Publications by authors named "Jane Halpern"

Vaccines are complex and a very diverse group of products with relatively long product life cycles. The manufacturing programs for these vaccines need to be continually updated to comply with evolving regulatory expectations. Members of the Parenteral Drug Association (PDA) Vaccines Interest Group (VIG) authored and published PDA (TR 89), which seeks to provide context to vaccine developers and manufacturers regarding key aspects of new or legacy vaccines such as control strategy from process development to vaccine life cycle management, comparability and life cycle management including technical, validation, quality, and regulatory perspectives.

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The efficacy of an Oral Whole Cell ETEC Vaccine (OEV) against Travelers' Diarrhea (TD) was reexamined using novel outcome and immunologic measures. More specifically, a recently developed disease severity score and alternative clinical endpoints were evaluated as part of an initial validation effort to access the efficacy of a vaccine intervention for the first time in travelers to an ETEC endemic area. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial followed travelers to Guatemala or Mexico up to 28 days after arrival in the country following vaccination (two doses two weeks apart) with an ETEC vaccine.

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Article Synopsis
  • Shigellosis, a significant cause of diarrhea in young children, is targeted by the Flexyn2a vaccine, which links a part of the bacteria to a harmless toxin to boost immune response.* -
  • In a Phase 2b trial involving healthy adults, the Flexyn2a vaccine was found to be safe and resulted in a 30.2% reduction in shigellosis cases, with even higher efficacy against severe cases.* -
  • Vaccinated individuals experienced less severe symptoms and needed fewer antibiotics, indicating the vaccine's potential effectiveness in reducing disease severity and improving immune responses.*
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Background: Diarrheal diseases are a leading cause of global morbidity and mortality affecting all ages, but especially children under the age of five in resource-limited settings. Shigella is a leading contributor to diarrheal diseases caused by bacterial pathogens and is considered a significant antimicrobial resistance threat. While improvements in hygiene, and access to clean water help as control measures, vaccination remains one of the most viable options for significantly reducing morbidity and mortality.

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Oral human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is a cause of oropharyngeal cancer. We investigated whether sexual behaviors that elevated the odds of oropharyngeal cancer developing in a case-control study similarly elevated the odds of oral HPV infection developing among control patients. HPV infection was detected in 4.

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Background: Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is a major cause of travellers' diarrhoea. We investigated the rate of diarrhoea attacks, safety, and feasibility of a vaccine containing heat-labile enterotoxin (LT) from ETEC delivered to the skin by patch in travellers to Mexico and Guatemala.

Methods: In this phase II study, healthy adults (aged 18-64 years) who planned to travel to Mexico or Guatemala and had access to a US regional vaccination centre were eligible.

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Rifaximin was compared with placebo and ciprofloxacin for treatment of travelers' diarrhea in a randomized, double-blind clinical trial. Adult travelers (N = 399) consulting travel clinics in Mexico, Guatemala, and India were randomized to receive rifaximin 200 mg three times a day, ciprofloxacin (500 mg two times a day and placebo once a day), or placebo three times a day for 3 days. Patients recorded in daily diaries the time and consistency of each stool and documented symptoms for 5 days after treatment.

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Traveler's diarrhea (TD) is the most common infectious illness acquired by visitors to developing nations. The purpose of this study was to utilize molecular diagnostic techniques to determine the prevalence of norovirus (NoV) in TD occurring among visitors from the United States to Guatemala and Mexico. Stool samples (n = 54) were collected from 34 TD cases and analyzed for NoV by reverse transcription-PCR and oligoprobe confirmation.

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