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Telomerase finding has major implications for cancer

UCLA biochemists have determined the three-dimensional structure of a major domain of telomerase, the enzyme that helps maintain telomeres - small pieces of DNA on the ends of chromosomes that act as protective caps - allowing DNA ends to be copied completely when cells are replicated.

9 Mar 2005

Study examines lessons learned at Africa's first public antiretroviral treatment clinic

A public clinic offering antiretroviral (ARV) treatment to people with HIV/AIDS, recently established in Botswana, has had its share of trials and errors.

9 Mar 2005

New MS drug withdrawn from the market

Two patients involved in clinical trials of Tysabri, have contracted a rare and fatal disease, Elan’s multiple sclerosis (MS); one has already died. Withdrawal of the drug, eliminates all hope that it will be allowed back on the market this year, or ever.

8 Mar 2005

Thalidomide - new treatment for cancer

Thalidomide, famous in the 60's because of limb deformities in babies born to women who had taken it for morning sickness, was withdrawn in 1961. Now doctors say it could be used as a treatment for cancer.

8 Mar 2005

HIVMA and AAHIVM urge lawmakers to make medical care the top priority for Ryan White Programs

The nation’s frontline HIV medical providers are calling for an end to waiting lists for essential anti-AIDS drugs that patients need in order to live.

8 Mar 2005

AIDS drug pricing complaint in South Africa against GlaxoSmithKline moves forward

A landmark South African legal complaint against British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) over its AIDS drug pricing and policies in that country will proceed following an order late last week by South Africa's Competition Tribunal that will allow the complaint to go forward.

8 Mar 2005

Two chemicals boost immune cells' ability to fight HIV without gene therapy

A UCLA AIDS Institute study has discovered that two chemical compounds may help the immune systems of HIV-infected persons fight the disease without invasive gene therapy.

7 Mar 2005

Thalidomide may have a new lease of life as a cancer treatment

The drug thalidomide may have a new lease of life as a cancer treatment. A small study published in Gut suggests that it slows down the weight loss and wasting associated with advanced disease in patients with pancreatic cancer.

7 Mar 2005

Study looks at the ability of some monkey species to resist developing AIDS

The Tulane National Primate Research Center received a five-year grant of more than $2 million from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to study the ability of some monkey species to resist developing AIDS.

7 Mar 2005

90 million Africans with AIDS predicted

In a study, entitled Aids in Africa, compiled over two years, using over 150 experts, the UN predicts that nearly 90 million Africans could be infected in the next 20 years if the epidemic is not combated. Some 25 million Africans have HIV.

5 Mar 2005

Government is treating the symptoms and not fighting the causes of infectious diseases

The Microbiology Awareness Campaign gathered momentum this week at the House of Lords when scientists informed Peers and MPs that new and re-emerging infectious diseases could spell trouble if not tackled soon.

3 Mar 2005

Lancet neonatal survival series

Three million of the four million newborn babies who die worldwide each year could be saved by low-tech and low-cost interventions, concludes a landmark series of articles published online by The Lancet (Thursday March 3, 2005).

3 Mar 2005

HAART saves 2 million life years

The total impact of HIV treatment in the US has been evaluated for the first time. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, ( Harvard Medical School in Boston), speaking at the 12th Annual Retrovirus Conference, quoted from research which estimated the survival benefits of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and opportunistic infection prophylaxis in the US from 1989 to 2003.

2 Mar 2005

Beautiful with HIV

HIV-positive women wearing evening gowns and sparkling jewels entered a beauty pageant in Botswana in an attempt to dispel the stigma that surrounds the deadly virus in this AIDS-ravaged southern African country with one of the world's highest rates of HIV infection. 37 percent of its 1.7 million population has tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS.

1 Mar 2005

Stop smoking services encourage more GPs to help smokers quit

Clinics to help people stop smoking have led to an increased number of GPs recording whether patients smoke and referring them for assistance to quit – according to a new report.

1 Mar 2005

OPAL, major discovery in the fight against AIDS

Australian researchers have made a major discovery in the fight against AIDS, with the development of a novel, simple and safe technique for boosting the body’s immune response to deadly viruses like HIV, which is even effective against drug resistant forms of the disease.

1 Mar 2005

VIRxSYS novel HIV gene therapy yields exciting results

VIRxSYS Corporation reports unexpected and unprecedented findings in its ongoing Phase I clinical trial of its VRX496 therapy in patients with HIV.

28 Feb 2005

New study following 12,574 individuals over the course of three years of HAART

Although clinical progression to AIDS of patients infected with Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has declined since the introduction of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART), there is little data on the changes in incidence of AIDS-defining events during the first few years of therapy.

28 Feb 2005

Youth with HIV take more risks after new meds introduced

Teens with HIV are having more risky sex with more partners than their counterparts did in the years before powerful new medications for HIV were introduced in 1996, according to a new report in the American Journal of Health Behavior.

28 Feb 2005

Comprehensive sex education is more effective at stopping the spread of HIV infection

It is estimated that more than half of all new HIV infections occur before the age of 25 and most are acquired through unprotected sexual intercourse.

28 Feb 2005