6 Animals With An Amazing Sense Of Direction

Salmon

Pigeons

Sea Turtles

Elephants

Bees

Dolphins

Animals: Discover the fascinating navigation skills of animals with an amazing sense of direction, like salmon, pigeons, and sea turtles, which use magnetic fields and memory.

COVID-19 is once again in retreat.

The reasons remain somewhat unclear, and there is no guarantee that the decline in caseloads will continue. But the turnaround is now large enough,&nbsp;and been going on long enough to deserve attention.

The number of new daily cases in the United States has fallen 35% since Sept. 1. Worldwide, cases have also dropped more than 30% since late August. “This is as good as the world has looked in many months,” Dr&nbsp;Eric Topol of Scripps Research wrote last week.

The most encouraging news is that the most serious forms of COVID are also declining. The number of Americans hospitalised with COVID has fallen about 25% since Sept. 1. Daily deaths&nbsp;which typically change direction a few weeks after cases and hospitalisations&nbsp;have fallen 10% since Sept. 20. It is the first sustained decline in deaths since early summer.

These declines are consistent with a pattern that readers will recognise: COVID’s mysterious two-month cycle. Since the COVID virus began spreading in late 2019, cases have often surged for about two months, sometimes because of a variant, such as delta, and then declined for about two months.

Public health researchers do not understand why. Many popular explanations&nbsp;such as seasonality or the ebbs and flows of mask wearing and social distancing are clearly insufficient, if not wrong. The two-month cycle has occurred during different seasons of the year and occurred even when human behavior was not changing in obvious ways.

The most-plausible explanations involve some combination of virus biology and social networks. Perhaps each virus variant is especially likely to infect some people but not others&nbsp;and once many of the most vulnerable have been exposed, the virus recedes. And perhaps a variant needs about two months to circulate through an average-sized community.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/too-soon-to-tell-fauci-talks-about-christmas-gatherings-as-he-warns-americans-to-not-be-complacent-418125">Also read |&nbsp;'Too soon to tell': Fauci talks about Christmas gatherings as he warns Americans to not be complacent</a>

Human behaviour does play a role, with people often becoming more careful once caseloads begin to rise. But social distancing is not as important as public discussion of the virus often imagines. “We’ve ascribed far too much human authority over the virus,” as Michael Osterholm, an infectious-disease expert at the University of Minnesota, has told me.

The recent declines, for example, have occurred even as millions of American children have again crowded into school buildings.

Whatever the reasons, the two-month cycle keeps happening. It is visible in the global numbers: Cases worldwide rose from late February to late April, then fell until late June, rose again until late August and have been falling since.

The pattern has also been evident within countries, including India, Indonesia, Thailand, Britain, France and Spain. In each of them, the delta variant led to a surge in cases lasting somewhere from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 months.

In the US, the delta surge started in several Southern states in June and began receding in those states in August. In much of the rest of the US,&nbsp;it began in July, and cases have begun falling the past few weeks. Even pediatric cases are falling, despite the lack of vaccine authorisation for children younger than 12, as Jennifer Nuzzo of Johns Hopkins University told The Washington Post.

I want to emphasise that these declines may not persist. COVID’s two-month cycle is not some kind of iron law of science. There have been plenty of exceptions.

In Britain, for example, caseloads have seesawed over the past two months, rather than consistently fallen. In the US, the onset of cold weather and the increase in indoor activities or some other unknown factor could potentially spark a rise in cases this fall. The course of the pandemic remains highly uncertain.

But this uncertainty also means that the near future could also prove to be&nbsp;more&nbsp;encouraging than we expect. And there are some legitimate reasons for COVID optimism.

The share of Americans ages 12 and older who have received at least one vaccine shot has reached 76%, and the growing number of vaccine mandates&nbsp;along with the likely approval of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 will increase the number of vaccinations this fall. Almost as important, something like one-half of Americans have probably had the COVID virus already, giving them some natural immunity.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-zealand-drops-its-covid-19-elimination-plan-as-delta-persists-418063">Also read |&nbsp;New Zealand drops its COVID-19 elimination plan as Delta persists</a>

Eventually, immunity will become widespread enough that another wave as large and damaging as the delta wave will not be possible. “Barring something unexpected,” said Dr. Scott Gottleib, a former Food and Drug Administration commissioner and author of “Uncontrolled Spread,” a new book on COVID, “I’m of the opinion that this is the last major wave of infection.”

