One of the biggest recent breakthroughs in stem cell research is the ability to reprogram non-stem cells into stem cells using genetic engineering. The hitch with this technique is that genetic engineering like this can have side effects: stem cells produced in this way can turn into tumors in mice (and presumably humans, but we haven't tried that yet).

And thus researchers have been looking for ways to reprogram stem cells without genetic engineering. One promising way to do this is to use chemicals that can mimic the effects of the genes typically used for reprogramming. (The jargon for these genes is 'reprogramming factors' - who says technical jargon has to be opaque?)

EL SEGUNDO, California, June 3 /PRNewswire/ --

Wyle's Germany-based GmbH unit played a vital role in the recent selection of six new European Space Authority (ESA) astronauts, the first named since 1992.

Casey Pruett, managing director of the unit, assisted in supervising all logistic components for organizing the implementation of two phases of psychological and one phase of medical testing. He served as the deputy project manager to Dr. Volker Damann, head of ESA's Crew Medical Support Office, and was responsible for the psychological and medical components of the ESA astronaut selection campaign.

PLANO, Texas, June 3 /PRNewswire/ --

- Executive Advisory Board Formed to Contribute to Telmar's Global Growth Initiatives

Telmar Network Technology today announced that it has created an Executive Advisory Board of telecom executives who will use their years of industry experience to help guide Telmar's strategic growth initiatives worldwide. The Advisory Board members have led companies including Alcatel-Lucent, ATT, Tellabs and Verizon Communications.

Comic books have warned us time and time again to keep villains away from radiation.  It only makes them stronger.  Researchers at University of Delaware have discovered that ultraviolet radiation from the sun increases the plant-destroying powers of the common reed, making it an invasive archnemesis to its wetland plant victims.

SUNNYVALE, California, June 3 /PRNewswire/ --

- Radiofrequency ablation is durable after 2 years, compares favorably with endoscopic resection for advanced disease, and reduces the risk for cancer progression

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, June 3 /PRNewswire/ --

Strong subscriber growth and sustained levels of revenue in Africa and the Middle East will encourage mobile operators to carry on with their capex plans for 2009 and 2010, according to a new report from Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com), the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network (www.lightreading.com).

PARIS and BRISBANE, California, June 3 /PRNewswire/ --

- Data Highlighted in Plenary Session of 2009 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting

Sanofi-aventis (EURONEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY) and its fully owned subsidiary, BiPar Sciences, today announced results from a randomized Phase 2 clinical trial of BSI-201, a poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, in combination with gemcitabine and carboplatin (GC) chemotherapy, in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). BSI-201 is a novel investigational agent that acts by inhibiting PARP1, an enzyme that repairs DNA damage.

JERUSALEM, June 3 /PRNewswire/ -- The Gamida Cell-Teva Joint Venture announced today that five prestigious cord blood transplantations centers in Spain, three in Barcelona and two in Valencia, have joined the Excel study.

Participating clinical sites include, in alphabetical order: - Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, Barcelona Principal Investigator, Dr. Enric Carreras, MD - Hospital Clinico Universitario de Valencia, Valencia Principal Investigator, Dr. Cristina Arbona, MD - Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona Principal Investigator, Dr. Jorge Sierra, MD - Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Barcelona Principal Investigator, Dr. Christelle Ferra, MD - Hospital Universitario La Fe, Valencia Principal Investigator, Dr. Guillermo Sanz, MD

KUWAIT CITY, June 3 /PRNewswire/ --

Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), the Australian College of Kuwait (ACK) and the National Offset Company (NOC) announced the premiere of a state-of-the-art Maritime Simulation and Training Facility at the ACK campus today.

As a global leader in maritime systems and simulation training solutions, Lockheed Martin combined expertise from both arenas to provide customized high-tech maritime simulation and training devices to the facility. The advanced training technology will support the maritime and engineering programs offered by the college.

SAN JOSE, California, June 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Finjan Inc., a leader in secure web gateway products and the provider of a unified web security solution for the enterprise market, announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has terminated the re-examination proceedings and issued a Notice of Intent to Issue Ex Parte Re-examination Certificate (Notice) in the re-examination of its U.S. Patent No. 6,092,194 for a system and method for protecting a computer and network from hostile downloadables. The Notice indicates that all claims of this security patent have been confirmed as being patentable by the PTO.

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