Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Cattle fairs ahead of Eid may trigger a second wave of lumpy skin disease

While Pakistan has managed to confine an outbreak of lumpy skin disease that affects cattle and buffaloes there are fears that cattle fairs ahead of the religious festival Eid-ul-Azha might trigger a second wave.

27 May 2022

SARS-CoV-2 genome analysis could boost disease surveillance

Continued monitoring of the evolution of the virus that causes COVID-19 as the pandemic progresses could strengthen disease surveillance systems and aid preparedness for new variants, a study suggests.

27 May 2022

Burned out by covid and 80-hour workweeks, resident physicians unionize

In the early weeks of the pandemic, Dr. Lorenzo González, then a second-year resident of family medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, ran on fumes, working as many as 80 hours a week in the ICU.

27 May 2022

Cell membrane-bound enzyme is essential for SARS-CoV-2 infectivity, study shows

The membrane-bound form of angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is essential for enabling infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, according to a study published in the journal Cell.

26 May 2022

New evidence confirms that enterovirus D68 causes acute flaccid myelitis

A case report published in the New England Journal of Medicine provides evidence that enterovirus D68 directly infects spinal cord neurons and that a corresponding robust immune response is present – a direct causation to the polio-like paralyzing illness, acute flaccid myelitis (AFM).

26 May 2022

HMA therapy for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome could potentially activate a sleeping oncogene

Hypomethylating agents (HMA) are currently used as a first-line treatment for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) - a group of disorders where there is insufficient production of healthy mature blood cells in the bone marrow - and increasingly in other diseases, but their mechanism of action remains unclear.

26 May 2022

Overestimation of population immunity resulted in lack of preparedness and U.S. Delta variant surge

When the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 hit the United States in summer 2021, it led to a larger-than-expected surge in cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

26 May 2022

Expert explains why mass-immunization of young children in the UK is not essential

Throughout the pandemic the University of Huddersfield's Department of Pharmacy has been raising awareness on what vaccines are, how they are formulated, and why they're an important part of the healthcare strategy as well as the progress on further developments in COVID vaccines, so that people can make an educated decision on becoming vaccinated or if choosing for their children.

26 May 2022

Novavax missed its global moonshot but is angling to win over mRNA defectors

Novavax hitched its wagon to the global coronavirus pandemic. Before most Americans truly grasped the scope of the danger, the small Maryland biotech startup had secured $1.6 billion in U.S. funding for its covid vaccine. Its moonshot goal: delivering 2 billion shots to the world by mid-2021.

26 May 2022

California schools try to outrace covid outbreaks

A fourth-grade camping trip led to one outbreak, a high school prom to another. But even with covid cases rising as schools head into the final stretch of the academic year, most California districts have not moved toward reinstating mask mandates.

26 May 2022

Study assesses the safety of breastfeeding during maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection

Researchers assessed the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in human breast milk.

26 May 2022

Mucosal COVID vaccine candidate powerfully protective in macaques

A recent research paper posted to the bioRxiv* preprint server illustrated the protective efficacy of the intranasal pediatric parainfluenza virus-vectored coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine prospect, B/HPIV3/S-6P, in macaques.

26 May 2022

FIND to present an overview of disease surveillance status and diagnostics to combat monkeypox

Diagnostic testing and disease surveillance are back in the spotlight as scientists and public health workers closely monitor the current outbreak of monkeypox that has emerged in cities across Europe, the US, Australia and Canada.

26 May 2022

After SARS-CoV-2 infection, anti-chemokine antibodies correlate with better outcomes

A recent study posted to the bioRxiv* preprint server illustrated that specific chemokine antibodies aid in recognizing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) convalescent individuals with a desirable disease course.

26 May 2022

A 6.4 million genome analysis predicts dominant SARS-CoV-2 variants

In this new study in the journal Science, researchers have developed a hierarchical Bayesian regression model, named, PyR0, which can analyze the complete set of publicly available SARS-CoV-2 genomes.

26 May 2022

We need to prepare for Monkeypox - now confirmed in 21 countries

Efforts should be made to curb the spread of this virus in order to prevent another pandemic.

25 May 2022

Study illustrates risk of Omicron infection in fully vaccinated individuals

Scientists studied SARS-CoV-2 humoral responses in a healthy young person who was infected by the Omicron BA.1.15 after receiving booster vaccination.

25 May 2022

Vaccinated people with breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infection can experience debilitating long COVID

Even vaccinated people with mild breakthrough COVID-19 infections can experience debilitating, lingering symptoms that affect the heart, brain, lungs and other parts of the body, according to new research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System.

25 May 2022

Development of a rapid, inexpensive and highly accurate diagnostic method to fight African Swine Fever

While the attention of public health authorities has been rivetted on the current COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, many other viruses have been stealthily circling the globe, causing serious disease and death in humans and other animals.

25 May 2022

Air pollutant exposures can exacerbate the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 infection

Data from a new USC study shows a significant increase in the risk of severe outcomes for COVID-19 patients exposed to fine particles (PM2.5) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), two common (and correlated) components of ambient air pollution in Southern California.

25 May 2022