Good articles on Health sector

http://blogs.economictimes.indiatimes.com/figuringitout/entry/on-patenting-and-pharma-pricing

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/healthcare/biotech/healthcare/why-india-needs-to-back-a-new-rd-treaty-in-health-sector/articleshow/14683755.cms

Sulphur dioxide, a pollutant, could aid fight on TB

* Study at IISER involved organic compounds that release sulphur dioxide which kill Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

• The gas is commonly used both as an antibiotic and an antioxidant. For centuries, it has been used as a preservative in wine-making because of its properties as an antioxidant.
• the key challenge was to control the delivery of sulphur dioxide to tap its therapeutic potential and possibly avoid undesirable side effects.

* Compounds that generate sulphur dioxide faster were found to be better in inhibiting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) growth.

* New approaches to treat tuberculosis are driven by the need to tackle multi drug-resistant strains of Mtb

* Anti-mycobacterial activity appeared to depend on the rate at which sulphur dioxide was generated from the compound

* Team looking at detailed toxicological studies to find out how toxic the sulphur dioxide ‘prodrug’ can be to human cells

* The IISER, Pune, research is a sort of proof-of-concept, which would require further, extensive studies

TB: Centre bans ‘inaccurate’ serology tests

• ·         According to Section 26(A) of the Drugs and Cosmetic Act, 1940, the Centre has prohibited the manufacture, sale and distribution of the serodiagnostic test kits for diagnosis of tuberculosis.

• ·         Few studies were conducted for evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of commercial serological tests for pulmonary and extra-pulmonary TB (where the infection affects parts of the body other than the lungs) with focus on their relevance in developing nations. The accuracy of serodiagnostic tests was found to be very low for both forms of TB.

• ·         India is the first and only country to have banned these tests, following the WHO policy.

How TB can be diagnosed?

 

• ·          Tuberculosis can be diagnosed through chest X-rays, analysis of sputum, skin tests. Chest X-rays can reveal evidence of active tuberculosis pneumonia. X-rays can also show scarring (fibrosis) or hardening (calcification) in the lungs, suggesting that the TB is contained.

• ·          Examination of the sputum on a slide (smear) under the microscope can show the presence of TB-like bacteria. A sample of sputum is usually taken and cultured in special incubators so that the TB bacteria can be identified.