EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases

Prevention experts urge modification to 2009 H1N1 guidance for health care workers

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Infectious Diseases Society of America) Three leading scientific organizations specializing in infectious diseases prevention issued a letter to President Obama today expressing their significant concern with current federal guidance concerning the use of personal protective equipment by health care workers in treating suspected or confirmed cases of 2009 H1N1 influenza.

Pathogen protection and virulence: Dark side of fungal membrane protein revealed

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Virginia Tech) Researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech and Montana State University have discovered a fungal protein that plays a key role in causing disease in plants and animals and which also shields the pathogen from oxidative stress.

Poll: Many parents, high-priority adults who tried to get H1N1 vaccine unable to get it

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Harvard School of Public Health) A new national poll from Harvard School of Public Health researchers found that a majority of adults who tried to get the H1N1 vaccine for themselves or their children have been unable to do so.

Keystone Symposia announces new three-year grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Keystone Symposia on Molecular & Cellular Biology) Keystone Symposia is pleased to announce that it has received a second grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation worth $2.7 million over three years to fund meetings and Global Health Travel Awards in the Keystone Symposia Global Health Series. Currently, five 2010 scheduled conferences will fall within this grant. Keystone Symposia is offering a total of 52 conferences in its 2010 season in a diverse array of life science disciplines.

UAB awarded $11.5 million to explore ways to test youth for HIV, link them to care

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(University of Alabama at Birmingham) Two new grants are for leadership and coordination of the Adolescent Medicine Trials Network for HIV/AIDS Intervention (ATN), a research network in the United States and Puerto Rico working to curb the epidemic through prevention, testing and treatment for youth ages 12 to 24. Projections show at least one-half of all new HIV infections each year worldwide are in youth under age 25, says Craig Wilson, M.D., a UAB professor and ATN leader.

US and European experts applaud new transatlantic task force on antibiotic resistance threat

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Infectious Diseases Society of America) U.S. and European Experts Applaud New Transatlantic Task Force on Antibiotic Resistance Threat

Federal stimulus funds support studies geared to improving HIV care and prevention

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(University of California - San Francisco) One study will look at using mobile phone text messages linked to a web-based personal health record to help HIV patients' adherence to pill-taking regimens. The other study will test the feasibility and acceptability of a Web-based strategy that seeks to reduce drug and alcohol use and accompanying HIV risk behaviors and improve antiretroviral medication adherence by HIV positive patients.

Journal special edition outlines rotavirus burden and need for vaccines

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(PATH) The Journal of Infectious Diseases has released a special edition, Global Rotavirus Surveillance: Preparing for the Introduction of Rotavirus Vaccines. This special edition provides a significant contribution to the understanding of rotavirus disease burden and the impact of rotavirus vaccines, which have the potential to save an estimated 228,000 lives annually.

Perceived parent-pressure causes excessive antibiotic prescription

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(BioMed Central) Antibiotic over-prescription is promoted by pediatricians' perception of parents' expectations. Research published in the open access journal BMC Pediatrics shows that pediatricians are more likely to inappropriately prescribe antibiotics for respiratory tract infections if they perceived parents were expecting a prescription.

When should flu trigger a school shutdown?

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Children's Hospital Boston) As flu season approaches, parents around the country are starting to face school closures. But how bad should an influenza outbreak be for a school to shut down? A study led by Children's epidemiologists tapped a set of Japanese data to help guide decision making by schools and government agencies. The analysis was published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the November issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases.

NIAID announces new human immunology research awards to help fight emerging infectious diseases

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded approximately $208 million to two programs that support research to better understand the human immune response to emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, including those that may be introduced into a community through acts of bioterrorism.

New insight into predicting cholera epidemics in the Bengal Delta

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Tufts University) In Bangladesh cholera epidemics occur twice a year. Scientists have tried, without much success, to determine the causes -- and advance early detection and prevention efforts. Now, researchers from Tufts University have proposed a link between cholera and fluctuating water levels in the region's three principal rivers -- the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna.

