Influenza News and Research

Latest Influenza News and Research

Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine shows promise against new SARS-CoV-2 variants

A team of researchers in the U.S. studied the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine candidate - currently being rolled out in many parts of the world to high-risk individuals - to see if it still holds up against mutant strains of the virus and yielded encouraging results.

2 Feb 2021

Differences in immune response to SARS-CoV-2 determine disease severity, study finds

Researchers investigate host responses to SARS-CoV-2, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and influenza virus (IV) in the nasal mucosa in children and adults.

2 Feb 2021

When your chance for a covid shot comes, don’t worry about the numbers

When getting vaccinated against covid-19, there's no sense being picky. You should take the first authorized vaccine that's offered, experts say.

1 Feb 2021

Studies show slowing of UK life expectancy after financial crisis

Increases in life expectancy in the UK and elsewhere had slowed even before 2016 - and COVID-19 is expected to further eliminate any gains, Newcastle University studies show.

1 Feb 2021

India’s COVID-19-related hygiene promotion campaign shows some positive results

A new study explores the results of such hygiene promotion campaigns on handwashing practices in rural Odisha, India.

1 Feb 2021

E484K mutation is potentially associated with SARS-CoV-2 adaptive fitness

A team of Brazilian scientists has recently conducted genomic and phylogenetic analyses of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) genome to understand the viral evolution process better. Their analyses reveal that the E484K mutated variant of SARS-CoV-2 is present in three different lineages in four Brazilian regions and that the mutation may serve as a common solution for viral evolution.

31 Jan 2021

DSMB recommends continuation of Phase 2/3 study of opaganib for severe COVID-19

RedHill Biopharma Ltd., a specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced that the independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) for the global Phase 2/3 study of opaganib in patients with severe COVID-19, unanimously recommended to continue the study following a pre-scheduled futility review of unblinded efficacy data from the first 135 patients treated in the study and safety data from the first 175 patients.

30 Jan 2021

Survey: More than a third of Americans either unlikely or unsure to get a COVID-19 vaccine

News reports indicate COVID-19 vaccines are not getting out soon enough nor in adequate supplies to most regions, but there may be a larger underlying problem than shortages. A University of California, Davis, study found that more than a third of people nationwide are either unlikely or at least hesitant to get a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available to them.

30 Jan 2021

Self- or caregiver swabs are as effective as healthcare worker swabs for detecting pathogens

Self swabs and caregiver swabs are effective at detecting multiple pathogens and are just as accurate as those taken by healthcare workers, according to a team of Australian researchers.

28 Jan 2021

Variants emerging during COVID-19 pandemic resist antibody neutralization

Researchers in the U.S. have warned that recently emerged variants of SARS-CoV-2 have become worryingly resistant to monoclonal antibody therapies, plasma from convalescent patients and sera from vaccinated individuals.

28 Jan 2021

Neurological and psychiatric complications six months after COVID-19 recovery

Researchers in the United Kingdom have aimed to determine the prevalence of patients who experience neurological and psychiatric conditions six months after recovering from COVID-19.

28 Jan 2021

Viral ExoN regulates the rate of recombination in SARS-CoV-2

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston have discovered what may be the Achilles' heel of the coronavirus, a finding that may help close the door on COVID-19 and possibly head off future pandemics.

28 Jan 2021

Melatonin synthesized in the lungs acts as a barrier against SARS-CoV-2

Melatonin synthesized in the lungs acts as a barrier against SARS-CoV-2, preventing expression of genes that encode proteins in cells such as resident macrophages in the nose and pulmonary alveoli, and epithelial cells lining the alveoli, all of which are entry points for the virus.

28 Jan 2021

Study examines the causes behind antibiotic overuse

The overuse of antibiotics occurs due to the mistaken widespread belief that they are beneficial for a broad array of conditions and because many physicians are willing to prescribe antibiotics if patients ask for the medication, according to a Rutgers study.

27 Jan 2021

Temperature, latitude correlate with COVID-19 cases and mortality rates

With cities around the globe locking down yet again amid soaring COVID-19 numbers, could seasonality be partially to blame? New research from the University of Illinois says yes.

27 Jan 2021

Vaccines delivered via skin may offer better protection against respiratory diseases

Among infectious diseases that have caused pandemics and epidemics, smallpox stands out as a success story. Smallpox vaccination led to the disease's eradication in the twentieth century.

27 Jan 2021

COVID-19 mortality rates higher in pregnant women than in similarly aged individuals

Contracting COVID-19 while pregnant can have deadly consequences for the mother, a new study published today in American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology shows.

27 Jan 2021

Flu vaccinations for hospital workers can substantially reduce influenza-related deaths

Pneumonia and the flu kill tens of thousands of Americans each year, racking up billions of dollars in medical costs and even more in lost productivity.

27 Jan 2021

Cell phone data can reveal behavioral changes in people diagnosed with flu-like illness

Cell phone data that is routinely collected by telecommunications providers can reveal changes of behavior in people who are diagnosed with a flu-like illness, while also protecting their anonymity, a new study finds.

26 Jan 2021

Iron-carrying extracellular vesicles promote viral-bacterial co-infection

The mechanism by which acute viral respiratory infections promote secondary bacterial growth and infection in the airways depends on iron-carrying extracellular sacs secreted by the cells lining the host's airways, report researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in a paper published today in Cell Reports.

26 Jan 2021