Disease/Infection News

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Early infection screening programs may lead to lower rates of HIV transmission

Detecting HIV earlier, through screening programs that can identify the virus shortly after infection, may lead to lower rates of HIV transmission in local epidemics, suggest findings from a new study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases and available online.

12 May 2016

Point-of-care test could help detect TB in HIV-positive individuals

An international review team has prepared a Cochrane systematic review to assess the accuracy of a point-of-care urine test for diagnosing and screening tuberculosis (TB) in people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

12 May 2016

High-throughput screening can help detect multiple compounds with potent antimicrobial activity

A new study in which researchers rapidly screened more than 11,000 bioactive molecules for activity against an antibiotic-resistant strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteria identified multiple compounds with potent antimicrobial activity.

12 May 2016

Scientists identify new hots pots of antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria most often are associated with hospitals and other health-care settings, but a new study indicates that chicken coops and sewage treatment plants also are hot spots of antibiotic resistance.

12 May 2016

Brazilian strain of Zika virus can cause severe birth defects

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues in Brazil and Senegal, have described the first "direct experimental proof" that the Brazilian strain of Zika virus can actually cause severe birth defects. The findings are published in the May 11 online issue of Nature.

12 May 2016

Cloud-based data from EHRs can help track influenza in real time

Early detection and prediction of influenza outbreaks is critical to minimizing their impact. Currently, flu-like illnesses are tracked by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but with a time lag of one to two weeks.

11 May 2016

Better education for patients, doctors on disease symptoms may help reduce leprosy in Brazil

Better education for both patients and doctors on how to spot the early symptoms of leprosy would help to reduce cases of the disease in Brazil, according to a study led by researchers at the University of Birmingham.

11 May 2016

UCLA, Danish research yields proof that treatment-as-prevention strategy could eliminate HIV

Worldwide, about 35 million people are living with HIV. The World Health Organization and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS plan to use an approach called "treatment as prevention" to eliminate the global pandemic, which the WHO says will have occurred when only one person out of 1,000 becomes infected each year.

11 May 2016

Researchers find link between BPD and risk of STI/HIV in male inmates

Sexually transmitted infections (STI), including HIV, disproportionately affect incarcerated populations. In 2010, over 90% of the inmates living with HIV in U.S. prisons were men and the prevalence of STIs such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis, continues to be much higher among male inmates as compared to the U.S. population at large.

11 May 2016

New study sheds more light on level of alcohol consumption among people with hepatitis C

Drinking alcohol can increase the risk of illness and death from the hepatitis C virus. A new national household study of U.S. adults published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine shows that many people living with hepatitis C report either former or current excessive alcohol use.

11 May 2016

Yellow fever outbreak: Researchers emphasize need to prepare for global health emergency

Evidence is mounting that the current outbreak of yellow fever is becoming the latest global health emergency, say two Georgetown University professors, who call on the World Health Organization to convene an emergency committee under the International Health Regulations. In addition, with frequent emerging epidemics, they call for the creation of a "standing emergency committee" to be prepared for future health emergencies.

10 May 2016

lncRNA in placenta may help protect unborn baby from invading pathogens

The human placenta is an organ unlike any other. During the course of nine months it is formed by the embryo, sustains life and then is shed.

10 May 2016

Pathogen-selective approach to antibiotic development less disruptive to gut microbiome

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists report the first evidence that a pathogen-specific antibiotic was less disruptive to the gut microbiome than broad-spectrum antibiotics.

10 May 2016

NYUCD awarded $1.6M grant to explore biological and physiological effects of e-cig use on oral health

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, a division of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded NYU College of Dentistry Professors Deepak Saxena, MS, PhD, and Xin Li, PhD, a four-year $1.6M NIDCR grant to study the biological and physiological effects of electronic cigarette aerosol mixtures on oral health.

10 May 2016

Experimental vaccine protects healthy U.S. adults from malaria infection for more than one year

An experimental malaria vaccine protected a small number of healthy, malaria-naïve adults in the United States from infection for more than one year after immunization, according to results from a Phase 1 trial described in the May 9th issue of Nature Medicine.

10 May 2016

MGH researchers develop device to rapidly diagnose health-care-associated infections

A team of Massachusetts General Hospital investigators has developed a device with the potential of shortening the time required to rapidly diagnose pathogens responsible for health-care-associated infections from a couple of days to a matter of hours.

10 May 2016

Scientists develop low-cost, easy-to-use diagnostic platform to detect Zika virus

University of Toronto Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Keith Pardee and an international team of collaborators, including scientists from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, have developed a low-cost, easy-to-use diagnostic platform for detecting the Zika virus.

9 May 2016

Study hints at new therapeutic approach to mitigate effects of prenatal Zika virus infection

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently concluded that Zika virus infection in pregnant women can stunt neonatal brain development, leading to babies born with abnormally small heads, a condition known as microcephaly. Now, for the first time, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine have determined one way Zika infection can damage developing brain cells.

9 May 2016

New antibody-based therapy may provide better strategy for long-term control of HIV

The development of antiretroviral therapy, a combination of drugs that slows the replication of HIV in the body, has transformed the treatment of this infection. What was once a certain death sentence is now a chronic condition that people can live with for decades.

9 May 2016

MIT researchers develop innovative paper-based test to diagnose Zika virus

A new paper-based test developed at MIT and other institutions can diagnose Zika virus infection within a few hours. The test, which distinguishes Zika from the very similar dengue virus, can be stored at room temperature and read with a simple electronic reader, making it potentially practical for widespread use.

9 May 2016

Disease/Infection News

Early infection screening programs may lead to lower rates of HIV transmission

Point-of-care test could help detect TB in HIV-positive individuals

High-throughput screening can help detect multiple compounds with potent antimicrobial activity

Scientists identify new hots pots of antibiotic resistance

Brazilian strain of Zika virus can cause severe birth defects

Cloud-based data from EHRs can help track influenza in real time

Better education for patients, doctors on disease symptoms may help reduce leprosy in Brazil

UCLA, Danish research yields proof that treatment-as-prevention strategy could eliminate HIV

Researchers find link between BPD and risk of STI/HIV in male inmates

New study sheds more light on level of alcohol consumption among people with hepatitis C

Yellow fever outbreak: Researchers emphasize need to prepare for global health emergency

lncRNA in placenta may help protect unborn baby from invading pathogens

Pathogen-selective approach to antibiotic development less disruptive to gut microbiome

NYUCD awarded $1.6M grant to explore biological and physiological effects of e-cig use on oral health

Experimental vaccine protects healthy U.S. adults from malaria infection for more than one year

MGH researchers develop device to rapidly diagnose health-care-associated infections

Scientists develop low-cost, easy-to-use diagnostic platform to detect Zika virus

Study hints at new therapeutic approach to mitigate effects of prenatal Zika virus infection

New antibody-based therapy may provide better strategy for long-term control of HIV

MIT researchers develop innovative paper-based test to diagnose Zika virus

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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