Smallpox may be gone but U.S. should better prepare for its return, report says
Nearly 5 decades after the last documented case, smallpox remains the only human disease that has been officially eradicated. But a new report concludes that the United States can do much to strengthen its ability to respond if the dreaded disease resurfaces, whether naturally, through a lab “leak” of the responsible virus, or from an act of terrorism. The authors of the smallpox report, however, do not offer a recommendation on the long-running debate over whether the only two labs that still hold samples of variola, the smallpox virus, should destroy them for safety reasons—that issue was outside th...
Source: ScienceNOW - March 26, 2024 Category: Science Source Type: news

Reduced-Dose Vaccines Protect Patients With HIV Against Mpox Reduced-Dose Vaccines Protect Patients With HIV Against Mpox
The smallpox vaccine effectively induces immunity against mpox virus infection in patients with HIV, although patients with low lymphocyte counts require booster doses.Medscape Medical News (Source: Medscape Allergy Headlines)
Source: Medscape Allergy Headlines - February 26, 2024 Category: Allergy & Immunology Tags: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news

What To Know About Alaskapox After Officials Confirm First Death From Recently Discovered Virus
Scientists are unsure how the man contracted the virus, a relative of smallpox and mpox, but believe a scratch from a stray cat is responsible. (Source: Forbes.com Healthcare News)
Source: Forbes.com Healthcare News - February 12, 2024 Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Robert Hart, Forbes Staff Tags: Business /business Innovation /innovation Science /science Healthcare /healthcare Breaking breaking-news topline Source Type: news

The Untold Stories About Smallpox Vaccines
Authored by Yuhong Dong via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), In the rich tapestry of medical science, vaccines stand out as monumental achievements lauded for their role in controlling, and sometimes eradicating, some of humanity's deadliest diseases.…#yuhongdong #epochtimes #shutterstock #edwardjenner #mostfearfuldisease #smallpox #milwaukee #wisconsin #jamesphipps #latin (Source: Reuters: Health)
Source: Reuters: Health - December 21, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

Curly haired ‘woolly dogs’ of the Pacific Northwest were no myth
This article is so perfect in blending science and the voices of Indigenous people,” says archaeologist Julie Stein, former director of the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture. “It’s really impressive.” Like the Sto:lo, many Coast Salish groups in the Pacific Northwest have oral traditions recollecting dogs whose coiled undercoats were spun into fibers and woven into elaborately patterned blankets. “All those communities had stories that they raised a dog specifically for its wool,” says Liz Hammond-Kaarremaa, a co-author of the new research and historian at Vancouver Island Universi...
Source: ScienceNOW - December 14, 2023 Category: Science Source Type: news

Kenya: Kenya's Troubled 60-Year Mental Health Journey
[HRW] Over a century ago, in 1910, British colonial authorities in Kenya redesigned a then-smallpox isolation center into what became the Nairobi Lunatic Asylum, a dire institution in which African patients-95 percent of the asylum's population-were kept in the worst conditions and European patients in the best. Until independence in 1963, only Europeans worked there as psychiatrists, senior doctors, and nurses. (Source: AllAfrica News: Health and Medicine)
Source: AllAfrica News: Health and Medicine - December 12, 2023 Category: African Health Tags: East Africa Health and Medicine Human Rights Kenya NGOs and Civil Society Source Type: news

Obelisk celebrating pioneering Lady Mary Wortley Montagu given highest listing
Aristocrat introduced smallpox inoculation to Britain, saving many lives, yet remains largely unknownIt is a monument that celebrates the achievements of someone who would, her supporters say, be far better known if she had been a man.But now a 300-year-old obelisk is being given one of England ’s highest listings because of the remarkable story it tells of an overlooked medical pioneer.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - December 5, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Mark Brown North of England correspondent Tags: North of England Vaccines and immunisation UK news Heritage Health Society Architecture Statues Culture Art and design Science Women Source Type: news

