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FDA considers testing regime for E. coli vaccines
Canada’s Bioniche Life Sciences has a running start in Canada, but questions remain about who will pay the bill
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Virginia prepares for Food Security Summit
Speakers will include experts on sustainability, food-borne microbes, food distribution, hunger policy, and government regulations
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Congress considers reorganizing pest inspectors
Inspections are down after CBP absorbed the DOA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; legislation will reverse the arrangement; pests and disease cause $41 billion in damage each year
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New fiber-optic light source for food inspection
Princeton Lightwave and OFS Labs team up to improve imaging capabilities of live-scan cameras; fiber grating creates a perfect rectangular beam of light
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Food producers begin to adopt product tracking systems
Dole and Western Growers install RFID and GPS systems; voluntary regulations take hold throughout California
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Critics charge that FDA's food monitoring does not pass inspection
In 2006 the FDA conducted just half the inspections it conducted in 2003; the FDA safety tests on U.S.-produced food fell almost 75 percent during the same period; FDA inspection of imported food fell by 25 percent
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Schwarzenegger to support voluntary E. coli regulations
Governor opposes a trio of popular bills to impose safety standards on leafy greens, instead supporting industry self-monitoring
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Delaware scientists use iron to remove viruses from water
The target of new EPA regulations, viruses are mainly invulnerable to chlorinization; elemental, non-valent iron destroys 99 percent of E. coli, rotavirus, and others; inexpensive filtration method relies on the byproduct of iron and steel production
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Agriculture Department to focus inspections on chronic violators
New risk-based approach will consider type of meat being processed, plant size, and history of food safety violations; move comes in response to recent E. coli outbreaks; daily inspections will continue
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Scripps researchers identify botulism-fighting molecules
One compound extends survival time by thirty-six percent; sixteen percent of mice treated with the second molecule survived with no obvious symptoms
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DHS to consolidate Centers of Excellence program
Three centers focussing on biological and chemical weapons will merge; four new centers to come on line; decision prompted by congressional criticism and threatened budget cuts
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Polonium poisoning creates a market need for treatment
Few treatments exists for curing alpha particle damage; Litvinenko’s death sends companies scrambling; Ovation Pharmaceuticals, Biolabs Protectan, and Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals all make claims
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Raman spectroscopy used to identify counterfeit drugs
Breakthrough approach can identify fakes while inside their packaging; researchers at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory adjust the collection point a few millimeters in front of the laser signal; tests on paracetamol and ibuprofen prove the concept
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E. coli able to detect arsenic
From foe to friend, mankind’s enemy lends a hand in the fight against arsenic poisoning in the third world; Edinburgh researchers rely on synthetic biology to develop this easy to use, field-portable test
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Microwave ovens shown to kill anthrax
Florida researchers prove a concept already known to housewives worldwide; four minutes with a wet sponge is sufficient to disable spores; technique unlikely to work on dry envelopes
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