Infectious Diseases News and Research

RSS

UT Southwestern Medical Center receives NIH funds for asthma research

UT Southwestern Medical Center is among 10 institutions selected by the National Institutes of Health to share $56 million over five years as part of the Inner City Asthma Consortium (ICAC).

23 Nov 2009

EraGen Biosciences to have access to Illumina’s BeadXpress platform

EraGen Biosciences Inc., a developer of novel molecular reagents for the in-vitro diagnostics (IVD) market, and Illumina Inc., a global company that develops, manufactures and markets integrated systems for analysis of genetic variation and biological function, today announced the formation of a strategic partnership and the execution of non-exclusive licensing agreements.

From Illumina, Inc. 23 Nov 2009

ASTMH symposium illustrates the need to generate new medicines for infectious diseases

An urgent need for new medicines to treat neglected infectious diseases in the developing world has prompted a growing number of collaborations among academic researchers, non-profit product development partnerships (PDPs), and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

23 Nov 2009

Climate change to have a profound impact on global public health

An emerging body of evidence suggests that the changing global climate is already affecting infectious disease transmission patterns. As noted today in a symposium at the 58th annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH), such changes are expected to have a profound impact on global public health.

21 Nov 2009

Rates of infection by the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus may have peaked in late October: Quest Diagnostics

Rates of infection by the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus may have peaked in late October, but the pandemic flu virus continues to be a potential source of illness in all age groups, including the elderly, according to a new report by Quest Diagnostics Incorporated, the world's leading provider of diagnostic testing, information and services.

From Quest Diagnostics 21 Nov 2009

First nationwide human immunology registry for infectious disease research

RemedyMD (www.RemedyMD.com), the leading provider of disease registry software, today announced the first nationwide human immunology registry for infectious disease research. The new registry was developed to help clinicians and researchers better understand the human immune response to emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases.

21 Nov 2009

Antibiotic resistance a growing problem, particularly in southern, eastern Europe

Antibiotic resistance is increasing throughout the world because of excessive use, Agence France-Press reports. The news service writes, "Experts at the 2nd annual European antibiotics awareness day held by the Stockholm-based European Centre for Diseases Prevention and Control (ECDC) said new, hyper-resistant bacteria were emerging, threatening the pillars of global health."

20 Nov 2009

Soligenix receives $9.4M NIAID grant to develop technology for advancing rapidly acting vaccines

Soligenix, Inc., formerly known as DOR BioPharma, Inc., a late-stage biotechnology company, announced today that it has formed a consortium to develop thermostable technology to advance RiVax(TM) and other rapidly acting vaccines. Soligenix received a $9.4 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to support this work.

20 Nov 2009

Scientists anticipate new approaches in drug development to combat prion infection

The regulating protein Srebp2 drives cholesterol formation, which prions need for their propagation, in prion-infected neuronal cells. With these findings, published in the current issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, scientists of Helmholtz Zentrum München and Technische Universität München anticipate new approaches in drug development to combat prion infection.

20 Nov 2009

Discoveries on anti-HIV antibodies may help researchers create an effective HIV vaccine

New discoveries about anti-HIV antibodies may bring researchers a step closer to creating an effective HIV vaccine, according to a new paper co-authored by scientists at the Vaccine Research Center of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

20 Nov 2009

Antimalarial drug resistance endangers malarial control measures

Evidence of resistance to the antimalarial drug artemisinin and its derivatives threatens efforts to control malaria in Southeast Asia, and experts fear artemisinin resistance may spread from the Thailand-Cambodia border to affect other malaria endemic countries. Evidence to such effect was presented today at the 58th annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH).

20 Nov 2009

Leading driver of antibiotic selection in nosocomial pneumonia in Europe found

Arlington Medical Resources (AMR) and Decision Resources find that the leading driver of antibiotic selection in nosocomial pneumonia in Europe is broad-spectrum activity against gram-positive and gram-negative pathogens.

