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TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS:

Kessler: Bayer Obscured Risks of Contraceptive

The weekly round-up of failed trials, missed targets, and other business mishaps.

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  • Kessler: Bayer Obscured Risks of Contraceptive
    The weekly round-up of failed trials, missed targets, and other business mishaps.
    December 09, 2011 - Business - Trials and Tribulations
  • Medical Errors
    Report finds 1.5 million errors cost the U.S. economy $19.5 billion in 2008.
    August 12, 2010 - Health - Medical Practice
  • The Jaws of Life
    Alligator blood may one day lead to a new class of drugs that could fight the world's most stubborn infections.
    June 04, 2008 - ERIC WAHLGREN - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • A Bionic Eye    
    Researchers are racing to perfect an artificial retina that could restore limited sight to the blind.
    May 29, 2008 - ELLEN DURCKEL - Tech/Innovation - Convergence
  • Hands-On Medicine    
    A unique program aimed at training a new class of highly versatile health professionals is taking its model to India. The move could lead to new treatments and technologies, but it's not without critics.
    May 26, 2008 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Tech/Innovation - Convergence
  • The Smiling Heretic    
    Reg Kelly hopes the multidisciplinary institute he leads will help find new ways to improve public health and California's economy. But not everyone is a fan of his efforts to boost collaboration between academia and industry.
    May 16, 2008 - DANIEL S. LEVINE - Tech/Innovation - Convergence
  • Risky Business    
    Attacks on researchers by animal rights extremists have risen dramatically in recent years. Universities and biotechs face many challenges in blunting the threats.
    May 15, 2008 - CAROLYN MARSHALL - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Europe's Other Foodies    
    Dutch plant geneticists are working on developing hardier, healthier, and tastier produce using the latest genomic technology. But don't call it genetic engineering.
    May 12, 2008 - FRANK BROWNING - Tech/Innovation - Industrial Bio/Ag Bio
  • Living in Stereo    
    A deaf man finds out why hearing with two ears is better than one.
    April 30, 2008 - MICHAEL CHOROST - Health - Patients
  • In the Gecko Chamber    
    Scientists think they've learned the secret of sticky - and biomedical applications may not be far off.
    April 25, 2008 - ALEX GRONKE - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Brain Food    
    Vitamins may be good not just for your body, but for your behavior as well.
    April 16, 2008 - IRENE CASELLI - Health - Public Health
  • Humor Is a Male Thing, Seriously    
    A unicycling scientist concludes that trying to be funny stems from testosterone-driven aggression.
    April 11, 2008 - JULIE CHAO - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • When Downward Dog Is For Eternity    
    German anatomist Gunther von Hagens continues to delight-and disturb-the world with his human cadavers displayed in yoga poses and other recognizable positions from everyday life.
    April 07, 2008 - ERIC WAHLGREN - Society - Culture
  • Safety Net    
    The web is increasingly being used to exchange information about the latest outbreaks and even intervene in public health emergencies.
    April 02, 2008 - MADELINE DREXLER - Health - Global Health
  •     
    A letter from the editor.
    April 01, 2008 - WLLIAM PATRICK - Tech/Innovation - Research
  •     
    A letter from the publishers.
    April 01, 2008 - DAVID GOLLAHER AND G. STEVEN BURRILL - Tech/Innovation - Convergence
  •     
    A review of Science Lessons: What the Business of Biotech Taught Me About management by Gordon Binder and Philip Bashe (Harvard Business School Press, 304 pages, $29.95).
    April 01, 2008 - DAVID GOLLAHER - Business - Business Strategy
  • The Science of O    
    Can unlocking the mystery of the female orgasm lead to new pain medications?
    March 31, 2008 - ALEX GRONKE - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Preparing for Doomsday    
    A startup may have found a radical new way to effectively inoculate against bird flu.
    March 26, 2008 - FRANK BROWNING - Health - Vaccines
  • Thinking Small    
    U.S. patent officials and other regulators must get up to speed on the intricacies of tiny particles to avoid hindering the growth of nanotechnology.
    March 24, 2008 - LORI ANDREWS AND JULIE BURGER - Law - Patents
  • Double Duty    
    A gallery in Paris is also a research lab, giving artists and scientists a chance to work together to solve complex problems. A recent installation uses fruits, vegetables, and bubble gum to explore genetic concepts.
