Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Novartis, Duke sign deal to develop pandemic flu vaccine

The Duke Human Vaccine Institute today announced a collaboration and strategic agreement with Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics to enable the rapid development of a vaccine and accelerate preparedness in case of a pandemic virus threat such as pandemic influenza.

15 Apr 2011

NRC, NCKU partner to develop cancer diagnostic and treatment technologies

A Taiwanese research team led by Prof. Dar-Bin Shieh of Institute of Oral Medicine in Medical College at National Cheng Kung University has partnered with a research group led by Dr. Dennis Whitefield from National Research Council of Canada to develop innovative cancer diagnostic and treatment technologies.

15 Apr 2011

Mosquito borne virus alert for Western Australia

There is a mosquito alert for people living and holidaying in northern and central WA after a high number of reports of encephalitis and Ross River virus. According to Department of Health entomologist Sue Harrington, it is confirmed that a Carnarvon resident has been diagnosed with the potentially fatal encephalitis while several other cases are currently being investigated.

12 Apr 2011

Non-specific recurring genital symptoms could be undiagnosed herpes

A study of patients attending sexual health clinics in Gothenburg found that just four out of ten patients with genital herpes actually knew that they had the disorder. However, a third of those who did not realise that they had been infected reported typical symptoms at a follow-up visit, reveals a thesis from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

12 Apr 2011

Depression can sabotage efforts to effectively treat Hepatitis C

Adherence to interferon, an important medication used to treat Hepatitis C, is critical to successfully clearing the virus that causes the disease. A new observational analysis by Medco Health Solutions, Inc. finds that when Hepatitis C patients are also being treated for depression -- a frequent side effect of interferon use -- they are more likely to remain on their interferon therapy.

12 Apr 2011

Scientists develop new method to detect virus presence in cells

Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory Center for Bio-Molecular Science and Engineering have developed a method to detect the presence of viruses in cells and to study their growth.

12 Apr 2011

GeoVax Labs expands its HIV/AIDS vaccine program with NIAID, NIH and HVTN

GeoVax Labs, Inc., announced today that it is expanding its preventative HIV/AIDS vaccine development effort in collaboration with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the HIV Vaccine Trials Network.

11 Apr 2011

Scientists develop new approach to accelerate evolution of biomolecules in lab

Scientists at Harvard University have harnessed the prowess of fast-replicating bacterial viruses, also known as phages, to accelerate the evolution of biomolecules in the laboratory.

11 Apr 2011

Study unravels how interferon-induced factors inhibit viruses

When viruses attack, one molecule more than any other fights back. Interferon triggers the activation of more than 350 genes, and despite the obvious connection, the vast majority have never been tested for antiviral properties.

11 Apr 2011

Researchers manage to grow human rhinovirus in culture using sinus tissue

Using sinus tissue removed during surgery at University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have managed to grow a recently discovered species of human rhinovirus, the most frequent cause of the common cold, in culture.

11 Apr 2011

Viral infection likely to encourage pneumonia spread

Bacteria that cause pneumonia and meningitis are only able to spread when individuals are infected with flu, says a scientist reporting at the Society for General Microbiology's Spring Conference in Harrogate. The work could have implications for the management of influenza pandemics and could help reduce incidence of pneumococcal infections in very young children, who are more susceptible to disease.

11 Apr 2011

Gilenya can reduce risk of disability progression in patients with RRMS

A new analysis demonstrated that Gilenya reduced the risk of disability progression in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, regardless of treatment history. This analysis of the phase III two-year FREEDOMS study is one of 11 abstracts on Gilenya being presented at the 63rd annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology.

11 Apr 2011

New nonviral method to create cardiac cells

Johns Hopkins scientists have developed a simplified, cheaper, all-purpose method they say can be used by scientists around the globe to more safely turn blood cells into heart cells. The method is virus-free and produces heart cells that beat with nearly 100 percent efficiency, they claim.

11 Apr 2011

New dengue test receives FDA marketing clearance

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today allowed marketing of the first test to help diagnose people with signs and symptoms of dengue fever or dengue hemorrhagic fever, a leading cause of illness and death in the tropics and subtropics.

11 Apr 2011

ViroXis' IND for EISO-derived product to treat HPV skin warts receives FDA approval

ViroXis Corporation today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted approval for the Company's investigational new drug (IND) application and planned clinical development of a drug substance derived from East Indian Sandalwood oil (EISO) for the topical treatment of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), common warts of the skin.

8 Apr 2011

Idenix prices underwritten registered public offering of 18 million shares of common stock

Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of drugs for the treatment of human viral diseases, today announced the pricing of an underwritten registered public offering of 18,310,000 shares of its common stock at a public offering price of $2.80 per share. All of the shares are being sold by Idenix.

8 Apr 2011

FluCide nanoviricide drug reduces overall leukocytes in lung tissue of influenza model

NanoViricides, Inc. reports that post-infection treatment with its optimized FluCide drug candidates resulted in significant reduction in lung tissue presence of leukocytes, and in particular, that of eosinophils in a lethal influenza infection animal model.

8 Apr 2011

HALT-C trial reveals high mortality rates among patients with HCV

A three-year follow-up study of patients in the Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-term Treatment against Cirrhosis trial revealed that increased mortality among patients with advanced chronic hepatitis C who received long-term peginterferon therapy was attributed to non-liver related causes and occurred primarily in patients with bridging fibrosis.

8 Apr 2011

IBM discovers biodegradable nanoparticles that seek out and destroy drug-resistant bacteria

IBM's announcement of the first biodegradable nanoparticles that can seek out and destroy drug-resistant bacteria caps off a century of healthcare and life sciences innovation from IBM.

8 Apr 2011

GeoVax Labs to update its HIV/AIDS vaccine status at World Vaccine Conference

Harriet Robinson, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer at GeoVax Labs, Inc., will provide an update on the status of the Company's therapeutic and preventative HIV vaccines at the 2011 World Vaccine Conference at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center in Washington DC on Thursday, April 14.

8 Apr 2011