VaxGen has been developing its anthrax vaccine candidate, rPA102, to address the urgent need for a modern recombinant vaccine, based on a single defined protein, that has a strong safety profile and which provides protective immunity when administered in a three-dose schedule. The present vaccine requires the administration of six doses.
The UCLA Center for Vaccine Research, located at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) in Torrance, California, is currently participating in a VaxGen rPA102 vaccine research study. The current study is designed to find the anthrax vaccine formulation that will provide the best safety profile (or fewest side effects), while providing the highest level of protection (or best immune response) against anthrax. In the current study, 45 healthy adults were enrolled at the Vaccine Center. The Center is hoping to participate in future studies to determine the best vaccine schedule.
For information about future anthrax studies or the testing of this vaccine, contact the Director of the UCLA Center for Vaccine Research, Joel I.Ward, MD, at 1-800-637-8860.
Dr. Chad K. Oh co-authors "How to Live with a Nut Allergy"
Dr. Chad K.Oh, a principal investigator at LA BioMed, has co-authored a new book titled "How to Live with a Nut Allergy" (McGraw-Hill, $14.95). Every year, 100 Americans die after eating nuts or peanuts. For the 1.5 million Americans living with nut allergies, even slight exposure, such as eating with a fork that has touched a nut or peanut, can trigger a severe reaction -- even if a person has experienced mild or no symptoms in the past. In their new book, Dr. Chad K. Oh, chief of Allergy and Immunology at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, and writer Carol Kennedy provide strategies for managing this type of allergy, including tips for minimizing exposure and methods of preventing and responding to all levels of allergic reaction.
In addition to providing readers with specific nut allergy resources throughout, Oh and Kennedy also discuss such concerns as:
- Who may be at risk for nut and peanut allergies
- How to identify the symptoms of a nut or peanut allergy
- Who to go to for testing and treatment and what to expect at the doctor's office
- How to identify foods that contain peanuts and nuts especially when they are "hidden ingredients"
- How to react to extreme allergic reactions including swelling of the throat and air passages.
You can contact Dr. Oh at coh@labiomed.org or 310-222-4162.
Dr. Anita L. Nelson co-authors the 18th edition of "Contraceptive Technology"
Dr. Nelson, a principal investigator at LA BioMed, has co-authored the recent edition of "Contraceptive Technology". This is an updated edition of the most comprehensive resource on contraception. It provides information about sexual anatomy and physiology, sexually transmitted diseases, methods of birth control, and women's reproductive health problems. There is a section on seven new methods of family planning approved by the FDA, and a section on menopause.
In addition to being one of seven senior authors for the book, Dr. Nelson wrote the following chapters: Menopause (co-authored with Felicia H. Stewart, MD of UCSF), Menstrual Problems and Common Gynecologic Concerns, Combined Hormonal Contraceptive Methods (co-authored with Robert A. Hatcher, MD, MPH of Emory University), Impaired Fertility (co-authored with John R. Marshall, MD of Harbor-UCLA Medical Center).
Dr. Nelson oversees the Women's Health Care Programs at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, CA and in the Coastal County Clinics of Los Angeles County. She is Medical Director of the Research Division of the California Family Health Council. She serves on the editorial boards of a number of professional journals and frequently lectures on a number of women's health care topics.
The book has a web site at www.contraceptivetechnology.org. You can contact Dr. Nelson at anitanelsonwhc@earthlink.net or 310-222-3871.
The Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) is one of the largest independent, not-for-profit biomedical research institutes in Los Angeles County. Affiliated with both the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, the Institute has an annual budget of over $72 million and currently supports more than 1,000 research studies in areas such as cardiology, emerging infections, cancer, women's health, reproductive health, vaccine research, respiratory physiology, neonatology, molecular biology, and genetics. LA BioMed also plays a pivotal role in the training of young physician – scientists and scientists-to-be and is active in promoting the health and well being of nearby communities through community service programs that meet a variety of social and medical needs.