|
Transplants from space
As British scientists are given the go-ahead to clone
human embryos, two Kingston University researchers
have linked up with NASA in the first ever collaboration
on space medicine between the United Kingdom and
the United States.
The $US1 million project aims to explore ways to protect
astronauts from space radiation in preparation for a manned
mission to Mars in 2020.
Dr McGuckin and Dr Forraz, from the University’s School
of Life Sciences, first met NASA officials at an international
stem cell biology conference in San Francisco last year. The
agency is particularly keen to tap into the scientists’ expertise
gained from studying cancer victims in the Chernobyl nuclear
disaster.
“Radiation can destroy cells in the body which naturally
defend it against illnesses such as cancer,” Dr McGuckin
said. “Using NASA’s advanced technology, we will
work on ways to increase the body’s natural cancer destroyers.”
In further research, the team will combine umbilical blood
and bone marrow stem cells with tissues from adults to grow
new body tissue. The tissue is best grown in zero gravity,
which mimics the conditions in the female womb.
“Long-term space exposure can cause bones to weaken,
so this research will help us to develop preventative medicines
for the astronauts to take with them to Mars,” said
NASA’s Head of Space Medicine Dr Steve Gonda. “The
technology developed will be tested in NASA’s unmanned
space mission in 2008.”
Using NASA’s zero gravity facilities, the researchers
will develop new tissue from blood, brain, vascular, nerve,
cornea and liver cells. Dr McGuckin said the technology could
be used to offer partial liver transplants within five years.
“NASA’s zero gravity facilities can actually
speed up the growth of liver cells and form a larger tissue
mass, which would then be transplanted into the human body.
Depending on the individual, this could provide short or long-term
benefits for patients with liver disease,” he said. “Within
the next 20 years, there is also the potential to grow nerve
pathways to repair damaged spines or brain damage caused by
Alzheimer’s disease.”
The project is also backed by the British Government. The
Department of Trade and Industry has pledged £40,000
to fund the Kingston researchers travel to NASA’s Johnson
Space Centre and other expenses incurred during their stay.
The solar race continues
The world’s fastest solar-powered car is
being driven through Sweden and Norway. Nuna 2
begins its journey on 14 August in Oslo and completes
it on 21 August in Kiruna, after stopping Gothenburg,
Linköping, Stockholm, Uppsala, Luleå,
Kiruna, Narvik, and Andenäs.
The car was made with the help of space technology and can
reach a top speed of 170 km/h.
“Space research and space technology have driven technical
development forward in several areas, and the knowledge can
be re-used in new contexts on Earth. Nuna 2 is a project that
can illustrate and serve as an inspiration for new applications
of space technology,” says Johan Marcopoulos, Information
Officer, Swedish National Space Board (SNSB).
By travelling 3010 km in 31 hours and five minutes, Nuna
2 won the World Solar Challenge in Australia in October 2003.
The car was built and driven by students from Delft University
in The Netherlands. In Sweden, students from the Civil Engineering
Programme in Space Technology in Kiruna, one of many space
programmes in Sweden, are also participating.
Orange vs. Orange: Who can own a colour?
The BBC reports that due to the fiercely competitive
UK mobile phone market, easyJet founder Stelios
Haji-Ioannou would have been naive to assume
his competitors would simply step aside when
he moved into the mobile market. However, he
would be surprised to find himself in a battle
over the use of the colour orange.
Unsettled by easyMobile's plans to use the same
vivid orange livery as other arms of easyGroup,
the mobile phone company Orange is arguing it got
there first.
But, can a company really claim ownership of a
colour?
Companies are very particular about protecting
their image, and often consider their logo's colours
as their own. And so does the courts. But, this
case is not so black and white. easyGroup has built
a strong reputation with the colour orange, in
a different set of industries, and so has Orange,
in the mobile phone industry.
Had the firms remained in separate areas there
would be no problem, but with the two companies
now finding themselves as rivals there is a clear
problem, but not a clear solution
For Orange, the argument rests on its trademark
of a colour it has very specifically registered
as orange Pantone No 151. For easyGroup, it is
a continuation of its long-standing corporate branding.
|
