TB & Outbreaks Week articles from May 2002

TB & Outbreaks Week archives from May 2002

PE-PGRS proteins may be variable surface antigens.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in France have provided new information about some mysterious proteins found on tuberculosis-inducing pathogens. "Mycobacterium tuberculosis...

Gene amplification provides rapid mycobacterial detection.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Diagnostic screening for exclusive mycobacterial genes could significantly hasten confirmation of tuberculosis infection, researchers say. "The worldwide...

DNA vaccine provides long-term protection.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States say that an enhanced DNA vaccine against cytomegalovirus (CMV) offers long-term protection from viral proliferation. "We...

Expensive in-patient treatment common in U.K.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Plans for public health treatment of tuberculosis in developed countries may drastically underestimate the cost of such care, researchers in the United Kingdom...

Heat shock protein prevents TB-induced arthritis in animals.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Administration of an immunogenic tuberculosis protein may ameliorate some of the side effects of TB infection, researchers in Italy say. "Adjuvant...

Lung bacteria morph into lethal form.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Swathes of antibiotic-resistant bacteria known as biofilms frequently infect the lungs of patients suffering cystic fibrosis (CF) and are often fatal. In a report appearing in Nature, Eliana Drenkard...

CDC develops global strategy.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released a new global strategic plan to help prevent the emergence and spread of infectious diseases in the United States. The plan,...

Tick saliva genes key to vaccine.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- When a deer tick bites a human or other mammalian host, it takes more than 24 hours before the Lyme disease bacterium travels from the tick's gut to the tick's salivary glands and then into the host....

FDA warns about infection associated with powdered formula.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Hospitals should not feed powdered infant formula to most premature or sick newborns because the powder isn't sterilized and could cause a rare but dangerous infection, the U.S. government has warned....

Government defends decision to award vaccine contract to Labor donor's company.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The British government has defended its decision to award a contract for producing emergency smallpox vaccine to a drug company owned by a Labor Party donor. The 32 million pounds (US$45 million)...

Mosquito fighters gear up to swat the bloodsucking pests.
May 7, 2002... 2002 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Humans versus mosquitoes: The South's annual war against the bloodsucking insects is usually just a battle to prevent the nasty, itchy bites that the pests inflict on almost everyone who goes outside...

Novel peptide in saliva kills broad range of fungi and bacteria.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A small piece of protein from one end of a larger molecule found in human saliva has been shown in laboratory tests to have potent antimicrobial activity against several types of bacteria and fungi,...

MRI well-suited for measuring spinal involvement.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can accurately measure the extent of spinal tuberculosis, particularly its spread into posterior spinal elements, researchers...

Bacteria's iron-absorbing mechanisms may open gates for new types of antibiotics.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists at the University of Texas (UT) Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have brought to light new information about how bacteria capture iron from the human body, and the work has implications...

Scientists reveal secrets of infectious childhood heart disease.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers have discovered important clues as to why a common bacterium can sometimes lead to a dangerous heart infection in children. The bacterium, group A Streptococcus (GAS), causes acute...

African treatment programs often overestimate drug doses.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Doses of antituberculosis drugs prescribed by national treatment programs in several African nations are often dangerously inaccurate, researchers warn. ...

Short chemotherapy courses sufficient for spinal TB patients.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Extended chemotherapy regimens may not be necessary for patients suffering from spinal tuberculosis, researchers in the Netherlands found. Dr. J.H. van...

Other pathogens can inhibit HIV infection.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Endotoxins from pathogens like Escherichia coli and Mycobacteria tuberculosis can prevent HIV from entering and infecting cells, researchers in the Netherlands...

China's overuse of antibiotics breeding drug-resistant diseases.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Most of the people who come to Dr. Wang Yuhua's unheated rural clinic in central China have minor complaints - runny noses, sore throats, maybe a fever. For 1.4 yuan, or just 17 cents, Wang injects...

Group welcomes legislation designed to preserve effectiveness of antibiotics for people.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The American Public Health Association (APHA) has come out in support of "The Preservation of Antibiotics for Human Treatment Act of 2002." This bill, introduced by Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and...

Lipid levels can identify high-risk pediatric patients.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Plasma lipid levels can be used to identify children with the most severe cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF), researchers say. Dr. Eric C.M. van Gorp...

CDC: Tuberculosis cases down again.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Tuberculosis cases fell to an all-time low in the United States last year, but the decline appears to be leveling off, federal health officials say. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and...

Soaring rates of tuberculosis reported for children living in London.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Rates of tuberculosis (TB) have risen 130% in children living in London over the past decade, reports a study in Archives of Disease in Childhood. More TB is being diagnosed in 10- to 16-year-olds...

One-day valaciclovir treatment shortens course.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Clinical trials with a high dose of orally administered valaciclovir given orally for one day shortened the duration of cold sore episodes appearing in patients infected with type 2 herpes virus,...

