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Medivir initiates TMC649128 phase Ib trial in chronic hepatitis C

Medivir AB, the emerging research-based specialty pharmaceutical company focused on infectious diseases, today announces the start of a phase Ib clinical trial with TMC649128 intended for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

22 Jun 2011

Results of African malaria vaccine trial expected later this year

The final phase of testing for GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals' malaria vaccine, RTS,S, is underway in seven sub-Saharan African countries, and "if the results, due to be released later this, year confirm the vaccine's efficacy in preventing malaria, it could be made available as early as 2015," IRIN reports.

22 Jun 2011

Rats help tackle humanitarian issues

John Campbell, a senior fellow for Africa Policy Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, writes about "HeroRATs" in this CFR blog post.

22 Jun 2011

New study offers detailed look at the status of Lyme disease in Central Illinois

A new study offers a detailed look at the status of Lyme disease in Central Illinois and suggests that deer ticks and the Lyme disease bacteria they host are more adaptable to new habitats than previously appreciated.

22 Jun 2011

Poll: Few parents fully understand their role in preventing infections at water parks

Water parks offer families a chance to have fun and be physically active. That fun may come with the risk of getting sick with infections from the water, illnesses that affect over 10,000 Americans each year. One of the best ways to reduce the risk of infection is to make sure that parents and kids shower before playing at water parks.

21 Jun 2011

Do not overlook people with disabilities in HIV prevention efforts

Winstone Zulu, an adviser for AIDS-Free World and the coordinator of Health Triangle Zambia who walks with crutches because of a polio infection as a child, writes in a New York Times opinion piece that people with disabilities are rarely exposed to sex education and are almost never considered in need of information about H.I.V. and treatment for it.

21 Jun 2011

IPS examines U.N. Security Council's dealings with 'non-security' issues

Inter Press Service examines the changing scope of the U.N. Security Council.

21 Jun 2011

IPS examines access to treatment for drug-resistant TB

"Access to treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis remains compromised, especially in developing countries, because too few pharmaceutical companies manufacture quality-assured drugs," Inter Press Service reports in an article examining how a lack of competition and a working mechanism to keep prices low "has led to skyrocketing prices."

21 Jun 2011

Pakistan facing challenging TB epidemic

Pakistan has one of the highest rates of tuberculosis (TB) in the world, with nearly 70,000 TB-related deaths each year, Al-Jazeera English reports.

21 Jun 2011

Government and private sector must work together on HIV vaccine

The success of antiretroviral therapy for HIV/AIDS "has fooled us into believing HIV is under control. It is not. … The fact remains that no sexually acquired infection has ever been controlled in democratic societies except by vaccines," Lawrence Corey, president and director of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and principal investigator of the international HIV Vaccine Trials Network, writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece.

21 Jun 2011

Michelle Obama heads to Africa

"U.S. first lady Michelle Obama left for Africa on Sunday, embarking on her second official solo journey abroad with a goal of advancing U.S. policies on education, health, and democracy," Reuters reports. Obama is due to arrive in South Africa on Monday, "where she will make stops in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Later in the week she will visit Botswana," the news service notes.

21 Jun 2011

CDT biomarker poor, inaccurate method for detecting unhealthy drinking in HIV-infected adults

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that among HIV-infected adults with alcohol problems, measuring their carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) biomarker was a poor and inaccurate method for detecting unhealthy drinking.

21 Jun 2011

Study sheds new light on body's immune response to hepatitis A, C viruses

A surprising finding in a study comparing hepatitis C virus (HCV) with hepatitis A virus (HAV) infections in chimpanzees by a team that includes scientists from the Texas Biomedical Research Institute sheds new light on the nature of the body's immune response to these viruses.

21 Jun 2011

U.S. FDA approves generic Levaquin for treatment of bacterial infections

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the first generic versions of Levaquin, an antibiotic approved to treat certain infections in people ages 18 and older.

21 Jun 2011

Public-private partnerships leading to successes in HIV treatment and prevention

The recent achievements in studies looking at treatment as prevention "were only made possible by the partnership between publicly funded scientists and private drug companies," Ward Cates, president of research at FHI; Salim Abdool Karim, director of the Centre for the AIDS Program of Research in South Africa; and Myron Cohen, director of the UNC Division of Infectious Disease and the UNC Institute for Global Health and Infectious Disease, write in an opinion piece in the Huffington Post.

21 Jun 2011

Researchers find potentially dangerous fungus in common household appliances

A potentially pathogenic fungus has found a home living in extreme conditions in some of the most common household appliances, researchers have found. A new paper published in the British Mycological Society journal, Fungal Biology, published by Elsevier, shows that these sites make perfect habitats for extremotolerant fungi.

21 Jun 2011

Viewpoints: Compromises on fixing Medicare?; 'progress' on AIDS; working families falling behind

Fixing Medicare should not compromise patient care. The president's health care bill created the controversial Independent Payment Advisory Board. This panel of unelected bureaucrats, whose sole purpose is to decide whether to offer Medicare benefits based on a budget, could lead to government rationing of care.

21 Jun 2011

Concert earns $4M milestone payment from GSK collaboration

Concert Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that it has achieved a milestone in its strategic alliance with GlaxoSmithKline for its HIV protease inhibitor development program, resulting in a $4 million milestone payment to Concert.

20 Jun 2011

MA launches national campaign to raise awareness on meningitis

This Father's Day is a special day for Angels Dads on Meningitis (ADOM). Angel dads from across the country came together in Denver, Colorado to launch a national campaign on meningitis awareness.

20 Jun 2011

Mother and baby cytomegalovirus screening important to prevent consequences

According to health experts, pregnant women and newborns should be screened for a virus that causes brain damage and deafness. The study that appeared in the latest issue of The Medical Journal of Australia yesterday says hundreds of cases of cytomegalovirus (CMV) are likely being missed each year in Australia because of a lack of screening, denying babies treatment for the condition.

19 Jun 2011