Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Cancer drug may help combat flu

Ever get a flu shot and still get the flu? If so, there's new hope for flu-free winters in the years to come thanks to a new discovery by researchers who found that a drug called DMXAA, originally developed as anti-tumor agent, enhances the ability of flu vaccines to ward off this deadly virus.

1 Mar 2011

Two genes linked to binge drinking

University of Maryland School of Medicine researchers have identified two genes associated with binge drinking that may open doors to new, more effective treatments for excessive alcohol drinking. The scientists found that manipulating two receptors in the brain, GABA receptors and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), "caused profound reduction" of binge drinking for two weeks in rodents that had been bred and trained to drink excessively. The study was published online the week of Feb. 28 in the journal the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

1 Mar 2011

HHS awards two contracts to accelerate flu vaccine availability

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded two contracts today to help make vaccine available more quickly for seasonal flu outbreaks and pandemics. The contracts for advanced development of new types of vaccine and new ways to make flu vaccine known as next-generation recombinant influenza vaccine total $215 million.

28 Feb 2011

Tenofovir gel may help reduce risk of HIV from anal sex

A gel developed to protect against HIV during vaginal sex produced a strong antiviral effect when used in the rectum, according to an early-phase study presented today at the 18th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI). The results, based on rectal tissue biopsies sampled from HIV-negative men and women who used the product daily for one week, provide the first-ever evidence that tenofovir gel could help reduce the risk of HIV from anal sex, even though the vaginal gel formulation may not be optimal for rectal use.

28 Feb 2011

New research may shed light on how HIV virus reactivates from latency

New research enhances the current knowledge of how human immunodeficiency virus type-1, which causes AIDS, controls the cell cycle of cells that it infects. The new findings may shed light on how the virus reactivates after entering a dormant state, called latency.

28 Feb 2011

Authorities work to contain measles scare

Health authorities are trying to prevent an outbreak of measles after a woman carrying the transmissible infection travelled widely throughout the United States. The lady in question, 27, allegedly contracted the airborne virus in the United Kingdom and arrived in the United States last week, passing through three U.S. airports on her way to New Mexico, where she is believed to reside. She arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport on Tuesday, February 22, from London.

28 Feb 2011

Acute viral infection does not appear to cause exacerbation of IPF

Acute viral infection does not appear to be a primary cause of acute exacerbation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a progressive, deadly disease resulting in thickening and scarring of the lungs, according to a study conducted by researchers from the U.S., Korea and Japan.

28 Feb 2011

New study: Immune molecules can regulate synaptic connections in brain

The number of connections between nerve cells in the brain can be regulated by an immune system molecule, according to a new study from UC Davis. The research, published Feb. 27 in the journal Nature Neuroscience, reveals a potential link between immunity, infectious disease and conditions such as schizophrenia or autism.

27 Feb 2011

Researchers explain genetic differences that distinguish early-transmitting HIVs-viruses

A new finding from scientists at the National Institutes of Health could help efforts to design vaccines and other prevention tools to block HIV in the early stages of sexual transmission, before infection takes hold. Researchers at the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases have helped explain genetic differences that can distinguish some early-transmitting HIVs-viruses found in an infected individual within the first month after infection-from forms of HIV isolated later in infection.

25 Feb 2011

Journal of Clinical Virology publishes positive outcome from CMX001 treatment against AdV infection

Chimerix, Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing orally-available antiviral therapeutics, today announced the publication of the first reported case in which adenovirus infection was successfully eradicated following treatment with its broad-spectrum antiviral drug, CMX001.

25 Feb 2011

Bristol-Myers Squibb awards $1 million grant to reduce hepatitis-related health disparities in Asia

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation has awarded four new grants to help improve awareness, prevention and care of hepatitis B and hepatitis C in China and India.

25 Feb 2011

New research: Significant number of HCV patients in the U.S. does not have health insurance coverage

New research has determined that patients in the U.S. with hepatitis C virus are twice as likely to not have health insurance coverage compared with those without the disease.

