Toxin News and Research

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Atomic-level structure of cardiac sodium channel

Atomic-level studies of the architecture of tiny sodium channel proteins, critical to generating electrical signals that start off each beat of the heart, are imparting striking details about their function, malfunctions, disruption by many disease mutations, and response to medication.

20 Dec 2019

Artificial 'inclusion bodies' developed for sustained release of therapeutic proteins

Precision medicine is becoming increasingly important, achieving to create more efficient personalized therapies for each patient and innovative pharmacological developments.

19 Dec 2019

E.coli infections linked to chopped salad kits, CDC warns

You might want to ditch your salad this holiday season, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warn against an outbreak of Escherichia coli (E.coli) linked to chopped salad kits.

18 Dec 2019

Using bacterial nano-syringes as drug transporters in medicine

Pathogens can use a range of toxins to damage their host organism. Bacteria, such as those responsible for causing the deadly Plague, use a special injection mechanism to deliver their poisonous contents into the host cell.

17 Dec 2019

Salmonella causes nearly one in three foodborne outbreaks in the EU

Nearly one in three foodborne outbreaks in the EU in 2018 were caused by Salmonella. This is one of the main findings of the annual report on trends and sources of zoonoses published today by the European Food Safety Authority and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

14 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

Warmer temperatures can lead to higher concentrations of arsenic in rice grains

People around the world consume rice in their daily diets. But in addition to its nutrient and caloric content, rice can contain small amounts of arsenic, which in large doses is a toxin linked to multiple health conditions and dietary-related cancers.

4 Dec 2019

ETVAX vaccine candidate shows promise against enterotoxigenic E. coli diarrhea

University of Gothenburg reports first successful results of the oral, inactivated vaccine candidate ETVAX against enterotoxigenic E. coli diarrhea in a placebo-controlled phase I/II study in infants and children from 6 months to 5 years of age in Bangladesh.

20 Nov 2019

Oral vaccination with cholera toxin helps counteract age-associated obesity

Here the research team tested a safe and well-established microbe-based immune adjuvant to restore immune homeostasis and counteract inflammation-associated obesity in animal models.

19 Nov 2019

Study shows potential of phage therapy to treat alcoholic liver disease

Bacteriophages (phages) are viruses that specifically destroy bacteria. In the early 20th century, researchers experimented with phages as a potential method for treating bacterial infections.

13 Nov 2019

Researchers use phage therapy to successfully treat alcoholic liver disease

Researchers have successfully used bacteriophage (phage) therapy to eliminate alcohol-related liver disease in an animal model.

13 Nov 2019

Anthrax may soon help more people fight against bladder cancer

Anthrax may soon help more people win the fight against bladder cancer, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says strikes about 72,000 Americans each year and kills about 16,000, and is one of the most expensive cancers to treat.

12 Nov 2019

Two strains of the same bacterium work together to cause deadly flesh-eating disease

Two different strains of the same flesh-eating bacteria species work in combination to become more dangerous.

12 Nov 2019

New bacteria-killing toxin shows promise to impact superbug infectious diseases

An international research collaboration has discovered a new bacteria-killing toxin that shows promise of impacting superbug infectious diseases.

6 Nov 2019

Scientists modify a toxic protein to create a biosensor

Researchers have shown that the pore-forming toxin (PFT), aerolysin, could be used as a biosensor in the sequencing of DNA and proteins.

30 Oct 2019

Can Probiotics Support Healthy Kidney Function?

An interview with Dr Natarajan Ranganathan, key founder and Managing Director of Kibow Biotech Inc. about the use of probiotics for supporting healthy kidney function.

From Kibow Biotech Inc. 30 Oct 2019

Homeopathy quackery - NHS leaders urge caution

A new controversy is ripe, what with the head of the UK National Health Service (NHS), Simon Stevens, publicly expressing his “serious concerns” about the “fundamentally flawed” practice of homeopathy.

29 Oct 2019

Some plant foods causing paralysis, death, in malnourished populations

There are a lot of plants eaten for food that may also contain toxins that harm the brain and the nervous system, when present in amounts that cross the limit of individual tolerance. This happens when such toxin-containing foods are the chief or only source of nutrition.

26 Oct 2019

Scientists make breakthrough in the hunt for new C. diff vaccine

Scientists have made a breakthrough in the hunt for a new vaccine for killer hospital bug Clostridioides difficile (C. diff).

25 Oct 2019

Advances in translational genetics unlocked by Bio-Rad technologies to be presented at ASHG 2019

Scientists will present 24 abstracts and three talks, highlighting research driven in part by Bio-Rad Laboratories' Droplet Digital PCR and single-cell ATAC-Seq (scATAC-Seq) technologies, at the 2019 American Society of Human Genetics Annual Meeting in Houston, October 15-19.

15 Oct 2019