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Auburn University

Wednesday, August 9, 2006

Good morning! Here's today's summary of news coverage of Auburn University.
NOTE: Any errors in text are due to formatting by the publication.

Total Clips: 3

Headline		Date	Outlet
	Colleges in state included in probe	08/09/2006	Birmingham News, The
	Drought takes toll on soybean rust	08/08/2006	Montgomery Advertiser
	Nanobac Pharmaceuticals and Fetzer Memorial Trust Enter Groundbreaking Collaboration to Photograph N	08/08/2006	Pharmaceutical Services Corporation


Colleges in state included in probe 08/09/2006 Birmingham News, The MARY ORNDORFF		Return to Top
AU is mentioned in this story about how colleges and universities benefit from federal money allocated for special local projects. WASHINGTON - A U.S. senator critical of how Congress increasingly sets aside federal money for special local projects is investigating 112 colleges and universities that have benefited in recent years, including several institutions in Alabama. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., sent letters to college presidents around the country last week, asking for details about the money they've received since 2000 and the work done by lobbyists on their behalf. Coburn, a fiscal conservative who argues that the growing practice of earmarking has corrupted Congress' ability to rein in federal spending, also wants the colleges to provide a summary of what each allocation accomplished. The University of Alabama System is reviewing Coburn's request, which was sent to all three of its campuses last week. There was no decision Tuesday on how they would respond, if at all. 'Any response would be generated at the system level,' said spokeswoman Kellee Reinhart. Coburn, who is chairman of the Senate subcommittee on federal financial management, asked the schools to provide answers by Sept. 1. A spokesman at Auburn University said officials there also received the letter and are planning a response. The only other Alabama school on Coburn's list is the University of South Alabama. It is not surprising several Alabama schools would be targeted. The state regularly ranks high in the number of projects that receive special funding and in the amount of money allocated, especially to universities. A 2003 study by the Chronicle of Higher Education found Alabama was sixth in the country with $87.6 million in special funding for academic projects, money that was not shared with other colleges. The money has funded medical research, construction and agriculture projects, for example. Three of Alabama's nine members of Congress are on the appropriations committees, where most of the local projects are funded, usually without public debate. Last year, Alabama landed its highest total ever in special funding of all stripes - $345 million - more than triple the amount a decade ago. While critical of the entire earmarking process, Coburn's recent focus on colleges is meant to challenge whether Congress, as opposed to scientific experts, is better equipped to decide how to spend federal research dollars. 'This could raise questions like would it be preferable for these federal funds to be delivered in more of a peer-reviewed, competitive process as opposed to noncompetitive grants ... which are delivered on the basis of how well you know your congressman or how close your lobbyist is to your senator or congressman,' Coburn spokesman John Hart said Tuesday. Alabama's delegation has largely agreed that the earmarking process should be more transparent but has opposed handing over spending decisions to federal agencies. The University of Alabama System has been especially successful in landing large federal allocations in recent years, including $70 million for the first and second phases of the Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research complex at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Another $30 million has been proposed for 2007 by Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., for whom the building is named. A former congressman from California is in jail for taking bribes in exchange for allocations to defense-related projects, which has prompted closer scrutiny of the practice. While Coburn's office said colleges with legitimate projects have nothing to fear in the investigation, he also is exploring whether they have to hire lobbyists to win the grants. The three campuses of the UA System paid $420,000 to a Washington lobbying firm in 2005, according to Senate records, the highest amount reported by any Alabama college. E-mail morndorff@bhamnews.com
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Drought takes toll on soybean rust 08/08/2006 Montgomery Advertiser Mike Linn		Return to Top
Edward Sikora, a professor and extension plant pathologist at Auburn University, is quoted in this story. Alabama soybean farmers battling heat can take some comfort in the fact that the arid air is hampering the spread of a disease that can cripple their crops. Soybean rust, a disease that came to America from South America with Hurricane Ivan two years ago, has been confirmed this year in five Alabama counties and in downtown Montgomery, state agriculture officials said Monday. By comparison, the disease was found in 32 counties in 2005. With moist conditions, the disease can be a pricey problem for farmers in Alabama, who produce 150,000 acres of soybeans annually. Tri-county farmers planted less than 1,000 acres of soybeans this year, partly because of the dry conditions, said Leonard Kuykendall, regional extension agent for agronomic crops. 