Common pain relievers may dilute power of flu shots

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(University of Rochester Medical Center) With flu vaccination season in full swing, researchers caution that use of many common pain killers -- Advil, Tylenol, aspirin -- at the time of injection may blunt the effect of the shot and have a negative effect on the immune system.

Specialists in hearing, HIV come together to study AIDS patients

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(University of Rochester Medical Center) Specialists in HIV and in hearing at the University of Rochester Medical Center are teaming up to measure the hearing of people with AIDS.

World's largest malaria vaccine trial now underway in 7 African countries

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative) A pivotal efficacy trial of RTS,S, the world's most clinically advanced malaria vaccine candidate, is now underway in seven African countries: Burkina Faso, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. The trial, which is expected to involve up to 16,000 children, is on schedule, with more than 5,000 children already enrolled, researchers announced Tuesday at the 5th Multilateral Initiative on Malaria Pan-African Malaria Conference.

Report on H1N1 cases in California shows hospitalization can occur at all ages, with many severe

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(JAMA and Archives Journals) In contrast with some common perceptions regarding 2009 influenza A (H1N1) infections, an examination of cases in California indicates that hospitalization and death can occur at all ages, and about 30 percent of hospitalized cases have been severe enough to require treatment in an intensive care unit, according to a study in the Nov. 4 issue of JAMA.

Global challenges and opportunities in fighting HIV/AIDS and neglected diseases

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Burness Communications) Responding to the HIV/AIDS pandemic and tackling so-called neglected tropical diseases are the focus of the November/December 2009 edition of Health Affairs. The articles, by leading global health experts from around the world, show that although these challenges differ dramatically, rising to meet them could save millions of lives.

New infectious disease research presented at CHEST 2009

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(American College of Chest Physicians) New research presented at CHEST 2009 highlights infectious disease abstracts related to H1N1 and the use of flocked swabs to obtain nasal aspirates for virus detection.

Tap wealth of local products emerging to fight 'neglected' diseases of poor: study

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Program on Life Sciences, Ethics and Policy,McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health) World health experts have documented a wealth of innovative, affordable drugs, vaccines and diagnostic products created in China, India, Brazil and South Africa that are effective against "neglected" diseases of the poor. The McLaughlin Rotman Center for Global Health proposes a new global mechanism to help extend the benefits of such products into distant markets where they are urgently needed.

Flu vaccine given to women during pregnancy keeps infants out of the hospital

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Yale University) Infants born to women who received influenza vaccine during pregnancy were hospitalized at a lower rate than infants born to unvaccinated mothers, according to preliminary results of an ongoing study by researchers at Yale School of Medicine. The team presented the study October 29 at the 47th annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America in Philadelphia.

Initial results show pregnant women mount strong immune response to 1 dose of 2009 H1N1 vaccine

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) Healthy pregnant women mount a robust immune response following just one dose of 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine, according to initial results from an ongoing clinical trial sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health.

Pitt, US Army team designs new strategy to find drugs to treat neglected infection

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences) Using an unconventional approach that they designed, University of Pittsburgh drug discoverers and their collaborators at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research have identified compounds that hold promise for treating leishmaniasis, a parasitic infection that many consider one of the world's most overlooked diseases. The findings are available online today in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Partnership for Military Medicine Symposium

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine) The Partnership for Military Medicine Symposium features keynote addresses and panel presentations from leading military and civilian experts on collaborations in humanitarian aid and disaster response, post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, and global infectious diseases. The symposium will be held Nov. 6, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C.

The entwined destinies of mankind and leprosy bacteria

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) Leprosy still affects hundreds of thousands of people today throughout the entire world. An international team headed by EPFL professor Stewart Cole has traced the history of the disease from ancient Egypt to today and in doing so has made a public health study essential for combating the disease.

Ineffective monotherapies common in high-burden malarious countries

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST

(Powell Tate) ACTwatch, a research project led by PSI, in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, released evidence today that indicates that artemisinin combination therapy, the most effective medicines for treating malaria, continue to have a significantly low presence on the market among populations considered to be most at risk.