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Researchers find previously unknown response within gut microbiome

The gut microbiome, which is a collection of numerous beneficial bacteria species, is key to our overall well-being and good health. Recent studies have linked the gut microbiome with several beneficial properties, such as aiding in the development of our immune system and warding off pathogen infections.

5 Mar 2020

New bacteria-killing light-activated coating

A new antimicrobial coating that can be activated by light has been reported by researchers in the journal Nature Communications, in March 2020. The coating can be used to prevent transmission from computer and phone screens and keyboards, the inside of catheters, and breathing tubes. All these are significant routes of healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs).

5 Mar 2020

New sepsis intervention enhances the body's bacteria-capturing neutrophil extracellular traps

Researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have developed a novel treatment for sepsis - one of the leading causes of hospital death - that enhances the body's bacteria-capturing neutrophil extracellular traps so that they more effectively capture infectious bacteria, resist degradation, and improve sepsis outcomes and survival.

5 Mar 2020

Coronavirus and currency notes – the connection

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended people to avoid using currency notes to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus or the novel coronavirus that has caused a global panic infecting over ninety-thousand individuals and killing over 3,000 up until now.

5 Mar 2020

Bioscientists develop coinfection model to predict multipathogen epidemics

Diseases often pile on, coinfecting people, animals and other organisms that are already fighting an infection.

5 Mar 2020

Tuberculosis bacteria facilitate their spread by producing a molecule that triggers cough

The bacteria that cause the deadly lung disease tuberculosis appear to facilitate their own spread by producing a molecule that triggers cough, a new study led by UTSW researchers shows.

5 Mar 2020

X-ray free electron laser helps probe deeper into deadly pathogen

Tularemia is a rare but often lethal disease. It is caused by one of the most aggressive pathogens on earth, the bacterium Francisella tularensis.

5 Mar 2020

Stress during pregnancy can cause lifetime of immune system deficiencies

Mice exposed to stress in the womb and soon after birth can expect a lifetime of immune system deficiencies that hinder the ability to ward off infections and cancer, Yale University researchers report March 5 in the journal Cell.

5 Mar 2020

Curcumin can be delivered effectively into cells via tiny nanoparticles

For years, curry lovers have sworn by the anti-inflammatory properties of turmeric, but its active compound, curcumin, has long frustrated scientists hoping to validate these claims with clinical studies.

5 Mar 2020

New NGS technique offers quick, accurate diagnosis of sepsis

A report in the Journal of Molecular Diagnostics, published by Elsevier, describes a new technique that uses real-time next-generation sequencing to analyze tiny amounts of microbial cell-free DNA in the plasma of patients with sepsis, offering the possibility of accurate diagnosis of sepsis-causing agents within a few hours of drawing blood.

5 Mar 2020

Novel drug to arrest antibiotic resistance by preventing micro-evolution

Desperate times need desperate measures. Accordingly, scientists, today published a new study in the journal Cell Host and Microbe in March 2020, showing that drugs that prevent the acquisition of DNA-borne antibiotic resistance traits from their surroundings by bacteria can stop mice from becoming resistant to the action of the antibiotics.

3 Mar 2020

UAB research reveals hydrogen sulfide as new culprit for deadly tuberculosis

A new culprit -- hydrogen sulfide -- has been found for the deadly infectious disease tuberculosis. Hydrogen sulfide gas is known for its rotten egg smell, yet it has normal physiological roles in the human body to communicate among cells.

3 Mar 2020

Research opens up new prospects for prevention and treatment of bacterial pneumonia

Researchers from the Lille Centre for Infection and Immunity, INRAE and from Brazilian (Belo Horizonte), Scottish (Glasgow) and Danish (Copenhagen) laboratories have shown for the first time in mice that perturbation of the gut microbiota caused by the influenza virus favors secondary bacterial superinfection.

3 Mar 2020

Two common Staph bacteria living on human skin exacerbate Netherton syndrome

Netherton syndrome, a rare skin disease caused by a single genetic mutation, is exacerbated by the presence of two common Staphylococcal bacteria living on human skin, one of which was previously thought to only offer protective properties, report University of California San Diego School of Medicine researchers.

3 Mar 2020

Researchers take a close look at invisible communities of microbes in the mouth

Most people know that good oral hygiene - brushing, flossing, and regular dental visits - is linked to good health. Colorado State University microbiome researchers offer fresh evidence to support that conventional wisdom, by taking a close look at invisible communities of microbes that live in every mouth.

2 Mar 2020

New tool allows researchers to peer into live tissue of the fruit fly gut

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. But what about a real-time window into the complexity of the gastrointestinal system?

2 Mar 2020

Link discovered between number of antibiotic prescriptions and higher risk of hospital admissions

Epidemiologists at The University of Manchester have discovered an association between the number of prescriptions for antibiotics and a higher risk of hospital admissions.

2 Mar 2020

New immunotherapeutic strategy shows promise to fight off infectious biofilms

The same way baking soda breaks down grease and grime, making surfaces easier to clean, researchers at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University now show that a new therapeutic molecule can break apart communities of harmful bacteria, opening the way for bacteria-killing antibiotics to more effectively clear out infections.

27 Feb 2020

New immune cell with 'Jekyll and Hyde properties' identified

Scientists at Trinity College Dublin have identified a rare, new cell in the immune system with "Jekyll and Hyde properties". These cells play a key protective role in immunity to infection but - if unregulated - also mediate tissue damage in autoimmune disorders.

27 Feb 2020