Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Study finds standard heel-stick test ineffective in identifying CMV infection in babies

A national study involving a UT Southwestern Medical Center neonatologist and pediatric infectious diseases specialist suggests that a screening test routinely performed in newborns is not very good at identifying cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, a leading cause of hearing loss in children.

4 May 2010

H1N1 positivity highest among children

More than 99 percent of specimens tested for influenza were positive for H1N1 over approximately the past 11 months, according to a report released today from Quest Diagnostics Incorporated ( DGX). The Quest Diagnostics Health Trends™ Report suggests that H1N1 "crowded out" other influenza viruses to be the dominant flu virus of the 2009-2010 flu season.

4 May 2010

Darwin/Wedgwood dynasty exhibits a link between inbreeding and child mortality

Charles Darwin's worries about possible adverse effects of inbreeding in his family seem to have been justified, according to a study described in the May 2010 issue of BioScience. Darwin married his first cousin, Emma Wedgwood, and his mother, Susannah Wedgwood, was the daughter of third cousins. The study, which extended to 25 families including 176 children, found a statistical association between child mortality and the inbreeding coefficient of individuals in the Darwin/Wedgwood dynasty.

4 May 2010

TB Alliance, AstraZeneca sign research collaboration agreement to develop drugs against tuberculosis

The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development and AstraZeneca announced today at the 2010 BIO International Convention that they have entered into a research collaboration agreement to accelerate the discovery, development and clinical use of drugs against tuberculosis, including drug resistant strains of the disease.

4 May 2010

NIAID researchers initiate trial of DAS181 in patients with asthma, bronchiectasis

NexBio, Inc. announced today the initiation of a trial of DAS181 (Fludase®) in patients with the respiratory conditions asthma and bronchiectasis, being conducted by researchers with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This trial will examine the effects of DAS181 in subjects with well-controlled or stable pulmonary disease.

3 May 2010

Researchers discuss challenges to improve vaccine coverage for American children

While national immunization rates remain high, vaccine refusals are troubling. In some parts of the country, pockets of unimmunized children have left communities vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases, leading to outbreaks.

3 May 2010

Researcher finds evidence of how human behavior can influence emergence of infectious disease

After studying the interactions of human and animal populations in Africa, Kathleen Alexander, associate professor of wildlife science in Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources, found powerful evidence of how human behavior can influence the emergence of infectious disease in humans and animals.

3 May 2010

CDC presents clinical trial results of Biojector 2000 at 13th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research

Bioject Medical Technologies Inc., a leading developer of needle-free injection therapy systems (NFITS), today announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and its collaborating institutions presented the latest results of its clinical trial of the Biojector® 2000 at the 13th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research, sponsored by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases and held in Bethesda, Maryland April 26 - 28, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Gen-Probe reports total revenues of $135.4M for first-quarter 2010

Gen-Probe Incorporated today reported financial results for the first quarter of 2010, highlighted by $135.4 million of total revenues and earnings per share of $0.48 on both a non-GAAP and GAAP basis.

30 Apr 2010

IMD seeks FDA regulatory clearance for NADiA ProsVue prostate cancer prognostic test

IRIS International, Inc., a leading manufacturer of automated in-vitro diagnostics systems and consumables for use in hospitals and commercial laboratories worldwide, announced today that its IRIS Molecular Diagnostics (IMD) subsidiary has submitted a 510(k) pre-market notification application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requesting regulatory clearance for NADiA®ProsVue™, a prostate cancer prognostic test. The test is designed to help physicians identify patients at low risk of cancer recurrence post radical prostatectomy.

29 Apr 2010

China Medical Technologies' AUTOMAGLIA 90 analyzer and Down Syndrome Screening receive SFDA approval

China Medical Technologies, Inc., a leading China-based advanced in-vitro diagnostic company, today announced that it received approval for its AUTOMAGLIA 90 fully-automated ECLIA analyzer as well as Down Syndrome screening kit from the State Food and Drug Administration of China.

