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Research shows how high levels of blood fat induce inflammation and organ damage

Viral and bacterial infections are not the only causes of inflammation of body tissue. It has been known for some time that certain fat molecules in our bloodstream can also trigger an inflammatory response.

9 Dec 2019

Award to help advance development of diagnostic test for necrotizing enterocolitis

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health has awarded Chosen Diagnostics Inc, a spin-out company, a $299,641 Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer award.

9 Dec 2019

Genetically engineered living hydrogel material facilitates intestinal wound healing

About 1.6 million people in the US alone currently have lifelong and incurable Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, and 70,000 new cases are diagnosed in the USA each year.

6 Dec 2019

Mechanical stress can interrupt bacteria’s ability to survive toxin exposure

A random conversation between two Cornell researchers at a child's birthday party led to a collaboration and new understanding of how bacteria resist toxins, which may lead to new tools in the fight against harmful infections.

5 Dec 2019

Manuka honey fights infection in surgical dressings

And now, Manuka honey is proving a gamechanger in the fight against extremely drug-resistant infections, according to a new study published in the journal Frontiers.

5 Dec 2019

Typhoid conjugate vaccine proves its worth in the field

A new typhoid conjugate vaccine (TCV) that has been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety has proved extremely effective in both young children and adults in a high-endemicity area for the first time. With almost 82% of recipients showing protection against typhoid, the vaccine promises to help control this deadly disease that claims up to 160,000 of its 11 million victims each year.

5 Dec 2019

Ommochromes have antimicrobial, antioxidant and antimutagenic properties

Ommochromes, the pigments that colour the skin of squids and other invertebrates, could be used in the food and health sectors for their antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. This is confirmed by the analyses carried out by researchers from the University of Sonora in Mexico and the Miguel Hernández University in Spain.

5 Dec 2019

Using drug-eluting medical devices to fight bacterial infections

Medical practitioners routinely outfit patients with devices ranging from cardiovascular stents, pacemakers, catheters, and therapeutic lenses to orthopedic, breast, dental, and cochlear implants and prostheses.

5 Dec 2019

Dermatology expert shares views on at-home beauty devices

If you are thinking of buying a skin rejuvenation device as a holiday gift, think again.

5 Dec 2019

Important opportunity to act on gaps and challenges in seasonal influenza outbreaks

Today's subcommittee hearing on U.S. preparedness and responses for the 2019-2020 flu season offers an important opportunity to examine and act on gaps and challenges exacerbating the public health threats of seasonal influenza outbreaks.

5 Dec 2019

Early adherence step in intestinal transit of Shigella discovered

The bacterial pathogen Shigella, often spread through contaminated food or water, is a leading cause of mortality in both children and older adults in the developing world.

4 Dec 2019

FDA-approved drug repairs gut leakiness associated with ulcerative colitis

A research team led by biomedical scientists at the University of California, Riverside, has found that a drug approved by the FDA to treat rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis can repair permeability defects in the gut's epithelium.

4 Dec 2019

Drops containing a specific probiotic strain can reduce colic in infants

Probiotics--or "good bacteria"--have been used to treat infant colic with varying success. In a new trial published in the journal Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics, investigators have shown that drops containing a particular probiotic strain (Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12) reduced the duration of daily crying by more than 50% in 80% of the 40 infants who received the probiotic once daily for 28 days.

4 Dec 2019

Hybrid antibiotics show promising results in eradicating deadly staph infections

Eradicating deadly staph using a new breed of antibiotics has revealed promising results in research released by QUT, to help overcome one of the biggest modern medical challenges.

4 Dec 2019

New study could help prevent fatal infections in babies

Premature infants born before 28-30 weeks of life are at high risk for many complications, among which the chances of dying from an infection starting in the intestine are very great. A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine reports that such infections are very much more likely if something interferes with the normal microbial accumulation in the gut. Adding certain bacterial strains protects against such infections, on the other hand.

3 Dec 2019

Common cold virus could infect fetus via placenta

According to researchers, the common cold viruses are capable of infecting human placental cells and may thus transmit the infection to the fetus in the womb during pregnancy. The new study was published in the journal PLOS ONE, and provides the first concrete proof that this type of carriage is possible.

3 Dec 2019

New findings may help researchers leverage ERAP1 to fight cancer

In a paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, University of Illinois at Chicago researchers and colleagues report a new mechanism for detecting foreign material during early immune responses.

3 Dec 2019

New human colon-on-a-chip enables in vitro study of mucus physiology

We have a mutualistic but complicated relationship with the collection of microbes in our gut known as the intestinal microbiome.

3 Dec 2019

Key component of immune response is activated by short RNAs, shows study

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich researchers report that a central component of the innate immune response is activated by two short RNAs which are produced by site-specific cleavage of a precursor RNA molecule - and both derivatives are generated by the same enzyme.

3 Dec 2019

New model for late-onset sepsis explores potential treatments for neonatal infection

Extremely premature infants are at risk for life-threatening infections that spread into their bodies from the intestine. Infections after the first three days of life are called late-onset sepsis, or LOS.

3 Dec 2019