DNA Barcodes: Creative New Uses Span Health, Fraud, Smuggling, History, More Nov 12, 2009
Scientists worry that changes in climate and the geographic distribution of species can expose new susceptible hosts and spread emerging diseases. One researcher calls the emerging infectious disease crisis today "the tip of an iceberg," adding that barcoding can help identify and locate potential disease vector species and anticipate the spread of illnesses. (Science Daily)
Scientists Launch Effort To Sequence The DNA Of 10,000 Vertebrates Nov 6, 2009
By helping scientists predict how species will respond to climate change, pollution, emerging diseases, and invasive competitors, it will support the assessment, monitoring, and management of biological diversity. The G10KCOS consortium has been developing guidelines for the collection, preservation, and documentation of cell lines and DNA samples. (Science Daily)
Singapore scientists join international study of 10,000 vertebrates' genomes Nov 5, 2009
The results will enable scientists worldwide to understand the genetic basis of adaptive changes that occur in vertebrates and predict how animals respond to climate change, pollution, emerging diseases and competition. In addition to aiding conservation efforts, this data will enable researchers to compare animal and human genomes, and reconstruct the evolutionary history of the human and other vertebrate genomes. (EurekAlert!)
Evolution of man - Singapore joins first steps of gene study Nov 5, 2009
This will help in conservation efforts as scientists may be able to predict how animals respond to climate change, emerging diseases, and competition. Said Prof Venkatesh, This project will not only generate sequences of all important vertebrate genomes that we were contemplating to sequence, but also will give us access to the latest sequencing technologies and sequence analysis tools for genomic studies in Singapore. (Channelnewsasia.com)
World largest malaria vaccine trial underway in Africa Nov 4, 2009
"This is a tremendous moment in the fight against malaria and the culmination of more than two decades of research, including 10years of clinical trials in Africa," said Joe Cohen, co-inventor of RTS,S and Vice President of R&D, Vaccines for Emerging Diseases and HIV, at GSK Biologicals. "The Phase III trial is a huge undertaking that depends on effective coordination between researchers, regulators, families and communities. Everyone involved has invested significant energy and resources to... (Xinhuanet, China)
World's largest malaria vaccine trial now underway in 7 African countries Nov 3, 2009
"This is a tremendous moment in the fight against malaria and the culmination of more than two decades of research, including 10 years of clinical trials in Africa," said Dr. Joe Cohen, co-inventor of RTS,S and Vice President of Rcines for Emerging Diseases and HIV, at GSK. Biologicals. (EurekAlert!)
Sars patients can provide therapy Nov 1, 2009
It may provide a fast method to combat emerging diseases, and, perhaps, biological attacks. The research is published in the journal Nature Medicine. (Yahoo News -- SARS)
Widespread A/H1N1 flu hits 48 U.S. states Nov 1, 2009
The president wanted us "to learn the lessons for the future, so we can get our technology in better shape through a real focus on influenza and other emerging diseases in the future," he added. Though the A/H1N1 vaccine supply is improving steadily in the past week, according to the CDC director, there is not enough for all providers or people who would want it. (Xinhuanet, China)
CDC expands flu-tracking efforts Oct 28, 2009
The GeoSentinel network takes a global approach by connecting 48 clinics on several continents to track emerging diseases, including H1N1 flu, which first appeared in Mexico and spread worldwide within six weeks. Unlike traditional flu surveillance systems, GeoSentinel tracks where patients got sick, not where they live. (FCW.com)
What are coral reef services worth? $130,000 to $1.2 million / ht / yr: Experts Oct 16, 2009
Most were captured from the wild and most arrived from Southeast Asia, a hotspot incubator of emerging diseases ... "The threat to public health is real, as the majority of emerging diseases come from wildlife," says Dr. Smith, who listed dozens of fevers, encephalitis, Leishmaniasis, and schistosomiasis among the health threats. (EurekAlert!)
