Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

New AI method could predict emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants

It's been five years since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic. As SARS-CoV-2 shifts to endemic status, questions about its future evolution remain.

27 Mar 2025

Two aldehyde-based disinfectants proven effective against hepatitis A virus

The hepatitis A virus (HAV) is one of the main causes of viral hepatitis and is responsible for an estimated 159,000 infections and 39,000 deaths each year.

27 Mar 2025

Transforming genetic deafness treatment with base editing

Congenital hearing loss refers to impaired auditory function that occurs due to genetic causes. GJB2 is the gene responsible for approximately half of all cases of hereditary hearing loss.

27 Mar 2025

Researchers develop a reverse genetics system for African swine fever virus

Researchers from the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI), and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) have developed a reverse genetics system for African swine fever virus (ASFV).

26 Mar 2025

COVID-derived molecular mimics may be involved in triggering autoimmunity

COVID infection has been linked to higher risk of autoimmune disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes.

26 Mar 2025

COVID-19 vaccines may cut risk of long COVID

Full COVID-19 vaccination may reduce post-COVID-19 condition risk by 27%, though more research is needed, especially for children and immunocompromised groups.

26 Mar 2025

Report shows alarming measles resurgence in Europe and US

A recent report shows cases of measles across the World Health Organization's European Region, which includes the UK, are the highest they've been for more than 25 years. At the same time, large outbreaks of measles in the US have led to the first measles deaths there since 2015.

26 Mar 2025

Study reveals distinct infection strategies of Zika and dengue viruses

Zika virus and dengue virus are very close relatives. Both are mosquito-borne flaviviruses, and both specialize in infecting a host's dendritic cells.

25 Mar 2025

Yale study unlocks potential of lupus-related antibody to target cold tumors

Yale scientists have discovered a promising way to trigger immune responses against certain tumors, using a lupus-related antibody that can slip, undetected, into "cold" tumors and flip on an immune response that has been turned off by cancer.

25 Mar 2025

Scientists develop universal vaccine targeting multiple coronaviruses

Sugar coatings aren't only for candies; they also help viruses, like the ones that cause COVID-19, hide from their hosts' immune system.

25 Mar 2025

Besifovir dipivoxil maleate offers comparable efficacy and improved safety for hepatitis B patients

Hepatitis B is a liver infection cause by the hepatitis B virus (HBV), and long-term hepatitis B infections that last longer than six months are considered "chronic".

24 Mar 2025

UZH researchers develop decoy molecules to restore immune defense

An immune system defect makes affected individuals vulnerable to severe viral diseases such as influenza or COVID-19. It is caused by the body's own antibodies, which inhibit important defense proteins known as type I interferons.

24 Mar 2025

Epstein-Barr virus triggers inflammatory cell death in ulcerative colitis

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic, relapsing disease that causes painful inflammation and ulcers in the colon.

24 Mar 2025

How your diet and probiotics can improve vaccine effectiveness

Researchers uncover how probiotics and diet shape the gut microbiome to boost vaccine efficacy, offering new avenues for precision immunization.

23 Mar 2025

Bacteria use dormant phages to create immunity against viral invaders

Like people, bacteria get invaded by viruses. In bacteria, the viral invaders are called bacteriophages, derived from the Greek word for bacteria-eaters, or in shortened form, "phages."

22 Mar 2025

Anti-HIV active diterpenoids identified in Daphne pseudomezereum

A research group led by Professor Wei Li from the Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Toho University, in collaboration with the Duke University Medical Center in the United States, has discovered for the first time that Daphne pseudomezereum (commonly known as Onishibari) contains a substance inhibiting replication of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

21 Mar 2025