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Cost-Effective Measures Could Stop Child Pneumonia Deaths
Implementing measures to improve nutrition, indoor air pollution, immunization coverage and the management of pneumonia cases could be cost-effective and significantly reduce child mortality from pneumonia, according to a study led by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Researchers found that these strategies combined could reduce total child mortality by 17 percent and could reduce pneumonia deaths by more than 90 percent. Pneumonia is a leading cause of death of infants in many developing countries, resulting in 2.2 million deaths each year. The study is published in the June 2009 issue of the Bulletin of the World Health Organization.
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Washington Times Examines Proposed Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative In Obama Budget Plan
The Washington Times recently included a two-part series examining President Obama"s proposed reallocation of abstinence-only sex education funding in his 2010 budget plan. The proposal would redirect funding toward a new Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative that uses comprehensive sex education curriculums. Summaries of the series appear below.~ Part 1: Obama"s budget proposal states that funds for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative should go to programs that are proven to help delay first sex, increase contraceptive use or reduce teen pregnancy, though a few advocates of comprehensive sex education say such goals are laudable but too narrow, the Times reports. William Smith -- vice president for public policy for the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States -- and James Wagoner -- president of Advocates for Youth -- wrote in a June 17 blog entry that preventing unintended pregnancy among teens is "incredibly important" but that it is "not the only sexual and reproductive health issue facing our nation"s youth." They continued that it would be more beneficial to "expand the scope" of the initiative so it can serve "all young people in all communities, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth, whose needs fall wholly outside of the narrow teen-pregnancy-prevention framework." According to the Times, Smith said in an interview that money allotted for the initiative would be best used if it went to programs focused on "good outcomes" for youth, "not these disaster-aversion silos that don"t serve us well." Wagoner said that advocates have been "very clear in giving the president credit for shifting tracks here in a big way" by ending funding for abstinence-only sex education. However, he added that it is "our job to press for the right destination" and to see the changes implemented into law (Wetzstein, Washington Times, 6/28).~ Part 2: Some supporters of Obama"s proposal argue that it is "exactly the right idea, at the right time," as the U.S. teen birth rate has increased in the last two years after 14 years of decline, the Times reports. Sarah Brown, CEO of the National Campaign To Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, said that Obama"s proposal is the "first really focused expenditure on effective teen pregnancy prevention programs." Brown noted that the U.S. has the highest rates of teen pregnancy and birth in the industrialized world. She said that the best programs will address one or more of the three goals of the initiative -- delaying first sex, increasing contraceptive use or reducing teen pregnancy. Last month, about 175 organizations sent a letter to Obama and members of Congress calling for an expanded initiative that would include subjects such as sexually transmitted infections and abusive relationships. However, Brown said that many teen pregnancy prevention programs include discussion of STIs and other areas, "[s]o we really don"t see much tension here" (Wetzstein, Washington Times, 7/5).
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Studying The Anti-Cancer Capabilities Of A Special Purple Sweet Potato
A Kansas State University researcher is studying the potential health benefits of a specially bred purple sweet potato because its dominant purple color results in an increased amount of anti-cancer components.
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Merck & Co., Inc. And Drugs For Neglected Diseases Initiative Collaborate To Find Treatments For World's Most Neglected Tropical Diseases

On the eve of an international meeting bringing together 200 African researchers to discuss progress on research for neglected tropical diseases (NTD), Merck & Co., Inc. and the not-for-profit Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) announced a master agreement to support discovery and development of improved treatments for NTDs. The agreement covers a wide range of NTDs including visceral leishmaniasis and Chagas disease that infect millions of people.÷  As with many other NTDs, there are no adequate treatments available for the world"s poorest people.÷  Current therapies may be toxic, prohibitively expensive, or difficult to administer, particularly in re-poor settings. Under terms of the agreement, Merck will contribute small molecule assets and related intellectual property via a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to DNDi to conduct early development programs for drug candidates for the treatment of NTDs like visceral leishmaniasis and Chagas disease.÷  Further, the structure of the agreement has the potential to include multiple projects relevant to the spectrum of NTDs.÷  Merck and DNDi will share joint intellectual property on drug candidates generated through early development.÷  Merck will retain the option to undertake late clinical development and registration of drug candidates at its own expense or in partnership. "We are excited by this collaboration as it represents the kind of sustainable, long-term commitment which helps us to address critical gaps in drug development for neglected diseases." commented Dr. Shing Chang, research and development director of DNDi.÷  "Collaborating with companies like Merck, who can commit themselves through industrial development, ensures that the best science will be made available to address the needs of the most neglected patients." "Merck has a long history of developing treatments for neglected diseases such as river blindness (onchocerciasis), and we are proud to collaborate with DNDi on this important initiative, " said Mervyn J Turner, chief strategy officer, Merck & Co., Inc.÷  "Through this unique partnership, we hope to accelerate the discovery and development of medicines that will help people in some of the poorest nations." Both organizations have a legacy of developing and making available treatments which have provided an immediate global health impact.÷  For example, with industrial partners, DNDi has made available two fixed-dose antimalarial medicines, which have already saved the lives of millions of people.÷  Merck"s discovery and development of ivermectin enabled their ongoing donation program to fight river blindness and lymphatic filariasis. About Neglected Diseases Diseases such as visceral leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, human African trypanosomiasis and others are infectious diseases that lack commercial markets in developed countries and disproportionately affect the poorest citizens of the world.÷  These diseases, collectively called "neglected diseases," continue to cause significant morbidity and mortality worldwide and represent an enduring unmet medical need.÷  Medications for these diseases are often decades old, are difficult to administer, have significant toxicities and are increasingly becoming less effective due to resistance.÷  Of the 1,556 new drugs approved between 1975 and 2004, only 21 (1.3%) were specifically developed for neglected diseases, even though these diseases account for 11.4% of the global disease burden. About Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) is an independent, not-for-profit product development partnership, working to research and develop new and improved treatments for neglected diseases such as leishmaniasis, human African trypanosomiasis or sleeping sickness, Chagas disease, and malaria. Founded in 2003 by the humanitarian organization Mçİdecins Sans Frontiç¨res (MSF) along with five public research institutions in Brazil, France, India, Kenya, and Malaysia, DNDi has the strongest and most comprehensive kinetoplastid drug portfolio in history - two new malaria medicines have been made available to date, with a new treatment for sleeping sickness ready for use in disease-endemic countries in 2009.÷  For further information, please consult http://www.dndi.org. ÷  Merck & Co., Inc.


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