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Silica Smart Bombs Deliver Knock-Out to Bacteria |
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Wednesday, 27 February 2008 |
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Bacteria mutate for a living, evading antibiotic drugs while killing
tens of thousands of people in the United States each year. But as
concern about drug-resistant bacteria grows, one novel approach under
way at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill seeks to thwart
the bug without a drug by taking a cue from nature. Mark
Schoenfisch and his lab of analytical chemists at UNC have created
nano-scale scaffolds made of silica and loaded with nitric oxide (NO) –
an important molecule in mammals that plays a role in regulating blood
pressure, neurotransmission and fighting bacterial infections, among
other vital functions. Read more here.
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Using Text Messaging to Fight the Spread of HIV/AIDS |
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Wednesday, 13 February 2008 |
A collaboration between Aids Information Centre , Text to Change and Celtel Uganda has produced a novel approach to providing the citizens of Uganda with information about HIV/AIDS prevention. The program will target younger cell phone users because of their disproportionate use of cellular technology and their general ignorance of the disease and its infection pathways. The program also aims to increase voluntary testing and counseling. In a country where 1.1 million are infected and a region of the world where 61% of the population is infected, this program could not be more timely or resourceful [1].
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Chinese Authorities Arrest Anti-Malaria Parasite |
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Wednesday, 13 February 2008 |
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Chinese authorities recently arrested a man suspected of trafficking upwards of 240,000 fake anti-malaria blister-packs. The anti-trafficking effort, called "Operation Juniper", involved coordinated efforts by INTERPOL, the World Health Organization’s Western Pacific Regional Office and six different labs. The counterfeit drugs and packaging were compared with controls using a variety of forensic techniques. Analysis identified a wide range of toxic and benign chemicals but only trace amounts of artesunate, a key ingredient in anti-malarials. The full report can be viewed in the PLoS Journal of Medicine.
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New HIV Cell Receptor Discovered |
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Monday, 11 February 2008 |
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Integrin alpha 4 beta 7 is the latest molecule to be identified as a receptor of HIV. The molecule is one of four that have been identified thus far, the others being CD4, CCR5 and CXCR4. Integrins are cell surface proteins that mediate cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix interactions. Integrin alpha 4 beta 7 acts as a homing molecule, directing T cells to gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT), the primary site for early HIV replication. The news comes out of a study produced by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and was published Feb. 10th in Nature Immunology . NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci , M.D. hopes that this new receptor will further elucidate HIV infection pathogenesis.
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