Streptococcus pneumoniae News and Research

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Streptococcus pneumoniae, or Pneumococcus, is a very common bacterial infection in both industrialized and developing countries. In particular, young children and the elderly represent high-risk populations of developing pneumococcal infections. According to the WHO, the bacterium kills up to one million children under the age of five years each year worldwide. It accounts for many Bacterial Meningitis cases in adults and it is the most common cause of Bacteraemia, Pneumonia, Meningitis and Otitis media in young children.

Scientists to monitor effectiveness of Streptococcus vaccine

Respiratory infections and diarrhoeal diseases kill approximately four million children each year, with most deaths occurring in developing countries. New vaccines for Streptococcus pneumoniae, a bacterium that causes pneumonia, and rotavirus, the most common cause of severe diarrhoea, have proved successful in preventing the development of the diseases in clinical trials, but have yet to be used routinely in many parts of Africa.

15 Oct 2010

Researchers discover evolutionary nature of bacteria to spread chronic infectious disease

Researchers from the Center for Genomic Sciences at Allegheny General Hospital (AGH) in Pittsburgh have made a landmark discovery about the evolutionary nature of bacteria in the setting of chronic infectious disease. Reporting today in the journal PLos Pathogens, the AGH team documents for the first time that bacteria engage in a process called horizontal gene transfer to evolve rapidly during the course of a single infection.

18 Sep 2010

Forest Laboratories' ceftaroline fosamil receives FDA Advisory Committee approval for CABP and cSSSI

Forest Laboratories, Inc. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee voted 21 - 0 in favor of approval of ceftaroline fosamil for the treatment of community acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP) and voted 18 - 0 in favor of approval for complicated skin and skin structure infections (cSSSI).

8 Sep 2010

Study finds PCV7 vaccine reduces bacterial pneumonia infection in children

The number of children admitted to English hospitals with bacterial pneumonia decreased by a fifth in the two years following the introduction of a vaccine to combat the disease, according to a new study published today in the journal Thorax.

27 Aug 2010

Pfizer's Prevenar 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine receives WHO prequalification

The World Health Organization (WHO) has granted prequalification to Prevenar 13 (Pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed])for active immunization of infants and children from 6 weeks through five years of age against invasive disease, pneumonia and otitis media caused by the 13 pneumococcal serotypes (1, 3, 4, 5, 6A, 6B, 7F, 9V, 14, 18C, 19A, 19F and 23F) contained in the vaccine.

24 Aug 2010

Physician recommends vaccination for Meningitis before children start school

Freshmen all across the nation have begun packing in preparation for college. Along with their laptops, notebooks, pens and binders, there is one more essential item they need - a meningitis vaccination. "If a student hasn't gotten a meningitis vaccination, they absolutely should get one before they start school," said Dr. Michael Koller, associate professor of medicine, division of general internal medicine, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood. "Meningitis is not a common disease but it can be tragic."

18 Aug 2010

Advanced Life Sciences reaches SPA agreement with FDA for Restanza Phase 3 study

Advanced Life Sciences Holdings, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of novel drugs in the therapeutic areas of infection, oncology and respiratory diseases, announced today that it has reached agreement with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), under the Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) process, on the design of its planned Phase 3 study of its novel once-daily oral antibiotic Restanza to treat community acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP). The trial is the first prospectively designed superiority study to be conducted in CABP.

11 Aug 2010

Australian scientists uncover the secrets behind one of nature’s most extraordinary biological machines

Scientists from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute (VCCRI), Sydney, have discovered the secrets behind the tiny motors in bacteria that allow them to swim rapidly towards nutrients and away from toxins, which is crucial to the spread of bacterial infection. These motors can rotate at up to 100,000 revolutions per minute, yet can switch directions in milliseconds.

1 Aug 2010

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine appears to reduce pneumonia, serious complications in infants: Research

A pneumococcal conjugate vaccine introduced in the U.S. 10 years ago appears to reduce pneumonia and serious associated complications, such as blood infections, in the vaccine's target range, children less than a year old, according to new research.

19 Jul 2010

Global drug distribution programs one factor in hastening drug resistance, report says

A Center for Global Development (CGD) report released Tuesday details factors leading to increased drug resistance worldwide, including drug distribution programs in developing countries, Reuters reports.

