Disease in News, Science & Tech One-liners 2025
January 2025
- Georgia has officially been certified as malaria-free by the World Health Organization (WHO).
- Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI), Bengaluru has been selected by ICMR to establish South India’s first Infectious Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory (IRDL).
- The Karnataka government has launched the KSRTC Arogya health insurance scheme for employees of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC).
- AnemiaPhone, a technology developed by Cornell University, United States, to assess iron deficiency, has been transferred to ICMR for integration into its anaemia, women’s health, and maternal and child health programmes.
- Odisha has become the 34th state to implement the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) after signing an MoU with the National Health Authority (NHA).
- The President of India launched the ‘Gift Milk Program’, providing 200 ml of flavoured milk fortified with Vitamins A and D to approximately 1,200 school children in Mayurbhanj, Odisha.
- The Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoH&FW), organized the ‘National Tribal Health Conclave 2025’ in New Delhi.
- A World Economic Forum (WEF) report titled “Blueprint to Close the Women’s Health Gap” estimated that addressing key women-specific health challenges could unlock $400 billion in global GDP annually by 2040.
- The Union Cabinet approved the extension of the National Health Mission (NHM) for another five years after reviewing its progress over the past three years.
- The Jammu and Kashmir government launched a program to conserve the majestic Chinar trees threatened by urbanization, creating a comprehensive database with geo-tags and QR codes to track their location, health, and growth patterns.
- As per the recently released “Fiscal Health Index (FHI) 2025”, Odisha topped the ranking with a score of 67.8.
- India and the United Kingdom (UK) renewed their health and life sciences partnership by signing a five-year MoU to strengthen collaboration in health and life sciences.
Disease in News, Science & Tech One-liners
December 2024
- Disease X has emerged in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, causing a health crisis.
- The World Malaria Report 2024 by WHO states that the majority of malaria deaths occurred in Nigeria (30.9%).
- Snakebite has been declared a ‘Notifiable Disease’ in India by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).
- The National Institute of Siddha (NIS), Chennai, set a Guinness World Record for providing Varmam therapy to 567 individuals simultaneously.
- Scientists at WHO endorsed GLP-1 receptor agonists for managing obesity by mimicking hormones regulating appetite and blood sugar.
- A mysterious illness called “Dinga Dinga” has wreaked havoc in Uganda.
- Russia has developed its own mRNA vaccine against cancer.
- The 10th World Ayurveda Congress (WAC 2024) was organized by the World Ayurveda Foundation (WAF) under the theme “Digital Health: An Ayurveda Perspective.”
- Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai launched the “Nikshay Niramay Chhattisgarh Abhiyan” to eradicate leprosy, TB, and malaria in the state within 100 days.
November 2024
- Agharkar Research Institute, Pune scientists have designed and synthesized novel molecules for treating Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) through synthetic, computational, and in-vitro studies.
- Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-NCDIR study predicts a 12.8% increase in cancer cases in India by 2025 compared to 2020.
- Wave Life Sciences has become the first company to treat a genetic condition by editing RNA at the clinical level.
- National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) India launched the ‘Know Your Medicine (KYM)’ app to strengthen the fight against doping in sports.
- Novartis ranked first in the 2024 Access to Medicine Index (ATMI) by the Access to Medicine Foundation.
- Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) introduced the “First in the World Challenge” to promote groundbreaking health technologies.
- Global Tuberculosis Report 2024 reveals 8.2 million people were newly diagnosed with Tuberculosis (TB) in 2023, the highest since WHO began monitoring in 1995.
- The International Allied Health Conference (IAHC 2024) was held in Singapore.
- ICAR-National Research Centre on Equines, Hisar designated as a WOAH Reference Laboratory for Equine Piroplasmosis by the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD).
- The World Health Organization (WHO) reaffirmed ‘M-Pox’ as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) amid rising cases and geographic spread.
October 2024
- Zydus Lifesciences Ltd has recently partnered with Lucknow-based CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute to develop a treatment for osteoporosis induced by chronic kidney disease (CKD).
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched the Global Strategic Preparedness, Readiness, and Response Plan (SPRP) to address dengue and other Aedes-borne arboviruses.
- Under the Pradhan Mantri – Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is upgrading existing Viral Research & Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) to Infectious Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratories (IRDLs).
- The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) has recently been recognized for meeting the WHO’s indicators for a functional vaccine regulatory system.
