Polio News and Research

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Poliomyelitis (polio) is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus that invades the nervous system and can cause severe paralysis. The virus enters the body through the mouth and multiplies in the intestine. Initial symptoms are fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck, and pain in the limbs. One in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis (usually in the legs). Among those paralyzed, 5-10% die when their breathing muscles become immobilized. Polio mainly affects children under five years of age. Naturally occurring polio was eliminated in the U.S. in 1979 and in the Western Hemisphere by 1991; however, worldwide efforts are continuing towards eradication of this contagious and devastating disease.

FDA issues final guidance to help develop safe and effective cell-based viral vaccines

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued final guidance to help manufacturers who are developing safe and effective cell-based viral vaccines to address emerging and pandemic threats.

3 Mar 2010

Mouse study provides new way to test novel therapies for liver infections

How do you study-and try to cure in the laboratory-an infection that only humans can get? A team led by Salk Institute researchers does it by generating a mouse with an almost completely human liver.

24 Feb 2010

Also in global health news: Global Fund; MDGs, women; polio eradication

Radio Australia examines the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria's push for more funding from Australia and China. Global Fund Executive Director "Michel Kazatchkine is currently touring the world's capitals seeking renewed government pledges to build on an already impressive record and as well as looking to Australia to do more, he's hoping soon to get China to become not just recipient, but donor."

24 Feb 2010

Also in global health news: Infant, maternal mortality in N. Korea; malaria in Cambodia; Zambia PEPFAR program; Pakistan's anti-polio campaign; U.N. Ambassador responds to Somalia; Myanmar refugees

Higher rates of infant and maternal mortality have lead to a decline of life expectancy in North Korea over the past 15 years, census figures, which were obtained with help form the U.N. Population Fund, said on Monday, Agence France-Presse reports (2/22).

23 Feb 2010

Researchers develop technology to preserve vaccines in tropical temperatures

A team of British researchers have developed a simple, low-cost method to preserve vaccines in tropical climates, which they say could help to revolutionalize vaccination campaigns in developing countries, Reuters reports.

19 Feb 2010

In naming Islamic Conference Envoy, Obama highlights global health, food security efforts

During a video address to the 7th U.S.-Islamic World Forum meeting in Doha, Qatar, on Saturday, President Barack Obama appointed Rashad Hussain, deputy associate White House counsel, to serve as Special Envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Associated Press reports.

17 Feb 2010

sanofi-aventis reports 2009 fourth-quarter and full-year net earnings

Commenting on the Group's 2009 performance, sanofi-aventis Chief Executive Officer Christopher A. Viehbacher said, "2009 was the first year of implementation of our new strategy. Major steps have already been achieved in strengthening our growth platforms and reinforcing our R&D pipeline while delivering a double-digit EPS(1) growth".

10 Feb 2010

Type 1 diabetes: Regeneration exhibits potential as a possible cure

A hormone responsible for the body's stress response is also linked to the growth of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, according to JDRF- funded researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California. The findings are the latest advances to underscore the potential for regeneration as a key component of a possible cure for type 1 diabetes.

4 Feb 2010

WHO pneumonia expert honored with PACE Global Leadership Award

WHO pneumonia expert Dr. Thomas Cherian will be honored by a group of the world’s leading infectious disease experts today for his pivotal work to accelerate access to vaccines preventing pneumococcal disease, the world’s leading vaccine-preventable killer of children under age five.

31 Jan 2010

At World Economic Forum, Gates Foundation announces 10-year, $10B vaccine commitment

Bill and Melinda Gates announced Friday during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that their foundation would commit $10 billion over the next decade to research, develop and deliver vaccines for the world's poorest countries, the New York Times reports (McNeil, 1/29). The Gateses "said they hope the commitment would spur support by governments, corporations, and other donors for vaccinations efforts," the Chronicle of Philanthropy writes (Wilhelm, 1/29).

30 Jan 2010

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commits $10 billion for vaccine research and development

Bill and Melinda Gates announced today that their foundation will commit $10 billion over the next 10 years to help research, develop and deliver vaccines for the world's poorest countries.

29 Jan 2010

NewsRx publishes new encyclopedia on vaccines

NewsRx, a 25-year-old publisher and international news organization headquartered in Atlanta, has published a new encyclopedia on vaccines -- Encyclopedia of Vaccines, 2009: An encyK Resource for Parents, Patients & Professionals.

28 Jan 2010

Dr. Shinya Yamanaka to receive the 2010 March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology

The scientist who reprogrammed adult cells into embryonic-like stem cells has been chosen to receive the 2010 March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology.

27 Jan 2010

Low-cost ventilators for healthcare emergencies

A group of UK anaesthetists have designed and tested three prototype low-cost ventilators that could provide vital support during major healthcare emergencies involving large numbers of patients or casualties. The devices, detailed in a paper published online by Anaesthesia, could also be used where resources are limited, such as in developing countries, remote locations or by the military.

27 Jan 2010

Low-cost ventilators for healthcare emergencies

25 Jan 2010

Vaccination for children: Pros and cons

ProCon.org, a nonpartisan 501(c)3 nonprofit public charity dedicated to promoting critical thinking, created the new website http://vaccines.procon.org to explore the core question "Should any vaccines be required for children?"

23 Jan 2010

Findings may provide new insights into diabetes; suggest novel targets for drug intervention

The neuropeptide corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) makes cameo appearances throughout the body, but its leading role is as the opening act in the stress response, jump-starting the process along the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have found that CRF also plays a part in the pancreas, where it increases insulin secretion and promotes the division of the insulin-producing beta cells.

22 Jan 2010

Researchers explain how HSV dismantles host's defense systems

A viral infection is like an uninvited, tenacious houseguest in the cell, using a range of tricks to prevent its eviction. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified one of the key proteins allowing herpes simplex virus (HSV) DNA to fly under the radar of their hosts' involuntary hospitality.

21 Jan 2010

Obama's latest dilemma: Confronting the AIDS pandemic

Confronting the ongoing AIDS pandemic for his upcoming first national HIV/AIDS Strategy is President Obama's newest dilemma, say former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, former White House Drug Policy spokesman Robert Weiner, and Dartmouth College Coalition for Progress president Jordan Osserman.

18 Jan 2010

PATH MVI announces collaboration in development of malaria TBV

The PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI) today announced a new collaboration to initiate development toward a vaccine that may eventually help eliminate and eradicate malaria. This collaboration with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH) and the Sabin Vaccine Institute (Sabin) marks MVI's first investment in transmission-blocking vaccines (TBVs). This vaccine approach aims to stop the malaria parasite from developing in the mosquito, effectively blocking transmission of malaria from mosquitoes to humans. Malaria kills nearly 900,000 people per year, most of them children younger than age five.

18 Jan 2010