Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

H5N1 avian influenza leaves people at increased risk for Parkinson's disease

At least one strain of the H5N1 avian influenza virus leaves survivors at significantly increased risk for Parkinson's disease and possibly other neurological problems later in life, according to new research from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

10 Aug 2009

Nanoviricides anti-herpes drug candidate reduces viral load by 99.99%

NanoViricides, Inc. (OTC BB: NNVC.OB) (the "Company"), has announced that the herpes simplex viral load was reduced by 99.99% or 10,000 fold in in-vitro studies by nanoviricides™ drug candidates.

10 Aug 2009

New kind of “molecular condom” to protect women from AIDS

University of Utah scientists developed a new kind of “molecular condom” to protect women from AIDS in Africa and other impoverished areas. Before sex, women would insert a vaginal gel that turns semisolid in the presence of semen, trapping AIDS virus particles in a microscopic mesh so they can’t infect vaginal cells.

10 Aug 2009

Parents still lack H1N1 information from schools, according to Red Cross poll

A poll conducted by the American Red Cross shows that while a majority of Americans are planning to take precautions against the H1N1 virus, more than a third of parents (39%) have received no flu information from their children's school or daycare.

9 Aug 2009

Defendants in $10.9 million Medicare fraud HIV infusion scheme sentenced to 63 months in prison

Miami physician Keith Russell, 65, and physician's assistant Jorge Luis Pacheco, 50, were each sentenced to 97 months in prison, and physician's assistant Eda Marietta Milanes, 43, was sentenced to 63 months in prison, for their roles in fraud schemes that involved billing Medicare for $10,903,509 worth of unnecessary HIV infusion treatments, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Jeffrey H. Sloman of the Southern District of Florida; and Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General of the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced today.

9 Aug 2009

Sanofi Pasteur submits supplemental application for influenza A(H1N1) 2009 monovalent vaccine to FDA

Sanofi Pasteur announced today the company has submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) a supplemental application for licensure of its influenza A(H1N1) 2009 monovalent vaccine.

7 Aug 2009

Updated Federal Guidelines for 2009 H1N1 influenza in schools

Updated federal guidelines offer state and local public health and school officials a range of options for responding to 2009 H1N1 influenza in schools, depending on how severe the flu may be in their communities.

7 Aug 2009

Novel approach for developing an AIDS vaccine

Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, believe conventional vaccine strategies should not be the only avenue explored in the development of an effective AIDS vaccine.

7 Aug 2009

H1N1 vaccine will be approved, ready for use by September, WHO says

By September, the first H1N1 (swine) flu vaccines will be approved and ready for use, WHO director of the Initiative for Vaccine Research Marie-Paule Kieny said Thursday, Reuters reports. Kieny also expressed optimism that "vaccine production yields were improving, following a disappointing start that triggered some worries about supplies," the news service writes.

7 Aug 2009

Netmotion Wireless boosts mobile productivity for Bell Ambulance

NetMotion Wireless has announced that it has been selected by Bell Ambulance to enable seamless roaming and data connectivity for its mobile emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics.

7 Aug 2009

Scientists find key to strengthening immune response to chronic infection

A team of researchers from The Wistar Institute has identified a protein that could serve as a target for reprogramming immune system cells exhausted by exposure to chronic viral infection into more effective "soldiers" against certain viruses like HIV, hepatitis C, and hepatitis B, as well as some cancers, such as melanoma.

6 Aug 2009

HIV genome decoded

"Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have decoded the entire HIV genome, opening the door to understanding how viruses infect humans – knowledge that could lead to new antiviral drugs," the Triangle Business Journal reports. The building block of HIV is a single stranded RNA, not a double stranded DNA (Gallagher, 8/6).

6 Aug 2009

Discovery of 'tell-tale' viral signature in blood that identifies underlying viral infection

Scientists have identified a genomic "signature" in circulating blood that reveals exposure to common upper respiratory viruses, like the cold or flu, even before symptoms appear.

6 Aug 2009

Pattern of gene expression in blood provides clues to etiology of respiratory infections

Scientists have shown that they can identify and characterize an individual's response to a respiratory viral infection by examining the pattern of gene expression in their blood.

6 Aug 2009

Automated network could predict disease outbreaks that originate in animals

The AP/San Francisco Chronicle examines Los Alamos National Laboratory researchers' efforts to create an automated network to monitor animals in an effort to predict disease outbreaks because two out of every three human diseases "originated in animals."

6 Aug 2009

Fast-tracked H1N1 vaccines will not compromise safety, WHO says

Efforts to fast-track the approval of H1N1 (swine) flu vaccines will not compromise the safety or quality controls of vaccine production, the WHO said in a written statement Thursday, the Mail & Guardian reports.

6 Aug 2009

Bloomberg examines China plague cases, potential for disease spread

"Plague-spreading fleas are expanding their territory, putting more people at risk of catching the lethal illness, a WHO official said," Bloomberg reports, in an article that examines the recent deaths of three people in China from the pneumonic plague.

6 Aug 2009

Phase 1 clinical trial starts for new antibody aimed at hepatitis C virus

Building upon a series of successful preclinical studies, researchers at MassBiologics of the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) today announced the beginning of a Phase 1 clinical trial, testing the safety and activity of a human monoclonal antibody they developed that can neutralize the Hepatitis C virus (HCV).

6 Aug 2009

2 billion worldwide could het H1N1, says WHO

The WHO on Tuesday maintained that roughly two billion people could become infected with the H1N1 (swine flu) virus, Reuters reports.

6 Aug 2009

Baxter completes production of batches of CELVAPAN A/H1N1 pandemic vaccine

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) today announced that it completed production of its first commercial batches of CELVAPAN A/H1N1 pandemic vaccine in late July and is discussing plans for distribution with national health authorities, subject to obtaining appropriate authorizations. CELVAPAN, the brand name for the company’s A/H1N1 pandemic influenza vaccine, is made using Baxter’s proprietary Vero cell culture technology.

From Baxter International Inc. 5 Aug 2009