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Rising tick-borne disease in Canada can trigger heart inflammation

Move over, Lyme disease - there's another tick-borne disease to worry about in Canada. Anaplasmosis, the second most common tick-borne disease in the country, can cause a range of health issues, including myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle).

13 Jul 2026

Researchers develop low-cost catnip mosquito repellent for rural Uganda

Plant researchers from Wales and Uganda have collaborated on a community enterprise project in rural Uganda, becoming the first to create affordable and highly effective mosquito repellent distilled from locally grown catnip plants.

7 Jul 2026

Plant-based mosquito repellent offers effective alternative to DEET lotions

Summertime hikes and afternoons in the backyard can be ruined by mosquito bites. So, many people apply topical synthetic repellents like DEET before heading outside, but there is a growing market for natural repellants that could be less irritating to the skin and more environmentally friendly.

8 May 2026

Survey shows low public concern despite rising West Nile virus infections in the U.S.

West Nile virus is the leading cause of mosquito-borne illness in the continental United States. As of Sept. 23, over 1,100 human cases of West Nile disease have been reported across 42 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including nearly 750 cases of the more serious neuroinvasive form which affects the brain.

26 Sep 2025

Disrupting dopamine pathway stops threadworms from burrowing into the skin

Threadworms, which are a type of parasitic nematode, spend a lot of time crawling around on human skin, poking and prodding to find the best place for entry before burrowing in.

13 Aug 2025

Oropouche virus: Emerging threats, symptoms, and prevention

Researchers provide an overview of the emerging Oropouche virus.

19 Mar 2025

Travelers warned about Oropouche virus in South American countries

Heading south for the winter? Oropouche virus, a new infectious disease, has been reported in travelers from Canada and the United States who visited Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, and Cuba.

17 Mar 2025

Increasing cases of mosquito-borne diseases call for greater awareness

The hospitalization last summer of Dr. Anthony Fauci, former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, with West Nile virus – and his account of it this week in the New York Times – have helped raise public awareness of the dangers of mosquito borne-illness, which can range from Zika and malaria to dengue and West Nile virus.

8 Oct 2024

Common herbicide exposure linked to worse brain function in adolescents

Herbicides are the most used class of pesticides worldwide, with uses in agriculture, homes and industry. Exposures to two of the most popular herbicides were associated with worse brain function among adolescents, according to a study led by researchers at the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at University of California San Diego.

12 Oct 2023

Expert warns of the increasing risks of European holidays

As the UKHSA issues new essential health guidance for travellers going abroad, a leading testing expert warns of the increasing risks of European holidays.

28 Jul 2023

Using patches of synthetic skin to test blood-sucking behavior of mosquitoes

If watching animals feast on human blood for 30-plus hours isn't your idea of fun, don't worry. The robot can do it.

9 Feb 2023

New synthetic skin to study mosquito feeding behavior

One by one, mosquitoes are captured by a handheld vacuum and released into a clear plastic box. After taking a moment to adjust to their new surroundings, the mosquitoes smell blood and swarm to the source.

9 Feb 2023

Study reveals the unique and unconventional way mosquitoes process odors

If you've ever sprayed yourself head to toe in bug repellent, yet still felt like a mosquito magnet, it will come as no shock to you that mosquitoes are very, very good at finding humans to bite.

19 Aug 2022

Study offers molecular views on how olfactory receptors work

All senses must reckon with the richness of the world, but nothing matches the challenge faced by the olfactory system that underlies our sense of smell.

4 Aug 2021

PAS 2021: Plenary session on prenatal environmental contaminants and childhood disease

A state of the art plenary session during the Pediatric Academic Societies 2021 Virtual Meeting discussed prenatal environmental contaminants and childhood disease, and the latest evidence for epigenetic mechanisms associated with transgenerational disease and public policy implications.

5 May 2021

Female mosquitoes can detect a combination of four different substances in blood

Mosquitoes spread diseases like malaria, dengue, and yellow fever that kill at least a half a million people each year. Now researchers are learning what humans taste like to mosquitoes, down to the individual neurons that sense blood's distinctive, delectable flavor.

13 Oct 2020

Scientists develop new tool for studying the biting behavior of mosquitoes

Scientists have developed a tool for studying the biting behaviour of common pathogen-carrying mosquitoes, according to new research published this week in eLife.

23 Sep 2020

Michigan sees increasing EEE cases

In the United States, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) urge people to stay indoors, especially after dusk. Health officials have confirmed 22 horse cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), and one suspected human case.

17 Sep 2020

Study analyzes link between maternal insecticide use during pregnancy and neonatal jaundice

The data of 61,751 pregnant women, out of approximately 100,000 collected by the Japan Environment and Children's Study analyzed the association between the maternal usage of insecticides and insect repellents during pregnancy and neonatal hyperbilirubinemia.

28 Aug 2020

Experts recommend tweezers to protect children from ticks

Not all bloodsuckers are created equal in parents' eyes. When it comes to bug bites, parents are twice as likely to be concerned about ticks as they are about mosquitoes transmitting disease, a new national poll finds.

15 Jun 2020