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NGDI-UBC, CDRD partner for drug development platform to treat neglected global diseases

The Centre for Drug Research and Development and the Neglected Global Diseases Initiative at the University of British Columbia today announced that they will collaborate on developing interventions for neglected global diseases and ensuring their delivery to those in need.

16 Feb 2011

New review of anthrax case discussed by review committee vice chair, Stanford bioterrorism expert

In 2001, a mystery perpetrator mailed a series of anthrax-laced letters to several locations, killing five people. In 2008, shortly after emerging as the prime suspect in an exhaustive investigation by the FBI, an Army microbiologist, Bruce Ivins, PhD, committed suicide. This morning, a National Academy of Sciences committee, charged in September 2008 with reviewing the scientific approaches used by the FBI in that investigation, released its report.

15 Feb 2011

Researchers use computers to capture chemical signal structure that triggers metastatic cancer

In cancer and other pathological diseases, researchers are discovering that packaging is important: specifically, how DNA - about two meters long when unwound and stretched - coils up and compacts neatly inside the nucleus of a cell.

15 Feb 2011

New study on mosquito genome sequences to identify 'transposable elements'

A team of scientists at the University of California, Riverside has begun working on a mosquito research project that, if successful, will provide valuable genetic resources capable of transforming the way mosquito research is conducted around the world.

14 Feb 2011

First evidence of human DNA fragment in bacterial genome

If a human cell and a bacterial cell met at a speed-dating event, they would never be expected to exchange phone numbers, much less genetic material. In more scientific terms, a direct transfer of DNA has never been recorded from humans to bacteria.

14 Feb 2011

RF-induced heat therapy could help treat common parasitic skin infection

Scientists are hoping that heat therapy could eventually replace a complex drug regimen as the first-line treatment of a parasitic skin infection common in tropical and subtropical regions of the world.

11 Feb 2011

Viral infection of Leishmania leads to increased pathogenicity

A parasite and a virus may be teaming up in a way that increases the parasite's ability to harm humans, scientists at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report this week in Science.

11 Feb 2011

Global Hygiene Council: Three simple steps to keep your family protected against infections

The Global Hygiene Council, a group of leading health and hygiene experts from around the world, convened in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to discuss how proper hygiene plays a critical role in preventing the spread of illness and improving health around the world.

10 Feb 2011

Drugs against protective action of bacteria's antitoxin molecules

Bacteria often attack with toxins designed to hijack or even kill host cells. To avoid self-destruction, bacteria have ways of protecting themselves from their own toxins.

9 Feb 2011

International research team receives AACR award for innovative, meritorious science

The Fifth Annual AACR Team Science Award will be given to a team of internationally renowned molecular biologists, epidemiologists, biostatisticians and clinicians from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and University of Washington who have worked together on human papillomavirus for more than 20 years.

8 Feb 2011

Abbott's Ibis, PLEX-ID technologies identify causative organism of plague in Afghanistan

Today, at the American Society for Microbiology Conference on Biodefense and Emerging Diseases, scientists from Abbott Molecular presented data showing the unique power of the company's Ibis technology to identify and further characterize unknown disease-causing pathogens to help aid in the bioforensic analysis of pandemic outbreaks.

8 Feb 2011

Researchers identify immune cell population that acts as body's border patrol with the outside world

So-called barrier sites -- the skin, gut, lung - limit the inner body's exposure to allergens, pollutants, viruses, bacteria, and parasites. Understanding how the immune system works in these external surfaces has implications for understanding such inflammatory diseases as asthma, psoriasis, IBD, and food allergies, all of which occur at the body's barriers.

8 Feb 2011

Abbott launches PLEX-ID Biothreat Assay to detect, distinguish 17 different pathogens

Abbott announced today that it has introduced the PLEX-ID Biothreat Assay, which is designed to detect and distinguish 17 different biothreat pathogens.

