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NPSF supports obligatory flu vaccination for healthcare workers

The National Patient Safety Foundation recognizes vaccine-preventable diseases as a matter of patient safety and supports mandatory influenza vaccination of health care workers to protect the health of patients, health care workers, and the community.

19 Nov 2009

UNGASS monitoring system provides the overall progress in the global response to HIV

Although much work remains to be done, a United Nations global reporting system on HIV/AIDS has already yielded an "unequaled wealth of data" on progress toward meeting UN targets for responding to the global HIV epidemic. An update on the development of the UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS) global reporting system appears in a special supplement to JAIDS: Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.

19 Nov 2009

Why avian flu virus has not caused a pandemic?

Bird flu viruses would have to make at least two simultaneous genetic mutations before they could be transmitted readily from human to human, according to research published today in PLoS ONE.

19 Nov 2009

Malaria experts urge Congress to increase funding for malaria programs

While efforts to control and eliminate malaria have made great strides during the past five years, the looming specter of drug resistance heightens the importance of continued research and development for new tools to assure continued success, according to malaria scientists and public health experts appearing today on Capitol Hill.

19 Nov 2009

Pfizer and DNDi to battle against HAT, VL and Chagas disease

Pfizer Inc and Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) have signed an agreement that is designed to facilitate advancements in the battle against human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and Chagas disease, which afflict vulnerable populations in the developing world.

19 Nov 2009

Chronic hepatitis B seems to progress faster in men, report scientists

Scientists in China are reporting discovery of unusual liver proteins, found only in males, that may help explain the long-standing mystery of why the hepatitis B virus (HBV) sexually discriminates -- hitting men harder than women. Their study has been published online in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research, a monthly publication.

19 Nov 2009

WHO to launch yellow fever vaccination campaign in West Africa

The WHO on Tuesday announced it would lead a week-long, multi-country vaccination campaign in Africa next week to protect those "deemed at highest risk from yellow fever," Reuters reports.

19 Nov 2009

Opinions: Fighting TB; currency transaction tax

Though tuberculosis "is one of the world's leading killers … few citizens, scientists and policymakers are demanding more attention to TB research, treatment and prevention. … It's time to bring TB research into the 21st century," Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, writes in an MSNBC opinion piece.

19 Nov 2009

GAVI Alliance drives down pentavalent vaccine costs, data shows

The "co-ordinated buying policy" of the GAVI Alliance has driven down "[t]he price of a vaccine that helps babies fight off killer diseases," according to data released by the group, Reuters reports. In 2010, the price of pentavalent vaccine, which protects against Hib (Haemophilus influenzae type b), diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus and hepatitis B, will fall "below $3.0 - a drop of almost $0.50 cents per dose on the 2009 price," according to the news services.

19 Nov 2009

mdBriefCase to provide online education course on H1N1 virus in pregnant women

mdBriefCase Inc., in collaboration with the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and the Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Canada (SOGC), is pleased to provide a new online education course on the H1N1 virus in pregnant women.

18 Nov 2009

U.S. health officials testify before Senate Committee about H1N1 vaccine campaign

U.S. health officials defended their handling of the country's H1N1 (swine flu) vaccine campaign Tuesday "against criticism that their plan to protect Americans was confusing and over-optimistic," Reuters reports (Fox, 11/17).

18 Nov 2009

Also in Global Health news: Sleeping sickness; aid for Philippines; U.S., China in Africa; polio eradication in Afghanistan; Ethiopia famine

Lancet Infectious Diseases Newsdesk examines how despite evidence that a new therapy to treat sleeping sickness, called nifurtimox—eflornithine (NECT) is a step forward in treating the disease, it has yet to be implemented by countries "13 months after data from a successful trial was presented." The main issue at hand - "nifurtimox is not registered for use in sleeping sickness," the journal writes. The article also examines other factors complicating the implementation of the therapy (Morris, 12/09).

18 Nov 2009

CEL-SCI commences clinical study of LEAPS-H1N1 treatment for hospitalized patients

CEL-SCI Corporation, a developer of vaccines and therapeutics for the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases and a late-stage oncology company, announced today the start of the Company's first clinical study for hospitalized H1N1 patients at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (Johns Hopkins).

