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Lab Solutions Chemistry/OrganSc/Physics/Biology quantumcow.com 260-COWS Spirituality, Healing & Medicine What’s the Connection? Bring your ideas to the discussion led by Honor Hill Tuesday, February 25 th - 8:30 pm - Rudder 707 For more information visit www.spirituality.com Sponsored by the Christian Science Organization JOHN J. KOLDUS III FACULTY/STAFF ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Recognizes an outstanding faculty/staff member for his of her interest in student growth, education and unity through student organization work. Any student, student organization, faculty, or staff member may nominate. For more information or an application, contact Debra La Grone, Department of Student Financial Aid, 845-3917. Nominations due Friday, February 28, 2003, 5 p.m. at MS 1252 or delivered to Debra La Grone, #208 Pavilion AMERICORPS NATIONAL SERVICE YOUR WORLD. YOUR CHANCE TO MAKE IT BETTER. For more Information about AmeriCorps, please email swlrecruiter@americorps.org Visit our web site at www.americorps.org 8 Tuesday, February 25, 2003 SCI|TECH THE BATTALION AIDS vaccine fails, raises questions Ethnicity may play a role in treatment of the disease By Paul Elias THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SAN FRANCISCO — The failure of an experimental AIDS vaccine in its first major test has shattered hopes of develop ing a shield against infection in the near future and demonstrated just how far sci entists are from bringing the deadly virus under control. Still, the results made public Monday contained an intriguing finding: The vac cine appeared to work well in the small number of blacks who participated. Scientists said more study is needed to draw any conclusions. The drug’s developer, Vaxgen Inc., said that overall there was no meaningful dif ference in protection between the 3,330 volunteers who received the genetically engineered vaccine and the 1,679 volun teers who received a placebo. All partici pants were at high risk of contracting the disease through sex. Officials had been willing to give the new drug approval even if it worked on just one in three people. “The AIDS virus is really wily and mutates easily,” said Dr. Tom Coates, director of the AIDS Research Institute at the University of California at San Francisco. Dozens of companies, universities and researchers are racing to develop their own vaccines. Among them: Merck & Co., GlaxoSmithKline and Aventis Pasteur. But none of those projects is considered as advanced as Vaxgen’s. AIDS vaccine fails test but still promising An AIDS vaccine developed by VaxGen Inc. fell short of Food and Drug Administration requirements in clinical trials, causing the company's stock price to plummet Stock performance Daily dosings per shore $30 Feb. 24—j $6.86 JFMAMJ J ASONDJ FMAMJJ ASONDJF 01 02 *03 Study results In a three-year study the VaxGen vaccine showed little impact on infection rales when compared lo a placebo group Among whites and Hispanica. which comprised the vast majority of participants, Ihe drug showed no effect. It does however seem to have an impact among other minority groups. HIV infection percentage 03 Placebo ■j Vaccine Number of participants 2 4 6 8 10% White and 1.508 Hispanic 3 Other minorities 1/1 combined 327 5.4%; 6.0% SOURCES: VaxGen Inc.; Moneyilne Tolerate: Associated Prose AP “Given the history of this field, I wouldn’t place my money on anything,” Coates said. “It’s really a very difficult virus to stop.” VaxGen, based in Brisbane, Calif., has spent $200 million developing its AIDSVAX vaccine and said it remains hopeful the vaccine will someday help slow the spread of AIDS. Results from another big human experiment in Thailand are expected to be released later this year. The Thailand experiment involved intravienous drug abusers. Company executives conceded doubts that the Food and Drug Administration would approve the vaccine anytime soon. “The disappointment comes from working in AIDS. This is no doubt achal lenging little bug,” said Dr. Donali Francis, who co-founded the companyii 1995. “It’s not surprising that we woiill have another challenge here. Butthedooi is open, and we can see some light stream ing in.” VaxGen stock fell $6.16, or 47 perceai, to close at $6.86 Monday on the Nasdai] Stock Market. At one point during the day, VaxGen was down to as little as $3. The company’s stock has been extreme ly volatile during the last year as rumor: about the experiment’s results swirled.Ii has traded as high as $23.25. Still, Vaxgen executives said theywt encouraged by the results among the 311 blacks who participated in the study. The experiment showed that there were 78 percent fewer infections among blacl volunteers who took the vaccine than those who received a placebo. Four of the 213 blacks who received the vaccine became infected, while nine of the 111 wb received the placebo were infected. There were similar results among the smallnum her of Asians involved in the study. The company said those results were statistically significant and showed the vaccine has value. But others warned that the sample was too small. “I am concerned that people will come to the conclusion that we can make a deter mi nation about protection,” said Chris Collins, executive director of the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition in NewYoi “Further study is needed.” Study finds ethnic differences in metabolic syndrome By Lindsey Tanner THE ASSOCIATED PRESS CHICAGO (AP) —- A syndrome linked to obesity, diabetes and heart disease is most common among Mexican-American women and least common among black men, a study found. Metabolic syndrome affects about 22 percent of U.S. adults, or at least 47 mil lion Americans. Symptoms often include high blood pressure, poor cholesterol lev els, high blood sugar and a disproportion ately large waist. Researchers analyzed data from a 1988-94 national health survey and found that preva lence ranged from 27 percent of Mexican- American women to 14 percent of black men. The percentage of black and white women affected was 21 percent and 23 percent respectively. Among men, the rates were 21 percent for Mexican-Americans and 24 percent for whites. The disparities are probably due to genetics, though there may be some unknown environmental factors that the study did not measure, said Columbia University’s Dr. Steven Heymsfield, a co author. The ethnic differences remained even after factors including body-mass index, socioeconomic status and physical inactiv ity — all linked to the syndrome — were considered. The findings appear in Monday’s Archives of Internal Medicine. The study was led by Dr. Yong-Woo Park of Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, Souti Korea. Researchers from Stanford University also participated. The numbers are “staggering,” but the data “are now 8 to 14 years old, and the situation has likely worsened,” James Hill and Dr. Daniel Bessesen of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center said in an accompanying editorial. The syndrome was present in at to/ half of obese people studied, morefaJ percent of overweight people and lessta 6 percent of normal-weight people. It was most common among smokers and in peo ple age 50 and up. Those affected are prone to developint obesity, diabetes and heart disease, but diet, exercise and quitting smoking can reduce the risk. dventure {with benefits} Mission: Oversee an international program in one of these fields: agriculture, business, community development, education, health, environment or information technology. Benefits: 24-Vacation Days a Year, Housing, Medical and Dental, Monthly Stipend, Transportation to and from Host Country, Student Loan Deferment and Graduate Degree Opportunities. Interested? 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