COVID has not only been one of the worst pandemics in modern times. It has been an unnecessarily terrible pandemic. Of the more than 700,000 Americans who have died from it, nearly 200,000 probably could have been saved if they had chosen to take a vaccine. That is a national tragedy.

COVID also isn’t going to disappear anytime soon. It will continue to circulate for years, many scientists believe. But the vaccines can transform COVID into a manageable disease, not so different from a flu or common cold. In the past few weeks, the country appears to have moved closer to that less-grim future.

Whatever the next few months bring, the worst of the pandemic is almost certainly behind us.

COVID-19 is once again in retreat. The reasons remain somewhat unclear, and there is no guarantee that the decline in caseloads will continue. But the turnaround is now large enough, and been going on long enough to deserve attention.

COVID-19 is once again in retreat. The reasons remain somewhat unclear, and there is no guarantee that the decline in caseloads will continue. But the turnaround is now large enough, and been going on long enough to deserve attention. The number of new daily cases in the United States has fallen 35% since Sept. 1. Worldwide, cases have also dropped more than 30% since late August. “This is as good as the world has looked in many months,” Dr Eric Topol of Scripps Research wrote last week. The most encouraging news is that the most serious forms of COVID are also declining. The number of Americans hospitalised with COVID has fallen about 25% since Sept. 1. Daily deaths which typically change direction a few weeks after cases and hospitalisations have fallen 10% since Sept. 20. It is the first sustained decline in deaths since early summer. These declines are consistent with a pattern that readers will recognise: COVID’s mysterious two-month cycle. Since the COVID virus began spreading in late 2019, cases have often surged for about two months, sometimes because of a variant, such as delta, and then declined for about two months. Public health researchers do not understand why. Many popular explanations such as seasonality or the ebbs and flows of mask wearing and social distancing are clearly insufficient, if not wrong. The two-month cycle has occurred during different seasons of the year and occurred even when human behavior was not changing in obvious ways. The most-plausible explanations involve some combination of virus biology and social networks. Perhaps each virus variant is especially likely to infect some people but not others and once many of the most vulnerable have been exposed, the virus recedes. And perhaps a variant needs about two months to circulate through an average-sized community. Also read | 'Too soon to tell': Fauci talks about Christmas gatherings as he warns Americans to not be complacent Human behaviour does play a role, with people often becoming more careful once caseloads begin to rise. But social distancing is not as important as public discussion of the virus often imagines. “We’ve ascribed far too much human authority over the virus,” as Michael Osterholm, an infectious-disease expert at the University of Minnesota, has told me. The recent declines, for example, have occurred even as millions of American children have again crowded into school buildings. Whatever the reasons, the two-month cycle keeps happening. It is visible in the global numbers: Cases worldwide rose from late February to late April, then fell until late June, rose again until late August and have been falling since. The pattern has also been evident within countries, including India, Indonesia, Thailand, Britain, France and Spain. In each of them, the delta variant led to a surge in cases lasting somewhere from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 months. In the US, the delta surge started in several Southern states in June and began receding in those states in August. In much of the rest of the US, it began in July, and cases have begun falling the past few weeks. Even pediatric cases are falling, despite the lack of vaccine authorisation for children younger than 12, as Jennifer Nuzzo of Johns Hopkins University told The Washington Post. I want to emphasise that these declines may not persist. COVID’s two-month cycle is not some kind of iron law of science. There have been plenty of exceptions. In Britain, for example, caseloads have seesawed over the past two months, rather than consistently fallen. In the US, the onset of cold weather and the increase in indoor activities or some other unknown factor could potentially spark a rise in cases this fall. The course of the pandemic remains highly uncertain. But this uncertainty also means that the near future could also prove to be more encouraging than we expect. And there are some legitimate reasons for COVID optimism. The share of Americans ages 12 and older who have received at least one vaccine shot has reached 76%, and the growing number of vaccine mandates along with the likely approval of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 will increase the number of vaccinations this fall. Almost as important, something like one-half of Americans have probably had the COVID virus already, giving them some natural immunity. Also read | New Zealand drops its COVID-19 elimination plan as Delta persists Eventually, immunity will become widespread enough that another wave as large and damaging as the delta wave will not be possible. “Barring something unexpected,” said Dr. Scott Gottleib, a former Food and Drug Administration commissioner and author of “Uncontrolled Spread,” a new book on COVID, “I’m of the opinion that this is the last major wave of infection.” COVID has not only been one of the worst pandemics in modern times. It has been an unnecessarily terrible pandemic. Of the more than 700,000 Americans who have died from it, nearly 200,000 probably could have been saved if they had chosen to take a vaccine. That is a national tragedy. COVID also isn’t going to disappear anytime soon. It will continue to circulate for years, many scientists believe. But the vaccines can transform COVID into a manageable disease, not so different from a flu or common cold. In the past few weeks, the country appears to have moved closer to that less-grim future. Whatever the next few months bring, the worst of the pandemic is almost certainly behind us.