A case in point: Significance of medical case reports grows Oct 16, 2009
Professor Michael Kidd from Flinders University in Australia and Editor-in-Chief of JMCR said: "It's great to be back with BioMed Central. We have published many landmark clinical cases across all areas of medicine including cancer, ophthalmology, primary care, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, and musculoskeletal disorders that have significantly contributed to medical knowledge." These cases can often serve as early warning signals for the adverse effects of new medications, or the... (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
Elsevier announces launch of Spatial and Spatio-temporal Epidemiology Oct 16, 2009
The journal places special emphasis on spatio-temporal aspects of emerging diseases (e. g., avian flu, SARS), development of spatial statistical and computational methods, and novel applications of geospatial technology (e. (EurekAlert! -- Business News)
Mechanism That Helps Bacteria Avoid Destruction In Cells Identified Oct 13, 2009
The finding has implications for how scientists identify and assign risk to emerging diseases in the. . (Science Daily)
* Disease fears increase in tsunami-battered Samoa Oct 5, 2009
We are already hearing some news of gastroenteritis and diarrhea outbreaks, and there is a high potential likelihood of emerging diseases, she said. Mauala estimated up to 3,000 people lost their homes in the tsunami, with most now living with family and friends, many overcrowding existing houses. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Ancient Fungus: World's Forests Were Wiped Out Oct 2, 2009
5, 2004) In studying the dramatic recent global decline of frog and salamander populations, researchers increasingly cite emerging diseases as major causes. Among these, one particularly mysterious new. (Science Daily)
Study: Earth is outside of safe operating space Sep 25, 2009
"Massive disruptions in climate, ecosystems and so on can have severely negative impacts on things like air quality, pollution levels, pests, emerging diseases and so on.". Excessive global warming, for example, might lead to a rapid rise in sea levels, the collapse of major circulation patterns and drastic changes to regional climates, including more floods and retreating glaciers. (MSNBC -- Environment)
Frog Fungus Hammering Biodiversity Sep 23, 2009
23, 2009) Sometimes to see something properly, you have to stand farther back. This is true of Chuck Close portraits where a patchwork of many small faces changes into one giant face as you back away. (Science Daily)
Swine flu fears for poorer nations in W.Pacific Sep 21, 2009
"The developing world will have no access to vaccines for the time being. There are some donations but it is not enough," said Lo Wing-lok, a member of Hong Kong's government scientific committee on emerging diseases. "It is very much a matter of equity and the WHO must look at any way to address this.". (Yahoo! Asia News)
Human-made Crises 'Outrunning Our Ability To Deal With Them,' Scientists Warn Sep 18, 2009
Energy, food and water crises, climate disruption, declining fisheries, ocean acidification, emerging diseases and increasing antibiotic resistance are examples of serious, intertwined global-scale challenges spawned by the accelerating scale of human activity, say the researchers, who come from Australia, Sweden, the United States, India, Greece and The Netherlands. These issues are outpacing the development of institutions to deal with them and their many interactive effects. (Science Daily)
Is a Swine Flu Outbreak Getting Close? Ask Your iPhone Sep 9, 2009
The app is based on the same network of media and on-the-ground reporting that global health officials use to detect and track emerging diseases like H1N1 and 2003's SARS. Indeed, the first details of the strange respiratory disease, which surfaced in southern China six years ago, weren't published in a medical journal, nor were they issued by the World Health Organization (WHO). Rather, the earliest hints came in the media, in stories published in Chinese newspapers about people in Guangzhou... (Time.com)
Chimpanzees Use 'Tool Kits' To Catch Ants Sep 3, 2009
"There is an urgency to learn about these behaviours as the existence of the apes in the Congo Basin is threatened by commercial logging, bushmeat hunting, and emerging diseases.". Journal reference. (Science Daily)
Legon in research collaboration with institutions in Japan Aug 27, 2009
He thanked the Japanese government for providing direct funding to the collaboration, saying the knowledge to be gained by scientists from each other, would adequately prepare them against the threat of infectious and other emerging diseases. "We believe that this venture, in addition to generating data, will enable both Ghanaian and Japanese scientists to learn together and from each other and get themselves ready against the treat of infectious diseases and even emerging diseases," he said. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Rising Star John Araujo Aug 12, 2009
Public health research and practice have changed dramatically in the past 15 years, mostly because new information technology tools are available to help identify emerging diseases and epidemics more quickly. Rising Star John Araujo is in a unique and cross-disciplinary niche: He is advancing the role of IT at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (FCW.com)
Opinion: Bush better for Africa than Obama Aug 7, 2009
He says the world's top three long-wave eventsglobal trends that will affect humanity as a wholeare going to be most acutely felt in Africa: global climate change, population growth and movement, and new and emerging diseases. These are areas that cry for either multilateral or hugely expensive approaches, and they are where Obama could make his mark. (MSNBC -- International)
Ouchless wildlife plague vaccine, shipwrecks and coral reefs and more Aug 4, 2009
Entire populations of North American fish already are being affected by several emerging diseases, a problem that threatens to increase in the future with climate change and other stresses on aquatic ecosystems, according to a noted U.S. Geological Survey researcher giving an invited talk on this subject today at the Wildlife Disease Association conference in Blaine, Wash. "A generation ago, we couldn't have imaged the explosive growth in disease issues facing many of our wild fish populations,"... (EurekAlert!)
