Emerging Infectious Diseases
In a public statement released last week, nine national organizations highlighted the pains COVID-19 inflicted upon the world in general and already historically marginalized populations in specific and pressed for strategies to improve crisis standards of care, along with equity.
“The... Read More »
As part of a World Health Organization (WHO) early access clinical program in Sierra Leone, up to 200,000 vaccine regimens from Johnson & Johnson will be distributed among children and adults.
Donated to the WHO for the program, the vaccine regimen already received prequalification from the WHO... Read More »
A new low-cost, rapid diagnostic test for COVID-19 developed by Penn Medicine provides results within four minutes and is 90 percent accurate.
According to a paper published this week in Matter, the test – RAPID 1.0 (Real-time Accurate Portable Impedimetric Detection prototype 1.0) – is... Read More »
Leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and subcommittees wrote to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra this week urging a reversal of a Trump administration policy that stripped Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority over COVID-19 lab-developed tests (LDTs).... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions Inc., a multinational biopharmaceutical company, on Wednesday said it is on track to meet federal COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing standards and executives will testify during a congressional hearing next week on the company’s progress since a batch of the coronavirus vaccine... Read More »
Biotechnology company INOVIO revealed that the placebo-controlled and blinded phase two segment of a United States clinical vaccine trial has shown positive, safe, and well-tolerated results for INO-4800 when used against COVID-19.
As a result of the test results, a 2 mg dose will be used for... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced Monday that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is now authorized for emergency use among adolescents ages 12 through 15.
While children have seemingly been less susceptible to COVID-19 at large, they can still be carriers, and plenty have... Read More »
America’s historically underfunded public health system played a major role in the nation’s laggard COVID-19 response, according to a new report released by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH).
And while it’s too soon to calculate with precision, it is likely that the United States... Read More »
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases announced Friday it has awarded researchers at the University of Texas Medica Branch (UTMB) at Galveston $11.3 million to study Ebola.
The multiyear grant will fund research into the immunopathogenesis of Ebola, specifically why cells... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has exercised the final $12 million option to produce the remaining $202 million smallpox vaccine order.
The order would be supplied by JYNNEOS, encompassing the Smallpox and Monkeypox vaccine. The option covers the supply of... Read More »
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and Dynavax Technologies Corporation expanded the terms of a manufacturing agreement last week to include an additional $77 million for adjuvant used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The funding injection, provided in the form of a forgivable loan... Read More »
The World Health Organization (WHO) added the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine produced by Beijing Bio-Institute of Biological Products Co Ltd. to the list of vaccines approved for emergency use worldwide last week, giving a potential new source and new boost for efforts by the COVAX... Read More »
Bloomberg Philanthropies will award up to $50,000 each to 18 cities in low and middle-income countries that are part of the Partnership for Healthy Cities and planning vaccine distribution rollouts with high-risk populations emphasized.
Vaccine preparedness activities, including communication... Read More »
A new United States-based public-private partnership, the Global Task Force on Pandemic Response, announced last week that it will work with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s U.S.-India Business Council and the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership to lend immediate aid to India’s COVID-19... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) joined other members of Congress to call on Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson to expand access to the COVID-19 vaccine globally.
In a letter sent on May 5, Merkley, along with Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and... Read More »
The commercial-stage pharmaceutical company SIGA Technologies, Inc. has filed a New Drug Application (NDA) with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the intravenous formulation (IV) of TPOXX.
The proposed NDA to treat human smallpox disease in adults and pediatric patients is the same as... Read More »
In an initial primary analysis of the Phase 2b trial of COVID-19 vaccine NVX-CoV-2373, a New England Journal of Medicine-published report revealed that the vaccine provided approximately 55 percent efficacy to non-HIV patients when pitted against the South African variant, B.1.351.
The Novavax,... Read More »
Moderna, Inc. reported initial data this week showing that in phase two testing, its mRNA COVID-19 vaccine proved effective and well-tolerated as a booster or a single 50 µg dose on the previously vaccinated, against both the original SARS-CoV-2 strain and two variants of concern.
