Virus Weekly articles from November 2001

Virus Weekly archives from November 2001

Epstein-Barr Virus Not A Factor In American Cases Of Primary Liver Cancer.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Although recent reports have shown a link between Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), or primary liver cancer, in the Japanese, studies...

HIV Infected People Need Not Carry AIDS Virus Long Before Passing It On.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- People who contract HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, can pass that virus on to others within a week or two of picking it up themselves, a new study conducted at the University of North Carolina at...

Multikine Effective In HIV/HPV Infected Women.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A presentation at the Annual Meeting of the International Society for Interferon and Cytokine Research in Cleveland, Ohio, by scientists from the Institute of Human Virology (IHV) and CEL-SCI suggests a...

Clinical Trials Begin In Healthy Individuals At UC Davis.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A clinical trial testing the safety and tolerability of two investigational AIDS vaccines for healthy individuals is being launched at the University of California Davis School of Medicine and Medical...

Hepatitis B Vaccine Response Falls Short In Youth, Those With HIV.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Older adolescents may not be fully protected after being vaccinated against hepatitis B virus. Furthermore, youth who are infected with human...

Virus Has Spread Slowly West; Now In Missouri.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- As Missouri health officials monitor the breadth of West Nile virus now in their state, counterparts in neighboring Kansas await the unwelcome arrival as the mosquito-transmitted form of encephalitis...

Codiscoverer of AIDS Virus Joins Regent Group Research Consultant Team.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Dr. Luc Montagnier, the world renowned virologist and codiscoverer of the virus that causes AIDS, has joined the research team of Millennium Biotechnologies Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Regent...

Genetically Engineered Vaccine Elicits Immune Response To Kill Tumor.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A genetically engineered vaccine appears to direct the immune system to kill tumors caused by human papillomavirus 16 (HPV-16), report researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and Johns Hopkins...

Chinese Newspaper Reports On HIV Infections Of 118 Villagers.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In an unusual official look at China's AIDS epidemic, a state newspaper has reported 118 people in one village contracted the virus while selling blood. At least 10 of those infected have developed...

Study To Examine Race And Response To Hepatitis C Therapy.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A national, multisite study coordinated by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH), Pennsylvania, will, for the first time, examine differences in how blacks and whites...

Phase II Trial Results Of Therapeutic Vaccine Are Encouraging.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Xenova Group plc (XNVA), had announced results from the Phase II clinical efficacy trial conducted in collaboration with its partner, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), with TA-HSV, a therapeutic vaccine designed...

Cambridge Antibody Technology Announces Product Development Alliance With Merck.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Cambridge Antibody Technology has entered into a collaboration and license agreement with Merck & Co. Inc. for the research and development of products specific for a key target involved in disease...

Phase II Trial Initiated By Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals (RPI) announced the beginning of a multicenter Phase II clinical trial utilizing Heptazyme for the treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C. Heptazyme, developed by...

Healthy People Urged To Postpone Immunization Until November.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- New recommendations for influenza vaccination issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are now in effect, urging health care providers to prioritize vaccination of the elderly...

QuickVue Diagnostic Test Launched In Japan.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Quidel Corp.'s QuickVue influenza test product is now being sold throughout Japan by the company's exclusive Japanese distributor, Sumitomo Seiyaku Biomedical Co. Ltd., as the RapidVue Influenza A/B...

Seven Deaths Reported In Mozambique Outbreak.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- An outbreak of meningitis in northern Mozambique has killed seven people, state radio reports. The outbreak began about October 1, 2001, in the northern province of Nampula, about 350 kilometers...

HIV Infects Subset Of T Cells Leading To Depletion, Researchers Say.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The battalion of CD4[superscript]+ T cells, which fight HIV and other pathogens, needs new recruits to replace the cells that fall. Researchers at the Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology...

Scientists Identify Mechanisms Of HIV Life Cycle.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Myriad Genetics, Inc. and the University of Utah announced the publication of the results of pioneering research into molecular mechanisms essential for the life cycle of the human immunodeficiency...

Older, Less-Expensive Drugs Should Be First-Line Therapy.(Brief Article)
November 6, 2001... 2001 NOV 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Patients who receive newer, more expensive antibiotics for acute uncomplicated sinusitis have about the same rate of successful treatment as those treated with older, less expensive antibiotics, but the...

Vaccine Program Suspected In Pakistani Hepatitis C Transmissions.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Officials in Pakistan suspect the high prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) cases in the adult population could be related to vaccines administered during an...

Yale Researchers Develop First Vaccine, Test In Animal Model.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Yale scientists have successfully immunized mice against West Nile virus, raising the possibility of developing a vaccine for humans against the potentially fatal, mosquito-borne infection. ...

Epstein-Barr Virus Based Vectors Target Liver Cells Better.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - After finding some Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-based plasmid vectors seem to target liver cells, researchers in Japan have proposed these vectors might be...

DNA In Some Viruses At Pressure 10x That In Champagne.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The DNA inside some viruses is packed so tightly that the internal pressure reaches 10 times that in a champagne bottle, according to new measurements by biophysicists at the University of California,...

CRR7 Ligands Heighten Gene Vaccine Effectiveness.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - U.S. researchers have determined two important chemokines can increase the effectiveness of vaccines containing DNA and other genetic material. ...

