Virus News and Research

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A virus is a microscopic infectious agent that can reproduce only inside a host cell. Viruses infect all types of organisms: from animals and plants, to bacteria and archaea. Since the initial discovery of tobacco mosaic virus by Martinus Beijerinck in 1898, more than 5,000 types of virus have been described in detail, although most types of virus remain undiscovered. Viruses are ubiquitous, as they are found in almost every ecosystem on Earth, and are the most abundant type of biological entity on the planet. The study of viruses is known as virology, and is a branch of microbiology.

Researchers use metal-organic frameworks to target prostate cancer cells

Scientists have used metal-organic frameworks to effectively deliver the CRISPR/Cas9 genetic snipping tool into human cancer cells.

23 Nov 2020

Genetic modification in the ‘coat’ of fatal brain virus may allow it to escape antibodies

A genetic modification in the 'coat' of a brain infection-causing virus may allow it to escape antibodies, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers.

23 Nov 2020

Adipose tissue plays key role in the aggravation of COVID-19

There is growing evidence that adipose tissue plays a key role in the aggravation of COVID-19. One of the theories under investigation is that fat cells (adipocytes) act as a reservoir for SARS-CoV-2 and increase viral load in obese or overweight individuals.

23 Nov 2020

Research sheds light on T cell abnormality in critically ill COVID-19 patients

There is an idea within the coronavirus research field that there is some kind of T cell abnormality in critically ill COVID-19 patients, but specific details have not yet been clarified. To shed light on the problem, a research collaboration based in Kumamoto University (Japan) has performed a genetic analysis of T cells from lung tissue of COVID-19 patients.

23 Nov 2020

Researchers investigate solutions to make cell membranes resistant to coronavirus entry

The cell membrane is the cell's outermost line of defense against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus responsible for COVID-19 disease.

23 Nov 2020

Chemists identify effective inhibitors to block the uptake of SARS-CoV-2

The cell membrane is impermeable to viruses: to get inside and infect a cell, they use a range of strategies to exploit the cellular and biochemical properties of the membranes.

23 Nov 2020

Gaining new insights into bacterial pneumonia

Jacqueline Kimmey speaks to AZoLifeSciences about her research into bacterial pneumonia and the genes that drive its spread from the lungs into the blood.

From University of California Santa Cruz 23 Nov 2020

Vibrational motions of spike proteins correlate with infectivity, lethality of SARS-CoV-2 virus

When someone struggles to open a lock with a key that doesn't quite seem to work, sometimes jiggling the key a bit will help. Now, new research from MIT suggests that coronaviruses, including the one that causes Covid-19, may use a similar method to trick cells into letting the viruses inside.

From Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 20 Nov 2020

Transparent stretchable PVC film can inactivate novel coronavirus

Transparent stretchable PVC film for use in packaging meat, fruit, cold cuts, and other foods, and to protect surfaces, can inactivate the novel coronavirus.

20 Nov 2020

Pairs of antibodies may be more effective at preventing and treating COVID-19

Pairs of antibodies may be more effective than single antibodies at preventing and treating COVID-19, according to a new study by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and The Rockefeller University in New York.

20 Nov 2020

Endogenous viral elements play important role in genome evolution of green algae

Viruses are tiny invaders that cause a wide range of diseases, from rabies to tomato spotted wilt virus and, most recently, COVID-19 in humans. But viruses can do more than elicit sickness -- and not all viruses are tiny.

19 Nov 2020

Study detects changes in how diseased neurons sense and use oxygen

Scientists have devised a new method for isolating a kind of brain cell that is related to symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

17 Nov 2020

Several hepatitis C drugs can inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 main protease

Scientists have determined that drugs meant for treating hepatitis C can block SARS-CoV-2 main protease, which allows reproduction in the novel coronavirus.

17 Nov 2020

Discovery of 'Achilles heel' in protein crucial to HIV virulence paves way for new drugs

The discovery of a potential "Achilles heel" in Nef, the protein that is crucial to HIV virulence and its capacity to trigger AIDS, paves the way for the development of a new class of drugs against the virus.

17 Nov 2020

Study: 95.5% of current entries in GISAID lack relevant COVID-19 patient information

A new study led by Australia's national science agency CSIRO, has found 95.5 per cent of current entries in GISAID, the world's largest novel coronavirus genome database, do not contain relevant patient information -- a critical piece of the puzzle to understand the virus and how it is evolving.

17 Nov 2020

Interleukin 10 levels could warn about the progression of COVID-19

Immunology experts have collaborated to use their groundbreaking research techniques to put people’s response to COVID-19 disease under the microscope.

16 Nov 2020

Pollution is partly linked to rapid proliferation of SARS-CoV-2 in the U.S.

The United States may have set itself up for the spread of a pandemic without even knowing it.

16 Nov 2020

MIT chemists determine molecular structure of SARS-CoV-2 protein

MIT chemists have determined the molecular structure of a protein found in the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This protein, called the envelope protein E, forms a cation-selective channel and plays a key role in the virus's ability to replicate itself and stimulate the host cell's inflammation response.

From Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 16 Nov 2020

Astrocytes regulate inhibitory synapses by binding to neurons

In the orchestra of the brain, the firing of each neuron is controlled by two notes--excitatory and inhibitory-- that come from two distinct forms of a cellular structure called synapses.

16 Nov 2020

New technique uses sunlight to convert medical waste into clean hydrogen fuel

Sunlight could be used to convert hazardous medical waste into clean hydrogen fuel, using a new technique being developed by a joint Wales/India team led by Swansea University researchers.

16 Nov 2020