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Sunwin International Increases Availability Of Two Veterinary Medicines To Combat Swine Flu Virus In China
Sunwin International Neutraceuticals, Inc. (OTCBB: SUWN), a leader in the production and distribution of Chinese herbs, veterinary medicines and one of the world"s leading producers of all natural, zero calorie Stevia in China, announced today that the company has increased the availability of two veterinary medicines, Huangqiduotang vaccine and Jinfang Detoxification Powder to treat swine flu that has recently spread in North America and other parts of the world. These products, currently used for controlling various types of influenza in China, have demonstrated effectiveness in controlling swine flu outbreaks among livestock.

Profiling Genes In Acutely Ill Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Patients, A Pitt Team First
The first findings from a one-of-a-kind, patient-driven effort to provide lung tissue for research might help doctors predict when patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) are becoming dangerously ill and also could point the way to interventions that could sustain them until life-saving transplants can be performed.
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Obama Highlights U.S. Commitment To Reducing Maternal Mortality, HIV/AIDS In Address To Africa
In a speech before the Ghanaian Parliament, President Obama on Saturday reiterated U.S. support for public health programs that will reduce maternal mortality and the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa, the New York Times reports. The speech, which was televised across the continent, focused on international relations with Africa and empowering African nations to address problems (Baker, New York Times, 7/12).In a portion of the speech about strengthening public health, Obama said that there has been "enormous progress ... in parts of Africa" in recent years. He continued, "Far more people are living productively with HIV/AIDS, and getting the drugs they need. But too many still die from diseases that shouldn"t kill them." He added, "When children are being killed because of a mosquito bite, and mothers are dying in childbirth, then we know that more progress must be made." Obama said that "incentives often provided by donor nations" often compel doctors and nurses to "go overseas, or work for programs that focus on a single disease," which "creates gaps in primary care and basic prevention." He also said that Africans must "make responsible choices that prevent the spread of disease, while promoting public health in their communities and countries."Obama noted that the U.S. has committed $63 billion "to meet these challenges." He added that the U.S. will not "confront illnesses in isolation" but instead "invest in public health systems that promote wellness and focus on the health of mothers and children" (AP/USA Today, 7/11). Obama also visited a women"s clinic to highlight U.S-backed programs to fight infant and maternal mortality (New York Times, 7/12).
Diagnostics

Prenatal Malaria Exposure Increases Risk Of Malaria And Anemia For Some Children

Some babies who are exposed to malaria before birth develop a tolerant phenotype that increases their susceptibility to malaria and anemia in childhood, says a new study in the open access journal PLoS Medicine. Indu Malhotra and Christopher King (Case Western Reserve University) and colleagues studied 586 newborns residing in a malaria-holoendemic area of Kenya to age three, assessing their malaria infection, malaria-specific immune responses, and anemia, and classifying them into three groups: "sensitized" babies in which cord blood cells made activating cytokines in response to malaria antigens; "exposed, not-sensitized" babies in which cord blood cells did not make activating cytokines but made an inhibitory cytokine (IL-10); and "not-exposed" babies born to uninfected mothers. The authors report that in the first 3 years of life, the exposed, not-sensitized newborns had a 60% greater risk of malaria infection than the unexposed group and a slightly higher risk of malaria infection than the sensitized group. They also had lower hemoglobulin levels, a sign of anemia, than the other babies. At 6 months, the T-cells of exposed, not-sensitized children were less likely to make activating cytokines in response to malaria antigens but made more IL-10 than the T-cells of the other children; malaria-specific antibody levels were similar in the three groups, say the authors. Why some children exposed to malaria before birth become tolerant to the disease while exposure to malaria antigens "primes" the immune system of other children to respond efficiently to malaria antigens is not clear. However, these findings could have important implications for the design of malaria vaccines for use in areas where children are often exposed to malaria before birth and for the design of strategies for the prevention of malaria during pregnancy, say the authors. "Once the significance of fetal malaria experience is better understood," the authors say, "it should translate into more effective strategies for malaria chemoprophylaxis during pregnancy." In a related Perspective on the study, Lars Hviid (not involved in the research) states that the research by Dr. King and colleagues "adds significantly to our understanding of prenatal exposure to P. falciparum antigens" and has "obvious clinical importance." But he outlines several areas for further investigation of pregnancy-associated malaria. Funding: The work was supported in part by United States Public Health Service grants I064687, AI054711, MH080601, AI065717 and Veterans" Affairs Research Service. The funders had no role in the study design, data collection, analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript. They did contribute to the design of the study. Competing Interests: David Narum has declared the following competing interest: ""Narum et al., United States Patent 7,078,507 for production of recombinant EBA-175 RII protein."" Citation: "Can Prenatal Malaria Exposure Produce an Immune Tolerant Phenotype?: A Prospective Birth Cohort Study in Kenya." Malhotra I, Dent A, Mungai P, Wamachi A, Ouma JH, et al. (2009) PLoS Med 6(7): e1000116. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000116 PLoS Medicine


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