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DOTS has cured 36m People, prevented up to 8m TB deaths over 15 years, WHO says

Since the WHO developed Directly Observed Therapy, Short-course (DOTS) in 1994 for the treatment of tuberculosis, approximately 36 million people have successfully completed treatment and been cured over the past 15 years, according to new data released by the WHO on Tuesday, health-e reports (Thom, 12/8).

9 Dec 2009

NIH awards Lentigen a SBIR grant for program to generate Hepatitis C Virus-Like Particles

Lentigen Corporation, a biotechnology company specializing in the development and manufacture of lentiviral gene delivery technologies, announced today that it has received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) small business innovation research (SBIR) grant for a program on "A Novel Method of Generating Hepatitis C Virus-Like Particles using Lentivirus". In this program, Lentigen will collaborate with Epixis SA (Paris, France).

9 Dec 2009

Medicare to pay for HIV testing

Reuters: "Americans enrolled in the U.S. government-run Medicare health insurance program will now be covered for tests that screen for HIV, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which oversees the program for the elderly and disabled, said on Tuesday.

9 Dec 2009

Phase 3 clinical trial results of RG1068 to be discussed

Repligen Corporation announced today that the Company President and Chief Executive Officer, Walter C. Herlihy, Ph.D., will host a conference call and webcast on Wednesday, December 9th, 2009 at 8:30 a.m. EST, to discuss results of its Phase 3 clinical trial of RG1068 in MRI imaging of the pancreas.

9 Dec 2009

Laser technique used to change metal colors could have important implications for medicine

University of Rochester optics professor Chunlei Guo made headlines in the past couple of years when he changed the color of everyday metals by scouring their surfaces with precise, high-intensity laser bursts.

9 Dec 2009

Human blood stem cells can be engineered to kill HIV and other chronic viral diseases

Researchers from the UCLA AIDS Institute and colleagues have for the first time demonstrated that human blood stem cells can be engineered into cells that can target and kill HIV-infected cells - a process that potentially could be used against a range of chronic viral diseases.

9 Dec 2009

Medicare covers HIV screening: AHF lauds CMS

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, today lauded the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), for its decision earlier today to cover HIV testing for Medicare beneficiaries who may be at increased risk for HIV exposure (MSM, IDU) as well as women who are pregnant, and beneficiaries of any age that request to be tested. The decision is effective immediately.

9 Dec 2009

Researchers describe how PDNF protein prolongs the life of T. cruzi parasite

The parasite Trypanosoma cruzi (or T. cruzi), which causes Chagas' disease, will go to great lengths to evade death once it has infected human host cells, researchers have discovered. In a study published in the November 17 online issue of Science Signaling, the researchers describe how a protein called parasite-derived neurotrophic factor (PDNF) prolongs the life of the T. cruzi parasite by activating anti-apoptotic (or anti-cell-death) molecules in the host cell. These protective mechanisms help to explain how host cells continue to survive despite being exploited by T. cruzi parasites.

9 Dec 2009

CMS to cover HIV infection screening for Medicare beneficiaries

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced its final decision to cover Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection screening for Medicare beneficiaries who are at increased risk for the infection, including women who are pregnant and Medicare beneficiaries of any age who voluntarily request the service.

9 Dec 2009

Breakthrough findings may lead to new treatments for Ebola hemorrhagic fever

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have determined the structure of a critical protein from the Ebola virus, which, though rare, is one of the deadliest viruses on the planet killing between 50 and 90 percent of those infected.

9 Dec 2009

Comparative study on erosive and nonerosive diseases

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is defined as the pathological retrograde movement of gastric contents into the esophagus. Various esophageal motility disturbances which may be important in reflux are observed in patients with GERD.

9 Dec 2009

Research suggests that everyday germs may prevent diseases in adulthood

A new Northwestern University study suggests that American parents should ease up on antibacterial soap and perhaps allow their little ones a romp or two in the mud --- or at least a much better acquaintance with everyday germs.

