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UK approves CRISPR gene therapy for SCD; The latest health stories from around the world

In a world first, U.K. regulators have approved a therapy that uses CRISPR, the Nobel Prize–winning gene-editing tool invented in 2012. The treatment has been shown to help people with beta thalassemia and sickle cell disease, both inherited blood disorders that involve defects in the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin. It relies on removing blood stem cells …

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Oncologist Monica Bertagnolli assigned as Director of US NIH; The latest health stories from around the world

At last, the world’s largest biomedical research agency has a permanent leader. The U.S. Senate recently voted 62-36 to confirm oncologist to direct the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH). https://www.science.org/content/article/u-s-senate-confirms-monica-bertagnolli-nih-director? The confirmation of Bertagnolli, who is expected to be sworn in within days replacing acting Director Lawrence Tabak, brings relief to the biomedical research …

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Project NextGen unveils contracts for vaccine development support; The latest health stories from around the world

Six months after announcing the $5 billion Project NextGen to develop treatments and vaccines that can “stay ahead of COVID-19,” the U.S. government has awarded 20 contracts that reveal what much of that sum will support. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on 13 October that up to $1.2 billion will go …

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Strain of flu eradicated during pandemic? The latest health stories from around the world

An influenza virus variant that circulated widely before the COVID-19 pandemic has disappeared, leading an expert group that advises the World Health Organization (WHO) to recommend last week that it no longer be included in flu vaccines. https://www.science.org/content/article/news-glance-more-success-fusion-medical-tests-under-scrutiny-and-grizzly-reintroduction?  The strain, known as Yamagata, has not been detected since March 2020, and some scientists suspect it …

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Nobel Prize awarded for COVID-19 mRNA vaccine development; The latest health stories from around the world

The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been jointly awarded to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman for their discoveries concerning nucleoside base modifications that enabled the development of effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2023/press-release/  The discoveries by the two Nobel Laureates were critical for developing effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 during the pandemic …

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New monovalent COVID-19 vaccines approved in US; The latest health stories from around the world

After the US Food and Drug Administration authorized new monovalent COVID vaccines on early last week, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices backed the decision a day later with a nearly unanimous vote in favour of universal XBB-containing shots. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/996378?  Reports of a mutating virus and COVID hospitalisations of about 17,000 people a …

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USAID slashes funding for scheme identifying zoonotic diseases; The latest health stories from around the world

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has prematurely ended a $125 million program aimed at identifying viruses that might harm humans in animals. Many see this as a fallout from the concern that researchers studying bat viruses may have triggered the COVID-19 pandemic. https://www.science.org/content/article/u-s-cancels-program-aimed-identifying-potential-pandemic-viruses? USAID launched the program, known as the Discovery & Exploration …

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US to negotiate on prices for a number of prescription drugs; The latest health stories from around the world

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced its first list of 10 prescription drugs whose prices will be open for negotiation in 2023 and 2024. Any settled price will become effective in 2026. The HHS will be working through the Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under the provisions of …

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UK COVID-19 surveillance “flying blind”; The latest health stories from around the world

The UK is nearly “flying blind” when it comes to COVID this autumn, experts have said, amid an increase in cases. While the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) continues to track some metrics of COVID, including hospitalization numbers, many of the community surveillance studies tracking infection levels have finished. www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/05/uk-almost-flying-blind-on-COVID-this-autumn-experts-say? Now experts have said the …

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US Senate approves budget increase for biomedical research; The latest health stories from around the world

To the relief of biomedical research advocates, a US Senate spending panel has approved a modest budget increase of 2% for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The bump to $47.8 billion roughly matches President Joe Biden’s request for the 2024 fiscal year that begins this fall. Although below the rate of biomedical inflation, it …

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