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WHO expert: Faster MDR-TB test should be made available to vulnerable populations

A new diagnostic tool that shortens the diagnosis of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) from eight weeks to two hours should be made available to vulnerable populations according to a WHO expert, Reuters reports.

31 Jul 2010

Need for shelter in Haiti; Avoiding disease outbreaks; Presidential election

USAID Director Rajiv Shah "says shelter and rubble removal are immediate priorities in the reconstruction efforts in earthquake-devastated Haiti," VOA News reports. Shah briefed the House Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere Thursday, and also "said between 300,000 and 400,000 units of shelter are needed. He said aid workers are trying to provide about 135,000 transitional structures right now."

31 Jul 2010

Research establishes bases of possible future pharmaceutical drugs to combat AIDS virus

The doors are closing on the AIDS virus. The scientific community continues to strive to find the formula that will halt the advance of one of the viruses that has sparked most scientific interest over recent years. A study by the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cient-ficas (CSIC) and led by Mr F-lix Go-i, director of the Biophysics Unit at the CSIC-University of the Basque Country Mixed Centre, has developed a method of attack against the AIDS virus The method involves creating a prevention system, i.e. an 'armour' in the cells that are likely to be infected and thus impede, de facto, the virus from accessing them and starting to act on their immunological system.

31 Jul 2010

Study finds ST131 a major cause of antimicrobial-resistant E. coli infections

The new strain, ST131, was a major cause of serious antimicrobial-resistant E. coli infections in the United States in 2007, researchers found. This strain has been reported in multiple countries and encountered all over the United States. In the study, researchers analyzed resistant E. coli isolates collected during 2007 from hospitalized patients across the country. They identified 54 ST131 isolates, which accounted for 67 percent to 69 percent of E. coli isolates exhibiting fluoroquinolone or extended-spectrum cephalosporin resistance.

31 Jul 2010

Opinions: IDUs and HIV; AIDS 2010; International Violence Against Women Act

In a Los Angeles Times opinion piece, Evan Wood, associate professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia, writes about the Vienna Declaration, a document he helped to draft, that calls for international leaders to revise drug policies to incorporate greater scientific evidence and promote HIV prevention, treatment and care for drug users.

31 Jul 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

A Center for Global Development memo offers suggestions for the U.S. to improve its commitment to policies that benefit poor countries after it ranked 17th out of 22 wealthy in the 2009 Commitment to Development Index. Among a set of 20 recommendations, the authors suggest the U.S. "[i]ncrease foreign aid, especially through such vehicles as the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), which gives to relatively well-governed countries, or a global 'Cash on Delivery' fund that would pay countries after making confirmed progress toward agreed-upon outcomes, thereby reducing the proliferation of aid projects," the authors write(Prieto/Roodman).

31 Jul 2010

GSK anticipates to supply over 30 million doses of FLULAVAL, FLUARIX for 2010-2011 flu season

GlaxoSmithKline announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) has released the first lots of FluLaval® [Influenza Virus Vaccine] allowing distribution in the U.S. to begin for the 2010-2011 flu season. GSK anticipates distribution of Fluarix® [Influenza Virus Vaccine] to follow in the next several weeks.

30 Jul 2010

Anadys Pharmaceuticals reports SVR12 data for ANA598

Anadys Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that six of six patients (100%) in the ANA598 200 mg twice daily (bid) arm who were randomized to stop all treatment at Week 24 in an ongoing Phase II trial maintained undetectable levels of virus 12 weeks after stopping treatment, referred to as Sustained Virological Response 12, or SVR12.

30 Jul 2010

Kiehl's Since 1851 inaugurates LifeRide to raise funds for amfAR

Maintaining its long-standing tradition of supporting HIV/AIDS charities, Kiehl's Since 1851, the venerable New York-based purveyor of fine quality skin and hair care, is pleased to announce a continued partnership with amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research.

30 Jul 2010

Researchers discover three disease-causing genes in Salmonella

Researchers have discovered a novel mechanism in Salmonella that affects its virulence and its susceptibility to antibiotics by changing its production of proteins in a previously unheard of manner. This allows Salmonella to selectively change its levels of certain proteins to respond to inhospitable conditions.

