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While global adult mortality rates drop, gaps between countries grow, Lancet study finds

"The global mortality rate for adults [ages 15-59] has fallen by about 1 percent a year for the past 40 years, with women making greater gains than men and huge differences opening up between countries and regions over that period, according to a new study" published online Friday in the journal Lancet, the Washington Post reports, noting the study offers "the most detailed nation-by-nation trends in adult mortality" to date.

3 May 2010

Leptin hormone controls immune’s response to sepsis: Study

The hormone leptin, typically associated with body weight regulation, works within the central nervous system (CNS) to aid the immune system's defense against sepsis, researchers say.

3 May 2010

PAS conference focuses on vaccine-preventable diseases among children

Each year, millions of children in developing countries die from diseases for which known treatments exist. How to use this knowledge to save children's lives on a global scale will be discussed in a day-long session Monday, May 3, 2010, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

3 May 2010

NPR examines U.N.'s effort to stop sexual violence in war

"Hundreds of thousands of women in conflict zones around the world have been or are now becoming victims of rape and sexual torture," reflects Michel Martin, host of NPR's "Tell Me More," as she interviewed Margot Wallstrom, U.N. special representative on sexual violence in conflict, in a show examining the U.N.'s "ramped up" campaign to end systemic sexual violence in war.

3 May 2010

Study could provide new strategies to prevent hospital-acquired infections

A bacterial pathogen can communicate with yeast to block the development of drug-resistant yeast infections, say Irish scientists writing in the May issue of Microbiology. The research could be a step towards new strategies to prevent hospital-acquired infections associated with medical implants.

3 May 2010

FDA approves Abbott Prism Chagas test to screen blood, tissue and organ donors for T. cruzi

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved a second test to screen blood, tissue and organ donors for a blood-borne parasite, Trypanosoma cruzi that causes Chagas disease, a serious and potentially fatal parasitic infection.

3 May 2010

Seasonal flu vaccine ups the risk of getting H1N1 flu

Initial reports linking seasonal flu vaccine and getting swine flu or H1N1 flu emerged September 2009 in Canada. In spring 2009 many people who acquired pandemic H1N1 flu had been initially vaccinated with seasonal flu vaccine. This triggered four additional studies in Canada to explore the link further. The studies included 2,700 patients with or without H1N1. The first of the studies showed a surprising 68 percent rise of risk of development of H1N1 flu in those vaccinated with seasonal flu shot. The other 3 studies showed increase of risk of H1N1 flu by 1.4 to 1.5 times with the original flu shot.

2 May 2010

GeNOsys sponsors Phase I safety trial in collaboration with Nitric Solutions

GeNOsys, Inc. today announced they are sponsoring a Phase I safety trial in collaboration with Nitric Solutions Inc. GeNOsys will be testing their patented nitric oxide generator and nitric oxide producing formula for safety and effectiveness in treating disease. In a parallel study Nitric Solutions will be testing the efficacy of their prophilactic nitric oxide producing formula Nitrisol.

30 Apr 2010

Celtic Pharma commences enrolment in Phase III trial of TDT 067 for onychomycosis

Celtic Pharmaceutical Holdings L.P., the global private equity firm focused on the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, announced today the enrolment of the first patient into its Phase III trial of TDT 067, terbinafine in Transfersomes®, for the topical treatment of onychomycosis (also known as a fungal nail infection).

30 Apr 2010

Data mining of hospital information can help identify MDROs: Asolva

Infection control within hospitals is a huge and growing problem. A recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that conditions caused by healthcare associated infections killed 48,000 people and increased healthcare costs by $8.1 billion in 2006 alone.

30 Apr 2010

Opinions: Sanitation and women, child health; GM in Global Food Security bill; U.S. malaria strategy; GHI on NTDs; Haiti recovery

"If Stephen Harper is serious about maternal health and child health [as suggested by his plans for the upcoming G8 and G20 summits], he needs to recognize that healthy mothers come from healthy communities," Maude Barlow and Meera Karunananthan of the Council of Canadians write in a Chronicle Herald opinion piece that examines the connections between the health of women and children and access to drinking water and sanitation.

