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.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) sample tracking packages

To assist labs involved with the essential RT-PCR assay part of the “test, trace and isolate” strategy for dealing with the SARS-CoV-2 virus pandemic – Ziath has introduced two optimized packages for reliable tracking of patient samples submitted for Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing.

From Ziath Ltd 10 Jun 2020

New research advances the field of optical microscopy

New Illinois ECE research is advancing the field of optical microscopy, giving the field a critical new tool to solve challenging problems across many fields of science and engineering including semiconductor wafer inspection, nanoparticle sensing, material characterization, biosensing, virus counting, and microfluidic monitoring.

9 Jun 2020

CD8+ T cells can help develop vaccines against Japanese encephalitis, Zika fever

A clinical case of Japanese encephalitis is diagnosed in over 68,000 individuals every year, leading to the death of one in four of these affected patients.

8 Jun 2020

Genomic research can help combat COVID-19

Next-generation sequencing of the COVID-19 virus is providing powerful metagenomic data, which, combined with clinical data, will inform the search for effective treatments, as reported in the peer-reviewed journal Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology.

5 Jun 2020

Scientists aim to develop a gene-targeting, antiviral agent to combat COVID-19

A team of scientists from Stanford University is working with researchers at the Molecular Foundry, a nanoscience user facility located at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), to develop a gene-targeting, antiviral agent against COVID-19.

5 Jun 2020

New technique restores hearing in mice with a recessive genetic mutation

Using a new genetic engineering technique, known as base editing, researchers from Boston Children's Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, have restored hearing in mice with a known recessive genetic mutation.

5 Jun 2020

Fate-seq technique shows structural differences between COVID-19 and SARS viruses

Scientists have discovered certain segments of the genetic codes of the SARS and COVID-19 viruses that may support the lifecycle of the viruses.

4 Jun 2020

Study reveals how respiratory syncytial virus breaks into cells to cause infection

New research from University of Alberta microbiologists has shed new light on how the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)--one of the most common viral infections--breaks into our cells to cause infection.

4 Jun 2020

Approach used against flu could benefit COVID-19 drug development

A new study from researchers at The University of Texas at Austin has found that some antivirals are useful for more than helping sick people get better -- they also can prevent thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of virus cases if used in the early stages of infection.

3 Jun 2020

Research suggests new possibility for how glucose transporters operate

Some of the most essential processes on the planet involves water and energy entering and leaving cells.

2 Jun 2020

Study sheds light on the complexity of HIV-1 nuclear entry

The process of cells being infected by HIV-1 strains is widely known to undergo many stages.

2 Jun 2020

Inhibiting host cell proteases can help prevent COVID-19 infection

How can we prevent the novel coronavirus from invading a host cell in an attempt to prevent infection?

2 Jun 2020

Study identifies potent neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2

A joint research team led by Sunney Xie, Director of Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics at Peking University has successfully identified multiple highly potent neutralizing antibodies against the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, the causative virus of the respiratory disease COVID-19, from convalescent plasma by high-throughput single-cell sequencing.

29 May 2020

Gene linked to dementia increases the risk of developing severe COVID-19

Having a faulty gene linked to dementia doubles the risk of developing severe COVID-19, according to a large-scale study.

From University of Exeter 28 May 2020

GlobalData highlights a downturn in worldwide meat market due to COVID-19 pandemic

The activity of meat manufacturers across North America continues to generate a lot of noise, with some processing plants from major companies such as Tyson and JBS resuming operations. Continued turbulence among meat packing players is likely to damage consumers’ trust in associated food products, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

28 May 2020

Study shows how ocean virus captures the metabolism of carbon-storing bacteria

Below the surface of the ocean, a virus is stealing the metabolism of the most abundant organism present on Earth. That might be attractive to those who breathe above the ocean’s surface.

28 May 2020

EKF secures COVID-19 novel sample collection kit manufacturing and supply contracts

EKF Diagnostics, the global in vitro diagnostics company, announces it has secured new contracts for the manufacture and supply of a novel, patented sample collection device which allows COVID-19 samples to be rapidly inactivated in the collection tube, avoiding contamination and preserving RNA without need for refrigeration.

From EKF Diagnostics 26 May 2020