Royal Philips, a leader in image-guided therapies, announced that it has signed an agreement with Image Stream Medical (ISM) that allows Philips to further expand its integration solutions for its hybrid suite and interventional lab solutions with integrated video and live streaming capabilities. As part of the agreement, Philips has acquired a minority stake in ISM. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Major opportunities are on the horizon for personalized medicine and clinical cancer research and treatment, according to Definiens, the global leader in Tissue Phenomics for oncology diagnostics. The company predicts that the biggest trends driving the industry over the next year will include big data and data quality, immunotherapy, combination treatments and predictive biomarkers. However, as the industry seeks to overcome unique challenges in each of these areas, advancements will rely on adoption of key drivers.

The recent death of the beloved comedian and actor Robin Williams by suicide took fans by complete surprise and left many in mourning for the master of improvisation. A recent report in Salon provides details from Williams' autopsy report that indicates the presence of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), which may explain some of his uncharacteristic behavior of late. In addition to DLB, Williams also suffered from Parkinson's.

Chemists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed nanoparticles that could eventually help track disease progression.

Yet another blood test for Alzheimer's disease is being developed--this time by a group of Japanese researchers. The technique could, if approved, be used to screen patients who show no signs of neurodegeneration. 

Cardiff University in Wales has broken ground on a $70 million brain imaging center expected to be "unique within Europe." A range of brain mapping techniques will be implemented to improve researchers' understanding of diseases like multiple schlerosis, schizophrenia and dementia.

A spike in regulatory requirements has been reported by Regulatory Focus according to data released by George Mason University's Mercatus Center for market research in Arlington, Va. According to the numbers, FDA requirements picked up 15 percent from the year 2000 until 2012.

Three biomedical companies from across the globe are banding together with research institutions to develop knowledge about a “super-family” of protein receptors called G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). Images of these biomarkers could open the door to a new era of pharmaceuticals.