9 Dec 2009

Severe pandemic scenario can impact blood supplies

A German research team has examined data on supply and demand for blood transfusions against a computer simulation of an influenza pandemic, and discovered that a severe pandemic scenario could quickly lead to a deficit of up to 96,000 red blood cell (RBC) transfusion units in Germany alone, creating potentially fatal outcomes. Their study is published today in the journal TRANSFUSION.

9 Dec 2009

CDC awards Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine $19.7M for TB research

John L. Johnson, M.D., Professor of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and pulmonologist at University Hospitals Case Medical Center has been awarded a 10 year, $19.7M contract from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as an international clinical trials site for the Tuberculosis Trials Consortium (TBTC).

9 Dec 2009

Physicians trust the safety and efficacy of H1N1 vaccine

A recent visit to the pediatric H1N1 vaccine clinic at a major Chicago medical center showed a surprising clientele - most parents bringing their children for vaccination were also medical professionals.

9 Dec 2009

Bird influenza viruses have a variety of strategies to cross the species barrier

The 2009 H1N1 influenza virus used a new strategy to cross from birds into humans, a warning that it has more than one trick up its sleeve to jump the species barrier and become virulent.

9 Dec 2009

Opinions: ARV access; global health promotion; climate change; under-nutrition; Ethiopia

In an Intellectual Property Watch column, Daniele Dionisio, of the Italian Network for International Fight against AIDS, examines how trade rules and policy directions by governments and institutions may help to improve countries' access to antiretrovirals.

8 Dec 2009

PlusNews examines cases of hospital-acquired HIV in Africa

PlusNews examines several recent reports that highlight how unsanitary hospital procedures can create an environment conducive to the spread of HIV/AIDS.

8 Dec 2009

Reuters news examines quest for new TB drugs, vaccines

Reuters examines the search for new tuberculosis medicines and vaccines. "Although TB has plagued humankind for thousands of years, there is only one vaccine," which isn't very effective and doesn't protect adults. "With the exception of rifabutin, there has been no new drug for TB for more than 40 years," the news service writes.

8 Dec 2009

Also in Global Health news: Rotavirus vaccine; guinea worm eradication; health systems; Zulu King calls for male circumcision

The West African Rotavirus Advisory Board is calling on governments to vaccinate children against rotavirus, IRIN reports. At a recent meeting in Dakar, Senegal, which was "financed by GlaxoSmithKline, makers of one of two rotavirus vaccines" the board issued a document recommending that governments "immediately recognize the magnitude of the rotavirus problem and make vaccination against the virus a priority" (12/8).

8 Dec 2009

Disease/Infection News

DOTS has cured 36m People, prevented up to 8m TB deaths over 15 years, WHO says

NIH awards Lentigen a SBIR grant for program to generate Hepatitis C Virus-Like Particles

Medicare to pay for HIV testing

Phase 3 clinical trial results of RG1068 to be discussed

Laser technique used to change metal colors could have important implications for medicine

Human blood stem cells can be engineered to kill HIV and other chronic viral diseases

Medicare covers HIV screening: AHF lauds CMS

Researchers describe how PDNF protein prolongs the life of T. cruzi parasite

CMS to cover HIV infection screening for Medicare beneficiaries

Breakthrough findings may lead to new treatments for Ebola hemorrhagic fever

Comparative study on erosive and nonerosive diseases

Research suggests that everyday germs may prevent diseases in adulthood

Severe pandemic scenario can impact blood supplies

CDC awards Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine $19.7M for TB research

Physicians trust the safety and efficacy of H1N1 vaccine

Bird influenza viruses have a variety of strategies to cross the species barrier

Opinions: ARV access; global health promotion; climate change; under-nutrition; Ethiopia

PlusNews examines cases of hospital-acquired HIV in Africa

Reuters news examines quest for new TB drugs, vaccines

Also in Global Health news: Rotavirus vaccine; guinea worm eradication; health systems; Zulu King calls for male circumcision

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