Obelisk celebrating pioneering Lady Mary Wortley Montagu given higher listing
Aristocrat introduced smallpox inoculation to Britain, saving many lives, yet remains largely unknownIt is a monument that celebrates the achievements of someone who would, her supporters say, be far better known if she had been a man.But now a 300-year-old obelisk is being given one of England ’s highest listings because of the remarkable story it tells of an overlooked medical pioneer.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - December 5, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Mark Brown North of England correspondent Tags: North of England Vaccines and immunisation UK news Heritage Health Society Architecture Statues Culture Art and design Science Women Source Type: news

Epidemiologic and Clinical Features of Mpox in Adults > 50 Years Epidemiologic and Clinical Features of Mpox in Adults > 50 Years
While childhood smallpox vaccination may provide some protection against mpox, adults at risk for mpox, regardless of smallpox vaccination status, should receive the mpox vaccine.Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report (Source: Medscape Hiv-Aids Headlines)
Source: Medscape Hiv-Aids Headlines - October 27, 2023 Category: Infectious Diseases Tags: Public Health & Prevention Journal Article Source Type: news

‘We’re so close’ to eradicating polio but challenges remain
Poliomyelitis, an untreatable but preventable disease, is only endemic in two countries globally but many believe it could be eradicated. The world is getting closer to eradicating polio, with experts hoping to eliminate it this decade - but challenges remain to make sure all children are…#afghanistan #pakistan #judithdiment #rotaryinternationals #euronewsnext #smallpox #mozambique #congo #yemen #somalia (Source: Reuters: Health)
Source: Reuters: Health - October 24, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

Britain's secret biosecurity blunders revealed - including LOSING a genetically-modified mouse and an experiment gone wrong involving a smallpox-like virus
EXCL: MailOnline has learned of six lab incidents where genetically modified organisms (GMO) have escaped containment in the past five years. (Source: the Mail online | Health)
Source: the Mail online | Health - October 20, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

AI chatbots could help plan bioweapon attacks, report finds
Large language models gave advice on how to conceal the true purpose of the purchase of anthrax, smallpox and plague bacteriaThe artificial intelligence models underpinning chatbots could help plan an attack with a biological weapon, according to research by a US thinktank.A report by the Rand Corporation released on Monday tested several large language models (LLMs) and found they could supply guidance that “could assist in the planning and execution of a biological attack”. However, the preliminary findings also showed that the LLMs did not generate explicit biological instructions for creating weapons.Continue readi...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - October 17, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Dan Milmo Global technology editor Tags: Artificial intelligence (AI) Technology ChatGPT Chatbots Biology Source Type: news

BioFactura Funded $16 Million Contract Option for its Smallpox Biodefense Therapeutic
Supports clinical manufacturing for an upcoming first-in-human Phase 1 trial FREDERICK, Md., Oct. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- BioFactura, Inc. today announced a contract option activation of over $16 million by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) part of... (Source: PRWeb: Medical Pharmaceuticals)
Source: PRWeb: Medical Pharmaceuticals - October 2, 2023 Category: Pharmaceuticals Tags: CON Source Type: news

Nigeria: Enhancing Immunisation Through the Northern Nigeria States Routine Immunisation Strengthening Project
[Nigeria Health Watch] Few global health and development interventions have yielded as profound an impact as vaccines. For over two centuries, these remarkable interventions have stood as a defence against vaccine preventable diseases such as polio, measles, and smallpox, enabling children to embrace a healthier, happier future filled with limitless possibilities. However, despite the long-established advantages, low rates of immunisation persist. (Source: AllAfrica News: Health and Medicine)
Source: AllAfrica News: Health and Medicine - August 8, 2023 Category: African Health Tags: Health and Medicine Nigeria West Africa Source Type: news

Durham drugmaker Chimerix names new CEO at pivotal time
After selling its smallpox treatment for hundreds of millions of dollars, Chimerix is undergoing a leadership transition as it focuses on developing a new drug. (Source: bizjournals.com Health Care:Pharmaceuticals headlines)
Source: bizjournals.com Health Care:Pharmaceuticals headlines - June 29, 2023 Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Zac Ezzone Source Type: news