Feature Channels: Infectious Diseases

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New Research in Cell Host & Microbe Indicates Commonly Prescribed Antibiotic Could Potentially Worsen Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus

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If you want to keep away blood-sucking insects, DEET products are your best bet according to a recent study from New Mexico State University. Researchers also discovered a certain perfume performed better at protecting against mosquitoes than some commercial insect repellents.

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New research from the University of Southampton has found that copper can effectively help to prevent the spread of respiratory viruses, which are linked to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

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What if a single vaccine could protect people from infection by many different viruses? That concept is a step closer to reality. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine​ in St. Louis have identified “broadly neutralizing” antibodies that protect against infection by multiple, distantly related alphaviruses – including Chikungunya virus – that cause fever and debilitating joint pain. The discovery, in mice, lays the groundwork for a single vaccine or antibody-based treatment against many different alphaviruses.

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/PRNewswire/ -- Surgical Site Infections (SSIs) are devastating for patients and pose a significant financial risk for hospitals. Surgical Site Infections resulting from total knee or hip procedures cause excruciating pain and suffering, have a three percent mortality rate and are associated with an additional $21,000 in additional care costs per infection. As hospitals worldwide struggle to prevent infections, Alabama-based Trinity Medical Center experienced a 100 percent decrease in Surgical Site Infection rates in its orthopedic Operating Rooms (ORs) after implementing a total joint infection control bundle that includes Xenex Germ-Zapping Robots™ to disinfect its ORs and patient rooms.

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In a new look at the groundbreaking iPrEx trial for people at high risk of HIV infection, UCSF researchers have identified strong evidence of efficacy for transgender women when PrEP, a two-drug antiretroviral used to prevent HIV, is used consistently.

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Infectious disease researchers at the University of Georgia have identified a signaling protein critical for host defense against influenza infection. The findings shed light on how a single component of the body’s defense system promotes effective immunity against viral infections—particularly respiratory viruses—that affect mucosal sites.

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Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers say a new candidate vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) made with a weakened version of the virus shows great promise at fighting the disease, the leading cause of hospitalization for children under the age of one in the U.S.

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Discovery greatly expands the known distribution of the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome, which has decimated bat populations in North America

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A new study led by Colorado State University finds that the West Nile virus is killing birds — more so than previously thought — in the short- and long-term.

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Led by Professor of Chemistry & Biochemistry Tim Cross and his team at the Florida State University-based National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, scientists delved into the complexities of exactly how the flu virus works and why it’s so effective at making people so sick. With a better understanding of how it works, researchers will now be able to turn their attention to creating more effective prescription drugs to fight the flu.

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A new study by Kevin J. Emerson, PhD, assistant professor of biology at St. Mary’s College of Maryland and his international group of collaborators assessed the extent to which geographical barriers affected genetic variation among Anopheles darlingi populations. Such barriers may greatly influence the approaches used by scientists and physicians to control the spread of malaria throughout Brazil.

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A new therapeutic vaccine, GTL001, developed by Genticel to clear HPV strains 16 and 18 – the types most likely to cause cancer – is being evaluated for safety in a Phase I clinical trial at the University of Louisville, along with Philadelphia and Columbus, Oh.

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After peaking in 2007, AIDS mortality in South Africa has decreased with the widespread introduction of effective antiretroviral therapy, according to updated estimates published in AIDS, official journal of the International AIDS Society. AIDS is published by Wolters Kluwer.

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Saint Louis University’s Vaccine Center is one of two sites in the nation selected by the NIH to conduct "omics" research on infectious diseases.

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The American Thoracic Society applauds the World Health Organization (WHO) on today’s release of its Global Tuberculosis Report 2015, which finds that the number of TB deaths is now virtually equal to the number of HIV/AIDS deaths globally. The data shows that TB threatens to undo the tremendous progress made by the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the Global Fund Against AIDS, TB and Malaria. The ATS joins the WHO in calling for increased funding to halt the global TB pandemic.

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The Clorox Cold & Flu Pulse analyzes millions of conversations in real time and reports how cold and flu is trending online, including what topics are being discussed, top cities where it’s trending, and tips related to the current virality of the cold and flu.

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University of Adelaide researchers have uncovered the role played by a family of genes, which can suppress hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection within the liver.

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MedStar Washington Hospital Center’s Ebola Response Team has been honored with the 2015 Patient Safety Award from the District of Columbia Hospital Association (DCHA). The award recognizes the team’s outstanding efforts in its Ebola-related plans and training to care for potential or confirmed patients with the Ebola virus.

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A computer model developed by Johns Hopkins health care delivery specialists predicts that strengthening a handful of efforts to keep people with HIV in lifetime care, along with more rigorous testing, would potentially avert a projected 752,000 new HIV infections and 276,000 AIDS deaths in the United States alone over the next 20 years.