Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Vaccination with irradiated Listeria induced protective T cell immunity

Vaccines made with bacteria killed by gamma irradiation, rather than by standard methods of heat or chemical inactivation, may be more effective, say researchers.

26 Jul 2006

Using gamma radiation preserves T-cell responses in bacterial vaccine

Using gamma radiation to inactivate bacteria for the preparation of vaccines, instead of traditional heat or chemical methods of inactivation, appears to create a vaccine that is more effective than so-called "killed" vaccines against disease, and has the added advantage of a longer storage life than "live" vaccines.

26 Jul 2006

Deadly duo of crime and drug abuse can be cut by effective treatments

According to a landmark scientific report released by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), money would be saved and crime would be reduced if communities put into place effective treatments for drug abuse and addiction.

26 Jul 2006

Irradiation preserves T-Cell responses in bacterial vaccine

Findings could result in more potent vaccines that are relatively inexpensive to produce, easy to store, and that can be transported without refrigeration.

25 Jul 2006

Interaction of proteins in the intestinal system may be allergic indicators

Researchers have identified one of the proteins that may be responsible for causing food allergies, which could lead to the development of more accurate non-invasive tests to identify true food allergies.

25 Jul 2006

Distribution of more than 18 million malaria bednets in Africa

Roll Back Malaria Partners are supporting mass distribution of malaria bednets to prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from malaria in many endemic countries.

25 Jul 2006

New laser test screens for Hepatitis B

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given the go-ahead for a device, called Cell-Dyn Ruby, which uses laser optics and provides diagrams showing changes in white and red blood cells and platelets.

20 Jul 2006

Latest sequencing targets for NHGRI

The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) has announced several new sequencing targets including the Northern white-cheeked gibbon (Nomascus leucogenys).

19 Jul 2006

Vaccines for preventing influenza in the elderly

Although national and international health organizations urge anyone over age 65 to get yearly flu shots, the vaccinations are only modestly effective in preventing flu and its complications among older adults, according to a new review of recent studies.

19 Jul 2006

Conjugate vaccines for preventing meningococcal C meningitis and septicaemia

A new systematic review suggests that a certain kind of vaccine may help to protect babies and small children from a devastating killer: meningococcal meningitis.

19 Jul 2006

Cleaning water at household is best diarrhea prevention

Clean water can prevent diarrhea and save lives, but among the world's most susceptible populations, it is cleaned best at its point of use rather than its source, researchers report in a large new review of studies.

19 Jul 2006

Canada ready to vaccinate against human papillomavirus

Canadian women will soon be able to access the first vaccine to protect against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer.

19 Jul 2006

FDA approves fully automated screening tests for hepatitis B surface antigen

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced the approval of the first fully automated product that combines both screening and confirmatory tests for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg).

18 Jul 2006

Predicted Hantavirus risk in 2006 for the Southwestern U.S.

The Four Corners region of the United States (where Ariz., N.M., Colo. and Utah meet) will be at greater risk for hantavirus outbreak this year than in 2005, say scientists at Johns Hopkins University, the University of New Mexico, and other institutions.

12 Jul 2006

NIAID program aims to model immune responses and key infectious diseases

A new program at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) aims to better understand the complex biochemical networks that regulate the interactions between infectious organisms and the human or animal cells they infect.

12 Jul 2006

Children with chronic otitis media have biofilms in their middle ears

Direct evidence of bacterial biofilms has been found on the middle ear tissue of children who suffer from chronic ear infections

12 Jul 2006

New aspect of prion disease - agent causes heart damage

Until now, prion disease has been thought of as a chronic neurological condition.

9 Jul 2006

Listeriosis and pregnancy

For years, doctors have puzzled over why pregnant women are 20 times more likely than others to be infected by the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, now think they have the answer, and it isn't pretty.

3 Jul 2006

Babies to be tested after London hospital worker is stricken with TB

Following the discovery that a London hospital health worker has been found to have tuberculosis (TB), more than 200 babies are to be tested for the disease.

28 Jun 2006

Researchers identify gene used to recognize pathogens

Researchers have identified a gene in the Anopheles gambiae mosquito's DNA that is central to the insect's ability to defend against infectious pathogens, including Plasmodium, the parasite that causes malaria in humans.

20 Jun 2006