Current biochemical detectors are slow and produce an unacceptable number of false readings because they are easily fooled by subtle differences between deadly pathogens and harmless substances. They simply cannot fully monitor or interpret the different ways these substances interact with biological systems.

To solve this problem, three faculty researchers in the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineeringare are learning how to incorporate real cells into tiny micro-systems to detect chemical and biological pathogens.

They are collaborating across engineering disciplines to make advanced "cell-based sensors-on-a-chip" technology possible. Pamela Abshire, electrical and computer engineering (ECE) and Institute for Systems Research (ISR); Benjamin Shapiro, aerospace engineering and ISR; and Elisabeth Smela, mechanical engineering and ECE; are working on new sensors that take advantage of the sensory capabilities of biological cells.

ROCKVILLE, Maryland, May 6 /PRNewswire/ --

Stem cell company, Neuralstem, Inc. (Amex: CUR), today announced that they have filed a motion to re-open the infringement lawsuit with StemCells, Inc. and to have the Stay lifted, so that the case can be disposed of on summary judgment as soon as possible.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061221/DCTH007LOGO )

TEL AVIV, Israel, May 6 /PRNewswire/ -- PPV Billing Ltd., an international software development firm based in Tel Aviv, announced the launch of several new websites. Its flagship website, Kadabo.co.uk, is an innovative website that offers users a streamlined, more convenient web surfing experience. It was initially introduced to the British public in a campaign which reached over 3 million users. To date, Kadabo.co.uk and its sister sites have received 15 million page views from around the world. In addition to Kadabo, PPV Billing has also developed similar sites aimed at the German, French, and Spanish language markets, and are developing an international site with a global reach as well.

LONDON, May 6 /PRNewswire/ --

- Orange Selects HTC Touch Diamond as the First Platform for its Flagship Orange Multimedia Experience

- Orange Works With HTC From Device Concept Stage to Deliver Comprehensive Improvements to the End-User Experience and Exclusive Orange Multimedia Services

LONDON, May 6 /PRNewswire/ --

Orange today announced the availability of the HTC Touch Diamond in its Signature devices range. Orange has selected the Diamond as the first platform for its latest multimedia services, using the phone's rich 3D-graphics engine and powerful mobile internet capabilities to deliver enhanced applications and services, including Orange Photo, Orange Music, Orange TV and Orange Downloads.

SAN JOSE, California, May 6 /PRNewswire/ --

Atmel(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML), announced today the AVRUSBRF01 reference design for development with AVR(R) microcontrollers in the un-licensed 2.4 GHz ISM band and connection to PCs with USB.

Fallow agricultural land and steppe-formation processes are evidently capable of having a much greater effect on global air quality than was previously assumed, according to researchers who examined a dust cloud that formed over parched fields in southern Ukraine and led to extremely high concentrations of particulate matter in Central Europe.

Over two-thirds of the land area in the Ukraine consists of fields and meadows. The soil on 220,000 square kilometres is regarded as being under threat. Since the 1930s wind erosion in what was then the Soviet Union has increased considerably as a result of collectivisation in agriculture and the resultant large field areas.

In particular, this has affected the regions north of the Caucasus, the lower reaches of the Don river and eastern and southern Ukraine. It is possible that the process is also accelerated by climate change. In particular, previously unaffected semi-arid regions are continuing to dry out.

TEL AVIV, Israel, May 6 /PRNewswire/ --

- Babylon-Enterprise Enables SAP Employee Access to Corporate Information and Translations in a Single Click

Babylon.com announced today that Babylon-Enterprise, its corporate information retrieval solution, has been implemented at SAP, and on every one of almost 44,000 SAP employee desktops worldwide.

After extensive evaluation SAP chose Babylon's solution for instant information retrieval, offering employees access to essential information in a single click. Babylon's product enables instant access to all information sources - ranging from internal corporate IT systems, through to external content such as language dictionaries and general reference sources.

BRADFORD, England, May 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Yorkshire Water has won many awards for customer service and holds the British government's Charter Mark for Service Excellence. In 2006 they were voted utility company of the year for an unprecedented third consecutive year, finishing ahead of all other water, gas, electricity, and telecoms companies.

Pursuing further efficiencies, Yorkshire Water looked for a way to retain their proven voice switches and reduce leased line costs. The first steps in 2003 involved the elimination of a number of costly 2 Mbps lines by carrying voice traffic over their own packet-switched core network.

LONDON, May 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Misys plc (FTSE: MSY.L), the global application software and services company, today announces that its core banking and trade services solutions have been selected by Masraf Al Rayan to build a true Islamic solution for its consumer and commercial customers.

Misys was chosen as the best partner for Masraf Al Rayan over other solutions from five vendors because of its proven expertise in Islamic finance and credibility in the region.