Bioterrorism Week articles from July 2004

Bioterrorism Week archives from July 2004

Anthrax antibody profiled in medical journal.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Avanir Pharmaceuticals' (AVN) anti-anthrax monoclonal antibodies protected rats from lethal anthrax toxins, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Immune Based Therapies and...

Macrophages release TNF-alpha and IL-12 in response to B. anthracis.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Macrophages release tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-12 (IL-12) in response to intracellular Bacillus anthracis spores. According to a study from the United States, "Herein we...

Fault tree analysis used to assess bioterrorist risks to the U.S. food supply.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fault tree analysis is used to assess bioterrorist risks to the U.S. food supply. According to a study from the United States, "Concerns about terrorist use of biological agents have increased at...

Pili are present on surface of Francisella tularensis.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Pili are present on the surface of Francisella tularensis. "Francisella tularensis is a highly infectious Gram-negative bacterium with potential for use as a bioweapon. Analysis of the F....

Researchers accidentally exposed to live deadly bacterium.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- At least five workers developing an anthrax vaccine at a children's hospital research lab in California were exposed to the deadly bacterium because of a shipping foul-up, officials report. ...

Michigan Governor opposes change in bioterrorism funding.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm wants Congress to block a plan that would divert federal bioterrorism preparedness money from states to other programs. Granholm's plea comes nearly a month after...

SIGA signs agreement with ViroPharma to purchase biodefense assets.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- SIGA Technologies, Inc., announced the signing of an asset purchase agreement to acquire certain antiviral programs targeting potential agents of biological warfare from ViroPharma Incorporated (VPHM)...

Rabies has potential use in vaccines for other infectious diseases.
July 5, 2004... 2004 JUL 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists at Jefferson Medical College have literally "fused" a part of a rabies virus protein to another foreign protein, resulting in a more robust immune response in animals than with the protein...

Inhaled spray being developed for immediate protection against anthrax.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Anadis Limited is in a joint project with a key U.S. biodefense institute to further develop and conduct clinical trials of their inhaled spray that offers immediate, temporary, protection against a...

Genetic immunization effective against anthrax.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Genetic immunization is effective against anthrax. According to recent research from the United States, "The objective of this study was to determine whether a DNA prime-protein boost immunization...

Center for biosecurity at UPMC analyzes funding for U.S. government biodefense.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Since September 11 and the subsequent anthrax attacks, the United States government has spent substantial resources on preparing the nation for a bioterrorist attack. To date, however, there has not...

Minireplicon of virulence plasmid pXO2 of B. anthracis isolated.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers have isolated a minireplicon of the virulence plasmid pXO2 of Bacillus anthracis and characterized the plasmid-encoded RepS replication protein. "A minireplicon of plasmid pXO2 of...

Alliance to advance development of botulinum toxin vaccines.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- DOR BioPharma, Inc., (DOR) announced that they, and their academic development partner, Thomas Jefferson University (Jefferson), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have entered into a Cooperative Research and...

Ion-technology company closes $5.0 million private placement of common stock.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Implant Sciences Corp. (IMX), a developer and manufacturer of products for national security, medicine, and industry, announced the completion of a $5.0 million private placement of its common stock...

Company wins FDA approval for ciprofloxacin tablets.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Mylan Laboratories, Inc., (MYL) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted final approval for Mylan Pharmaceuticals, Inc.'s abbreviated new drug application for ciprofloxacin...

Herbicide active ingredient DCPA induces IL-2 inhibition.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- DCPA, an active ingredient in some herbicides, induces IL-2 inhibition. "3,4-Dichloropropionanilide (DCPA), the active ingredient of some postemergence herbicides, has been demonstrated to inhibit...

Company begins FDA-requested radiation study.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- ImmuneRegen BioSciences, a wholly owned subsidiary of IR BioSciences Holdings, Inc., (IRBO) will award a grant to the University of Arizona College of Medicine to begin an experimental study to test...

Health officials fear new mosquito disease.
July 12, 2004... 2004 JUL 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- As if West Nile virus weren't bad enough, now U.S. health officials are on the lookout for another mosquito-borne disease, fearing it could become a permanent part of the American landscape if it...

Dutch company's anthrax products selected for testing by CDC.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- IQ Corp. (IQC), a Dutch biopharmaceutical company, announced that its two antianthrax therapy products have been selected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for evaluation by...

Rickettsia prowazekii Madrid E strain proteome analyzed.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Rickettsia prowazekii Madrid E strain proteome analyzed. According to published research from the United States, "Rickettsia prowazekii, an obligate intracellular Gram-negative bacterium, is the...

Ring vaccination for smallpox control outlined.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scenarios under which ring vaccination would result in smallpox control are outlined in a recent issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases. According to researchers in the Netherlands, "We present a...

