Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Recent advances in CAR-NK cell therapy could revolutionze cancer treatment

Cell-based immunotherapies have transformed cancer treatment, yet their widespread use remains constrained by safety risks, manufacturing complexity, and limited effectiveness against solid tumors.

8 Jan 2026

Biodegradable pill improves medication adherence monitoring

In an advance that could help ensure people are taking their medication on schedule, MIT engineers have designed a pill that can report when it has been swallowed.

8 Jan 2026

Spleen-driven immune tolerance may protect transplanted organs

New research from the University of Minnesota Medical School offers a new view of how the immune system responds to organ transplants.

7 Jan 2026

Expanded HIV treatment dramatically reduced orphanhood rates in Uganda

The scale-up of HIV treatment and prevention programs has led to remarkable declines in orphanhood rates in Rakai, Uganda, according to a new study at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.

7 Jan 2026

Single-dose oral cholera vaccine shows promising results in early clinical trial

Clinical trial shows promising results for PanChol, a single-dose oral vaccine aimed at the up to 4 million annual cholera cases worldwide.

7 Jan 2026

New database targets hidden causes of chronic urinary tract infections in children

A new database targeting chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs) – a long-overlooked condition that may begin in childhood – is set to help researchers uncover why millions of women and girls worldwide suffer from infections that defy treatment and stump microbiologists.

6 Jan 2026

The CDC just sidelined these childhood vaccines. Here’s what they prevent.

The federal government has drastically scaled back the number of recommended childhood immunizations, sidelining six routine vaccines that have safeguarded millions from serious diseases, long-term disability, and death.

6 Jan 2026

Study compares H1N1 and COVID-19 spread across metropolitan areas in the U.S.

Public health researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health used computer modeling to reconstruct how the 2009 H1N1 flu pandemic and the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic unfolded in the U.S.

5 Jan 2026

Bat-borne virus linked to unexplained illnesses in Bangladesh

Infectious disease researchers have identified Pteropine orthoreoviruses (PRVs), a group of newly emergent bat-borne viruses, as the culprit for previously unexplained illness in five Bangladeshi patients, one of whom eventually died with unexplained illness.

5 Jan 2026

Ancient genomes reveal Iron Age origins of human herpesvirus 6

For the first time, scientists have reconstructed ancient genomes of Human betaherpesvirus 6A and 6B (HHV-6A/B) from archaeological human remains more than two millennia old.

4 Jan 2026

New method can help better assess precision genome editing technology

Scientists and physicians can better assess precision genome editing technology using a new method made public today by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Significant amounts of time and resources spent improving CRISPR gene editing technology focus on identifying small off-target sites that pose a safety risk, which is also technically challenging.

2 Jan 2026

Reduced peanut OIT dose offers safer, accessible treatment for children

Children with peanut allergies may not need large doses of peanut oral immunotherapy (OIT) to build protection to peanut, finds a new study led by The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and Montreal Children's Hospital. Researchers found that a small dose can help children with their peanut allergy and reduce the risk of severe reactions from accidental exposures, with less side effects than the current standard treatment.

30 Dec 2025

Scientists capture real-time action of antiviral drugs on herpes

Harvard Medical School researchers have uncovered crucial insights into how an emerging class of antiviral drugs works.

30 Dec 2025

Precision immunotherapy for TRBC2-positive T-cell malignancies

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center's Ludwig Center developed a new treatment that selectively targets TRBC2-positive T-cell cancers, expanding a precision approach they established in 2024 for TRBC1-positive tumors.

22 Dec 2025

Hidden kinase state enables rapid and repeated protein phosphorylation

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have characterized a hidden intermediate state at the center of Src kinase function. This hidden state allows the kinase to repeatedly modify its target, without needing to release and reattach to the target each time.

19 Dec 2025

Inside the FDA’s vaccine uproar

Six days after a senior FDA official sent a sweeping internal email claiming that covid vaccines had caused the deaths of "at least 10 children," 12 former FDA commissioners released an extraordinary warning in the Dec. 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

19 Dec 2025

Early peanut introduction can prevent allergy but parents need clearer guidance

Feeding babies peanut-containing foods as early as possible can help prevent peanut allergy, but a new study published in JAMA Network Open found that parents need more support to get it right.

18 Dec 2025

New nanoparticle vaccines show promise against multiple deadly filoviruses

Filoviruses get their name from the Latin word "filum," meaning thread-a reference to their long, filamentous shape. This virus family contains some of the most dangerous pathogens known to science, including Ebola, Sudan, Bundibugyo and Marburg viruses.

18 Dec 2025

Rapid HIV viral load testing shows mixed effects on seeking care

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other sources, there are approximately 1.2 million people living with HIV in the United States, and another 1.2 to 2.2 million who are at highest risk for infection and could benefit from the preventive measure known as HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

18 Dec 2025

Coordinated housing and health care models better serve homeless populations

Organizations aiming to help homeless people with either housing or health care can be more effective when they form partnerships with other service groups, a Rutgers study has found.

17 Dec 2025