20 Nov 2009

H1N1: Bridging the knowledge gap

A commentary in the December issue of The Lancet Infectious Diseases brings to light the gaps in knowledge on the transmission of a common pathogen - the influenza virus - and its impact on decisions about how best to protect health care workers. Infectious diseases specialist Leonard Mermel, DO, medical director of infection control for Rhode Island Hospital, looks at the ongoing debate in light of the H1N1 pandemic, what past research tells us about the spread of influenza, and what is missing in the debate. His commentary is currently available in an online first edition.

20 Nov 2009

First comprehensive, international baseline evidence about pandemics published

Public health officials walking a tightrope between massive demand for vaccines and intense public scrutiny of side effects now have a new standard for evaluating the safety of their vaccination programs.

19 Nov 2009

Washington Global Health Alliance completes internal coordination study of global health

The Washington Global Health Alliance, a group representing 26 life-sciences businesses, institutions and governmental organizations, has completed an internal coordination study demonstrating the significant influence of its primary partners in the mission of global health.

19 Nov 2009

Malaria experts urge Congress to increase funding for malaria programs

While efforts to control and eliminate malaria have made great strides during the past five years, the looming specter of drug resistance heightens the importance of continued research and development for new tools to assure continued success, according to malaria scientists and public health experts appearing today on Capitol Hill.

19 Nov 2009

New research on viral activity may aid in treating bacterial infections

Viruses are well known for attacking humans and animals, but some viruses instead attack bacteria. Texas A&M University researchers are exploring how hungry viruses, armed with transformer-like weapons, attack bacteria, which may aid in the treatment of bacterial infections.

19 Nov 2009

Opinions: Fighting TB; currency transaction tax

Though tuberculosis "is one of the world's leading killers … few citizens, scientists and policymakers are demanding more attention to TB research, treatment and prevention. … It's time to bring TB research into the 21st century," Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, writes in an MSNBC opinion piece.

19 Nov 2009

Also in Global Health news: Sleeping sickness; aid for Philippines; U.S., China in Africa; polio eradication in Afghanistan; Ethiopia famine

Lancet Infectious Diseases Newsdesk examines how despite evidence that a new therapy to treat sleeping sickness, called nifurtimox—eflornithine (NECT) is a step forward in treating the disease, it has yet to be implemented by countries "13 months after data from a successful trial was presented." The main issue at hand - "nifurtimox is not registered for use in sleeping sickness," the journal writes. The article also examines other factors complicating the implementation of the therapy (Morris, 12/09).

18 Nov 2009

CEL-SCI commences clinical study of LEAPS-H1N1 treatment for hospitalized patients

CEL-SCI Corporation, a developer of vaccines and therapeutics for the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases and a late-stage oncology company, announced today the start of the Company's first clinical study for hospitalized H1N1 patients at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (Johns Hopkins).

18 Nov 2009

Infectious Diseases News and Research

UT Southwestern Medical Center receives NIH funds for asthma research

EraGen Biosciences to have access to Illumina’s BeadXpress platform

ASTMH symposium illustrates the need to generate new medicines for infectious diseases

Climate change to have a profound impact on global public health

Rates of infection by the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus may have peaked in late October: Quest Diagnostics

First nationwide human immunology registry for infectious disease research

Antibiotic resistance a growing problem, particularly in southern, eastern Europe

Soligenix receives $9.4M NIAID grant to develop technology for advancing rapidly acting vaccines

Scientists anticipate new approaches in drug development to combat prion infection

Discoveries on anti-HIV antibodies may help researchers create an effective HIV vaccine

Antimalarial drug resistance endangers malarial control measures

Leading driver of antibiotic selection in nosocomial pneumonia in Europe found

H1N1: Bridging the knowledge gap

First comprehensive, international baseline evidence about pandemics published

Washington Global Health Alliance completes internal coordination study of global health

Malaria experts urge Congress to increase funding for malaria programs

New research on viral activity may aid in treating bacterial infections

Opinions: Fighting TB; currency transaction tax

Also in Global Health news: Sleeping sickness; aid for Philippines; U.S., China in Africa; polio eradication in Afghanistan; Ethiopia famine

CEL-SCI commences clinical study of LEAPS-H1N1 treatment for hospitalized patients

eBook: Advancing infectious disease vaccine development eBook

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

Latest News