    March 19, 2008 - FRANK BROWNING - Society - Culture
  • Loving Our Inner Nerd    
    By the time kids reach fifth or sixth grade, promising students may have already turned away from the rigorous study necessary for a career in science.
    March 14, 2008 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Society - Culture
  • Saved By Worms    
    Scientists are learning how parasitic nematodes might actually be good for us-and could one day be used to treat allergies.
    March 11, 2008 - ROB R. DUNN - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Dr. Fix-It    
    Michael Merzenich helped reverse hearing loss for many with research that led to the cochlear implant. Now the neuroscientist is on what may be his boldest quest yet: repairing the brain.
    March 06, 2008 - EMILY WILSON - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • A Healthcare GPS for Doctors    
    Evidence-based medicine could help physicians navigate the complexities of patient care by collecting, interpreting, and disseminating data on outcomes.
    March 04, 2008 - DAVID GOLLAHER - Law/Policy - Healthcare Reform
  • A Biofuel That's Softer on the Environment    
    Diesel derived from cottonseed oil has its advantages.
    February 27, 2008 - FRANK BROWNING - Tech/Innovation - Industrial Bio/Ag Bio
  • Breathing Easy    
    Doctors find that age shouldn't be a barrier to successful transplants of lungs and other organs.
    February 25, 2008 - ANNE BURKE - Health - Public Health
  • Tee Time for Biotech    
    San Diego's industry insiders find the links can be as good for business as the labs.
    February 22, 2008 - ANNE BURKE - Business - Business Development
  • America's Healthcare Dilemma    
    A letter from the publishers
    February 21, 2008 - DAVID GOLLAHER AND G. STEVEN BURRILL - Health - Healthcare Reform
  • What's up, Doc?    
    The use of animals in drug testing is waning with the rise of microdosing and other methods that can be cheaper, more precise, and less ethically challenging. But when it comes to safety testing, animals will likely still play a role for some time to come
    February 18, 2008 - SUSAN MCCARTHY - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Untethering Innovation    
    One year before a new president takes office, Congress lies low, but bills on patents, biologics, genetics, and a host of other issues could still affect R&D.
    February 11, 2008 - BRADFORD PLUMER - Law - Legislation
  • When the Doctor Becomes the Patient    
    As the founding director of the ALS Treatment and Research Center at UCSF, I knew something about what to expect when I was diagnosed with the fatal neurodegenerative disease.
    February 08, 2008 - RICHARD K. OLNEY - Health - Patients
  • Naughty or NICE?    
    The U.K.'s National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence could be a model for the U.S. healthcare system, but critics say the agency stifles innovation and limits access.
    February 04, 2008 - HELEN JOYCE - Law/Policy - Regulatory
  • Nurturing Our Nerds    
    A letter from the editor
    February 04, 2008 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Society - Culture
  • Strange Bedfellows    
    Mainland China pharma companies have been IPO darlings, but are investors overlooking market weaknesses?
    January 31, 2008 - K.C. SWANSON - Finance - Finance
  • Beyond Generics    
    Indian pharma and biotech companies look abroad to acquire scientific and market know-how.
    January 28, 2008 - SEEMA SINGH - Business - Global Economy
  • Astronauts for a Day    
    The CEO of Vertex Pharmaceuticals goes weightless with Stephen Hawking.
    January 24, 2008 - JOSHUA BOGER - Society - Culture
  • Heading East    
    Big Pharma is shelling out big bucks in China's much of it going to world-class research centers.
    January 18, 2008 - K.C. SWANSON - Business - Drug Development
  • Nurse, Get This Patient Some Arugula    
    HMO Kaiser Permanente is helping set up farmers markets at its medical centers across the nation on the principle that good food leads to good health.
    January 14, 2008 - TERESA MOORE - Health - Wellness
  • When Doctors Really Play God    
    It's hard to make the case that bringing religion into medicine is associated with better outcomes.
    December 19, 2007 - RICHARD SLOAN - Society - Culture
  • Judgment Day    
    A U.S. center that would compare the effectiveness of medical treatments may soon be in the works. But skeptics worry that such research could put cost concerns ahead of clinical ones.
