Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

Study reports generation of new vaccine strains that appear effective against polio virus

While the goal of polio virus eradication is in sight, there are concerns about post-eradication manufacturing and stockpiling vaccine stores containing live virus that could escape and repopulate the environment. A study published on December 31st in PLOS Pathogens reports the generation of new vaccine strains that appear both effective and unable to cause disease after accidental or intended release.

4 Jan 2016

New study describes STING protein's role in potential suppression of colorectal cancer

A new study published today by researchers at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine reports on a key finding about the immune system's response to tumor development following studies on colorectal cancer.

4 Jan 2016

Asthma in childhood may increase risk of shingles

Nearly 1 million incidences of herpes zoster, which is also known as shingles, occur every year in the U.S., with an estimated one-third of all adults affected by age 80. Despite its prevalence, particularly between ages 50 and 59, it is still unclear why some individuals will develop shingles, and others will not.

29 Dec 2015

Ebola virus and bats waging molecular battle for survival

Ebola virus and bats have been waging a molecular battle for survival that may have started at least 25 million years ago, according to a study led by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, the University of Colorado-Boulder (CU-Boulder) and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) that published online today in the journal eLife.

24 Dec 2015

Simplified mathematical model to study spread of dengue fever in urban areas

Mathematics is often implemented in healthcare and medical research. From health management to the bio-pharmaceutical fields, math modeling can be used to predict the spread of diseases, how to prevent epidemics and so much more.

24 Dec 2015

Single VRC01 antibody infusion could suppress HIV level in people not taking ART

A single infusion of a powerful antibody called VRC01 can suppress the level of HIV in the blood of infected people who are not taking antiretroviral therapy (ART), scientists at the National Institutes of Health report in a paper published today.

24 Dec 2015

Hepatitis C virus linked to increased risk of developing Parkinson's disease

The hepatitis C virus may be associated with an increased risk of developing Parkinson's disease, according to a study published in the December 23, 2015, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 Dec 2015

Immunogeneticist helps monitor immune responses in VRC01 phase 1 trial in HIV-infected individuals

Janardan Pandey, Ph.D., an immunogeneticist specializing in immunoglobulin GM genes at the Medical University of South Carolina, helped monitor for immune responses that could limit the effectiveness of the broadly neutralizing antibody VRC01 in a phase 1 trial of that antibody in HIV-infected individuals led by a team at the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.

24 Dec 2015

Study reveals factors that bolster altruistic behavioral intentions during Ebola outbreak

When the Ebola epidemic broke out in 2014, many people responded with fear and loathing, calling for travelers from West Africa to be quarantined, including health workers returning from Ebola-affected areas.

23 Dec 2015

Shells of plant virus trigger immune system to wipe out tumors, provide protection against metastases

The shells of a common plant virus, inhaled into a lung tumor or injected into ovarian, colon or breast tumors, not only triggered the immune system in mice to wipe out the tumors, but provided systemic protection against metastases, researchers from Case Western Reserve University and Dartmouth University report.

23 Dec 2015

FDA updates blood donor deferral recommendations to help ensure continued safety of blood supply

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued final guidance outlining updated blood donor deferral recommendations to reflect the most current scientific evidence and to help ensure continued safety of the blood supply by reducing the risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission by blood and blood products.

22 Dec 2015

Roche announces availability of cobas HBVassay for use on cobas 4800 System

Roche announced today the commercial availability of the cobas HBVassay for use on the cobas 4800 System in countries accepting the CE mark. This new molecular diagnostic assay expands the available virology menu on the cobas 4800 System, improving system efficiency and providing testing flexibility that allows physicians to assess a patient's response to antiviral therapy.

22 Dec 2015

Targeted alpha therapy has potential to reduce HIV-infected cells from central nervous system

Targeted alpha therapy has the potential to selectively eliminate HIV infected cells from the central nervous system, according to a recent study co-authored by the JRC. The study shows that a specific human antibody labelled with the alpha emitter bismuth-213 can penetrate the blood brain barrier and selectively target and destroy HIV-infected cells while sparing non-infected healthy cells.

