Subscribe to The Burrill Report | Don't forget to join us on Facebook

Editor's note:
The 2nd Annual Burrill Digital Health Meeting, February 23-24, 2011, Burlingame, California - Speakers from Intel, Qualcomm, and NASA will discuss how the convergence of technology is revolutionizing healthcare. Limited seating is still available. Click here for more information or to register.

Transforming Healthcare Bit by Bit
Podcast: February 14, 2011

The healthcare system is very good at generating data. Making use of the data is another story. As electronic medical records become common, doctors will be able to harness them to personalize care for patients. At the same time, the experiences of large patient populations can be analyzed to guide healthcare systems on how best to improve care and cut costs. We spoke to Richard Noffsinger, CEO of the healthcare analytics company Anvita Health, about the state of data collection in healthcare, how data is used today, and how digitalization promises to transform all of that data into actionable information. Read More Here

Lilly CEO criticizes pace of R&D;
New bonuses will reward drug approvals.
Drug companies must become more networked, global, and entrepreneurial, to cut costs and bring new drugs to market, says Eli Lilly chief John Lechleiter. Read More Here

Quest for savings hits FDA, NIH
Research and regulation budgets face cuts in budget proposal.
Legislation designed to shake $100 billion in savings from the President's fiscal 2011 budget request could slash $1 billion from the National Institutes for Health's budget and $220 million in funding from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Read More Here

Gevo Goes Public
Renewable chemicals and fuels maker raises $107 million.
Renewable fuels and chemicals developer Gevo completed a $107 million initial public offering, pricing its shares at the high end of its target range of $13 to 15. The Englewood, Colorado-based company uses a combination of synthetic biology and chemical technology to produce isobutanol from biomass, which can then be converted into fuels and chemicals that can be used in a variety of products, including gasoline, diesel, and jet fuels, and plastics, fibers, rubber, and other polymers. Read More Here

Mannkind Slashes Staff
The weekly round-up of failed trials, missed targets, and other business mishaps.
Mannkind said it is eliminating 41 percent of its staff, 179 employees, following notification from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that it would not approve the company's experimental inhaled insulin Afrezza without two additional clinical trials, The Los Angeles Times reported. The company in a call with analysts said it plans to focus on winning regulatory approval for Afrezza. After the layoffs, Mannkind will have 257 employees. Read More Here

Danaher bids $6.8 billion for Beckman Coulter
Acquisition could yield efficiencies in competitive diagnostics market.
Danaher's pending $6.8 billion acquisition of Beckman Coulter would add the biomedical testing company to a growing portfolio of life sciences and diagnostic toolmakers at the heart of a fast-growing medical technology player. Read More Here

Props for the Public-Sector
Biotech tools and policy changes turn federal labs and universities into engines of drug discovery.
Public-sector research institutes usually focus on basic research and leave the applied research that leads to new drugs to industry to perform. But a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine finds that these research institutes have played a critical role in discovering 153 approved drugs and vaccines, suggesting they have a more direct role in improving public health than often realized. Read More Here

Tufts seeks cash, recognition from drugmakers
School launches new partnering institute and website
Tufts University is polishing its pitch to pharmaceutical companies as it chases new revenue from drug discovery and development alliances. Read More Here

Diet Soda—Risks Could Outweigh Rewards
Studies link artificially sweetened drinks and salt to increased risk of vascular events, including stroke.
Strike another blow to drinking soda—this time the diet variety. Two new studies by University of Miami Miller School of Medicine researchers link diet soda and salt to increased risk of vascular events, including stroke. Read More Here

The Life Sciences Delivered to Your Desktop Every Monday Morning

 

Click Here for a FREE subscription to The Burrill Weekly Brief