How Omicron BA.5 Became a Master of Disguise – What It Means for the Current COVID Surge
The COVID omicron subvariant known as BA.5 was first detected in South Africa in February 2022 and spread rapidly throughout the world. As of the…
Virology
WHO Experts Agree on New Names for Monkeypox Virus Variants
As part of ongoing efforts to align the names of the monkeypox disease, virus, and variants—or clades—with current best practices, a group of global experts…
Chinese Scientists Propose a New Live-Virus Flu Vaccine
Using attenuated, live viruses as vaccines is a promising strategy to reduce the impact of viral infectious diseases, such as influenza. Traditional live-attenuated virus vaccines…
Common Viruses May Be Triggering Alzheimer’s Disease
Shingles infection may awaken dormant neurological herpes viruses, causing inflammation and accumulation of Alzheimer’s associated proteins in the brain. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common…
New COVID-19 Antiviral Medications That Could Prevent Other Coronaviruses From Causing Havoc
Speeding up the search for effective new COVID-19 antivirals. An arsenal of measures to prevent and treat viral infections is needed for the world to…
Seeking COVID’s Kryptonite: Best UV Light for COVID-19 Virus Disinfection
NIST and DHS research collaboration reveals which wavelengths of UV light work best for COVID-19 virus disinfection. To disinfect a surface, you can illuminate it…
Scientists Discover First Effective Drug Treatment Against Hepatitis A
Scientists Discover Key to Hepatitis A Virus Replication, Show Drug Effectiveness With no current treatments for hepatitis A, scientists at the University of North Carolina…
What Scientists Just Discovered About Monkeypox Virus on Surfaces
German scientists detected viral DNA in monkeypox patient’s rooms, but caution that surface contamination with virus DNA or viable virus does not prove that infection…
Some Viruses Can Make You More Attractive to Mosquitoes
Dengue and Zika viruses make infected hosts smell more delicious to mosquitoes. New research shows that when humans and mice are infected with dengue or…
New COVID Antibody Detection Method Does Not Require a Blood Sample
The global COVID-19 pandemic is not over, despite significant and stunning advances in vaccine technology. A key challenge in limiting the spread of severe acute…
Some Viruses Make You Smell Tastier to Mosquitoes – Increasing the Spread of Disease
Dengue and Zika viruses alter the microbiome in both humans and mice to attract mosquitoes and spread to new hosts. Zika and dengue fever viruses…
Incredible Virus Discovery Offers Clues About the Origins of Complex Life
The first discovery of viruses infecting a group of microbes that may include the ancestors of all complex life has been found, scientists at The…
Hunting for the Immune Cells That Lead to Severe COVID-19
University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering researchers point to macrophages. When a virus makes its way into a person’s body, one of the…
“Viral Dark Matter” Could Help Mitigate Climate Change – Here’s How
Study identifies 1,200+ RNA viruses with connections to carbon flux. Many scientists believe that climate change is a significant threat and that we are running…
Convergent Evolution: Why COVID-19 Antibody Treatments Aren’t As Effective for New Variants
The new peer-reviewed paper can help inform the development of new vaccines and therapeutics. When SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 disease, first appeared, it…
New Type of Coronavirus Discovered in Rodents
Researchers from the Zoonosis Science Center at Uppsala University have identified a new coronavirus. Their study of approximately 260 bank voles caught around Grimsö, Örebro…
Monkeypox FAQ: Where Did It Come From? How Is It Transmitted? What Are the Symptoms?
Since spreading outside of Africa and into Europe and North America, the news has been filled with warnings about the monkeypox outbreak. In fact, according…
First Complete DNA Sequencing of Monkeypox Virus in Switzerland
The Geneva Center for Emerging Viral Diseases (UNIGE / HUG) shares the first sequencing results of the monkeypox genome from Switzerland. The full monkeypox virus…
