Oral HPV More Common in Men Than Women

A new study talked about in the New York Times Vital Signs blog shows that about 1/15 Americans is infected with oral human papilloma virus. Of these numbers, more are men than women. The disease is a virus of the throat and can cause throat/larynx/pharynx cancers. Specifically, HPV Type 16 has tripled in prevalence over the last 20 years, a fact that is becoming more known in the public given the rise in throat cancer reports.

Aout 6.9% of adults and teenagers in the country are affected with any kind of strain of Human Papilloma Virus. The study also narrowed down behavioral practices that could make one more susceptible to oral HPV: increased age, sexual activity, and smoking cigarettes. Oral HPV can come about from engaging in oral sex.

Given the controversial political debate about whether or not men should also receive the HPV vaccine is likely to be affected by this new study. The fact that men had triple rates of throat cancers than women had until now been unexplained.

Pooja

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/26/oral-hpv-more-common-in-men-than-women/?ref=health&gwh=020751B1208E0DA34854985D625B98E6

Could avoiding raw date juice and sap reduce Nipah infection?

Well experts in Bangladesh seem to think so. According to the Bb News (a Bangladeshi Newspaper) five deaths have already been reported this year in a recent outbreak in Bangladesh. Health department officials fear that more outbreaks of this Fruit babo virus loom on the horizon . However, experts are calling for a simple measure to reduce disease: “not drinking raw date juice.”

The link of date juice/sap to nipah is the fear that fruit bats can infect the dates while feeding. Consuming raw juice from infected dates could pass the virus onto unsuspecting victims, posing a serious threat to their health.

Once infected, there is no cure for Nipah infection and the disease is serious. Symptoms can include encephalitis and coma .(CDC)
Interestingly enough, at least according to this article, Nipah virus is currently only found in Bangladesh…I’ll have to look up that fact to make sure it is indeed true.

The original article can be found here: http://bdnews24.com/details.php?id=216993&cid=2
And the CDC page can be found here: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/mnpages/dispages/nipah.htm

--Elena Jordan

Study Finds 7 Percent of People in United States Have Oral Infection of HPV.

A new study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association and reported on in the New York Times, has determined that 6.9% of the American population, aged 14 to 69, has detectable levels of some serotype of HPV in their mouths/throats. The study was performed by PCR analysis of lysed cell extracts retrieved by a simple gargle-and-spit method using mouthwash.

The study also yielded numerous correlations between independent factors and rates of HPV infection. These ranged from the predictable, positive correlations with age and sexual activity since both increase the likelihood of exposure, to the thought-provoking, such as a tripled rate of infection for men vs. women(10.1%/3.6%) and a positive correlation between smoking and chances of infection. Of the serotypes tested, HPV-16, a type linked to both cervical and oral cancers, was the most prevalent of any given type but was still relatively minor at a 1% infection rate. Even so, if these numbers can be expanded for the entire population, that means ~2 million people are infected with an oral oncovirus.

Ultimately, this study alternately raises and calms fears at the same time. While the burden of dealing with potential oral cancers in the future appears grim, for now the numbers retrieved by the study pale in comparison to the rates of genital HPV infection and the chance of contracting cervical cancer. Still, investigations into the efficacy of vaccines to stop oral HPV transmission will likely be performed sometime in the future if the United States gets serious about reducing HPV infection rates.

-Zachary Herrera
Study:
http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/early/2012/01/23/jama.2012.101.abstract
Article:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/26/oral-hpv-more-common-in-men-than-women/

Plantibodies in the fight against HIV?

Dr. Deborah Anderson, professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and microbiology at Boston University, is currently developing a form of prophylaxis against HIV and HSV that uses plant-grown human antibodies to neutralize these viruses in the female genital tract. Anderson has been working closely with the industry to develop a system of producing antibodies to HIV cheaply and massively in tobacco plants. The so-called "plantibodies" are then hoped to be applied to numerous other viruses, perhaps even influenza and rhinovirus.

Trials for another anti-HIV gel were cancelled in November because they appeared to be ineffective at preventing infection. Here's hoping that this one shows happier results.

Source: http://www.bu.edu/today/2012/developing-a-new-weapon-against-hiv/

-Alan Le

How young adults handle epidemics

A study from the University of Michigan recently outlined how young adults handle epidemics such as the H1N1 influenza. The study was a survey of 3,000 people and focused mostly on people in their 30s, finding that only 20% of those surveyed had been vaccinated during the 2009-10 H1N1 scare. However, about two thirds of them said that they were following the issue closely and "moderately concerned, " which apparently is not concerned enough to be vaccinated (come to think of it, I can't think of one person I know in my age group who got the vaccine either). Even though they felt "well-informed" or even "very well-informed" on the topic, the average scores on an influenza knowledge test were "moderately informed."

The study went on to break down the behavior of this group further: adults with young children at home were the most likely to pay attention to news concerning the epidemic. Most people got news from friends, family, and coworkers (but where did the friends, family and coworkers get their news from?) They most trusted doctors and most mistrusted Wikipedia. Overall, this generation was said to have done "reasonably well in their first encounter with a major epidemic" by the author of the report, Jon D. Miller.


http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/240722.php

--Sarah Kaewert

Viruses outrun us..and bacteria

A recent study published in Science invested gated viral replication in E.coli. The bacteriophage, lambda, attach via specific receptors and attack glycoproteins on E.coli. Scientists generated a bacteria that lack the virus-specific receptor required for viral entry and insertion of genome into host genome. However, within 15 days, the virus evolved to utilize a different receptor to gain entry into its host.

I think this article is interesting because bacteriophages are good models for human viruses. The speed of viral evolution to facilitate infection is impressive but threatening to our health. It would be interesting to learn more about how the virus evolved that fast and I wonder if there's a way for our immune system to adapt faster.

-Michelle Jin

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Quick-learner-Viruses-find-new-ways-of-infecting-us/articleshow/11680861.cms

Wisconsin-Madison Flu Study Censored for Security Measures

Dr. Yoshihiro Kawaoka's recent flu study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Toronto is under review after his lab created a more contagious form of the H5N1 avian flu. This study has been compared to that of Dr. Fouchier's H5N1 study at the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands. The main difference being that Dr. Fouchier's lab created a more contagious and a super-lethal strain of H5N1 that killed over 50% of the ferrets it infected. Dr. Kawaoka's strain is highly contagious, but has not been shown to be lethal- not to mention, the current flu vaccine remains effective against his mutated strain. This contagious H5N1 virus strain is a result of four point mutations that occurred after the team of researchers attached the hemagglutining gene of the H5N1 virus to seven genes of the H1N1 2009 virus.
In opposition to research involving genetically engineered flu viruses, Richard Ebright, a chemistry professor at Rutgers University stated, "this virus will not be the endpoint; the first experiment that will be done with it will be an effort to enhance its lethality." Many researchers are concerned that the gene-manipulation techniques as well as intermediate mutations are potentially as dangerous as the end products, which is why certain aspects of this research should be censored.
Censoring this research will make the reproduction of these studies difficult (if not impossible)- which brings into question the importance of reproducing studies in order to validate their results.

-Angela Cesena

Reference:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/26/health/wisconsin-scientist-says-h5n1-flu-strain-he-created-is-less-dangerous.html?ref=health