News 12-19-2000
IVAX to Develop Cystic Fibrosis Drug
IVAX Corporation recently announced finalizaton of its collaboration agreement
with the Center for Blood Research, Inc. (CBR), to develop a drug to treat cystic
fibrosis lung disease. The collaboration is based on a CBR proprietary recombinant
monocyte/neutrophil elastase inhibitor (rM/NEI) which will be delivered to the
lungs of cystic fibrosis patients by means of an IVAX proprietary inhalation
system. After developing both an effective formulations of the rM/NEI compound
and an appropriate inhalation system for administering this formulation, IVAX
will be responsible for conducting clinical trials and marketing the product.
The drug is based on research showing that elastases and other naturally-occurring
proteases made by immune cells, in particular neutrophils, break down proteins
that give lung tissue its elasticity and flexibility. Scientists have found
that the elastases and other proteases present in the lungs of cystic fibrosis
patients injure the airways, increase mucus plugging and disable other normal
protective mechanisms. By inhibiting the action of proteases, rM/NEI is expected
to reduce structural injury to the lungs, improve the clearance of lung secretions,
and promote other mechanisms of lung defense in order to slow the progressive
lung destruction leading to shortened life in cystic fibrosis patients.
V-SPAN Wins TeleCon Award
The TeleCon Awards' annual recognition of the best products, applications,
and services for conferencing and annual collaborative communications honored
V-SPAN, a provider of virtual communication solutions, at the 19th Annual TeleCon
West Awards. Winner in the category of Best Content Product, theVirtual Reservation
Card (VR Card) enables on-demand audio and Web conferencing via a PC and standard
Internet browser. The card allows users to conduct interactive, secure, and
on-demand Web-based meetings and delivers real-time data collaboration, application,
and desktop remote control. A standard browser facilitates one-to-many or many-to-many
presentations, and the advanced collaboration functionality d'es not require
pre-installed software or firewall configuration.
For more information, visit www.v-span.com.
Sabre Announces Contribution to Oklahoma State
Sabre Holdings Corporation recently announced a contribution to OklahomaState
University-Okmulgee in the amount of $32,500 as part of the company's commitment
to support educational initiatives, with an emphasis in technology.
This fall Sabre established an information technology program at the university
-- the Sabre Information (IT) Program at OSU-Okmulgee. Eighteen students are
currently enrolled in the two-year program that will prepare them for careers
in computer programming, installing, servicing and maintaining network operating
systems, network integration, and customer service. The program includes several
components, including instruction on Sabre-specific equipment taught by Sabre
employees and paid internships at the Sabre data center located in Tulsa. Students
who complete the program will receive an Associate in Applied Science degree.
For more information, visit www.sabre.com.
Researchers to Gather Data From Cassini Space Mission
This week, as Cassini reaches its closest point to Jupiter, a team of researchers
at the University of Michigan's College of Engineering will get an up-close
look at the aurora surrounding Jupiter and a chance to gather valuable data
and images from Cassini and the Hubble Space Telescope.
Researchers will use instruments aboard Cassini to take direct measurements
of the solar wind and determine the amount of pressure those winds exert on
Jupiter. Since the solar wind changes as it flows away from the Sun, this must
be done close to Jupiter, and the Cassini trajectory provides a unique opportunity
to do this. Scientists plan to analyze the relationship between the solar wind
measurements and the images to determine how solar winds influence the aurora
around Jupiter. That information, in turn, may help researchers understand some
of the differences between Jupiter and Earth. This project will double the amount
of existing high-resolution data that Hubble has collected on Jupiter's aurora.
At the same time, the Hubble Space Telescope will capture images of the brilliant
bands of colored light generated by the aurora. To view the images, visit www.sprl.umich.edu/CassiniHSTJupiterflyby.
This experiment serves as a test run for the Cassini spacecraft, launched
by space organizations in the United States, Europe, and Italy in 1997. It will
be the first significant opportunity to exercise the spacecraft's operational
abilities as it travels to Saturn.
Ireland Plans New Internet Links to U.S. Colleges
Irish officials recently announced plans for new broadband Internet links between
higher-education institutions in Ireland and the United States. Irish prime
minister Bertie Ahern described the plans during a visit by President Clinton
to Ireland's newly designated "digital district" -- a six-square-mile area in
Dublin. MediaLab Europe, a joint project of the Irish government and MIT, is
the academic-research anchor for the multimillion-dollar digital district, which
aims to provide an environment where scientists and technology entrepreneurs
can mix, create, and market. In addition to MIT, a number of other universities
are discussing whether to locate their digital-research facilities in the area.
The district's blueprint calls for graduate students to conduct research under
the guidance of leading international scientists. Irish officials hope the research
will result in ideas that can be developed by start-up companies.
Grid Portal to Improve Access to Computing Resources
Computational scientists will soon have a new tool for using resources on
the national "grid" of high-performance research networks. The Web-based grid
portal will help computer scientists, scientists, and engineers by simplifying
and consolidating access to advanced computing systems supported by the National
Science Foundation (NSF) and its Partnerships for Advanced Computational Infrastructure
(PACI).
The National Partnership for Advanced Computational Infrastructure (NPACI),
the National Computational Science Alliance (NCSA), and the Pittsburgh Supercomputing
Center (PSC) have announced formation of the integrated grid portal. NPACI and
Alliance demonstrated a prototype in November at SC2000 in Dallas.
A PACI-wide secure environment will give researchers access to resources through
a single log-in. The integrated portal extends the capabilities of the NPACI
HotPage to include computational resources from the Alliance and PSC, as well
as those from the NASA Information Power Grid (IPG). Representatives from NPACI,
the Alliance, and NASA IPG have conducted a series of workshops targeting specific
technologies and resources to include in the effort to demonstrate computational
science portals using the high-end systems made available by each organization.
For more about the grid portal, visit http://portals.paci.org/;
for more information about PACI, visit http://cise.nsf.gov/acir/.