30 Jul 2010

AdvanDx's 90 minutes protocol for Yeast Traffic Light PNA FISH test receives FDA 510(k) clearance

AdvanDx today announced that it has received FDA 510(k) clearance for a fast, 90 minutes protocol for its Yeast Traffic Light® PNA FISH® test. The faster protocol reduces the PNA FISH turn-around time from the original 2.5 hours to 90 minutes by reducing PNA probe hybridization from 90 minutes to 30 minutes.

30 Jul 2010

AIDS 2010 follow-up coverage: Global HIV/AIDS funding; HIV/AIDS studies, releases

Media outlets continued to reflect on news from the International AIDS Conference-AIDS 2010, which attracted over 19,000 participants from 197 countries to Vienna last week, according to the conference blog.

30 Jul 2010

Anthera initiates PEARL-SC Phase 2b study of A-623 for lupus

Anthera Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing drugs to treat serious diseases associated with inflammation, today announced it has initiated PEARL-SC, the Phase 2b study of A-623, a novel inhibitor of B-Cell Activating Factor, or BAFF, for the treatment of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (lupus). Lupus patients suffer from a chronic autoimmune disease, which often leads to severe skin rash, fatigue, joint pain, major organ complications, and cardiovascular disease.

30 Jul 2010

Respiratory symptoms are accurate indicators of influenza infection

New research shows that individuals with mild H1N1 infection may go undetected using standard diagnostic criteria, according to a study in the August issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, (APIC). The study concludes that coughing or other respiratory symptoms are more accurate in determining influenza infection than presence of a fever.

30 Jul 2010

SeraCare Life Sciences launches new product to diagnose HIV

SeraCare Life Sciences, Inc. today announced that the Company has launched a set of new products in its diagnostic controls and panels portfolio—the SeraCare HIV-1 Seroconversion Panels. Each of the six panels consists of a set of undiluted plasma samples from a single plasma donor collected over a period of time during the development of detectable specific antibodies to HIV in the blood, or seroconversion, and is highly characterized with enhanced product information.

30 Jul 2010

White button mushrooms can keep the immune system healthy: Study

Mushrooms are among the many foods thought to play an important role in keeping the immune system healthy. Now, Agricultural Research Service funded scientists have conducted an animal-model and cell-culture study showing that white button mushrooms enhanced the activity of critical cells in the body's immune system.

30 Jul 2010

Random vaccine distribution prevents spread of disease: Study

The best way to prevent the spread of disease in rural areas may be by targeting select popular hangouts, according to a new study by the Kansas State University EpiCenter research team.The team published "Efficient Mitigation Strategies for Epidemics in Rural Regions" in the July edition of the journal PLoS ONE. The study looks at mitigation strategies based on a contact network model developed using information collected from residents in Clay County, Kan.

30 Jul 2010

New paradigm in TB research may lead to improved vaccination, treatment

Often causing no symptoms in carriers of the disease, worldwide tuberculosis (TB) infects eight to ten million people every year, kills two million, and it is highly contagious as it is spread through coughing and sneezing. "It's a global health disaster waiting to happen, even here in Canada, but this new paradigm in TB research may offer an immediate opportunity to improve vaccination and treatment initiatives," explains Dr. Maziar Divangahi of McGill University and of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre.

30 Jul 2010

Tips to tackle dental emergency situations

Minneapolis Dental Emergency - Having to deal with a dental emergency is not something people think about. However, being prepared can make the difference between saving or losing a tooth. And in the case of a toothache, if it involves a bacterial infection, it can be a life-threatening situation.

29 Jul 2010

EMA recommends orphan medicinal product designation for XOMA 052 in treatment of Behcet's disease

XOMA Ltd., a leader in the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies, announced that the Committee for Orphan Medical Products of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has adopted a positive opinion and recommends the granting of orphan medicinal product designation for XOMA 052, an antibody to interleukin-1 beta, for the treatment of Behcet's disease. Positive opinions are submitted to the European Commission for decision and are generally adopted within 30 days of receipt.

29 Jul 2010