Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

AIDS treatment can improve well-being of HIV-negative people

In rural Malawi, roughly 10 percent of the adult population has HIV. At the peak of the epidemic, in the 1990s and early 2000s, nearly everyone knew someone infected with or affected by the virus, what demographer Hans-Peter Kohler of the University of Pennsylvania describes as a generalized epidemic.

12 Dec 2015

Mount Sinai scientists develop new tool to determine global role of microRNAs

As microRNA biology has been implicated in everything from the development of cancer to virus infections, a new tool developed by scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai holds tremendous potential to develop new therapies that involve these small regulatory fragments of RNA.

11 Dec 2015

Virologists demonstrate how poxviruses defeat the body's host immune defenses

Smallpox virus, which killed millions of humans through the ages, ranks among the world's most feared bioterrorism agents. Human monkeypox continues to occur sporadically in remote African villages.

11 Dec 2015

Scientists find effective antiviral mechanisms to inhibit chikungunya virus

Scientists looking at the antiviral mechanisms of two previously identified human monoclonal antibodies have found they potently inhibit chikungunya virus (CHIKV) at multiple stages of infection.

11 Dec 2015

New framework launched for global elimination of human rabies

A new framework to eliminate human rabies and save tens of thousands of lives each year has been launched today by the World Health Organization, the World Organization for Animal Health, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Global Alliance for the Control of Rabies.

10 Dec 2015

Study reveals molecular function of protein essential for replication of H5N1 flu virus

An international collaboration of scientists from the CEA, CNRS, University Joseph Fourier, the EMBL and the ILL has revealed the molecular function of a protein essential for replication of H5N1 influenza virus.

10 Dec 2015

More than half of U.S. hospitals don't require flu shots for staff, new study finds

Within weeks, flu will start spreading across North America, sickening millions of people. It will hit people with health problems and weak immune systems hardest, and may kill tens of thousands of them.

10 Dec 2015

Oxitec prepares to increase supplies of OX513A to address recent outbreak of Zika virus in Brazil

Intrexon Corporation, a leader in synthetic biology, today announced that Oxitec, a UK-based subsidiary of the Company, is prepared to increase supplies of its proprietary mosquito control solution, OX513A, through its Brazil facilities to assist Brazil in addressing the recent devastating outbreak of the Zika virus and other diseases transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

8 Dec 2015

Simple approach to predict viral evolution may improve vaccine efficacy

New results from a study performed at the University of Helsinki suggest that genomic information from circulating influenza viruses can help in producing more efficient seasonal vaccines. The researchers were able to develop a simple approach for reliable real-time tracking and prediction of viral evolution based on whole-genome sequences of influenza viruses.

8 Dec 2015

Paracetamol provides no benefits in fighting influenza virus

Some doctors may recommend that patients with the flu take acetaminophen, or paracetemol, to relieve their symptoms; however, a new randomized clinical trial found no benefits to the over-the-counter medication in terms of fighting the influenza virus or reducing patients' temperature or other symptoms.

8 Dec 2015

TSRI scientists use new drug discovery technique to identify anti-diabetes compound

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute have deployed a powerful new drug discovery technique to identify an anti-diabetes compound with a novel mechanism of action.

8 Dec 2015

Quest Diagnostics performs RNA testing on patient specimens to detect more cases of HCV

In its commitment to provide diagnostic insights that enhance patient care and outcomes, Quest Diagnostics will automatically perform molecular testing on all patient specimens whose antibody screening results indicate hepatitis C virus infection, and remove standalone positive antibody screening as a test option.

From Quest Diagnostics 8 Dec 2015

Children suffering from neuroblastoma may benefit from potential new treatment

Children suffering from a cancer of the nervous system could benefit from a potential new treatment, thanks to an international team led by researchers at the University of Kent and at the Institute of Medical Virology at the Goethe-University, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

7 Dec 2015

FIRS calls for continued international support to end AIDS epidemic by 2030

World AIDS Day, held annually on the first day of December each year since 1988, is an opportunity for people around the world to join in the fight, show their support for those living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and commemorate the lives of those who have died.

7 Dec 2015

WHO highlights need to expand antiretroviral therapy, reverse HIV epidemic on World AIDS Day

On World AIDS Day the World Health Organization emphasizes that expanding antiretroviral therapy to all people living with HIV is key to ending the AIDS epidemic within a generation.

7 Dec 2015

World Hepatitis Alliance highlights need to recognise impact of coinfection between HIV and viral hepatitis

Viral hepatitis is one of the leading causes of non-AIDS-related deaths among people living with HIV, yet often goes undiagnosed. Similar to HIV, the hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses are blood-borne, having similar transmission routes like sexual contact for hepatitis B and injection drug use and sexual contact for hepatitis C.

7 Dec 2015

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

Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

AIDS treatment can improve well-being of HIV-negative people

Mount Sinai scientists develop new tool to determine global role of microRNAs

Virologists demonstrate how poxviruses defeat the body's host immune defenses

Scientists find effective antiviral mechanisms to inhibit chikungunya virus

New framework launched for global elimination of human rabies

Study reveals molecular function of protein essential for replication of H5N1 flu virus

More than half of U.S. hospitals don't require flu shots for staff, new study finds

Oxitec prepares to increase supplies of OX513A to address recent outbreak of Zika virus in Brazil

Simple approach to predict viral evolution may improve vaccine efficacy

Paracetamol provides no benefits in fighting influenza virus

TSRI scientists use new drug discovery technique to identify anti-diabetes compound

Quest Diagnostics performs RNA testing on patient specimens to detect more cases of HCV

Children suffering from neuroblastoma may benefit from potential new treatment

FIRS calls for continued international support to end AIDS epidemic by 2030

WHO highlights need to expand antiretroviral therapy, reverse HIV epidemic on World AIDS Day

World Hepatitis Alliance highlights need to recognise impact of coinfection between HIV and viral hepatitis

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

HBsAg may persist in chronic HBV patients beyond seroclearance

Combining medications may increase HBsAg loss in HBV patients

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

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