30 Apr 2010

pSivida announces presentations on bioerodible technologies for degenerative eye disease

pSivida Corp., a leader in the development of back of the eye drug delivery systems, today announced that two poster presentations will be made at the upcoming ARVO meeting on one of pSivida's next generation bioerodible technologies for degenerative eye disease. It marks a key step toward the ability to use pSivida's bioerodible technologies to develop treatments for glaucoma and other degenerative eye diseases, diseases that affect millions of Americans.

30 Apr 2010

Manipulating physiology of "kissing bug" may help prevent transmission of Chagas' disease

It makes your skin crawl-a bug that crawls onto your lips while you sleep, drawn by the exhaled carbon dioxide, numbs your skin, bites, then gorges on your blood. And if that's not insult enough, it promptly defecates on the wound-and passes on a potentially deadly disease.

30 Apr 2010

CDC report shows increase in seasonal flu vaccinations, greatest increase among children

More Americans were vaccinated against seasonal flu during the 2009-10 season (40 percent of eligible population) than during the previous flu season (33 percent of eligible population), according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

30 Apr 2010

CDC presents clinical trial results of Biojector 2000 at 13th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research

Bioject Medical Technologies Inc., a leading developer of needle-free injection therapy systems (NFITS), today announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and its collaborating institutions presented the latest results of its clinical trial of the Biojector® 2000 at the 13th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research, sponsored by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases and held in Bethesda, Maryland April 26 - 28, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Practicing NPIs may help limit transmission of pandemic flu: Study

Practicing non-pharmaceutical interventions such as hand-washing and mouth covering may help limit the transmission of the pandemic flu, but more research on these measures is critical according to a new study appearing in the May issue of AJIC: American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc.

30 Apr 2010

Novavax reports positive results from Phase II study of trivalent VLP influenza vaccine in older adults

Novavax, Inc. reported today that its trivalent seasonal influenza virus-like-particle (VLP)-based vaccine candidate was safe and immunogenic against the 2009-2010 seasonal influenza virus strains in older adults 60 years or higher in age.

30 Apr 2010

Newsweek examines advocates' views of PEPFAR under Obama

Newsweek examines HIV/AIDS advocates' concerns that the Obama administration's focus on the six-year, $63 billion Global Health Initiative (GHI) is compromising PEPFAR's reach.

30 Apr 2010

Hormone mimic Octreotide promising for treatment of polycystic liver disease caused by ADPKD: Study

A hormone mimic called Octreotide may be effective for treating polycystic liver disease (PLD) caused by ADPKD, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). The study is the first clinical trial performed in the United States to test the effects of this agent in PLD.

30 Apr 2010

Anesthetist may have infected patients during procedure

There has been a breach in the strict infection prevention protocols followed by health care staff including doctors presumably by an Anesthetist. Nearly 250 patients in Western Australia might have been already infected with HIV, Hepatitis B and C and syphilis.

30 Apr 2010

Disease/Infection News

While global adult mortality rates drop, gaps between countries grow, Lancet study finds

Leptin hormone controls immune’s response to sepsis: Study

PAS conference focuses on vaccine-preventable diseases among children

NPR examines U.N.'s effort to stop sexual violence in war

Study could provide new strategies to prevent hospital-acquired infections

FDA approves Abbott Prism Chagas test to screen blood, tissue and organ donors for T. cruzi

Seasonal flu vaccine ups the risk of getting H1N1 flu

GeNOsys sponsors Phase I safety trial in collaboration with Nitric Solutions

Celtic Pharma commences enrolment in Phase III trial of TDT 067 for onychomycosis

Data mining of hospital information can help identify MDROs: Asolva

Opinions: Sanitation and women, child health; GM in Global Food Security bill; U.S. malaria strategy; GHI on NTDs; Haiti recovery

pSivida announces presentations on bioerodible technologies for degenerative eye disease

Manipulating physiology of "kissing bug" may help prevent transmission of Chagas' disease

CDC report shows increase in seasonal flu vaccinations, greatest increase among children

CDC presents clinical trial results of Biojector 2000 at 13th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research

Practicing NPIs may help limit transmission of pandemic flu: Study

Novavax reports positive results from Phase II study of trivalent VLP influenza vaccine in older adults

Newsweek examines advocates' views of PEPFAR under Obama

Hormone mimic Octreotide promising for treatment of polycystic liver disease caused by ADPKD: Study

Anesthetist may have infected patients during procedure

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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