Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Republican Convention, Day 4: Fireworks … and shining a light on Trump’s claims

President Donald Trump accepted the Republican Party's nomination for president in a 70-minute speech from the South Lawn of the White House on Thursday night.

28 Aug 2020

Changes in testing rate may be masking the true growth of COVID-19 pandemic

Scientists have reviewed reported cases and testing data of COVID-19 and have determined that changes in the testing rate may be masking the true growth rate and extent of the pandemic.

28 Aug 2020

Researchers develop advanced imaging technique to visualize effects of valencies on B cell responses

Designing a vaccine starts with finding the right ingredients. Every infectious agent has molecules, called antigens, that the immune system could potentially recognize and attack. So scientists must carefully consider which antigens should go into a vaccine.

28 Aug 2020

Study shows how genetics could improve safety and efficacy of drugs for COVID-19 treatment

Over the past few months, a number of drugs have been under investigation to treat COVID-19 without well-established safety or data to support these claims.

28 Aug 2020

New cellular pathway protects cells from infection by Ebola virus, coronaviruses

Discoveries from the Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason (BRI) have identified a new cellular protection pathway that targets a common vulnerability in several different pandemic viruses, and collaborators at Case Western Reserve University, Boston University School of Medicine and MRIGlobal have shown that this pathway can protect cells from infection by Ebola virus and coronaviruses, like SARS-CoV-2.

28 Aug 2020

New low-cost COVID-19 test quickly delivers accurate results

A new low-cost diagnostic test for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) quickly delivers accurate results without the need for sophisticated equipment, according to a study published August 27 2020 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by Teng Xu of the Vision Medicals Center for Infectious Diseases, Tieying Hou of the Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Bing Gu of the Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Jianwei Wang of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, and colleagues.

27 Aug 2020

N95 respirators designed for single use can be decontaminated effectively

N95 respirators, which are widely worn by health care workers treating patients with COVID-19 and are designed to be used only once, can be decontaminated effectively and used up to three times, according to research by UCLA scientists and colleagues.

27 Aug 2020

ACR Convergence pivots to all-virtual, interactive format

In keeping with global efforts to stem the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) will take its annual, face-to-face meeting virtual. ACR Convergence will take place online Nov. 5 - 9.

27 Aug 2020

First lethal mouse model of SARS-CoV-2 developed

Army scientists have developed the first lethal mouse model of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, using mice that were genetically engineered to express the human ACE2 gene--a key mechanism by which the virus enters human cells.

27 Aug 2020

NIAID awards $17 million to establish the Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, one of the National Institutes of Health, today announced that it has awarded 11 grants with a total first-year value of approximately $17 million to establish the Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases.

27 Aug 2020

Interventions can successfully reduce the rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions

Two different interventions both worked to significantly reduce the rate of inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions made by physicians in a telemedicine practice, a new study led by Children's National Hospital researchers shows.

27 Aug 2020

Obesity ups COVID-19 death risk by 48 percent

Now, a new study by researchers from the University of North Carolina (UNC), the World Bank, and Saudi Health Council, shows that obesity increases the risk of dying from COVID-19 by as much as 48 percent, hinting that a vaccine against the virus could be less effective in obese people.

26 Aug 2020

Social distancing is a natural instinct but difficult for humans and animals

Staying away from those with contagious infections, no matter how lonely it gets, may not only be common sense, but a natural instinct. But that doesn't mean humans or animals will automatically fall in line.

26 Aug 2020

Researchers identify how promising therapy may work to improve adverse effects of NAFLD

A team led by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) has taken an important step forward in the goal of developing a potential treatment for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the most common form of chronic liver disease.

26 Aug 2020

Consuming personal fecal microbiome when dieting may limit weight regain, study shows

People who consume frozen microbiome capsules derived from their own feces when dieting may limit their weight regain, according to a new study published in Gastroenterology, conducted by a team of researchers led by researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.

26 Aug 2020

Study reveals a troubling connection between coronavirus and obesity

A review of COVID-19 studies reveals a troubling connection between two health crises: coronavirus and obesity.

26 Aug 2020

Inhaled steroid ciclesonide suppresses SARS-CoV-2 replication in vitro

A new paper by researchers at Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases and published on the preprint server bioRxiv in August 2020 reports the in vitro suppression of coronavirus (CoV) replication by an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) ciclesonide.

26 Aug 2020

Preclinical studies of a COVID-19 vaccine candidate show positive results

Preclinical studies of a COVID-19 vaccine candidate at the University of Alabama at Birmingham show positive results that appear to distinguish this vaccine candidate from other vaccine candidates that are currently in advanced stages of clinical development, the Maryland-based Altimmune Inc. announced today.

25 Aug 2020

Italy starts human trials of potential COVID-19 vaccine

Rome's Lazzaro Spallanzani Institute, a hospital specializing in infectious diseases will conduct trials on 90 volunteers in the coming weeks, joining a global effort to develop an immune response to the virus.

25 Aug 2020

World's first confirmed case of SARS-CoV-2 re-infection

A team of researchers at the University of Hong Kong said that they have proven that a 33-year-old man was infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus for a second time. The man was discharged from a hospital in April but contracted the infection again after returning from Spain via the United Kingdom in August.

24 Aug 2020