New malaria vaccine could save millions of lives

Malaria remains one of the world’s biggest killers

Posted by Neill Abayon



“Scientists herald early-stage clinical tests as the most promising yet in the global war on the world's biggest killer,” (malaria) is the exciting news on the Sky News website.
The story comes from a fascinating study testing an experimental malaria vaccine against Plasmodium falciparum – the most deadly of the malaria-causing parasites. Malaria is a highly infectious disease, transmitted by the bite of infected mosquitoes.
Currently there is no vaccine to prevent this deadly disease which kills over 600,000 people annually, most of them children.
Previous research has found that people who received more than 1,000 bites from irradiated mosquitoes developed some level of immunity against malaria. While using this method is obviously impracticable in a real world setting, it did give the team involved in the study the idea of using the parasites that infect mosquitoes to create a vaccine.
The study found that of 15 volunteers who were given higher doses of the new vaccine, 12 were protected against infection by the malaria parasite when exposed to bites from infected mosquitoes three weeks later.
This is a tiny, early stage study and its results need to be replicated in larger trials. Nevertheless, the results are a promising step forward in the long and often frustrating journey to developing a malaria vaccine.

More here.

Helpful links:


Lose Weight
Customized Fat Loss
Muscle Maximizer
Female Fat Loss
Fat Burner System
Golden Ratio Systems
Hypothyroidism Revolution
Fat Burning Furnace
Fat Loss Cookbook
Reverse Your Diabetes Today

Swine Flu vaccine coming soon

Posted by Neill Abayon

DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Specialty drug maker Baxter International Inc. says it's in "full scale" production of a swine flu vaccine that will be commercially available in July.

The company based in Deerfield, Ill., made its announcement Friday, a day after the World Health Organization declared swine flu a global pandemic.

Baxter has said that its patented technology cuts in half the usual time it takes to develop a vaccine - to about 13 weeks instead of 26.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 45 swine flu deaths nationwide.

View the full article here.

Gardasil Is Dangerous As Well As Unproven

Posted by Neill Abayon

Gardasil, A Vaccine Being Forced On Young Girls, Is Dangerous As Well As Unproven

Merck's Gardasil vaccine is supposed to prevent young women from getting cervical cancer. Now the FDA has approved a claim for two less common cancers as well.

Gardasil really prevents some (but not all) of the genital warts that may lead to cervical and other cancers. This leads to the supposition that it will also prevent cancer. Whether it will actually prevent cancer is unknown.

Partly because three painful and expensive ($375) shots are required, Merck's marketing plan has been to persuade state legislators to make the shot mandatory. Company money has flowed to governors and legislatures to make this happen.

As of July, the federal government's Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System has received over 9,700 reports of problems since the vaccine's introduction in 2006. These include paralysis, seizures, and miscarriage. Twenty deaths have been reported although the government has not acknowledged a link yet.

Read the full article here.

AN ALTERNATIVE TO ALLERGY SHOTS

Posted by Neill Abayon

You're allergic to ragweed, peanuts or your pet. So you see the doctor for regular shots. Over time, she injects larger closes of the allergen, so you become less sensitive to it, easing symptoms. What a pain! Soon you may be able to treat yourself at home, needle free.
For more than a decade, many Europeans have been skipping shots and taking allergens by mouth, where they're absorbed in the bloodstream. Its convenient and painless, so patients are more likely to seek treatment. But a panel of US doctors reviewed 100 mostly Europeans studies on the subjects, and these experts aren't recommending the oral method just yet." In some studies, very high doses had no efficacy over the long term, while others using a lower dose seemed to have benefits over a short-time", says task force co-chair Linda Cox. "Theres some work that needs to be done to understand the mechanism." Scientist at Greer Laboratories are doing that work. Once they determine optimal dosages, they hope to begin seeking approval for the technique by next year.