In this regular feature on Breakthroughs, we highlight some of the most interesting reads in global health research from the past week. President Barack Obama recently pledged to restore the United States to a position of global leadership in research and technology, but Nature examines how sequestration threatens research funding. GHTC members the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) and the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) announced the identification of three chemical series that could lead to new treatments for neglected tropical diseases. The series were made possible by MMV's open access Malaria Box. The US Agency for International Development recently announced the launch of its Higher Education Solutions Network—a new partnership with seven top American and foreign universities designed to develop innovative solutions to global development challenges, including global health. Pharmaceutical companies Johnson & Johnson, Merck, and Eli Lilly plan to launch a one-stop database of global clinical trial sites aimed at streamlining paperwork and speeding the process for testing new drugs. A US Food and Drug Administration panel voted unanimously to recommend the effectiveness of a new hepatitis B vaccine but also raised concerns about its safety, asking for more data from studies on a wider population.

In this regular feature on Breakthroughs, we highlight some of the most interesting reads in global health research from the past week. Bill Gates writes about global health innovation and how the private and public sectors can come together to create life-saving products for the world’s most impoverished. The Science Speaks blog compares the stances of presidential candidates Barack Obama and Mitt Romney on global health and other foreign aid spending. Last week, for the first-time-ever the world recognized Global Female Condom Day in the hopes of increasing recognition of a prevention technology that is too often overlooked. The White House Office of Management and Budget released a report on the potential impact of sequestration on federal agencies. Research and development programs at the Department of Defense could see a 9.4 percent cut in funding, while research and development programs within the Department of Health and Human Services, the State Department, and the US Agency for International Development could receive a 8.2 percent cut.

In this regular feature on Breakthroughs, we highlight some of the most interesting reads in global health research from the past week. GHTC member the American Foundation for AIDS Research has issued a brief analyzing the human impact that widespread budget cuts, or sequestration, would have on US-funded global health programs. The brief concludes that a “proportionate cut in US Global Health Initiative funding through sequestration would have minimal impact on deficit reduction … The human impact of such cuts in US investments, however, would be devastating.” The director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Francis Collins, also discussed the effect of sequestration on biomedical research. He testified before the Health Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee, saying that sequestration “could do serious damage to the progress that we now see in medical research [at the NIH].” The European Medicines Agency has issued a recommendation that the Hexaxim childhood vaccine is safe for use outside of the European Union. Developed by Sanofi, the vaccine offers protection against six World Health Organization priority diseases. A recent article in USA Today looks at the potential of a widely used HIV/AIDS drug, Truvada, as a possible tool to prevent HIV transmission. In an effort to make foreign assistance more transparent, the US Agency for International Development has made its foreign assistance obligation and expenditure data available online on the Foreign Assistance Dashboard. An experimental four-in-one HIV and AIDS drug called Quad is found to be safe and effective after going through a three-phase clinical process. The Lancet published the research following a recommendation in May by a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel to approve Quad for previously untreated adults infected with HIV-1. A final decision is expected from the FDA by August.

In this regular feature on Breakthroughs, we highlight some of the most interesting reads in global health research from the past week. The Associated Press reports that “[o]ne in 10 cases of tuberculosis in China cannot be treated by the most commonly-used drugs,” due to drug-resistant strands of the epidemic. Because of this, there is an even greater need for newer or improved health technologies. Researchers at the fifth annual World Science Festival discuss the need for universal vaccines as “new diseases…continue to emerge.” Pharmaceutical company Sanofi could potentially find out in the fall of this year whether or not they can move forward in developing the most advanced vaccine to prevent dengue. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced a new public-private partnership initiative between the US and Norway to improve maternal health, including a partnership with drug maker Merck & Co.

In this regular feature onBreakthroughs, we highlight some of the most interesting reads in global health research from the past week. The US Senate Appropriations Committee approved the State and Foreign Operations appropriations bill for fiscal year (FY) 2013. Most noteworthy, the bill would provide $8.5 billion to the Global Health Initiative, is about $600 million more than President Obama’s request, and is $500 million more than the House FY13 appropriations bill. The World Health Assembly formally endorsed Global Vaccine Action Plan, which would provide a roadmap to prevent millions of deaths by 2020. The director of the US Military HIV Research Program at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research stresses the importance of a HIV vaccine and the military’s strong commitment to AIDS research. A US Senator introduced a bill to restart the Therapeutic Discovery Project, which will provide a tax incentive to researchers and companies that work to develop products, processes, and technologies to further advance medical discoveries.

Research!America, a member of the GHTC, recently conducted analyses in target states to measure the health and economic impact of global health research and development (R&D), highlighting its benefits for states across the nation and strengthening the evidence base for Congress’ support of federal investments in global health R&D. This is the sixth and last post in a series. "If you want to live longer and healthier than the average American, then come to New York City,” Mayor Mike Bloomberg announced in December 2011. The city’s life expectancy for a 40-year old in 2009 was 82, compared with 80.1 for the rest of the United States. Babies born in New York City in 2009 will see an increase of nearly three years on their life spans, versus 1.5 years nationwide. With the leadership of the mayor, who has an outstanding track record on public health leadership, and the dedication of its health commissioners, New York City has significantly brought down its rates of tuberculosis (TB) and stabilized the growth of new HIV infections over the last two decades. This leadership in public health also translates into a strong commitment to R&D. New York City has the world’s largest concentration of major academic research centers and the largest bioscience workforce of any city in the United States. The state is home to seven of the top 50 American research universities and attracts increased investment in the sciences with a 9 percent corporate tax break for R&D facilities. Combined with the commitment of its elected officials—and economic drivers like the new applied sciences campus, NYCTech, on Roosevelt Island—New York institutions are creating partnerships that transform how we do the business of health research. It is projected that NYCTech could in turn provide up to $150 million in seed money for up to 600 new local start-ups, which could generate an estimated 30,000 new jobs. Partnerships for health R&D contribute to the health and economy of New York, and the effects of these partnerships are felt around the world. After the National Institutes of Health, New York’s International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) has the largest AIDS vaccine development program and partners with more than 50 other institutions to conduct research and clinical trials. The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance), also headquartered in the Big Apple, manages the largest, most comprehensive portfolio of TB drug candidates ever. With the first cases of totally drug resistant TB identified in India earlier this year, identifying improved strategies to control TB has never been more critical. New York City has the world’s largest concentration of major academic research centers and the largest bioscience workforce of any city in the United States. Photo credit: PATH Public-private partnerships like IAVI and the TB Alliance rely in part on support from the federal government. Unfortunately, President Obama’s proposed fiscal year 2013 budget raises concerns for health R&D. “Public funding is evaporating at a time of tremendous opportunity. We’re on the brink of delivering potentially revolutionary new treatments for tuberculosis, with similar great promise in other areas of global health,” said Mel Spiegelman, president of TB Alliance. Former New York City Health Commissioner and current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Tom Frieden agrees with the need for sustained federal investment to protect the health and safety of Americans at home and abroad. “There are still far too many people who die from conditions that are easily preventable. Continued investments will help millions more live healthy and productive lives while helping to protect our own country from health threats,” he said.