Disease/Infection News

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More than half the world’s population is host to newly described gut virus

Odds are, there-s a virus living inside your gut that has gone undetected by scientists for decades. A new study led by researchers at San Diego State University has found that more than half the world-s population is host to a newly described virus, named crAssphage, which infects one of the most common types of gut bacteria, Bacteroidetes.

24 Jul 2014

Researchers sequence genetic material from caries bacterium for the first time

Streptococcus mutans, one of the principal bacteria that cause dental caries, has increased the change in its genetic material over time, possibly coinciding with dietary change linked to the expansion of humanity.

24 Jul 2014

Researchers uncover how malaria parasite becomes resistant to fosmidomycin drug

Researchers have uncovered a way the malaria parasite becomes resistant to an investigational drug. The discovery, at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, also is relevant for other infectious diseases including bacterial infections and tuberculosis.

24 Jul 2014

Clinic-based audio project gives HIV patients a chance to share experiences with diagnosis

The voice on the recording was low and calm as the speaker recounted the telephone call that brought the news he was infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS: "My heart just stopped for a little bit and next thing you know I was on the floor flat on my face boohooing, crying like a baby."

24 Jul 2014

Increased number of Americans infected with chikungunya, say researchers

In just two weeks, the number of Americans infected with the mosquito-borne virus chikungunya has almost doubled and the virus has now been found in mosquitoes in the United States, something that is very concerning to a Kansas State University professor who is a leading researcher of the virus.

24 Jul 2014

NYSCF and Beyond Batten Disease Foundation partner to find cure for juvenile Batten disease

The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) and Beyond Batten Disease Foundation (BBDF) have partnered to develop stem cell resources to investigate and explore new treatments and ultimately find a cure for juvenile Batten disease, a fatal illness affecting children.

24 Jul 2014

Showers and rivers may play role in the development of Crohn's disease

Humans may be exposed to bacteria linked with Crohn's disease through fine spray from showers and rivers according to research led by Lancaster University.

24 Jul 2014

Scientists work to detect chronic traumatic encephalopathy in earliest stages

Autopsies have shown that some high-profile athletes who suffered repeated blows to the head during their careers have unusual protein clumps in their brains.

24 Jul 2014

Researchers develop sensing microbiosensor that detects beneficial bacteria in food

In the food industry is very important to ensure the quality and safety of products consumed by the population to improve their properties and reduce foodborne illness.

24 Jul 2014

Scientist develops highly accurate device for diagnosing fatal lung disease

A scientist from the University of Exeter has developed a simple, cheap and highly accurate device for diagnosing a frequently fatal lung disease which attacks immune deficient individuals such as cancer patients and bone marrow transplant recipients.

24 Jul 2014

Sinovac selected to supply seasonal influenza vaccine to Beijing citizens

Sinovac Biotech Ltd., a leading provider of biopharmaceutical products in China, announced today that it has been selected by the Beijing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to be a supplier of the seasonal influenza vaccine to the citizens of Beijing for 2014.

23 Jul 2014

New momentum: WHO welcomes progress in tackling viral hepatitis

On World Hepatitis Day, 28 July, WHO welcomes new progress in tackling one of the world's most serious diseases. Viral hepatitis - a group of infectious diseases known as hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E - affects millions of people worldwide, causing acute and chronic liver disease and killing close to 1.4 million people every year.

23 Jul 2014

Tackling hepatitis C: an interview with Gaston Picchio, Global Hepatitis Disease Area Leader at Janssen

Gaston Picchio outlines the major findings of the recent report published by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU): ‘Tackling hepatitis C: Moving towards an integrated policy approach’

23 Jul 2014

Pilot study shows that anti-cancer drug can activate hidden HIV

A pilot study by HIV researchers from Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark has shown that an anti-cancer drug can activate hidden HIV.

23 Jul 2014

Immunosignaturing holds promise for accurate diagnosis of Valley Fever

On July 5, 2011, a massive wall of dust, ("haboob," in Arabic), blanketed Phoenix, Arizona, creating an awesome spectacle, (or stubborn nuisance, depending on your perspective). Dust storms are a common occurrence in the arid desert environments of the American Southwest.

23 Jul 2014

Lancet report: Support sex workers to prevent HIV

Across the world, in high- and low-income countries, women, men, and transgender people who sell sex are subjected to repressive and discriminatory law, policy, and practice, which in turn fuel human rights violations against them, including violence and discrimination. All of these factors are preventing sex workers from accessing the services which they need in order to effectively prevent and treat HIV infection, according to a major new Series on HIV and sex workers, published in The Lancet.

23 Jul 2014