SARS News and Research

RSS

Researchers create 2-for-1 vaccine that protects mice from MERS and rabies

In a new study, researchers have modified a rabies virus, so that it has a protein from the MERS virus; this altered virus works as a 2-for-1 vaccine that protects mice against both Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and rabies.

7 Dec 2016

Vaxine’s unique adjuvants boost effectiveness of vaccines for battling against infectious diseases

SUGAR-based adjuvants from Australia are boosting the effectiveness of vaccines to target some of the world’s deadliest diseases.

7 Dec 2016

Wyss Institute wins 'Best of What's New' award for paper-based rapid Zika test

A rapid Zika test, developed by an international, multi-institutional team of researchers led by synthetic biologist James Collins, Ph.D., at Harvard University's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, has today been named a 2016 "Best of What's New" awards winner by Popular Science magazine in the Health category.

20 Oct 2016

Hygiene hypothesis: a misleading misnomer? An interview with Professor Sally Bloomfield

Professor Strachan first proposed the hygiene hypothesis back in 1989. Reviewing the evidence, he suggested that one of the causes of the recent rapid rise in allergic diseases in children was lack of exposure to childhood infections

11 Aug 2016

Experts describe pathway to limit blurring of boundaries between medical intelligence, securitisation of health threats

Society must align the overlapping priorities and often clashing interests of medical intelligence, national security agendas and the global health community, according to global health advocates writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.

12 Jul 2016

Bringing healthcare home: an interview with Dr Andrew Lin

The goal of CliniCloud is to bring healthcare home. For us, what that means is a patient-centered and patient-modeled healthcare system, where we focus on the fact that consumers want access to healthcare and to a doctor. We're building an ecosystem around the tools and the software to really enable that to happen as conveniently and as affordably as possible.

5 Jul 2016

Research shows enveloped viruses could survive on toys long enough to cause infection

Certain viruses, such as influenza, could survive on children's toys long enough to result in exposures, placing children at risk for getting infectious diseases, according to researchers at Georgia State University.

24 Jun 2016

Study: New SARS-like WIV1-CoV virus poised to infect humans

A SARS-like virus found in Chinese horseshoe bats may be poised to infect humans without the need for adaptation, overcoming an initial barrier that could potentially set the stage for an outbreak according to a study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

16 Mar 2016

Researchers solve structure of key protein in coronaviruses, like MERS and SARS

When the respiratory illness SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) emerged in 2003, it killed at least 775 people before it was contained. Nine years later, MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) began circulating in the human population—and has gone on to have a 36 percent case fatality rate.

7 Mar 2016

Cryo-electron microscopy helps analyze infection mechanisms of coronaviruses in detail

High-resolution cryo-electron microscopy and supercomputing have now made it possible to analyze in detail the infection mechanisms of coronaviruses. These viruses are notorious for attacking the respiratory tract of humans and animals.

27 Feb 2016

New treatment protects mice from MERS infection

In a new study, University of Maryland School of Medicine researchers have had promising results with a new treatment for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). The study, published today in the journal Science Translational Medicine, found a new treatment that protected mice from MERS infection.

18 Feb 2016

WRAIR begins Phase 1 clinical trial to evaluate MERS vaccine candidate

The Walter Reed Army Institute of Research began vaccinations today in a Phase 1 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and immune response of a vaccine candidate to prevent Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

17 Feb 2016

RB announces Zika Relief Package of $1 million to help fight Zika virus outbreak

In response to the global call for urgently needed resources to fight the spread of the Zika virus, RB is announcing a Zika Relief Package of $1 million USD consisting of both cash and product donations that will be made available to health authorities and international NGOs battling the outbreak.

16 Feb 2016

Zika virus can have substantial economic impact in Americas

"Zika virus isn't going anywhere," says Frank Esper, MD, infectious disease specialist at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital. "If it's anything near what happened with SARS or with Ebola, people are going to be very hesitant to travel to those areas.

11 Feb 2016

New vaccine shows promise against Middle East respiratory syndrome in dromedary camels

An international research project with the involvement of Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and the Animal Health Research Centre (IRTA-CReSA), has designed a vaccine shown to be effective in protecting dromedaries against the coronavirus (CoV) that causes Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

18 Dec 2015

U.S. has sufficient capacity for treating Ebola outbreak but financial, resource challenges remain as hurdle

The United States has sufficient capacity for treating another outbreak of the Ebola virus, but financial, staffing and resource challenges remain a hurdle for many hospitals and health systems attempting to maintain dedicated treatment centers for highly infectious diseases, according to new study released today.

12 Dec 2015

RTFCCR grant supports ASCOLT study that evaluates effectiveness of Aspirin in colorectal cancer patients

Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research, an international private foundation based in Switzerland, has awarded a US $800,000 grant to be released over two years for the ASCOLT study conducted by Dr John Chia, Senior Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore.

9 Dec 2015

Loyola presents Scientist of the Year awards

Susan Baker, PhD, a leading researcher of a class of viruses that includes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), has been named Senior Scientist of the Year at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. Wei Qiu, PhD, who is researching the molecular mechanisms of liver cancer, has been named Junior Scientist of the Year.

6 Nov 2015

Self-disseminating vaccines could prevent EID transmission from animals to humans

The 2014/2015 Ebola outbreak in West Africa shone the spotlight not only on the unpreparedness of local health services and science to deal with the pandemic, but also on the phenomenon of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs).

2 Nov 2015

President and CEO of Protein Sciences elected as 2015 Fellow of the International Society for Vaccines

Protein Sciences Corporation, the makers of Flublok Influenza Vaccine, announced today that Dr. Manon Cox, President and CEO, was elected as a 2015 Fellow of the International Society for Vaccines (ISV). The ISV is an esteemed organization dedicated to the development, advancement and use of vaccines to prevent and control disease.

30 Oct 2015