Disease/Infection News

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Researchers discover new class of antimalarial compounds

Researchers have discovered a group of chemical compounds that might one day be developed into drugs that can treat malaria infection in both the liver and the bloodstream.

18 Nov 2011

Kenya readies to step up fight against trachoma

AllAfrica.com reports on trachoma -- a chronic bacterial infection spread by direct contact with eye, nose and throat secretions from others who are infected -- in Kenya, profiling Kajiado County where the disease has reached the blinding stage in 3.4 percent of patients, "making it a serious public health problem in that region and many other similarly remote areas with little access to health care and screening."

18 Nov 2011

Future research critical to ending AIDS epidemic

Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC: Global Advocacy for HIV Prevention and a founding member of the Global Health Technologies Coalition, writing in The Hill's "Congress Blog," welcomes Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's November 8 announcement of "an additional $60 million for implementation of a combination of prevention strategies in four sub-Saharan African countries and evaluation of their impact," adding that "this funding can only be viewed as a down payment on the work that needs to be done."

18 Nov 2011

Report by aid watchdog group finds many international donors lack transparency

IRIN examines the results of a report by the aid watchdog group Publish What You Fund that examines "whether donors publish information about their budgets, their allocation and procurement policies, or audit reports on their own performance" and "finds that most international aid donors are still not open enough about their aid programs, and some offer no information at all."

18 Nov 2011

Examining funding in light of new evidence on HIV prevention, treatment strategies

In this Huffington Post opinion piece, Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development, reports on a World Bank- and USAID-sponsored debate she moderated last week as part of a series on HIV/AIDS issues, the topic of which was "Countries should spend a majority of what is likely to be a flat or even declining HIV prevention budget on 'treatment as prevention.'"

18 Nov 2011

First study to describe transporter system that bacteria use to ensure their survival

Bacteria responsible for middle ear infections, pink eye and sinusitis protect themselves from further immune attack by transporting molecules meant to destroy them away from their inner membrane target, according to a study from Nationwide Children's Hospital.

18 Nov 2011

IDSA supports 'Get Smart About Antibiotics Week'

With antibiotic-resistant infections increasingly common, and a dangerous lack of new infection fighters in the drug development pipeline, it's more important than ever to use existing antibiotics appropriately. This week, infectious disease experts are helping to educate consumers, health care providers, and policymakers about when antibiotics can help, when misuse of these lifesaving drugs can do more harm than good, and the tremendous need for new antibiotics to protect patients.

18 Nov 2011

MU scientist examines how enzymes influence immune system's ability to fight infection

The influenza virus remains a worldwide threat to humans, causing an average of 36,000 deaths and 200,000 hospitalizations each year in the United States alone. As health care professionals prepare for another flu season, a University of Missouri scientist is studying how two enzymes could be used to stop the virus in its tracks.

18 Nov 2011

Norway to focus on unnecessary use of antibiotics for asymptomatic UTI

European Antibiotic Awareness Day is being marked on Friday by health institutions throughout Europe. This year, Norway will focus on the unnecessary use of antibiotics to treat asymptomatic urinary tract infections.

18 Nov 2011

Swaziland government failed to pay more than $10M to children orphaned by AIDS, IMF official says

"Swaziland's government has failed to pay more than $10 million ... in grants to AIDS orphans because of its financial crisis, an IMF official has said" in a statement after visiting the country, BBC News reports.

18 Nov 2011

HuffPost Green examines relationship between environment, malaria

As part of its series on the relationships between human, animal and environmental health, titled "The Infection Loop," HuffPost Green examines how changes in climate and landscape, human movement, agricultural practices, and microbe adaptation are affecting the spread of malaria.

18 Nov 2011

Scientists discover family of chemical compounds that could prevent malaria

A international team led by scientists from the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation (GNF) and The Scripps Research Institute has discovered a family of chemical compounds that could lead to a new generation of antimalarial drugs capable of not only alleviating symptoms but also preventing the deadly disease.

17 Nov 2011

Eli Lilly provides $4M in additional funding to IDRI for new TB therapies

Eli Lilly and Company today announced that it is providing more than $4 million in additional funding to the Infectious Disease Research Institute. The funding will allow IDRI to continue its early phase drug discovery efforts focused on identifying new and better therapies in the fight against tuberculosis, including multidrug-resistant strains known as MDR-TB.

17 Nov 2011

Annual report on sexually transmitted infections reveals rising trends

New figures reveal that cases of some common sexually spread diseases continue to increase in the United States. These numbers come in the annual report on sexually transmitted disease released by health officials this Thursday.

17 Nov 2011

FrontlineSMS technology useful communication tool in HIV care

Ben Parfitt, a member of the Ugunja Research Team in Kenya, writes in the FrontlineSMS blog about using the open-source text and communication software to improve HIV care for patients using Kenyan health clinics.

17 Nov 2011

PlusNews examines shortages of HIV treatment supplies in Swaziland

PlusNews examines Swaziland's national shortages of antiretroviral (ARV) stocks, HIV tests, and lab tests necessary to initiate and manage HIV patients on treatment, and the country's efforts to find funding to prevent stock-outs of these supplies.

17 Nov 2011

Flu strains migrate back and forth between different regions of the world

Influenza researchers have found that flu strains migrate back and forth between different regions of the world, evolving along the way. This is contrary to the common belief that flu strains from the tropics are the source of global seasonal epidemics.

17 Nov 2011

CNN profiles Global Soap Project's work in sanitation

As part of its "CNN Heroes" series, CNN examines the Global Soap Project, started by Derreck Kayongo, a Ugandan war refugee and one of the Top 10 CNN Heroes of 2011. The organization works with more than 300 hotels in the U.S. to collect used bars of soap, clean them and reprocess them to be distributed in countries such as Haiti, Kenya, Swaziland and Uganda, CNN reports.

17 Nov 2011

Health officials report more than 200 cases of typhoid in Zimbabwe's capital

"Health authorities say 207 cases of typhoid are being treated in Zimbabwe's capital after a prolonged spell of unusually hot weather amid acute water shortages," the Associated Press/Seattle Times reports. Prosper Chonzi, Harare city council health director, "said Tuesday the disease will be difficult to contain in impoverished townships relying on water from shallow, makeshift wells and marshlands," and that "humanitarian agencies have been asked to help provide clean water," the news service writes.

17 Nov 2011

IAC executive director wins ECBT Immunization Leadership Award

The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) is proud to announce that its executive director, Deborah Wexler, MD, has been selected as the honoree of the Every Child By Two Immunization Leadership Award. Every Child By Two (ECBT), founded by former First Lady Rosalynn Carter and former First Lady of Arkansas Betty Bumpers, is dedicated to protecting all children from vaccine-preventable diseases.

17 Nov 2011