Biopeer

Carbon monoxide may offer cheap and simple prevention for cerebral malaria

A research study conducted by scientists at the University of Debrecen in Hungary and the Institute of Molecular Medicine and the Gulbenkian Institute of Science in Portugal showed that inhaled carbon monoxide could be a cheap and simple method of preventing cerebral malaria. The study indicates that carbon monoxide imitates the action of a natural enzyme released by the body in response to an infection with the malaria parasite. Carbon monoxide reduces the impact of a toxic molecule called heme, which is released by red blood cells infected with malaria.

A study published in the journal PLoS–Pathogens by the Public Library of Science–elaborates on the new malaria vaccine developed by researchers at the University of Nottingham. The research involved genetic modification of a mouse-related parasite for the production of an antigen that recognized the human immune system. Followed by the production of the antigen, the researchers genetically altered the mouse’s immune system to produce a ‘human molecule’ on its white blood cells. This test resulted in the protection of the human antibodies in the mouse from parasites. “We have made the best possible animal model you can get in the absence of working on humans or higher primates, as well as developing a novel therapeutic entity,” claimed Dr. Richard Pleass, of the Institute of Genetics.

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, claimed that the combined therapy of artemether-lumefantrine on malaria leads to a lower rate of treatment failure compared to other combination therapies. The clinical trials conducted between November 2004 and June 2006 involved 601 healthy children, aged 1-10 years, from an urban community in Kampala, Uganda. The children were administered three combination therapies (amodiaquine plus sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine, amodiaquine plus artesunate, or artemether-lumefantrine) in the first phase of uncomplicated malaria. A follow up of 13 to 19 months showed that the risk of treatment failure was the least with 6.7% for artemether-lumefantrine.

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Vitamin D to offer effective and cheap treatment for tuberculosis

Researchers from Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, and the Wellcome Trust Centre for Research in Clinical Tropical Medicine, Imperial College, London, have discovered that a single 2.5 mg dose of vitamin D could effectively boost the immune system to fight against tuberculosis (TB). Research analyzed tuberculosis patients and found that 90% patients were deficient in Vitamin D. Study examining blood tests of volunteers, who were given 2.5 mg supplement, resulted in boosting the immunity of the volunteers to fight against TB. The best part of this treatment for TB is that it is both simple and cheap.

A study outlined in the journal of ‘Personalized Medicine’ by researchers from Stellenbosch University in South Africa discussed the role of genetic mutations in determining a patient’s response to standard TB medication - isoniazid. Previous research provides that isoniazid is metabolized in the liver at different speeds in different individuals, resulting in ‘fast, intermediate and slow acetylator’ phenotypes, which are linked to different genetic variants. Inferences from recent study showed that the standard dose of isoniazid might not be effective for certain patients, and therefore, further research is been undertaken for the individualization of isoniazid therapy to cater to the different metabolic rates of the drug in different patients.

Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance) revealed the absence of proper supply and distribution chain of first-line TB medicines. Study conducted by Pathway to Patients in ten countries estimated approximately US$315 million per year, including country sales, to improve the global market for first-line TB drugs. “This groundbreaking study reaffirms the mission of the TB Alliance to develop new, faster and better TB drugs, and the importance of working to ensure these lifesaving new cures reach all those who need them,” said Maria C. Freire, CEO and President of the TB Alliance.

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Studies unravel some new aspects of SARS

A joint effort by research teams from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the Guangzhou Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, and Hong Kong University has found a link between Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in civet cats and humans. This is the first research to provide a genetic basis for how SARS spread. The research has shown that the SARS coronavirus found in human victims is the same as the SARS coronavirus found in civet cats. They found this after carrying out tests on six SARS-carrying civet cats taken from a restaurant in early 2004, where a female worker too had been diagnosed with the illness.

Scientists at the US Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have characterized a component of the SARS virus that shows promises for a new anti-SARS virus drugs. The findings of the study revealed that SARS main proteinase enzyme used by the virus during infection is inactive when present as single molecules. However, when two of the proteinase molecules combine they begin contributing significantly towards the multiplication of SARS virus. The key challenge for the scientists was to determine the actual concentration levels required to convert individual proteinase molecules into active forms. On identifying the range of concentration level required to activate proteinase molecules, scientists are working on several experiments to find a compound that may effectively inhibit the molecules from combining or may deactivate the already active molecules.

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Dengue in news again

After India, it’s Pakistan that is now grappling with dengue. As of November 22, a total of 5,235 patients with symptoms similar to dengue fever had been admitted to different hospitals across Pakistan. To date 48 deaths have occurred from dengue fever in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, in India, the Petitions Committee of the Delhi Assembly has held the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Delhi Jal Board responsible for the outbreaks of dengue and vector-borne diseases in the capital. The report states that the corporation's failure to effectively de-silt open drainages has worked as breeding grounds for mosquitoes and insects that have given rise to diseases such as dengue, chikangunya and malaria. The government body has not yet reacted to the filed petition.