- Egypt has recently been officially declared malaria-free by the World Health Organization (WHO).
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has listed the first mpox in vitro diagnostic (IVD) under its Emergency Use Listing (EUL) procedure, enhancing global access to mpox testing.
- Dr. Panangipalli Venugopal, a prominent cardiac surgeon who introduced stem cell therapy in India for heart tissue repair and developed a procedure for treating Type II Diabetes, has passed away.
- The government has approved an additional Rs 1,040 crore for nutritional support to tuberculosis (TB) patients under the Ni-Kshay Poshan Yojana (NPY).
July to September 2024
- ICMR and Panacea Biotec announced the first-ever Phase 3 clinical trial for the dengue vaccine “DengiAll” in India.
- Indian Immunologicals Limited (IIL) joined hands with ICMR to develop India’s first Zika virus vaccine.
- Serum Institute of India (SII), in collaboration with the University of Oxford, developed the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine, recently administered in Côte d’Ivoire.
- World Health Organization (WHO) announced a new project to speed up the development of bird flu vaccines in poorer countries.
- Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL) launched the new oral cholera vaccine (OCV) “HILLCHOL” to address the global shortage of OCVs.
- BioNTech began trials of the world’s first mRNA lung cancer vaccine, ‘BNT116’, in patients.
- Indian Immunologicals Limited (IIL) partnered with ICMR to develop India’s first Zika virus vaccine.
- Mynvax Private Limited coordinated with ICMR for a seasonal Influenza virus vaccine trial under its Network of Phase 1 Clinical Trials.
- World Health Organization (WHO) has recently announced Bavarian Nordic’s MVA-BN vaccine as the first vaccine against mpox to be added to its prequalification list.
- Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) has officially recognized Jordan as the first country globally to eliminate leprosy.
- Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru has created a new 3D hydrogel culture system similar to the lung environment in mammals, which has the potential to aid in the study of Tuberculosis (TB).
- Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh has launched the ‘InFLiMeN’ initiative to prevent and treat metabolic liver diseases, in collaboration with France. InFLiMeN stands for Indo-French Liver and Metabolic Disease Network.
- Brazil has declared a health emergency after detecting a case of Newcastle disease, which primarily affects birds.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Mpox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
- Researchers at Lund University, Sweden, have developed a new blood test called ‘PrecivityAD2’, which can detect Alzheimer’s disease with around 90% accuracy.
- Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL) has launched a new oral cholera vaccine (OCV) named “HILLCHOL”, aiming to address the global shortage of cholera vaccines amid rising cases.
- Scientists at the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), Guwahati, have developed an affordable, user-friendly, portable smartphone-based fluorescence turn-on sensor system to assist in managing Parkinson’s disease.
January to June 2024
- Zombie deer disease, also known as Chronic Wasting Disease, is spreading rapidly among wildlife in parts of the United States.
- Over 1 crore people have been screened for Sickle Cell Disease under the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission, aiming to eliminate the disease from India by 2047.
- World Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) Day is observed on 30th January every year with the theme Unite. Act. Eliminate.
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- Rare Disease Day is observed on the last day of February, falling on 29th February in 2024, to raise awareness about rare diseases; theme: Share Your Colours.
- The new disease Witches’ Broom, associated with the pathogen ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’ (16SrI), has been discovered in peas.
- Akums Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited developed India’s first indigenous Hydroxyurea oral suspension for treating Sickle Cell Disease.
- India has achieved its target of eliminating Kala-azar.
- World Health Organization (WHO) unveiled a new operational strategy to accelerate progress against malaria and achieve disease elimination targets outlined in the Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016-2030.
- The mRNA-4157 (V940) vaccine is related to melanoma.
- FliRT, a new variant of COVID-19, is rapidly spreading in the United States.
- Ludhiana’s Punjab Agricultural University developed the biocontrol agent Trichoderma asperellum to combat foot rot disease in Basmati Rice.
- World Health Organization (WHO) has prequalified the new vaccine TAK-003 to fight against dengue.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) released the report “Action on salt and hypertension,” noting that cardiovascular disease causes 40% of deaths in Europe.
- Wipro partnered with the Centre for Brain Research (CBR) to develop a personal care engine utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) to manage and reduce cardiovascular disease risk.
- The Jammu and Kashmir government declared human rabies a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897.
- Chad became the first country in 2024 to eliminate the neglected tropical disease (NTD) gambiense form of human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), also known as sleeping sickness.
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