Trying to Make Sense of COVID’s Mysterious 2-Month Cycle

The BSE benchmark Sensex saw a sudden plunge in last hour of trade and nosedived nearly 430 points to close at a nearly three-month low of 33,317 after bank stocks came under heavy selling pressure despite positive global cues.

The NSE Nifty too fell over 109 points to 10,249.25, erasing all its early gains.

Bank shares felt the heat following reports that ICICI Bank managing director and chief executive Chanda Kochhar and her Axis Bank counterpart Shikha Sharma have been summoned by the SFIO in the PNB fraud matter.

Banking stocks led by SBI, ICICI Bank, Bank of Baroda, PNB, Kotak Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Federal Bank and Yes Bank fell as much as 2.77 per cent.

The sentiment was further dampened after the RBI yesterday said it had imposed a penalty of Rs 3 crore on Axis Bank for violation of NPA classification norms and Rs 2 crore on Indian Overseas Bank for not complying with the KYC regulations.

The 30-share index Sensex commenced on a strong note at 34,047.43 and advanced to a high of 34,060.13, tracking a firm trend in other Asian markets.&nbsp;

It, however, slipped into a negative zone towards the fag-end to hit a low of 33,209.76 as participants booked profits at improved levels. The gauge finally settled 429.58 points, or 1.27 per cent, lower at 33,317.20.

This was the lowest closing for the Sensex since December 14 when it had finished at 33,246.70 and also the biggest single-day fall since February 6, when it had lost 561.22.

Overall, in the last five straight sessions, the index has lost nearly 1,129 points.

The NSE Nifty after reclaiming the key 10,400-mark touched a high of 10,441.35 in early trade but later slipped into negative zone to hit a low of 10,215.90. It finally settled at 10,249.25, showing a sizeable loss of 109.60 points, or 1.06 per cent.

Meanwhile, Asian markets turned positive today and Europe too opened higher amid easing of concerns over a potential trade war triggered by the comments of US President Donald Trump with regard to tariffs on steel and aluminium.

