PARIS, July 17, 2008 (AFP) - A nearly forgotten Russian-made drug, formulated to combat hay fever, helps improve cognitive abilities in patients with Alzheimer's disease, according to the results of a year-long trial published on Thursday.

NEW YORK, July 17, 2008 (AFP) - Former US president Bill Clinton announced Thursday a deal with six pharmaceutical companies from China and India to cut the price of a leading malaria treatment by 30 percent.

BRASILIA, July 17, 2008 (AFP) - Brazil is to start producing a vaccine against the potentially fatal tropical virus dengue fever later this year, a researcher at the Sao Paulo institute has told a science conference.

UNITED NATIONS, July 17, 2008 (AFP) - More than two billion people around the world still lack adequate sanitation, according to a UN report released here Thursday.

It warned that barring major gains over the next seven years, the Millennium Development Goal of halving the number of people without access to basic sanitation by 2015 would be missed.

GENEVA, July 17, 2008 (AFP) - The World Health Organisation said Thursday that cholera and typhoid pose the key risks to health in Iraq, with refugees and displaced people particularly vulnerable to any outbreak.

'The fear of cholera and typhoid is our immediate and urgent priority,' said Nae'ema al-Gasseer, the WHO's country representative in Iraq.

PARIS, July 16, 2008 (AFP) - The United States holds the best overall record for surviving cancer, despite a large disparity between American blacks and whites, while Algeria has the worst, according to a study of 31 countries published on Thursday.

PARIS, July 15, 2008 (AFP) - French researchers on Tuesday said that gene therapy, tested on lab animals, showed promise in combatting the tragic neurogenerative disease known as Huntington's.

The disease strikes around one person in 10,000, with the problems mainly showing up between the early 30s and the age of 50.

PARIS, July 10, 2008 (AFP) - Preventive malaria treatment in African schools dramatically reduces rates of infection and anaemia among children and may also boost learning potential, according to a study released on Friday.

PARIS, July 6, 2008 (AFP) - British and French scientists have identified several variants of a single gene that boost the risk of obesity, according to a study published Sunday in the British journal Nature.

PARIS, July 6, 2008 (AFP) - British and French scientists have identified several variants of a single gene that boost the risk of obesity, according to a study published Sunday in the British journal Nature.