16 Jun 2010

Silver nanoparticles effective at killing all kinds of bacteria

Writing in the International Journal of Nanoparticles, Rani Pattabi and colleagues at Mangalore University, explain how blasting silver nitrate solution with an electron beam can generate nanoparticles that are more effective at killing all kinds of bacteria, including gram-negative species that are not harmed by conventional antibacterial agents.

25 May 2010

British Columbia first in Canada to include Prevnar 13 in routine child immunization program

British Columbia is leading the way in vaccinations to protect children from serious disease. The province is the first in Canada to include Prevnar 13, the vaccine that provides the broadest coverage available against Streptococcus pneumoniae that may cause invasive pneumococcal disease, in the routine child immunization program.

21 May 2010

FDA approves ZYMAXID ophthalmic solution for treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis

Allergan, Inc. today announced that the United States Food and Drug Administration has approved ZYMAXID (gatifloxacin ophthalmic solution) 0.5%, a topical fluoroquinolone anti-infective indicated for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis caused by susceptible strains of the following organisms; Haemophilus influenzae, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus mitis group, Streptococcus oralis, Streptococcus pneumonia.

20 May 2010

BUSM professor receives Individual Biomedical Research Award

Richard Goldstein, PhD, a professor of pediatrics, division of pediatric infectious diseases, at Boston University School of Medicine, has been awarded an Individual Biomedical Research Award by The Hartwell Foundation and will receive $300,000 over three years as a Hartwell Investigator for his project titled, "A Vaccine Against Streptococcus Pneumoniae Based on Bacterial Surface Proteins Phylogenically Certified as Highly Conserved."

23 Apr 2010

Preclinical study of DAS181 for treatment and prevention of ILI published

NexBio, Inc. announced today the publication in the Journal of Infectious Diseases of a preclinical study suggesting that treatment with DAS181 (Fludase®) may reduce the risk of secondary bacterial pneumonia following influenza virus infection.

30 Mar 2010

Pfizer to supply pneumococcal conjugate vaccines for infants and children

Pfizer Inc. today announced it has signed a 10-year Provisional Supply Agreement to supply Prevenar 13* (Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Conjugate Vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed]), the company’s 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, for infants and young children in the world’s poorest countries under the terms of the Advance Market Commitment (AMC) pilot project against pneumococcal disease.

24 Mar 2010

GSK joins GAVI Alliance in the Pneumococcal disease vaccine drive

GSK has become one of the first manufacturers to sign a unique agreement with the GAVI Alliance that has the potential to save millions of children from dying in the world's poorest countries. GSK will supply up to 300 million doses of its vaccine Synflorix, for invasive pneumococcal disease, to GAVI over a ten year period. Pneumococcal disease is a leading cause of death in children under the age of five in developing countries.

24 Mar 2010

New understanding of cell in immune system may guide creation of effective flu vaccines: Study

A new understanding of a certain cell in the immune system may help guide scientists in creating better flu vaccines, report researchers from the Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine and the Immune Disease Institute at Children's Hospital Boston.

23 Mar 2010

Genocea Biosciences acquires global license for novel Streptococcus pneumoniae antigens from Children’s Hospital Boston

Genocea Biosciences, a vaccine discovery and development company, today announced an exclusive worldwide license for developed countries to a portfolio of Streptococcus pneumoniae antigens from Children’s Hospital Boston. PATH and Genocea retain certain co-exclusive rights to the antigens for use in developing countries under their collaboration agreements with Children's Hospital Boston.

18 Mar 2010

Prevenar 13: Immunogenic and well tolerated in young children previously vaccinated with Prevenar

According to results from a Phase III safety and immunogenicity study presented today, Prevenar 13 (Pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine, [13-valent, adsorbed]) was shown to be immunogenic and generally well tolerated in healthy young children who had received at least three prior doses of Prevenar (Pneumococcal Saccharide Conjugated Vaccine, Adsorbed). These data were presented today at the 7th International Symposium on Pneumococci and Pneumococcal Diseases (ISPPD) in Tel Aviv, Israel.

17 Mar 2010