Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

MarkMonitor Brandjacking Index reveals growth in pharmaceutical brandjacking for popular drug brands

MarkMonitor®, the global leader in enterprise brand protection, today released the company’s latest Brandjacking Index®, which finds a parallel online system of pharmaceutical supply and demand fueled by continued growth in listings for pharmaceuticals on business-to-business (B2B) exchange sites as well as increased traffic to illicit pharmacies. The report also reveals a growth in pharmaceutical brandjacking for popular drug brands.

28 Sep 2009

WellPoint covers administration costs for H1N1 vaccines

Each year, influenza causes illness, hospitalizations and deaths, and severely strains the health care delivery system. This year, seasonal flu is complicated by the emergence and rapid spread of the H1N1 virus. In an effort to ensure that individuals and their families can take the appropriate actions to help protect themselves against the H1N1 virus, WellPoint's affiliated health plans will cover the administration of the H1N1 vaccine without co-pay or deductible for all health plan members. Plans also are encouraging self-insured employers to cover the cost of the vaccination for their employees.

28 Sep 2009

American Lung Association in Indiana holds flu panel discussion

In an effort to educate Indianapolis area residents about the importance of annual seasonal influenza vaccination, the American Lung Association in Indiana is kicking off the 2009-2010 influenza season by holding a flu panel discussion at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic School on September 24 at 6:30 p.m. to educate the community about the dangers of influenza.

28 Sep 2009

H1N1 vaccine for limited supply only to people at highest risk

The novel H1N1 virus (Swine Flu Virus) is expected to complicate the 2009/2010 flu season. The H1N1 vaccine has been approved for release but availability and access is still unknown. Seasonal influenza vaccine (flu shot) is available and the CDC recommends vaccination over the next few months.

28 Sep 2009

Investigational vaccine regimen 31% effective in preventing HIV infection

In an encouraging development, an investigational vaccine regimen has been shown to be well-tolerated and to have a modest effect in preventing HIV infection in a clinical trial involving more than 16,000 adult participants in Thailand. Following a final analysis of the trial data, the Surgeon General of the U.S. Army, the trial sponsor, announced today that the prime-boost investigational vaccine regimen was safe and 31 percent effective in preventing HIV infection.

27 Sep 2009

EMS provides free resources for protection against swine flu

Emergency Management & Safety Solutions (EMS), the crisis planner for many Fortune 100 companies, international government agencies and large non-profit organizations, is providing free resources to help people prepare for, prevent transmission of and take care of the ill to survive this wave of this year’s H1N1 flu pandemic. Today, over 180 countries have experienced the H1N1 virus outbreak and at least 3,486 people have died – including 1,000 Americans.

26 Sep 2009

Virginia Tech student granted fellowship for research study on LaCrosse Virus disease

Camille Harris of Ridgeland, Mississippi, a graduate student in biological sciences at Virginia Tech, has been awarded a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Graduate Research Fellowship for her study of forest disturbance and its ecological impacts on LaCrosse Virus, a mosquito-borne disease that can cause seizures, coma, paralysis, and permanent brain damage in severe cases.

26 Sep 2009

New line of household disinfectant wipes and sprays launched

Seventh Generation, the nation's leading brand of non-toxic, environmentally safe household solutions, incorporates the latest breakthrough in green chemistry with the introduction of a new line of household disinfectant wipes and sprays.

25 Sep 2009

Associated Press/Washington Post examine contributions of military research to reducing global disease burden

In light of the U.S. Army's announcement yesterday that an experimental HIV vaccine trial it is sponsoring in Thailand showed modest potential for preventing infection, the Associated Press/Washington Post examines how military research is contributing to the fight against major diseases around the world.

25 Sep 2009

WHO lowers expectation of H1N1 vaccine output, appeals for donations to fight pandemic

International drug makers are expected to produce three billion doses of the H1N1 (swine flu) vaccine, "enough for just under half the world's population," a WHO official said Thursday, Canwest News Service/Ottawa Citizen reports. "The agency was hoping pharmaceutical companies would be able to make about five billion doses a year, but data collected over the summer led to the revised estimate," the news service writes (Fitzpatrick, 9/24).

25 Sep 2009

Non-AIDS-defining malignancies more prevalent among HIV-infected patients than non-HIV patients

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found that non-AIDS-defining malignancies such as anal and lung cancer have become more prevalent among HIV-infected patients than non-HIV patients since the introduction of anti-retroviral therapies in the mid-1990s.

