Disease/Infection News

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Study shows septin proteins detect and kill gut pathogen, Shigella

Using state-of-the art technologies to image human cells and study infection at the level of a single bacterial cell, the research team, led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, has uncovered the strongest evidence yet that septins take Shigella prisoner.

13 Dec 2018

Study sheds new light on disease-spreading mosquitoes

When the West Nile virus (WNV) was initially isolated in two patients at a Queens, N.Y., hospital in the summer of 1999, it would have been hard to anticipate how quickly one common species of house mosquito, Culex pipiens, would help begin to spread the virus throughout the western hemisphere.

13 Dec 2018

Schistosomiasis prevention and treatment could help control HIV

Of the 34 million people worldwide with HIV, and the 200 million with schistosomiasis, the majority live in Africa— where millions of people are simultaneously infected with both diseases.

13 Dec 2018

Researchers discover Ebola-fighting protein in human cells

Researchers have discovered a human protein that helps fight the Ebola virus and could one day lead to an effective therapy against the deadly disease, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study.

13 Dec 2018

Cancer patients have greater risk of developing shingles, study shows

People newly diagnosed with cancer, particularly blood cancers, and those treated with chemotherapy have a greater risk of developing shingles, according to a new study in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

13 Dec 2018

Probiotics may offer therapeutic benefits for biopolar patients

A new study has shown that probiotics may serve as a potential therapeutic approach to bipolar disorder and other psychiatric conditions.

13 Dec 2018

RUDN medics first to gather scattered data on hepatitis morbidity in Somalia

Viral hepatitis means liver inflammation caused by viruses and is among top-10 mortality factors in the world. It is passed with contaminated food and water, through contact with infected blood, via common use of household appliances such as manicure or shaving sets.

13 Dec 2018

New model could cure the potential to underestimate how quickly diseases spread

Researchers from the New York University Tandon School of Engineering and Politecnico di Torino, Italy, have developed a mathematical model that could cure the potential to underestimate how quickly diseases spread.

13 Dec 2018

Baculovirus virion completely eliminates liver-stage parasites in mouse model

Currently, few antimalarial treatments exist that effectively kill liver-stage malaria parasites, which can lay dormant for months or years as in the case of Plasmodium vivax. Researchers from Kanazawa University have successfully demonstrated that administration of a baculovirus virion completely eliminates liver-stage parasites in a mouse model via BV-induced fast-acting innate immunity.

13 Dec 2018

Study uncovers link between tube travel and spread of flu-like illnesses

Despite the commuter cold being a widely accepted concept, it has never been proven that public transport contributes to the spread of airborne infections. Now new research on the London underground commute has proven a link does exist.

12 Dec 2018

Genetics study offers hope for new acne treatment

A discovery by researchers from the School of Basic & Medical Biosciences and NIHR Guy's and St Thomas' Biomedical Research Centre could lead to new treatments for severe acne. Scientists found 15 genome regions linked to developing the condition.

12 Dec 2018

NIH offers support for HIV care and prevention research in the southern United States

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will fund a series of collaborations with medical research institutions in the southern United States to test new ways of implementing HIV treatment and prevention tools in counties with some of the highest rates of new HIV cases nationwide.

12 Dec 2018

Age and gender disparities found in use of bed nets to prevent malaria in sub-Saharan Africa

When households in sub-Saharan Africa don't have an adequate number of insecticide-treated bed nets, pregnant women and children under five are the most likely family members to sleep under the ones they have, leaving men and school-aged children more exposed to malaria, new Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs research suggests.

11 Dec 2018

Study could lead to a potential new way of treating sepsis

Australian emergency doctors are at the forefront of a large clinical study to assess how clinicians are treating sepsis.

11 Dec 2018

Cloned antibodies show potential to treat, diagnose life-threatening fungal infections

Despite public health efforts, many people who get fungal infections in their blood streams die, even if they can be identified and treated with antifungal drugs. These therapies are often ineffective on their own and increasingly the infections are becoming resistant to treatment with some of the front line antifungal drugs.

11 Dec 2018

Natural flavonoid is effective at treating leishmanisis infections, study shows

Current treatment options for the parasitic disease leishmaniasis are largely ineffective, expensive, and tend to be plagued by resistant parasites and side effects. Now, researchers reporting in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases have showed that a natural flavonoid is effective at treating Leishmania amazonensis infections.

11 Dec 2018

Scientists discover cellular mechanism that triggers pneumonia in humans

The situation is relatively common, especially in winter. You come down with the flu, which lasts longer than usual. A few days later, you discover you have pneumonia.

10 Dec 2018

Visual inspection alone is insufficient to diagnose skin cancer

A Cochrane review of the accuracy of skin cancer diagnostics has found that visual inspection of suspicious lesions is insufficient to ensure an accurate diagnosis.

10 Dec 2018

DDT in Alaskan fish shown to increase risk of cancer

A new study has found that children in Alaska who consume a lot of fish from rivers fed by the Eastern Alaska Mountain Range may be at an increased risk of cancer.

10 Dec 2018

Risk Analysis publishes special issue on communicating about Zika virus

Today, Risk Analysis, an International Journal, published a special issue, "Communicating About Zika," which features several articles that were originally presented as works-in-progress at the Zika Communication Summit convened in March 2017 by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.

10 Dec 2018