Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

Strong antibody responses against harmless coronaviruses may protect against SARS-CoV-2

Infections with the novel coronavirus and vaccination lead to strong antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2. Immune responses to other human coronaviruses, which mostly only cause harmless colds, also provide some protection against SARS-CoV-2.

23 Nov 2021

Two-meter COVID-19 rule is not a concrete measurement of safety, say researchers

A new study has shown that the airborne transmission of COVID-19 is highly random and suggests that the two-meter rule was a number chosen from a risk 'continuum', rather than any concrete measurement of safety.

23 Nov 2021

Covid-19 could reduce the perception of pain in oncological patients

Physicians from the Geneva University Hospitals (HUG) have observed a surprising phenomenon during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: some patients with cancer-related pain have experiences a significant decrease or even disappearance of pain perception during the acute phase of infection.

22 Nov 2021

Elusive white blood cells play a role in impaired T cell functions and counts in people with HIV

In a groundbreaking study of people living with HIV, University of Alberta researchers found that elusive white blood cells called neutrophils play a role in impaired T cell functions and counts, as well as the associated chronic inflammation that is common with the virus.

9 Nov 2021

SBIR grant awarded to develop treatment for alcoholic liver disease-associated hepatorenal syndrome

The Institute of Human Virology (IHV) at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and MitoPower LLC were awarded an SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) grant of up to $6.5 million over five years from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

9 Nov 2021

Pacific oyster as a weapon against SARS-CoV-2

According to an article published in the journal Reviews in Medical Virology, the effectiveness of mollusc-derived antiviral agents has been proven in many different laboratory and animal studies, while its efficacy against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has also been proposed by recent in silico studies.

7 Nov 2021

Fast evolution of SARS-CoV-2 driven by extensive RNA deamination by host cells

A new study proposed that the RNA structure and the genome component may serve as an important basis of different deamination spectrums in SARS-CoV-2.

7 Nov 2021

Antibody response of COVID-19 patients to SARS-CoV-2 and seasonal coronaviruses

Scientists conducted a cohort study and measured the prevalence and the levels of antibody responses to the nucleocapsid protein of SARS-CoV-2 and four seasonal human coronaviruses.

3 Nov 2021

New genetic epidemiology tool provides detailed information about viruses, coinfections

With mask wearing and social distancing on the decline and the cold and flu season upon us, researchers have developed a viral panel that enables the simultaneous testing for SARS-CoV-2 along with numerous common respiratory viruses, that tells us whether other viruses also are at play in patients hard hit by COVID.

1 Nov 2021

Clinical assay validation for SARS-CoV-2 sequencing using Swift Biosciences amplicon panel

The current study used the guidelines of the FDA to validate the one-tube SARS-CoV-2 Swift Normalase Amplicon Panel Version 2.0 from Swift Biosciences.

31 Oct 2021

Children and adults have similar risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection, but kids do not show symptoms

New research addresses the misconception that children are less susceptible to infection with the new coronavirus.

30 Oct 2021

Researchers discover potential new Covid-19 treatment

Researchers have identified a potential new treatment that suppresses the replication of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.

30 Oct 2021

The role of CRISPR in viral diagnostics

A comprehensive review explains in depth how CRISPR can be utilized as a reliable tool to investigate the viral life cycles.

29 Oct 2021

Study unravels how cells protect against influenza A viruses

Human cells use a protein named TBC1D5 to route influenza A viruses inside host cells for destruction, preventing the virus from spreading replicated copies of itself to other cells, according to a study published in Nature Microbiology.

28 Oct 2021

Brain fog in long COVID

A new study explores one troubling manifestation of long COVID, which is the cognitive impairment that follows clinical resolution of COVID-19.

26 Oct 2021

UQ researchers find that SARS-CoV-2 virus does not infect blood vessels

The SARS-CoV-2 virus does not infect blood vessels, despite the high risk of blood clots to COVID-19 patients, University of Queensland researchers have found.

26 Oct 2021

Duke awarded NIAID funding to develop the next generation of pan-coronavirus vaccines

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has awarded $17.5 million over three years to the Duke Human Vaccine Institute to develop a vaccine that protects against multiple types of coronaviruses and viral variants.

21 Oct 2021

Research may lead to breakthroughs in combating cancer drug resistances

New research has revealed the differences in mechanism behind cancer’s resistance to the major class of anti-cancer drugs known as nucleoside analogues.

20 Oct 2021

Collaborations and co-achievements of network of COST Actions on COVID-19

Addressing societal issues by enabling cross-disciplinary partnerships is an inherent part of a COST Actions' nature. But collaborations don't stop at the gate of these specific networks: multiple COST Actions have joined forces since the beginning of the pandemic to help advance research into COVID-19.