Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

WHO joins global advocates to commemorate Day of Action for Cervical Cancer Elimination

Today WHO joins advocates around the world to commemorate a landmark Day of Action for Cervical Cancer Elimination and welcome groundbreaking new initiatives to end this devastating disease, which claims the lives of over 300 000 women each year.

17 Nov 2021

Lung autopsies provide a clearer picture of how SARS-CoV-2 virus spreads and causes damage

Lung autopsy and plasma samples from people who died of COVID-19 have provided a clearer picture of how the SARS-CoV-2 virus spreads and damages lung tissue.

17 Nov 2021

Study uncovers the herpes virus' strategy for infecting the nervous system

Herpes type 1 is sealed with a kiss for a lifetime. More than half of U.S. adults are carriers of HSV1 (herpes simplex virus type 1) which hibernates in the peripheral nervous system and can never be eradicated.

17 Nov 2021

SARS-CoV-2 reinfection associated with housing instability

Researchers examine the impact of demographic factors and antibody responses following SARS-CoV-2 reinfection.

17 Nov 2021

Clinically applicable strategy for early identification of IFN-AAB-positive COVID-19 patients

Researchers from the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin have been investigating the presence of these antibodies in hospitalized COVID-19 patients to examine the potential of using them as a biomarker for severe disease.

17 Nov 2021

SARS-CoV-2-related smell loss lasts longer than previously thought

A recent study discusses the long-term prevalence of olfactory dysfunction in COVID-19 patients.

17 Nov 2021

Game animals as potential drivers of disease emergence

A study characterized the total virome of game animals from five mammalian orders using the total RNA sequencing technique.

17 Nov 2021

Interactions between SARS-CoV-2 S protein and ACE2 receptor using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

Researchers used advanced two-color fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy to demonstrate the interaction between human ACE2 and the S1 subunit of SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV.

17 Nov 2021

Efficacy of UVC light prototype devices for inactivating SARS-CoV-2

Researchers examined the efficacy of UVC light prototype devices to understand the duration and wavelength of UVC radiation needed for SARS-CoV-2 inactivation.

17 Nov 2021

SARS-CoV-2 protease suppresses host immune response by cleaving NEMO

A recent study conducted by a team of US-based scientists has highlighted a novel function of 3C-like protease of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The protease has been found to cleave a human immune signaling protein called NF-kB Essential Modulator (NEMO) and disrupt the host immune response.

16 Nov 2021

Urinary SARS-CoV-2 RNA is a prognosticator of COVID-19

A new study published in the journal Diagnostics was based on the hypothesis that detecting urinary SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid––which may result in renal and cardiovascular endothelial destruction to facilitate viral access to the kidney parenchyma—may be used as a specific biomarker to indicate the severity of COVID-19.

16 Nov 2021

Ensemble cryo-electron microscopy uncovers conformational states of the nsp13 helicase of SARS-CoV-2

With this background, the goal of a new study published on the bioRxiv* preprint server was to use cryo-electron microscopy to investigate the nsp13 helicase conformational states in order to gain insights of how nsp13 functions during viral transcription/replication.

16 Nov 2021

What genes affect the COVID-19 gender imbalance?

Many studies have established that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is more infective in men than women, and men are more at risk of severe disease. While some have suggested that behavioral differences could explain increased transmission to men, this does not explain the more morbid prognosis.

16 Nov 2021

How effective is the COMIRNATY BNT162b2 vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 Lambda variant?

Now, researchers from Public Health Services Israel have been investigating a new variant called Lambda to see if it qualifies as a variant of concern. Their research is published in the journal Eurosurveillance.

16 Nov 2021

New computer software can help track and analyze pandemics before they spread

Researchers at Georgia State University have created lightning-fast computer software that can help nations track and analyze pandemics, like the one caused by COVID-19, before they spread like wildfire around the globe.

16 Nov 2021

New atomic-level insight of SARS-CoV-2 within a respiratory aerosol

In a paradigm-shifting paper currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server, the researchers have dramatically extended the possibilities of computational microscopy in order to better understand both structure and dynamics of respiratory aerosols laden with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

16 Nov 2021

Scientists identify new gene that contributes to type 1 diabetes progression

When the pro-inflammatory pair, a receptor called CCR2 and its ligand CCL-2, get together, it increases the risk of developing type 1 diabetes, scientists report.

16 Nov 2021

EuroEcho 2021 to highlight latest developments in cardiovascular imaging

Get ready for the latest developments in cardiovascular imaging - including gender differences and long COVID - at EuroEcho 2021, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

16 Nov 2021

Air filtration device removes almost all traces of airborne SARS-CoV-2

When a team of doctors, scientists and engineers at Addenbrooke's Hospital and the University of Cambridge placed an air filtration machine in COVID-19 wards, they found that it removed almost all traces of airborne SARS-CoV-2.

16 Nov 2021

Study: Covid-19 vaccine-elicited immune cells persist six months after vaccination

A recent study by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers provides evidence that CD4+ T lymphocytes — immune system cells also known as helper T cells — produced by people who received either of the two available messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines for COVID-19 persist six months after vaccination at only slightly reduced levels from two weeks after vaccination and are at significantly higher levels than for those who are unvaccinated.

16 Nov 2021