'Because of this drought, the disease just hasn't developed like it did last year,' said Edward Sikora, a professor and extension plant pathologist at Auburn University. 'If we would have had a wet spring and a wet summer, with that disease surviving in downtown Montgomery, it could have been a very significant problem for Alabama.'Sikora said Tuesday that the disease now is present in Mobile, Baldwin and Houston counties. It already was present in Henry and Montgomery counties before it dissipated because of lack of moisture, he said. He said the disease likely will spread as more rainfall comes this fall, but by then, the soybean harvest will be over. It costs between $15 and $20 to treat soybeans with fungicide application that helps prevent soybean rust. If it's moist, farmers could spray three applications per year. Most growers haven't had to apply fungicides this year because of dry conditions, Sikora said. The disease survives the winter on kudzu, another host, and was found on the plants behind the Montgomery Advertiser earlier this year.
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Nanobac Pharmaceuticals and Fetzer Memorial Trust Enter Groundbreaking Collaboration to Photograph N 08/08/2006 Pharmaceutical Services Corporation		Return to Top
This story and similar stories about technology developed at AU continue to appear in trade magazines including Biotech Week, Earth and Planetary Science letters, Life Science Weekly and Cardiovascular Drug News. Aug. 7, 2006--Nanobac Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTCBB NNBP) ('Nanobac' or 'the Company') today announced it has entered into a collaboration agreement with the Fetzer Memorial Trust to photograph the replication cycle of disease-related calcifying particles (also known as nanobacteria or Calcifying Nanoparticles), using light microscopes to break the 200 nanometer ('nm') resolution barrier. The breakthrough allows Nanobac scientists to determine if calcification, which occurs in most diseases on the leading causes of death list, has a biological mechanism, which would make it susceptible to therapy. Results could generate new approaches to the treatment of calcifying diseases such as heart disease, kidney stones and diabetes, and validate the significance of related Nanobac diagnostics and therapies. 'Until now, scientists had to 'fix' or inactivate such nanoparticles to see below the 200 nm threshold using electron microscopy,' explained Nanobac's Co-Chairman and Research Group head, Dr. Benedict Maniscalco. 'Now we can photograph the replication cycle without inactivating the particles. This is essential because some have a replication time of days rather than minutes or hours, which rendered electron microscopy ineffective for this purpose.' The technology was developed at Auburn University and is marketed by Aetos Technologies. The 'CytoViva'(TM) microscope system is capable of resolving details at or below 100 nm and of detecting particles as small as 50 nm, representing a significant improvement over conventional light microscopes. The CytoViva(TM) system was selected in June by R&D Magazine as one of the top 100 most technologically significant products introduced to the marketplace in 2006. This international award is often referred to as the 'Oscar of Inventions.' Calcifying nanoparticles have been isolated by many researchers in diseases ranging from atherosclerosis to kidney stones, but support for research into therapies against these particles has been hampered by lack of visual proof that the particles self-replicate. 'Since the 1980s scientists have tried to photograph replication of calcifying nanoparticles, without success,' Dr. Maniscalco added, 'Now we have the tools to do it, thanks to the innovative approach of the Fetzer Memorial Trust.' The Fetzer Memorial Trust has supported development of this technology for many years, and has made arrangements for Nanobac to use one of a very few available microscopes. The research is being done by Nanobac scientists at Nanobac laboratories located at the NASA Johnson Space Center Astrobiology Laboratories in Houston, Texas, as part of Nanobac's recently announced new core research priorities. The microscope is currently located in Nanobac's labs and work has begun. Initial results are expected by year-end. Nanobac has the exclusive right to intellectual property resulting from discoveries about calcifying nanoparticles in this research project. About Nanobac Pharmaceuticals Nanobac Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a life science company dedicated to the discovery and development of products and services to improve people's health through the detection and treatment of Calcifying Nanoparticles, otherwise known as 'nanobacteria'. The Company's pioneering research is establishing the pathogenic role of nanobacteria in soft tissue calcification, particularly in coronary artery, prostate, and vascular disease. Nanobac's drug discovery and development is focused on developing new and existing compounds that effectively inhibit, destroy or neutralize CNPs. Nanobac manufactures In Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) kits and reagents for the detection of Calcifying Nanoparticles. IVD products include the NANOCAPTURE(TM) and NANO-SERO(TM) ELISA assays and the Nano-Vision(TM) line of antibodies and reagents. Nanobac's BioAnalytical Services works with biopharmaceutical partners to develop and apply methods for avoiding, detecting, and inactivating or eliminating CNPs from raw materials. Nanobac Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. For more information, please visit our website at http //www.nanobac.com.
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