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Cholera toxin binds differently to intestinal cells than previously thought

The likelihood of becoming seriously ill from cholera depends on your blood group. It is possible to find a new remedy for the feared illness by studying the molecular structure in the toxin in the cholera bacteria.

28 Aug 2012

Nicotinamide may combat antibiotic-resistance staph infections

A new study suggests that nicotinamide, more commonly known as vitamin B3, may be able to combat some of the antibiotic-resistance staph infections that are increasingly common around the world, have killed thousands and can pose a significant threat to public health.

28 Aug 2012

Study explains how breast milk fosters colonies of microbiotic flora in a newborn's intestinal tract

The benefits of breast milk have long been appreciated, but now scientists at Duke University Medical Center have described a unique property that makes mother's milk better than infant formula in protecting infants from infections and illnesses.

28 Aug 2012

Lunch boxes and school eating areas are hotspots for bacteria

Canadian moms earn top marks when it comes to good hygiene practices, but a new study by Lysol and the Global Hygiene Council reveals they could do more to safeguard against bacteria hotspots in schools, especially at lunch time.

27 Aug 2012

Regulating microbes could help prevent diseases associated with obesity

Vaccines and antibiotics may someday join caloric restriction or bariatric surgery as a way to regulate weight gain, according to a new study focused on the interactions between diet, the bacteria that live in the bowel, and the immune system.

27 Aug 2012

PEI adjuvant improves effect of vaccines against flu, HIV and herpes

Oxford University scientists have discovered a compound that greatly boosts the effect of vaccines against viruses like flu, HIV and herpes in mice.

26 Aug 2012

Children more likely to pick up stomach infections from private water supplies

Children drinking from around half the UK's private water supplies are almost five times more likely to pick up stomach infections - according to research from the University of East Anglia (UEA).

26 Aug 2012

Viewpoints: Romney in WSJ column offers lessons from Bain; Ryan's ideological vote against curbing the deficit

My presidency would make it easier for entrepreneurs and small businesses to get the investment dollars they need to grow, by reducing and simplifying taxes; replacing Obamacare with real health-care reform that contains costs and improves care; and by stemming the flood of new regulations that are tying small businesses in knots.

26 Aug 2012

Heating as well as cleaning contact lens cases kills bacteria best

Heating contact lens cases to a temperature of 60°C while disinfecting with a multipurpose disinfecting solution could improve case hygiene by killing biofilms created by bacteria, report Australian researchers.

24 Aug 2012

PathGEN signs Powered by Affymetrix Program agreement

Affymetrix, Inc. and PathGEN Dx Pte. Ltd., a spin-off molecular diagnostics company founded by researchers from the Genome Institute of Singapore, today announced they have signed a Powered by Affymetrix (PbA) Program agreement

24 Aug 2012

Dartmouth’s professor shares news of DAR-901 TB vaccine development

Tuberculosis (TB) is second only to HIV/AIDS as the greatest killer worldwide attributable to a single infectious agent, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). With 8.8 million cases in 2010 and 95 percent of TB deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries, the disease continues to be a major public health problem in the developing world. In a July address to the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Dartmouth's C. Fordham (Ford) von Reyn shared news of a promising vaccine in the works.

24 Aug 2012

Guidelines for parents to beat back-to-school bugs

School bells are beginning to sound again across the country, so it will only be a matter of time until every parent comes face-to-face with a child who wakes up with a cold, fever or upset stomach.

24 Aug 2012

Researchers discover new way to disarm harmful bacteria

Rather than trying to kill bacteria outright with drugs, Université de Montréal researchers have discovered a way to disarm bacteria that may allow the body's own defense mechanisms to destroy them. "To understand this strategy one could imagine harmful bacteria being like Darth Vader, and the anti-virulence drug would take away his armor and lightsaber," explained Dr. Christian Baron, the study's lead author and Professor at the Department of Biochemistry.

24 Aug 2012

Study helps explain how human airways clear sticky mucus out of the lungs

A runny nose and a wet cough caused by a cold or an allergy may not feel very good. But human airways rely on sticky mucus to expel foreign matter, including toxic and infectious agents, from the body.

24 Aug 2012

Researcher describes structure and function of tuberculosis efflux pump regulator

Edward Yu took note of the facts - nearly 2 million deaths each year, 9 million infected each year, developments of multidrug-resistant, extensively drug-resistant and now totally drug-resistant strains - and decided to shift his research focus to tuberculosis.

23 Aug 2012

Early exposure to antibiotics primes children for obesity later in life

Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have made a novel discovery that could have widespread clinical implications, potentially affecting everything from nutrient metabolism to obesity in children.

23 Aug 2012

University of Tübingen microbiologist wins 2012 Sofja Kovalevskaja Award

Samuel Wagner examines how bacteria start infections - aiming to stop the mechanism and maybe use it in treatment. The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation has announced that one of this year's Sofja Kovalevskaja Awards goes this year to microbiologist Prof. Dr. Samuel Wagner, a junior professor at the University of Tübingen.

23 Aug 2012

TREM-1 gene disrupts inflammatory process implicated in liver cancer

Researchers at the Georgia Health Sciences University Cancer Center have identified a gene that disrupts the inflammatory process implicated in liver cancer.

23 Aug 2012

RNA switches can better equip and regulate viruses for many therapeutic applications

Numerous viruses are used in the service of science today. They serve as gene taxis to transfer therapeutic genes into body cells or as therapeutic viruses targeted to infect and destroy cancer cells. For such applications, the viruses are often equipped with additional genes, such as for immune mediators or for proteins inducing programmed cell death. However, these gene products can harm the body if they are released at the wrong moment or at excessive levels.

22 Aug 2012