Bioterrorism Week articles from May 2003

Bioterrorism Week archives from May 2003

Buckyballs reinvent "antibiotic of last resort".
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Rice University chemists hope a new variant of vancomycin that contains buckyballs - tiny cage-shaped molecules of pure carbon - could become the world's first targeted antibiotic, creating a new line...

Immunodominant protein and others identified of B. anthracis exosporium.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Immunodominant protein and others identified of B. anthracis exosporium. According to published research from the United States, "Spores of Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax, are...

Enzyme structure has implications for treatment, defense.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A study led by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill offers the first molecular explanation of how the body metabolizes and detoxifies cocaine and heroin. "We show for the...

Portable sensor for biological agent detection in final development stage.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Integrated Nano-Technologies (INT) announced that it has acquired a suite of patents that will establish it as the leader in electronic DNA detection. At the same time, INT is completing...

Promiscuous enzyme could offer treatment for drug overdose, chemical exposure.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The discovery of the exact structure of a human enzyme that detoxifies a variety of small, foreign molecules holds promise for development of effective ways to treat cocaine overdose, prevent heroin...

New technology neutralizes viruses, bacteria, spores.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Bio-Defense Research Group, Inc., (BDRGI) a biotechnology firm based in Maryland, announced the availability of Path-Away, a technology that neutralizes deadly airborne bioterror agents such as anthrax...

Army orders PrISMedical's portable hand-held water purification device.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- PrISMedical Corp. announced the receipt of its largest order to date for the MainStream Water Purification Device from the United States Army. The Office of Rapid Equipping Force, the Army unit...

Veterinarians on the front line of defense against bioterror.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Veterinarians across the U.S. are being trained to recognize and report diseases that can be used by terrorists to devastate the livestock and poultry industries. The vets are considered key to...

AMA testifies before congress on emergency preparedness.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Physicians are better prepared than ever before to respond to mass casualties from disasters, but gaps still exist in the public health infrastructure, the American Medical Association (AMA) says as it...

Bioterrorism preparedness guide for Texas hospitals released, training begins.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Texas Institute for Health Policy Research announced the release of Disaster Preparedness and Response in Texas Hospitals: Part I, Bioterrorism. Developed by more than 100 experts in emergency...

Genetic blueprint for bacterium unveiled.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The genetic blueprint of yet another important disease-causing microbe, the bacterium Coxiella burnetii, has been deciphered and analyzed. C. burnetii - a highly infectious organism that sickened...

Congress approves compensation for vaccine.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Congress approved a package of payments for people injured by the smallpox vaccine, a move praised by health care unions and those hoping to move the stalled inoculation program forward. Under the...

DNA vaccine protects mice against a lethal vaccinia virus challenge.
May 5, 2003... 2003 MAY 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A four-gene-combination DNA vaccine protected mice against a lethal vaccinia virus challenge and elicited appropriate antibody responses in nonhuman primates. According to published research from...

Institute evaluates new battlefield protectives for soldiers.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The terrorist attacks of September 11 and war in Iraq didn't change the business and research mission of Southern Research Institute, but it did expedite some of its work to evaluate products that...

Atropine can be available for easier treatment of mass casualties.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In the event of a large-scale exposure to a nerve agent or organophosphate insecticide that might result in poisonings of many victims within a short period of time, a powdered form of atropine can be...

Viruses of Bunya- and Togaviridae families have potential as bioterrorism agents.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Viruses belonging to the Bunya- and Togaviridae families have potential as bioterrorism agents. According to recent research published in the journal Antiviral Research, "When considering viruses...

Company offers free chemical weapon research on its website.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Zarc, an authority in the field of OC pepper spray, announced a new service free of charge to both the law enforcement community and the public. Beginning April 15, 2003, visitors to Zarc's website...

Portable detection devices could have many applications.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists from the University of Delaware have made a major breakthrough in terahertz nanotechnology, one that could have practical applications in medical imaging, hazardous materials detection, and...