Gag-Specific Helper T Cells Aid In Viral Control.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Helper T cells that recognize the HIV Gag protein play a significant role in the body's immune response to the virus, according to researchers in the United...

Bio-Terrorism.Info Database and Weekly Report Launch Powered by NewsRx Artificial Intelligence Technology.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx has leveraged its technology platform to create Bio-Terrorism.Info, a new database and weekly report. NewsRx is the leading provider of life science databases and daily and weekly health news....

Grant Funds Search For Drug Against Smallpox.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- University of Minnesota scientist David Sherman rarely mentioned his project to others in his department, but suddenly his work with smallpox is water-cooler conversation. Sherman, 44, is one of a...

FDA Approves Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate For Treatment Of HIV Infection.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Viread (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate), a new antiviral drug indicated for treatment of HIV-1 infection in combination with other antiretroviral...

Intermediate Viral Structures May Be Target.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Viral structures formed during HIV coreceptor interactions can be targeted by potential HIV vaccines, researchers in the United States report. "Human...

Abreva Recommended Most By Pharmacists For Cold Sores.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In just eight months on the market, Abreva has earned the No. 1 pharmacist recommended position in the cold sore category. According to Pharmacy Times magazine, nearly half of the pharmacists...

Companies Seek Patent Protection For Virus Analysis Technology.(Brief Article)
November 13, 2001... 2001 NOV 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Vigen Inc., a Wisconsin-based company that specializes in commercialization of antiviral technologies, and Commonwealth Biotechnologies Inc. (CBI), a contract research organization, have filed for...

Herpesvirus 6 Prevents HIV Variant From Spreading In Humans.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), a common virus that is apparently harmless in adults, appears to prevent a form of the AIDS virus from reproducing in laboratory cultures of human tissue, according to a...

Soluble Fas Antigen Predicts Poor Response To Interferon In Hepatitis C.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Soluble Fas antigen may be related to response to interferon (IFN) in patients with chronic hepatitis C. "Fas system-mediated cytotoxicity is thought to be...

Treatment Strategy Doubles Efficacy In HIV Coinfected Patients.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Daily administration of interferon alfa-2b in combination with ribavirin for the treatment of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) is more than twice as effective as the standard treatment regimen (three...

Prevention Tips From The University Of Pittsburgh.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- While symptoms of the much-reported inhalation anthrax can mimic cold and flu symptoms, most Americans should worry more about getting the common cold or flu this year. When the weather changes...

Transformed Bacteria Produce HCV-Specific Immune Response In Mice.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers report they have transformed Salmonella bacteria so that it elicits an immune response against hepatitis C...

Improved Dosing Formulations For Investigational Drug In Development.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Inc., announced the initiation of a collaboration with Formatech, Inc., Andover, Massachusetts, to develop improved product formulations for PRO 542, an investigational drug...

African-American Physicians Group Issues Hepatitis Guidelines.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Calling for universal vaccination, increased education, advocacy efforts and ongoing surveillance and research to help eliminate hepatitis in the African-American community, The National Medical...

Cannot Ignore Need To Eradicate HIV/AIDs, Tuberculosis, Official Says.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. State Department's top science adviser said the war on terrorism must not deflect attention from the need to combat infectious diseases like HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. "The United States...

Study To Address Fertility Preservation, Outcome Predictors.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Two studies in the November 2001 issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology address cervical cancer treatment. One study suggests that some women with in situ and early invasive cervical cancer may be...

Article Describes New "Golden Age" Of Antiviral Drugs And Vaccines.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Advances in the study of viral genomes has laid the foundation for rapid progress in the development of new antiviral vaccines and drugs. "The 1950s were the golden age of antibiotics to treat...

Inactine System Inactivates Nonenveloped Viruses.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- V.I. Technologies, Inc., (VITEX) announced that the Inactine system was successful in inactivating the virus that causes foot and mouth disease (FMDV). FMDV is a member of the class of nonenveloped...

Novelos And HealthCare Asia To Commercialize Agent In China.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Novelos Therapeutics, Inc., has entered into a collaboration with HealthCare Asia Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Hong Kong, China), whereby HealthCare Asia will develop and commercialize BAM-205 for hepatitis...

Vaccine Successful In Phase IIa Clinical Trials.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Xenova Group plc (XNVA) announced the successful results of clinical trials for two of its vaccines for the treatment of human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated diseases. HPV infection is a...

Shire Biologics Contracts With Canadian Government To Prevent Pandemic.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Shire Biologics, part of Shire Pharmaceuticals Group PLC (SHP.L, SHQ), has signed a 10-year contract with the government of Canada to assure a state of readiness in the case of an influenza pandemic...

Phase I Clinical Trial Of SL11047 Commence In AIDS Patients.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- SLIL Biomedical Corp. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has completed its review of the Investigational New Drug application (IND) for SLIL's candidate drug, SL11047. Phase I...

Prophylaxis Reduces Hospitalizations In High-Risk Infants.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Data on Synagis (palivizumab) and the economic impact of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) disease were presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2001 National Conference and Exhibition in...

Aventis Announces Support For Government Emergency Preparedness Efforts.(Brief Article)
November 20, 2001... 2001 NOV 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Aventis Pharma AG has offered the U.S. government its support by supplying products, manufacturing capacity, and technical resources to protect Americans against threats of bioterrorism. In...