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Informed specific consent should be sought before blood transfusion

The authors state that there are serious infectious, as well as non-infectious risks associated with blood transfusions and that it should now be viewed as a legal requirement for patients to be informed about specific risks posed by blood transfusions. This would work in the same way as they are currently informed about risks associated with the medical treatment and/or surgery they undergo.

25 Aug 2010

Improvement in mumps vaccine administration needed to prevent future outbreaks

Although immunity to mumps is high in the United States, mumps vaccine coverage must be maintained and improved to prevent future outbreaks, according to a new study, now available online (http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/655394), in the September 1, 2010 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases.

25 Aug 2010

New TRIM5α-based treatments can knock out HIV in humans: Research

Using a $225,000 microscope, researchers have identified the key components of a protein called TRIM5α that destroys HIV in rhesus monkeys.The finding could lead to new TRIM5α-based treatments that would knock out HIV in humans, said senior researcher Edward M. Campbell, PhD, of Loyola University Health System.

25 Aug 2010

Study finds measurable immunity to pandemic H1N1 virus in Norway population

By autumn 2009, almost half of the population of Norway had been vaccinated against the pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus. Many had also been infected by the virus during the summer and autumn outbreaks. The majority of those who were vaccinated or were infected are expected to have developed immunity to the virus.

25 Aug 2010

Survey finds women interested in human papillomavirus vaccination

Cost but not convenience plays a significant role in attitudes about vaccination for common human papillomaviruses for women over the age of 26, according to the authors of a recent article in the journal Sexual Health.

25 Aug 2010

Parents should give their children's lunches a sugar makeover: Delta Dental Plans Association

As parents send their kids off for the first day of school, it's a good idea to put as much thought into what they're packing in their kids' lunchboxes as they do into their school supplies.

25 Aug 2010

BioAlliance Pharma launches Oravig drug in the U.S. market

BioAlliance Pharma SA, a company dedicated to the supportive care and treatment of cancer patients, today announces the launch in the United States of Oravig® (known as Loramyc® in Europe) for the treatment of oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC) in adults by its commercial partner, Strativa Pharmaceuticals, the proprietary products division of Par Pharmaceutical Companies, Inc..

25 Aug 2010

Researchers develop high-resolution technology to visualize individual virus particles

In the war against infectious disease, identifying the culprit is half the battle. Now, research professor Shaopeng Wang and his colleagues from the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University, describe a new method for visualizing individual virus particles. Their research opens the door to a more detailed understanding of these minute pathogens, and may further the study of a broad range of micro- and nanoscale phenomena.

25 Aug 2010

Also in Global Health News: IDUs in Kenya; Haiti recovery; Pandemic preparedness; Somalia hunger; HIV in Mozambique; Strengthening immune system against HIV

In Kenya, "[i]ntravenous drug users (IDUs) have been largely ignored by the government's HIV programmes on the basis that drug-taking is illegal, but a new policy is being drafted with the aim of reducing HIV transmission among this high-risk group," IRIN/PlusNews reports. The article includes comments from Nicholas Muraguri, head of the National AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections Control Programme, who said that the policy would treat drug use as a health issue, not a criminal one.

25 Aug 2010

Merck and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commit additional $60M to support Botswana's ACHAP

Merck today announced the Merck Company Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation are committing an additional $60 million to support Botswana's African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships (ACHAP). Merck is known as MSD outside the US and Canada. A unique program developed with and led by the Government of Botswana, ACHAP is one of sub-Saharan Africa's oldest, most successful public-private partnerships.

24 Aug 2010

Pharmasset commences dosing in PSI-7977 Phase 2b study for chronic hepatitis C

Pharmasset, Inc. announced today that dosing has begun in a Phase 2b study of PSI-7977, a nucleotide analog polymerase inhibitor for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C (HCV). The trial will evaluate PSI-7977 200mg QD and 400mg QD in combination with pegylated interferon alfa 2a and ribavirin, the current standard of care (SOC) in patients with HCV genotype 1 who have not been treated previously.

24 Aug 2010

As flood waters spread, international aid for Pakistan tops $800M, foreign minister says

International donors have pledged more than $800 million to help Pakistan deal with severe flooding after the U.N. appealed for $460 million in aid, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the country's foreign minister, said on Sunday, the Associated Press reports.