While Pakistan and India continue to be fraught with dengue worries, some developments in the sphere of dengue vaccine and diagnosis may offer relief in the future. The Pediatric Dengue Vaccine Initiative (PDVI), a program of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) has decided to work in collaboration with Hawaii Biotech to develop a dengue vaccine for the global prevention of dengue fever. According to Harold Margolis, Director of the PDVI, the primary objective behind this joint venture is to ensure rapid introduction to dengue vaccines into the immunization programs in all affected areas as soon as a vaccine becomes available.

Bio-Rad India, subsidiary of Bio-Rad Laboratories USA, launched India’s first early dengue detection kit called Platelia Dengue NS1 Ag. The common test employed to detect dengue involved identifying the presence antibodies which are produced four to six days after the appearance of the first symptoms. However, this new kit is a time saving device as it checks for virus NS1 antigen which can be traced in the blood stream as soon as the first symptoms of dengue appear.

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Breakthroughs to counter-attack malaria

At a time when cerebral malaria is playing havoc in Nepal, research done in Malawi has found that the retina can be a very reliable way of diagnosing cerebral malaria. A research team led by Nick Beare of Royal Liverpool University Hospital in the United Kingdom has devised a new technique to diagnose cerebral malaria by identifying certain changes on the retina using a simple, quick and cheap eye test. The team observed the retinas of 45 children with cerebral malaria who were admitted to a hospital in Blantyre, Malawi. The observation revealed that the patients suffering from cerebral malaria had signs of either retinal bleeding, swelling of the optic nerve with white opaque patches or whitened blood vessels on the retina. Since the diagnosis is straightforward and cost-effective it is likely to prove a boon in African and Asian countries.

Another malaria related study in Malawi has suggested that chloroquine is effective against malaria. Chloroquine was withdrawn over a decade ago from Malawi due to parasite resistance to the drug. The research team working on this aspect says that the drug should not be re-introduced as a front-line treatment, but could be used as an intermittent therapy for pregnant women or in combination with other drugs.

In another positive development in the field of malaria treatment, a new experimental vaccine for malaria is on cards. Patricia Graves, an epidemiologist conducted an analysis using published studies to scrutinize the effectiveness of various drugs available in the market to curb malaria. Graves then carried out a trial for an experimental vaccine called RTS, which was administered to men from Gambia with a booster shot provided after a year. The results of the test showed a 65 per cent reduction in malaria attacks on those men who were given two dosages of the new RTS vaccine. Another clinical trial of RTS conducted on 5 to 9 year olds in Mozambique showed a 25 per cent decrease in the malarial attacks and a 50 per cent decrease in the number of severe malarial attacks among the vaccinated children.

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Promising vaccines to combat tuberculosis

A new vaccine for tuberculosis (TB) has been developed by researchers from the Oxford University. As a part of the study, a clinical trial was conducted on three groups; the first group was administered the normal BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guerin) vaccine, the second group was give the new vaccine M*A 85 A while the third group was given M*A 85 A, compounded with BCG. The results revealed that the new vaccination was safe and produced large number immunity increasing T-cells. The study also concluded that the new vaccine produced more T-cells in patients who were given BCG vaccine leading the scientists to hypothesize that the new vaccine when combined with BCG was substantially more effective as a defense strengthening mechanism. Although the vaccine does not assure complete prevention from tuberculosis, it works to increase the immunity power within the body to ward off a TB infection in patients contracting it for the first time.

Crucell N V in a joint venture with The AERAS Global TB Vaccine Foundation has announced the start of its phase I clinical trial for AdVac®-based tuberculosis vaccine. It was further revealed that the clinical trial to be conducted on 24 healthy volunteers will be an open-label study testing the vaccine on a dose escalation trial basis. The other testing parameters for the new vaccine will focus on the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity aspects.

Meanwhile, the United Nations (UN)-backed Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has approved a grant of USD 847 million dollars. The grant amount will be used in realizing 85 projects that deal with combating AIDS, TB and Malaria across 63 countries.

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Polio worries in India and Kenya but not in SA

In India, polio has become a cause for concern with four new cases being reported in the capital New Delhi. This has raised this year’s polio toll to 416 cases. The rise in cases has led to questions regarding the efficacy of polio vaccines distributed by the government. However, Principal Secretary (Health) D S Negi has insisted that these cases are due to the affected victims having contracted the virus whilst traveling to states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. In these states, the lack of public initiative towards the pulse polio vaccination program has let the virus run wild. But New Delhi’s Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit acknowledged the urgency of the issue and that the approach to the polio campaign “needs to be reworked”.

