The BecA-ILRI Hub and its contribution to African agricultural biotechnology and crop improvement 5th International Conference on Next Generation Genomics and Integrated Breeding for Crop Improvement February 18-20, 2015 ICRISAT, Patancheru, India The Bec... By: KSIConnect … Continue reading →

Time to put the class Entrepreneurship in Biotechnology online. Topic number one: why everyone everyone should study entrepreneurship. Only a small percentage of us will ever start a business. So why should we all study entrepreneurship? Well, what is entrepreneurship? Yes, it is the process by which we start businesses. It Is also the means by which we express creativity in a business setting. Most importantly, it is the way we take our ideas, our observations that there are problems in the world that we think we can fix, and make those ideas into something tangible, a product or a process or a service that can benefit others. Some of my students discover that entrepreneurship is something more. To them, entrepreneurship is freedom, the freedom that comes from knowing that regardless of the job market, the economy, or the opportunities for advancement in your workplace you have the option to create your own future, your own path, in your own way. Just knowing that you have that capacity is liberating. Why? Well, what is the first rule of negotiation? Have options. Knowing how to start a business means you always have an option. The perspective entrepreneur is never trapped or … Continue reading →

IMAGE:Industrial Biotechnology, led by Co-Editors-in-Chief Larry Walker, PhD, Biological and Environmental Engineering Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and Glenn Nedwin, PhD, MoT, CEO and President, Taxon Biosciences, Tiburon, CA, is... view more Credit: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers New Rochelle, NY, February 19, 2015--Novel nanomaterials derived from cellulose have many promising industrial applications, are biobased and biodegradable, and can be produced at relatively low cost. Their potential toxicity--whether ingested, inhaled, on contact with the skin, or on exposure to cells within the body--is a topic of intense discussion, and the latest evidence and insights on cellulose nanocrystal toxicity are presented in a Review article in Industrial Biotechnology, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Industrial Biotechnology website. Maren Roman, PhD, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, describes the preparation of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and highlights the key factors that are an essential part of studies to assess the potential adverse health effects of CNCs by various types of exposure. In the article "Toxicity of Cellulose Nanocrystals: A Review" , Dr. Roman discusses the current literature on the pulmonary, oral, dermal, and cytotoxicity of CNCs, provides an in-depth view on their effects on human health, … Continue reading →