Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Experimental gene therapy may improve health outcomes for patients with some forms of blood disorders

New research adds to a growing body of evidence that gene therapy, an experimental technique that involves correcting or replacing a person's mutated or malfunctioning genes, may improve health outcomes for patients with inherited bleeding and immune disorders as well as some forms of blood cancer.

7 Dec 2015

HBsAg may persist in chronic HBV patients beyond seroclearance

The use of a highly sensitive assay for the detection of hepatitis B surface antigen suggests that HBsAg negativity as evaluated by the conventional test may not be indicative of seroclearance in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection.

3 Dec 2015

Combining medications may increase HBsAg loss in HBV patients

Combining tenofovir disoproxil fumarate with pegylated interferon alfa-2a may improve the chances of hepatitis B surface antigen loss in patients with hepatitis B virus infection, suggests a randomised trial.

3 Dec 2015

Bacteriophage therapy: an alternative to antibiotics? An interview Professor Clokie

A phage is a virus that infects a bacterium. People often get very confused about what the difference is between a virus and a bacterium. A virus, like a bacterium, is also a microorganism, but unlike bacteria, it needs to have a host to be able to replicate and propagate.

2 Dec 2015

Researchers develop novel computational approach to accelerate search for hepatitis C vaccine

Borrowing from several statistical science models, an interdisciplinary team of researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has developed a novel computational approach for massively accelerating the search for a hepatitis C vaccine.

1 Dec 2015

Combination of antiviral medications can eradicate HCV infection in patients with advanced liver disease

A large multi-center clinical trial has found that a combination of antiviral medications can eradicate hepatitis C infection in more than 90 percent of patients with advanced liver disease. Known as the ASTRAL-4 trial, the study was co-led by investigators at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Intermountain Medical Center and published online Nov. 17 in The New England Journal of Medicine.

1 Dec 2015

WHO recommends new strategies to treat HIV patients, reduce new infections

The world is poised to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 – provided it can accelerate the pace of progress achieved globally over the past 15 years, according to a new World Health Organization (WHO) report.

1 Dec 2015

Incidence of HIV in Europe reaches record high

Results of recent surveillance conducted by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the WHO Regional Office for Europe indicate that the annual number of newly diagnosed HIV infections in Europe reached an all-time high in 2014.

27 Nov 2015

Researchers reveal new technique to grow human hepatocytes in the laboratory

In new research appearing in the prestigious journal Nature Biotechnology, an international research team led by The Hebrew University of Jerusalem describes a new technique for growing human hepatocytes in the laboratory. This groundbreaking development could help advance a variety of liver-related research and applications, from studying drug toxicity to creating bio-artificial liver support for patients awaiting transplantations.

27 Nov 2015

Containing Airborne Contaminants

An interview with Gary Broomhead, discussing the potential sources of contamination in research and how controlling airflow in the laboratory can reduce this.

26 Nov 2015

Green Cross' GCFlu Quadrivalent approved to protect against four influenza strains in South Korea

Green Cross Corporation, a South Korean biopharmaceutical company, announced today that South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has approved GCFLU QUADRIVALENT (Influenza Virus Vaccine) for immunisation of adults to help prevent disease caused by seasonal influenza (flu) virus subtype A and B. GCFlu Quadrivalent is the first locally-manufactured vaccine to cover against four influenza strains.

26 Nov 2015

Chikungunya may cause severe brain infection

The mosquito-borne virus chikungunya may lead to severe brain infection and even death in infants and people over 65, according to a new study that reviewed a chikungunya outbreak on Reunion Island off the coast of Madagascar in 2005-2006.

26 Nov 2015

Study points to new avenue for developing potential strategies to thwart HIV virus

Nearly 37 million people worldwide are living with HIV. When the virus destroys so many immune cells that the body can't fight off infection, AIDS will develop. The disease took the lives of more than a million people last year.

26 Nov 2015

Seqirus announces FDA approval of Fluad for seasonal influenza

Seqirus announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration has approved Fluad (Influenza Vaccine, Adjuvanted) to help protect those aged 65 years and older against seasonal influenza. Fluad is the first adjuvanted seasonal influenza vaccine approved in the United States; it was specifically developed for the adult population aged 65 and older.

25 Nov 2015

First seasonal influenza vaccine containing adjuvant now approved by FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Fluad, the first seasonal influenza vaccine containing an adjuvant. Fluad, a trivalent vaccine produced from three influenza virus strains (two subtype A and one type B), is approved for the prevention of seasonal influenza in people 65 years of age and older.

25 Nov 2015

Researchers reveal new technique for watching the brain's neurons in action

Researchers at Duke and Stanford Universities have devised a way to watch the details of neurons at work, pretty much in real time.

23 Nov 2015

SLU infectious diseases experts answer flu season questions

A cure for the common cold isn't in the crystal ball of an infectious diseases researcher and physician at Saint Louis University's Center for Vaccine Development.

23 Nov 2015

UEA research reveals high Ebola risk factors at homes and communities

Looking after people with late-stage Ebola at home puts people at greatest risk of catching it themselves - according to research from the University of East Anglia.

23 Nov 2015

Experts share 10 steps to prevent future disease outbreaks

An independent group of 19 experts from around the globe, convened by the Harvard Global Health Institute and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, has issued a hard-hitting analysis of the global response to the 2014-15 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, published in The Lancet.

23 Nov 2015