CAPE TOWN – South Africa’s Health Minister was somewhat embarrassed that his government’s decision to procure pneumococcal vaccines from an Indian company rather than local company Biovac became public during a high-level international meeting on the local production of mRNA vaccines in his country. South Africa’s procurement decision coincided with a meeting in Cape Town […] Continue reading ->
CAPE TOWN – The most advanced biomedical research centre on the African continent has opened in South Africa, boasting state-of-the-art research and training facilities. Stellenbosch University’s Biomedical Research Institute (BMRI) houses over 500 researchers who are examining the genetic and biomolecular basis for diseases afflicting Africans – including Professor Tuilo De Oliveira, renowned for decoding […] Continue reading ->
Seventy-five years ago on Friday – World Health Day – the World Health Organization’s (WHO) founding constitution became the first document to formally recognize health as a human right. Three-quarters of a century later, a WHO battered by the COVID-19 pandemic is juggling how to adapt to new health threats with achieving its most basic […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) said that it is poised to begin clinical trials of three Marburg disease vaccine candidates if Tanzania and Equatorial Guinea, both struggling with outbreaks of the deadly disease, give the green light.  About 2000 finished doses are available from vaccine developers and could be administered to the identified contacts of […] Continue reading ->
A genetic revolution is coming. It’s time the medical community and policymakers discuss it. As technology advances and the price for genetic testing decreases, it is likely that within the next five years, DNA sequence information will be part of a patient’s medical records. Such a move would revolutionize the way doctors diagnose and treat […] Continue reading ->