7 Feb 2011

Bruker launches new fully automated and fast toxin identification system

Bruker today announces the North American launch of its compact, fully automated and fast toxin identification system, called pTD™ (portable Toxin Detector), at the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) Bio-Defense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting in Washington, DC. The novel, benchtop, push-button pTD system is intended for smaller, field and mobile laboratories for use by non-expert operators in homeland security applications.

7 Feb 2011

Scientists awarded grant to study microbiology of Cystic Fibrosis pulmonary infection

Scientists at Queen's University Belfast have begun work into improving the lives of thousands of Cystic Fibrosis sufferers thanks to the award of a -1.74 million US-Ireland Research and Development Partnership grant.

4 Feb 2011

Queen's awarded £1.74 million grant to study microbiology of Cystic Fibrosis pulmonary infection

Scientists at Queen's University Belfast have begun work into improving the lives of thousands of Cystic Fibrosis sufferers thanks to the award of a £1.74 million US-Ireland Research and Development Partnership grant.

4 Feb 2011

Immune protein exacerbates skin cancer due to sun exposure: Study

An unexpected immune protein exacerbates cancer due to sun exposure, report researchers in the January 27th issue of Nature. The study suggests that drugs blocking the protein might halt tumor growth in skin cancer patients.

3 Feb 2011

New England Journal publishes fidaxomicin Phase 3 trial results against CDI

Optimer Pharmaceuticals, announced The New England Journal of Medicine has published results from the North American Phase 3 trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of the Company's novel antibiotic fidaxomicin as a treatment for patients with Clostridium difficile infection.

3 Feb 2011

Fidaxomicin demonstrates 45% reduction in recurrences vs. existing treatment for C. difficile infection

Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is a significant and growing problem in hospitals and other health care facilities, but no new drugs to treat the condition have been developed in several decades. However, a large-scale, phase 3 trial conducted by Canadian and U.S. researchers shows that the new antibiotic Fidaxomicin is superior to existing treatments, demonstrating a 45 percent reduction in recurrences vs. the existing licensed treatment.

3 Feb 2011

Scientists test new dry powder measles vaccine that can be inhaled

Sustained high vaccination coverage is key to preventing deaths from measles. Despite the availability of a vaccine, measles remains an important killer of children worldwide, particularly in less-developed regions where vaccination coverage is limited. A team of researchers, led by scientists at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the University of Colorado, developed and successfully tested a dry powder, live-attenuated measles vaccine that can be inhaled.

2 Feb 2011

Microbiology News and Research

NGDI-UBC, CDRD partner for drug development platform to treat neglected global diseases

New review of anthrax case discussed by review committee vice chair, Stanford bioterrorism expert

Researchers use computers to capture chemical signal structure that triggers metastatic cancer

New study on mosquito genome sequences to identify 'transposable elements'

First evidence of human DNA fragment in bacterial genome

RF-induced heat therapy could help treat common parasitic skin infection

Viral infection of Leishmania leads to increased pathogenicity

Global Hygiene Council: Three simple steps to keep your family protected against infections

Drugs against protective action of bacteria's antitoxin molecules

International research team receives AACR award for innovative, meritorious science

Abbott's Ibis, PLEX-ID technologies identify causative organism of plague in Afghanistan

Researchers identify immune cell population that acts as body's border patrol with the outside world

Abbott launches PLEX-ID Biothreat Assay to detect, distinguish 17 different pathogens

Bruker launches new fully automated and fast toxin identification system

Scientists awarded grant to study microbiology of Cystic Fibrosis pulmonary infection

Queen's awarded £1.74 million grant to study microbiology of Cystic Fibrosis pulmonary infection

Immune protein exacerbates skin cancer due to sun exposure: Study

New England Journal publishes fidaxomicin Phase 3 trial results against CDI

Fidaxomicin demonstrates 45% reduction in recurrences vs. existing treatment for C. difficile infection

Scientists test new dry powder measles vaccine that can be inhaled

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