New compounds developed after 30 years.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The herpes simplex virus (HSV) is responsible for the cold sores and genital herpes that plague a great many people. Fortunately, the introduction of acyclovir in the 1970s has offered widespread...

How do you make the perfect vaccine?
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A big challenge in vaccine design is how to trigger a protective immune response with the safest possible vaccine. Research into how Salmonella bacteria cause infection is leading to safer, more...

Novel assay useful for Giardia duodenalis detection.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - A modified polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test can be used to quickly and easily detect Giardia duodenalis parasites, researchers in the United Kingdom...

Iminosugar derivative inhibits flavivirus activity.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - An iminosugar derivative dubbed NN-DNJ shows promise for the treatment of flavivirus infections, researchers report. "Endoplasmic reticulum (ER)...

First cases in two years confirmed in Scotland.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Health officials confirmed the first cases of measles in Scotland in two years, as new figures revealed a decline in the number of children being given a vaccine against the illness. Dr. Mac...

New vaccine requirement met with resistance.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- College officials may have to needle students into getting a required vaccination. About 6000 of the 10,000 students who plan to live on the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs next year...

Males over 65 at higher risk of bacterial pneumonia.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In a study of all Medicare recipients age 65 and older who were hospitalized during 1997 for bacterial pneumonia (community-acquired pneumonia), researchers found that men had a higher incidence of the...

Study finds no relationship to frequent exposure to mists from 'dental aerosols'.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Ever since the dental community learned that water lines supplying their water-cooled drills harbor bacteria, the question of whether breathing in mists spun off by drills causes respiratory illness...

Nabi Changes Name to Nabi Biopharmaceuticals.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Nabi (NABI) announced that it has changed its name to Nabi Biopharmaceuticals. This change recognizes the completion of the company's strategic transition to become a vertically integrated...

Nitrate reductase assay is low-cost alternative to for drug resistance testing.
May 14, 2002... 2002 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - A novel assay that measures the activity of a key Mycobacterium tuberculosis enzyme may provide a low-cost alternative for drug susceptibility testsing,...

Caveola pathway used for cell entry.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States have provided new information on the cell entry processes used by the Ebola virus and its cousins. "The filoviruses Ebola...

New treatment option for children with malaria.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Combination of the drugs artesunate and amodiaquine could be a new treatment option for children with malaria caused by the parasite Plasmodium falciparum, conclude authors of a fast-track study in the...

Single gene leap led to flea-borne transmission of plague bacterium.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A single gene change in a relatively benign recent ancestor of the bacterium that causes bubonic plague played a key role in the evolution of the deadly disease, researchers report in the April 26,...

Clathrin pathway needed for Hantaan virus cell entry.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in South Korea have elucidated the mechanisms used by some hantaviruses for cellular invasion. "The cellular entry of Hantaan virus (HTN)...

With proper care, bronchoscopes do not cause false-positive DNA tests.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - When properly cared for, bronchoscopes used to take bronchial aspirate samples do not increase the rate of false DNA-based tuberculosis diagnoses, according to...

Drugs used to treat adults can treat children, too.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The two drugs most commonly used to treat anthrax in adults could cause unwanted side effects if used in children, according to an analysis of pediatric anthrax treatment options. But the risks of...

Antibiotic use does not affect results from truama patients.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Preemptive antibiotic use does not affect the infection rate for trauma victims in intensive care, researchers argue. "Febrile trauma patients have...

Medscape publishes study on impact of anthrax attacks on Americans.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A new study about the public's response to the anthrax incidents suggests that the lives of a large share of Americans were affected by the anthrax attacks and these individuals expressed a higher...

New cases of mystery virus reported in Greece.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Seven new cases of a mystery virus suspected of causing a potentially fatal heart inflammation were reported April 24, 2002, as doctors urged Greeks to remain calm. So far three people, all adults,...

Scientists discuss microbial pathogenesis in era of bioterrorism, drug resistance.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Even before the recent dual specters of bioterrorism and drug-resistant infections, scientists were beginning to recognize the potential impact of better understanding how bacteria and viruses interact...

Alcohol-based disinfectant hand gels could increase infection in hospitals.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Authors of a research letter in the April 27, 2002, issue of the Lancet suggest that recently introduced disinfectant gels for hand hygiene are significantly less effective than rinses and could...

Method improves treatment of infectious disease.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Parasite-caused diseases such as malaria kill millions of people each year, and eradication efforts have been largely futile. But developing a clear understanding of how to exploit emerging...

Disease on its way to global eradication.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- With a sense of a mission accomplished, in September 1994 the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) announced that polio had been eradicated from the Americas, bringing to an end a saga of thousands...

