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Researchers reveal novel mechanism by which viral protein VII suppresses immune alarm signals

Viruses must avoid a host's immune system to establish successful infections—and scientists have discovered another tool that viruses use to frustrate host defenses.

30 Jun 2016

Experts compile model list of essential diagnostic tests aiming to improve global health

In a western doctor's office or hospital, patients don't think twice about giving a blood or urine sample that can tell if they have a disease or infection, or show if their medicines are working. The samples get rushed to a testing lab with modern equipment that's held to high quality standards.

30 Jun 2016

UTHealth researchers receive $11 million grant to study prion diseases

Led by Claudio Soto, Ph.D., researchers from McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have been awarded $11 million from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to study the pathogenesis, transmission and detection of prion diseases - such as chronic wasting disease in deer - that can potentially spread to humans.

30 Jun 2016

New study demonstrates no risk of contracting dementia through blood transfusion

Previous studies have shown that neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's can be induced in healthy laboratory animals, causing concern that dementia diseases can be transmitted between individuals, possibly via blood transfusions.

29 Jun 2016

High levels of calpain protein linked to improved survival of breast cancer patients

A family of proteins that help cancer cells survive and spread around the body may be associated with improved prognosis for some women receiving treatment for breast cancer, research has shown.

29 Jun 2016

Researcher receives federal grant to advance study of tumor nanoimmunology

The five-year grant was awarded by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The funds come on top of four previous grants to support Ljubimova's work. In all, the institute has awarded Ljubimova $16.5 million over the last five years.

29 Jun 2016

New technology could help deliver treatments for brain injuries

A new study led by scientists at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute describes a technology that could lead to new therapeutics for traumatic brain injuries. The discovery, published today in Nature Communications, provides a means of homing drugs or nanoparticles to injured areas of the brain.

29 Jun 2016

TSRI scientists develop new strategy to design potential HIV vaccine candidates

Want to catch a criminal? Show a mugshot on the news. Want to stop HIV infections? Get the immune system to recognize and attack the virus's tell-tale structure. That's part of the basic approach behind efforts at The Scripps Research Institute to design an AIDS vaccine.

29 Jun 2016

Home test using paper strips could help detect cancer, malaria

What if testing yourself for cancer or other diseases were as easy as testing your blood sugar or taking a home pregnancy test? In a few years, it might be.

29 Jun 2016

Honeybee study finds link between social behavior and circadian rhythms

Circadian rhythms are internal clocks that determine many of an organism's daily rhythms, for example sleep-wake, feeding, urinary output and hormone production.

29 Jun 2016

Study shows women with CIN3 more likely to develop anogenital cancers

Women with a history of severe cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, a precancerous condition of the cervix that arises from infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV), had a long-term increased risk of developing anal, vulvar, and vaginal cancer.

29 Jun 2016

New electric mesh device wraps around the heart to deliver electrical impulses

A research team led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Seoul National University has developed a new electric mesh device that can be wrapped around the heart to deliver electrical impulses and thereby improve cardiac function in experimental models of heart failure, a major public health concern and leading cause of mortality and disability.

29 Jun 2016

Two vaccine candidates provide complete protection against ZIKV infection in mice

The rapid development of a safe and effective vaccine to prevent the Zika virus (ZIKV) is a global priority, as infection in pregnant women has been shown to lead to fetal microcephaly and other major birth defects.

29 Jun 2016

Lab-established diagnosis necessary for treatment of patients with persistent diarrhea

Persistent diarrhea, which is diarrhea that lasts at least 14 days, is an illness typically caused by parasites or bacteria and requires accurate diagnosis in order to determine what treatment to give, according to Herbert L. DuPont, M.D., director of the Center for Infectious Diseases at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health.

29 Jun 2016

Alcohol intoxication perturbs immune system of aged individuals

The immune system in the elderly is dysfunctional and infections are more prevalent, more severe, and harder to defeat. Drinking alcohol has a variety of damaging effects on the immune system and organs - like the gut, liver and lung - which can be worsened by pre-existing conditions as well as consumption of prescription and over-the-counter medications that aged individuals often take.

28 Jun 2016