A synthetic peptide derived from BPI: aa 148-161 neutralizes endotoxin.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A synthetic peptide derived from BPI: aa 148-161 neutralizes endotoxin. According to recent research from China, "Lipopolysaccharide (LPS [endotoxin]), a structural component of Gram-negative...

Art professor indicted over biological materials.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- An unconventional artist who became the target of a federal terrorism investigation, and a cause celebre in the world art community, was indicted on charges he illegally obtained biological materials....

New reporting requirement to help fight bioterrorism.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Tell the state, stat. That order for immediate telephone notification of officials in Little Rock whenever a health-care worker suspects or confirms certain diseases has gone out around Arkansas....

South Carolina places additional $750K order for TVI decontamination equipment.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- TVI Corporation (TVIN) announced that South Carolina has placed a $750,000 order for additional TVI decontamination systems and accessories. The purchase follows a $280,000 initial order received...

Systems integrator named for final phase of DARPA immune building project.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recently awarded Battelle a $20 million, 2-year contract to serve as the lead systems integrator for the Demonstration Phase of the Immune Building...

Study of combat troops suggests many have post-traumatic stress disorder.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The United States Army's first study of the mental health of troops who fought in Iraq found that about one in eight reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. The survey also showed...

Nerve Agent Sensor named one of 10 "Greatest Army Inventions".
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Agentase, LLC's Nerve Agent Sensor was named one of the 10 "Greatest Army Inventions" of the past year by the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command. The Sensor is a hand-held...

BioDefense Corporation announces new member of board of advisors.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- R. James Woolsey, vice president and officer in the global resilience practice of Booz Allen Hamilton, and former director of central intelligence (1993-1995), has accepted an invitation to serve on...

Mass smallpox vaccination does not increase cardiac death rate.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Mass smallpox vaccination does not increase cardiac death rate. According to recent research from the United States, "In April 1947, during a smallpox outbreak in New York City (NYC), more than 6...

DoD awards additional $2.18M for development of norovirus vaccine, therapeutics.
July 19, 2004... 2004 JUL 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- LigoCyte Pharmaceuticals, Inc., announced that they have been awarded funding from the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to continue their development of drugs to combat norovirus infections. The...

Bead-based electrochemical immunoassay developed for detecting bacteriophage MS2.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A bead-based electrochemical immunoassay was developed for the detection of bacteriophage MS2. According to a study from the United States, "Viruses are one of four classes of biothreat agents,...

Monitoring system launched for airborne biowarfare agents.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Akers Biosciences, Inc., is pleased to announce that it has developed and introduced the Biosniffer, a continuous monitoring detector designed to provide real-time information on the airborne release...

Research uncovers crystal structure for cell binding complex.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A team of researchers led by the Burnham Institute's Robert C. Liddington has determined the crystal structure of the binding complex between anthrax toxin and one of its host receptors. ...

Air purification system kills 100% of bacteria in tests.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- StrionAir, Inc. announced that independent testing shows its germicidal air purification technology kills airborne pathogens by killing 100% of bacteria. A specialized filtration testing laboratory...

Nippon Shinyaku licenses right to develop and commercialize prulifloxacin.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Optimer Pharmaceuticals has acquired exclusive rights from Nippon Shinyaku Co. Ltd. to develop and commercialize prulifloxacin in the U.S.A. Prulifloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic prescribed...

Biotech announces security-related equipment order for the Olympics.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Implant Sciences Corp. (IMX) a developer and manufacturer of products for national security, medicine, and industry, announced Golsalia Trading, Ltd., Athens, Greece has issued a purchase order for...

Interleukin-22 activates STAT3 and induces IL-10 by colon epithelial cells.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Interleukin-22 activates STAT3 and induces IL-10 by colon epithelial cells. "Human interleukin-22 (IL-22), a cytokine with structural homology to IL-10, is produced by activated T cells. The IL-22...

C. botulinum type B neurotoxin gene expression quantitated with RT-PCR assay.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Clostridium botulinum type B neurotoxin gene expression was quantitated with an RT-PCR assay. According to recent research published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, "A...

Biotechnology company appoints senior VP, business development.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- ID Biomedical has appointed John Trizzino as its new senior vice president of business development. Trizzino was formerly vice president of business development for the Henry Schein Medical Group...

Kerry J. Flom, PhD, named VP clinical affairs of genetic assessment company.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Cepheid (CPHD) announced an additional executive management appointment. Kerry J. Flom, PhD, has joined the company as vice president of clinical affairs with responsibility for all Cepheid...

New notification requirement to help fight bioterrorism.
July 26, 2004... 2004 JUL 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Tell the state - stat. That order, for immediate telephone notification of officials in Little Rock, Arkansas, whenever a healthcare worker suspects or confirms certain diseases, has gone out...