The life-threatening disease of AIDS might be preventable and curable by 2031, the head of U.S. infectious disease research said Thursday.

Aggressive treatment of HIV infection shortly after infection has made it possible to live symptom-free without medicines for HIV patients

The widow of one of the victims of the anthrax attacks in 2001 bolstered her $50 million lawsuit against the government Thursday as the attacker was a federal employee working under alleged lax security.

"It is now time for the United States of America to own up to its responsibility to my family and to right this wrong that resulted in the loss of my beloved husband and my children's beloved father," Maureen Stevens said in a press conference at her office here, according to BBC News

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved new strains of influenza vaccines for the 2008-09 flu season. The federal agency has changed all three strains for this year's vaccine.

Flu vaccines are altered every year, however, usually, only one or two strains change. This year, all three strains have been changed. Two of the three strains recommended for the United States this year are now in use for the Southern Hemisphere's 2008 flu season, which is underway, the FDA said on its Website

With the onset of the flu season, the first protection for seniors, who are considered among the most vulnerable, is the flu vaccine. However, a new study says the vaccine is less beneficial and may not protect older people from pneumonia after they have the disease.

Researchers collected data on 1,173 people between 65 and 94 who had pneumonia. These individuals were compared with 2,346 people who did not get pneumonia. Both groups had similar rates of flu vaccination over three seasons of studies, the researchers say

Parents who care for mentally-challenged children are prone to develop weak immune systems due to stress, new research suggests. The study concluded that such parents should be offered a better support system.

Researchers at Birmingham University analyzed 60 parents who received the pneumococcal vaccine as part of the study. Half of them had children with developmental disabilities