Risky business Jul 28, 2009
Humans share more than 60% of "known" infectious organisms with animals, and the majority of new or emerging diseases are linked in some way to wild animals; ebola, HIV/Aids, Sars, and Avian influenza are just a few examples ... This is vital to predicting, identifying and responding to new emerging diseases in countries most in need of help and at the highest risk. (BBC News -- Science)
Disease control hub launched in West Africa Jul 27, 2009
"Occurrence of H1N1 has increased pandemic awareness and highlighted the importance of predicting emerging diseases and testing for them, but talk of the need for such a centre dates back two decades with active planning by the West Africa WHO office [in Brazzaville] starting in 2006," Mutabaruka told IRIN.. Burkina Faso's existing disease surveillance centre will serve as the region's interim CDC until funding is raised to construct the new one. (AlertNet)
Saved by a bug? Jul 12, 2009
The egg-vaccine makers are having some difficulty getting the CDC-provided virus to grow quickly, acknowledged Dr. Michael Perdue, who is the director of influenza and emerging diseases for the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, in Washington, D.C.. Tests are underway to see if a robust immune response can be produced by using less of the active ingredient and more of an adjuvant, or booster, he said. (The Palm Beach Post)
Sars patients can provide therapy Jul 5, 2009
It may provide a fast method to combat emerging diseases, and, perhaps, biological attacks. The research is published in the journal Nature Medicine. (Yahoo News -- SARS)
Crop plants get genomics centre Jun 30, 2009
It's also hoped that the work will lead to breeding of livestock better able to resist emerging diseases, such as Bluetongue. Scientists at The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC) also hope to help develop crops with increased tolerance to drought and new antibiotics to fight 'superbugs. (BBC News -- Science)
Bubonic plague reported in Libya Jun 17, 2009
The cases approximately 16 to 18 have been reported would be the first in more than two decades in Libya of the disease known in medieval times as the Black Death, according to John Jabbour, a Cairo-based emerging diseases specialist at WHO.. "It is reported as bubonic plague," Jabbour said, adding WHO still didn't have "a full picture" of the situation. (MSNBC -- Health)
Health IT needs more functionality, CIO says Jun 5, 2009
We have an unprecedented opportunity to get early sentinel awareness of emerging diseases, she said. Furthermore, as providers begin electronically storing and exchanging trillions of patient health records, it is unclear who will provide the server and network capacity to manage all that data, Cullen said. (FCW.com)
14 swine flu cases confirmed in Wyoming Jun 4, 2009
Most confirmed flu cases in Wyoming that are being tested at the state Health Department have been coming back positive as swine flu, said Clay Van Houten, the department's emerging diseases section chief, on Tuesday. Natrona County announced its first confirmed swine flu case on Wednesday: a 35-year-old woman that was diagnosed at Wyoming Medical Center. (Sioux Falls Tri-State Neighbor, SD)
Casper briefs Jun 4, 2009
Most confirmed flu cases tested recently at the state health department have come back positive as swine flu, said Clay Van Houten, the department's emerging diseases section chief. Other recent flu cases include 12 at the Cheyenne Children's Clinic. (Casper Star-Tribune, WY)
West Africa Veterinary and Epidemiologists meet on zoonotic diseases May 28, 2009
It will also develop a strategy to advocate for countries to invest in the training and placement of FELTP. The workshop on the theme, "Strengthening Africa's Response to Emerging Diseases through Partnership between Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Programmes and Veterinary Services" will share ideas, experiences and knowledge to enhance the needed networking and collaboration between veterinary and human health services in the fight against endemic zoonotic diseases. Participants are... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
How to Prepare for a Pandemic May 16, 2009
H1N1 makes clear how vulnerable our interconnected globe is to emerging diseases. As a result of jet travel and international trade, a new pathogen managed to seed itself in more than 20 countries in less than two weeks. (Time.com)
Young chosen for Duke medical course May 12, 2009
"The micro course was great. I got my highest grade in that class. I would really like to study genetics or emerging diseases. The cellular level is incredible.". The prospective doctor said she already monitors the Centers for Disease Control Web site researching emerging diseases and had been shadowing several Brookhaven doctors to receive practical education. (Brookhaven Daily Leader, MS)
U.S. Wildlife Trade Poorly Regulated, Threatening Food Supply Chains, Human Health, Ecosystems, Study Finds May 12, 2009
The majority of emerging diseases come from wildlife, said Smith, who is also a senior consultant at Wildlife Trust. Most of these imported animals originate in Southeast Asia a region shown to be a hotspot for these emerging diseases. (Science Daily)
Tracking swine flu's origins May 7, 2009
Researcher: Better surveillance needed in hot zones of emerging diseases. By Elizabeth Landau CNN. (CNN -- Health)
SWINE-FLU HYSTERIA: WHO DUNNIT May 7, 2009
The ease of international travel raises the stakes for the prospect of emerging diseases. The swine-flu outbreak could serve as a valuable wake-up call, making us think critically about who'll be entrusted with public-health decisions. (New York Post -- Opinions)
Wildlife trade threatens public health and ecosystems May 2, 2009
"The threat to public health is real, as the majority of emerging diseases come from wildlife," said Smith. "Most of these imported animals originate in Southeast Asia--a hotspot for emerging diseases.". (EurekAlert!)