25 Sep 2009

Vertex Pharmaceuticals to present SVR data at the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Association

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated today announced that sustained virologic response (SVR) data from Study C208, which evaluated twice-daily dosing of Vertex’s investigational hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor telaprevir, will be presented in an oral presidential plenary session at the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) taking place Oct. 30 – Nov. 3, 2009 in Boston.

25 Sep 2009

Registered Nurses of CNA/NNOC requests meeting with HCA regarding its policy on use of surgical masks

In response to a new policy imposed by the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) mandating flu shots for all employees and requiring masks, the Registered Nurses of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC) have requested a meeting with hospital executives on behalf of the chain's 50,000 RNs over this life-and-death issue.

25 Sep 2009

Members of HealthSpring to receive costs of administering the H1N1 flu vaccination

HealthSpring will cover the costs of administering the H1N1 (swine) flu vaccination to its members as the vaccine becomes available.

25 Sep 2009

Collaboration for the evaluation of peptide copolymer technology

Peptimmune, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company announced today that it has formed a research and development collaboration with the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) and the Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC), Silver Spring, MD to evaluate the Company's proprietary DEEP(TM) peptide copolymer technology for the potential development of dengue vaccines and point-of-care diagnostics.

25 Sep 2009

Phase III clinical trial of investigational HIV vaccine regimen complete

Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases (“GSID”) announced today that a Phase III clinical trial of an investigational HIV vaccine regimen has been shown to be safe and modestly effective in preventing HIV infection. The double-blind, placebo controlled study was conducted in Thailand among more than 16,000 volunteers.

25 Sep 2009

Research study supports reovirus and cisplatin combination for cancer treatment

Oncolytics Biotech Inc. ('Oncolytics') reported today that research led by Prof. Hardev Pandha of the Royal Surrey County Hospital, U.K., was published September 22, 2009 in the online version of Clinical Cancer Research.

25 Sep 2009

Partial success reported in the Phase 3 trial of HIV/AIDS vaccine

GeoVax Labs, Inc., an Atlanta-based, biopharmaceutical company developing human vaccines for HIV/AIDS (HIV-1, Human Immunodeficiency Virus), was pleased to hear the announcement today of partial success in the recently completed Phase 3 trial in Thailand of a candidate HIV/AIDS vaccine owned by Sanofi-Aventis and Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases.

25 Sep 2009

Investigational vaccine shows modest potential for protecting against HIV infection

For the first time, scientists say an investigational vaccine has modest potential for protecting people against HIV infection, the Associated Press reports. "The vaccine — a combination of two previously unsuccessful vaccines — cut the risk of becoming infected with HIV by ... 31 percent in the world's largest [HIV] vaccine trial of more than 16,000 volunteers in Thailand, researchers announced Thursday in Bangkok," the news service writes (Marchione/Casey, 9/24).

25 Sep 2009

Experimental HIV vaccine shows promise

An experimental HIV vaccine raises hope of reducing the risk of infection. Wall Street Journal/Associated Press reports: "For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS virus, a watershed event in the deadly epidemic and a surprising result. Recent failures led many scientists to think such a vaccine might never be possible."

25 Sep 2009

Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

MarkMonitor Brandjacking Index reveals growth in pharmaceutical brandjacking for popular drug brands

WellPoint covers administration costs for H1N1 vaccines

American Lung Association in Indiana holds flu panel discussion

H1N1 vaccine for limited supply only to people at highest risk

Investigational vaccine regimen 31% effective in preventing HIV infection

EMS provides free resources for protection against swine flu

Virginia Tech student granted fellowship for research study on LaCrosse Virus disease

New line of household disinfectant wipes and sprays launched

Associated Press/Washington Post examine contributions of military research to reducing global disease burden

WHO lowers expectation of H1N1 vaccine output, appeals for donations to fight pandemic

Non-AIDS-defining malignancies more prevalent among HIV-infected patients than non-HIV patients

Vertex Pharmaceuticals to present SVR data at the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Association

Registered Nurses of CNA/NNOC requests meeting with HCA regarding its policy on use of surgical masks

Members of HealthSpring to receive costs of administering the H1N1 flu vaccination

Collaboration for the evaluation of peptide copolymer technology

Phase III clinical trial of investigational HIV vaccine regimen complete

Research study supports reovirus and cisplatin combination for cancer treatment

Partial success reported in the Phase 3 trial of HIV/AIDS vaccine

Investigational vaccine shows modest potential for protecting against HIV infection

Experimental HIV vaccine shows promise

Small solutions for big problems in drug discovery and delivery

Professor Nancy Ip: Pioneering New Paths in Neurodegenerative Therapy

Utilizing process Raman in optimizing cultivated meat production