Disease/Infection News

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Computationally designed antiviral proteins may fight against influenza

A research article May 12 in Science demonstrates the use of computational methods to design new antiviral proteins not found in nature, but capable of targeting specific surfaces of flu virus molecules.

16 May 2011

Global health Product Development Partners consortium select GVK BIO as preferred provider

GVK Biosciences, Asia's leading drug discovery research & development organization announced today that it has been selected as a preferred provider to a consortium of 14 global Product Development Partners (PDPs) for clinical services in Asia. GVK BIO is the only partner that is headquartered in India.

16 May 2011

Pre-existing malaria prevents secondary infection by another Plasmodium strain

A team of researchers have found that pre-existing malaria prevents secondary infection by another Plasmodium strain, the parasite responsible for malaria, by restricting iron availability in the liver of the host.

16 May 2011

Early HIV treatment can reduce transmission risk by 96%, preliminary study results show

Preliminary results from a multicountry clinical trial, sponsored by the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), show that HIV-positive people who take combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) can reduce the risk of transmitting the virus to their HIV-negative partners by 96 percent, U.S. researchers announced on Thursday " in what is being hailed as a breakthrough in HIV prevention," the Los Angeles Times reports.

16 May 2011

Hospital patients with pneumonia may face risk of sudden cardiac arrest

Hospital patients with pneumonia may be at risk of experiencing sudden cardiac arrest, often with few or no warning signs, according to research from the University of Chicago Medical Center under the auspices of the American Heart Association's Get with the Guidelines project.

16 May 2011

Merck receives FDA approval for Victrelis to treat chronic hepatitis C

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Victrelis (boceprevir) to treat certain adults with chronic hepatitis C. Victrelis is used for patients who still have some liver function, and who either have not been previously treated with drug therapy for their hepatitis C or who have failed such treatment.

16 May 2011

AIDS spread prevention by vaccine and anti HIV drugs

A latest vaccine against HIV/AIDS has shown to be effective in monkeys and has protected macaques the most widespread primate genus, against the monkey equivalent of HIV, Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV). This could provide a fresh approach to an HIV vaccine, a study suggests. US researchers say the vaccine offered protection to 13 of 24 Rhesus macaques treated in the experiment. In 12 of the monkeys, the vaccine was still effective 12 months later.

15 May 2011

MRSA superbug detected in bed bugs and supermarket meats: Report

Scientists have made an alarming discovery. They have found that bedbugs can carry the staph “superbug” MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus).

15 May 2011

Fiji ban on gatherings to curb typhoid outbreak

The health ministry of Fiji has issued a ban on public gatherings in the province of Bua due to an outbreak of typhoid. It has been reported that since January, 41 cases were recorded in Bua, in the northern island of Vanua Levu, with many concentrated in small villages. Fiji's main island of Viti Levu bore the brunt of a major Typhoid outbreak this time last year. At this stage, there have only been isolated cases.

15 May 2011

Early treatment of HIV makes infection transmission less likely: Study

“It's a game-changer,” Michel Sidibe, executive director of UNAIDS, said. “I am completely amazed.” It was noted that anti-HIV drugs called antiretroviral drugs can suppress HIV in an infected patient and also help to prevent its spread through intercourse, he said. He predicted a rethink of the strategies that have evolved since the first cases of AIDS were recorded in June 1981. “The implications are multiple,” said Mr Sidibe. “However, money will be the major challenge.”

15 May 2011

Jamaican organizations will receive PEPFAR grants to fight HIV/AIDS stigma

Five Jamaican organizations on Tuesday signed agreements with the U.S. Ambassador's HIV Program to receive PEPFAR-funded grants totaling $58,000 for projects aimed at reducing HIV/AIDS-related stigma, the Jamaica Observer reports.

13 May 2011

Increase in public health spending linked with reduction of pandemic influenza mortality

Pandemic A (H1N1) 2009 mortality rates exhibited wide diversion between countries. Based on data from a total of 30 European countries, a study published in the journal PLoS ONE found that the greater the state financial "generosity" to health sector the lower the pandemic influenza mortality.

13 May 2011

PBS' NewsHour reports on Ukraine's efforts to fight HIV/AIDS

PBS' NewsHour on Wednesday featured a story on HIV/AIDS in the Ukraine, which has Europe's highest HIV/AIDS rate, increasing fears that the epidemic could spread to neighboring countries. The story focuses on attempts to implement drug substitution therapy programs for injecting drug users and prevent the virus from moving into the general population.

13 May 2011

Zaire ebolavirus may replicate in pigs and transmit to other animals

Canadian investigators have shown that a species of ebolavirus from Zaire that is highly virulent in humans can replicate in pigs, cause disease, and be transmitted to animals previously unexposed to the virus.

13 May 2011

Shared wind instruments may cause sickness

Germs survive for several days in wind instruments including the clarinet, flute, and saxophone, according to a pilot study published in the International Journal of Environmental Health Research. The researchers, led by Stuart Levy, MD, of Tufts University School of Medicine, urge proper cleaning of these instruments.

13 May 2011

Opinion: Three-pronged approach needed to fight malaria

A closer look provides a valuable reminder that sustained gains against malaria must be built upon a three-legged 'stool'.

13 May 2011

Opinion: Haiti's cholera epidemic endures

"The United Nations' overall appeal to respond to the [Haiti cholera] epidemic, for $175 million, is 48 percent financed. Haiti's continuing health emergency may have been overlooked in a crush of world events, but while the sick and dying are waiting for the world to respond, the disease is not".

13 May 2011

Two DIFICID Phase 3 trial data in C. difficile infection presented at AGS Annual Meeting

Optimer Pharmaceuticals today announced the presentation of an additional analysis of data from the company's two Phase 3 clinical trials of DIFICID, an investigational antibiotic for the treatment of Clostridium difficile Infection, at the American Geriatric Society (AGS) Annual Meeting held in National Harbor, Maryland.

13 May 2011

Tips for fighting drug-resistant superbugs

Superbug CRKP is just the latest in emerging strains of drug-resistant bacteria. While new drugs to combat these stealthy microbes like MRSA and CRKP remain in development what can we do to prevent catching and spreading these dangerous bugs?.

13 May 2011

Gene manipulation can improve survival rates during sepsis infection

Sepsis is a major killer in hospital intensive care units. Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have found that manipulating a genetic factor that can launch or throttle the body's defenses can improve survival rates during bacterial infection.

13 May 2011