June 2011|Plants, Plans and Superheroes!

June 8, 2011

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June 2011

Merck Donates “Priceless” Natural Products Library to Hepatitis B Foundation

In a public ceremony held on June 6, Merck donated its entire “priceless”

natural products library, along with an undisclosed financial gift, to the

research institute of the Hepatitis B Foundation. The Merck collection is

considered to be one of the most diverse and best curated natural products

libraries in the world and represents approximately 60% of all known plant

genera in the world. “This is an extraordinary donation and opportunity for our

research institute to make it available to scientists from all over the world,”

said Dr. Block, president of the Hepatitis B Foundation. Merck senior

vice president for Vaccines Research and Development Dr. Tony Ford Hutchinson

added, “Merck's natural products library will now be available to a wider

scientific community with the hope it will assist others in the discovery of new

therapies for patients.” Read more.

HHS Releases National Action Plan to Prevent and Treat Viral Hepatitis

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released on May 12 the first

ever HHS Action Plan on Viral Hepatitis to “combat the silent epidemic” which

impacts almost 6 million Americans. “These infections have fueled a tragic

cascade of human suffering,” said Assistant Secretary of HHS K. Koh, MD,

MPH. “The new HHS action plan on viral hepatitis represents an unprecedented

call to action for better education, treatment and prevention. The plan’s

success is contingent on leadership of government at all levels and the active

and informed participation of communities, non-governmental organizations,

health care providers, and the private sector. " Read more.

" B A Hero " Flash Mob Takes Over City Hall!

Hep B Free Philadelphia and HBF organized an exciting “B A Hero” flash mob event

on May 24 at City Hall, led by medical and public health student volunteers,

that attracted tremendous media attention which helped promote May National

Hepatitis Awareness Month. Both the current and former Philadelphia Health

Commissioners spoke after which the almost 150 participants stripped off their

shirts to “reveal” their superhero t-shirts promoting hepatitis B testing and

vaccination. Students broke into an impromptu rap captured on film. View " B A

Hero " Flash Mob and pass it on!

Screening for Hepatitis B May Be Cost-Effective for More of the Population

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati published evidence in the May

advance online edition of the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases that current

prevention and screening standards are worth the cost, but may even need

expansion to include more of the population. “Current guidelines, such as those

of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, do not recommend universal screening

for HBV infection in the general population and utilize relatively high rates of

prevalence in targeted populations,” said Mark Eckman, MD. " Our analysis

suggests that screening becomes cost-effective at population prevalence as low

as 0.3 percent… Thus, current health policy with regard to screening should be

reconsidered, which could detect this life-threatening illness earlier,

potentially saving more lives,” he added. Read more.

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June 8, 2011