Already, there are diagnostic tests for the flu strain and effective (though costly) antiviral drugs to treat it.

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And a company called Romark Laboratories has come out of nowhere with data on an unheralded anti-parasite drug that seems effective on one hep C strain.

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The results of a trial of another oral vaccine called Rotarix, developed by GlaxoSmithKline, showed it was effective against the most common strain of rotavirus and able to prevent 85% of severe cases.

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By testing out various combinations of amino acids, Dr Ghadiri found several octets that were particularly effective against the antibiotic-resistant strain of Staphylococcus aureus, a common pathogen.

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ViroLogic (nasdaq: VLGC - news - people ) was also able to determine which anti-retroviral drug would be effective on the patient's particular strain of HIV.

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"It seems that this year's flu vaccine is not nearly as effective as we would like among people over the age of 65 for one particular strain of flu, " Frieden said Thursday.

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