• Applied Biosystems (Foster City, California) said it has established a global service provider program for RNA expression analysis. The TaqMan service provider program was created for research scientists who do not have laboratories equipped for performing TaqMan assays, or who choose to outsource their experiments to obtain accurate, sensitive, and reproducible data, generated by authorized third parties using Applied Biosystems' TaqMan RNA expression analysis reagents. This program will provide these scientists with a comprehensive solution for completing a variety of biological sample processing and data analysis projects that incorporate gold-standard TaqMan assay chemistry. Scientists who need higher throughput real-time PCR capabilities or advanced TaqMan solutions can also benefit from having access to these service providers.

• Intact Medical (Natick, Massachusetts) said it has received FDA clearance for the Intact Excise XL – a larger version of the company's FDA-approved wands, used with the Intact Breast Lesion Excision System (BLES). As with the Intact BLES, the Intact Excise XL procedure involves the insertion of a slender wand through a small incision in the breast to remove an intact sample of suspicious tissue for histopathologic analysis. The procedure can be performed in an office-based or outpatient setting, with the actual capture of the breast lesion completed in less than 20 seconds.

• Siemens Healthcare (Malvern, Pennsylvania) reported that it has received FDA clearance for the Ysio, a digital radiography system with a wireless detector (wi-D) for maximum positioning flexibility. The Ysio can be customized to suit the patient – such as one or two detectors, with or without a patient table, and with fully automated or synchronized movements. Ysio can be used as a wall stand with an integrated detector, a wall stand and table system with a wireless detector, or as a mixed detector solution for high throughput and flexibility. The product has 500 different preset examination positions, and a wireless remote will move the X-ray tube into position. Ysio has MaxTouch, an interactive, color touch screen user interface, which supports easy access to key technical factors during examinations.

• Volcano (San Diego) reported the use of its VH IVUS in GlaxoSmithKline's IBIS-2 trial. In the study, Volcano's VH IVUS technology demonstrated and quantified compositional changes in atherosclerotic plaque that occurred over time. In IBIS-2, VH IVUS showed compositional changes in the placebo group that suggest continued progression of necrotic core despite standard of care therapy. Use of the novel Lp-PLA2 inhibitor, darapladib, plus standard-of-care therapy prevented this progression. VH IVUS is a catheter-based technology that creates colorized tissue maps of plaque composition in real time.