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Ebselen effectively inhibits thioredoxin reductase system in H. pylori, M. tuberculosis

A drug currently being used to treat ischemic strokes may prove to be a significant advance in the treatment of tuberculosis and ulcers. In a new research report appearing online in The FASEB Journal, a compound called ebselen effectively inhibits the thioredoxin reductase system in a wide variety of bacteria, including Helicobacter pylori which causes gastric ulcers and Mycobacterium tuberculosis which causes tuberculosis.

21 Dec 2012

Three more polio workers shot in Pakistan

"Three workers in a polio eradication campaign were shot in Pakistan on Wednesday, and two of them were killed, the latest in an unprecedented string of attacks over the past three days that has partially halted the U.N.-backed campaign," Reuters reports.

20 Dec 2012

Rwanda implementing programs to prevent cancer

In a Huffington Post "Impact" blog post, Tom Murphy, founder of the development blog "A View From The Cave," examines Rwanda's efforts to reduce cancer incidence by implementing screening programs for breast and cervical cancers and vaccinating girls and young women for human papillomavirus (HPV), the leading cause of cervical cancer.

20 Dec 2012

U.S. preparedness for drug-resistant TB strains questioned

Multidrug-resistant TB is at epidemic proportions in some parts of the world -- a growing problem the U.S. is surprisingly unprepared for. The U.S. beat back multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in the 1990s.

20 Dec 2012

QweCI and HEALTHY FUTURES project to host symposium on links between climate, VBDs

The HEALTHY FUTURES (Health, environmental change and adaptive capacity) and QWeCI (Quantifying Quantifying Weather and Climate Impacts on Health in Developing Countries) projects will jointly host a symposium on links between climate and vector-borne diseases (VBDs) at the upcoming 4th East African Community Health and Scientific Conference, scheduled for 27th-29th March 2013 in Kigali, Rwanda.

20 Dec 2012

Researchers report seroprevalence of three avian flu virus strains in pigs in southern China

Researchers report for the first time the seroprevalence of three strains of avian influenza viruses in pigs in southern China, but not the H5N1 avian influenza virus. Their research, published online ahead of print in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, has implications for efforts to protect the public health from pandemics.

20 Dec 2012

Lancet reports on global efforts to develop malaria vaccine

The Lancet reports on global efforts to develop a malaria vaccine, writing, "Since the mid-1980s, various malaria vaccine candidates have been tested in the hope of finding a molecule that can provide long-lasting immune protection against the disease that still kills 600,000 to 1.2 million people in sub-Saharan Africa each year. However, none has yet made it into routine use."

20 Dec 2012

Science supports early interventions for children in adversity

Neil Boothby, U.S. government special adviser and senior coordinator to the USAID administrator on children in adversity, writes in a USAID "IMPACTblog" post that the international community has scientific evidence and empirical data "that sho[w] investments made early in the lives of children yield greater returns than at any other point in the life cycle."

20 Dec 2012

Researcher explores new PCR system to discover dangerous foodborne pathogens

Pina Fratamico is on the quest to find the easiest and fastest way to test for harmful Escherichia coli in ground beef. In an article published in Frontiers in Microbiology on the 20th of December, she explores using a next-generation real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) system to discover specific gene targets that indicate the presence of dangerous foodborne pathogens. The results show that assays performed using this PCR system are rapid, sensitive, and reliable.

20 Dec 2012

NPR's 'Shots' blog examines malaria drug resistance in Southeast Asia

"Global efforts to combat malaria are under threat from new strains of drug-resistant malaria, which are cropping up in Southeast Asia," particularly in Cambodia, Myanmar (also known as Burma), Thailand and Vietnam, NPR's "Shots" blog reports.

20 Dec 2012

Malaria Journal article reports on WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Committee meeting

Noting "the Malaria Policy Advisory Committee to the World Health Organization met in Geneva, Switzerland, from 11 to 13 September, 2012," an article published in the Malaria Journal on Wednesday "provides a summary of the discussions, conclusions and recommendations from that meeting," according to the article abstract.

