Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Eligible travelers to England can now take a cheaper lateral flow test

Eligible fully vaccinated passengers arriving in England from countries not on the UK's red list can take a cheaper lateral flow test instead of a PCR from today [Sunday 24 October].

25 Oct 2021

A new vaccine approach that could prevent future pandemics

News-Medical speaks to Professor Tomohiro Kurosaki about how he has developed a new vaccine approach that could prevent future pandemics.

25 Oct 2021

Development of light-based tool for the inactivation of SARS-CoV-2

Researchers from EMIT bio have developed a biological light unit that can sterilize surfaces, killing SARS-CoV-2.

25 Oct 2021

Are non-human primates at risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure through wastewater contact?

Researchers have been investigating the potential for SARS-CoV-2 to spread to NHP through wastewater.

25 Oct 2021

Molecular features of SARS-CoV-2 variant receptor binding

Researchers have been investigating the changes in receptor binding in these variants that increase the danger they pose.

25 Oct 2021

Study finds FDA-approved drug has potent antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 and variants of concern

A new study aimed to examine the antiviral potential of atovaquone against the original SARS-CoV-2 strain and other variants of concern.

25 Oct 2021

How pregnancy influences SARS-CoV-2 immune response

A focus article published in Science Translational Medicine highlighted two recently published studies that investigated the response of pregnant women to natural infections and COVID-19 vaccines.

25 Oct 2021

Role of SARS-CoV-2 infection biomarkers in HIV replication

A new study investigates the role of the S100A8/A9 complex in the replication of HIV.

25 Oct 2021

Study suggests seropositive individuals produce anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies with improved potency and breadth

Researchers isolated single cells among individuals with and without prior infection with the SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated with BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine and compared the nature of the neutralizing antibody response against the original Wuhan virus and the subsequent variants.

25 Oct 2021

Telemedicine approach remains a viable alternative for lung cancer screening

A novel telemedicine lung cancer screening effort during the COVID-19 pandemic shows that virtual single-visit screenings are just as effective as single-visit screenings done in person at the hospital, according to a study presented at the American College of Surgeons Virtual Clinical Congress 2021.

25 Oct 2021

Cancer patients have impaired antibody responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines

A new study posted to the medRxiv* preprint server studies the neutralizing antibody response in cancer patients diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), lung cancer, breast cancer, and various non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas (NHL), post-reception of two doses of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines.

25 Oct 2021

Compared to influenza, COVID-19 is more likely to cause venous thrombosis

New research published in the medRxiv* preprint server suggests that COVID-19 illness incurs a greater 90-day risk of venous thrombosis than the flu. However, arterial thrombosis remains a higher risk among people with the influenza virus.

24 Oct 2021

Targeting SARS-CoV-2 with Chaga mushroom – a natural antiviral compound

A new study examines the potential binding interaction of the beneficial components of Chaga mushroom with that of the SARS-CoV-2 RBD.

24 Oct 2021

A comparison between Pfizer/BioNTech's and Sinopharm's SARS-CoV-2 vaccines

Researchers compare antibody titers elicited the Pfizer‐BioNTech mRNA and the classic inactivated virus Sinopharm vaccines.

24 Oct 2021

Immune evasion by SARS-CoV-2 facilitated by a mutational hotspot in the NTD

Researchers discuss mutations in the NTD of the spike protein, which contains an antigenic “supersite” and is the target for nAbs.

24 Oct 2021

Does previous SARS-CoV-2 infection affect vaccine-induced immunity?

Researchers report the binding and pseudo-neutralizing antibody titers elicited after patients had received either the Pfizer-BioNTech or AstraZeneca vaccines.

24 Oct 2021

Mapping the molecular gene signatures of respiratory viruses, including SARS-CoV-2

Researchers compare a large cohort of transcriptomic dataset maps of gene regulation by SARS-CoV-2 infection.

24 Oct 2021

Study findings may lead to new treatments to fight deadly C. difficile infections

A University of California, Irvine-led study suggests that the glucosyltransferase domain (GTD) is an ideal molecular target for therapeutic interventions for Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). These findings may lead to new treatments to fight this deadly disease.

22 Oct 2021

Fluorescent system reveals how viruses produced during RSV infection change shape

Respiratory syncytial virus, more commonly known as RSV, is a highly contagious respiratory virus that can be very serious and even fatal for young children and the elderly.

22 Oct 2021

Researchers unravel the molecular origins of recombination in RNA viruses

An international consortium, led by Delft University of Technology and the University of North Carolina, has for the first time succeeded in probing the molecular origins of recombination in RNA viruses.

22 Oct 2021