Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Biovex announces OncoVEXGM-CSF Phase 3 study for head and neck cancer

BioVex Inc, a company developing next generation biologics for the treatment and prevention of cancer and infectious disease, announced today that a Phase 3 pivotal study with OncoVEXGM-CSF for the first line treatment of patients with locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck has commenced.

10 Dec 2010

Scientists determine 500 three-dimensional protein structures from bacterial and protozoan pathogens

9 Dec 2010

Cranberry juice consumption does not reduce urinary tract infections

Drinking cranberry juice has been recommended to decrease the incidence of urinary tract infections, based on observational studies and a few small clinical trials. However, a new study published in the January 1 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, and now available online, suggests otherwise.

9 Dec 2010

Annual survey ranks states on health, health care

An annual survey ranks state's overall health and gives snap shots of specific measures including crime, air pollution and smoking rates.

9 Dec 2010

Lung transplant saves economist from near-lethal bout of swine flu

According to the critical care experts at The Johns Hopkins Hospital who treated him, Allen Bagents, 24, of Arlington, Va., is the least likely person anyone ever expects to get sick, let alone suffer a six-week, potentially fatal bout with the swine flu, better known as H1N1 influenza.

8 Dec 2010

Vaccine World Summit to be held in New Delhi 1-3 March, 2011

From the 1st to the 3rd of March 2011, vaccine leaders from developing and developed world will meet at Vaccine World Summit in New Delhi. The event will be hosted by IMAPAC, in partnership with DCVMN (Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network).

8 Dec 2010

New NIH guidelines support broader use of blood tests to diagnose food allergy

New guidelines on diagnosis and management of food allergy issued by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases a part of NIH, supports a broader use of blood test to improve current clinical practice. Phadia's ImmunoCAP is recognized for its superior predictive values compared to other systems. It provides precise, quantitative and standardized results and help doctors make an accurate diagnosis.

8 Dec 2010

St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, UH College of Pharmacy earn national 'best practices' award

With antibiotic resistance on the rise worldwide, health care professionals are continually seeking to optimize how they combat drug-resistant infections.

8 Dec 2010

Scientists work together to wipe out some of the most lethal diseases

Scientists at Seattle Biomedical Research Institute and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine have reached a major milestone in the effort to wipe out some of the most lethal diseases on the planet. As leaders of two large structural genomics centers, they've experimentally determined 500 three-dimensional protein structures from a number of bacterial and protozoan pathogens, which could potentially lead to new drugs, vaccines and diagnostics to combat deadly infectious diseases.

8 Dec 2010

Early group daycare exposure protects kids from infections later: Study

A new study reassures parents that although young kids might get sick more often when they first start group childcare, these same kids get fewer infections later in their childhood. About one in three U.S. kids receives organized childcare before reaching kindergarten age, whether at a daycare center or a school.

7 Dec 2010

Studies highlight need for new antiviral treatment options and strategies

Two new studies raise public health concerns about increasing antiviral resistance among certain influenza viruses, their ability to spread, and a lack of alternative antiviral treatment options.

7 Dec 2010

Knee replacement operations cause bacterial infection in the joint

Last year 12 700 knee replacement operations were carried out in Sweden. Most such operations go well, but some patients are affected by bacterial infection in the joint and have to be re-operated. This is a complicated procedure that does not always produce successful results, as shown in a thesis by Anna Stefánsdóttir from Lund University in Sweden.

7 Dec 2010

Scientists identify protein that disseminates biofilm-associated infection

What:Scientists from the National Institutes of Health have discovered how catheter-related bacterial infection develops and disseminates to become a potentially life-threatening condition. The study, which included research on Staphylococcus epidermidis in mice implanted with catheters, could have important implications for understanding many types of bacterial biofilm infections, including those caused by methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA).

7 Dec 2010

NIH scientists consider prospects for universal influenza vaccine

The costly, time-consuming process of making, distributing and administering millions of seasonal flu vaccines would become obsolete if researchers could design a vaccine that confers decades-long protection from any flu virus strain. Making such a universal influenza vaccine is feasible but licensing it may require innovation on several fronts, including finding new ways to evaluate the efficacy of vaccine candidates in clinical trials, conclude scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

7 Dec 2010

Campaign to inoculate millions across Africa against meningitis kicks off in Burkina Faso

On Monday, a campaign started in Burkina Faso to "inoculate tens of millions of West Africans with a new vaccine in what scientists hope will be the beginning of the end of ravaging meningitis epidemics" across the continent, the New York Times reports.

7 Dec 2010

Sequella files SQ109 IND for Phase 2 studies in H. pylori-related duodenal ulcers

Sequella, Inc., a clinical-stage company focused on commercializing novel drugs for treatment of infectious diseases, announced it has successfully filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to test SQ109 in patients suffering from H. pylori-related duodenal ulcers, and can now begin Phase 2 studies.

7 Dec 2010

GeoVax expands Phase 2a clinical trial for MVA62B HIV/AIDS vaccine

GeoVax Labs, Inc., announced today the expansion of the Phase 2a clinical trial testing of its HIV/AIDS vaccine products. The expanded Phase 2a trial will test the administration of three doses of the recombinant poxvirus vaccine MVA62B without the use of the recombinant DNA-vectored vaccine, which was used to prime immune responses in the first part of this trial.

7 Dec 2010

New, HIV-like retroviruses linked to CFS, prostate cancer detected in healthy blood donors

In an unprecedented move, chronic fatigue syndrome patients published a half-page ad in The Washington Post today. The ad brings attention to new, HIV-like retroviruses, including XMRV, which have been linked to CFS and aggressive prostate cancer, and have been detected in healthy blood donors.

6 Dec 2010

NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Galderma expand their multi-year collaboration agreement

NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company developing first-in-class, anti-infective compounds for the treatment and prevention of antibiotic-resistant infections, and Galderma, a global leading pharmaceutical company dedicated exclusively to the field of dermatology, announce the expansion of their multi-year collaboration agreement. Based on positive data assessing the activity of NovaBay's Aganocide compounds against impetigo, Galderma has agreed to exercise its option for this indication.

6 Dec 2010

ACAAI allergist experts available to comment on new food allergy guidelines

Food allergy experts from the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology are available to comment as the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases releases the Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Food Allergy on December 6. The ACAAI was one of more than 30 professional organizations, federal agencies and lay organizations who collaborated on the development of these recommendations.

6 Dec 2010