The NSE Nifty too fell over 109 points to 10,249.25, erasing all its early gains

The BSE benchmark Sensex saw a sudden plunge in last hour of trade and nosedived nearly 430 points to close at a nearly three-month low of 33,317 after bank stocks came under heavy selling pressure despite positive global cues. The NSE Nifty too fell over 109 points to 10,249.25, erasing all its early gains. Bank shares felt the heat following reports that ICICI Bank managing director and chief executive Chanda Kochhar and her Axis Bank counterpart Shikha Sharma have been summoned by the SFIO in the PNB fraud matter. Banking stocks led by SBI, ICICI Bank, Bank of Baroda, PNB, Kotak Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Federal Bank and Yes Bank fell as much as 2.77 per cent. The sentiment was further dampened after the RBI yesterday said it had imposed a penalty of Rs 3 crore on Axis Bank for violation of NPA classification norms and Rs 2 crore on Indian Overseas Bank for not complying with the KYC regulations. The 30-share index Sensex commenced on a strong note at 34,047.43 and advanced to a high of 34,060.13, tracking a firm trend in other Asian markets. It, however, slipped into a negative zone towards the fag-end to hit a low of 33,209.76 as participants booked profits at improved levels. The gauge finally settled 429.58 points, or 1.27 per cent, lower at 33,317.20. This was the lowest closing for the Sensex since December 14 when it had finished at 33,246.70 and also the biggest single-day fall since February 6, when it had lost 561.22. Overall, in the last five straight sessions, the index has lost nearly 1,129 points. The NSE Nifty after reclaiming the key 10,400-mark touched a high of 10,441.35 in early trade but later slipped into negative zone to hit a low of 10,215.90. It finally settled at 10,249.25, showing a sizeable loss of 109.60 points, or 1.06 per cent. Meanwhile, Asian markets turned positive today and Europe too opened higher amid easing of concerns over a potential trade war triggered by the comments of US President Donald Trump with regard to tariffs on steel and aluminium.

Market takes U-turn; Sensex tumbles 430 points as bank stocks drag

Phones or watches may be smart enough to detect sound, light, motion, touch, direction, acceleration and even the weather, but they can`t smell. 
 
That`s created a technology bottleneck that companies have spent more than a decade trying to fill. Most have failed. 
 
A powerful portable electronic nose, says Redg Snodgrass, a venture capitalist funding hardware start-ups, would open up new horizons for health, food, personal hygiene and even security. 
 
Imagine, he says, being able to analyse what someone has eaten or drunk based on the chemicals they emit; detect disease early via an app; or smell the fear in a potential terrorist. &quot;Smell,&quot; he says, &quot;is an important piece&quot; of the puzzle. 
 
It`s not through lack of trying. Aborted projects and failed companies litter the aroma-sensing landscape. But that`s not stopping newcomers from trying. 
 
Like Tristan Rousselle`s Grenoble-based Aryballe Technologies, which recently showed off a prototype of NeOse, a hand-held device he says will initially detect up to 50 common odours. &quot;It`s a risky project. There are simpler things to do in life,&quot; he says candidly. 
 
MASS, NOT ENERGY 
 
The problem, says David Edwards, a chemical engineer at Harvard University, is that unlike light and sound, scent is not energy, but mass. &quot;It`s a very different kind of signal,&quot; he says. 
 
That means each smell requires a different kind of sensor, making devices bulky and limited in what they can do. The aroma of coffee, for example, consists of more than 600 components. 
 
France`s Alpha MOS was first to build electronic noses for limited industrial use, but its foray into developing a smaller model that would do more has run aground. Within a year of unveiling a prototype for a device that would allow smartphones to detect and analyse smells, the website of its US-based arm Boyd Sense has gone dark. Neither company responded to emails requesting comment. 
 
The website of Adamant Technologies, which in 2013 promised a device that would wirelessly connect to smartphones and measure a 
user`s health from their breath, has also gone quiet. Its founder didn`t respond to emails seeking comment. 
 
For now, start-ups focus on narrower goals or on industries that don`t care about portability. 
 
California-based Aromyx, for example, is working with major food companies to help them capture a digital profile for every odour, using its EssenceChip. Wave some food across the device and it captures a digital signature that can be manipulated as if it were a sound or image file. 
 
But, despite its name, this is not being done on silicon, says CEO Chris Hanson. Nor is the device something you could carry or wear. &quot;Mobile and wearable are a decade away at least,&quot; he says. 
 
Partly, the problem is that we still don`t understand well how humans and animals detect and interpret smells. The Nobel prize for understanding the principles of olfaction, or smell, was awarded only 12 years ago.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The biology of olfaction is still a frontier of science, very connected to the frontier of neuroscience,&quot; says Edwards, the Harvard chemical engineer. 
 
MORE PUSH THAN PULL 
 
That leaves start-ups reaching for lower-hanging fruit. 
 