Mexico's Mystery: Why Is Swine Flu Deadlier There? Apr 29, 2009
"When you get a large concentration of pig farms, people, wild birds and poultry, these things do happen," says Peter Daszak, the president of the Wildlife Trust and an expert on emerging diseases. In recent years, since the ongoing H5N1 bird-flu virus first surfaced, health officials have focused mostly on Asia as the breeding ground for the world's next pandemic flu virus. (Time.com)
New Human Movement Model Can Aid In Studying Epidemic Outbreaks, Public Planning Apr 29, 2009
25, 2007) A new model to predict the spread of emerging diseases has been developed. The model could give healthcare professionals advance warning of the path an emerging disease might take and so might. (Science Daily)
As Swine Flu Scare Unfolds, Virologist Underscores Need For Research On Animal Pathogens Apr 28, 2009
From SARS to Bird Flu, most of the emerging diseases affecting people today come from pathogens most often associated with animals, according to Meng, who is among a growing legion of scientists trying to convince the federal government to invest more money in studying animal pathogens as part of an overall effort to protect humans from disease. According to a recent article published in Science, Meng said, only 32 million of the 88 billion U.S. Department of Agriculture 2007 budget was... (Science Daily)
UW-L class tackles global impact of diseases Apr 11, 2009
The class covers everything from plagues of centuries past to emerging diseases. They talk about diseases in the context of history, politics, culture and economics. (La Crosse Tribune, WI)
Lack of database, non-functioning registry hinder cancer fight Mar 28, 2009
Cancer, which is one of the emerging diseases in Africa, according to experts, occurs in about 200 types of diseases making a complexity of the cancer story, especially in the developing world, accounting for at least 72 per cent of the approximately eight million deaths worldwide. Experts say there are 11 million new cases each year and that cancer kills more than malaria, AIDS and tuberculosis. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Drug blocks two of world's deadliest emerging viruses Mar 6, 2009
"Our findings, and our methods, could easily be applied to the study of Ebola and other emerging diseases," Dr. Porotto says. The researchers are confident that the use of this new screening strategy will build up the number of viral targets available for study and expand the antiviral research field at a time when new antivirals are desperately needed for emerging pathogens. (EurekAlert!)
The Science Behind The 'Anthrax Letter' Attack Investigation Feb 27, 2009
Scientists directly involved in the investigation of the anthrax letter attacks of 2001 described the process of investigating the anthrax letter attacks in a presentation given on February 24, 2009 at the ASM Biodefense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting in Baltimore, MD.. Paul Keim of Northern Arizona University described the crime scene, the events, letters and the victims in the context of their work. (Science Daily)
Vaccine Protects Against 1918 Influenza Strain Feb 26, 2009
This research was presented February 24, 2009 at the ASM Biodefense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting in Baltimore, MD.. Adapted from materials provided by , via , a service of AAAS. Email or share this story. (Science Daily)
ST-246(r) in Combination With the Smallpox Vaccine ACAM2000(tm) Confers Protective Immunity in Primates Feb 24, 2009
The results of the study will be presented by Dr. Peter Silvera of SRI on February 24, 2009 at the 7th Annual ASM Biodefense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting in Baltimore, Maryland. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, funded the SRI study under contract no. N01-AI-30063. (Primezone Releases)
McMaster researchers discover new mode of how diseases evolve Feb 17, 2009
The finding, published in the Feb. 16 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has implications for how scientists identify and assign risk to emerging diseases in the environment. The researchers found that bacteria can develop into illness-causing pathogens by rewiring regulatory DNA, the genetic material that controls disease-causing genes in a body. (EurekAlert!)
It's a Small World -- Watch Out for New Diseases Feb 8, 2009
"Most Americans do not have to worry about contracting Chagas Disease -- even if they are traveling to regions where it is more prevalent," says Dr. Paul Stromberg, veterinary pathologist at Ohio State University and past president of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists, a professional organization that studies emerging diseases and works to protect both human and animal health. "However, we are seeing increasing incidence in the southwest United States.". (Pekin Times, IL)
In the World of Germs, Man Bites Dog Feb 7, 2009
Dr. Kate Stenske, a clinical assistant professor at the university's College of Veterinary Medicine, said it's known that diseases can be shared between dogs and people and that about 75 percent of emerging diseases are transferable between humans and other animals. She decided to focus on E. coli, which is common in the gastrointestinal tracts of both humans and dogs. (MEDLINEplus)
