Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Potential universal Ebola vaccine may neutralize all four harmful virus species

Infectious disease scientists report early development of a potential universal vaccine for Ebola viruses that preclinical tests show might neutralize all four species of these deadly viruses infecting people in recent outbreaks, mainly in Africa.

16 Apr 2020

Big brother wants to track your location and health data. And that’s not all bad.

A growing mix of health and technology experts are convinced that if the United States is to ever effectively track the coronavirus and slow its spread, then both self-reported and more surreptitiously gathered personal data — a mix of information about location, travel, symptoms and health conditions - must be gathered from millions of Americans.

16 Apr 2020

WHO-recommended hand rub formulations effective against novel coronavirus

When used correctly, both alcohol-based hand disinfectants recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) are effective against the novel coronavirus Sars-Cov-2, as confirmed by an international research team headed by Professor Stephanie Pfänder from the Department of Molecular and Medical Virology at Ruhr-Universität Bochum.

16 Apr 2020

Octapharma USA supports new COVID-19 clinical trial

Octapharma USA is supporting a new investigator initiated clinical trial led by George Sakoulas, M.D. of Sharp Memorial Hospital in San Diego, California focused on treating the most critical patients at the heart of the coronavirus pandemic, those experiencing respiratory failure who become ventilator dependent.

16 Apr 2020

New drug preserves cognitive function in mice after brain irradiation

A study by researchers at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has identified a possible new drug that could help prevent cognitive decline in people who undergo radiation therapy for brain tumors.

15 Apr 2020

COVID-19 modeling shows that social distancing is a must, must, must

A new study shows that using mathematical modeling and accounting for several factors such as age distribution and density of the population, a clearer picture of COVID-19 infection in a population could be gained. The study titled, "Level of under-reporting including under-diagnosis before the first peak of COVID-19 in various countries: Preliminary Retrospective Results Based on Wavelets and Deterministic Modeling," is published as an accepted manuscript in the journal Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.

15 Apr 2020

'Chaperone protein' protects against autoimmune diseases, mice study shows

Like a parent of teenagers at a party, Mother Nature depends on chaperones to keep one of her charges, the immune system, in line so that it doesn't mistakenly attack normal cells, tissues and organs in our bodies.

15 Apr 2020

Protecting children from undernutrition in flood-prone areas of India

Monsoon rainfall has become more unpredictable in India. Floods and droughts have become more common and pose multiple risks to human health and wellbeing, with children under five being particularly vulnerable.

15 Apr 2020

Wake Forest Baptist, Oracle, Javara conduct community-based study of novel coronavirus

In an effort to better fight COVID-19 in multiple regions of the country, Wake Forest Baptist Health has joined forces with Javara Inc. - a leading integrated clinical research organization headquartered in Winston-Salem - to conduct a community-based research study of the novel coronavirus.

15 Apr 2020

Novel coronavirus can be airborne for 13 feet

The novel coronavirus can travel up to 13 feet or 4 meters from patients in hospital wards, a new study has found. This is twice the distance current guidelines recommend for social distancing.

14 Apr 2020

New vaccine for Chikungunya reported safe and well-tolerated

A virus-like particle vaccine was shown to be safe and well-tolerated among a healthy adult population living in chikungunya endemic areas, the researchers report in a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

14 Apr 2020

New study offers insight on how bacteria exchange drug resistance genes

Researchers have been able to identify and track the exchange of genes among bacteria that allow them to become resistant to drugs, according to a new study published today in eLife.

14 Apr 2020

Temple researchers receive NIAID grant to study immunological synapse formation

Switching immune cells on is a critical step in combating infection. In the case of T cells, which are key players in immunity, this happens when dormant T cells circulating in the blood encounter a suspicious agent on the surface of specialized antigen-presenting cells.

14 Apr 2020

Toxic cell atlas can guide discovery of new drugs for neurodegeneration

A common thread in many inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS), is damage caused by oxidative stress. Oxidative stress occurs when cells produce toxic substances known as reactive oxygen species, which are damaging nerve cells and other cells in the body.

13 Apr 2020

Chinese scientists report high-resolution crystal structure of COVID-19 main protease

A team of Chinese scientists has reported the high-resolution crystal structure of the main protease (Mpro) of the COVID-19 virus and has identified drugs that may hold promise in combating the virus.

13 Apr 2020

How does COVID-19 attack the body?

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) attacks the lungs, leading to pneumonia, and eventually, a cascade of serious complications. But how does COVID-19 kill? Is it the virus itself or the result of the person’s immune system response?

13 Apr 2020

Intermountain Healthcare and University of Utah Health launch two COVID-19 clinical trials

Researchers from Intermountain Healthcare and University of Utah Health in Salt Lake City have launched two vital clinical trials to test the effectiveness and safety of two drugs - hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin - to treat patients with COVID-19.

13 Apr 2020

Cats, ferrets more vulnerable to COVID-19 than dogs

A recent Chinese study published on the preprint server BioRxiv finds that cats and ferrets appear to be extremely vulnerable to the virus, but dogs, pigs, and poultry do not seem to contract it. As preprints, papers are not yet peer-reviewed, undergoing only basic scientific screening.

12 Apr 2020

Promising COVID-19 drug treatments identified with new screening strategies

As scientists across the world race to find a pharmacological cure for coronavirus disease (COVID-19), an international research group has analyzed more than 10 thousand different compounds and identified six potential candidates, publishing their results in the leading scientific journal Nature.

12 Apr 2020

Recovered South Korean COVID-19 patients test positive again

Following the reports from different countries of patients recovered from coronavirus disease (COVID-19) but testing positive again during the control diagnostic appraisal, South Korea's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) documents a similar occurrence in 51 patients.

12 Apr 2020