Tropical Disease News and Research

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Tropical diseases encompass all diseases that occur solely, or principally, in the tropics. In practice, the term is often taken to refer to infectious diseases that thrive in hot, humid conditions, such as malaria, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, onchocerciasis, lymphatic filariasis, Chagas disease, African trypanosomiasis, and dengue.

Pfizer and DNDi to battle against HAT, VL and Chagas disease

Pfizer Inc and Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) have signed an agreement that is designed to facilitate advancements in the battle against human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and Chagas disease, which afflict vulnerable populations in the developing world.

19 Nov 2009

TIME Magazine journalist honored with ASTMH Communications Award

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) today honored TIME Magazine Foreign Correspondent Vivienne Walt with its Communications Award during the opening ceremony of its 58th annual meeting.

19 Nov 2009

Regulatory agencies offer marketing approval for new products to treat neglected diseases

New products to treat neglected diseases have received marketing approval from regulatory agencies at a steadily increasing rate in recent years as R&D funding for those diseases has increased, according to a recently completed study by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development.

18 Nov 2009

Drug companies collaborate with nonprofit organizations to fight "neglected" diseases in the developing world

Drug companies and nonprofit organizations are joining forces to develop new drugs and vaccines to target so-called "neglected" diseases that claim millions of lives in the developing world each year. Those hard-to-treat diseases include malaria, tuberculosis, dengue fever, and other conditions. That's the topic of the cover story scheduled for the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News, ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

12 Nov 2009

Human movement is a key factor for dengue spread in Brazil

Human movement is a key factor of dengue virus inflow in Rio de Janeiro, according to results from researchers based at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) in Brazil. The results, based on data from a severe epidemic in 2007-2008, contribute to new understanding on the dynamics of dengue fever in the second largest city in Brazil. Details are published November 10 in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

10 Nov 2009

WHO, MSF highlight poor health situation in Southern Sudan

Three quarters of people in South Sudan, which has a population of 8 million, do not have access to health care, and 10 percent of children there and in Darfur die before the age of 1, Mohammad Abdur Rab, the WHO's representative to Sudan, said Thursday, Reuters/ABC News reports.

7 Nov 2009

Publications examine U.S. funding for global HIV/AIDS

In light of a Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) report calling for sustained HIV/AIDS funding, VOA News writes: "Many AIDS-related groups and activists have been calling on U.S. President Barack Obama to fulfill his funding pledges made during the presidential campaign. But are they asking too much, considering the economic downturn?" Sharonann Lynch, an HIV policy advisor for MSF, said, "PEPFAR has the opportunity to save six million lives and it shouldn't settle for three."

6 Nov 2009

Scientists identify compounds that hold promise for treating parasitic infection

Using an unconventional approach that they designed, University of Pittsburgh drug discoverers and their collaborators at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research have identified compounds that hold promise for treating leishmaniasis, a parasitic infection that many consider one of the world's most overlooked diseases.

4 Nov 2009

Health affairs issue focuses on HIV/AIDS, NTDs

By 2031 developing countries could need an estimated $35 billion to fight HIV/AIDS - three times the amount currently spent, according to a Health Affairs study published Tuesday, the New York Times reports.

3 Nov 2009

Challenges in global health: rising to meet them could save millions of lives, say experts

Responding to the HIV/AIDS pandemic and tackling so-called neglected tropical diseases are the focus of the November/December 2009 edition of Health Affairs. The articles, by leading global health experts from around the world, show that although these challenges differ dramatically, rising to meet them could save millions of lives.

3 Nov 2009

Advocates call for increased U.S. investment in global health

A report released Thursday (.pdf) by a group of global health advocates outlines ways the U.S. can work toward increasing access to health care throughout the world, Inter Press Service reports. They call "for doubling U.S. aid to global health projects from the current level of nearly eight billion dollars a year to 16 billion by 2011," followed by "annual increase[s] leading to a six-year total investment of 95 billion dollars."

30 Oct 2009

Recent releases in Global Health

"Action always leads to reaction, a fundamental law of nature," write the authors of an introduction appearing in a Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (JAIDS) supplemental issue that focuses on global health systems.

30 Oct 2009

New York Times examines journal editorial on neglected tropical diseases in Islamic nations

The New York Times examines the conclusions drawn in a recent PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases editorial that the Islamic world is suffering from a "devastating burden" of neglected tropical diseases.

27 Oct 2009

Genomics can provide insights in understanding emerging infectious disease

This week, the Public Library of Science, an open-access publisher, presents the "Genomics of Emerging Infectious Disease," a collection of essays, perspectives, and reviews that explores how genomics-with all its associated tools and techniques-can provide insights into our understanding of emerging infectious disease.

27 Oct 2009

Scidev.Net examines African Network for Drugs and Diagnosis Innovation

SciDev.Net examines a recent conference in Cape Town, South Africa, where almost "300 researchers and health policymakers from across the continent" came together and approved a 2010-2015 business plan for the the African Network for Drugs and Diagnosis Innovation (ANDI).

9 Oct 2009

Research on malarial drugs for travelers

A new review of existing research finds that a combination drug and the common antibiotic doxycycline allow travelers to fend off malaria with the fewest side effects in areas where the parasite is resistant to a widely accepted preventive treatment.

7 Oct 2009

Researchers to investigate Buruli ulcer outbreaks

Knowing what causes a disease may not make it easier to control and contain infection, but understanding how humans become infected and where the pathogens live may improve control.

6 Oct 2009

Commitments announced at the Clinton Global Initiative

The second day of the Fifth Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) came to a close with a special session on Northern Ireland, following afternoon plenary and breakout sessions that focused on harnessing innovation for development.

24 Sep 2009

Clinton Global Initiative to raise awareness and funding for NTD control and elimination

At the Clinton Global Initiative today, the Inter-American Development Bank joined with the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases to announce their commitment to mobilize $30 million from the public and private sectors to raise awareness and funding for NTD control and elimination in the Americas, supported by technical assistance from the Pan American Health Organization, regional office of the World Health Organization for the Americas.

24 Sep 2009

Also in global health news: Combating sleeping sickness in eastern Africa; China commits to developing countries; Latin America development

The African Development Bank on Tuesday announced it will award eastern African countries $70 million to help fight the neglected tropical disease, trypanasomiasis, commonly known as sleeping sickness, over six years, the Monitor/allAfrica.com reports (Pacutho, 9/22).

23 Sep 2009