Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Infants have less severe food-induced anaphylaxis unlike older children

Symptoms of food-induced anaphylaxis in infants are much less severe than in toddlers and older children, according to a study from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

11 Jul 2018

Certain antibodies against a carbohydrate could protect against malaria

Certain type of antibodies against α-Gal- a carbohydrate expressed by many organisms including the malaria parasite- could protect against malaria, according to a new study led by ISGlobal, an institution supported by "la Caixa" Foundation.

10 Jul 2018

Preventative HIV vaccines induce robust, comparable immune responses in humans and monkeys

More than three decades after the identification of the human immunodeficiency virus, scientists are still working to develop a preventative vaccine that could finally put an end to the epidemic for which there are nearly two million new infections each year.

9 Jul 2018

Protein complex that helps shape destiny of developing T cells identified

Like a mentor helping medical students choose between specialties, a protein complex helps shape the destiny of developing T cells, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have reported.

9 Jul 2018

State prisons fail to offer cure to 144,000 inmates with deadly hepatitis C

State prisons across the U.S. are failing to treat at least 144,000 inmates who have hepatitis C, a curable but potentially fatal liver disease, according to a recent survey and subsequent interviews of state corrections departments.

9 Jul 2018

Researchers discover biomarkers that accurately identify hypervirulent K. pneumoniae

Imagine a pathogen that infects completely healthy people and can cause blindness in one day and flesh-eating infections, brain abscesses and death in just a few days.

9 Jul 2018

New study reveals potential shortcomings of antibiotic susceptibility assays

To determine which antibiotics reliably treat which bacterial infections, diagnostic laboratories that focus on clinical microbiology test pathogens isolated from patients.

9 Jul 2018

NIH researchers identify natural lipid that acts as potent anti-inflammatory

National Institutes of Health researchers have identified a naturally occurring lipid--a waxy, fatty acid--used by a disease-causing bacterium to impair the host immune response and increase the chance of infection. Inadvertently, they also may have found a potent inflammation therapy against bacterial and viral diseases.

9 Jul 2018

Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals how complex brain circuit works

The complexity of the human brain presents scientists with immense challenges as they try to find new treatments for a host of diseases and conditions. But the advent of a new technology known as single-cell RNA sequencing is opening a window into how the brain works.

6 Jul 2018

Bacteria adapted to the human body may become more susceptible to antibiotics

A new study published today in Nature Communications, led by scientists at the University of Liverpool in collaboration with the University of Salford, finds evidence that as bacteria adapt to the human body, they can sometimes become more susceptible to antibiotics and therefore easier to kill.

6 Jul 2018

Pneumococcal genes predict course of disease

Pneumococcus is an important cause of pneumonia, sepsis and meningitis. This bacterium commonly resides in the nasal cavity.

6 Jul 2018

SATB1 protein important for maintaining pluripotency of hematopoietic stem cells

Osaka University scientists demonstrate that SATB1 is important for maintaining pluripotency of hematopoietic stem cells

4 Jul 2018

Zika virus-related pregnancy loss in humans may be more common than thought

Fetal death in utero occurred in more than one-fourth of monkeys infected in the laboratory with Zika virus in early pregnancy, according to new research published in Nature Medicine.

3 Jul 2018

PMDA approves use of LYNPARZA in patients with BRCA-mutated breast cancer

AstraZeneca and Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced that Japan's Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency has approved LYNPARZA tablets for use in patients with unresectable or recurrent BRCA-mutated, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 -negative breast cancer who have received prior chemotherapy.

2 Jul 2018

Streamlining and translating basic science discoveries into the clinic

To make sure that good ideas to enhance healthcare are not lost due to a lack of resources, a growing number of centers at Penn Medicine organize forums to pitch ideas to improve medical devices and technology, hold annual competitions to fund studies to improve patient care while keeping costs down, and sponsor seed grants for programs focused on patients who need individualized tailoring of their treatment.

2 Jul 2018

Researchers discover gene that plays role in regulating body's immune response to infection

Australia's national science agency CSIRO has identified a new gene that plays a critical role in regulating the body's immune response to infection and disease.

2 Jul 2018

Researchers conduct survey to understand people's perceptions on Zika virus

In a summer outbreak that posed significant risks to pregnant women and their fetuses, 29 people in Miami-Dade County were infected with the Zika virus between late June and early August of 2016, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

30 Jun 2018

Higher doses of rifampin kill more TB bacteria in sputum without increasing adverse effects

Higher daily doses of rifampin, a cornerstone of tuberculosis treatment, killed more TB bacteria in sputum cultures, and the higher doses did so without increasing the adverse effects of treatment, according to a randomized controlled trial published online in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

29 Jun 2018

Scientists discover how the flu virus resets its trap

For the first time, scientists have directly visualized in real-time structural changes in the surface protein of the influenza virus that may help the virus to fuse with and enter target cells before hijacking their functions.

29 Jun 2018

Researcher wins $2 million NIH grant to study immunological memory

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded a $2 million, five-year grant to Ken Oestreich, an assistant professor at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, to study immunological memory.

27 Jun 2018