20 Dec 2012

West African human population genomes provide important clues about evolution of HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) may have affected humans for much longer than is currently believed. Alfred Roca, an assistant professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois, thinks that the genomes of an isolated West African human population provide important clues about how the disease has evolved.

20 Dec 2012

Recreational use of HIV drugs leading to pre-treatment resistance in South Africa

NPR's "Shots" blog examines how "opportunists who market street drugs may be undermining the global struggle against AIDS," writing, "In South Africa, two mainstay HIV drugs have found their way into recreational use."

20 Dec 2012

Top-line results from Medivir's simeprevir phase III trials on genotype 1 HCV infection

Medivir AB today announced top-line results from three pivotal phase III trials examining the one pill, once-daily, investigational protease inhibitor, simeprevir (TMC435), administered with pegylated interferon and ribavirin.

20 Dec 2012

Malaria progress at risk as funding for global response levels off, WHO report states

"The remarkable gains made in the treatment of malaria over the past decade are under threat because of insufficient increases in funding over the past two years, according to an annual progress report by the World Health Organization," the Guardian reports.

20 Dec 2012

Seattle Times examines partnership between Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Uganda Cancer Institute

The Seattle Times examines a partnership between the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI). In 2008, "the two institutes formally agreed to collaborate on clinical care and research projects, and more recently a major building project at Uganda's only cancer-research center," the newspaper writes.

20 Dec 2012

Tips to prevent food allergies during Christmas

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, candles filling the air with the smell of cinnamon and beloved decorations making their yearly appearance really do help make the season bright. But for kids with allergies these holiday delights can make the atmosphere miserable and even deadly.

19 Dec 2012

Findings emphasize importance of counseling HIV patients on smoking cessation

Among HIV patients receiving well-organized care with free access to antiretroviral therapy, those who smoke lose more years of life to smoking than to HIV, according to a Danish study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases and available online. The findings highlight the importance of smoking cessation efforts in the long-term, integrated care of patients infected with HIV.

19 Dec 2012

Study highlights need for health services and social support for parolees

More than 40% of parolees and releases sent to the Bronx from New York State prisons have two or more major chronic conditions, a study to be released today at a public briefing at Health People: Community Preventive Health Institute in the Bronx shows.

19 Dec 2012

Continued U.S. leadership crucial to building on global progress against TB

Tuberculosis (TB) "is the second leading cause of death due to infectious disease worldwide; taking approximately 1.4 million lives in 2011 alone," Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), a co-chair of the TB Elimination Caucus, writes in an opinion piece in The Hill's "Congress Blog".

19 Dec 2012

Disease/Infection News

Ebselen effectively inhibits thioredoxin reductase system in H. pylori, M. tuberculosis

Three more polio workers shot in Pakistan

Rwanda implementing programs to prevent cancer

U.S. preparedness for drug-resistant TB strains questioned

QweCI and HEALTHY FUTURES project to host symposium on links between climate, VBDs

Researchers report seroprevalence of three avian flu virus strains in pigs in southern China

Lancet reports on global efforts to develop malaria vaccine

Science supports early interventions for children in adversity

Researcher explores new PCR system to discover dangerous foodborne pathogens

NPR's 'Shots' blog examines malaria drug resistance in Southeast Asia

Malaria Journal article reports on WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Committee meeting

West African human population genomes provide important clues about evolution of HIV

Recreational use of HIV drugs leading to pre-treatment resistance in South Africa

Top-line results from Medivir's simeprevir phase III trials on genotype 1 HCV infection

Malaria progress at risk as funding for global response levels off, WHO report states

Seattle Times examines partnership between Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Uganda Cancer Institute

Tips to prevent food allergies during Christmas

Findings emphasize importance of counseling HIV patients on smoking cessation

Study highlights need for health services and social support for parolees

Continued U.S. leadership crucial to building on global progress against TB

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

Global and Local Efforts to Take Action Against Hepatitis

Addressing Important Cardiac Biology Questions with Shotgun Top-Down Proteomics

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