $3.3 million in a first-round venture capital funding. [ + ]

Melbourne based biotech company Genetic Technologies (ASX:GTG) expects to turn a profit this year after securing its first license agreement with a US-based company for use of GTG's non-coding patents for genomic mapping and intron sequence analysis. [ + ]

Melbourne start-up company Acrux has signed an agreement with pharmaceutical giant Pharmacia to explore the use of Acrux's proprietary transdermal drug delivery technology for Pharmacia's drugs. [ + ]

An ANU scientist, working with the University of Newcastle, has confirmed that the male Y chromosome is under attack and will eventually self-destruct.

Professor Tony Thomas, chair of the Australian Academy of Science's national committee for physics, believes that physics teaching and research in Australia are in a desperate situation.

EU leaders gave full backing to the European Commission life sciences and biotechnology strategy at the recent Barcelona Summit.

Australia's state and territory leaders have agreed on a national framework to back limited embryonic stem cell research. [ + ]

A treatment for Alzheimer's Disease is one step closer after the successful completion of a Phase II clinical trial by Prana Biotechnology for its drug PBT-1 (Iodochlorhydroxyquin). [ + ]

Scientists at CSIRO are developing a method for using genetic technologies to determine the health of soil. [ + ]

US company Affymetrix has told a government panel that patents should not be applied to gene sequences. [ + ]

Patent examinations should be standardised across the world to make appropriate intellectual property protection more affordable. [ + ]