Disease/Infection News

RSS

Congressman 'dissatisfied' with handling of controversial H5N1 papers calls for cohesive policy for handling 'risky' research

"Dissatisfied with the government's handling of two research papers on mutant forms of avian influenza," Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.) on Wednesday "said that the lack of a cohesive policy for handling risky research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other federal agencies could necessitate new laws, a situation that researchers have been trying to avoid," the Nature News Blog reports.

29 Jun 2012

AHF urges Gilead to set initial price on latest HIV/AIDS drug combination

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) announced that California State Treasurer Bill Lockyer has sent a letter to California-based drug company, Gilead Sciences, Inc. urging the company to set an initial price on its latest HIV/AIDS drug combination—which is known as the 'Quad'—that is "…sensitive to ongoing state budget difficulties," and which will also "…provide the means to keep people with HIV/AIDS alive and as healthy as possible."

28 Jun 2012

UTMB researchers improve existing experimental vaccine for Rift Valley fever virus

University of Texas Medical Branch researchers have significantly improved an existing experimental vaccine for Rift Valley fever virus, making possible the development of a more effective defense against the dangerous mosquito-borne pathogen.

28 Jun 2012

Efforts to fight illegal drugs contributing to spread of HIV, report says

The Global Commission on Drug Policy (GCDP) on Tuesday published a report titled "The War on Drugs and HIV/AIDS: How the Criminalization of Drug Use Fuels the Global Pandemic," which "condemns the drug war as a failure and recommends immediate, major reforms of the global drug prohibition regime to halt the spread of HIV infection and other drug war harms," according to the report summary.

28 Jun 2012

World must work together to take advantage of 'unique opportunity' to end polio

"Ten years after Europe was declared polio-free, the world stands tantalizingly close to eradicating the disease for good," but "the world's chances of achieving this once unthinkable goal of ending polio are being jeopardized by a funding gap of $945 million," Sir Liam Donaldson, chair of the Independent Monitoring Board of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, writes in this EurActiv.com opinion piece.

28 Jun 2012

Ghana to contribute $1M to fight NTDs

Ghana "will contribute about $1 million towards the prevention and control of endemic neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in order to protect the gains made by the country in Guinea worm eradication and the elimination of trachoma," the country's health minister announced on Monday at the opening of a Regional Stakeholders' Consultative Meeting on NTDs, PANA/AfriqueJet reports. Health Minister Albin Bagbin "also called on African countries to support interventions to address NTDs and improve coordination among all stakeholders in implementing NTD programs," the news agency writes.

28 Jun 2012

Miriam Hospital receives NIH renewal grant to support growth of Lifespan/Tufts/Brown CFAR

The Miriam Hospital has received an $8.5 million, five-year renewal grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support the continued growth of the Lifespan/Tufts/Brown Center for AIDS Research (CFAR).

28 Jun 2012

U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator reflects on lessons learned from PEPFAR's first decade

In this post in the Department of State's "DipNote" blog, U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador Eric Goosby reflects on his speech at the Brookings Institution on Tuesday in anticipation of the AIDS 2012 conference scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C. from July 22-27.

28 Jun 2012

U of S training program receives $1.65 million over six years from NSERC

A new University of Saskatchewan training program that will produce future leaders in food safety, infectious disease control and public policy has been awarded $1.65 million over six years through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council's Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE) program.

28 Jun 2012

Senior Taliban commander bans polio vaccination efforts in Southern region of Pakistan

"A senior Taliban commander has effectively banned polio eradication in one of the most troubled areas of the Pakistan frontier in an effort to force the U.S. to end drone strikes," the Guardian reports. "Leaflets distributed in South Waziristan on behalf of Mullah Nazir, the leader of the Federally Administered Tribal Agencies (Fata), accused health workers who administer anti-polio drops of being U.S. spies" and "questioned the sincerity of international efforts to tackle the highly infectious disease," the newspaper adds.

28 Jun 2012

UNFPA Executive Director calls for international community to put family planning back on 'radar'

UNFPA Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin on Tuesday told the Associated Press that the world should focus more on family planning issues, stating that "'family planning seems to have fallen off the radar' in the past two decades -- a victim of politics, funding shortages and focus on other priorities such as fighting AIDS," the news service reports.