    December 17, 2007 - KATHRYN FOXHALL - Health - Healthcare Reform
  • Love is a Drug    
    eHarmony specializes in getting singles to connect. Now the matchmaking site hopes landmark research will show that good health, not just marriage, is a possible outcome.
    December 12, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Health - Wellness
  • A Fledgling Drug-making Process    
    Which came first, the chicken or the biopharmaceutical factory?
    December 06, 2007 - SUZANNE ELVIDGE - Business - Drug Development
  • Eye on the Prize    
    Geron's expectations for clinical trials that would transplant a type of neural stem cell into humans are modest, but success would validate a lengthy and costly effort.
    December 04, 2007 - ANN PARSON - Health - Regenerative Medicine
  •     
    A broad coalition wants to make electronic prescriptions mandatory.
    December 01, 2007 - MARIE DAGHLIAN - Health - Healthcare Reform
  •     
    Applications of adipose-derived stem cells, once promising, could be decades away.
    December 01, 2007 - LISA SUMMERS - Tech/Innovation - Research
  •     
    A Life Decoded: My Genome: My Life
    J. Craig Venter
    Viking, 375 pp, $25.95

    December 01, 2007 - DAVID GOLLAHER - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • The Unlikely Mentor    
    Groundbreaking DNA researcher Elizabeth Blackburn values curiosity over cut-throat competition and thus makes it safe to take smart risks.
    November 27, 2007 - CATHERINE BRADY - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Junk Science, Junk Food    
    A letter from the editor
    November 22, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Health - Public Health
  • The Brewers of Biotech    
    For biotech's zymurgy experts, home-brewing comes naturally. Now try saying zymurgy synergies after a few strong ales.
    November 19, 2007 - ERIC WAHLGREN - Society - Culture
  • Genes 'R Us    
    Some question whether the trend toward making genetic testing as easy as fixing a TV dinner is putting the market ahead of the science.
    November 14, 2007 - SALLY LEHRMAN - Society - Culture
  • Riffs on Metal Canvasses    
    Artist Klari Reis has learned to smile on misbehaving cells.
    November 13, 2007 - ERIC WAHLGREN - Society - Culture
  • Getting Personal    
    Tailoring treatments through molecular diagnostics and targeted drugs promises big benefits for pharma, payers, and patients, but barriers stand in the way.
    November 09, 2007 - DANIEL S. LEVINE - Health - Personalized Medicine
  • Bullish on Bio    
    A visit to EuroBio reveals the Continent still lags in biotech funding. But there's no lack of innovation, and a changing culture may soon fix the financing problem.
    November 08, 2007 - FRANK BROWNING - Finance - Finance
  • No Silver Bullet
    Researchers aren't terribly hopeful yet about finding a cure for Alzheimer's, but progress on detection and therapeutics could lead to more effective treatments.
    November 06, 2007 - APRIL LYNCH - Business - Drug Development
  • Influential People    
    A study on cancer survival rates sparks questions of industry funding of research.
    November 02, 2007 - ERIKA STALDER - Law/Policy - Research
  • Dr. Atkins Agonistes    
    Good Calories, Bad Calories
    Gary Taubes
    Knopf, 336 pp, $26.95

    November 01, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Health - Public Health
  • Technology Ahead of Healthcare    
    A letter from the publishers
    November 01, 2007 - DAVID GOLLAHER AND G. STEVEN BURRILL - Health - Personalized Medicine
  •     
    In health care, too much choice can lead to inaction or even bad decisions. This expert's prescription: far fewer choices.
    November 01, 2007 - BARRY SCHWARTZ - Health - Healthcare Reform
  • Bee Bites    
    Their decline could have consequences, but fewer European honey bees might be a good thing.
    November 01, 2007 - ROB R. DUNN - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Stem Cells vs. Jail Cells    
    German researchers face down Draconian rules.
    November 01, 2007 - MARY LISBETH D'AMICO - Law - Patents
  • Microbes with Staying Power    
    Below Antarctica's ice sheets, life goes on and on and on.
    November 01, 2007 - LISA SUMMERS - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • A Turning Point    
    Maxygen has followed a biological model when it comes to its organization, but now investors and company brass want to see results.
