Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

IAS expresses mixed reaction to the Pope's comments on condom usage

The International AIDS Society (IAS) cautiously notes the comments from Pope Benedict that condom use could, in specific circumstances, be acceptable, but calls on the Pope and the Catholic Church to come out clearly and strongly in support of all evidence-based methods of HIV prevention, including condom use.

24 Nov 2010

Daily oral antiretroviral reduces HIV infection risk in MSM by 44%, study finds

A study that included nearly 2,500 HIV-negative men and transgender women who have sex with men has shown that a daily dose of Truvada, a pill containing the AIDS drugs emtricitabine and tenofovir, "can reduce risk of contracting [HIV] by an average of 44% - and by more than 70% if the subjects" follow the regimen closely, Los Angeles Times reports (Maugh, 11/23).

24 Nov 2010

CONRAD congratulates Global iPrEx study team for HIV prevention trial

CONRAD is pleased to join in congratulating the Global iPrEx study team for their successful trial of oral tenofovir (TDF) with emtricitabine (FTC) for HIV prevention.

24 Nov 2010

Study estimates cost savings associated with global polio eradication; global post examines vaccination efforts in Africa

Research published in the November issue of the journal Vaccine found that a global campaign to eliminate polio could save between $40 billion and $50 billion over the next few decades if the crippling disease is wiped out within five years Bloomberg reports.

24 Nov 2010

UNAIDS report finds new HIV infections dropped by 20% over 10 years, deaths from AIDS-related illness dropped by 20% over 5 years

The number of new HIV infections has dropped by about one-fifth over the past decade but millions of people are still missing out on major progress in prevention and treatment, according to the annual UNAIDS report released Tuesday, Agence France-Presse reports.

23 Nov 2010

Gilead submits Truvada/TMC278 single-tablet regimen NDA to FDA

Gilead Sciences, Inc. today announced that it has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing approval of the single-tablet regimen of Truvada® (emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) and Tibotec Pharmaceuticals' investigational non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor TMC278 (rilpivirine hydrochloride) for HIV-1 infection in adults. If approved, this would be the second product that contains a complete HIV treatment regimen in a single once-daily tablet.

23 Nov 2010

Vertex submits NDA for telaprevir for treating hepatitis C

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated announced that it has completed the submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking approval for telaprevir, Vertex's investigational treatment for people with hepatitis C.

23 Nov 2010

Omni Bio receives U.S patent for treatment of viral infections

Omni Bio Pharmaceutical, Inc., today announced that U.S. Patent No.7,807,781, entitled "Inhibitors of Serine Protease Activity and Their Use in Methods and Compositions for Treatment of Viral Infections", was issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on October 5, 2010

23 Nov 2010

Global initiative to eradicate polio could provide benefits of at least US$40-50 billion

A new study released today estimates that the global initiative to eradicate polio could provide net benefits of at least US$40-50 billion if transmission of wild polioviruses is interrupted within the next five years. The study provides the first rigorous evaluation of the benefits and costs of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI)--the single largest project ever undertaken by the global health community. The study comes at a crucial time--following an outbreak in the Republic of the Congo and one in Tajikistan earlier this year--that highlight the risk of delays in finishing the job on polio.

23 Nov 2010

CEL-SCI holds clinical investigator meeting for Multikine Phase III clinical trial in head, neck cancer

CEL-SCI Corporation today announced that the Company held a clinical investigator meeting during the week of November 14th for its Phase III clinical trial of Multikine®, the Company's flagship immunotherapy developed as a first-line standard of care in treating head and neck cancer.

23 Nov 2010

HIV drugs lead to insulin resistance

The same powerful drugs that have extended the lives of countless people with HIV come with a price - insulin resistance that can lead to diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

23 Nov 2010

Preclinical trial shows Chimerix’s CMX001 inhibits HSV replication

Chimerix, Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing orally-available antiviral therapeutics, today announced that data demonstrating preclinical efficacy of Chimerix's lead antiviral compound CMX001 against herpes simplex virus (HSV) as well as its ability to penetrate the blood-brain barrier was published in the November 15, 2010 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases.

23 Nov 2010

Pope says condoms are justified in some cases to prevent HIV infection

Pope Benedict XVI says in a new book that condoms can be justified for male prostitutes seeking to stop the spread of HIV, a stunning comment for a church criticized for its opposition to condoms and for a pontiff who has blamed them for making the AIDS crisis worse, the Associated Press/Washington Post reports.

22 Nov 2010

New simple diagnostic tool to detect dangerous viruses

Boston University researchers have developed a simple diagnostic tool that can quickly identify dangerous viruses like Ebola and Marburg. The biosensor, which is the size of a quarter and can detect viruses in a blood sample, could be used in developing nations, airports and other places where natural or man-made outbreaks could erupt.

22 Nov 2010

AHF hails Pope Benedict's remarks on condom usage to prevent HIV transmission

AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the largest global AIDS organization, today hailed recent remarks by Pope Benedict XVI on the "justified" use condoms to prevent the spread of potentially deadly diseases like HIV that suggest a softening the Roman Catholic Church's absolute opposition to condom use in all circumstances.

22 Nov 2010

Quercetin in Gene-Eden may be beneficial against flu virus: Research

Recently, researchers discovered that quercetin, a key ingredient in the natural antiviral supplement Gene-Eden, may be beneficial against the flu virus.

20 Nov 2010

Study sheds light on poorly understood aspect of interaction of HIV with natural killer cells

Natural killer cells are major weapons in the body's immune system. They keep the body healthy by knocking off tumors and cells infected with viruses, bombarding them with tiny lethal pellets. But natural killer cells are powerless against HIV, a fact that has bedeviled science for over 20 years.

20 Nov 2010

Study refocuses on rare group of neutralizing antibodies against HIV

Although people infected with HIV produce many antibodies against the protein encapsulating the virus, most of these antibodies are strangely ineffective at fighting the disease. A new study suggests why some of the most common of these antibodies don't work: they target the protein in a form it takes after the virus has already invaded the cell, when it's too late, report researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and their colleagues.

20 Nov 2010

Improving immune system to defend against HIV infection

Researchers have been stymied for years over the fact that people infected with the AIDS virus do indeed produce antibodies in response to the pathogen - antibodies that turn out to be ineffective in blocking infection.

19 Nov 2010

Alnylam presents data on RNAi technologies at MIT Center Summit

Alnylam Biotherapeutics, a division of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, presented new data at the MIT Center for Biomedical Innovation's Biomanufacturing Summit from its platform efforts aimed at developing RNAi technologies for applications in biologics manufacturing.

19 Nov 2010