Month: April 2013

Exclusive: Thermo Fisher nears $13 billion Life Tech deal

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By Soyoung Kim and Greg Roumeliotis NEW YORK (Reuters) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc is nearing a deal to buy genetic testing equipment maker Life Technologies Corp for close to $13 billion, according to four people familiar with the matter, in what would be one of the year’s biggest corporate takeovers. The acquisition would catapult Thermo Fisher into the hot field of genetic sequencing, where researchers, drugmakers and doctors are uncovering the genetic factors underpinning diseases to better tailor treatments to the patients. …

U.S. top court weighs patentability of human genes

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People walk in front of the Supreme Court building in WashingtonBy Sharon Begley NEW YORK (Reuters) – Soon after learning that his son had autism, Hollywood producer Jon Shestack ("Air Force One") tried to get researchers investigating the genetic causes of the disorder to pool their DNA samples, the better to identify genes most likely to cause that disorder. But his approach to scientists at universities across the country in the late 1990s hit a brick wall: They refused to join forces, much less share the DNA. "Each thought they needed to hold on to it to publish and patent," Shestack said in an interview. "This seemed criminal to us." The U.S. …

Lab-made rat kidneys raise hopes for dialysis patients

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The collagen scaffolding of a kidney, left behind after removing the cells, is pictured in this handout photoBy Sharon Begley NEW YORK (Reuters) – Scientists have discovered yet another way to make a kidney – at least for a rat – that does everything a natural one does, researchers reported on Sunday, a step toward savings thousands of lives and making organ donations obsolete. The latest lab-made kidney sets up a horse race in the booming field of regenerative medicine, which aims to produce replacement organs and other body parts. …

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