Infectious Diseases News and Research

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Modified mRNAs improve efficiency of protein synthesis

Since mRNAs play a key role in protein synthesis in vivo, the use of mRNAs as medicines and for in vitro protein synthesis has been desired.

17 Jul 2020

Beautyberry leaf extract boosts drug's activity antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria

Scientists discovered a compound in the leaves of a common shrub, the American beautyberry, that boosts an antibiotic's activity against antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria. Laboratory experiments showed that the plant compound works in combination with oxacillin to knock down the resistance to the drug of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA.

17 Jul 2020

Study uncovers virus-specific T cell immunity in recovered COVID-19 and SARS patients

The T cells, along with antibodies, are an integral part of the human immune response against viral infections due to their ability to directly target and kill infected cells.

17 Jul 2020

Investigational COVID-19 vaccine is safe, generates neutralizing antibody activity in healthy adults

An investigational vaccine, mRNA-1273, designed to protect against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), was generally well tolerated and prompted neutralizing antibody activity in healthy adults, according to interim results published online today in The New England Journal of Medicine.

15 Jul 2020

The immune system can play a key role in improving recovery from heart attacks

International research collaboration to pioneer the field of immuno-cardiology and investigate ways to harness the power of the immune system to improve recovery from heart attacks will be led at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania by Jonathan Epstein, MD, executive vice dean, chief scientific officer and the William Wikoff Smith Professor of Cardiovascular Research.

14 Jul 2020

UTHealth physicians study blood pressure drug's efficiency in improving COVID-19 outcomes

An interventional therapy aimed at improving survival chances and reducing the need for critical care treatment due to COVID-19 is being investigated by physicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

14 Jul 2020

NIH establishes clinical trial network to test vaccines and monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has established a new clinical trial network that aims to enroll thousands of volunteers in large-scale clinical trials testing a variety of investigational vaccines and monoclonal antibodies intended to protect people from COVID-19.

14 Jul 2020

Modeling research shows increase in HIV, TB, and malaria deaths due to COVID-19 pandemic

But there is still an opportunity to substantially reduce the death toll by prioritizing the most critical services, specifically antiretroviral therapy for HIV, timely TB diagnosis and treatment, and provision of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets for malaria, researchers say.

14 Jul 2020

New, evidence-based guideline for treating patients suffering from NTM pathogens

NTMs are closely related to tuberculosis bacteria and can (but do not need to) cause infectious diseases in humans. They are called "nontuberculous mycobacteria" (NTMs) to distinguish them from tuberculosis bacteria.

14 Jul 2020

Single dose of flu drug can limit the spread of the illness within households

A single dose of the flu drug baloxavir marboxil can reduce the spread of the illness within households, new research concludes.

14 Jul 2020

Researchers evaluate role of zinc in COVID-19 prevention

Researchers from Sechenov University in collaboration with colleagues from Germany, Greece and Russia reviewed scientific articles on the role of zinc in the prevention and treatment of viral infections and pneumonia, with projections on those caused by SARS-CoV-2. The results were published in the International Journal of Molecular Medicine.

14 Jul 2020

Single dose of tocilizumab improves survival in critically ill COVID-19 patients

Critically ill COVID-19 patients who received a single dose of a drug that calms an overreacting immune system were 45% less likely to die overall, and more likely to be out of the hospital or off a ventilator one month after treatment, compared with those who didn't receive the drug, according to a new study by a team from the University of Michigan.

14 Jul 2020

Scientists discover new antiviral drug against paramyxovirus

A new antiviral drug that is effective against a broad range of human pathogens in the paramyxovirus family, such as the human parainfluenzaviruses and measles virus, has been discovered by researchers in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University.

14 Jul 2020

Study shows a causal link between individual microbiota and survival of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Antibiotic resistance is a growing challenge in the treatment of infectious diseases worldwide. Bacteria become resistant to antibiotics by acquiring or mutating genes that allow them to survive the administration of antibiotics, which otherwise would kill them.

14 Jul 2020

Altimmune reports positive results on intranasal COVID-19 vaccine candidate

Altimmune, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, has announced positive results from the preclinical studies conducted in mice at the University of Alabama at Birmingham of its intranasal COVID-19 vaccine candidate, AdCOVID.

14 Jul 2020

Genomics study in Black Americans could lead to precision prostate cancer therapies

Black men in the United States are known to suffer disproportionately from prostate cancer, but few studies have investigated whether genetic differences in prostate tumors could have anything to do with these health disparities.

13 Jul 2020

New mutation in common flu subtype helps evade immune response

Strains of a common subtype of influenza virus, H3N2, have almost universally acquired a mutation that effectively blocks antibodies from binding to a key viral protein, according to a study from researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

13 Jul 2020

Infectious Diseases News and Research

Modified mRNAs improve efficiency of protein synthesis

Beautyberry leaf extract boosts drug's activity antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria

Study uncovers virus-specific T cell immunity in recovered COVID-19 and SARS patients

Investigational COVID-19 vaccine is safe, generates neutralizing antibody activity in healthy adults

The immune system can play a key role in improving recovery from heart attacks

UTHealth physicians study blood pressure drug's efficiency in improving COVID-19 outcomes

NIH establishes clinical trial network to test vaccines and monoclonal antibodies for COVID-19

Modeling research shows increase in HIV, TB, and malaria deaths due to COVID-19 pandemic

New, evidence-based guideline for treating patients suffering from NTM pathogens

Single dose of flu drug can limit the spread of the illness within households

Researchers evaluate role of zinc in COVID-19 prevention

Single dose of tocilizumab improves survival in critically ill COVID-19 patients

Scientists discover new antiviral drug against paramyxovirus

Study shows a causal link between individual microbiota and survival of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Altimmune reports positive results on intranasal COVID-19 vaccine candidate

Genomics study in Black Americans could lead to precision prostate cancer therapies

New mutation in common flu subtype helps evade immune response

New drug enables the immune system to attack ovarian cancer, TGen study shows

Salk researchers discover genetic 'dial' to fine-tune the immune response

Organoids reveal inflammatory processes that play a role in infectious diseases

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