Parasitology News and Research

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Parasitology is the study of organisms that gain nutrients and protection from their host, without any benefit to the host.

New project explores role of mosquitoes in transmission of pathogens in Austria

In the wake of climate change and globalisation, non-indigenous mosquito species establish in Europe together with the pathogens they transmit. A project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF is currently investigating mosquito species found in Austria and their role in the transmission of pathogens.

3 May 2016

Newly discovered hybrid house mosquitoes could be bridge vectors between birds and humans

The team of researchers from the Institute of Parasitology at Vetmeduni Vienna sampled nearly 1,500 house mosquitoes in eastern Austria. The northern house mosquito Culex pipiens, representing more than 90% of the total catch, was the most abundant. Culex pipiens comprises a complex of ecologically different forms that are morphologically indistinct.

27 Apr 2016

First-ever vaccine to combat Leishmaniasis under development

As scientists scramble to get a Zika virus vaccine into human trials by the end of the summer, a team of researchers is working on the first-ever vaccine to prevent another insect-borne disease - Leishmaniasis - from gaining a similar foothold in the Americas.

27 Apr 2016

Complete genetic map of scleroderma opens door for diagnosis and targeted treatment

Scleroderma is an autoimmune disease that affects one out of every 10,000 people in Europe and North America, mostly middle-aged women, and causes death in a high percentage of cases.

11 Apr 2016

New model identifies climate change as significant factor for expansion of lone star ticks in Kansas

Researchers in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University have validated a model showing growth in Kansas for the habitat of the troublesome lone star tick.

2 Mar 2016

Novel way proposed for developing infectious disease models to uncover hidden patterns of transmission

Ebola. Chikungunya. Zika. Once rare and exotic pathogens keep popping up and turning into household names. It's the new reality as the climate warms, humans expand more into wildlife habitats and air travel shrinks the distances across the globe.

27 Feb 2016

Virginia Tech experts explore new strategy to eradicate harmful viruses

With the outbreak of viruses like Zika, chikungunya, and dengue on the rise, public health officials are desperate to stop transmission.

18 Feb 2016

Mayo Clinic researchers discover new bacterial species that triggers Lyme disease in people

Mayo Clinic researchers, in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and health officials from Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin, have discovered a new bacterial species that causes Lyme disease in people. The new species has been provisionally named Borrelia mayonii. Prior to this finding, the only species believed to cause Lyme disease in North America was Borrelia burgdorferi.

9 Feb 2016

Research points to potential use of radiotherapy in treating systemic cancer

An international team of researchers lead by the University of Granada has proven that mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) may be used as enhancer agents of local and systemic effects of radiotherapy, that is to say, those which affect the irradiated tumour and tumour cells located at a certain distance of the irradiated ones.

30 Jan 2016

New funding supports research on new and improved drug treatments for tuberculosis, malaria

University of Toronto and McGill University scientists are leading an international partnership to discover new and improved drug treatments for tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases -- thanks to a contribution from Merck Canada Inc., as well as an additional $5 million supplement to a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

17 Dec 2015

Risk of developing visceral leishmaniasis much higher in transplant patients

Researchers from Spain have analysed the prevalence of leishmaniasis among the population of organ transplant recipients. The findings of this study, published in the journal 'PLoS Neglected Tropical Disease', confirm that the risk of developing visceral leishmaniasis ‑the most severe form of the disease which can pose life-threatening complications‑ is more than one hundred times greater in transplant patients living in areas of disease outbreak.

25 Nov 2015

Researchers reveal why malaria vaccine provides only moderate protection among vaccinated children

Using new, highly sensitive genomic sequencing technology, an international team of researchers has found new biological evidence to help explain why the malaria vaccine candidate RTS,S/AS01 (called RTS,S) provided only moderate protection among vaccinated children during clinical testing.

23 Oct 2015

TGen researchers join international scientists in discovering how malaria protein could some day help stop cancer

Researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute joined an international team of scientists in discovering how a protein from malaria could some day help stop cancer.

19 Oct 2015

Malaria protein could one day help stop cancer

Scientists at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver Coastal Health and the BC Cancer Agency have discovered a protein from malaria that could one day help stop cancer in its tracks.

13 Oct 2015

Study sheds further light on the way APOL1 protein kills trypanosmoe

The African trypanosome Trypanosoma brucei is a blood parasite capable of infecting many mammals. Humans are provided with natural immunity against infection through the activity of the protein apolipoprotein L1 (APOL1): captured via endocytosis, APOL1 forms pores in the lysosomal membrane, leading to the death of the trypanosome.

27 Aug 2015

Breakthroughs against Plasmodium falciparum pave way for latest advancement

When the highly-influential European Medicines Agency announced its recommendation to approve what could be the world's first licensed vaccine against malaria in infants and children, there was much celebrating in the research community at NYU Langone Medical Center.

4 Aug 2015

Europe has increasing prevalence of fungal resistance, warns ESCMID

The European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Disease – an organization that explores the risks and best practices in infectious disease – is imploring global healthcare professionals and bodies to take a more active role in the growing problem of fungal resistance.

28 Jul 2015

Cysticercosis now fully controlled in Mexico

Dr. Ana Flisser was recognized for 40 years of research regarding this disease. The parasite can not be eradicated; however, it is important to present simple preventive measures.

13 Jul 2015

NSF awards $500,000 grant to digitally preserve parasite specimens

A $500,000 grant from the National Science Foundation will allow the Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology to digitally preserve four major collections of parasite specimens donated to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln during the past five years.

22 May 2015

Research findings pave way for development of new treatments for respiratory diseases

The research has discovered a link between a vital pumping system that does not function correctly in people with cystic fibrosis and the parasite Toxoplasma.

29 Apr 2015