News Archive: June 2008
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National HIV/AIDS Testing Day
June 27, 2008, marks the 14th annual observance of National HIV Testing Day (NHTD). HIV testing is a critical component of HIV/AIDS prevention. The purpose of NHTD is to reach those who have never been tested or who have engaged in high-risk behavior since their last test. Knowledge of HIV status can decrease the risk of unknowingly transmitting the virus to others and enable a person to get treatment before symptoms of HIV develop.
New Invention Effectively Kills Foodborne Pathogens In Minutes
University of Georgia (2008, June 25). New Invention Effectively Kills Foodborne Pathogens In Minutes. ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 25, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com
University of Georgia researchers have developed an effective technology for reducing contamination of dangerous bacteria on food. The new antimicrobial wash rapidly kills Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 on foods ranging from fragile lettuce to tomatoes, fruits, poultry products and meats. It is made from inexpensive and readily available ingredients that are recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Scanning electron micrograph of highly magnified Salmonella infantis bacteria.
(Credit: CDC/Janice Carr) ENLARGE the picture by clicking anywhere on the picture.
Tomato Warning Expanded
Physician's First Watch for June 23, 2008 David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH, Editor-in-Chief
Three weeks ago, the FDA warned consumers about an outbreak of salmonellosis, the relatively rare Salmonella Saintpaul, associated with raw red tomatoes. Since then, the outbreak includes more than 550 cases occurring in 32 states and the District of Columbia.
About 10% of cases have required hospitalization. The FDA has released a list of states whose produce has not been associated with the outbreak.
CDC Information On The Outbreak
FDA Information On Tomatoes Safe To Eat
Early FDA Warning
Viruses Hitch A Ride In The Cell
BioResearch Online June 24, 2008
Viruses can travel around cells they infect by hitching a ride on a microscopic transport system, according to new research. Cells are exposed to foreign DNA and RNA and it is understood that some of this genetic material can be integrated into the host genome. Using modern microscopic techniques, scientists have been able to see how virus DNA is transported in the cell. Professor Dr Urs Greber from the University of Zurich will describe interactions between viruses and the cell cytoskeleton today (Tuesday 24 June 2008) at the new SGM-RMS satellite meeting, part of the prestigious MICROSCIENCE 2008 conference being held this week at the ExCeL conference centre in London.
Wrong Drugs Used In Dementia, Experts Say
FiercePharma by Tracy Staton June 24, 2008
The debate over drug use in dementia patients continues apace. A New York Times article today trots out the stats -- about one-third of nursing home patients have been prescribed antipsychotics...
Drug Firms See Remedy For Profit Aches In OTC
By Elena Berton for the Wall Street Journal June 19, 2008
LONDON -- Fruit drinks, lip balms, cold remedies and hemorrhoid creams may not have the same prestige of lifesaving drugs, but they could become the prescription that will ensure the long-term health of pharmaceutical titans. Drug makers like GlaxoSmithKline PLC and Wyeth are banking on a diversified portfolio of prescription drugs and over-the-counter medicines like painkillers to help mitigate the loss of blockbuster products to generic competition and to buffer earnings volatility.
New Study Shows Potential To Treat Or Prevent Viral Cancers
ScienceDaily June 18, 2008
A new study, presented at the SNM 55th Annual Meeting, shows that radioimmunotherapy (RIT) targeting viral antigens offers a novel option to treat--or even prevent--many viral cancers by targeting cancer cells expressing viral antigens or infected cells before they convert into malignancy. It is estimated that up to 25 percent of all cancers are currently linked to existing viral infections. Most of these cancers are extremely difficult to treat and cannot successfully be reduced or removed using conventional therapies or treatments. Viral cancers include cervical cancers caused by infection with a human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted disease; hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a cancer of the liver; various lymphomas and carcomas in patients with AIDS/HIV; and other cancers.
Grape Seed Extract May Reduce Cognitive Decline Associated With Alzheirmer's Disease
ScienceDaily June 18, 2008
A compound found in grape seed extract reduces plaque formation and resulting cognitive impairment in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease, new research shows.
Protein Linked To Alzheimer's Disease Also Has Role In HIV Progression
ScienceDaily June 17, 2008
A protein related to heart disease and Alzheimer's is found to be a factor in HIV. The apolipoprotein (apo) E4 isoform has been implicated in neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, and stroke. Now, investigators at the Gladstone Institutes, the University of California, San Francisco, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and the Infectious Disease Clinical Research Program, Uniformed Services University, Bethesda, Maryland have shown that this troubling protein is a risk factor for AIDS progression rates and promotes entry of HIV into cells.
