Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

New technology can turn off genes more precisely, say UCSF researchers

Scientists at UC San Francisco have found a more precise way to turn off genes, a finding that will speed research discoveries and biotech advances and may eventually prove useful in reprogramming cells to regenerate organs and tissues.

8 Mar 2013

IRIN examines impact of HIV funding on national health care systems

In an article in its "Building Resilience" series, IRIN examines the impact of HIV funding on health care systems in developing countries, writing, "Some have argued that the AIDS epidemic has helped generate an overall increase in health funding and mobilized an international push for more equitable health care access. But others maintain that the billions of donor dollars spent fighting HIV/AIDS in the last decade have done little to strengthen fragile national health systems."

8 Mar 2013

APIC offers tips to stay infection-free

Beyond the obvious—steering clear of runny noses and hacking coughs—the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) presents some other practical ways of staying infection-free.

8 Mar 2013

Editorial, opinion pieces react to 'functional cure' of infant born with HIV

Scientists on Sunday announced that an infant born with HIV appears to have been "functionally cured" of the virus after receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) within 30 hours of birth.

8 Mar 2013

Study helps explain why viruses often spread through the brain in patchwork patterns

Viruses often spread through the brain in patchwork patterns, infecting some cells but missing others. New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis helps explain why. The scientists showed that natural immune defenses that resist viral infection are turned on in some brain cells but switched off in others.

8 Mar 2013

Melittin-loaded nanoparticles can destroy human immunodeficiency virus

Nanoparticles carrying a toxin found in bee venom can destroy human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) while leaving surrounding cells unharmed, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown.

8 Mar 2013

Researchers observe how West Nile virus is transmitted between mosquito generations

In California Culex mosquitoes are considered to be the principle vectors of West Nile virus (WNV), which infects birds, humans, and other mammals during the summer. In addition, these mosquitoes may also serve as overwintering reservoir hosts as the virus is passed "vertically" from female mosquito to egg, then larva, and then adult.

6 Mar 2013

Media examine reaction to, potential implications of 'functional cure' of infant born with HIV

"The remarkable case of a baby being cured of HIV infection in the United States using readily available drugs has raised new hope for eradicating the infection in infants worldwide, but scientists say it will take a lot more research and much more sensitive diagnostics before this hope becomes a reality," Reuters reports.

6 Mar 2013

Prevention remains best method to stop mother-to-child HIV transmission

"If confirmed by further analysis," the case of a Mississippi infant being cured of HIV "would be the first time a person has been cured with simple drug treatments, making a lifetime of antiviral therapy unnecessary," a New York Times editorial states.

6 Mar 2013

Automatic cuts to take toll on community health centers

Estimates suggest these centers will serve about 900,000 fewer patients in 2013 because of the sequester.

6 Mar 2013

Study shows community-based HIV-prevention efforts increase testing rates, reduce HIV incidence

In Africa and Thailand, communities that worked together on HIV-prevention efforts saw not only a rise in HIV screening but a drop in new infections, according to a new study presented this week at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta.

6 Mar 2013

National Jewish Health receives U.S. patent for POPG and related compounds

Dennis Voelker, PhD, professor of medicine at National Jewish Health, has been awarded a U.S. patent (#8,367,643) for various lipids and related compounds that can inhibit inflammation and infection in the lungs, especially those caused by influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

5 Mar 2013

Viewpoints: Disappointing 'surprises' in health law; Cuts in graduate medical training threatens physician supply; Va. can afford Medicaid expansion

The proposed 2.3 percent reduction in (Medicare Advantage plan) payments, which comes on top of cuts already scheduled under the Affordable Care Act, pays no mind to the potential impact on quality of care throughout the program. These cuts will apply to all plans no matter the value they bring in providing quality care to beneficiaries or offering innovative solutions that could ultimately be scaled and applied to the broader program.

5 Mar 2013

Nursing home patients with pneumonia may need viral screening

Viral testing should be carried out among all older individuals who have been admitted to hospital for nursing home-acquired pneumonia, recommend researchers.

5 Mar 2013

U.S. researchers report 'functional cure' for infant born with HIV

"A baby born with the virus that causes AIDS appears to have been cured, scientists announced Sunday, describing the case of a child from Mississippi who's now two and a half and has been off medication for about a year with no signs of active infection," the Associated Press reports.

5 Mar 2013

Discovery provides clues for potentially eliminating HIV infection in children

A two-year-old child born with HIV infection and treated with antiretroviral drugs beginning in the first days of life no longer has detectable levels of virus using conventional testing despite not taking HIV medication for 10 months, according to findings presented today at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta.

5 Mar 2013

HIV might promote aging and disease progression in people with HCV, study results suggest

Infectious disease experts at Johns Hopkins have found that among people infected with the hepatitis C virus, co-infection with HIV, speeds damage and scarring of liver tissue by almost a decade.

5 Mar 2013

Sanford-Burnham enters into partnership to test furin for treatment of dengue fever

Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute and 60- Pharmaceuticals, LLC, have entered into a partnership to test furin, a human proteinase, as a drug target for the treatment of dengue fever, one of the most common infectious diseases in the tropics and subtropics.

5 Mar 2013

Editorial, opinion piece address efforts to eradicate polio

The Independent recently published an editorial and opinion piece discussing the global effort to eradicate polio.

5 Mar 2013

Carbohydrate-rich diet during pregnancy may predict RSV severity in infants

An important predictor of the severity of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in infants may be what their mothers ate during pregnancy, according to a Vanderbilt study published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

5 Mar 2013

Virology News and Research

Latest Virology News and Research

New technology can turn off genes more precisely, say UCSF researchers

IRIN examines impact of HIV funding on national health care systems

APIC offers tips to stay infection-free

Editorial, opinion pieces react to 'functional cure' of infant born with HIV

Study helps explain why viruses often spread through the brain in patchwork patterns

Melittin-loaded nanoparticles can destroy human immunodeficiency virus

Researchers observe how West Nile virus is transmitted between mosquito generations

Media examine reaction to, potential implications of 'functional cure' of infant born with HIV

Prevention remains best method to stop mother-to-child HIV transmission

Automatic cuts to take toll on community health centers

Study shows community-based HIV-prevention efforts increase testing rates, reduce HIV incidence

National Jewish Health receives U.S. patent for POPG and related compounds

Viewpoints: Disappointing 'surprises' in health law; Cuts in graduate medical training threatens physician supply; Va. can afford Medicaid expansion

Nursing home patients with pneumonia may need viral screening

U.S. researchers report 'functional cure' for infant born with HIV

Discovery provides clues for potentially eliminating HIV infection in children

HIV might promote aging and disease progression in people with HCV, study results suggest

Sanford-Burnham enters into partnership to test furin for treatment of dengue fever

Editorial, opinion piece address efforts to eradicate polio

Carbohydrate-rich diet during pregnancy may predict RSV severity in infants

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