Copyright 2008 Medical News Today Latest Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/infectious_diseases/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114246.php Tests of antibiotic resistance in cattle have revealed stark variation across thirteen European countries. The results, published today in BioMed Central's open-access journal Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica, show that major differences were apparent in the occurrence of resistance between countries and between the different antimicrobial agents tested. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114214.php Japanese encephalitis (JE), commonly known as brain fever, is one of the prevalent mosquito-borne encephalitis in India and entire South East (SE) Asia. Besides resulting in thousand fatalities each year, JE virus (JEV) infection causes prominent neurological sequelae in approximately one-third of the survivors. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114162.php Vaginal microbicides currently in clinical trials may be the only weapon that will protect women against infection from HIV. Yet, under likely circumstances, these microbicides may be of more benefit to men than women, according to a new UCLA AIDS Institute study. The study, which used novel mathematical models to simulate clinical trials and population-level transmission of HIV, appears July 7 in the online issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Mon, 07 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114120.php Public Health officials in Canada have reported a case of a Salmonella Saintpaul infection that matches those associated with the outbreak in the United States. The individual involved has indicated that he recently travelled to the United States. Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) officials will continue to work with their colleagues in Canada and the U.S. to monitor the situation and assess further cases. Sun, 06 Jul 2008 10:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114054.php Dental caries, or tooth decay, continues to be the most prevalent infectious disease in the world, presenting significant public health challenges and socio-economic consequences. It leads to the loss of the hard tissues of the tooth, followed by inflammation and necrosis of the subjacent dental pulp. In the U.S. alone, over 20 million dental restorations are placed each year, with failure rates of up to 60%. Sun, 06 Jul 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114009.php Bacteria that cause pneumonic plague can evade our first-line defences, making it difficult for the body to fight infection. In fact, a signature of the plague is the lack of an inflammatory response. Now, scientists have discovered a way to protect against death following infection with plague bacteria, by using molecules that can mimic the pathogens. Sun, 06 Jul 2008 07:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114008.php Scientists have uncovered a new target for the potential treatment of TB, finally resolving a long-running debate about how the bacterial cell wall is built. The research, published in the July issue of Microbiology reveals several molecules that could be developed into drugs to treat tuberculosis. Sun, 06 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114035.php Kane Biotech Inc. (TSX VENTURE:KNE), a biotechnology company engaged in the development of products that prevent and remove microbial biofilms, is pleased to announce a research publication on its DispersinBTM technology. The manuscript appeared in the recent online edition of Microbial Pathogenesis (2008), doi: 10/1016/j.micpath.2008.05.007. Sat, 05 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113918.php The problem with antibiotics is that, eventually, bacteria outsmart them and become resistant. But by targeting the gene that confers such resistance, a new drug may be able to finally outwit them. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/114003.php A study by the Health Protection Agency's Malaria Reference Laboratory (HPA) and published in today's BMJ.com shows that despite highly effective measures available to prevent malaria, the burden of disease among UK travellers has steadily increased over the last 20 years. There were 39,300 cases of malaria in the UK between 1987 and 2006. Of these 20,488 were in UK travellers (visitors from the UK to malarious countries) and the remainder were among visitors to the UK. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113954.php Researchers in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Gabon, Germany, Japan, Rwanda, the United Kingdom, and the United States have found that simian foamy virus (SFV) is widespread among wild chimpanzees throughout equatorial Africa. Details are published July 4th in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens. Recent studies have shown that humans who hunt wild primates, including chimpanzees, can acquire SFV infections. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113948.php The developing world is being infested by Western-style social health problems such as obesity and "couch-potato" living, which could ultimately widen the global gap between rich and poor, new research suggests. The study, carried out at Cambridge University, argues that the gradual Westernisation of the developing world is causing a surge in conditions such as heart disease, cancer, respiratory disease and diabetes, costing tens of millions of lives. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113867.php Health experts from the Association of British Hujjaj (Pilgrims) UK (A.B.H) have issued a warning to all British families who are planning to visit their friends and families specifically to South Asian countries and Saudi Arabia during the summer holiday period, that they must take preventative measures against life- threatening infectious diseases like Meningitis, Hepatitis and Malaria. Fri, 04 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113861.php The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has renewed its warning to companies to ensure that water storage and cooling systems are adequately treated to prevent the growth of the legionella bacteria - which affects around 300 people in the UK each year. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113796.php The World Health Organization, Stop TB Partnership, UNITAID and the Thu, 03 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113809.php Now that Duke University Medical Center scientists have figured out how the virus that causes cold sores hides out, they may have a way to wake it up and kill it. Cold sores, painful, unsightly blemishes around the mouth, have so far evaded a cure or even prevention. They're known to be caused by the herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV1), which lies dormant in the trigeminal nerve of the face until triggered to reawaken by excessive sunlight, fever, or other stresses. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113741.php Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is a serious condition that causes disease with a wide spectrum of severity, ranging from mild diarrhea to pseudomembranous colitis and death. Recurrent CDI can occur in up to 20% of patients who develop an initial case of CDI. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 01:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113734.php Lyme disease may play a role in causing autism according to a recent study published in Medical Hypothesis, a peer-reviewed scientific journal. A team of five physicians led by Robert Bransfield, M.D., analyzed the two diseases and discovered a connection based on epidemiological findings, symptom similarities, case reports, and laboratory test results. The Lyme-Induced Autism (LIA) Foundation has paved the way for studies such as this one. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113720.php Research published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery - British Volume (JBJS-Br), shows that there is 'no evidence to link prosthetic joint infections to dental procedures' and that the money currently being spent on preventative antibiotics would be better spent on 'high-quality dental care'. As the NHS celebrates its 60th anniversary questions are being raised regarding its capacity to continue in the future with ever increasing costs. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113719.php More than 1.2 million Americans - roughly equivalent to the population of Dallas - were hospitalized for pneumonia in 2006, making this lung infection the most common reason for admission to the hospital other than for childbirth, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Treating pneumonia cost hospitals $10 billion in 2006. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 09:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113718.php The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced yesterday, Tuesday, that it was no closer to finding the source of the Salmonella Saintpaul contamination that has now sickened over 850 people and put over 150 in hospital throughout the US since April and that it was enlarging the search to include foods that are served with tomatoes. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 07:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113674.php Fungi can cause a number of life-threatening diseases but they also are becoming increasingly useful to science and manufacturing every year. However, many people, scientists among them, are largely unaware of the roles fungi play in the world around us. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 06:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113663.php Detecting food-borne diseases such as campylobacter and salmonella long before they enter the food chain would help ensure that the dinner on your table is safe to eat. There is no quick and simple way to detect infectious bacteria on farms, or even in food processing and distribution plants. Samples have to be sent to labs for testing, a process that can take hours or days. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113597.php The emergence of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria has necessitated the use of polymyxins as the agents of last resort despite their known nephrotoxicity. Now Northern Antibiotics Ltd, a Finnish biotech company, has developed novel polymyxin derivatives which in early preclinical studies show signs of lower nephrotoxicity. The derivatives contain three positive charges only, while polymyxin B and colistin have five. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/113543.php The British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (BSAC) published the first evidence-based UK guidelines to address the management of hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) which is the most common hospital acquired infection in intubated1 patients increasing mortality by up to 75%2.