Health officials cancel HIV vaccine trial
BETHESDA, Md., July 17 (UPI) -- Officials canceled a U.S. human trial of a human immunodeficiency virus vaccine Thursday, saying it likely wouldn't be effective and might increase infection.
"After soliciting and considering broad input from the scientific and HIV advocacy communities, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ... has determined that it will not conduct the HIV vaccine study known as PAVE 100," the National Institutes of Health division said in a news release.
"However, ... NIAID will entertain a proposal for an alternative study with one specific goal: to determine if the vaccine regimen significantly lowers viral load -- the amount of HIV in the blood of vaccinated individuals who may later become infected with HIV," the agency said.
PAVE, the Partnership for AIDS Vaccine Evaluation, is a consortium of U.S. government agencies and government-funded organizations involved in developing and evaluating experimental HIV vaccines that might not be developed by pharmaceutical companies or institutions on their own. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.
The trial was supposed to have begun enrolling 8,500 volunteers last October to receive the vaccine, The New York Times reported. It was delayed after a test of a similar vaccine made by Merck failed in its two main goals: infection prevention and lowing the amount of HIV in the blood in volunteers who became infected.
Also, findings among the 3,000 participants in nine countries where the Merck vaccine was tested suggested it might have increased the risk of volunteers of becoming infected with HIV, the Times said.
Bird flu vaccine shows promise
SEATTLE, July 17 (UPI) -- A California company says its early-stage testing of a new bird-flu vaccine for humans looks promising.
The vaccine uses specially engineered bacteria to produce genes of the avian flu H5N1 instead of the conventional, egg-based techniques, adding momentum to developing a faster, safer ways to protect against avian influenza, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
Vical Inc. of San Diego said its Phase 1 clinical trial tested several doses against a placebo in 100 healthy adults and safely triggered an immune response against H5N1.
Rather than using the half-century-old method of growing flu virus in hen's eggs and harvesting it to make a vaccine, Vical produces its vaccine using E. coli bacteria to make the flu-virus genes H5 and M2, the Journal said. Instead of taking months as is the case with the traditional method, Vical's production time is between six to eight weeks, said Vijay B. Samant, Vical's president and chief executive.
Since 2003, the H5N1 virus has caused 243 fatalities among 385 humans who have contracted bird flu. Public health agencies around the world have expressed concern about the virus mutating to a form human-to-human transmission could erupt into a pandemic.
Fiber intake linked to preeclampsia risk
SEATTLE, July 17 (UPI) -- Women who increase their daily intake of dairy and fiber during the first trimester of pregnancy could reduce their risk of preeclampsia, U.S. researchers said.
Researchers from the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle assessed eating habits of 1,538 pregnant women before conception and during the first trimester, said the American Journal of Hypertension, which posted the study Thursday on its Web site.
Results indicated women who had diets high in total fiber -- more than 21.2 grams a day -- reduced their risk of preeclampsia by two thirds more than those with lower daily intakes of less than 11.9 grams, researchers said.
Preeclampsia affects about one in 15 pregnancies and is characterized by potentially lethal complications, included cerebral hemorrhage and acute renal failure. Obesity, anxiety disorders, and family history of type 2 diabetes are among its risk factors.
High fiber intake also was related to lower maternal triglyceride concentrations, which elevate significantly during pregnancy, particularly in women with preeclampsia, the article said.
Medicare bill affects participants, docs
WASHINGTON, July 17 (UPI) -- The new Medicare law that was passed over U.S. President George Bush's veto contains "important changes" for participants, analysts said.
Participants in the federal insurance program for the elderly and disabled can expect lower out-of-pocket expenses for mental health services and coverage for anti-anxiety and sleep aids Medicare previously didn't cover, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. The law also makes it easier and less expensive for participants to get a physical examination.
Most of the changes to the law, which also blocked a scheduled cut in fees paid to doctors, will be phased in during the next several years, the Journal said.
However, consumers who used certain private insurance plans sold as Medicare Advantage could face tougher restrictions on which doctors they can see. Also, the bill urges doctors to begin sending prescriptions to pharmacies electronically, instead of writing out prescription by hand.
"There are some important changes in here," Kirsten Sloan, an official with AARP, the lobbying group for people age 50 and over, told the Journal. "It's meaningful."
The Medicare bill carries a $20 billion price tag spread over five years.