21 Dec 2015

Roche's cobas HIV-1 viral load test approved by FDA for use on cobas 6800 and cobas 8800 Systems

Roche announced today that it has received FDA approval for the cobas HIV-1 viral load test by the United States Food and Drug Administration for use on the cobas 6800 and cobas 8800 Systems. This HIV-1 viral load test is part of the next generation of Roche viral load tests, which clinicians use to manage the disease and treatment of patients infected with HIV-1.

21 Dec 2015

TUM scientists develop small molecule that may allow future patient-specific treatment of cancer tumours

Integrins help cells communicate with and adapt to their environment. Also cancer cells depend on their properties to survive and spread throughout the body. Now scientists at the Technical University of Munich have successfully developed a small, highly active molecule that binds to a specific integrin which operates in many types of cancer.

21 Dec 2015

Flu vaccine: the facts. An interview with Dr Lisa Maragakis

There are different formulations of the flu vaccine but in general they all do the same thing, which is to stimulate our body's immune system to recognize and fight against the influenza virus.

21 Dec 2015

Luminex's NxTAG Respiratory Pathogen Panel obtains FDA clearance

Luminex Corporation today announced that it has received FDA clearance for its NxTAG Respiratory Pathogen Panel that detects 20 clinically relevant viral and bacterial respiratory pathogens, including the atypical bacteria Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumonia.

20 Dec 2015

New vaccine shows promise against Middle East respiratory syndrome in dromedary camels

An international research project with the involvement of Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and the Animal Health Research Centre (IRTA-CReSA), has designed a vaccine shown to be effective in protecting dromedaries against the coronavirus (CoV) that causes Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

18 Dec 2015

Novel drug candidate prevents nerve cell damage in mouse model of Parkinson's disease

A team of scientists at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and Longevity Biotech, Inc., has demonstrated that neuroprotection could be attained in preclinical models by a novel drug candidate that changes immune responses.

18 Dec 2015

Findings show promising evidence for creating broad-spectrum antiviral

UW researchers working in collaboration with Kineta Inc. and the University of Texas at Galveston have shown that making a drug-like molecule to turn on innate immunity can induce genes to control infection in several -known viruses.

18 Dec 2015

Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

Study reports generation of new vaccine strains that appear effective against polio virus

New study describes STING protein's role in potential suppression of colorectal cancer

Asthma in childhood may increase risk of shingles

Ebola virus and bats waging molecular battle for survival

Simplified mathematical model to study spread of dengue fever in urban areas

Single VRC01 antibody infusion could suppress HIV level in people not taking ART

Hepatitis C virus linked to increased risk of developing Parkinson's disease

Immunogeneticist helps monitor immune responses in VRC01 phase 1 trial in HIV-infected individuals

Study reveals factors that bolster altruistic behavioral intentions during Ebola outbreak

Shells of plant virus trigger immune system to wipe out tumors, provide protection against metastases

FDA updates blood donor deferral recommendations to help ensure continued safety of blood supply

Roche announces availability of cobas HBVassay for use on cobas 4800 System

Targeted alpha therapy has potential to reduce HIV-infected cells from central nervous system

Roche's cobas HIV-1 viral load test approved by FDA for use on cobas 6800 and cobas 8800 Systems

TUM scientists develop small molecule that may allow future patient-specific treatment of cancer tumours

Flu vaccine: the facts. An interview with Dr Lisa Maragakis

Luminex's NxTAG Respiratory Pathogen Panel obtains FDA clearance

New vaccine shows promise against Middle East respiratory syndrome in dromedary camels

Novel drug candidate prevents nerve cell damage in mouse model of Parkinson's disease

Findings show promising evidence for creating broad-spectrum antiviral

Small solutions for big problems in drug discovery and delivery

Professor Nancy Ip: Pioneering New Paths in Neurodegenerative Therapy

Utilizing process Raman in optimizing cultivated meat production