Tuberculosis News and Research

Latest Tuberculosis News and Research

Biomagnetics, Bright Dairy enter into distribution agreement for China

Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corp., (PINK SHEETS:BMGP) a developer of revolutionary diagnostic systems and technology for HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and malaria detection, today announced it has entered into an agreement with Bright Dairy, which is the third largest dairy products producer and marketer in China.

23 Sep 2009

CGI commitment to Action improves health services in Rwanda and Haiti

Management Sciences for Health (MSH) today reported that the first year of its four-year $12.5 million CGI Commitment to Action to introduce and expand Performance-Based Financing (PBF) has resulted in dramatically improved quality and delivery of health services for millions of people in Rwanda and Haiti. PBF empowers health managers to allocate resources in a way that rewards meeting health goals. By improving financial management capacity and expertise, PBF strengthens the sustainability and performance of ministries of health, district and community institutions, and NGOs.

22 Sep 2009

Also in Global Health news: HIV/aids in Zambia; Ugandan medical workers; Obama administration officials' Q&A, speech; South African health care reform efforts; texting to combat drug shortages in Africa

The Post of Zambia examines the findings of a recent report revealing "the devastating effects" the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Zambia is having on the country's ability to meet the U.N. Millennium Development Goals. The article also looks at the relationship between HIV/AIDS and nutrition, maternal health and education (Chackwe, 9/21).

21 Sep 2009

TIME examines voluntary airline tax that aims to fund global health projects

TIME examines a voluntary airline tax, to be introduced in the U.S. and several European countries in January, that aims to "make up a shortfall in official government aid to poor countries — a shortfall exacerbated by the world financial crisis." The tax will be used to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, and it will also go towards improving maternal health and reducing child mortality.

21 Sep 2009

Recent releases: Climate change, health; ITNS; Mexico H1N1; Policy Tracker; TB treatment; blogs

In addition to the Lancet's recent publication of an opinion piece and letter by 18 doctor association leaders about the potential health risks associated with climate change, the journal includes an editorial about sexual and reproductive health and climate change and a comment on the upcoming Copenhagen conference in December (9/19).

21 Sep 2009

Also in global health news: HIV/AIDS in Bangladesh; river blindness in Tanzania; potential immune system booster; compounds might fight TB

BDNews24.com reports on a new $13 million U.S.-government initiative aimed at "providing HIV-prevention services to two million at-risk people in Bangladesh including injecting drug users, male, female and transgender sex workers and their clients, and HIV-positive people through a network of 50 health centres." USAID will partner with Family Health International (FHI) to implement the program (9/17).

18 Sep 2009

Mayo Clinic Health Letter discusses kidney stone treatment options

Ordinary, loud snoring doesn't seem to be harmful, according to the September issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter. But snorers still may want to seek treatment to stop snoring, reduce embarrassment and improve sleep for themselves and their bed partner.

17 Sep 2009

Biomagnetics and U.S. Government laboratory continue contract negotiations

Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corp., (PINK SHEETS:BMGP) a developer of revolutionary diagnostic systems and technology for HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and malaria detection, today announced the Company is in continuing contract negotiations to acquire the rights to Integrated Optical Biosensor System (IBOS) technology developed by one of the U.S. Government’s top national security research institutions.

17 Sep 2009

Findings may lead to drugs that destroy TB in dormant stage of lifecycle

Attempts to eradicate tuberculosis (TB) are stymied by the fact that the disease-causing bacteria have a sophisticated mechanism for surviving dormant in infected cells. Now, a team of scientists led by researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College has identified compounds that inhibit that mechanism -- without damaging human cells.

17 Sep 2009

Financial Times articles examine global health issues

The Financial Times' health section published several global health reports that "focus on the diseases and healthcare issues that affect millions but are often absent from the health debate in rich countries."

17 Sep 2009

HIRC investigates the impact of infrastructure on pathogens and micro-organisms

The spread of swine flu and other infectious diseases could be dramatically reduced by revolutionising the way that the places we live in are designed and built.

17 Sep 2009

Pros and cons of HIV treatments in developing countries

Palumbo is co-leading a clinical study of anti-HIV medicines in Africa and India for the International Maternal Pediatric Adolescent AIDS Clinical Trials Group (IMPAACT). The randomized trial found that a cohort of 82 HIV-infected children ages 6 to 35 months responded better to treatment with the protease-inhibiting drug lopinavir (LPV/r) than did a cohort of 82 children in the same age group who received the anti-retroviral drug nevirapine (NVP).

16 Sep 2009

Urgent vaccine requirements for treating epidemic diseases voiced at ECI 2009

As a result of dominant media coverage of new epidemic threats such as swine influenza, other infection risks receive less public attention than they deserve. "We would like to bring to everybody's attention that the infectious diseases with the most severe consequences continue to be old acquaintances such as tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, malaria and hepatitis C. About six million people worldwide die of these diseases every year," says Professor Dr. Dr. h. c. Stefan H. E. Kaufmann, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin, at the 2nd European Congress of Immunology ECI 2009.

16 Sep 2009

Opinion piece calls for enhanced U.S.-Russia health collaboration

While legislators in Moscow attempt to reform the Russian health system in a way that is "strikingly similar" to the reform process in the U.S. and "[g]iven the importance of the U.S.-Russia relationship ... our two countries have a historic opportunity to expand our health collaboration and, in so doing, improve our diplomatic ties," former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

16 Sep 2009

Pre-clinical studies of ID-12 orally-bioavailable inhibitor completes

ChemDiv Inc. of San Diego, and iDialog (Intellektualniy Dialog) of Yaroslavl, Russia, announced today the successful completion of a pre-clinical development and the subsequent nomination of ID-12 as lead clinical development candidate for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C. This novel small molecule orally-bioavailable inhibitor of hepatitis C virus (HCV) blocks early stage of viral infection.

16 Sep 2009

RI-MUHC recommends WHO to revise tuberculosis treatment guidelines

Tuberculosis is a global threat that affects more than 10 million people each year. Working with colleagues in the United States and France, Dr. Dick Menzies of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) has placed current tuberculosis treatment guidelines under the microscope in a new study.

15 Sep 2009

Study reveals that daily bathroom showers may deliver pathogenic bacteria

While daily bathroom showers provide invigorating relief and a good cleansing for millions of Americans, they also can deliver a face full of potentially pathogenic bacteria, according to a surprising new University of Colorado at Boulder study.

15 Sep 2009

Nebulized interferon-gamma helps minimize transmissibility of TB

A new study published in the September 15, 2009, issue of PLoS ONE found that patients with cavitary pulmonary tuberculosis receiving anti-TB medications supplemented with nebulized interferon-gamma have fewer bacilli in the lungs and less inflammation, thereby reducing the transmissibility of tuberculosis in the early phase of treatment.

15 Sep 2009

Emerging Growth Research to manage investor relations programs for Biomagnetics Diagnostics

Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corp., a producer of revolutionary diagnostic systems and technology for HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and malaria detection, today announced it has retained Emerging Growth Research, LLP to manage its public relations and investor relations programs. Emerging Growth Research specializes in small market capitalization companies in the technology and biotechnology sectors.

14 Sep 2009

Phase III STARTMRK clinical study on ISENTRESS in comparison to efavirenz

ISENTRESS , an integrase inhibitor from Merck & Co., Inc., was studied in comparison to efavirenz in maintaining viral load suppression to undetectable levels (less than 50 copies/mL) and at improving CD4 cell counts in previously untreated (treatment-naïve) HIV-1-infected patients through 96 weeks in a Phase III study called STARTMRK.

14 Sep 2009