Pathogen News and Research

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Scientists to develop faster method for pathogen screening in food products

The regular appearance of food poisoning in the news, including a recent event that led to the recall of more than 33,000 pounds of chicken, drives home the need for better bacterial detection long before meats and produce make it to the dinner table.

30 Jan 2014

S. pneumoniae predicts acute sinusitis microbial response

Research from the USA shows that confirmed nasopharyngeal colonization with Streptococcus pneumoniae independently predicts a rapid response to antimicrobial therapy in children with acute sinusitis.

27 Jan 2014

Sexual selection enhances ability of offspring to cope with infection

To test whether female mate choice enhances the health and disease-resistance of offspring, either through immune resistance, tolerance to infection, or both, researchers led by Dustin Penn tested female house mice's preferences (Mus musculus) for particular males and then experimentally assigned each female to mate with either their preferred or their non-preferred male.

24 Jan 2014

New technique detects bacterium that causes Legionnaires’ disease

The bacterium that causes Legionnaires’ disease remains difficult to track. French researchers have now developed a new technique that should allow living representatives of this dangerous pathogen to be detected much more quickly than with conventional methods. As they report in the journal Angewandte Chemie, samples are exposed to an azide-modified compound that the pathogen specifically incorporates into its shell, which is made of saccharide units. A fluorescent marker attached to the azide groups is used to identify the pathogen.

24 Jan 2014

Compact liquid handling workstation for PCR launched by Hamilton Robotics

At the annual Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) conference, Hamilton Robotics has introduces the NIMBUS® PCR Workstation, which is a compact and affordable pipetting workstation enabling fast and flexible assay setup for endpoint, real-time, qPCR or multiplex PCR.

23 Jan 2014

Rice University-based research develops fast biosensor for pathogens in food

An array of tiny diving boards can perform the Olympian feat of identifying many strains of salmonella at once.

23 Jan 2014

New study raises hope to successfully fight chytridiomycosis

An international team of researchers has made important progress in understanding the distribution of the deadly amphibian chytrid pathogen. In some regions, the deadly impact of the pathogen appears to be hampered by small predators, naturally occurring in freshwater bodies. These micropredators may efficiently reduce the number of free-swimming infectious stages (zoospores) by consuming them. This natural behavior will reduce the infection pressure on potential amphibian hosts and a goes a long way towards explaining the occurrence of chytridiomycosis, at least in temporal climatic regions.

21 Jan 2014

Researchers find new candidate that may help combat malaria

Two of the most urgent challenges for scientists are the battles against food shortages and infectious diseases like malaria. Unfortunately, both the herbicides used to protect plants and the anti-infectives that shield us from disease rapidly lose their effectiveness as the target organisms develop resistance. In order to benefit both fields at once, scientists tested lead compounds from agrochemical research against infectious germs as well.

21 Jan 2014

Scientists discover novel mechanism that influences GAS virulence at early steps of necrotizing fasciitis

How does Streptococcus pyogenes, or Group A streptococcus (GAS) — a bacterial pathogen that can colonize humans without causing symptoms or can lead to mild infections — also cause life-threatening diseases such as necrotizing fasciitis (commonly known as flesh-eating disease) and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome?

21 Jan 2014

First antigen test for human bocavirus type 1 now available on ArcDia's mariPOC test platform

ArcDia Ltd. ArcDia International Ltd today announced that the first antigen test for human bocavirus type 1 is now commercially available on ArcDia's mariPOC test platform.

21 Jan 2014

Researchers uncover how typhoid pathogen manages to evade host's immune system

The life-threatening disease typhoid fever results from the ongoing battle between the bacterial pathogen Salmonella and the immune cells of the body. Prof. Dirk Bumann's research group at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel has now uncovered how the typhoid pathogen repeatedly manages to evade the host's immune system. Their findings are published in the scientific journal "Cell Host & Microbe".

20 Jan 2014

Research may lead to potential treatment for deadly bacterial infections

Collaboration between the National University of Singapore (NUS) and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJ) on inflammation research may lead to a potential treatment for deadly bacterial infections

20 Jan 2014

Research opens way to possible new treatments for bacterial infections

How does Streptococcus pyogenes, or Group A streptococcus (GAS) - a bacterial pathogen that can colonize humans without causing symptoms or can lead to mild infections - also cause life-threatening diseases such as necrotizing fasciitis (commonly known as flesh-eating disease) and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome?

17 Jan 2014

Biothera enhances innate immune responses to Imprime PGG drug candidate

Biothera has enhanced innate immune responses to its cancer immunotherapy drug candidate Imprime PGG in subjects regardless of biomarker status, demonstrating the opportunity to treat a larger patient population. The in vitro research will be presented today at the Cambridge Healthtech Institute's Antibody-Drug Conjugates/Engineering Targeted Therapeutics conference in Palm Springs, CA.

16 Jan 2014

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and herpesvirus saimiri: an interview with Elazar Rabbani, Chief Executive Officer of Enzo

Pulmonary fibrosis is a condition where fibrotic or scarred tissue progressively develops in the lungs. In some cases the particular cause is known but in others it remains unknown and is given the term “idiopathic”.

14 Jan 2014

Research findings could affect how drugs are developed to treat autoimmune diseases

Researchers at Johns Hopkins have zoomed in on what is going on at the molecular level when the body recognizes and defends against an attack of pathogens, and the findings, they say, could influence how drugs are developed to treat autoimmune diseases.

8 Jan 2014

Researchers explore molecular level changes when body recognizes, defends against pathogens

8 Jan 2014

Biothera reports positive results from Phase 2 clinical trial of Imprime PGG in NSCLC patients

Biothera today reported positive results from its proof of concept Phase 2 clinical trial in 90 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) at the American Association for Cancer Research and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer joint conference on the Molecular Origins of Lung Cancer in San Diego.

8 Jan 2014

Landes Bioscience releases special issue on sepsis

A special issue on sepsis has been released by the publisher Landes Bioscience (Austin, TX USA). The articles contained in this special issue of the journal Virulence have been authored by world-class investigators and provide new insights into both the pathogen-related factors and the host defense mechanisms that lead to septic shock and contribute to its resolution or fatal outcome.

7 Jan 2014