Snodgrass is funding a start-up called Tzoa, a wearable that measures air quality. He says interest in this from polluted China is particularly strong. Another, Nima, raised $9 million last month to build devices that can test food for proteins and substances, including gluten, peanuts and milk. Its first product will be available shortly, the company says. 
 
For now, mobile phones are more likely to deliver smells than detect them. Edwards` Vapor Communications, for example, in April launched Cyrano, a tub-sized cylinder that users can direct to emit scents from a mobile app - in the same way iTunes or Spotify directs a speaker to emit sounds. 
 
Japanese start-up Scentee is revamping its scent-emitting smartphone module, says co-founder Koki Tsubouchi, shifting focus from sending scent messages to controlling the fragrance of a room. 
 
There may be scepticism - history and cinemas are littered with the residue of failed attempts to introduce smell into our lives going back to the 1930s - but companies sniff a revival. 
 
Dutch group Philips filed a recent patent for a device that would influence, or prime, users` behaviour by stimulating their senses, including through smell. Nike filed something similar, pumping scents through a user`s headphones or glasses to improve performance. 
 
The holy grail, though, remains sensing smells.&nbsp; 
 
Samsung Electronics was recently awarded a patent for an olfactory sensor that could be incorporated into any device, from a smartphone to an electronic tattoo. 
 
One day these devices will be commonplace, says Avery Gilbert, an expert on scent and author of a book on the science behind it, gradually embedding specialised applications into our lives.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;I don`t think you`re going to solve it all at once,&quot; he says. 
 
(Reuters)

Aryballe Technologies displayed a prototype of NeOse, a hand-held device that can detect up to 50 common odours

Phones or watches may be smart enough to detect sound, light, motion, touch, direction, acceleration and even the weather, but they can`t smell. That`s created a technology bottleneck that companies have spent more than a decade trying to fill. Most have failed. A powerful portable electronic nose, says Redg Snodgrass, a venture capitalist funding hardware start-ups, would open up new horizons for health, food, personal hygiene and even security. Imagine, he says, being able to analyse what someone has eaten or drunk based on the chemicals they emit; detect disease early via an app; or smell the fear in a potential terrorist. "Smell," he says, "is an important piece" of the puzzle. It`s not through lack of trying. Aborted projects and failed companies litter the aroma-sensing landscape. But that`s not stopping newcomers from trying. Like Tristan Rousselle`s Grenoble-based Aryballe Technologies, which recently showed off a prototype of NeOse, a hand-held device he says will initially detect up to 50 common odours. "It`s a risky project. There are simpler things to do in life," he says candidly. MASS, NOT ENERGY The problem, says David Edwards, a chemical engineer at Harvard University, is that unlike light and sound, scent is not energy, but mass. "It`s a very different kind of signal," he says. That means each smell requires a different kind of sensor, making devices bulky and limited in what they can do. The aroma of coffee, for example, consists of more than 600 components. France`s Alpha MOS was first to build electronic noses for limited industrial use, but its foray into developing a smaller model that would do more has run aground. Within a year of unveiling a prototype for a device that would allow smartphones to detect and analyse smells, the website of its US-based arm Boyd Sense has gone dark. Neither company responded to emails requesting comment. The website of Adamant Technologies, which in 2013 promised a device that would wirelessly connect to smartphones and measure a user`s health from their breath, has also gone quiet. Its founder didn`t respond to emails seeking comment. For now, start-ups focus on narrower goals or on industries that don`t care about portability. California-based Aromyx, for example, is working with major food companies to help them capture a digital profile for every odour, using its EssenceChip. Wave some food across the device and it captures a digital signature that can be manipulated as if it were a sound or image file. But, despite its name, this is not being done on silicon, says CEO Chris Hanson. Nor is the device something you could carry or wear. "Mobile and wearable are a decade away at least," he says. Partly, the problem is that we still don`t understand well how humans and animals detect and interpret smells. The Nobel prize for understanding the principles of olfaction, or smell, was awarded only 12 years ago. "The biology of olfaction is still a frontier of science, very connected to the frontier of neuroscience," says Edwards, the Harvard chemical engineer. MORE PUSH THAN PULL That leaves start-ups reaching for lower-hanging fruit. Snodgrass is funding a start-up called Tzoa, a wearable that measures air quality. He says interest in this from polluted China is particularly strong. Another, Nima, raised $9 million last month to build devices that can test food for proteins and substances, including gluten, peanuts and milk. Its first product will be available shortly, the company says. For now, mobile phones are more likely to deliver smells than detect them. Edwards` Vapor Communications, for example, in April launched Cyrano, a tub-sized cylinder that users can direct to emit scents from a mobile app - in the same way iTunes or Spotify directs a speaker to emit sounds. Japanese start-up Scentee is revamping its scent-emitting smartphone module, says co-founder Koki Tsubouchi, shifting focus from sending scent messages to controlling the fragrance of a room. There may be scepticism - history and cinemas are littered with the residue of failed attempts to introduce smell into our lives going back to the 1930s - but companies sniff a revival. Dutch group Philips filed a recent patent for a device that would influence, or prime, users` behaviour by stimulating their senses, including through smell. Nike filed something similar, pumping scents through a user`s headphones or glasses to improve performance. The holy grail, though, remains sensing smells. Samsung Electronics was recently awarded a patent for an olfactory sensor that could be incorporated into any device, from a smartphone to an electronic tattoo. One day these devices will be commonplace, says Avery Gilbert, an expert on scent and author of a book on the science behind it, gradually embedding specialised applications into our lives. "I don`t think you`re going to solve it all at once," he says. (Reuters)

