Disease/Infection News

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Migratory birds play a key role in global spreading of tick-borne disease

The most common tick-borne disease in humans is Lyme borreliosis. Extensive field and laboratory tests have revealed that the Borrelia bacterium is present in a larger proportion of ticks than has been shown by earlier studies.

24 Jun 2011

New York Times examines very rare E. coli strain responsible for German outbreak

The New York Times examines the E. coli strain responsible for the recent outbreak in Germany, saying the bacteria "have a highly unusual combination of two traits and that may be what made the outbreak among the deadliest in recent history, scientists there are reporting."

24 Jun 2011

Research offers avenue for creating Alzheimer's and HIV therapeutics

A new advance by UCLA biochemists has brought scientists one step closer to developing treatments that could delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease and prevent the sexual transmission of HIV.

24 Jun 2011

Researchers develop inexpensive saliva test for dengue

An inexpensive, non-invasive cheek swab saliva test for dengue has been developed by researchers in Singapore and is undergoing multi-center evaluation, SciDev.Net reports.

24 Jun 2011

Nature News examines controversy surrounding Indian HPV vaccine trial

After four teenage girls involved in a clinical trial in India testing vaccines for human papillomavirus (HPV) died last year, the study "threatens to have a dual legacy: inflaming unfounded fears about a lifesaving vaccine and raising new questions about the management of medical research in the country," Nature News reports.

24 Jun 2011

Researchers identify novel viral sensor complex

Double-stranded (ds) RNA viruses are a diverse group of viruses that include rotaviruses, a common cause of gastroenteritis. The ability of the immune system to detect and destroy viruses is critical for human health and survival.

24 Jun 2011

Global Fund signs onto International Aid Transparency Initiative

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced Thursday that "it has become a signatory of the International Aid Transparency Initiative, which "means that grant information currently on the Global Fund website will be aligned to an internationally agreed set of standards" and "financial and grant activity data and documentation will be accessible to a broader audience and will be comparable to information provided by other donors," according to a Global Fund press release.

24 Jun 2011

ITG researchers uncover unexpected sex between two different parasites

What we anxiously fear in the influenza virus - a cross between two strains, resulting in a new variant we have no resistance against - has occurred in another pathogen, the Leishmania parasite. This was uncovered by researchers of the Institute of Tropical Medicine.

24 Jun 2011

GeoVax opens third clinical trial site for testing HIV/AIDS vaccine

GeoVax Labs, Inc., a biotechnology company that creates, develops and tests innovative HIV/AIDS vaccines, announced today the opening of a third site for testing the therapeutic potential of its HIV/AIDS vaccine.

24 Jun 2011

Copenhagen chemist reveals mechanism behind deadly infections

Anthrax, septicemia and meningitis are some of the planet's most deadly infections. In part because doctors lack basic insights to prevent and cure diseases caused by so called Gram-positive bacteria. Now, a chemist from the University of Copenhagen has revealed the mechanism behind these deadly infections.

24 Jun 2011

Health Canada approves PURE Hard Surface disinfectant

PURE Bioscience, Inc., creator of the patented silver dihydrogen citrate (SDC) antimicrobial, today announced that Health Canada has approved PURE™ Hard Surface disinfectant for use in food premises, hospitals and health care facilities, domestic locations and institutional and industrial premises.

23 Jun 2011

Developing new antipoverty vaccines may eliminate world's neglected diseases, says Sabin president

Despite significant advancements in increasing distribution and development of vaccines against childhood killer diseases - including pneumococcal disease, rotavirus, and Haemophilus influenzae Type B - global efforts to reduce the burden of infection from neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) has greatly lagged, argues Sabin Vaccine Institute (Sabin) President Dr. Peter Hotez in an article for the June edition of Health Affairs.

23 Jun 2011

Monash researchers receive MMV Project of the Year award for new anti-malarial drug candidate

Monash University is collaborating on the development of a potential new drug to cure malaria throughout the world.

23 Jun 2011

Veredus Lab-on-Chip application can diagnose and differentiate food-borne pathogens

Veredus Laboratories, a leading provider of molecular detection tests, and its technology partner, STMicroelectronics, today announced the successful development and deployment of VereFoodborne, a Lab-on-Chip application that is able to detect 10 to 12 food-borne pathogens in one test, including the Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli responsible for the recent severe food poisoning outbreak in Europe.

23 Jun 2011

Daewoong, Medivir sign distribution agreement for Xerclear in China and Hong Kong

Medivir AB, a research-based specialty pharmaceutical company focused on infectious diseases, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to exclusively distribute Medivir's unique cold sore treatment Xerclear in China and Hong Kong.

23 Jun 2011

HKU releases draft genome sequence of scarlet fever strain

Scarlet fever has revealed unusual high infect rate in Hong Kong this year. So far, 466 children were infected and 2 of them dead. Scarlet fever is caused by Streptococcus pyogenes, a gram-positive pathogen that can be transmitted via skin wound and airborne droplet.

23 Jun 2011

Incivek-combination therapy increases chances of HCV patients achieving viral cure

The drug Incivek, when given in combination with two other medications, can dramatically increase the chances of people chronically infected with untreated genotype 1 hepatitis C virus achieving a viral cure. That's the finding of a study published in the June 23rd issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

23 Jun 2011

Telaprevir drug shows promise in curing hepatitis C infection

The drug telaprevir (Incivek) provides a dramatic improvement in the treatment of the most common form of hepatitis C infection, says an international team of investigators led by Dr. Ira M. Jacobson of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

23 Jun 2011

India looking to supply generic drugs to Japan

After serving as "a lifeline to poor countries, supplying HIV drugs that have saved millions of lives … now India is aiming to become a drugs factory for rich countries such as Japan," which is looking to use more generic drugs in an effort to slow rising health care costs, Nature News reports.

23 Jun 2011

MUHC/McGill parasite disease researcher wins CPHA International Public Health Award

With close to one third of the world's population infected with parasitic worms, MUHC researcher Dr. Theresa Gyorkos is thinking big when it comes to finding a solution to this global public health challenge. As part of an international research and policy team, she is contributing to the soon-to-be-released WHO Strategic Plan to control intestinal worm infections in more than 100 countries.

23 Jun 2011