    October 26, 2007 - CHRIS MEYER AND JOAN CHU - Business - Business Strategy
  • A Mother's Dilemma    
    Parents must decide whether banking their child's cord blood could lead to a cure of a future disease or just be an expensive waste of time.
    October 25, 2007 - DANIEL S. LEVINE - Health - Regenerative Medicine
  • Rewiring the Brain    
    Companies are racing to develop implantable devices that may finally treat the most stubborn cases depression.
    October 17, 2007 - SARAH KLEIN - Business - Medical Devices
  • Searching for a Better Morphine    
    Better understanding of pain's pathways are leading to promising ways for treating chronic and acute pain.
    October 15, 2007 - LAWRENCE M. FISHER - Business - Drug Development
  • Happy as a Mussel    
    Prozac and other drugs could be killing mollusks - and imperiling our waterways.
    October 08, 2007 - LISA SUMMERS - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • A Nice Pairing    
    Two scientists discover that their plan to make artisan cheese from sheep's milk goes well with their biology backgrounds.
    October 01, 2007 - ERIC WAHLGREN - Society - Culture
  • Fate Is in Our Genes    
    October 01, 2007 - David Gollaher - Society - Research
  • Vive Le Health Care    
    An American expat in France finds the country's medical system isn't perfect (cable TV in hospital rooms would be nice) but excellent and affordable care for everyone is the norm.
    October 01, 2007 - MORT ROSENBLUM - Health - Healthcare Reform
  • The Biomolecular Economy    
    Editor's Letter
    October 01, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Business - Business Strategy
  • An Injection of Hope    
    A vaccine in tests for one rare form of cancer has patients living more than twice as long as those treated by radiation and chemotherapy.
    October 01, 2007 - BRUCE GOLDMAN - Business - Drug Development
  • Houston, We Have a Problem    
    Texas' biggest city has a huge medical industry but a small biotech scene. But now institutional partnerships are hoping to change that.
    October 01, 2007 - ELLEN DURCKEL - Business - Economic Development
  • California, Here We Come    
    Other U.S. states have no intention of being left in the dust despite the Golden State's big lead in stem cell research funding.
    October 01, 2007 - MICHAEL J. WERNER - Law/Policy - Regenerative Medicine
  •     
    Publisher's Letter
    October 01, 2007 - DAVID GOLLAHER AND G. STEVEN BURRILL - Law/Policy - Research
  • Getting in the Mood: Candles, Wine, ... and Nasal Spray?    
    Drug makers might be close to a chemical cure for couples' bedroom woes.
    October 01, 2007 - LAIRD HARRISON - Health - Drug Development
  •     
    The brain is most active when nothing is happening.
    October 01, 2007 - JULIE CHAO - Tech/Innovation - Research
  •     
    Big pharma would love to see more countries allow direct advertising.
    October 01, 2007 - BETTE FLAGLER - Law/Policy - Regulatory
  •     
    Studying the dog genome could speed up the process of understanding human disorders.
    October 01, 2007 - SALLY LEHRMAN - Tech/Innovation - Research
  • Getting Down to Business    
    Osiris has shifted its focus from research to developing products. A stem cell therapy for bones is already on the market and a therapy for treating transplant complications could be next.
    September 01, 2007 - By Mark Ratner - Business - Business Strategy
  •     
    Kids play a key role in designing Glasgow new children hospital.
    September 01, 2007 - Michael Friel - Health - Global Health
  •     
    September 01, 2007 - By David Gollaher - Law/Policy - Regenerative Medicine
  •     
    A focus on embryos and cures has obscured an invaluable research tool.
    September 01, 2007 - By Gareth Cook - Law/Policy - Regulatory
  •     
    Canines need drugs, too. The trick is getting pharma to pay attention.
    September 01, 2007 - By Varese Layzer - Business - Business Strategy
  • Mummy Would Be Proud    
    Ancient Egypt, not Greece, appears to be the birthplace of modern medicine.
    September 01, 2007 - ERIKA STALDER - Society - Research
  •     
    September 01, 2007 - ERIKA STALDER - Tech/Innovation - Research
  •     
    The line between art and science blurs when two artists hang cells in galleries.
    September 01, 2007 - By Lori Andrews - Society - Culture
  •     
    Invitrogen has prospered by providing kits and reagents to make life easier at the lab. Supplying the needs of stem cell researchers is the next frontier.