18 Nov 2009

Epiphany Biosciences announces results from its valomaciclovir Phase 2b trial for shingles

Epiphany Biosciences announced results from its Phase 2b dose-ranging study of EPB-348 (valomaciclovir) in patients with shingles (herpes zoster) infection. The study's primary endpoint was non-inferiority of once-daily valomaciclovir compared to thrice-daily valacyclovir in terms of time to complete crusting of the shingles rash.

18 Nov 2009

Sinovac Biotech receives a revised production license for its Panflu.1 vaccine

Sinovac Biotech Ltd., a leading developer and provider of vaccines in China, announced today that it received a revised production license from State Food and Drug Administration for Panflu.1, the Company's H1N1 vaccine. The population has been expanded to include people over 60 years old. The shelf life for PANFLU.1 was extended to one year from six months.

18 Nov 2009

SynCon Chikungunya virus DNA vaccine induces protective neutralizing antibody responses in animal model

Inovio Biomedical Corporation, a leader in DNA vaccine design, development and delivery, announced today that the company's SynCon™ Chikungunya virus DNA vaccine induced protective neutralizing antibody responses in a preclinical non-human primate model.

18 Nov 2009

VirWall KBS-1 keyboard sanitizer eradicates bacteria and viruses on computer keyboards

Engineer/pilot/attorney Jon Roberts, PhD, has dozens of inventions to his credit. They include technology that thwarts piracy in movie theatres, gadgets that track important items inadvertently left behind, devices to enhance airport security and even an electronic matchmaker that alerts two nearby individuals with similar interests that they have, indeed, found their match.

18 Nov 2009

Loyola researcher says rapid influenza diagnostic tests can present significant risk to public health

Rapid influenza diagnostic tests used in doctors' offices, hospitals and medical laboratories to detect H1N1 are virtually useless and could pose a significant danger to public health, according to a Loyola University Medical Center researcher.

18 Nov 2009

Chembio Diagnostics to present possibilities of OTC home-use HIV test kits at the FDA meeting

Chembio Diagnostics, Inc., a company that develops, manufactures, licenses, and markets proprietary rapid diagnostic tests, announced today that it will present at a meeting of the Blood Products Advisory Committee ("BPAC") of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") in Bethesda, Maryland, on the afternoon of November 17, 2009.

18 Nov 2009

Accurate diagnostic tests required to fight against major infectious disease

A rapid and accurate diagnosis is the first step towards treatment in the fight against infectious disease. However, a team headed by Dr. Madhukar Pai at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) and McGill University in collaboration with researchers at the TDR* and the WHO*, has highlighted the poor quality of published studies that evaluate the accuracy of diagnostic tests for 3 major killer infectious diseases (TB, HIV/AIDS and malaria).

18 Nov 2009

Disease/Infection News

NPSF supports obligatory flu vaccination for healthcare workers

UNGASS monitoring system provides the overall progress in the global response to HIV

Why avian flu virus has not caused a pandemic?

Malaria experts urge Congress to increase funding for malaria programs

Pfizer and DNDi to battle against HAT, VL and Chagas disease

Chronic hepatitis B seems to progress faster in men, report scientists

WHO to launch yellow fever vaccination campaign in West Africa

Opinions: Fighting TB; currency transaction tax

GAVI Alliance drives down pentavalent vaccine costs, data shows

mdBriefCase to provide online education course on H1N1 virus in pregnant women

U.S. health officials testify before Senate Committee about H1N1 vaccine campaign

Also in Global Health news: Sleeping sickness; aid for Philippines; U.S., China in Africa; polio eradication in Afghanistan; Ethiopia famine

CEL-SCI commences clinical study of LEAPS-H1N1 treatment for hospitalized patients

Epiphany Biosciences announces results from its valomaciclovir Phase 2b trial for shingles

Sinovac Biotech receives a revised production license for its Panflu.1 vaccine

SynCon Chikungunya virus DNA vaccine induces protective neutralizing antibody responses in animal model

VirWall KBS-1 keyboard sanitizer eradicates bacteria and viruses on computer keyboards

Loyola researcher says rapid influenza diagnostic tests can present significant risk to public health

Chembio Diagnostics to present possibilities of OTC home-use HIV test kits at the FDA meeting

Accurate diagnostic tests required to fight against major infectious disease

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

Advancing benzodiazepine detection

The Surgeon-Scientist Pioneering Regenerative Engineering

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