Vital Technologies, Inc.

Long regarded as the gold standard in monitoring medical laboratory performance, the College of American Pathologists (CAP) believes that the nation's laboratories will be able to adequately process and handle influenza cases and adapt to evolving guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Their readiness is demonstrated through the CAP's Proficiency Testing (PT) program.

AdvanDx announced that it has launched a fast, 90 minutes protocol for all CE-IVD marked PNA FISH(R) tests in Europe. The fast protocol reduces the PNA FISH turn-around time from the original 2.5 hours to 90 minutes by reducing PNA probe hybridization time from 90 minutes to 30 minutes.

PharmAthene, Inc. (NYSE Amex: PIP), a biodefense company developing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, announced that results from a second Phase II study of SparVax(TM) were presented yesterday at the 12th Annual Conference on Vaccine Research, being held in Baltimore, MD, April 27-29, 2009. The conference is sponsored by the National Foundation of Infectious Diseases. David P.

Dr. Joel Selanikio's innovative technology is not only saving lives, it is changing the face of the public health system around the world. Merging his expertise in the areas of computer science, medicine and public health with his business partner's background in technology, spurred the development of a sustainable mobile software tool to aid in disease surveillance and the collection of public health data in developing nations.

An investigational flu vaccine based on a novel technology that could dramatically improve the potency, manufacturing capacity and cost effectiveness of flu vaccines, was safe and immunogenic in a Phase I trial presented at the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases' (NFID) Twelfth Annual Conference on Vaccine Research here. The new data support the potential of VAX125,

After human cases of a new H1N1 swine influenza A virus were first reported in Mexico and then quickly spread around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised its pandemic alert level from phase 3 to phase 4, on April 27. The virus is a fusion of human, pig and avian influenza. There was growing international concern a week ago, after outbreaks of illnesses similar to influenza were reported in Mexico and in other countries.

As countries around the world ready themselves for the possibility of a global pandemic in the wake of increasing numbers of confirmed cases of people infected with a new strain of A/H1N1 influenza virus that is being described as swine flu, investigations digging deeper into the history and evidence surrounding the outbreak are coming up with more questions than answers.

According to Pulse, Dr. Gregor McEwan, a GP from Clapham, South West London, has been left to investigate a suspected swine flu infection case without adequate local advice or access to antivirals. Dr. McEwan explained to Pulse how he alone is having to coordinate tests, as well as treatment for a woman who was declared as a possibly infected patient with the H1N1 virus (swine flu virus). According to Dr.

Scientists in the US found that giving children with chronic, severe eczema regular baths of diluted bleach reduced the clinical severity of the condition in cases with secondary bacterial infection. The study was the work of Dr Amy S Paller, the Walter J. Hamlin Professor and chair of dermatology, and professor of pediatrics, at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, in Chicago, Illinois.

NanoViricides, Inc. (OTC BB: NNVC.OB) (the "Company"), announced that it is developing FluCide(â„¢), its flagship anti-influenza drug candidate, to work against all influenza types and subtypes. FluCide has been shown to be effective against both common influenza subtype H1N1, as well as two different variants of bird flu subtype H5N1.

Researchers have developed a new statistical model that simulates human mobility patterns, mimicking the way people move over the course of a day, a month or longer. The model, developed by scientists at North Carolina State University and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), is the first to represent the regular movement patterns of humans using statistical data.

Cousin of the "ice that burns" emerges as greener new way to fight fires Researchers in Japan are reporting development of a new type of ice that may provide a more efficient, environmentally-friendly method for putting out fires, including out-of control blazes that destroy homes and forests. Their study appears in the current issue of ACS' Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, a bi-weekly journal.

New details of the composition and structure of a needlelike protein complex on the surface of certain bacteria may help scientists develop new strategies to thwart infection. The research, conducted in part at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory, was published April 26, 2009, in the advance online edition of Nature Structural & Molecular Biology.

It's best known for whitening a load of laundry. But now simple household bleach has a surprising new role: an effective treatment for kids' chronic eczema. Chronic, severe eczema can mar a childhood. The skin disorder starts with red, itchy, inflamed skin that often becomes crusty and raw from scratching. The eczema disturbs kids' sleep, alters their appearance and affects their concentration in school.

In the 2009 revision of the phase descriptions, WHO has retained the use of a six-phased approach for easy incorporation of new recommendations and approaches into existing national preparedness and response plans. The grouping and description of pandemic phases have been revised to make them easier to understand, more precise, and based upon observable phenomena.

Elsevier, the world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, is pleased to announce the launch of a new journal, entitled Epidemics - the journal on infectious disease dynamics. This peer-reviewed journal will publish papers on infectious disease dynamics in the broadest sense.

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) today urged public health officials to call upon the nation's infection preventionists to help stop the potential spread of swine flu. Infection preventionists, who protect patients and healthcare workers from infection on a daily basis, can and should be an integral part of public health efforts to respond to this growing health threat.

Cases of bacterial meningitis in children are at a record low thanks to NHS immunisation programmes, Health Secretary Alan Johnson announced yesterday.

Routine vaccination of children has helped eliminate or greatly reduce many devastating illnesses, including measles, polio, whooping cough and diphtheria. But vaccinations are not just for children, they're for adults, too. For some adults, the news that they need to stay current on their immunizations may be a surprise. Saira Jamal, M.D.

Autoimmune diseases have long been regarded as illnesses in which the immune system creates autoantibodies to attack the body itself. But today, researchers at the California non-profit Autoimmunity Research Foundation (ARF) explain that the antibodies observed in autoimmune disease actually result from alteration of human genes and gene products by hidden bacteria.