Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

New gene therapy technique may help treat Alzheimer's disease

Investigators at Rush University Medical Center have successfully initiated a new technique that uses gene therapy to deliver nerve growth factor into regions of the brain where neurons are degenerating, in order to prevent cell death and reverse cell atrophy, two hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease.

21 Sep 2004

New computer program helps health departments halt outbreaks

Imagine that a terrorist has just released the smallpox virus in Atlanta, and suddenly there’s a race against time to vaccinate and treat every last man, woman and child in metro Atlanta before the deadly virus can spread.

20 Sep 2004

Discovery of dopamine terminal injury in brains of people with HIV dementia

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have discovered a key mechanism in the brains of people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) dementia.

20 Sep 2004

Genome researchers to look at 1918 Spanish flu

University of Washington researchers will be taking part in a multi-site project examining a portion of the genome of the strain of influenza responsible for the "Spanish Flu" outbreak in 1918.

20 Sep 2004

Neck surgeons brush up on West Nile virus

Neck Surgery Foundation Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO, being held September 19-22, 2004, at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, New York City, NY.

17 Sep 2004

RNAi enlisted in hunt for prawn vaccines

CSIRO researchers are using a biological phenomenon called RNA interference (RNAi) in an effort to develop a major biotechnological breakthrough for the aquaculture industry - vaccines for common prawn diseases.

16 Sep 2004

New diagnostic tests for bird flu

On the final day of the recent HPA conference, delegates heard about work that the Agency is carrying out to prepare for an avian flu pandemic.

16 Sep 2004

Protein that causes juvenile Batten disease also plays a key role in normal cell function

The aberrant protein that causes juvenile Batten disease, a fatal neurodegenerative disorder of childhood, also plays a key role in normal cell function, Duke University Medical Center researchers have found.

16 Sep 2004

Research findings could lead to more effective repellents

If you think it doesn't do much good to swipe the fly that's going after the potato salad, guess again. You may be discouraging the fly's colleagues from taking up the raid.

15 Sep 2004

WHO calls enhanced preparedness for SARS and avian influenza

The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged countries to put in place preventive measures and enhance preparedness ready for the possible re-emergence of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and avian influenza A (H5N1) in humans.

14 Sep 2004

First molecular-scale images of DNA binding to an adenovirus enzyme

The images, which appear on the cover of the October 2004 issue of Molecular and Cellular Proteomics, show how binding to DNA may stimulate the enzyme and are already being used to design new antiviral drugs to block this interaction.

14 Sep 2004

Growing global threat from avian influenza

"Unless intensive efforts are made, a pandemic is very likely to occur," Dr Shigeru Omi, WHO's Regional Director for the Western Pacific, told a news conference in Shanghai.

13 Sep 2004

$10.3 million biodefense contract to tackle salmonella, typhoid fever and monkey pox virus

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has received a $10.3 million biodefense contract from the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Agents (NIAID) to identify the proteins that regulate the bacteria that cause salmonella poisoning and typhoid fever, and the monkey pox virus.

12 Sep 2004

Influenza associated hospitalizations among elderly patients has increased substantially over the past two decades

The estimated number of influenza-associated hospitalizations among elderly patients has increased substantially over the past two decades, according to an article in the September 15 issue of JAMA.

10 Sep 2004

Gene therapy holds much promise for treating aggressive human superficial bladder cancer

Gene therapy that causes the bladder to act like a “bioreactor” to produce and secrete the anti-cancer agent interferon-alpha has shown dramatic benefits in preclinical tests, say researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

8 Sep 2004

Researchers uncover how HIV causes abnormalities in antibody-producing cells

HIV wreaks much of its damage by targeting the “orchestra conductor” of the immune system, a key class of T cells—CD4+ T cells—whose destructive relationship with HIV has been well-studied by AIDS researchers.

8 Sep 2004

Long-term outcomes for liver transplantation due to hepatitis C

A new study on liver transplants necessitated by the hepatitis C virus (the most common indication for this type of transplant) found that long-term outcomes are similar to patients receiving transplants due to other diseases.

8 Sep 2004

Advances in gene silencing on the agenda

Recent advances in using 'RNA interference' (RNAi) to improve plant, animal and human health will be the major focus of the CSIRO-hosted Horizons in Livestock Sciences Conference on the Gold Coast from 12-15 September.

8 Sep 2004

50 year old frozen smallpox vaccines are nearly 100 percent effective

Diluted doses of a smallpox vaccine, originally manufactured in the 1950s and stored as a frozen preparation, are nearly 100 percent effective, allowing for expansion of the current stockpile if needed, according to an article in the September 8 issue of JAMA.

8 Sep 2004

Sinovac completes dosing in phase 1 human clinical testing of SARS vaccine

Sinovac Biotech Ltd. has announced that all 36 subjects of the Phase I human clinical trial for its inactivated SARS vaccine have now been vaccinated with two doses of either SARS vaccine or placebo.

7 Sep 2004