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International team obtains genome sequence of human body louse

An international team has obtained the genome sequence of the human body louse (Pediculus humanus humanus), a parasite that feeds on the blood of its host and a vector of pathogens that cause diseases such as epidemic typhus, relapsing fever and trench fever.

22 Jun 2010

New study that describes sequencing and analysis of body louse genome published

A global research team led by scientists from the J. Craig Venter Institute today published a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences describing the sequencing and analysis of the body louse genome. Lead author, Ewen Kirkness, Ph.D., JCVI, directed the sequencing and gene-finding efforts in the project. Detailed analysis of the genome was then conducted by a large international group of 71 scientists, coordinated by Barry Pittendrigh, University of Illinois, and Professor Evgeny Zdobnov, University of Geneva Medical School.

22 Jun 2010

Semafore's SF1126 peptidic prodrug demonstrates clinical activity in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Semafore Pharmaceuticals today announced the presentation of preliminary clinical data demonstrating that SF1126 has clinical activity in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). SF1126 is a novel peptidic prodrug that converts to LY294002, one of the most widely studied small molecule inhibitors of both phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). The results were presented at Cambridge Healthtech Institute's 8th Annual Next-Gen Kinase Inhibitors Oncology & Beyond Conference being held June 21-23, 2010, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

22 Jun 2010

Also in Global Health News: WHO scraps drug development group; Access to medication in Philippines; Yellow fever vaccine shortage; HIV-positive employee protection

Lancet World Report examines how "[d]isappointment over a long-awaited report on improving drug research and development for neglected diseases" led the WHO to form a new Consultative Expert Working Group (CEWG) to strategize around drug research and development. The formation of the new group comes after the report from the previous working group (EWG) was questioned due to "what some perceived to be a missed opportunity, unclear methods, a lack of transparency and signs of industry interference" and after "suspicions of impropriety" surfaced.

21 Jun 2010

NanoViricides' anti-Dengue drug candidates demonstrate potential against severe virus infection

NanoViricides, Inc. reports that its anti-Dengue drug candidates demonstrated significant protection in the initial animal survival studies of Dengue virus infection. The studies were performed in the laboratory of Dr. Eva Harris, Professor of Infectious Diseases at the University of California, Berkeley.

21 Jun 2010

Malaria rises as forests disappear: Study

Avid deforestation of the tropical forests is cited to be one of the reasons for the 50% increase in incidence of this disease in the surrounding areas according to a new research that is tracking deforestation in Brazil's Amazon.

18 Jun 2010

Experimental vaccine for Marburg hemorrhagic fever prevention shows promise for accidental exposures

An experimental vaccine developed to prevent outbreaks of Marburg hemorrhagic fever continues to show promise in monkeys as an emergency treatment for accidental exposures to the virus that causes the disease. There is no licensed treatment for Marburg infection, which has a high fatality rate.

17 Jun 2010

Opinions: Maintain fight against HIV/AIDS; Ending PMTCT; Impact of U.S. health reform on foreign-trained physicians

Following a recent trip to the largest HIV/AIDS clinic in Uganda, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon reflects on the recent progress made in the fight against the disease in a McClatchy opinion piece. Though "Uganda was the epicenter of the AIDS epidemic. …Uganda is also a success story," Ban writes. "A decade ago, fewer than 10,000 people were on the new generation of antiretroviral drugs that suppress the disease and offer the promise of a normal life.

17 Jun 2010

Trius Therapeutics reaches agreement with FDA under SPA for Phase 3 study of torezolid phosphate for ABSSSI

Trius Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that it has reached agreement with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), under the Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) process, on the design of its planned Phase 3 study for the oral dosage form of torezolid phosphate for treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI).

16 Jun 2010

Vitamin D may help reduce incidence, severity of viral respiratory tract infections: Study

Vitamin D may help reduce the incidence and severity of viral respiratory tract infections including influenza, according to a new study conducted by investigators at Greenwich Hospital and Yale University School of Medicine.

16 Jun 2010

Help Conquer Cancer Project taps World Community Grid to discover structure of cancer-related proteins

Scientists have devised a way to automate and accelerate a manual, complex process that enables researchers to more easily discover the structure of cancer-related proteins, and, eventually, formulate cancer cures. This new, automated approach may also help the exploration of other diseases and food-related research.

