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Research reveals why viruses will need to be reclassified and its biotech impact

New research reveals that the way viruses were perceived in terms of their architecture will need to be retooled, because they are actually structured in many more patterns than previously understood.

27 Sep 2019

Scientists reveal the structure of a key protein in Epstein-Barr virus infection

Scientists at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine and the Molecular Biology Institute of Barcelona have published a study in the journal Nature Communications revealing the structure of a key protein, known as a portal, in Epstein-Barr virus infection.

29 Aug 2019

Molecular mechanism of enterovirus infection uncovered

Researchers from the Nanoscience Center at the University of Jyväskylä in collaboration with those at the University of Helsinki have found that body proteins called albumin and certain ions within the attacked host cells can affect the genetic workings of enteroviruses and enhance their infection.

19 Aug 2019

Scientists point to enterovirus infection as cause for acute flaccid myelitis

Scientists at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the University of California San Diego report antibody evidence in cerebrospinal fluid that points to enterovirus infection as a cause for acute flaccid myelitis, a disease responsible for partially paralyzing more than 560 children in the United States since 2014. Results of the study appear in the journal mBio.

13 Aug 2019

Study reveals the complexities of viral evolution

Comparing a living cell to a virus is a bit like comparing the Sistine Chapel to a backyard dog house. Lacking the intricate machinery of living cells, viruses represent biology stripped down to an extreme level. They are the true minimalists of the biological world.

31 Jul 2019

Using NMR to Study Protein Structure, Dynamics and Mechanisms

Fábio Almeida describes how NMR can be used to elucidate protein structure and how this data can be applied to human disease.

From Bruker BioSpin - NMR, EPR and Imaging 4 Jul 2019

Norovirus structures could help develop therapeutics to fight food-borne illness

Noroviruses are a leading cause of food-borne illness outbreaks, accounting for 58% of all outbreaks and cause 685 million cases worldwide each year. There is no effective therapeutic against them. Having knowledge of the intricate structure of the outer layer of noroviruses, the capsid, which allows the virus to attach to its human host, could help in vaccine development.

13 Jun 2019

Scientists discover weakness in common cold virus

Scientists have discovered a weakness on the surface of the viruses that cause a multitude of illnesses.

12 Jun 2019

Megaphages detected in the intestinal tract of humans who eat high-fiber, low-fat diet

Viruses plague bacteria just as viruses like influenza plague humans. Some of the largest of these so-called bacteriophages have now been found in the human gut, where they periodically devastate bacteria just as seasonal outbreaks of flu lay humans low, according to a new study led by University of California, Berkeley, scientists.

29 Jan 2019

Researchers synthesize new compound that inhibits replication of hepatitis C virus

A new compound that inhibits the replication of hepatitis C virus in several stages of its lifecycle - and is also capable of acting on bacteria, fungi and cancer cells - has been synthesized by researchers at São Paulo State University in Brazil.

19 Dec 2018

New research explains how large virus shells are formed

A virus, the simplest physical object in biology, consists of a protein shell called the capsid, which protects its nucleic acid genome -- RNA or DNA. The capsid can be cylindrical or conical in shape, but more commonly it assumes an icosahedral structure, like a soccer ball.

5 Nov 2018

Study reveals how Seneca Valley Virus interacts with tumor receptors

Seneca Valley Virus sounds like the last bug you’d want to catch, but it could be the next breakthrough cancer therapy.

30 Oct 2018

Research reveals new details of HIV life cycle

Research by a multi-institutional team, including two members from the University of Delaware, has revealed new details about the HIV virus capsid structure and how it develops.

5 Oct 2018

Genomic ‘islands’ evolved from viruses can be converted into ‘anti-bacterial drones’

Genomic "islands" that evolved from viruses can be converted into "drones" that disable Staphylococcus aureus, bacteria that are often resistant to antibiotics and pose a threat to safe hospital care, a new study finds.

25 Sep 2018

Mechanical properties of viral DNA influence the course of infection, study finds

A new study reveals a previously unknown mechanism that governs whether viruses that infect bacteria will quickly kill their hosts or remain latent inside the cell. The discovery, reported in the journal eLife, also may apply to viruses that infect humans and other animals, the researcher said.

5 Sep 2018

Pfizer terminates clinical studies evaluating domagrozumab for treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Pfizer Inc. announced today that it is terminating two ongoing clinical studies evaluating domagrozumab (PF-06252616) for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD): a Phase 2 safety and efficacy study (B5161002) and an open-label extension study (B5161004).

30 Aug 2018

Promising data supports development of AAVhu37-based gene therapy for hemophilia A

Gene therapy using an optimized adeno-associated virus to deliver the human factor VIII gene to cynomolgus macaques showed a substantial increase in hFVIII expression and no detectable antibody response for 30 weeks in some animals.

21 Aug 2018

Supercomputer simulations reveal potential therapeutic target in HIV-1 replication

HIV-1 replicates in ninja-like ways. The virus slips through the membrane of vital white blood cells. Inside, HIV-1 copies its genes and scavenges parts to build a protective bubble for its copies.

10 Aug 2018

New way of delivering gene therapy shows promise in treating brain conditions

Researchers from the School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences have engineered a novel way of delivering gene therapy that they hope will mean scientists and doctors can target areas of the brain that were previously difficult to reach.

5 Jun 2018

Researchers gain new insights into hepatitis B virus

Researchers at the University of Delaware, working with colleagues at Indiana University, have gained new insights into the virus that causes hepatitis B -- a life-threatening and incurable infection that afflicts more than 250 million people worldwide.

4 Jun 2018