Disease/Infection News

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Risankizumab outperforms ustekinumab in treating moderate-to-severe Crohn’s disease

Researchers compare the therapeutic efficacy of risakizumab and ustekinumab for the treatment of moderate-to-severe Crohn’s disease.

23 Aug 2024

New Mpox strain sparks global health alert

On Wednesday, August 14th, 2024, in response to the active circulation of clade 1 monkeypox virus (MPXV) in Central Africa and the recent expansion of a subtype (1b) thought to be more lethal and transmissible in East Africa, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), paving the way for enhanced coordination between regional health systems and the active engagement of stakeholders to tackle this global outbreak. The following day, Thursday August 15, Sweden reported the first positive case of clade 1b mpox on European soil. This led the French government to place the French health system on maximum alert on Friday, August 16, and the French authorities have now begun to re-evaluate the health recommendations established in 2022 during the previous mpox outbreak in preparation for the probable emergence of cases in the country.

23 Aug 2024

Probiotic offers protection against intestinal damage

There is a critical unmet need to help tighten and maintain a healthy intestinal barrier and treat a leaky gut. Researchers have now found that a unique strain of probiotic bacteria, Bifidobacterium bifidum BB1, enhances intestinal barrier function and protects against penetration of bacteria and various harmful agents in the intestine. The findings, detailed in an article in The American Journal of Pathology, published by Elsevier, can help advance the development of novel, targeted, naturally occurring probiotic therapy for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and other inflammatory diseases, such as fatty liver disease or alcoholic liver disease, that are associated with a leaky or disordered intestinal barrier.

23 Aug 2024

Virginia Tech leads national initiative to predict and prevent future pandemics

Viruses like SARS-CoV-2 don't respect boundaries, moving between species and continents and leaving destruction as they go. Beating the next pathogen with pandemic potential means getting good at crossing borders ourselves -; between fields of study, between research universities, and between scientists and the wider community.

23 Aug 2024

Mosquitoes detect infrared radiation for host seeking

While a mosquito bite is often no more than a temporary bother, in many parts of the world it can be scary. One mosquito species, Aedes aegypti, spreads the viruses that cause over 100,000,000 cases of dengue, yellow fever, Zika, and other diseases every year. Another, Anopheles gambiae, spreads the parasite that causes malaria. The World Health Organization estimates that malaria alone causes more than 400,000 deaths every year. Indeed, their capacity to transmit disease has earned mosquitoes the title of deadliest animal.

23 Aug 2024

New NSF center to tackle pandemic expansion challenges

Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Nina Fefferman became a mathematician because she loves puzzles.

22 Aug 2024

Potential antitumoral effects of Manuka honey in breast cancer models

Researchers evaluated the antitumor activity of Manuka honey on human breast cancer cells and its underlying molecular mechanisms in both in vitro and in vivo preclinical models.

22 Aug 2024

Common fatty acid could improve treatment of recurrent bacterial vaginosis infections

Researchers investigated oleic acid as a potential treatment to inhibit Lactobacillus iners dominance in bacterial vaginosis.

22 Aug 2024

Coccidioidomycosis seasonal dynamics and their climate determinants in California

The study indicates that drought conditions suppress coccidioidomycosis seasonality. However, a transition from drought to wet conditions can lead to more pronounced seasonal peaks in California.

22 Aug 2024

The lingering mental health effects of severe COVID-19

A new study that examined health data on 18 million people reveals a higher incidence of mental illnesses for up to a year following severe COVID-19 in unvaccinated people. Vaccination appeared to mitigate the adverse effects of COVID-19 on mental illnesses. The University of Bristol-led study, published in JAMA Psychiatry on August 21st, 2024, investigated associations of COVID-19 with mental illnesses according to time since diagnosis and vaccination status.

22 Aug 2024

COVID-19 masks rising homicide toll on black men

While the COVID-19 pandemic quickly reversed decades of progress in closing the gap between life expectancies for Black and white people in the United States, the disease's toll may have obscured the impact of another significant public health concern -; a sharp increase in homicide rates -; on the life expectancy of Black men, according to researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

22 Aug 2024

mRNA therapy shows promise for maple syrup urine disease

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Gene Therapy Program, and Moderna, have shown that repeated administration of lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated mRNA therapy significantly extended survival and reduced serum leucine levels in a mouse model of maple syrup urine disease (MSUD).

22 Aug 2024

Cautious optimism in San Francisco as new cases of HIV In Latinos decrease

For years, Latinos represented the biggest share of new HIV cases in this city, but testing data suggests the tide may be turning.

21 Aug 2024

Breakthrough treatment reduces liver fibrosis in Hepatitis C patients

HCV infection is the underlying cause for chronic Hepatitis C (CHC), liver cirrhosis, and liver cancer or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In 2019, over 2,90,000 people died of HCV-related diseases. Recent medical advancement made a new breakthrough treatment available for patients with hepatitis C. DAAs that block replication of HCV has dramatically transformed the treatment approach with around 90% effective anti-viral response rates. However, it is unclear whether DAAs impact the severity of disease burden caused by liver fibrosis.

21 Aug 2024

Spatial transcriptomics unlocks malaria's liver stage secrets

For the malaria parasite to reach the blood of its human host, it must first enter the liver, where only a small number of parasites differentiate and replicate for upwards of seven days, making it a bottleneck in the parasite's lifecycle. This bottleneck makes the liver stage an optimal target for effective and long-lasting vaccines against the disease. Using Spatial Transcriptomics and single-cell RNA-sequencing technologies, researchers at Stockholm University have for the first time managed to create a spatio-temporal map of malaria infection in the mouse liver. A study that was recently published in Nature Communications.

21 Aug 2024

UC Davis researchers unveil pathway for Salmonella's gut invasion

How do bad bacteria find entry points in the body to cause infection? This question is fundamental for infectious disease experts and people who study bacteria.

20 Aug 2024

New genomic technique tracks superbugs in hospitals for faster infection management

Researchers have developed a new genomic technique that can track the spread of multiple superbugs in a hospital simultaneously, which could help prevent and manage common hospital infections quicker and more effectively than ever before.

20 Aug 2024

First meeting of the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee reports on mpox surge

The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), having concurred with the advice offered by the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR or Regulations) Emergency Committee regarding the upsurge of mpox 2024 during its first meeting, held on 14 August 2024, has determined, on the same date, that the ongoing upsurge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and in a growing number of countries in Africa constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) under the provisions of the Regulations.

20 Aug 2024

Global and Local Efforts to Take Action Against Hepatitis

In this interview, we explore global and local efforts to combat viral hepatitis with Lindsey Hiebert, Deputy Director of the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination (CGHE), and James Amugsi, a Mandela Washington Fellow and Physician Assistant at Sandema Hospital in Ghana. Together, they provide valuable insights into the challenges, successes, and the importance of partnerships in the fight against hepatitis.

20 Aug 2024

Psychosocial stressors at work increase workers' risk of atrial fibrillation, study suggests

Researchers evaluated the individual and combined effects of workplace psychosocial stressors, such as effort-reward imbalance and job strain, on atrial fibrillation incidence.

20 Aug 2024