SciDev.Net

An editorial in The Lancet highlights the extent of undernutrition in the developing world and calls for urgent global action.

Maternal health needs a new, pragmatic, research-led approach targeted specifically for developing countries, says Priya Shetty.

A truth commission can account for South Africa's past HIV/AIDS denialist policies and rebuild trust, says AIDS expert, Salim S. Abdool Karim.

Understanding the long-term consequences of undernutrition in early life is essential for health policy, says Cesar G. Victora.

A UNITAID patent pool could revolutionise HIV treatment and research in developing countries — if payment can be agreed, says Priya Shetty.

Countries need to produce their own vaccines, and they need to invest in public sector capacity to do it, says Indian scientist Y. Madhavi.

Encouraging cooperation and aligning interests is key to dealing with global challenges, say Brian Walker and colleagues.

Contrary to oft-repeated claims, climate change is unlikely to cause a major rise in malaria, says medical entomologist Paul Reiter.

Quickly detecting, not predicting, malaria epidemics is the key to disease control, says tropical medicine expert, Jonathan Cox.

We must prepare for climate change bringing more natural disasters that favour mosquito-borne disease, says Jai P. Narain from the WHO.

We must reduce the poor's vulnerability to insect-borne disease regardless of climate change, says public health expert Ulisses Confalonieri.

Reporting on how climate change affects health is a real challenge — screen your sources and find reliable experts, says Asefaw Getachew.

Interrupting funding for mass treatment of lymphatic filariasis can lead to a quick resurgence in the disease, say Kimberly Won and colleagues.

Swine flu vaccines should be equally available, regardless of a country's ability to pay, says medical expert Tadataka Yamada.

In reporting swine flu, the Indian media has lost perspective, argues Kalpana Sharma, a former editor of The Hindu.

Evidence shows that the best way to increase bednet use in Africa is to make them free, says economist Jeffrey D. Sachs.

Policymakers must think outside the box to strengthen clinical research networks for global health, says Harvard researcher Jeff Blander.

More research is needed on how to tackle HIV with antiretroviral therapy, say Kevin M De Cock and colleagues at the WHO.

The United States should boost funding for food, health and water, says Thomas R. Pickering, former US ambassador to the UN.

Translating genetics research is easier in agriculture than medicine, says a Nature Genetics editorial, and existing technologies can be used.