Portable electronic nose to broaden scope for health industry

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
One in three Americans will suffer type 2 diabetes by 2050. These superfoods can save us <a href="https://t.co/S3aVNdDsUw">https://t.co/S3aVNdDsUw</a>
&mdash; Salon.com (@Salon) <a href="https://twitter.com/Salon/status/736464526636371968">May 28, 2016</a></blockquote>

<script async src="~/platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8" type="text/javascript"></script>Drugmakers are renewing efforts to develop medicines to fight emerging antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but creating new classes of drugs on the scale needed is unlikely to happen without new financial incentives to make the effort worth the investment, companies and industry experts said. 
 
 
dna &rlm;@dna 3m3 minutes ago WHO rejects call for Olympics to moved due to #ZikaVirus

American military researchers on Thursday announced the first U.S. case of a patient with an infection found to be resistant to the antibiotic colistin, the drug often held in reserve for when all else fails.

That put a spotlight on the urgent need for new medicines that can combat what health officials have called &quot;nightmare bacteria.&quot;

Drugmakers on Friday acknowledged that in the absence of a new way of compensating them, it simply does not make economic sense to pour serious resources into work on new antibiotics.

&quot;The return on investment based on the current commercial model is not really commensurate with the amount of effort you have to put into it,&quot; said David Payne, who heads GlaxoSmithKline PLC&#39;s (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GSK.L">GSK.L</a>) antibiotics drug group.

Other pharmaceutical companies expressed a similar sentiment.

In January, some 80 drugmakers and diagnostics companies, including Pfizer Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=PFE.N">PFE.N</a>), Merck &amp; Co (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MRK.N">MRK.N</a>), Johnson &amp; Johnson (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=JNJ.N">JNJ.N</a>) and Glaxo, signed a declaration calling for cooperation among governments and companies to create incentives to revitalize research and development of new antibiotics.

It proposed a new business model in which profit would not be linked to higher sales. For example, governments and health organizations could offer lump-sum rewards for development of a successful new antibiotic. A British government panel suggested this month that drug companies be offered up to $1.5 billion for successful development of a new antibiotic.

In the United States alone, antibiotic-resistant bacteria causes 2 million serious infections and 23,000 deaths annually, according to U.S. health officials.

