The Malaysian Insider :: Features
The Malaysian Insider :: Features |
| Mixed results for malaria trial vaccine, study shows Posted: 10 Nov 2012 06:58 AM PST  New tests with the worldcs first candidate malaria vaccine have shown mixed results. - Afp pic The "modest" result came as a surprise to researchers working hard on a drug to combat the mosquito-born disease that kills hundreds of thousands of children per year. The trial vaccine, RTS,S, is made by British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, whose chief executive officer Andrew Witty called the result "a little frustrating". "We... would have liked to have seen higher efficacy than we have of course," he told a telephone press conference of the Phase III trial results published in the New England Journal of Medicine. But he stressed that "this is not a mission we should just walk away from. This remains the lead and still the most encouraging (malaria) candidate vaccine." A year ago, the RTS,S team announced that the candidate drug cut risk in African children between the ages of five and 17 months in half over a period of 12 months. The biggest trial of its kind, underway at 11 sites in seven African countries, seeks to block the parasite that causes malaria. The disease kills an estimated 655,000 people every year, mainly children under five living in sub-Saharan Africa. Dr Salim Abdulla, who leads the trial in Tanzania, said three doses of the drug had reduced clinical malaria in the younger children by 31 per cent, and severe malaria by 37 per cent. For the older group, the figures had been 55 per cent and 47 per cent respectively. "We will continue to examine the different factors that may be behind the different levels of efficacy," Abdulla said. The researchers expect to have final trial results by 2014, including the vaccine's efficacy over 30 months after administration, and the effects of a later, booster dose. Abdulla said the positives include confirmation that the vaccine is safe and that it can be administered with other childhood vaccinations without any worrying side-effects. "The efficacy came back lower than we had hoped, but developing a vaccine against a parasite is a very hard thing to do," said Bill Gates, co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation which sponsors the trial. "The trial is continuing and we look forward to getting more data to help determine whether and how to deploy this vaccine." — Afp-Relaxnews |
| Pepsi launches ‘fat-blocking’ cola in Japan Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:01 AM PST  Pepsi Special in Japan claims to reduce fat absorption. — Afp pic Made with an indigestible form of dextrin or dietary fibre, Pepsi Special is supposed to reduce the absorption of fat in the body from food intake and help lower cholesterol levels. The latest product innovation out of Pepsi is modelled after the runaway hit of drink manufacturer Kirin Holdings, which launched what it marketed as the world's first healthy cola drink this past spring. Kirin Mets Cola is also made with dextrin. Perhaps nowhere in the world is the functional food market more developed than in Japan, where consumers can find everything from fat-fighting chocolate bars to age-defying alcoholic cocktails. Pepsi Special goes on sale across Japan November 13 for ¥150 (RM5.80). — Afp-Relaxnews |
| You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Features To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 ulasan:
Catat Ulasan