All About: African swine fever, Allergan Plc, Cholera outbreak, AstraZeneca's drug

Belgium has confirmed an outbreak of African swine fever, marking a further spread of the disease that has hit farms in Eastern Europe and China and which could now threaten Western Europe's large pig industry.

 

Western Europe on swine fever alert as Belgium sees wild boar cases

Belgium has confirmed an outbreak of African swine fever, marking a further spread of the disease that has hit farms in Eastern Europe and China and which could now threaten Western Europe's large pig industry. Belgium's food safety agency on Thursday said that African swine fever (ASF) had been detected in the Etalle district near the French border, after the death of several wild boars raised suspicions that the virus was present.

Allergan says revenue from aesthetics unit may double by 2025

Allergan Plc said revenue from its medical aesthetics business could double by 2025, even as it faces increasing competition for its blockbuster wrinkle treatment, Botox. The drugmaker announced earlier on Friday the acquisition of Bonti Inc, which makes a shorter-acting neurotoxin than Botox.

People with psoriasis often face stigma, discrimination

(Reuters Health) - People with the scaly skin condition psoriasis are often faced with people who don't want to shake hands with them and who see them - incorrectly - as contagious, according to a new study. "Patients with psoriasis often express frustration to me that they experience discrimination in public places and the work environment," study co-author Dr. Joel Gelfand of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia told Reuters Health by email. "My patients tell me that they have been asked not to use a pool, feel embarrassed going to the hair salon or have been fired from jobs that require interaction with the public."

Zimbabwe's opposition leader postpones mock inauguration after cholera outbreak

Zimbabwe's main opposition leader has postponed plans for a mock inauguration on Saturday following a police ban on public gatherings as the country battles to contain a cholera outbreak that has killed 26 people. Nelson Chamisa, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), says he was cheated of victory by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in the July 30 election, the first since Robert Mugabe was removed in a coup last November.

U.S. health secretary backs proposed FDA crackdown on e-cigarettes: CNBC

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told CNBC on Friday he was "completely in support" of the Food and Drug Administration's proposed crackdown on e-cigarettes. "We are not going to permit e-cigarettes to become a pathway to nicotine dependency" or the use of combustible tobacco, Azar said in an interview with CNBC.

FDA approves AstraZeneca's drug for rare form of blood cancer

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday it approved AstraZeneca Plc's treatment for hairy cell leukemia, a slow-growing type of blood cancer. The treatment, marketed as Lumoxiti, was approved for treating a stubborn form of the disease or a relapse in patients who have received at least two prior therapies, the FDA https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm620448.htm said.

China reports new outbreaks of African swine fever in Inner Mongolia, Henan: Xinhua

China reported two new outbreaks of African swine fever in the Inner Mongolia region and Henan provinces as the highly contagious disease, which is deadly to pigs, spreads further nationwide, the state-run Xinhua news agency said on Friday. The Inner Mongolia autonomous region in China's north found 16 affected hogs, all of which died from the disease, Xinhua quoted China's Ministry of Agriculture as saying. China's central province of Henan had 148 hogs struck with the disease, out of which 64 died, Xinhua said.

Recharge your brain at work with exercise that doesn't require much thinking

A good way to recharge your brain at work might be with a short bout of exercise that doesn't require much concentration, according to a small study from Japan. "The present study suggests that simple exercise is better than cognitively demanding exercise during working hours," lead author Keita Kamijo, an assistant professor on the faculty of sports sciences, Waseda University, Tokyo, told Reuters Health by email.

Global health regulators find second toxin in common heart drug

European and North American regulators have found a second toxin that may cause cancer in humans in a commonly used blood pressure drug made by Chinese firm Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd. Health regulators in the European Union, United States, and Canada had already recalled drugs made with the company's active pharmaceutical ingredient valsartan after finding traces of the chemical N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), considered a potential human carcinogen, in the medicine.

Sanofi pledges to keep up its restructuring efforts

Sanofi will continue to implement cost savings after having reached a 1.5 billion euros ($1.75 billion) cost reduction target a year ahead of expectations and added that several of its key drugs were selling well. The French drugmaker, hurt by declining revenue at its diabetes business in recent years, is eyeing a return to growth from the second half of 2018 as it builds upon acquisitions made earlier this year.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)