Encephalitis News and Research

Latest Encephalitis News and Research

Study sheds new light on the biological base of psychotic symptoms

Anti-NMDAR encephalitis is an autoimmune brain illness that is often mistaken by a psychiatric disorder since it causes psychoses and other behaviour alterations. Despite having these similarities, the illness does not respond to common antipsychotic treatments.

30 Oct 2020

Study sheds light on the biological base of symptoms in autoimmune psychosis

29 Oct 2020

New position statement clarifies WHO's stance on the use of genetically modified mosquitoes

Each year, more than 700 000 people die from vector-borne diseases (VBDs) such as malaria, dengue, schistosomiasis, leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, yellow fever and Japanese encephalitis, among others.

14 Oct 2020

COVID-19 causes potentially damaging neurological injuries, study shows

Without directly invading the brain or nerves, the virus responsible for COVID-19 causes potentially damaging neurological injuries in about one in seven infected, a new study shows.

13 Oct 2020

Scientists explain why some COVID-19 patients develop neurological symptoms

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv sheds light on the mechanism behind brain involvement in the COVID-19 pandemic. A team of researchers at the Krembil Research Institute and the University of Toronto in Canada aimed to understand further the potential mechanisms underlying SARS-CoV-2 tropism for brain vasculature to see how infection occurs in the brain.

13 Oct 2020

New clinical report on brain changes in deceased COVID-19 patients

German researchers published a report on a series of cases on post mortem findings of COVID-19 patients who succumbed to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection along with neurological complications. Their study titled “Neuropathology of patients with COVID-19 in Germany: a post-mortem case series” is published in the latest issue of The Lancet Neurology.

6 Oct 2020

Parkinson's disease diagnosed after SARS-CoV-2

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, new and unusual chronic sequelae of the disease are cropping up in many medical practices. Now, a new case paper published in The Lancet in September 2020 describes a case of new-onset Parkinson's disease following infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

22 Sep 2020

Combination of two mosquito-borne viruses may be a trigger for stroke

A deadly combination of two mosquito-borne viruses may be a trigger for stroke, new research published in the The Lancet Neurology has found.

18 Sep 2020

Michigan sees increasing EEE cases

In the United States, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) urge people to stay indoors, especially after dusk. Health officials have confirmed 22 horse cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), and one suspected human case.

17 Sep 2020

Climate change could shift the spread of West Nile virus

West Nile virus spreads most efficiently in the US at temperatures between 24-25 degrees Celsius (75.2-77 degrees Fahrenheit), a new study published today in eLife shows.

15 Sep 2020

Study reveals damaging role of immune system in severe brain infection

A new study has detailed the damaging role played by the immune system in a severe brain condition most commonly caused by the cold sore virus.

15 Sep 2020

Effective, simple, safe self-amplifying RNA vaccines

A recent review paper in the journal Current Opinion in Virology in September 2020 shows how a new generation of RNA vaccines called self-amplifying RNA vaccines are more potent than conventional mRNA vaccines and could hold the key to the global production of cost-effective potent COVID-19 vaccines.

11 Sep 2020

Brain inflammation seen in fatal COVID-19 cases

Now, a new study by researchers at the Barts Health NHS Trust and the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom shows that some patients develop neurological complications tied to COVID-19.

9 Sep 2020

Novel RNA vaccine from Arcturus Therapeutics protects mice against SARS-CoV-2

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in September 2020 reports a novel RNA vaccine platform that shows robust protection against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in mice and performs much better than a conventional mRNA vaccine. This could allow single-dose immunization, allowing progress towards global vaccination.

6 Sep 2020

A global study to determine COVID-19 health and psychosocial consequences

The current paper lays out the details of a longitudinal study that aims to follow up COVID-19 patients, including any pre-existing chronic illnesses as well as the medical care they received during their illness. A significant minority of convalescents appears to have prolonged disease sequelae.

3 Sep 2020

Researchers develop vaccine for human herpesvirus 6B

A research group led by Professor MORI Yasuko (of the Division of Clinical Virology, Center for Infectious Diseases, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine) has revealed that the HHV-6B glycoprotein complex gH/gL/gQ1/gQ2 is an effective vaccine candidate for human herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B).

20 Aug 2020

Study shows how picornaviruses infect the host cell

Picornaviruses is a family of viruses that can cause a number of different diseases, including polio, meningitis, and in rare cases myocarditis, encephalitis, and paralysis.

13 Aug 2020

Research looks at convalescent plasma use in COVID-19 mouse model

A new study by researchers at the University of Iowa and published on the preprint server bioRxiv in August 2020 reports the utility of a mouse model that recapitulates several aspects of human COVID-19 and can reflect the antiviral efficacy of new drugs as well.

12 Aug 2020

Natural compund in cedar and grapefruit skin could help repel mosquitoes and ticks says CDC

Over the last few years, there has been a rise in the number of cases of diseases caused by mosquito and tick bites. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said that a natural chemical compound could help combat this problem. This compound Nootkatone is found commonly in cedar trees, and grapefruit skin says the organization.

11 Aug 2020