15 Jun 2010

Sulindac shuts down cancer cell growth, initiates cell death: Study

Without knowing exactly why, scientists have long observed that people who regularly take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like aspirin have lower incidences of certain types of cancer. Now, in a study appearing in Cancer Cell on June 15, investigators at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute and their colleagues have figured out how one NSAID, called Sulindac, inhibits tumor growth.

15 Jun 2010

Entomologists to develop genetically engineered bacteria for killing mosquito larvae

Roughly half the world's population still lives in areas at risk of malaria transmission. Even in the United States, 1500 cases of malaria are reported annually on average.

15 Jun 2010

Researchers transform yellow fever vaccine to fend off mosquito borne parasites that cause malaria

There is no vaccine for malaria, which sickens almost a quarter of a billion people each year and kills a child every 30 seconds. That could be changing: researchers at The Rockefeller University have genetically transformed the yellow fever vaccine to prime the immune system to fend off the mosquito borne parasites that cause the disease.

14 Jun 2010

Global Programme seeks to eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis by 2020

Representatives from more than 50 countries attended the Sixth Meeting of the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GAELF) in Seoul last week, to review the progress of the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (Global Programme), which seeks to eliminate the disease by 2020.

14 Jun 2010

Anti-infectives could circumvent the problem of antibiotic resistance

For a successful infection, bacteria must outwit the immune system of the host. To this aim, they deliver so-called virulence factors through a transport channel located in the bacterial membrane.

14 Jun 2010

Abraxis BioScience presents phase 3 trial data on metastatic malignant melanoma

Abraxis BioScience, Inc. presented trial design information from its ongoing phase 3 registration trial of nanoparticle albumin bound (nab®) driven chemotherapy, nab-paclitaxel (ABRAXANE® for Injectable Suspension; paclitaxel albumin protein-bound particles for injectable suspension), in melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer that affects more than 68,000 people in the U.S. each year.

11 Jun 2010

Researchers to provide real-time analyses on potential disease threats during World Cup

Two Canadian researchers will be keeping a close eye on what hundreds of thousands of soccer fans take to the World Cup in South Africa _ and what they potentially bring home.

11 Jun 2010

Hormone involved in iron metabolism can save mice from deadly acute inflammation: Scientists

In a surprising discovery that someday may lead to new treatments for many inflammatory diseases, University of Utah scientists found that a hormone involved in iron metabolism can save mice from deadly acute inflammation.

8 Jun 2010

Interim results from Micromet's MT110 BiTE antibody Phase 1 trial presented at ASCO

Micromet, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of next-generation antibodies for the treatment of cancer, today announced the presentation of updated interim results from a Phase 1 trial of the Company's BiTE antibody MT110 in patients with advanced solid tumors.

8 Jun 2010

Fever News and Research

International team obtains genome sequence of human body louse

New study that describes sequencing and analysis of body louse genome published

Semafore's SF1126 peptidic prodrug demonstrates clinical activity in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Also in Global Health News: WHO scraps drug development group; Access to medication in Philippines; Yellow fever vaccine shortage; HIV-positive employee protection

NanoViricides' anti-Dengue drug candidates demonstrate potential against severe virus infection

Malaria rises as forests disappear: Study

Experimental vaccine for Marburg hemorrhagic fever prevention shows promise for accidental exposures

Opinions: Maintain fight against HIV/AIDS; Ending PMTCT; Impact of U.S. health reform on foreign-trained physicians

Trius Therapeutics reaches agreement with FDA under SPA for Phase 3 study of torezolid phosphate for ABSSSI

Vitamin D may help reduce incidence, severity of viral respiratory tract infections: Study

Help Conquer Cancer Project taps World Community Grid to discover structure of cancer-related proteins

Sulindac shuts down cancer cell growth, initiates cell death: Study

Entomologists to develop genetically engineered bacteria for killing mosquito larvae

Researchers transform yellow fever vaccine to fend off mosquito borne parasites that cause malaria

Global Programme seeks to eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis by 2020

Anti-infectives could circumvent the problem of antibiotic resistance

Abraxis BioScience presents phase 3 trial data on metastatic malignant melanoma

Researchers to provide real-time analyses on potential disease threats during World Cup

Hormone involved in iron metabolism can save mice from deadly acute inflammation: Scientists

Interim results from Micromet's MT110 BiTE antibody Phase 1 trial presented at ASCO

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