<div class="row">
<div class="article-blockquote">
<div class="col-sm-10 col-sm-offset-1 blockquote-content quoteshare">
<blockquote>
<h5>Drug companies can&#39;t make an economic case for investing in superbug drugs</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

<div class="col-sm-1 blockquote-content">
<div class="share-blockquote"><a an="" case="" class="twitter popup" drugs="" economic="" for="" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Drug companies can" in="" investing="" make="" superbug="" t="">&nbsp;</a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

 
Unrestrained overuse of current antibiotics by doctors and hospitals, often when they are not needed, and widespread antibiotic use in food livestock have contributed to the evolution of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

But in recent years, major drugmakers have poured most of their research dollars into highly profitable medicines to fight cancer, rare diseases and hepatitis C. These drugs not only command high prices, they also are typically used far longer than antibiotics.

And the companies, which have come under intense criticism in recent months for continually raising prices on popular drugs, say it costs about as much to develop a new antibiotic as it does to bring to market new cancer drugs that can command more than $100,000 a year per patient.

&quot;Drug companies can&#39;t make an economic case for investing in superbug drugs,&quot; said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan&#39;s Ross School of Business.

Gordon said governments and foundations need to get more involved in research and funding to spearhead efforts to combat the problem.

To critics who argue that U.S. companies have enormous cash reserves that could be used to address a public health crisis, drugmakers say they have a fiduciary duty to shareholders to maximize profits.

&nbsp;

ON THE R&amp;D FRONT LINES

One reason companies are calling for alternative compensation is that aggressive sales and use of new antibiotics could help create ever more dangerous bacteria that develop resistance to the new medicines.

Glaxo and Merck are among the large pharmaceutical companies developing new antibiotics they hope can beat back resistant bugs, while Pfizer is working on vaccines aimed at reducing the need for their use.

Industry experts said small, lesser-known companies with promising approaches to tackling resistant superbugs included: Entasis Therapeutics, an AstraZeneca PLC spinoff, Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=TTPH.O">TTPH.O</a>); and Achaogen Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AKAO.O">AKAO.O</a>).

&quot;We believe plazomicin, our lead drug in late-stage development, has the potential to play an important role in treating this dreaded superbug,&quot; Achaogen Chief Executive Kenneth Hillan said.

Allan Coukell, an antibiotics expert at the Pew Charitable Trusts nonprofit research and policy organization, said what is needed is a wave of new drugs based on new chemistry or that work in new ways.

&quot;Most of what&#39;s being developed are variations on drugs that we&#39;ve had for decades,&quot; Coukell said.

Pew has outlined what its calls a scientific roadmap to create a body of work around new drug discovery that companies and academic researchers could draw upon to help jumpstart the process of finding new antibiotics.

Glaxo said its experimental antibiotic gepotidacin, in midstage testing, belongs to an entirely new class of antibacterials.

&quot;Based on that, we&#39;re predicting it would work against infections that could be caused by bacteria that are resistant to available antibiotics,&quot; Payne said.

Other companies with late-stage studies underway for antibiotics include: Cempra Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CEMP.O">CEMP.O</a>), whose drug was recently validated in a Japanese trial; Medicines Co (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MDCO.O">MDCO.O</a>); and Paratek Pharmaceuticals Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=PRTK.O">PRTK.O</a>). J&amp;J is also putting money into battling antibiotic resistance.

&quot;If there is a bright side, it is that the world policymakers and health leaders have focused on this issue like never before,&quot; Coukell said. &quot;But we&#39;ve got a long way to go.&quot;

&nbsp;

(Reporting by Bill Berkrot, Caroline Humer and Ransdell Pierson in New York and Natalie Grover and Amrutha Penumundi in Bangaluru; Editing by Eric Effron and Will Dunham)

Major drug companies seek enormous government subsidy to combat fatal bacteria they helped create

