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Study finds MRSA in swine and swine workers in the United States

The first study documenting methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in swine and swine workers in the United States has been published by University of Iowa researchers.

23 Jan 2009

STDs disrupt genetic bottleneck that usually constrains HIV infection

Scientists have shown that HIV faces a genetic "bottleneck" when the virus is transmitted heterosexually from one person to another, by way of the genital mucosa.

23 Jan 2009

New treatment for latent form of tuberculosis

Patients who are infected with the latent form of tuberculosis (TB) show no symptoms and are not contagious, yet they pose the biggest challenge when it comes to controlling the disease.

23 Jan 2009

Potential new target in the war on HIV/AIDS

The study revealed that a variant of a protein involved in HIV pathogenesis can suppress production of an HIV protein, known as Nef. Nef is required for the human immunodeficiency virus to develop into AIDS through a series of complex events involving viral elements and cellular proteins. Nef has never been a target for drug treatment in HIV patients.

21 Jan 2009

Biotech venture seeks West Nile virus treatment from antibodies in geese

Rich Glynn, a straight-talking entrepreneur from South Dakota, doesn't mince words when explaining why a partnership between his fledgling goose operation and the University of North Dakota is a match made in heaven.

21 Jan 2009

Hope for a rabies eradication strategy in Africa

Most of the rabies virus circulating in dogs in western and central Africa comes from a common ancestor introduced to the continent around 200 years ago, probably by European colonialists.

21 Jan 2009

Queensland Dengue epidemic continues unabated

As the Dengue fever outbreak in Cairns continues unabated a health official has said the outbreak is the worst in Queensland since World War II times.

21 Jan 2009

All countries should offer universal infant immunization for hepatitis B

All countries should offer universal infant immunization for hepatitis B, write Dr. Christopher Mackie from McMaster University and coauthors in a public health analysis in CMAJ.

19 Jan 2009

Poxvirus breakthrough

Smallpox has a nasty history throughout the world.

19 Jan 2009

Insight into how Toxoplasma gondii triggers immune response in its host

Researchers provide insight into how Toxoplasma gondii , a common parasite of people and other animals, triggers an immune response in its host.

19 Jan 2009

Dengue outbreaks blamed for depletion of donated blood supply

The Red Cross in Queensland has issued an urgent call for blood donors to come forward as the collection of blood has been restricted in Dengue-affected areas.

19 Jan 2009

Calls for cash and fogging to curb spread of dengue fever

As the Dengue fever outbreak in northern Queensland continues to claim new victims on a daily basis, many are calling for more funding to control the spread of the disease with some suggesting the only answer will be a fogging campaign.

19 Jan 2009

MRSA's weak point visualised by scientists

An enzyme that lives in Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and helps the dangerous bacterium to grow and spread infection through the human body has been visualised for the first time, according to a study out today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

19 Jan 2009

Gene technology to fight Clostridium difficile

Scientists at The University of Nottingham are leading a major European study to unravel the genetic code of one of the most lethal strains of hospital acquired infections.

19 Jan 2009

Bird flu returns to China and claims another life

This latest outbreak has claimed the life of a young woman in eastern China and a young girl in the north of the country remains critically ill.

19 Jan 2009

Researchers find essential proteins for final stage of malaria transmission cycle

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute (JHMRI) have identified, for the first time, the molecular components that enable the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium to infect the salivary glands of the Anopheles mosquito-a critical and final stage for spreading malaria to humans.

19 Jan 2009

European viral epidemic linked to global warming

An epidemic of the viral disease nephropathia epidemica (NE) has been linked to increases in the vole population caused by hotter summers, milder winters and increased seedcrop production by broadleaf trees.

19 Jan 2009

The retina reveals deadly secrets of malaria

Looking at the retina in the eyes of patients with cerebral malaria has provided scientists with a vital insight into why malaria infection in the brain is so deadly.

15 Jan 2009

Scientists explain genetic disease first discovered in Quebec 24 years ago

Scientists at the MUHC and McGill University have identified a gene essential for the uptake of vitamin B12 in human cells.

15 Jan 2009

Pediatric vaccine propels sharp drop in meningitis cases

A pediatric vaccine with University of Rochester roots has proven to be highly successful at reducing cases of bacterial meningitis across all age groups.That is the conclusion of a seven-year study, the results of which appeared today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

14 Jan 2009