Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

Study examines trends in HIV mortality

Overall death rates due to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection declined over time between 1993 and 2007 for most men and women by race/ethnicity and educational levels, with the largest absolute decreases for nonwhites, but rates remain high among blacks, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication.

9 Oct 2012

Maths-based tool can quantify the spread and infectiousness of viruses

Mathematicians have developed a powerful tool to quantify the spread and infectiousness of viruses like the pandemic H1N1 flu strain, which can be used together with modern laboratory techniques to help the healthcare system plan its response to disease outbreaks.

9 Oct 2012

Treatment of hepatitis C can be successful in a prison population

Incarcerated individuals with chronic hepatitis C virus infection can be successfully treated with pegylated interferon and ribavirin, achieving similar rates of treatment completion and sustained viral response to that of infected individuals in the community, study results show.

8 Oct 2012

Researchers discover smallest and fastest-known RNA switches

A University of Michigan biophysical chemist and his colleagues have discovered the smallest and fastest-known molecular switches made of RNA, the chemical cousin of DNA. The researchers say these rare, fleeting structures are prime targets for the development of new antiviral and antibiotic drugs.

8 Oct 2012

Researchers decipher how AP-1 gene regulator controls survival of liver tumor-initiating cells

Researchers headed by Erwin Wagner, the Director of the BBVA Foundation-CNIO Cancer Cell Biology Programme at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), have deciphered how a stress-inducible gene regulator, AP-1, controls the survival of liver tumor-initiating cells. These results, published in the online edition of Nature Cell Biology, could provide new preventive strategies and identify potentially targetable molecules to prevent liver cancer.

8 Oct 2012

CytoDyn announces update on feline immunodeficiency virus therapeutic antibody program

CytoDyn Inc., a biotechnology company focused on the development of new therapies for combating infection with immune deficiency viruses, announced today that it is presenting an update on its Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) therapeutic antibody program at the 19th West Coast Retrovirus meeting in Palm Springs, California.

8 Oct 2012

Significant increase in genomic Replikin Count of human SARS virus

The identification of the virus responsible for a second case of SARS-like respiratory virus, "London1_novel CoV 2012", has raised concerns over the risk of the disease spreading. These concerns may be justified given the observed rise in virus's genomic Replikin Count.

6 Oct 2012

Vaccination campaign in Africa aims to protect 50M people against meningitis

"A huge vaccination campaign to protect 50 million people against meningitis has been launched in seven African countries aiming to stamp out the deadly virus, health officials said on Thursday," Sapa/AFP/IOL News reports.

6 Oct 2012

Uganda declares end of Ebola outbreak

"Uganda is now free from Ebola, the Health Ministry said, two months after an outbreak of the deadly virus killed at least 16 people," Reuters reports. "'The Ministry of Health has ... officially declared an end of the Ebola outbreak that broke out in Kibaale district in July.

6 Oct 2012

Scientists use new communications, research technologies to quickly identify, contain microbes

Since the outbreak of what became known as SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, 10 years ago, scientists have been quick to identify and contain new viruses, which they attribute to improved communication among researchers and from the general public, NPR's "Shots" blog reports.

4 Oct 2012

Cellectis, Medicago complete first step in therapeutic protein research collaboration

Medicago Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing highly effective and competitive vaccines based on proprietary manufacturing technologies and Virus Like Particles, and Cellectis plant sciences, a US-based subsidiary of Cellectis Group, the specialist in genome engineering, today announced the successful completion of the first step in their research collaboration to improve therapeutic proteins produced in tobacco plants.

4 Oct 2012

Roche announces availability of new HIV-1 viral load test in the U.S.

Roche announced today the U.S. availability of a new HIV-1 viral load test based on the company's proprietary dual-target approach. The COBAS TaqMan HIV-1 Test v2.0 for use with the High Pure System enables labs to combine an FDA-approved process for manual specimen preparation with an automated real-time PCR analyzer for amplification and detection.

From Roche Sequencing and Life Science 4 Oct 2012

GW researcher to help HIV patients better understand treatments for cardiovascular issues

In 1980, men and women who were diagnosed with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) had little to no hope of living long, full lives. Thanks to advances in science and medicine, this is no longer the case. HIV patients now live a near-normal lifespan. However, as patients live longer, new medical issues arise.

3 Oct 2012

Human hepatitis threat present in domestic pigs

The prevalence of hepatitis E virus in domestic pigs is between 10% and 30%, with a likelihood that infected pigs enter the pork production chain thereby threatening public health, indicate Portuguese study results.

2 Oct 2012

Respiratory infections provide urban asthma clue

Urban infants have a different pattern of viral respiratory illness from suburban infants, which could help explain why they are more likely to develop asthma, say US researchers.

2 Oct 2012

Galectin-1 drives growth of Kaposi sarcoma tumors

A sugar-loving protein drives the growth of Kaposi sarcoma (KS) tumors, according to a study published on October 1st in The Journal of Experimental Medicine. Interfering with these sugary interactions inhibited growth of Kaposi sarcomas in mice, hinting at the potential for new treatment strategies in humans.

2 Oct 2012

New SARS-like virus not spread easily, WHO reports

"A new strain of a potentially deadly virus related to SARS, which has killed one man in Saudi Arabia and left a Qatari man critically ill in London, does not appear to spread easily from person to person, the World Health Organization says," according to the New York Times.

2 Oct 2012

Omega-3 fatty acid supplements could slow key biological process linked to aging

Taking enough omega-3 fatty acid supplements to change the balance of oils in the diet could slow a key biological process linked to aging, new research suggests.

2 Oct 2012

New studies reveal real economic and human costs of caring for cancer patients in Europe

New studies that reveal for the first time the real economic and human costs of caring for cancer patients in Europe will be presented during the ESMO 2012 Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology in Vienna.

29 Sep 2012

Viewpoints: Obamacare a 'big plus'?; What happened to GOP anger over health law?

How did that happen? Partly it's because this has become such an ideological election - much more so than 2008. … And let me add a speculation: I suspect that in the end Obamacare is turning out to be a big plus, even though it has always had ambivalent polling.

29 Sep 2012

Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

Study examines trends in HIV mortality

Maths-based tool can quantify the spread and infectiousness of viruses

Treatment of hepatitis C can be successful in a prison population

Researchers discover smallest and fastest-known RNA switches

Researchers decipher how AP-1 gene regulator controls survival of liver tumor-initiating cells

CytoDyn announces update on feline immunodeficiency virus therapeutic antibody program

Significant increase in genomic Replikin Count of human SARS virus

Vaccination campaign in Africa aims to protect 50M people against meningitis

Uganda declares end of Ebola outbreak

Scientists use new communications, research technologies to quickly identify, contain microbes

Cellectis, Medicago complete first step in therapeutic protein research collaboration

Roche announces availability of new HIV-1 viral load test in the U.S.

GW researcher to help HIV patients better understand treatments for cardiovascular issues

Human hepatitis threat present in domestic pigs

Respiratory infections provide urban asthma clue

Galectin-1 drives growth of Kaposi sarcoma tumors

New SARS-like virus not spread easily, WHO reports

Omega-3 fatty acid supplements could slow key biological process linked to aging

New studies reveal real economic and human costs of caring for cancer patients in Europe

Viewpoints: Obamacare a 'big plus'?; What happened to GOP anger over health law?

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