In all, three... Read More »
Hoping to get vaccines out into the world soon, the Biden administration this week called for a temporary waiver on intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, earning commendations from WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and others.
“This is a monumental moment in the... Read More »
President Joe Biden announced Tuesday a new federal goal to get at least one COVID-19 vaccine shot in 70 percent of the U.S. adult population and 160 million adults fully vaccinated by July 4, 2021.
Accessibility is the main focus in the next leg of the vaccination effort. To that end, the... Read More »
Three Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) scientists have been selected as finalists for the Service to America Medals during Public Service Recognition Week this year, the group announced Monday.
David Boucher, Ph.D.; Dan Wolfe, Ph.D.; and John Lee, Ph.D., who... Read More »
Responding to the spiraling COVID-19 situation in India, Pfizer Inc. announced this week that it will provide more than $70 million worth of medicines to the country immediately, with assistance from government and non-governmental organization partners.
“We are donating enough medicines to... Read More »
As part of a phase three trial of the Novavax, Inc. COVID-19 vaccine, NVX-CoV2373, up to 3,000 volunteers between 12 and 17 years old will be dosed at up to 75 sites across the United States to determine potential pediatric applications.
While the number of vaccines for adults has been growing,... Read More »
The global COVAX initiative received a major boost in its fight against COVID-19 this week through a new deal with Moderna, Inc. that will bring up to 500 million doses of vaccine into the fold for use by the lowest income countries, including up to 34 million doses this year alone.
Delivery of... Read More »
In a call backed by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), a bipartisan collection of more than 60 United States representatives wrote to House appropriators last week, asking for increased federal resources to address the growing threat of antimicrobial resistant (AMR)... Read More »
Recognizing the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on certain communities, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced last week that it will fund an additional $29 million of grants for the NIH Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Against COVID-19 Disparities.
Supported by the American... Read More »
When Ebola was a low priority for the private sector, the Department of Defense (DOD) was one of the few organizations that funded early-stage research and development on vaccines and treatments. The division of the DoD that played a critical role in that research was the Chemical and Biological... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently forwarded correspondence to the three companies producing COVID-19 vaccines, seeking their plans to expand COVID-19 vaccines access globally.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Jeffrey A. Merkley (D-OR), and Christopher S.... Read More »
Moderna, Inc. announced major investments this week to bring global rollout of its COVID-19 vaccine to as many as 3 billion doses next year and somewhere between 800 million and 1 billion doses this year.
The increase in supply stems from new funding commitments to Moderna’s owned and... Read More »
While the COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated the dangers of ill-prepared public health initiatives, a new case study-based report from the global Resolve to Save Lives initiative and its president and CEO Dr. Tom Frieden highlights the numerous ways that governments can invest in and prioritize... Read More »
An Iowa State University research team is developing a new sensor capable of detecting Ebola in a single drop of blood while providing results in an hour.
Researchers indicated the sensor is based on DNA aptamers, described as short, single-stranded DNA molecules selectively bound to a specific... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and Enalare Therapeutics partnered this week to reformulate the agnostic respiratory stimulant ENA-001 into an intramuscular, emergency treatment for opioid-induced respiratory depression (OIRD).
The action is being undertaken... Read More »
Merck has reached voluntary licensing agreements with five Indian generics manufacturers to produce molnupiravir for the COVID-stricken nation, granting it another oral therapeutic to aid the COVID-19 pandemic.
While molnupiravir is currently being studied in a phase three trial to treat... Read More »
Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Tina Smith (D-MN) recently introduced a measure designed to bolster the domestic antibiotics supply chain and address antibiotic resistance threats.
The Onshoring Essential Antibiotics Act would provide $500 million in grants to build and improve manufacturing... Read More »
As part of a new agreement reached with Moderna, Inc., Sanofi will provide fill/finish manufacturing services and supply packaging for up to 200 million doses of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine in the United States, beginning in September.
“We welcome the opportunity to work with Sanofi on... Read More »