24 Feb 2011

Lack of health insurance limits Hepatitis C patients' access to latest antiviral therapy

New research has determined that patients in the U.S. with hepatitis C virus (HCV) are twice as likely to not have health insurance coverage compared with those without the disease. In fact researchers found only a third of HCV infected Americans have access to antiviral therapy; the remaining are either uninsured or not candidates for therapy due to treatment contraindications. Details of this study are published in the March issue of Hepatology, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD).

24 Feb 2011

Sanofi Pasteur to participate in first international bell-ringing event to eradicate polio

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of the sanofi-aventis Group, today will participate in the first international bell-ringing event by a company listed on NYSE Euronext. The events will acknowledge past successes and future challenges in the battle to eradicate polio at the stock exchanges in New York, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and Lisbon.

24 Feb 2011

FDA allows marketing of Ridascreen Norovirus 3rd Generation EIA assay in the US

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration allowed marketing of the first test for the preliminary identification of norovirus.

24 Feb 2011

BRI and Eureka Genomics form strategic alliance to advance cancer treatments

Baylor Research Institute (BRI), the research arm of Baylor Health Care System, and bioinformatics pioneer Eureka Genomics (EG) have formed a strategic alliance to achieve a better understanding of the causes of colorectal cancer, potentially leading to advancements in the disease's prevention, management and treatment.

24 Feb 2011

Senate Majority Leader will attempt to pass new one-month stopgap measure to avoid government shutdown

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Tuesday "he will attempt to pass a 'clean' one-month stopgap funding measure at current spending levels when the Senate returns next week, in a bid to avoid a government shutdown," CQ reports.

24 Feb 2011

Scientists complete protein 3D structural sequence essential for cellular function

Researchers at IRB Barcelona have completed the 3D structural sequence adopted by several essential proteins in the exchange of substances between the extra and intracellular milieu. This finding provides a global perspective of the structural changes that occur in these relevant proteins during basic cell processes, such as protein synthesis, the regulation of metabolism and cell volume, and nerve transmission.

24 Feb 2011

New vaccine offers hope against Hepatitis C

Immunology: Three percent of the world's population is currently infected by hepatitis C. The virus hides in the liver and can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer, and it's the most frequent cause of liver transplants in Denmark.

24 Feb 2011

Polio: Myanmar plans vaccination campaign after confirming first new case in three years; India fights disease in rural areas

UNICEF said that Myanmar is planning a mass polio vaccination campaign of children under age five after the country confirmed its first case of the disease in three years, Agence France-Presse reports.

24 Feb 2011

Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Cancer drug may help combat flu

Two genes linked to binge drinking

HHS awards two contracts to accelerate flu vaccine availability

Tenofovir gel may help reduce risk of HIV from anal sex

New research may shed light on how HIV virus reactivates from latency

Authorities work to contain measles scare

Acute viral infection does not appear to cause exacerbation of IPF

New study: Immune molecules can regulate synaptic connections in brain

Researchers explain genetic differences that distinguish early-transmitting HIVs-viruses

Journal of Clinical Virology publishes positive outcome from CMX001 treatment against AdV infection

Bristol-Myers Squibb awards $1 million grant to reduce hepatitis-related health disparities in Asia

New research: Significant number of HCV patients in the U.S. does not have health insurance coverage

Lack of health insurance limits Hepatitis C patients' access to latest antiviral therapy

Sanofi Pasteur to participate in first international bell-ringing event to eradicate polio

FDA allows marketing of Ridascreen Norovirus 3rd Generation EIA assay in the US

BRI and Eureka Genomics form strategic alliance to advance cancer treatments

Senate Majority Leader will attempt to pass new one-month stopgap measure to avoid government shutdown

Scientists complete protein 3D structural sequence essential for cellular function

New vaccine offers hope against Hepatitis C

Polio: Myanmar plans vaccination campaign after confirming first new case in three years; India fights disease in rural areas

A new way of characterising biomolecules eBook

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

Automating research - solutions and best practices

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Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

A new way of characterising biomolecules eBook

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

Automating research - solutions and best practices

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

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