Emerging Infectious Diseases
The Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing (PAHPA) Innovation Act, S. 1379, became law on Monday with the president’s signature, prompting accolades from national stakeholders, company executives and federal lawmakers.
The far-reaching law ensures the United States will be better... Read More »
In the fight against malaria, researchers are examining high-resolution images to chart the progress and burden of the disease on a geographic scale.
The research was conducted over two separate studies from 2000 to 2017. They were led by the Malaria Atlas Project (MAP), in collaboration with... Read More »
The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a global campaign urging governmental adoption of the AWaRe tool to reduce the spread of antimicrobial resistance, adverse effects, and costs.
The AWaRe tool was developed by the WHO Essential Medicines List. It files antibiotics into three... Read More »
Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis recently discovered that an experimental flu drug known as favipiravir cures mice infected with the potentially lethal Bourbon virus.
At least, that’s the case with mice. The drug has been previously approved in Japan... Read More »
A recent study from the University of Cambridge alleges that half of all Ebola outbreaks have gone unseen and unrecorded since the virus was first discovered in 1976.
While this supports advocates’ push for improved detection and rapid response to the disease, it also means the situation... Read More »
International leaders and organizations are unprepared for a global catastrophic biological event, according to a report from Georgetown University’s Center for Global Health Science and Security, the Center for Global Development, and the Nuclear Threat Initiative.
Leaders and organizations... Read More »
A new study suggests that comprehensive health system planning can stymie the effects of a deliberate release of smallpox in a city, a nightmare scenario for public health officials.
The research, which was published today in the online journal PLOS One, said that if a health system response is... Read More »
A new case of Ebola has popped up in Uganda, in the first incident of international cross-over since an outbreak began in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) back in August 2018.
While governmental and international agencies have worked hard to keep the disease from spreading... Read More »
The latest dengue research reveals that within approximately 60 years, the risk of the virus dengue will grow to such an extent that it will put at risk more than 6 billion people, due to population growth, climate change, and increased urbanization.
The virus is one spread by mosquitoes, and... Read More »
Under a new partnering agreement with Themis Bioscience, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) will provide up to $21 million for the company’s phase 3-ready Chikungunya vaccine.
CEPI seeks to hasten regulatory approval of the vaccine by providing a large portion of the... Read More »
Bipartisan legislation recently was reintroduced in the U.S. Senate that aims to advance the research and development of treatments for drug-resistant infections.
The Developing an Innovative Strategy for Antimicrobial Resistant Microorganisms (DISARM) Act of 2019 would allow Medicare to offer... Read More »
The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) risks spreading to Rwanda, Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Sudan, according to testimony by public health experts on Tuesday before the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
The outbreak in the DRC began in August 2018 and... Read More »
New research from scientists at the Universities of Surrey and Cambridge has investigated a relatively undefined concept in disease research -- vulnerability -- and assessed it for both Ebola and Lassa fever.
Vulnerability is the assessment of a country’s ability or lack thereof to resist or... Read More »
The Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense, the Alliance for Biosecurity, and the Trust for America’s Health on Wednesday applauded the overdue reauthorization of the nation’s all-hazards preparedness and response law addressing public health threats, whether naturally occurring or... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Emergent BioSolutions Inc. approval to change the storage conditions and manufacturing facility for its oral cholera vaccine, Vaxchora.
Specifically, the FDA's approval of the Prior Approval Supplement (PAS) submitted by the company... Read More »
The Department of Defense (DOD) recently awarded Texas Biomedical Research Institute a $2 million grant through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program to develop a Zika Virus vaccine.
Zika is a mosquito-borne disease that can result in birth defects such as microcephaly.
"If... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday approved the bipartisan Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing (PAHPA) Innovation Act of 2019, which now heads to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature to make it law.
S. 1379, sponsored by U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) on May... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded a 10-year, $535 million contract to Emergent BioSolutions Inc. for the supply of Vaccinia Immune Globulin Intravenous (VIGIV) into the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile in support of smallpox preparedness.
VIGIV is the only... Read More »
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has joined forces with vaccine safety organization Brighton Collaboration on a new project dedicated to assessing the safety of CEPI-funded vaccine candidates.
The project has been dubbed the Safety Platform for Emergency vACcines... Read More »
An experimental new drug from Gilead Sciences, Inc. has proven effective in treating lethal doses of Nipah virus in four African green monkeys, following testing with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Nipah virus, an emerging pathogen mainly found in Bangladesh and India, is... Read More »
Representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO) stated at the 72nd World Health Assembly this week that continued breakdowns in communication, data, and planning are hindering an effective response to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
That outbreak, which has... Read More »
The United States’ ability to manage health emergencies has steadily improved over the last six years, according to a nationwide index of health security.
The 2019 National Health Security Preparedness Index, supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), analyzes 129 different... Read More »
A team of researchers from the University at Buffalo and Temple University recently found that depriving a specific fungus’ access to iron can be the key to combatting it.
Candida albicans, like many fungi, relies on iron to survive. It is abundant in the mouth and relies heavily on saliva --... Read More »
A report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of the Interior and Department of Agriculture recently determined Kansas State University researchers are tackling the nation’s most prominent zoonotic diseases.
Citing "8 Zoonotic Diseases Shared Between Animals... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has permitted the first test to locate Zika antibodies in human blood to be marketed.
The ZIKV Detect 2.0 IgM Capture ELISA is the first Zika diagnostic test that has been authorized for marketing in the United States. Until now, 18 other active tests... Read More »
Researchers from McMaster University have created a new means of storing anti-viral vaccines for travel to remote regions.
The method is cheaper and safer than traditional means, according to the research team, relying on light, compact doses. It can store vaccines for several weeks at a time,... Read More »
A group of lawmakers introduced this week legislation designed to address the short-term, medium-term, and long-term challenges to detecting, treating, and eventually eliminating Valley Fever.
Valley Fever, also known as coccidioidomycosis, is an infection caused by the fungus Coccidioides and... Read More »
Legislation that would increase immunization rates across the country to prevent future outbreaks of contagious diseases was introduced in Congress this week.
The Vaccine Awareness Campaign to Champion Immunization Nationally and Enhance Safety (VACCINES) Act will give the Center for Disease... Read More »
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently created an education module
to help clinicians recognize the early signs of and diagnose Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF).
The bite of an infected tick spreads RMSF. Symptoms include headache, fever, and sometimes a rash.... Read More »
Vector-borne diseases such as Lyme disease, Zika and West Nile virus are on notice, with the formation of a new coalition known as the Vector-Borne Disease Network, whose sole goal is to address the challenges of such diseases.
The Network is being guided by the Entomological Society of America... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions Inc. said on Monday it received marketing authorization for its oral typhoid vaccine Vivotif in five European Union nations including France, Portugal, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Typhoid fever is a potentially severe and life-threatening infection caused by the... Read More »
A disease once eliminated in the United States may no longer be stoppable through current vaccination policies around the world, according to a study of measles published in BMC Medicine.
Current vaccination policies are lacking, and the effects could be seen through various countries and... Read More »
In an effort to create smarter research and development efforts in limited markets, the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) science division has launched the online Health Produce Profile Directory.
The focus is on neglected diseases and global health threats like antimicrobial resistance.... Read More »
The full U.S. Senate on Thursday approved bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize the nation’s all-hazards preparedness and response law.
“I am pleased my Senate colleagues joined me in supporting this legislation that ensures America’s biodefenses are ready for the public health... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) will begin procuring Emergent BioSolutions’ anthrax vaccine into the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) to strengthen U.S. preparedness in the event of a public health threat, the company said on Wednesday.
Emergent... Read More »