    September 01, 2007 - By William Patrick - Business - Business Strategy
  •     
    New technology will allow doctors to screen embryos for chronic illnesses and personal traits that could develop late in life, but should it?
    September 01, 2007 - By Bruce Goldman - Health - Technology
  •     
    Biotech venture capitalist William Rastetter finds a refuge in photography.
    September 01, 2007 - By Varese Layzer - Society - Culture
  • The Ant and the Grasshopper    
    Insect-derived drugs are the next big thing. But finding them means a race against time.
    September 01, 2007 - By Robert R. Dunn - Tech/Innovation - Research
  •     
    The state's $3-billion voter initiative to fund stem cell research has democratized science, but in doing so has also created something
    September 01, 2007 - By David Gollaher - Law/Policy - Regenerative Medicine
  •     
    Proust Was a Neuroscientist
    Jonah Lehrer
    Houghton Mifflin, 256 pp, $24
    September 01, 2007 - By William Patrick - Society - Culture
  • From Rehab to Regeneration    
    Military-supported researchers take on the challenge of growing new limbs and other body parts.
    September 01, 2007 - By Ann Parson - Tech/Innovation - Research
  •     
    Elias A. Zerhouni discusses the NIH's tightened budget and what that might mean for the next generation of scientists.
    September 01, 2007 - Law/Policy - Research
  • My Healthcare Crisis    
    Why I had to pay $7,345 a month-- for a single drug.
    September 01, 2007 - JUDITH M. LAYZER - Health - Public Health
  • News: Hawaii GMO    
    Native interests and the biotech industry are locked in a battle in Hawaii over the vegetable taro.
    May 21, 2007 - HEATHERR BOURBEAU - Health - Drug Development
  • News : Inside Live Tumors    
    MIT researchers are developing an implant that will let doctors monitor malignant tumors from inside the tumors themselves.
    May 20, 2007 - ERIKA STALDER - Health - Drug Development
  • News : Nanomuscles    
    Artificial muscles made with carbon nanotube yarn are being studied to replace ones in damaged limbs.
    May 19, 2007 - ERIKA STALDER - Health - Drug Development
  • News : Napoleon's Last Battle    
    Modern pathological methods suggest that the dictator was felled not by poison but by gastric cancer.
    May 18, 2007 - PETER WINTER - Health - Drug Development
  • A Bear Market    
    Bear bile could be used to treat disorders such as Huntington's, Parkinson's, and Alzheimer's.
    May 17, 2007 - JULIAN SMITH - Health - Drug Development
  • The Global Transformation    
    The international nature of research and development is changing the life sciences in radical ways.
    May 16, 2007 - G. STEVEN BURRILL - Health - Drug Development
  • Patenting Life    
    Patent protections and concerns about sharing information may be holding back crucial developments in medicine and biotech.
    May 15, 2007 - LORI ANDREWS - Health - Drug Development
  • RX for Pharma    
    The pharmaceutical industry has some work to do to repair its tarnished image including communicating more clearly the benefits of new drugs.
    May 14, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Health - Drug Development
  • Cynthia Kenyon on New Pathways to Longevity    
    Thanks in part to this researcher's work, scientists are beginning to question many widely accepted views on aging.
    May 13, 2007 - STEPHAN HERRERA - Health - Drug Development
  • Waking up to Sleep Apnea    
    Some 20 percent of the adult population suffers from sleep apnea but physicians typically miss this serious diagnosis.
    May 12, 2007 - DAVID GOLLAHER - Health - Drug Development
  • A Sustainable Model for Negotiation    
    Can the interaction between modern societies and indigenous peoples ever be win-win?
    May 11, 2007 - BRIAN VASTAG - Health - Drug Development
  • The Vision Thing    
    Is life science more than the sum of its parts?
    May 10, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Health - Drug Development
  • The 21st Century Meets the Tin Man    
    Enhancement, longevity, and on-demand spare parts: But can Joe Six-Pack compete with Sid Cyborg?
    May 08, 2007 - BRUCE GOLDMAN - Health - Drug Development
  • The Last Page    
    The takeaway from Christopher Buckley's Boomsday: Make sure your social policies measure up to the creativity of your innovations.
    May 01, 2007 - WILLIAM PATRICK - Health - Drug Development

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