Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Scientists develop new test to help identify people at risk for developing liver cancer

Scientists have developed a new test that can help identify people who are likely to develop hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer. The approach uses a simple blood test to check for the patient's previous exposure to certain viruses.

11 Jun 2020

UofSC research: Twitter could help predict future pandemics

The places people tweet could help predict a future pandemic thanks to the work of three University of South Carolina professors.

11 Jun 2020

New sensor could dramatically improve the efficiency of Covid-19 tests

A new sensor that can give an immediate response to the presence of coronavirus could dramatically improve the efficiency of testing and overcome some of the current surveillance bottlenecks, believe its Swedish developers.

11 Jun 2020

Federal help falters as nursing homes run short of protective equipment

Around the country, nursing homes trying to protect their residents from the coronavirus eagerly await boxes of masks, eyewear and gowns promised by the federal government. But all too often the packages deliver disappointment — if they arrive at all.

11 Jun 2020

Using stories to mentally survive as a COVID-19 clinician

Dr. Christopher Travis, an intern in obstetrics-gynecology, has cared for patients with COVID-19 and performed surgery on women suspected of having the coronavirus. But the patient who arrived for a routine prenatal visit in two masks and gloves had a problem that wasn’t physiological.

11 Jun 2020

Rapid point-of-care testing using screen-printed electrodes from Metrohm DropSens

Point-of-care testing with screen-printed electrodes allows rapid testing of populations for viral outbreaks – at affordable costs, without the need for trained specialists and/or complicated equipment.

From Metrohm USA Inc. 11 Jun 2020

Computational approach to design peptide-based vaccine against SARS-Cov-2

There are currently no licensed vaccines available for COVID-19. While several antiviral drugs have been tested, none has proved to be completely effective against the disease.

11 Jun 2020

Article calls for international governance system to oversee access to Covid-19 vaccines, treatments

Human challenge trials to test the efficacy of vaccine candidates against SARS? CoV? 2, the novel coronavirus behind COVID? 19, could save considerable time and many lives.

11 Jun 2020

Researchers investigate risk perception of Ebola virus disease in rural areas of West Africa

A study led by the University of Kent's Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE) has found significant differences in disease risk perception and channels of information about Ebola virus disease (EVD) in rural areas and urban centers of Guinea, West Africa.

11 Jun 2020

Determining the reliability of COVID-19 antibody tests

With stay-at-home orders expiring around the world, many hope that COVID-19 antibody testing will help businesses and institutions reopen safely.

11 Jun 2020

Maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection not harmful in first trimester pregnancies

A new Danish study published on the preprint server medRxiv in June 2020 shows that infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in early pregnancy does not carry an increased risk of fetal harm.

10 Jun 2020

Scientists investigate immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 spike immunogens

The coronavirus pandemic is actively spreading across the globe, with millions of people infected. Amid the global health crisis, scientists race to develop an effective vaccine against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection.

10 Jun 2020

Asymptomatic spread of SARS-CoV-2 appears to be rare, says WHO

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has taken a toll on many countries, infecting more than 7.35 million people. Previously, scientists claimed that the virus could be transmitted via asymptomatic carriers, or those not showing symptoms of the disease.

10 Jun 2020

Rising SARS-CoV-2 RNA levels detected in sewage from several Dutch cities

Scientists have detected RNA from the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, in the feces of people with COVID-19. So it stands to reason that the viral RNA could end up in city sewage, where it could be used to monitor prevalence of the disease.

10 Jun 2020

Anticardiolipin antibodies and COVID-19

A new study has shown that anticardiolipin antibodies are associated with the novel coronavirus infection or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19.

10 Jun 2020

Unique antiviral action of cholesterol 25-hydroxylase against SARS-CoV-2

A new study by U.S. and Chinese researchers, currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server, demonstrates how cholesterol 25-hydroxylase and its enzymatic product 25-hydroxycholesterol can inhibit membrane fus

10 Jun 2020

COVID-19 mouse model could accelerate the search for treatments, vaccines

The global effort to quickly develop drugs and vaccines for COVID-19 has been hampered by limited numbers of laboratory mice that are susceptible to infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

10 Jun 2020

COVID-19 pandemic impacts mental, physical health of people with obesity

The COVID-19 pandemic is having a significant impact on people with obesity as they struggle to manage their weight and mental health during shelter-in-place orders, according to research led by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and UT Southwestern.

10 Jun 2020

Blood type plays role in SARS-CoV-2 infection

A new meta-analysis from Iran, available on the medRxiv preprint server, showed that the blood group A could be considered a partial risk factor for infection with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), whereas the blood group O may act as a protective factor; conversely, no significant associations were observed between specific blood groups and coronavirus disease (COVID-19) mortality.

10 Jun 2020

Seroprevalence of IgM and IgG against SARS-CoV-2 in China

A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine in June 2020 reports the seroprevalence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) across China. This may help to understand the actual prevalence of the virus in the current pandemic.

10 Jun 2020