A knockouts tail (199 KB)
by Mark S. Lesney
Knockout technology—deliberately disabling a particular gene—is being applied to mice, zebra fish, and, most recently, human embryonic stem cells. Protein modeling can often provide information on function, especially if the homologous protein is well known. But for unknown proteins, or for genes with multiple effects, determining what a gene does in an organism requires tampering with its operation in a test animal.

Chirality in a combinatorial age (245 KB)
by David Filmore
Convincing differential effects from enantiomer-specific pharmacological interactions have led to a rising prevalence of enantioselective drug design. Seventy-six percent of the new drugs introduced in 2000 were single enantiomers, compared with 21% in 1991. The expectation for enantiomeric purity in new chiral drugs is escalating, causing an increased reliance on the challenging analytical task of quantifying enantiomeric content.

Content in Context
Maps and models (28 KB)
by James F. Ryan

From our Readers (46 KB)
Weighty matters • Microfilarial musings

News in Brief (182 KB)
Fusion inhibitor approved • Pumping iron • The shorter the better • Loofa livers • Aftificial glycoviral vectors • Penetrating the skin you’re in • Sample prep school • Particle size on the fly • Imaging with monoclonals • Changing peptide partners

The Time Line
“Magic” monoclonals (80 KB)
by Richard A. Pizzi
Only in the era of Herceptin have antibodies begun to fulfill Ehrlich’s dream of “magic bullets” from blood serum.

Applications NoteBook
A matter of size (99 KB)
by Randall C. Willis
Researchers are finding new ways to use field-flow fractionation for sizing everything from polymers to human cells.

The Business Page
Matters of money (53 KB)
By Neil Canavan
In a down market, biotech can bank with the nonprofits.

The Tool Box
A measured solution (77 KB)
by Jeffrey Ruell and Alex Avdeef
Researchers are using different techniques to address drug solubility issues.

Rules and Regulators
Pharma down PAT (102 KB)
by Charles W. Schmidt
An FDA initiative promoting continuous monitoring of the drug manufacturing pipeline appears to be gaining momentum.

On the Calendar (387 KB)
DDT 2003

Product Info Now (212 KB)

Diseases and Disorders
Chronic hiccups (47 KB)
by Felicia M. Willis