Influenza News and Research

Latest Influenza News and Research

FDA approves first drug for treatment of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Soliris (eculizumab) injection for intravenous use for the treatment of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder in adult patients who are anti-aquaporin-4 antibody positive.

27 Jun 2019

How black pharmacists are closing the cultural gap in health care

After a health insurance change forced Bernard Macon to cut ties with his black doctor, he struggled to find another African American physician online. Then, he realized two health advocates were hiding in plain sight.

27 Jun 2019

Measles vaccination associated with health, schooling benefits among children

While the measles vaccine has eliminated the virus in many high-income countries, the global burden of disease persists with an estimated 245,000 measles cases and 68,000 measles-associated deaths worldwide in 2016.

21 Jun 2019

Many healthcare workers often care for patients while sick, study finds

Large numbers of healthcare workers risk transmitting respiratory viruses to patients and co-workers by attending work even when they have symptoms, according to a study published today in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, the journal for the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

18 Jun 2019

Novel insight could improve vaccines that protect pregnant women and newborns

A team led by Duke Health scientists has identified a cellular process that could lead to the development of safer and more effective vaccines that protect pregnant women as well as their newborns from dangerous infections.

16 Jun 2019

Experimental antiviral drug cures mice infected with deadly tick-borne virus

Only a few cases of the newly discovered Bourbon virus have been reported, and two of them ended in death, partly because no specific treatments are available for the tick-borne illness.

14 Jun 2019

HIB-vaccinated children show improved anthropometric, cognitive, and schooling outcomes

India accounts for the highest number of Haemophilus influenzae type b cases and Hib- associated deaths in the world.

13 Jun 2019

Researchers develop new gene-targeted approach to study chronic wasting disease in mice

Infectious proteins called prions cause a group of related, fatal and incurable neurodegenerative disorders, including bovine spongiform encephalopathy or Mad Cow disease and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, both of which affect humans.

12 Jun 2019

Scientists 'on the right track' toward universal flu vaccine

New research could bring scientists a step closer to developing an effective, universal flu vaccine.

4 Jun 2019

Study reveals novel indicator of protection against influenza virus infection

A study of influenza virus transmission in Nicaraguan households reveals new insights into the type of immune responses that may be protective against influenza virus infection, report investigators.

4 Jun 2019

Gene-editing could shorten life instead of prolonging, suggests new study

In 2018, Chinese scientist He Jiankui defied the law and scientific consensus by boldly editing the CCR5 gene in a human embryo, expecting to confer lifelong HIV resistance. The pregnancy eventually ended in the birth of two baby girls. Now the experiment appears to have gone seriously wrong, perhaps shortening their lives.

4 Jun 2019

New study shows no evidence of highly toxic Fusarium head blight variant in Illinois

Illinois wheat growers, take heart. A new University of Illinois study shows no evidence of a highly toxic Fusarium head blight variant, known as NA2, in the wheat-growing region of the state.

31 May 2019

NIAID announces two awards for the study of influenza immunity in kids

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, has announced two awards for the study of influenza immunity in children.

23 May 2019

Scientists identify target to ‘tone down’ hyper-active immunity to influenza infection

For most people, the influenza A virus, commonly known as the flu, is cleared from the body by our own immune system.

23 May 2019

Researchers map virulence factor of influenza A virus in real-time

The influenza A viruses, which have instigated deadly pandemics in the past, still remain a major global public health problem until today. Molecules known as virulence factors are produced by bacteria, viruses, and fungi to help them to infect host cells.

21 May 2019

Scientists develop single vaccination approach to combat influenza and pneumococcal infections

Scientists from the University of Adelaide's Research Centre for Infectious Diseases have developed a single vaccination approach to simultaneously combat influenza and pneumococcal infections, the world's most deadly respiratory diseases.

21 May 2019

Naturally occurring human antibody reveals hidden weakness in influenza virus

The ever-changing "head" of an influenza virus protein has an unexpected Achilles heel, report scientists funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, one of the National Institutes of Health.

17 May 2019

Study provides insight on how two proteins help influenza A virus to fight its way to cells

Researchers have provided new insight on how two proteins help influenza A virus particles fight their way to human cells.

16 May 2019

Online intervention lowers mothers' intentions to visit primary care clinician for respiratory tract infection

Visits to the doctor for a respiratory tract infection can lead to unnecessary antibiotic prescribing, but an online intervention with real-time information on locally circulating viruses may reduce mothers' intentions to visit their primary care doctor.

15 May 2019