One health
Communicable diseases remain one of the major causes of mortality worldwide. There are disparities in the numbers of individuals affected by disease between low-and-middle-income countries and those in developed nations. Microbes will play in important role in drug discovery: producing anticancer drugs and antimicrobials. Applying One Health principles, to understand the interaction of pathogens and the human host, development of diagnostics, treatments, and disease prevention, applied microbiologists can shape global health and wellbeing outcomes.
News
Andes hantavirus outbreak: ECDC working on the frontline to support EU Member States
Genomic information also shows that the virus involved in the outbreak is similar to Andes viruses already known to circulate in South America, and is not a new variant. There is currently no evidence that this variant spreads more easily or causes more severe disease than other Andes viruses.
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NewsResearchers track the mutations that allow HIV-1 to escape broadly neutralizing antibodies
Scientists have established the most comprehensive view to date of how HIV-1 can escape broadly neutralizing antibodies. They have discovered viral mutations that make HIV-1 strains resistant to two bNAbs, 3BNC117 and 10-1074.
NewsResearchers develop next-generation CRISPR biocontainment technology for controlling microbial survival without DNA cleavage
Researchers have employed a CRISPR-dCas9-based base editing system capable of introducing precise nucleotide changes without inducing DNA double-strand breaks. The researchers targeted the start codons of essential genes and irreversibly disrupted their function, permanently blocking cell survival.
NewsUKHSA update on the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak
The UK Government has announced it has worked with international partners to ensure the safe return of all remaining British nationals on board the MV Hondius, with passengers now safely transferred to Arrowe Park Hospital.
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News
Pregnant women’s mental images are directly linked to vaccine hesitancy and uptake
When pregnant women think about vaccinations, many experience vivid mental images – such as a sick baby in hospital – that have a direct link to their opinion of the vaccine and whether they ultimately have it, new research has shown.
NewsGut microbiota plays a role in metabolic health after bariatric surgery
Changes in gut microbiota after bariatric surgery are strongly linked to altered metabolic health and sustained improvement in type 2 diabetes. A study shows changes in gut bacterial composition and function are associated with metabolic improvements, including insulin release and blood sugar control.
NewsInvisible smart bug fights gum disease
Current treatments for periodontitis often fail because they cannot simultaneously eliminate stubborn bacterial biofilms and calm the runaway inflammation that follows. Now researchers have engineered a living bacterium that does both, in the right order.
NewsExpanded tuberculosis screening does not speed up treatment initiation or improve survival in hospitalized patients with HIV
According to the EXULTANT trial, adding molecular tests on sputum, urine and stool samples does not appear to outperform the standard WHO-recommended diagnostic approach.
NewsMouse study suggests high-fat diets during pregnancy worsen severe GI illness in preterm babies
A new mouse study suggests a link between a high-fat prenatal diet and induction of potentially deadly symptoms of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature babies.
NewsScientists take crucial step in developing world’s first measles treatment
Scientists have characterized human antibodies capable of neutralizing measles virus. These antibodies bind to key sites on measles virus and prevent the virus from entering host cells.
NewsGlobal outbreaks may fuel violence against women — but most cases go unmeasured
Violence against women and girls may increase during infectious disease outbreaks — as economic strain, isolation and disrupted services reshape daily life — yet those impacts remain largely unmeasured, according to a new study.
NewsScientists discover how gut bacteria toxin invades colon cells to trigger cancer
A common gut bacterium, Bacteroides fragilis, drives colon tumor formation, potentially leading to colorectal cancer, by secreting a toxin that damages the lining of the colon. Researchers have now shown that the B. fragilis toxin BFT must first bind host receptor claudin-4 before it can cause damage.
News‘Atomic snapshots’ of proofreading enzyme could lead to better COVID-19 drugs
A research team used images generated by a cryogenic electron microscope (cryo-EM) to observe the interplay between SARS-CoV-2 proofreading enzyme exoribonuclease (ExoN) and RNA incorporated with antivirals such as remdesivir, sofosbuvir and bemnifosbuvir.
NewsNeedle-free flu vaccine aims to boost children’s immunity
A new study will explore the effects of a nasal spray flu vaccine on children’s immune systems, aiming to boost future protection and lower vaccine hesitancy rates.
NewsSeasonal COVID-19 vaccination in 2025/26 reduced risk of illness by half in Canada
An interim analysis estimates that the COVID-19 vaccine for the 2025/26 season reduced the risk of illness in Canada by about half at about 9 weeks after vaccination, offering protection beyond the vaccine’s target strain.
NewsTuberculosis risk: promising approaches for screening and prediction
It is currently difficult to detect TB in its early stages, or predict who will go on to have TB, and therefore preventive treatment is not widely used. Researchers assessed whether a blood-based 3-gene host-response test can detect active tuberculosis and help predict future disease.
NewsLong-term dynamic virological response patterns and clinical outcomes in hepatitis B virus-related cirrhosis
The long-term clinical outcomes of patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related cirrhosis receiving nucleos(t)ide analog (NA) therapy according to virological response patterns remain inadequately defined. A new study aimed to investigate the association between virological response patterns and clinical outcomes.
NewsResearchers find diagnostic delays are common for US pediatric patients with malaria
Researchers found that more than one in four pediatric patients treated for malaria in the United States had a delay in their initial diagnosis, increasing the risk of more severe infection.
NewsThe Nexus of Food Systems, Ecosystems and Human Health: Sign up for our fascinating free webinar!
What if health is not produced by humans alone, but co-created with the ecosystems, organisms, and food systems we depend on? A fascinating free webinar will explore how microbes connect people to food systems and the ecosystems that undergird food production.
NewsHead impacts associated with altered gut microbiome in football players
Non-concussive head impacts—hits to the head that don’t cause clinically detectable symptoms—are correlated with subsequent changes to the gut microbiome in a small sample of US collegiate football players, according to a new study.
NewsScientists use ultrasound to destroy influenza A and COVID-19 viruses without damaging human cells
Researchers have discovered that high-frequency ultrasound waves similar to those used in medical exams can eliminate viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and H1N1 without damaging human cells. Acoustic resonance causes structural changes in viral particles until they rupture and become inactivated.
NewsNew kind of CRISPR could treat viral infection and cancer by shredding sick cells’ DNA
A new technology uses a relative of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing system to kill target cells. When activated by a specific, programmable genetic target, the Cas12a2 protein rips a cell’s genome apart. Researchers programmed Cas12a2 to kill virus-infected cells or cancer cells while leaving healthy cells untouched.
NewsHow river DNA can track fish, frogs, fungi and human feces — all at once
A single scoop of water from an Irish river revealed evidence not only of Ireland’s only frog species, but also signs of the dreaded B. dendrobatidis fungus, marking the first time this devastating amphibian disease has been spotted in the country and exposing a previously unknown risk to Ireland’s frog population.