28 Jun 2012

Nanosphere receives FDA marketing approval for Verigene GP Blood Culture Nucleic Acid Test

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today allowed marketing of the first nucleic acid test that can identify 12 different bacterial types known to cause bloodstream infections.

28 Jun 2012

Gay dads may experience lifestyle shifts that could reduce HIV risk

Gay parents face many of the same challenges as straight parents when it comes to sex and intimacy after having children, according to a new study of gay fathers published in the journal Couple and Family Psychology.

28 Jun 2012

International AIDS Society, Kaiser Family Foundation partner to offer free comprehensive daily coverage of AIDS 2012

"The International AIDS Society (IAS), custodian of the International AIDS Conference, and the Kaiser Family Foundation will provide free, worldwide online access to the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) taking place in Washington, D.C.," from July 22 to 27, a joint Kaiser/IAS press release reports.

28 Jun 2012

Gilead submits elvitegravir NDA with FDA for treatment of HIV-1 infection

Gilead Sciences, Inc. announced today it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing approval of elvitegravir, an integrase inhibitor for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in treatment-experienced adults.

28 Jun 2012

Health Canada approves AutoGenomics’ INFINITI PGx testing system

AutoGenomics, a leader in providing automated, molecular microarray testing solutions, announced today that they have received their first Health Canada Medical Device Class III approvals for their automated INFINITI Pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing system.

28 Jun 2012

Researchers design microparticles that can deliver oxygen quickly into the bloodstream

Patients unable to breathe because of acute lung failure or an obstructed airway need another way to get oxygen to their blood—and fast—to avoid cardiac arrest and brain injury. A team led by researchers at Boston Children's Hospital has designed tiny, gas-filled microparticles that can be injected directly into the bloodstream to quickly oxygenate the blood.

28 Jun 2012

GSD receives FDA clearance for next-generation Lyme disease Line Immunoassay

Gold Standard Diagnostics (GSD) today announced FDA clearance of its next-generation Lyme disease Line Immunoassay which offers excellent specificity and sensitivity at any disease stage.

28 Jun 2012

Gates Foundation blog highlights work of CDC Kenya

In this post in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, editor Amie Newman, a communications officer at the foundation, highlights the work of "two HIV home-visit health workers who work with the CDC Kenya (Centers for Disease Control) to visit with a family in a remote area in the Nyanza province."

27 Jun 2012

New York Times examines bird flu studies, history of controversy

The New York Times examines several studies published in the journals Nature and Science looking at how the H5N1 bird flu virus could mutate to become more virulent among humans and outlines the history of controversy surrounding the studies.

27 Jun 2012

Disease/Infection News

Congressman 'dissatisfied' with handling of controversial H5N1 papers calls for cohesive policy for handling 'risky' research

AHF urges Gilead to set initial price on latest HIV/AIDS drug combination

UTMB researchers improve existing experimental vaccine for Rift Valley fever virus

Efforts to fight illegal drugs contributing to spread of HIV, report says

World must work together to take advantage of 'unique opportunity' to end polio

Ghana to contribute $1M to fight NTDs

Miriam Hospital receives NIH renewal grant to support growth of Lifespan/Tufts/Brown CFAR

U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator reflects on lessons learned from PEPFAR's first decade

U of S training program receives $1.65 million over six years from NSERC

Senior Taliban commander bans polio vaccination efforts in Southern region of Pakistan

UNFPA Executive Director calls for international community to put family planning back on 'radar'

Nanosphere receives FDA marketing approval for Verigene GP Blood Culture Nucleic Acid Test

Gay dads may experience lifestyle shifts that could reduce HIV risk

International AIDS Society, Kaiser Family Foundation partner to offer free comprehensive daily coverage of AIDS 2012

Gilead submits elvitegravir NDA with FDA for treatment of HIV-1 infection

Health Canada approves AutoGenomics’ INFINITI PGx testing system

Researchers design microparticles that can deliver oxygen quickly into the bloodstream

GSD receives FDA clearance for next-generation Lyme disease Line Immunoassay

Gates Foundation blog highlights work of CDC Kenya

New York Times examines bird flu studies, history of controversy

How GLP‑1 Agonists Are Shaping the Future of Obesity Treatment With Dr Bryony Henderson

Flow chemistry, AI, and NMR: A next-gen approach to scalable API production

Digital pathology and the PathoVerse: A conversation with Dr. Singh

Latest News