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Researchers describe novel mechanism of HIV-1 spread by dendritic cells

A new understanding of the initial interactions of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and dendritic cells is described by Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers in a study currently featured in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

24 Apr 2012

Text messaging increases flu vaccination coverage in low-income children

A text messaging intervention with education-related messages sent to parents increased influenza vaccination coverage compared with usual care in a traditionally hard-to-reach, low-income, urban, minority population of children and adolescents, although coverage overall remained low, according to a study in the April 25 issue of JAMA.

24 Apr 2012

U.S. gives go-ahead on publication of H5N1 research; Dutch regulators continue to debate

The U.S. government on Friday formally accepted a recommendation from the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) "to publish two controversial studies of the H5N1 avian influenza virus, moving the pair of papers another step closer to publication," ScienceInsider reports.

24 Apr 2012

Women & Infants named lead center in 14-site study of cytomegalovirus

Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, through its participation in the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network, has been named the lead center in a 14-site, $25 million study of cytomegalovirus (CMV), the most common infection during pregnancy.

24 Apr 2012

Strategic innovations will help prevent HIV transmission from mothers to children, high-level meeting attendees state

At a High-Level Meeting on Innovation for Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission (EMTCT) on Friday in Washington, D.C., "HIV experts, business leaders, aid agencies and ambassadors of 22 priority countries -- home to 90 percent of new HIV infections among children --" agreed that strategic innovations are necessary to curb the spread of the virus from women to their children, PANA/Afrique en Linge reports.

24 Apr 2012

Measles deaths down by 74% worldwide over last decade: Study

According to a new study by the World Health Organization (WHO) the number of measles deaths worldwide has apparently dropped by about three-quarters over a decade. However most of these deaths were in India and Africa, where not enough children are being immunized the report said.

24 Apr 2012

ICDs may increase risk of complications in patients with infective endocarditis

Patients with infective endocarditis involving implanted cardiac devices experience a high rate of complications such as valve infections, heart failure, and persistent bacteremia, and high in-hospital and 1-year mortality rates, particularly if there is valve involvement, according to a study in the April 25 issue of JAMA.

24 Apr 2012

Bartonella bacterium may also play a role in human arthritis

A bacterium historically associated with cat scratch fever and transmitted predominately by fleas may also play a role in human rheumatoid illnesses such as arthritis, according to new research from North Carolina State University.

24 Apr 2012

Vietnam asks for international help to tackle mystery skin disease

Vietnam has asked for international aid to get to the bottom of a mystery skin infection that has already killed 19 people. More than 170 people in the country's central province of Quang Ngai have reported symptoms reports say.

23 Apr 2012

Medgenics seeks FDA Orphan Drug Designation for INFRADURE to treat hepatitis D

Medgenics, Inc., the developer of a novel technology for the sustained production and delivery of therapeutic proteins in patients using their own tissue, today announced that it has filed for Orphan Drug Designation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for INFRADURE for the treatment of hepatitis D.

23 Apr 2012

Kenyan government must review law on counterfeit drugs, High Court rules

"Kenya's High Court ruled on Friday that lawmakers must review legislation that could threaten the import of generic drugs, allowing Kenyans to continue accessing affordable medicine," Reuters reports.

23 Apr 2012

Herpes zoster vaccine safe and well tolerated: Study

The herpes zoster vaccine, also known as the shingles vaccine, is generally safe and well tolerated according to a Vaccine Safety Datalink study of 193,083 adults published online in the Journal of Internal Medicine.

23 Apr 2012

MicuRx completes MRX-I Phase 1 trial on MRSA and VRE infection

MicuRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately-held biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation antibiotics, today announced the completion of its Phase 1 clinical trial for MRX-I, its first development-stage antibiotic drug candidate.

23 Apr 2012

BAMC/SAMMC researcher develops microemulsion vaccine carrier

A researcher at the Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC)/San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC) will present findings this week on a new potential vaccine carrier that he hopes will extend the shelf life of and aid in the stockpiling of critical vaccines.

23 Apr 2012

Preliminary data hint at how neem extracts may stop replication of HIV virus

Tall, with dark-green pointy leaves, the neem tree of India is known as the "village pharmacy." As a child growing up in metropolitan New Delhi, Sonia Arora recalls on visits to rural areas seeing villagers using neem bark to clean their teeth. Arora's childhood memories have developed into a scientific fascination with natural products and their power to cure illnesses.

23 Apr 2012

Praziquantel drug can safely cure snail fever in infants

Thousands of pre-school children in Africa could benefit from access to treatment for an endemic disease, after tests showed infants to be at high risk of infection.

23 Apr 2012

Study shows how MRSA epidemics may emerge and spread at molecular level

National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists and their colleagues in China have described a rapidly emerging Staphylococcus aureus gene, called sasX, which plays a pivotal role in establishing methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) epidemics in most of Asia.

23 Apr 2012

Measles report card for 2011 shows too many cases

According to the CDC in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, last year was the worst year for measles in the U.S. in 15 years. They report that there were 222 cases of measles, a large jump from the 60 or so seen in a typical year. Most of the cases last year were imported — either by foreign visitors or by U.S. residents who picked up the virus overseas.

22 Apr 2012

Scientists identify link between different strains of malaria parasites

Scientists have identified a link between different strains of malaria parasites that cause severe disease, which could help develop vaccines or drugs against life-threatening cases of the infection.

21 Apr 2012

Single biennial HIV prevention conference planned

This year's International Microbicides Conference, held this week in Sydney, "will be the last of its kind" because "from 2014 onwards, it is planned, a single biennial conference on all aspects of HIV prevention will be held," according to an aidsmap news story.

21 Apr 2012