Phase I smallpox vaccine clinical trial completed.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced that DynPort Vaccine Company LLC (DVC), a joint venture between CSC and Porton International, a vaccine development company focused on biodefense vaccines,...

Coping with terror: Israeli student shares stress-busting techniques.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Only 28 years old, Erez Ingber has seen more than his share of bloodshed. As an Israeli army commander in a brigade unit, he has seen first-hand the pain that terrorism can inflict upon everyone...

Weapons lab rolls out radiation detectors.
May 12, 2003... 2003 MAY 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A cell phone that will be able to tell the difference between a "dirty bomb" and someone who's undergone radiation treatment is among the next generation of antiterrorism tools being developed by...

Close relatives of deadly strain sequenced.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The genome of the bacterium that causes anthrax has been sequenced. Two recently published papers compare and contrast the genetic make-up of Bacillus anthracis with that of two related nasty...

Filoviruses could be used as biological weapons.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The possibility exists that terrorists could use filoviruses as biological weapons. "The filoviruses, Marburg and Ebola, are classified as Category A biowarfare agents by the Centers for Disease...

Oral anthrax vaccine in development.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Microscience is developing an oral anthrax vaccine that is designed to provide rapid immunity against anthrax. This vaccine will improve protection at vulnerable sites such as the lung and...

Botulism toxin could be used as biological weapon.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS, senior medical writer - French researchers warn about the potential of botulism toxin as a bioterrorist weapon in a recent issue of the French journal Presse Medicale. ...

Project aimed at Ricin toxin initiated with funding from CRTI.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Cangene announced that it will undertake a third biodefense project as part of an initiative aimed at improving Canada's readiness in the event of chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear...

Successful clinical results announced for Ilomastat.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Quick-Med Technologies, Inc., (QMDT) announced that its compound Ilomastat has passed a key test for treating exposure to mustard gas. The tests were conducted by the TNO Prins Maurits Laboratory,...

Materials offered to ease homecoming for returning military.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The American Psychological Association (APA) announced that it is offering online materials to help those returning from military service as well as their families. "Homecoming often is idealized...

A rapid 5' nuclease assay can detect ciprofloxacin resistant isolates.
May 19, 2003... 2003 MAY 19 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A fast method for detecting Yersinia pestis bioengineered strains resistant to ciprofloxacin has been developed. "The detection of antibiotic resistance in agents of biowarfare is extremely...

Anthrax antibody effective at neutralizing toxin; Abreva patent extended.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Avanir Pharmaceuticals (AVN) presented in vivo animal data on its fully human antibody against the key toxin of the Class A biowarfare agent anthrax at a national symposium in Maryland. The...

Health plans making critical contribution to homeland security.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- American Association of Health Plans (AAHP) President and CEO Karen Ignagni recently updated members of Congress on the bioterrorism detection partnership AAHP is forging between America's health plans...

States urged to revise smallpox plans.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- U.S. health officials, acknowledging they will fall short of initial goals for smallpox vaccination, want states to revise inoculation plans to take into account budget pressures and people's...

$2M in biodefense contract awarded by DARPA.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Analex Corporation (NLX) has announced that its Advanced Biosystems, Inc., subsidiary has been awarded approximately $2 million in additional funding by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency...

Complement protein, C3d, boosts HIV-1 immune response.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A study of complement protein, C3d, as a anti-HIV-1 DNA vaccine adjuvant demonstrated that C3d does boost humoral immune response. "A central problem for the development of DNA vaccines has been...

CDC finds delays in reporting outbreaks of strange diseases.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A U.S. government analysis of nearly 1,100 worldwide disease investigations revealed delays of up to nearly a month before outbreaks of unusual diseases were identified by local officials. The...

Biotech firm addresses questions on drug's potential against SARS.
May 26, 2003... 2003 MAY 26 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The following letter was released by Cel-Sci Corporation (CVM) to its shareholders: Many of you have inquired during the past few weeks whether Cel-Sci's immune-modulating peptide CEL-1000 could...