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Genetic study defines link between primary sclerosing cholangitis and other autoimmune diseases

Researchers have newly associated nine genetic regions with a rare autoimmune disease of the liver known as primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). This brings the total number of genetic regions associated with the disease to 16.

22 Apr 2013

Researchers decipher the underlying mechanism of antiviral drug

A long-forgotten candidate for antiviral therapy is undergoing a renaissance: Since the 1970s, the small molecule CMA has been considered a potent agent against viral infections, yet it was never approved for clinical use.

22 Apr 2013

Study: Use of anti-TNF therapies in RA patients does not increase risk of herpes zoster

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who initiated use of anti-tumor necrosis factor therapies were not at a higher risk of developing herpes zoster (shingles), compared with patients who initiated nonbiologic treatment regimens, according to research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and the Oregon Health and Science University. The findings appeared in the March 6, 2013, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

22 Apr 2013

Vaccine development expensive but worthy of investment from Congress

During the last three decades, the biopharmaceutical industry has invested significantly in new and improved vaccines, and the collaborative efforts of the [CDC], [the WHO], national governments and industry have led to major progress in addressing global immunization goals and reducing illness and death due to vaccine-preventable diseases.

22 Apr 2013

Study confirms effectiveness of UV-C-emitting device in combating pathogens in hospital environment

A recent study funded by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Epicenters Program and published in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology ( Deverick H. Anderson , M.D., MPH et al., 2013) supports and expands on previously published studies confirming the effectiveness of an automated UV-C-emitting device to combat the pathogens Clostridium difficile (C. diff.), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and Acinetobacter spp. – some of the common culprits of health care-associated infections drawing increased attention for hospitals across the country.

20 Apr 2013

State Department hosts online discussions on foreign aid, HIV/AIDS

Richard Buangan, director of digital engagement at the U.S. State Department, notes in the agency's "DipNote" blog that Secretary of State John Kerry will participate in a Google+ hangout on Friday, April 19, at 1:15 pm EDT.

20 Apr 2013

Reports examine issues of HIV treatment among prisoners, sex workers, sexual minorities in Zambia

"The recent arrest of Zambian HIV treatment and human rights advocate Paul Kasonkomona for only talking about legal barriers to HIV and other health services for Zambians who are prisoners, sex workers or members of sexual minorities, raises the question of how those barriers can be addressed by the country's board charged with distributing money from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria" -- the Country Coordinating Mechanism, the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog writes.

20 Apr 2013

Sustain U.S. global AIDS financing to achieve AIDS-free generation

"The persistent shortchanging of PEPFAR, the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, is one of the more significant and perplexing trends in America's global health policy," Chris Collins, vice president and director of public policy at amfAR: The Foundation for AIDS Research, writes in the Huffington Post's "The Big Push" blog.

20 Apr 2013

Health experts in China working to identify source, transmission routes of H7N9 flu virus

"Fifteen global and Chinese health experts are on a mission in Beijing and Shanghai to learn more about the H7N9 bird flu virus that has killed 17 people and sickened 70 others, said Dr. Michael O'Leary, head of WHO's office in China," the Associated Press reports (Wong, 4/19).

20 Apr 2013

Editorials address China's response to emergence of H7N9 bird flu strain

"The H7N9 strain contains gene sequences that make it relatively effective, for a bird virus, at infecting humans and other mammals," Bloomberg writes.

20 Apr 2013

Circumcision lowers bacterial load, possibly allowing for HIV infection risk reduction, researchers say

"Circumcision reduces a man's risk of acquiring and transmitting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, and now researchers have found a possible explanation: the procedure reduces the quantity and diversity of bacteria at the head of the penis," the New York Times' "Well" blog reports (Bakalar, 4/18).

20 Apr 2013

High dietary salt combined with ulcer infection greatly increases risk of gastric cancer

Numerous epidemiologic studies have shown that a diet high in salt is associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer.