Whole-Virus H5N1 Vaccine Tested Successfully
New England Journal of Medicine Volume 358:2573-2584 June 12, 2008 Number 24
A vaccine against the avian influenza virus has been successfully tested for safety and immunogenicity, according to a New England Journal of Medicine study. In a combined phase 1 and 2 study designed and conducted largely by the manufacturer, nearly 300 volunteers in Singapore and Austria received various doses of the whole-virus vaccine. The vaccine was immunogenic both against the primary strain of H5N1 used in the vaccine as well as against two other strains of H5N1 tested. Pain at the injection site and headache were the two most common adverse reactions. In Journal Watch Infectious Diseases, Larry M. Baddour says the study "heralds two major accomplishments. One is the potential availability of a safe and immunogenic vaccine against a much-feared pathogen [and the other is] the use of cell culture, which is preferable to embryonated eggs for virus production in vaccine development."
WSJ HealthBlog posted by Jacob Goldstein June 6, 2008, 9:35 am
In what’s likely to be the biggest court case of the year for the drug industry, the federal government has
filed a brief with the Supreme Court backing Wyeth. The case,
Wyeth v. Levine, asks whether a patient who has been harmed by a drug can sue under state law if the drug was produced and marketed under terms approved by the FDA. The broader legal question here is called “preemption,” and refers to the question of whether federal law preempts state law.
Online Database To Help Fight Drug Abuse In California
InformationWeek June 5, 2008 12:26 PM
California Attorney General Jerry Brown has turned to online technology to stop prescription drug abuse. Brown announced Wednesday that the state will create an online database to help authorized doctors and pharmacies stop drug dealers and addicts from collecting narcotics from multiple doctors. The new system will provide histories more quickly and prevent patients from "doctor shopping" and gathering large quantities of drugs. The Troy and Alana Pack Foundation -- founded by the father of two children killed by a driver who had taken prescription drugs from several doctors -- will work with Kaiser Permanente, The California State Board of Pharmacy, and the California Attorney General's Office to develop the new database
Johnson Foundation Targets U.S. Health Gap With $300 Million
By Aliza Marcus June 5 Bloomberg Health
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, concerned about regional and race-based health-care disparities, will donate $300 million to help close the gap in 14 U.S. cities and regions and develop new models for national change. The communities getting grants make up about 11 percent of the U.S. population, including Cincinnati, Detroit, western New York, central Pennsylvania and Seattle...
"Reported" DTC Ad Spending Total Shows No Growth in First Quarter
DTC INSIGHTS Alert Wednesday, 04 June 2008, 12:10 PM
The “reported” spending for DTC advertising was off slightly in the first quarter of 2008 (declining less than $1 million on a base of roughly $1.3 billion), according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus data. Even with no ad-spending growth in the quarter, however, the results marked a turnaround for DTC marketing from last year's fourth quarter, when reported spending declined 15.2%. That marked the first time in 10 years of DTC that reported spending dropped in a quarterly period. The spending in Q1 2008 as reported by Nielsen Monitor-Plus was $1.2927 billion, compared with $1.2935 billion in the year-ago quarter.
Survey Of Medical Schools Is Critical Of Perks
New York Times by GARDINER HARRIS Published: June 3, 2008
Most medical schools in the United States fail to police adequately the money, gifts and free drug samples that pharmaceutical companies routinely shower on doctors and trainees, according to a ranking by the American Medical Student Association.
Wall Street Journal posted by Jacob Goldstein June 3, 2008, 4:34 pm
For the next year or so, credit ratings for U.S. drugmakers are more likely to fall than to rise, Moody’s said today. In its semi-annual weather report for the sector, the ratings shop noted a few patches of sun — strong profitability and cash flow, diminishing litigation exposure — but plenty of clouds. Along with the familiar problems (patent expirations, reluctant regulators, aggressive generics), Moody’s pointed to some less-frequently-mentioned issues that are of particular interest if you’re worried about companies’ ability to pay their debts. The adjusted debt level for the nine biggest companies in the sector rose to $94 billion at the end of ‘07 from $75 billion at the end of ‘06, Moody’s says. Among the debt drivers cited by the report: Schering-Plough’s Organon acquisition, J&J’s higher level of share repurchases, Pfizer’s big share repurchases and high dividend and Genentech’s Tanox acquisition. The companies still have plenty of cash and investments, but a lot more of that cash is being held offshore. At the end of ‘06, the companies held $58 billion in the U.S. and $27 billion offshore; a year later, that had basically flipped, with $29 billion in the U.S. and $63 billion offshore.
Merck's Movie "Script" For Advertising Its Cancer Vaccine
CNBC Pharma's Market with Mike Huckman Monday, 2 Jun 2008
While sitting through the trailers and commercials leading up to a screening of "Sex and the City," up pops a drug commercial. Yep, not even in the movie theater can you escape pharmaceutical direct-to-consumer advertising. It was a spot for Merck's vaccine Gardasil. Moviehouses everywhere were packed with mostly females last weekend to see SATC, so I'm thinkin' maybe it's not a bad marketing effort aimed at a targeted, captive demo.
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