Infectious Diseases News and Research

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New strain of Streptococcus A rampant in England and Wales

According to a new study on cases of scarlet fever and other Streptococcus A infections in England and Wales, the recent rise in cases is due to a newly identified strain. This accounted for the great increase in the number of cases of scarlet fever that occurred in 2014. The last such outbreak was way back in the 1960s.

11 Sep 2019

Scientists discover new strain of group A streptococcus bacteria in England and Wales

A team of scientists led by Imperial College London have discovered a new strain of group A streptococcus bacteria.

11 Sep 2019

ICU bloodstream infections have reduced by 80%, research shows

Bloodstream infections acquired in UK Intensive Care Units reduced by 80% between 2007 and 2012, according to research funded by the NIHR Guy's and St Thomas' Biomedical Research Centre.

10 Sep 2019

PTSD linked with onset of cognitive impairment in 911 World Trade Center responders

Cognitive impairment with the potential for early-onset dementia in 911 World Trade Center responders is continuing to be investigated by researchers monitoring the health of thousands of responders.

10 Sep 2019

NIAID experts call for innovative research on STIs

Sexually transmitted infections, or STIs, pose a significant public health challenge. Globally, more than one million new STI cases are diagnosed each day.

10 Sep 2019

Microbiome loss from antibiotic use affects response to flu vaccine

Every living person has trillions of microbes living in their digestive tract, and more than 400 species of bacteria in the gut, more than the number of cells in the body. The normal gut flora is important to maintain eubiosis, the microbial balance in the body.

9 Sep 2019

CDC warns against vaping after series of lung-disease cases

E-cigarette use, also known as vaping, has become popular across all ages. Hundreds of people across the country have been sickened by a severe lung disease linked to e-cigarette use. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warns the public not to use e-cigarettes due to the potential damage to the lungs.

9 Sep 2019

Drug tolerant Tuberculosis could soon be tracked using genes

A team of researchers from the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School have found genetic foot prints of tuberculosis bacteria that are resistant to the commonly used anti-tubercular drugs. This could help scientists develop drugs to combat drug resistance in tuberculosis.

8 Sep 2019

Oral antibiotics that kill gut microorganisms can alter immune response to flu vaccines

The normal human gut microbiome is a flourishing community of microorganisms, some of which can affect the human immune system. In a new paper published this week in Cell, researchers found that oral antibiotics, which can kill gut microorganisms, can alter the human immune response to seasonal influenza vaccination.

8 Sep 2019

VUMC partners with Batavia to move promising Zika antibody therapy closer to the clinic

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center are partnering with the Dutch biopharmaceutical firm Batavia Biosciences and Nashville-based IDBiologics to bring to the clinic a highly potent Zika virus neutralizing antibody they isolated three years ago.

6 Sep 2019

As measles outbreak fades, N.Y. sets in motion new rules on school vaccinations

As children head to school this fall, the number of measles cases in New York has slowed to a trickle, and officials this week declared that the outbreak in New York City, which largely affected Orthodox Jewish families who avoided immunizations, is over.

5 Sep 2019

U of M researcher wins $3.9 million NIH grant to study CMV vaccine strategies

Nationally, about one baby in 100 is born with cytomegalovirus (CMV), the most common infection that causes birth defects and disabilities in babies in the United States.

4 Sep 2019

Large-scale study maps the genetic underpinnings of early TB progression

While the vast majority of the 1.8 billion people infected with the TB bacterium never experience active disease, an estimated 5 to 15 percent do develop full-blown infections--roughly half of them within 18 months of exposure.

4 Sep 2019

Cancer mortality is twice as frequent as CVD deaths in high-income countries

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the major cause of death among middle-aged adults around the world; however, in high-income countries deaths from cancer have become twice as frequent as those from CVD.

3 Sep 2019

Study highlights the need to better understand immunity against mumps virus

Immunity against mumps virus appears insufficient in a fraction of college-aged people who were vaccinated in childhood, research from Emory Vaccine Center and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates.

3 Sep 2019

Simple test produces a color change in urine to signal tumor growth in mice

A simple and sensitive urine test developed by Imperial and MIT engineers has produced a color change in urine to signal growing tumors in mice.

3 Sep 2019

Scientists join hands to protect Australia from growing threat of infectious diseases

A new project in Northern Australia will focus on how Australia can better protect and rapidly respond to the growing global risk of emergent infectious diseases which can spread to humans through animals and insects.

30 Aug 2019

Cell-free DNA identifies pathogens and quantifies injuries to organs

A common problem in diagnosing infectious disease is that the presence of a potential pathogen in the body does not necessarily mean the patient is sick. This can be particularly challenging for the treatment of organ transplant recipients, who often grapple with infection as well as complications related to immunosuppression.

29 Aug 2019

Adults with cerebral palsy twice as likely to develop cardiovascular, chronic respiratory diseases

Adults with cerebral palsy are about twice as likely to develop cardiovascular disease and chronic respiratory disease compared to adults without cerebral palsy, according to a new study led by RCSI (Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland) and Brunel University London.

29 Aug 2019

[BC]2 conference focuses on use of big data in molecular medicine

From 9 to 11 September, the [BC]2 Basel Computational Biology Conference, organized by the SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, will bring together international and Swiss-based scientists working in this field, in one of the key bioinformatics events in Europe: a prime opportunity to hear from leading experts, from precision oncology to infectious diseases.

29 Aug 2019