Tuberculosis News and Research

Latest Tuberculosis News and Research

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

NWO awards 31 grants in Investment Subsidy NWO Medium programme

The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) has awarded 31 grants in the Investment Subsidy NWO Medium programme for the acquisition of equipment, the setting up of data collections and the production of software and bibliographies. The total investment amounts to 10 million euro.

30 Apr 2010

New data on Cimzia for Crohn’s Disease treatment to be demonstrated at DDW 2010

Studies and analyses of the Crohn’s Disease (CD) treatment Cimzia® (certolizumab pegol) demonstrating new data will be exhibited at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2010, taking place in New Orleans from May 1-5, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

NGOs outraged at developments of current meeting of Global Fund Board to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

NGOs are outraged at developments of the current Board meeting of the Global Fund Board to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, currently taking place in Geneva, Switzerland. Many donor governments are promoting the establishment of a ceiling on the next round of disease fight grants to developing countries.

29 Apr 2010

Eliminating inherent drug resistance in tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be a global health problem, in part due to the exceptional drug resistance displayed by the TB-causing agent, Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Beyond even acquired drug resistance, these bacteria are also inherently resistant to many other common antibiotics, which limits the available options in finding alternative treatments to resistant TB strains.

29 Apr 2010

Cambodia closes 64.9 percent of illegal pharmacies

In a major crackdown, Cambodia has forced nearly 65 percent of illegal pharmacies operating in the country to close within the past five months. Led by an Inter-Ministerial Committee to Fight against Counterfeit & Substandard Medicines (IMC), the shops were targeted because of evidence that they were among the primary sources of substandard and counterfeit medicines in the country.

29 Apr 2010

China lifts decades-old HIV/AIDS travel ban

Late Tuesday, China's State Council lifted a decades-old restriction that banned foreigners with HIV/AIDS from entering the country, Reuters reports (Buckley, 4/27). The amended rules, which appear on the government website, also lift a travel ban on foreigners with other sexually transmitted diseases and leprosy, and "narrow the travel restriction on people with tuberculosis, to those with an infectious form of the lung disease," according to Bloomberg Businessweek (Randall, 4/28).

29 Apr 2010

Report: Conditions in Zambian prisons fueling spread of HIV, TB

"Conditions in Zambia's prisons are so overcrowded and medical care so inadequate that they are breeding grounds for disease and pose a serious threat to public health, says a new report by Human Rights Watch, produced in association with the AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa and the Prisons Care and Counselling Association," BMJ News reports.

29 Apr 2010

Trade negotiations between EU, India could affect access to low-cost generics

The Associated Press examines the ongoing free-trade negotiations between the EU and India - a country that according to PricewaterhouseCoopers currently "makes one-fifth of the world's generics." The negotiations "could make it harder for millions … across the developing world to get lifesaving drugs. The deal is taking shape as India tries to transform itself from a generics powerhouse into a base for drug discovery - a trend that could ultimately do more than any trade agreement to curtail its reign as a pharmacy to the poor."

28 Apr 2010

China lifts ban on tourists suffering from HIV/AIDS

In a new development China has lifted its decades old reservations towards travelers and tourists suffering from HIV and AIDS in the wake of the Shanghai World Expo this weekend.

28 Apr 2010

Report looks at AIDS funding in developing countries

"A global pullback on commitments to fund and fight AIDS is resulting in restrictions on the number of people being enrolled into treatment programmes, more frequent drug shortages, and reduced national AIDS budgets," according to a report released Monday by the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition, BMJ News reports.

28 Apr 2010

People infected with gastrointestinal worms respond better to injected vaccines

According to the World Health Organization, two billion people around the globe suffer from chronic parasitic worm infections, which, in addition to causing illness and developmental delay, are also suspected to interfere with the effectiveness of ordinary vaccines, making their victims more vulnerable to life-threatening diseases. A recent discovery by researchers at the Trudeau Institute promises to bypass these obstacles and help deliver more effective vaccines to these people, boosting their protection against common childhood diseases.

27 Apr 2010

News outlets examine World Malaria Day 2010

Ahead of Sunday's World Malaria Day, news outlets examined global efforts to combat the disease and the mood among advocates.

27 Apr 2010

Caltech biologists offer new insight into causes of IBD and colon cancer

We are not alone-even in our own bodies. The human gut is home to 100 trillion bacteria, which, for millions of years, have co-evolved along with our digestive and immune systems. Most people view bacteria as harmful pathogens that cause infections and disease. Other, more agreeable, microbes (known as symbionts) have taken a different evolutionary path, and have established beneficial relationships with their hosts.

26 Apr 2010

Study confirms utility of Oxford Immunotec's T-SPOT.TB assay in identifying latent TB infection

The authors of a recent peer-reviewed study published in the International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease confirmed the high specificity of the T-SPOT.TB assay.

26 Apr 2010

Research documents early warning signs resulting from global pullback on AIDS funding

Rationing Funds, Risking Lives: World Backtracks on HIV Treatment, the new report from the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition, documents early warning signs resulting from the global pullback on AIDS commitment and funding: caps on the number of people enrolled in treatment programs, more frequent drug stock outs, and national AIDS budgets falling short.

26 Apr 2010

Enhancing residence time improves drug effectivity: Study

Studies led by Stony Brook University professor of chemistry Peter J. Tonge indicate that modifications that enhance the time a drug remains bound to its target, or residence time, may lead to better diagnostic and therapeutic agents.

26 Apr 2010

PMI releases 6-year malaria strategy

The U.S. government Thursday released a six-year strategy to address malaria globally, Reuters reports (Fox, 4/22). The plan was issued through the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) in conjunction with World Malaria Day, April 25, and is a "core component of President [Barack] Obama's Global Health Initiative," according to a USAID press release (4/22).

24 Apr 2010

QF-CMV test helps predict transplant recipients at increased risk of CMV disease after surgery

New international guidelines published in the journal Transplantation reinforce the use of a new type of blood test to assess cytomegalovirus (CMV) risk in solid organ transplant recipients (i.e. transplant recipients). This blood test, QuantiFERON®-CMV (QF-CMV), is the first commercially-available blood test to allow physicians to monitor a person's risk of CMV disease. Most commonly used in the transplant setting, QF-CMV may predict which transplant recipients are at increased risk of CMV disease after transplant surgery.

23 Apr 2010

First annual U.S.-African Union high level bilateral meetings start in Washington

Representatives of the African Union (AU) on Wednesday began meeting with members of the Obama administration in Washington, as part of the first Annual U.S.-African Union High Level Bilateral Meetings, United Press International reports (4/21).

23 Apr 2010