Polio has raised its head in Kenya too for the first time in 22 years. A three-year-old girl living in a refugee camp has been diagnosed as having polio. While health officials admit the possibility of the virus having originated in Somalia, where the girl came from, they are taking steps to prevent it from becoming a major epidemic. Beginning in the first week of November, government, UNICEF and WHO officials will start a large-scale immunization program for children under the age of five.

While India and Kenya are fighting polio, South Africa is celebrating its success in getting rid of polio. The African Region Certificate Commission (ARCC), a sub committee of the Global Certification Commission (GCC) has certified South Africa as polio–free. The last confirmed wild polio case had been in 1989. However, the ARCC urged the government to put in place measures that would help it to respond immediately if a case is reported.

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TB wreaks havoc in SA while hope resurges elsewhere

South Africa is suffering from an onslaught of extremely drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB). The issue has become so severe that experts from the World Health Organization (WHO), and health ministers and scientists from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) came together in Pretoria to find measures to combat the spread. HIV is widely spread in this region and as those affected by HIV are more likely to succumb to tuberculosis. Experts are trying to formulate a plan whereby diagnosis and treatment can be much quicker. Most of the XDR-TB cases have been detected in the KwaZulu-Natal Province on the east coast.

Meanwhie, scientists from Imperial College London, the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford, and other international institutions collaborated on a research that has helped to understand the way in which the body stimulates the immune system against tuberculosis. The scientists demonstrated that the receptor CCR5 signals the immune cells to attack Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the cause of TB. The scientists hope that this finding will one day lead to the development of a vaccine or immunotherapy that would perform the function of the receptor and stimulate the immune system against the bacteria.

Collaborations definitely seem to be an effective way to achieve success even in the field of medicine. Researchers from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Imperial College London, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia in Peru and other institutions have come up with a new test that can diagnose TB in a simpler and faster way. The test has been named microscopic-observation drug-susceptibility or MODS. When tested on 3,760 sputums, MODS proved to be sensitive and also produced results in an average time of seven days. Also, the test is much cheaper than the current culture-based one and is expected to be a boon for developing countries.

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Possible influenza and malaria vaccines raise hopes

A vaccine being developed for H5N1 virus has been found to protect against other variations too. Sanofi Pasteur, a unit of Sanofi–Aventis stumbled upon this when it conducted fresh tests on the experimental vaccine. In a statement, Sanofi affirmed that the positive results proved that it is possible to formulate a vaccine that would induce “the formation of antibodies capable of neutralizing the most recent strains of the H5N1 virus”. These strains include the ones that have been making the rounds of Southeast Asia.

Meanwhile, the fight against malaria got much needed encouragement when an experimental malaria vaccine showed promising results. According to reviewers from the Cochrane Library, tests showed that the vaccine decreased the number of clinical malaria episodes by 26 per cent for up to 18 months after vaccination. The number of episodes in children reduced by 58 per cent. The vaccine, RTS,S assaults the malaria causing parasite Plasmodium falciparum when it has just entered the human body with a mosquito bite. Scientists from the Walter Reed Army Research Institute developed the vaccine in association with GlaxoSmithKline. A second vaccine, MSP/RESA or Combination B attacks the parasite at a later stage of the disease and the reviewers see much promise in it too.

American scientists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have developed a vaccine for the deadly 1918 influenza virus, nearly a hundred years after it wrought havoc. The vaccine was found to be effective when tested on mice. Mice injected with the vaccine did not succumb when exposed to a reconstructed 1918 virus. The researchers hope that this vaccine will provide a successful basis for formulating vaccines against other influenza strains.

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Dengue becomes an Asian woe

India is struggling with dengue and the disease is fast assuming epidemic proportions. Three weeks after the first death was reported, spread of the mosquito-borne disease continued unchecked with 72 new cases taking the total number of affected people to 1,111 in Delhi and its surrounding areas. Across India, 3,803 people have been affected and 52 have died of the deadly viral fever. In fact, such is the scare of the situation going out of control that a special ward has been created at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. In an effort to get a grip on the situation, Delhi health services also carried out a review meeting to discuss the situation. The discussion was on the colonies that have been identified as dengue-prone and the measures being taken to control the growth of mosquitoes in the area.

Meanwhile, in neighbouring Nepal, the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) will be starting programs to check the spread of dengue. The Epidemiology and Disease Control Division (EDCD) is starting a surveillance system in districts bordering India that have a high risk of catching the disease. In case of detection of the virus, patients would be given rapid diagnostic tests after fever for six days.

And further ahead, in China, an alert has been issued against dengue. South China is currently in its peak season for dengue outbreaks, and large-scale efforts are being made to eradicate mosquitoes by cleaning up the environment. China reported 502 dengue cases in September alone, though no one has died from the disease.

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