Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Dengue infection leaves lasting genetic imprint on immunity

Just as a computer's operating system can be rewritten after a major update, dengue infection can 're-programme' the body's immune system, leaving a long-lasting genetic imprint that influences how people respond to future infections-an effect not seen with vaccination.

9 Sep 2025

Cancer cells found to use ketones as alternate fuel for growth

When it comes to their survival, cancer cells have a host of backup plans.

8 Sep 2025

Common diabetes drug metformin cuts long covid risk by 64 percent in UK study

A large UK-based retrospective cohort study found that initiating metformin within 90 days of COVID-19 diagnosis reduced the risk of Long COVID by 64% in overweight and obese adults. The findings suggest metformin may offer a low-cost preventive option pending confirmation from randomized trials.

8 Sep 2025

NYU Langone strengthens world-leading GI cancer program with renowned leaders

NYU Langone Health's Perlmutter Cancer Center announces the arrival of acclaimed cancer leaders Anirban Maitra, MD, and Manuel Hidalgo, MD, as co-directors of a new Gastrointestinal (GI) Cancer Center.

5 Sep 2025

Griffith study finds Legionella exposure extends beyond air conditioners

There is a common misconception that legionella is only found in air conditioners and water towers, however, Griffith University research has found people are likely exposed to the bacteria through other sources including through soil.

5 Sep 2025

Single penicillin injection found to be as effective as three doses for early syphilis

Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have found that a single injection of the antibiotic benzathine penicillin G (BPG) successfully treated early syphilis just as well as the three-injection regimen used by many clinicians in the United States and elsewhere.

3 Sep 2025

At CDC, worries mount that agency has taken anti-science turn

Public health and access to lifesaving vaccines are on the line in a high-stakes leadership battle at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

3 Sep 2025

KRISS develops ultra-sensitive platform to detect Alzheimer’s biomarkers in body fluids

The Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS, President Lee Ho Seong) has developed a diagnostic platform that amplifies the unique optical signals of molecules by more than a hundred million times, enabling the precise detection and quantification of trace amounts of Alzheimer's disease biomarkers in body fluids.

1 Sep 2025

Scientists discover molecular brake that limits T cell attack on tumors

In a discovery that could expand the array of current cancer immunotherapy treatments, scientists at Harvard Medical School have identified a new molecular brake that hinders the ability of T cells to attack tumors.

1 Sep 2025

How do common painkillers drive stronger E. coli resistance?

Research shows that non-antibiotic medications like ibuprofen can enhance E. coli mutations, raising concerns about antimicrobial resistance in older adults.

29 Aug 2025

New project uses advanced PET imaging to investigate long COVID mechanisms

Using total-body PET imaging to get a better understanding of long COVID disease is the goal of a new project at the University of California, Davis, in collaboration with UC San Francisco.

29 Aug 2025

New experimental system replicates tuberculosis transmission with unprecedented precision

Tuberculosis has been a scourge upon humanity throughout history. In killing more than a million each year worldwide, it remains the leading cause of death from a single infectious pathogen.

28 Aug 2025

New NIH-funded project aims to turn rare HIV cures into broadly applicable immunotherapy

Nearly 20 years ago, a man named Timothy Ray Brown who was living with HIV and cancer, underwent two courses of stem cell transplantation to treat his acute myeloid leukemia.

28 Aug 2025

New guidelines improve care for respiratory infections in leukemia patients

People with leukemia have a weakened immune system due to the disease itself and treatment, which leads to an increased susceptibility to infections.

28 Aug 2025

Scientists develop promising broad-spectrum antiviral targeting deadly viruses

Researchers at the Nanoscience Initiative at the Advanced Science Research Center at the CUNY Graduate Center (CUNY ASRC) have made a breakthrough in the fight against viral diseases.

28 Aug 2025

New class of insecticide offers yearlong protection against mosquito-borne diseases

A relatively new class of insecticide that can be disseminated on something the size of a sheet of paper offers protection for up to a year against mosquitoes that spread malaria, as well as dengue, West Nile, yellow fever, and Zika, UC San Francisco researchers have found.

26 Aug 2025

Common cold may offer temporary protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection

A new study led by researchers at National Jewish Health has found that recent infection with the common cold - often caused by rhinoviruses - may offer temporary protection against infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

25 Aug 2025

Generative AI model scans emergency notes to identify high-risk avian influenza exposures

Researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine developed a new and highly effective application of an artificial intelligence (AI) tool to quickly scan notes in electronic medical records and identify high-risk patients who may have been infected with H5N1 avian influenza or "bird flu", according to new findings published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.

25 Aug 2025

Common painkillers ibuprofen and paracetamol found to fuel antibiotic resistance

Ibuprofen and paracetamol are common over-the-counter medications that many of us reach for when we're sick. But new research from the University of South Australia shows that these trusted staples are quietly fuelling one of the world's biggest health threats: antibiotic resistance.

25 Aug 2025

AI tool reveals how TB drugs kill bacteria at the molecular level

Tuberculosis (TB) is the world's deadliest infectious disease—and one of the hardest to cure. Standard treatment requires a cocktail of multiple drugs over at least six months, and one in five patients have a type of TB that resists these first-line medications.

25 Aug 2025