24 Aug 2010

Department of Health to hold vaccination drive for whooping cough

With some areas of the state seeing an increase in whooping cough, known medically as pertussis, the Department of Health urges all Pennsylvanians to ensure they are protected against the vaccine-preventable disease.The department will soon hold public vaccination clinics in York and Delaware counties, where cases of pertussis have been rising.

24 Aug 2010

OSDD program aims to develop new drug for tuberculosis

An unlikely effort is underway to lift the veil of nearly-total secrecy that has surrounded the process of developing new prescription drugs for the last century, scientists said today at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). The upheaval in traditional practice would make key data available to college students, university professors, and others in an open, collective process.

24 Aug 2010

EPA selects Precision Antibody to develop monoclonal antibodies for 'Crypto' intestinal parasite

Precision Antibody™ announced today its selection by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop monoclonal antibodies to two species of Cryptosporidium, an intestinal parasite that has emerged over the past 20 years as one of the most common causes of waterborne illness in the United States.

24 Aug 2010

National Fibromyalgia Association, RemedyMD partner to build fibromyalgia research registry

The National Fibromyalgia Association has partnered with RemedyMD® to provide a national database that will aggregate data from a wide variety of sources to provide a complete disease registry for fibromyalgia research. It offers new hope to sufferers since this will represent the first time that researchers have the opportunity to look at all data relevant to fibromyalgia in order to identify patterns which lead to more effective diagnosis and treatment.

24 Aug 2010

LabCorp launches IL-28B gene test for HCV infection

Laboratory Corporation of America® Holdings announced today the nationwide availability of a genetic test to detect the presence of a single polymorphism within the IL-28B gene that has been reported to help predict a person's response to certain hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapies.

24 Aug 2010

Researchers develop new instrumentation to simplify testing patients for infectious diseases

Arizona State University researchers have demonstrated a way to dramatically simplify testing patients for infectious diseases and unhealthy protein levels.New testing instrumentation developed by Antonia Garcia and John Schneider promises to make the procedure less costly and produce results in less time.

24 Aug 2010

AP reports on efforts to monitor authenticity of antimalarials, other drugs in Africa

The Associated Press reports on a recent effort to use text messages to track the authenticity of antimalarials in Africa, where "more than 30 percent of malaria medicines are estimated to be fake."

24 Aug 2010

Researchers find gene sequences of MLV in chronic fatigue syndrome patients' blood samples

Researchers have found murine leukemia viruses (MLV) related gene sequences in blood samples collected from patients diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and some healthy blood donors, according to a study published online today by the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

24 Aug 2010

Disease/Infection News

Informed specific consent should be sought before blood transfusion

Improvement in mumps vaccine administration needed to prevent future outbreaks

New TRIM5α-based treatments can knock out HIV in humans: Research

Study finds measurable immunity to pandemic H1N1 virus in Norway population

Survey finds women interested in human papillomavirus vaccination

Parents should give their children's lunches a sugar makeover: Delta Dental Plans Association

BioAlliance Pharma launches Oravig drug in the U.S. market

Researchers develop high-resolution technology to visualize individual virus particles

Also in Global Health News: IDUs in Kenya; Haiti recovery; Pandemic preparedness; Somalia hunger; HIV in Mozambique; Strengthening immune system against HIV

Merck and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commit additional $60M to support Botswana's ACHAP

Pharmasset commences dosing in PSI-7977 Phase 2b study for chronic hepatitis C

As flood waters spread, international aid for Pakistan tops $800M, foreign minister says

Department of Health to hold vaccination drive for whooping cough

OSDD program aims to develop new drug for tuberculosis

EPA selects Precision Antibody to develop monoclonal antibodies for 'Crypto' intestinal parasite

National Fibromyalgia Association, RemedyMD partner to build fibromyalgia research registry

LabCorp launches IL-28B gene test for HCV infection

Researchers develop new instrumentation to simplify testing patients for infectious diseases

AP reports on efforts to monitor authenticity of antimalarials, other drugs in Africa

Researchers find gene sequences of MLV in chronic fatigue syndrome patients' blood samples

Exploring the nanoscale: How AFM is transforming cosmetic science

Innovating Texture and Culture in Plant-Based Foods

Advancing brain microphysiological systems (bMPS)

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