Measles News and Research

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Measles is a highly contagious, serious disease caused by a virus. It remains a leading cause of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. An estimated 197 000 people died from measles in 2007, mostly children under the age of five.

Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family. The measles virus normally grows in the cells that line the back of the throat and the lungs. It is a human disease not known to occur in animals.

Novel influenza vaccine candidate shows promise

Researchers investigate the potential value of a new vaccine candidate for the influenza virus.

29 Nov 2021

SARS-CoV-2 reinfection and the natural immune response

Researchers review available literature on immunity and SARS-CoV-2 infection to elucidate mechanisms behind SARS-CoV-2 immunity and reinfections.

24 Nov 2021

Viral biomolecular condensation

A review published in PLOS Pathogens deconstructs virus condensation and provides a biochemical background for LLPS.

19 Nov 2021

Schools, pediatricians look to make up lost ground on non-covid vaccinations

Melissa Blatzer was determined to get her three children caught up on their routine immunizations on a recent Saturday morning at a walk-in clinic in this Denver suburb. It had been about a year since the kids' last shots, a delay Blatzer chalked up to the pandemic.

18 Nov 2021

Vaccination model for endemic COVID-19

The current model is meant to provide an understanding of what might happen in the future, with periods of very low infection prevalence, interspersed between surges that have ever-lower peaks.

15 Nov 2021

Global progress toward measles elimination continues to decline amidst the pandemic

While reported measles cases have fallen compared to previous years, progress toward measles elimination continues to decline and the risk of outbreaks is mounting, according to a new report from the World Health Organization and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

10 Nov 2021

A measles-vectored COVID-19 vaccine induces strong immunity in animal model

A new study explores the potential of MV-based vaccines targeting the S protein of SARS-CoV-2.

9 Nov 2021

What do we really know about vaccine effectiveness?

The politicization of covid vaccines — and, well, just about everything else having to do with the pandemic — has led to confusion, if not utter fatigue.

2 Nov 2021

Labs with no one to run them: Why public health workers are fleeing the field

There were days, nights and weekends in the early months of the pandemic when Denise Von Bargen was the only person running covid tests at the public health lab in Ventura County. She once had eight or nine employees to assist her, but, one by one, they had all retired or left for other jobs.

2 Nov 2021

Covid immunity through infection or vaccination: Are they equal?

Dr. Aaron Kheriaty, a University of California-Irvine psychiatry professor, felt he didn't need to be vaccinated against covid because he'd fallen ill with the disease in July 2020.

8 Oct 2021

Stringent lockdown measures during early pandemic led to dramatic drop in vaccinations

Stringent lockdown measures imposed in the spring of 2020 led to a dramatic drop in vaccinations among both children and adults, according to a new study led by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

8 Oct 2021

Drought may affect child vaccination coverage in Africa, study finds

A new study published September 28 in PLOS Medicine found that drought may hinder child vaccination coverage in Africa.

30 Sep 2021

Super-resolution imaging and size analysis of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles

Researchers from the University of Oxford and the University of Warwick have collaborated to develop a method to better understand and evaluate these pleiomorphisms.

28 Sep 2021

WHO emphasizes the necessity to address acute health needs in Afghanistan

We recently completed a high level mission to Kabul, Afghanistan, where we met with senior members of the Taliban leadership, UN partners, health care workers and patients, and WHO staff.

27 Sep 2021

3D-printed vaccine patch provides greater protection than a typical vaccine shot

Scientists at Stanford University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have created a 3D-printed vaccine patch that provides greater protection than a typical vaccine shot.

25 Sep 2021

Study reveals strong connection between infection rates and strains of authoritarianism

According to psychologists, in addition to our physiological immune system, we also have a behavioral one: an unconscious code of conduct that helps us stay disease-free, including fear and avoidance of unfamiliar - and so possibly infected - people.

22 Sep 2021

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to vaccines during pregnancy

A new preprint discusses how women felt during the pandemic as they struggled to gain access to safe vaccination for themselves and for their babies.

21 Sep 2021

Evolved SARS-CoV-2 viruses gain higher infectivity and cause more rapid infection spread

Viruses accumulate mutations as they replicate in infected cells. Repeated replication can lead to viral strains that show attenuated virulence. Such strains may act as vaccines if the attenuated virus can produce immunity without serious disease.

16 Sep 2021

Over half of states have rolled back public health powers in pandemic

Republican legislators in more than half of U.S. states, spurred on by voters angry about lockdowns and mask mandates, are taking away the powers state and local officials use to protect the public against infectious diseases.

15 Sep 2021

New diagnostic system can rapidly and sensitively measure antibodies against SARS-CoV-2

A research team at the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science in Japan has developed a diagnostic system that can rapidly and sensitively measure the amount of antibodies in the blood that can protect us from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

4 Sep 2021