The Design Of Novel Drugs To Combat Malaria Could Result From Research On Vitamins
New research by scientists at the University of Southampton could lead to the design of more effective drugs to combat malaria. The research will enable scientists to learn more about the nature of the enzymes required for vitamin biosynthesis by the malaria causing pathogen Plasmodium. Vitamins are essential nutrients required in small amounts, the lack of which leads to deficiencies. Many pathogenic microorganisms produce vitamins, and these biosynthetic pathways may provide suitable targets for development of new drugs.
32 Million Americans Have Autoantibodies That Target Their Own Tissues
More than 32 million people in the United States have autoantibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system that target the body's tissues and define a condition known as autoimmunity, a study shows. The first nationally representative sample looking at the prevalence of the most common type of autoantibody, known as antinuclear antibodies (ANA), found that the frequency of ANA is highest among women, older individuals, and African-Americans. The study was conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health.
How Young Adults Deal With Influenza
Only about one in five young adults in their late 30s received a flu shot during the 2009-2010 swine flu epidemic, according to a University of Michigan report that details the behavior and attitudes of Generation X. But about 65 percent were at least moderately concerned about the flu, and nearly 60 percent said they were following the issue very or moderately closely. Using survey data collected from approximately 3, 000 young adults during the 2009-2010 H1N1 influenza epidemic - the first serious infectious disease this group had ever experienced -The Generation X Report explores how Americans ages 36-39 kept abreast of the issue and what actions they eventually took to protect themselves and their families.