Articles from the November/December 2017 issue of Controlled Environments. Click here for our Digital Edition. ​Deadly Meningitis Outbreak Dominates 2017 News Coverage by MaryBeth DiDonna, Editor, Controlled Environments As each year comes to a close, I like to take a look back at the stories that resonated most with Controlled Environments readers throughout the year.…

Since 2002, the Laboratory Design Conference — presented by Laboratory Design and R&D Magazine, sister publications of Controlled Environments — has provided a dynamic educational and networking event for those involved in planning, designing, engineering, constructing and operating laboratory facilities. Meeting sessions feature recognized experts delivering unique presentations on trends in creating the most efficient, state-of-the-art…

With an attendance of over 2,000 professionals from the biopharm industry, the ISPE Boston Product Showcase is the biggest one-day gathering of biotechnology and pharmaceutical professionals in the Northeast. This year’s show will be held on Oct. 4 at Gillette Stadium. Gain valuable, hands-on and convenient learning opportunities right on the show floor; connect with fellow…

Articles from the May/June 2017 edition of Controlled Environments, and the winners of our third annual Readers’ Choice Awards. Click here for our Digital Edition.   The Importance of Monitoring MaryBeth DiDonna, Editor, Controlled Environments Health and lives could be endangered if cleanroom environments are allowed to fall below required standards of cleanliness and sanitation. Understanding…

A 7-inch creature with a head resembling a horse and a monkey-like tail glides gracefully out of a dark coral crevice off the Cambodian coast. Master of camouflage, unrivaled as a hunter and a much-loved figure of ancient myths and legends, the seahorse may be spiraling toward annihilation after surviving beneath the waves for some…

A climatic quirk seems to be slightly shielding the U.S. coast during busy hurricane seasons, often weakening major storms just as they approach America’s beaches, a new study finds. That could help explain why it’s been more than 11 years since a major hurricane with winds of more than 110 mph has hit the United…

French authorities have started slaughtering ducks in the main foie gras-producing region to try to contain a dangerous form of bird flu. Operations to destroy birds got underway Thursday in three departments of southwestern France where an outbreak of the H5N8 virus hasn’t stabilized. The virus doesn’t transmit via food and is harmless to humans.…

New guidelines say most babies should start eating peanut-containing foods well before their first birthday, to lower their chances of developing the dangerous food allergy. Thursday’s guidelines from a National Institutes of Health panel mark a shift in dietary advice. They spell out exactly how to introduce infants to peanut-based foods and when — for…

Scientists say an ash cloud from a remote Alaska volcano that might have gone more than 6 miles into the atmosphere has dissipated after it was tracked north over the Bering Sea. Scientists at the Alaska Volcano Observatory issued its highest aviation alert for aircraft after the eruption late Tuesday of the Bogoslof (BOH-goh-slawf) volcano…

A new independent study shows no pause in global warming, confirming a set of temperature readings adjusted by U.S. government scientists that some who reject mainstream climate science have questioned. The adjustments , made by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 2015 to take into account changes in how ocean temperatures have been measured…

Surveyors plunged a pole into the Sierra Nevada snowpack on Tuesday and took the first manual measurement of the wet season, finding water content was about half of normal as California flirts with a possible sixth year of drought. Surveyors took the reading at 6,000 feet near Lake Tahoe as major cold and windy storms…

Hawaii residents concerned about pesticide use by major agriculture companies on the islands are planning a push to strengthen regulation over chemicals they fear harm their health. The divisive issue has drawn thousands to the Legislature in recent years following incidents where schoolchildren and agriculture workers fell ill and some suspected their sickness was connected…

The heart of an unborn child beat strong and steady through an amplified monitor, as physician Leslie Hayes examined a pregnant 40-year-old who recently was weaned from heroin with help from anti-craving medication. Hayes and her colleagues treat more than 200 patients for drug-use disorders involving heroin and prescription opioid pain medication at a rural…

The Philippine Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday that it has ordered pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Pasteur Inc. to stop airing television and radio advertisements for its dengue vaccine in violation of a ban on promoting prescription or ethical drugs in mass media. The FDA said in a statement that it issued a summons on Dec.…

A Connecticut woman is pushing for better research, care and support for women and girls who suffer concussions and other brain injuries. Katherine Snedaker, of Norwalk, formed the nonprofit advocacy group PINK Concussions in 2013, in response to a lack of information and research on concussions affecting females. She has suffered 20 concussions herself, and…

John Redfield watches with pride as his son moves a laser-guided precision saw the size of a semi-truck wheel into place over a massive panel of wood. Redfield’s fingers are scarred from a lifetime of cutting wood and now, after decades of decline in the logging business, he has new hope that his son, too,…

Children whose moms took high doses of fish oil during their last three months of pregnancy were less likely to develop chronic wheezing problems or asthma by age 5, finds a study that suggests a possible way to help prevent this growing problem. Asthma cases have been rising in developed countries, while consumption of omega-3…

A decline in melanoma cases and deaths in Northeast states bucks a national trend for the deadliest skin cancer and may reflect benefits of strong prevention programs, a study suggests. In the years included in the study, the Melanoma Foundation of New England became more active with programs to prevent skin cancer, the researchers noted.…

Amid population declines for many wildlife species in Africa, conservationists are sounding alarm bells for the cheetah, the fastest animal on land. An estimated 7,100 cheetahs remain in the wild across Africa and in a small area of Iran, and human encroachment has pushed the wide-ranging predator out of 91 percent of its historic habitat,…

A doctor who survived Ebola after contracting the virus while treating patients in Liberia has quietly returned to practicing medicine in Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (http://bit.ly/2iApPbH ) reports that Dr. Kent Brantly returned to practicing medicine about a year ago. He now practices medicine and teaches young doctors at JPS Health Network, where…