Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Measles cases surge in the United States amid falling vaccination rates

The United States is in the midst of the second-highest year of measles cases since 2000, when the disease was declared eliminated in this country, meaning that cases within the United States originated outside the country.

16 May 2025

New drug candidate disrupts the link between herpes virus and Alzheimer’s disease

Studies suggesting that certain viral infections may influence the onset of Alzheimer's diseases are gaining attention. In this context, a domestic research team has succeeded in breaking the link between viral infection and Alzheimer's disease using a new treatment candidate.

16 May 2025

HIV vaccine study marks breakthrough in targeting broad immune responses

A decades-long scientific challenge in HIV vaccine development has been finding a way to train the immune system to produce antibodies that can target many variants of the virus.

15 May 2025

Breakthrough bat organoid platform sheds light on behavior of zoonotic viruses

Did you know that more than 75% of new infectious diseases affecting humans originally come from animals? Bats, in particular, are natural hosts to some of the world's most dangerous viruses, including those responsible for COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2), MERS-CoV, influenza A, and hantavirus outbreaks.

15 May 2025

Scientists take key step toward developing a preventative HIV vaccine

Worldwide, an estimated 40 million people live with HIV. Two-thirds of this group on the African continent. In 2023, more than 600,000 people died from HIV-related causes and 1.32 million were infected.

15 May 2025

SLIRP protein identified as key regulator of immune responses

Even after the COVID-19 pandemic, various new infectious diseases continue to emerge, posing ongoing viral threats that demand robust and sustained immune defenses.

15 May 2025

AAN releases Evidence in Focus Article on new gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy

To help neurologists, clinicians and families understand the current evidence for a new gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy called delandistrogene moxeparvovec, the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has issued an Evidence in Focus article, published May 14, 2025, online in Neurology.

14 May 2025

Reinfections lower long COVID risk but raise cumulative burden

A population-based study in Quebec found that healthcare workers faced a threefold higher risk of long COVID after a first infection compared to reinfections. However, the cumulative risk rose with each additional infection, especially among those with severe illness or early variants.

14 May 2025

Multiple laboratory techniques can provide a wealth of knowledge about brain cancer

Clinicians from the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and four other institutions have demonstrated that doctors can gain a wealth of knowledge about a patient's cancer by using multiple laboratory techniques to study tumor tissue taken from needle biopsies of glioblastoma, a highly aggressive form of brain cancer.

14 May 2025

Study reveals how yellow fever vaccine triggers strong immune response

Researchers show how specific immune cells are activated by the vaccine - an important starting point for the development of new vaccines.

14 May 2025

HIV uses circular RNAs to evade immunity and boost replication

In a groundbreaking discovery, researchers from Florida Atlantic University's Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine have identified a never-before-seen mechanism that enables the human immunodeficiency type 1 virus (HIV-1) to evade the body's natural defenses and use it to support its survival and replication.

13 May 2025

Nasal vaccine boosters can trigger strong immune defenses in the respiratory tract, study finds

Most vaccines — and boosters — are injected directly into muscle tissue, usually in the upper arm, to kickstart the body's immune system in the fight against disease.

13 May 2025

Wastewater surveillance detects measles in Houston before cases are reported

An innovative outbreak detection program that tracks disease-causing viruses in wastewater identified the measles virus in Houston samples collected in early January 2025, before cases were reported.

12 May 2025

Major mass photometry milestone achieved by Refeyn with 500th installation globally

Refeyn, the company behind pioneering mass photometry technology, has announced the installation of the 500th system based on its novel single-particle bioanalytical technology - notably, within just seven years of its spin out from Oxford University in 2018.

From Refeyn 12 May 2025

Failure to adopt covid suppression strategy led to avoidable deaths in the UK

Early in the covid-19 pandemic, the failure of UK government advisers to follow World Health Organization (WHO) advice and emerging evidence from East Asia that suppression could bring the virus under control quickly led to avoidable UK deaths, argues an expert in The BMJ today.

12 May 2025

New model reveals H5N1 is spreading undetected in US dairy herds

Researchers developed a nationwide model to simulate the spread of H5N1 in US dairy cattle, revealing significant under-reporting and predicting continued outbreaks into 2025. Targeted farm-level biosecurity and surveillance are urgently needed to contain the epidemic.

11 May 2025

Scientists link specific gene variants to post-vaccine myocarditis and pericarditis

A genome-wide association study in Sweden identified rare genetic variants near the SCAF11 and LRRC4C genes that may be linked to heart inflammation following COVID-19 mRNA vaccination. The findings shed light on potential biological pathways driving vaccine-associated myocarditis and pericarditis, particularly among younger individuals.

11 May 2025

New AI tool predicts viral mutations to help future-proof COVID vaccines

A novel AI-driven method helps scientists stay ahead of viral evolution by engineering synthetic spike proteins that anticipate future SARS-CoV-2 escape mutations, offering a powerful tool to test and strengthen next-generation vaccines.

11 May 2025

FDA approves at home HPV test as alternative to pap smear

The Food and Drug Administration just approved an at home test that could be an optional alternative to a yearly pap smear. The test looks for human papilloma virus, or HPV, which causes nearly all incidences of cervical cancer.

11 May 2025

Virtual nurse shows promise in promoting vaccinations

Can a virtual nurse persuade people to get vaccinated? Scientists from SWPS University have proven that it is possible. Finding new forms of informing people about vaccinations is particularly important for public health while some question their validity.

10 May 2025