29 Apr 2010

Preventing HPV infection could slow HIV epidemic, say researchers

Men infected with human papillomavirus are at greater risk of becoming infected with human immunodeficiency virus than men who are not HPV positive, according to researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

29 Apr 2010

Cambodia closes 64.9 percent of illegal pharmacies

In a major crackdown, Cambodia has forced nearly 65 percent of illegal pharmacies operating in the country to close within the past five months. Led by an Inter-Ministerial Committee to Fight against Counterfeit & Substandard Medicines (IMC), the shops were targeted because of evidence that they were among the primary sources of substandard and counterfeit medicines in the country.

29 Apr 2010

Tulane University researchers urge action to eliminate malaria from Hispaniola

In an editorial in the May 2010 issue of the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases, Tulane University malaria researchers urge action to eliminate malaria from Hispaniola, the last island in the Caribbean where the disease occurs regularly.

29 Apr 2010

Study examines lifestyle-related causes of death in AIDS patients

The study, by researchers from the University of Bristol and a large group of international collaborators, examined data from the Antiretroviral Therapy Cohort Collaboration (ART-CC) which involved nearly 40,000 patients who started ART between 1996 and 2006 in Europe and North America.

29 Apr 2010

China lifts decades-old HIV/AIDS travel ban

Late Tuesday, China's State Council lifted a decades-old restriction that banned foreigners with HIV/AIDS from entering the country, Reuters reports (Buckley, 4/27). The amended rules, which appear on the government website, also lift a travel ban on foreigners with other sexually transmitted diseases and leprosy, and "narrow the travel restriction on people with tuberculosis, to those with an infectious form of the lung disease," according to Bloomberg Businessweek (Randall, 4/28).

29 Apr 2010

New study reinforces urgent need for life-saving vaccines in Africa

A new study released this week in The Lancet Infectious Diseases finds that African children who contract pneumococcus - a bacterial infection that causes pneumonia, meningitis and sepsis - are 36 times as likely to have sickle-cell disease, a blood disorder prevalent in African children that increases the risk for infectious diseases and early death.

29 Apr 2010

Phase 1B/2 clinical study to evaluate efficacy of PMX-60056 in reversing heparin levels initiated

PolyMedix, Inc., an emerging biotechnology company focused on developing new therapeutic drugs to treat acute cardiovascular disorders and infectious diseases, has initiated a Phase 1B/2 dose-ranging clinical study with its anticoagulant reversing agent, PMX-60056. The study is intended to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of PMX-60056 in reversing varying heparin levels, including the highest levels commonly used in surgical settings.

29 Apr 2010

Causes of death in AIDS patients

New research shows that Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) continues to dramatically reduce rates of mortality from HIV infection in high-income countries, such that non-AIDS-related deaths exceed AIDS deaths after approximately four years of taking ART.

28 Apr 2010

China lifts ban on tourists suffering from HIV/AIDS

In a new development China has lifted its decades old reservations towards travelers and tourists suffering from HIV and AIDS in the wake of the Shanghai World Expo this weekend.

28 Apr 2010

Infectious Diseases News and Research

Study finds standard heel-stick test ineffective in identifying CMV infection in babies

H1N1 positivity highest among children

Darwin/Wedgwood dynasty exhibits a link between inbreeding and child mortality

TB Alliance, AstraZeneca sign research collaboration agreement to develop drugs against tuberculosis

NIAID researchers initiate trial of DAS181 in patients with asthma, bronchiectasis

Researchers discuss challenges to improve vaccine coverage for American children

Researcher finds evidence of how human behavior can influence emergence of infectious disease

CDC presents clinical trial results of Biojector 2000 at 13th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research

Gen-Probe reports total revenues of $135.4M for first-quarter 2010

IMD seeks FDA regulatory clearance for NADiA ProsVue prostate cancer prognostic test

China Medical Technologies' AUTOMAGLIA 90 analyzer and Down Syndrome Screening receive SFDA approval

Preventing HPV infection could slow HIV epidemic, say researchers

Cambodia closes 64.9 percent of illegal pharmacies

Tulane University researchers urge action to eliminate malaria from Hispaniola

Study examines lifestyle-related causes of death in AIDS patients

China lifts decades-old HIV/AIDS travel ban

New study reinforces urgent need for life-saving vaccines in Africa

Phase 1B/2 clinical study to evaluate efficacy of PMX-60056 in reversing heparin levels initiated

Causes of death in AIDS patients

China lifts ban on tourists suffering from HIV/AIDS

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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