Report finds no evidence that abstinence-only counseling prevents teen sex, pregnancy, disease.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- There still is no evidence whether programs that push sexual abstinence prevent teen sex, pregnancy or disease, the government reported, as Congress debates whether to renew an abstinence-only...

Doctors say bacteria suddenly becoming resistant to common antibiotic.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Amid growing concern that overuse of antibiotics is making some bugs immune, doctors have documented the first large outbreak of antibiotic-resistant strep throat, at a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...

Camelpox and smallpox more similar than originally thought.
May 21, 2002... 2002 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The virus that causes camelpox is an even closer relative of the smallpox virus than scientists believed. This heightens fears about its potential risks, particularly because some experts fear that...

Utah scientists describe how germs 'swim to dinner'.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- University of Utah biologists have discovered a possible explanation for why chemical sensors cluster together on the ends of bacteria somewhat like noses: The clustered sensors may work together in...

Human rabies often caused by undetected, tiny bat bites.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- While being bitten by a bat is rare, people should be aware that most human rabies cases in the United States were caused by bat bites that probably were unrecognized or undetected, according to an...

Bacterial arrays enhance antibiotic discovery.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- David Pompliano and his colleagues describe a new way of screening for novel antibiotics that are likely to be more successful in the clinic than those identified using traditional high-throughput...

Neonatal respiratory syncytial virus infections trigger diverse immune response.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Infants who contract respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection show wide-ranging antiviral immune activity, according to researchers in the United States....

Novel agent effective against (beta)-lactam-resistant pathogens.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in California have developed a novel antimicrobial agent with potent activity against (beta)-lactam-resistant bacteria. "Enzyme-catalyzed...

Successful vaccination feasible in low-income countries.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Results of a study in the May 4, 2002, issue of the Lancet highlight the success of a WHO-recommended measles elimination strategy in southern Africa. Authors of the study emphasize how such strategies...

Leprosy bug provides clues to early nerve degeneration.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In the May 3, 2002, issue of Science, scientists at Rockefeller University and New York University School of Medicine report that the nerve damage that leads to a loss of sensation and disability of...

Updated recommendations released for medical, public health professionals.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Working Group on Civilian Biodefense has released updated, specific recommendations about diagnosis, treatment, vaccination, postexposure prevention, decontamination, and suggestions for research...

Bacterial pathogens reactivate CMV during surgery.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Bacterial pathogens play a key role in the surgical resurgence of latent cytomegalovirus infections, researchers in the United States argue. "Critically...

Brazil declares epidemic 'under control'.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Brazil's health minister has declared a dengue fever epidemic that killed at least 50 people and infected more than 150,000 "under control." There were no more than 6000 cases reported nationwide...

Texas Tech undertakes study.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers have found that a bacteria added to cattle feed can reduce occurrences of a sometimes deadly strain of Escherichia coli by up to 60%, offering the potential to make beef safer for...

U.S. school food poisoning reports up.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Coming to school menus nationwide: Tainted burgers, fruit and other foods? Reported outbreaks of school-related food-borne illnesses have been rising about 10% a year, a congressional study said April...

Trichomoniasis risk similar for infected, healthy women.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Women infected with HIV develop trichomoniasis at rates comparable to those seen in seronegative women, researchers in the United States report. ...

Biodefense working group releases recommendations for biological attack.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A biological attack using hemorrhagic fever viruses (HFVs), such as Ebola and certain other viruses could cause an outbreak of illnesses 2-21 days after the attack was launched. Clinicians'...

Single rotavirus genotype linked to gastroenteritis outbreaks.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - A single, distinctive type of rotavirus may be responsible for the vast majority of rotavirus-induced gastroenteritis, researchers report. Dr. Dixie D....

Ruling renews battle over infection-fighting drug Neupogen.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A U.S. federal appeals court has given new life to a patent dispute between the world's two largest biotechnology companies, reinstating Genentech Inc.'s lawsuit against Amgen, Inc. The two...

DynCorp enters phase I smallpox vaccine clinical trial.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- DynPort Vaccine Company LLC (DVC), a joint venture between DynCorp of Reston, Virginia, and Porton International, Inc., announced that it will enter into a large phase I clinical trial consisting of...

Some families told to wait on vaccine.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Children in North Dakota may have to wait to get their shots to prevent chickenpox, due to a vaccine shortage. Officials say the vaccine for chickenpox, as well as others, is in short supply in...

Vaccinating against chickenpox may cause pain later.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Although chickenpox is nasty, vaccination might not be the answer It's a unique public health conundrum, and a stark reminder of how difficult it is to eliminate even the most mundane diseases. As...

Illinois public health chief says state can't avoid West Nile recurrence.
May 28, 2002... 2002 MAY 28 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- As mosquito season nears, Illinois' public health chief said the state cannot avoid a recurrence of West Nile virus - but that lifestyle changes may help keep the potentially deadly bug from infecting...