19 Apr 2013

BIIR researchers report results of comparative study of molecular immune responses to influenza and pneumococcal vaccines

In a manuscript published today in Immunity, scientists at the Baylor Institute for Immunology Research (BIIR) and the Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason report the results of a comparative study of the molecular immune responses to influenza and pneumococcal vaccines.

19 Apr 2013

Research shows respiratory syncytial virus can be transferred during pregnancy to unborn baby

The most common cause of lower respiratory tract infections in infants and young children, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), can be transferred during pregnancy to an unborn baby, according to Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital research published online this week in the journal PLOS ONE.

19 Apr 2013

New technique developed at MU may make food contamination testing more rapid, accurate

Sales of chicken products in China plummeted recently during an outbreak of a deadly new strain of bird flu. From bird flu to mad cow disease, numerous food scares have made global headlines in recent years.

19 Apr 2013

Nature reports on efforts to vaccinate Nigeria's nomadic communities against polio

"A 25-year, $10 billion global effort has taken the number of polio cases from hundreds of thousands per year to just hundreds, but it is now struggling to stamp the virus out of its final strongholds in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria, where transmission has never been interrupted," Nature reports.

19 Apr 2013

Key points about the Global Fund from Executive Director Dybul

Writing in the International Health Policies blog, Rachel Hammonds of the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Belgium, writes about a "panel discussion organized by several [members of the European Parliament], the Stop Aids Alliance and others at the European Parliament on 8 April" that discussed the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

19 Apr 2013

International research team casting wide net in search for H7N9 source, transmission routes

"Another case of bird flu has been reported in China, taking the total infection count to 83 people, as health authorities inside and outside the country try to determine how to stop its spread," CNN reports.

19 Apr 2013

SynCon universal H1N1 influenza vaccine generates protective antibody levels in phase 1 study

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that its SynCon universal H1N1 influenza vaccine generated protective antibody levels comparable to a current FDA-approved seasonal influenza vaccine against a currently circulating influenza strain.

19 Apr 2013

Blog examines implications of synthetic artemisinin production for global health

"This week, PATH and our partners celebrated the official launch of the production line for a new synthetic version of artemisinin, the key ingredient for the gold-standard malaria treatment -- one that plays a major role in protecting the lives of children and adults worldwide," PATH President and CEO Steve Davis writes in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog.

19 Apr 2013

Disease/Infection News

Genetic study defines link between primary sclerosing cholangitis and other autoimmune diseases

Researchers decipher the underlying mechanism of antiviral drug

Study: Use of anti-TNF therapies in RA patients does not increase risk of herpes zoster

Vaccine development expensive but worthy of investment from Congress

Study confirms effectiveness of UV-C-emitting device in combating pathogens in hospital environment

State Department hosts online discussions on foreign aid, HIV/AIDS

Reports examine issues of HIV treatment among prisoners, sex workers, sexual minorities in Zambia

Sustain U.S. global AIDS financing to achieve AIDS-free generation

Health experts in China working to identify source, transmission routes of H7N9 flu virus

Editorials address China's response to emergence of H7N9 bird flu strain

Circumcision lowers bacterial load, possibly allowing for HIV infection risk reduction, researchers say

High dietary salt combined with ulcer infection greatly increases risk of gastric cancer

BIIR researchers report results of comparative study of molecular immune responses to influenza and pneumococcal vaccines

Research shows respiratory syncytial virus can be transferred during pregnancy to unborn baby

New technique developed at MU may make food contamination testing more rapid, accurate

Nature reports on efforts to vaccinate Nigeria's nomadic communities against polio

Key points about the Global Fund from Executive Director Dybul

International research team casting wide net in search for H7N9 source, transmission routes

SynCon universal H1N1 influenza vaccine generates protective antibody levels in phase 1 study

Blog examines implications of synthetic artemisinin production for global health

Real-time Raman monitoring for pharmaceutical hot melt extrusion

Synthetic Psychedelics: A Growing Public Health Concern

How the Vutara VXL simplifies single-molecule imaging

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