One in three Americans will suffer type 2 diabetes by 2050. These superfoods can save us https://t.co/S3aVNdDsUw — Salon.com (@Salon) May 28, 2016 Drugmakers are renewing efforts to develop medicines to fight emerging antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but creating new classes of drugs on the scale needed is unlikely to happen without new financial incentives to make the effort worth the investment, companies and industry experts said. dna ‏@dna 3m3 minutes ago WHO rejects call for Olympics to moved due to #ZikaVirus American military researchers on Thursday announced the first U.S. case of a patient with an infection found to be resistant to the antibiotic colistin, the drug often held in reserve for when all else fails. That put a spotlight on the urgent need for new medicines that can combat what health officials have called "nightmare bacteria." Drugmakers on Friday acknowledged that in the absence of a new way of compensating them, it simply does not make economic sense to pour serious resources into work on new antibiotics. "The return on investment based on the current commercial model is not really commensurate with the amount of effort you have to put into it," said David Payne, who heads GlaxoSmithKline PLC's (GSK.L) antibiotics drug group. Other pharmaceutical companies expressed a similar sentiment. In January, some 80 drugmakers and diagnostics companies, including Pfizer Inc (PFE.N), Merck & Co (MRK.N), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) and Glaxo, signed a declaration calling for cooperation among governments and companies to create incentives to revitalize research and development of new antibiotics. It proposed a new business model in which profit would not be linked to higher sales. For example, governments and health organizations could offer lump-sum rewards for development of a successful new antibiotic. A British government panel suggested this month that drug companies be offered up to $1.5 billion for successful development of a new antibiotic. In the United States alone, antibiotic-resistant bacteria causes 2 million serious infections and 23,000 deaths annually, according to U.S. health officials. Drug companies can't make an economic case for investing in superbug drugs Unrestrained overuse of current antibiotics by doctors and hospitals, often when they are not needed, and widespread antibiotic use in food livestock have contributed to the evolution of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. But in recent years, major drugmakers have poured most of their research dollars into highly profitable medicines to fight cancer, rare diseases and hepatitis C. These drugs not only command high prices, they also are typically used far longer than antibiotics. And the companies, which have come under intense criticism in recent months for continually raising prices on popular drugs, say it costs about as much to develop a new antibiotic as it does to bring to market new cancer drugs that can command more than $100,000 a year per patient. "Drug companies can't make an economic case for investing in superbug drugs," said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. Gordon said governments and foundations need to get more involved in research and funding to spearhead efforts to combat the problem. To critics who argue that U.S. companies have enormous cash reserves that could be used to address a public health crisis, drugmakers say they have a fiduciary duty to shareholders to maximize profits. ON THE R&D FRONT LINES One reason companies are calling for alternative compensation is that aggressive sales and use of new antibiotics could help create ever more dangerous bacteria that develop resistance to the new medicines. Glaxo and Merck are among the large pharmaceutical companies developing new antibiotics they hope can beat back resistant bugs, while Pfizer is working on vaccines aimed at reducing the need for their use. Industry experts said small, lesser-known companies with promising approaches to tackling resistant superbugs included: Entasis Therapeutics, an AstraZeneca PLC spinoff, Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals Inc (TTPH.O); and Achaogen Inc (AKAO.O). "We believe plazomicin, our lead drug in late-stage development, has the potential to play an important role in treating this dreaded superbug," Achaogen Chief Executive Kenneth Hillan said. Allan Coukell, an antibiotics expert at the Pew Charitable Trusts nonprofit research and policy organization, said what is needed is a wave of new drugs based on new chemistry or that work in new ways. "Most of what's being developed are variations on drugs that we've had for decades," Coukell said. Pew has outlined what its calls a scientific roadmap to create a body of work around new drug discovery that companies and academic researchers could draw upon to help jumpstart the process of finding new antibiotics. Glaxo said its experimental antibiotic gepotidacin, in midstage testing, belongs to an entirely new class of antibacterials. "Based on that, we're predicting it would work against infections that could be caused by bacteria that are resistant to available antibiotics," Payne said. Other companies with late-stage studies underway for antibiotics include: Cempra Inc (CEMP.O), whose drug was recently validated in a Japanese trial; Medicines Co (MDCO.O); and Paratek Pharmaceuticals Inc (PRTK.O). J&J is also putting money into battling antibiotic resistance. "If there is a bright side, it is that the world policymakers and health leaders have focused on this issue like never before," Coukell said. "But we've got a long way to go." (Reporting by Bill Berkrot, Caroline Humer and Ransdell Pierson in New York and Natalie Grover and Amrutha Penumundi in Bangaluru; Editing by Eric Effron and Will Dunham)

Major drug companies claim it doesn't make economic sense to fight nightmare bacteria

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