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
mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines train the ‘long-term memory’ of the innate immune system
A study showed that vaccination of multiple mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines could induce persistent epigenetic changes in innate immune cells, leading to long-term immune responses for SARS-CoV-2 and other pathogens.
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NewsResearchers design genetic tools to develop vaccines more efficiently for African swine fever virus (ASFV)
A synthetic genomic-based reverse genetics tool has been developed for African swine fever virus (ASFV) that helps vaccine development to reduce the economic losses. The system may also be adapted to other emerging viral threats.
NewsProbiotic may improve sleep quality: new research findings
A recent study has identified a potential new approach to managing sleep disorders. The research focuses on the role of S-adenosylmethionine (SAM)-producing probiotics in regulating sleep and circadian rhythms.
News‘It’s a shot, not a vaccine like MMR’: New skepticism prompts call for action
This ‘vaccine is not a vaccine’ is a new, previously unreported type of vaccine-specific scepticism, and it arose only during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it might, according to the researchers, also apply to the flu vaccine.
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News
Scientists zoom in on structure of still lethal Ebola virus
The first high-resolution visualisation of the Ebola virus nucleocapsid provides detailed insights into the interactions within the nucleocapsid complex, unveiling the relationship between molecular interactions and functional regulation.
NewsSecurity-relevant research in times of geopolitical polarisation: report
A new report on security-relevant research - including research into pathogens - notes a change within the scientific system due to increased national security interests.
NewsBfR organises three-day conference on food microbiology
The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, the German Society for Microbiology and Hygiene (DGHM) and the Association for General and Applied Microbiology (VAAM) are inviting researchers to the 19th Food Microbiology Conference in Berlin from 1 to 3 April.
NewsStudy reveals how dextran sulfate sodium-induced colitis exacerbates periodontitis
A new study provides strong evidence that the NOX2/ROS axis plays a key role in the exacerbation of periodontitis in the presence of colitis.
NewsSea buckthorn extract exerts anti-free radical, antibacterial and whitening effects on skin
Sea buckthorn flavonoids exhibited excellent antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and whitening effects in a new study. The inhibitory effect of sea buckthorn flavonoids on Propionibacterium acnes were assessed by plate antibacterial assays.
NewsProposed cuts to foreign aid could result in millions of HIV deaths, new modelling study estimates
New modelling analysis suggests that proposed funding cuts by major donor countries to foreign aid could undo decades of progress made to end HIV/AIDS as a public health threat and new infections and deaths could surge back to levels not seen since the early 2000s.
NewsHow Zika virus knocks out our immune defenses
Scientists have made striking discoveries regarding the different infection mechanisms of Zika and dengue virus of the same viral family. These understandings pave the way for vaccine development to combat flaviviruses with similarities.
NewsCanada is slowest in reporting bird flu – but COVID shows we can do better
A global study was conducted to measure the reporting speed of pandemic-causing bird flu H5N1 in different countries, among which Canada surprisingly came in last, addressing the need for improvements in the current monitoring procedures.
NewsScientists unlock frogs’ antibacterial secrets to combat superbugs
Researchers exploited natural peptides derived from frogs and improved their structural designs as antibiotic candidates, which are effective against complex mock bacterial communities of drug-resistant pathogens in preclinical tests, sparing beneficial microbiota and human cells.
NewsResearchers find live hantavirus is carried in various New Mexico small mammal species
A study was carried out to find out the reasons why human cases of the sin nombre hantavirus were concentrated in one particular region of New Mexico, even though the virus was found in 30 species of rodents and small mammals endemic to a different region.
NewsBreakthrough as researchers discover new class of antibiotics
Researchers have identified a strong candidate to challenge even some of the most drug-resistant bacteria on the planet: a new molecule called lariocidin.
NewsHepatitis B: new rapid diagnostic test to halt mother-to-child transmission
Scientists have assessed a new rapid diagnostic test to identify pregnant women at elevated risk of transmitting hepatitis B to their babies. This diagnostic tool could help eliminate hepatitis B by preventing mother-to-child transmission during childbirth.
NewsCorrecting imbalance with the gut microbiota after stroke could reduce brain inflammation
An imbalance in ligands, which are molecules produced by the body and the gut microbiota, can affect a key receptor protein that plays a role in brain inflammation after stroke, according to researchers.
NewsMeasles elimination versus eradication: The difference explained
As of March 13, the CDC has confirmed 301 cases of measles as well as the death of a child in Texas. Amira Roess, an epidemiologist and professor of global health, clarifies the benefits of vaccinating children and adolescents against measles.
NewsAntibiotic exposure in infancy may boost Type 1 diabetes risk - but microbiota can help
Exposure to antibiotics during a key developmental window in infancy can stunt the growth of insulin-producing cells and may boost risk of diabetes later in life. But the research pinpoints specific microbes that may help those critical cells proliferate in early life.
NewsThe gut microbiota-metabolites-brain axis mediates social behavior dysfunction following anaesthesia
New research shows that the anaesthetic Sevoflurane (Sev) influences social functioning via the gut-brain axis, with microbiota-derived bile acids serving as critical mediators in this pathway.
NewsC. diff uses toxic compound to fuel growth advantage
The pathogen C. diff — the most common cause of health care-associated infectious diarrhea — can use a compound that kills the human gut’s resident microbes to survive and grow, giving it a competitive advantage in the infected gut.
NewsGrowing body of evidence links HPV with heart disease
In addition to causing several types of cancer, human papillomavirus (HPV) appears to bring a significantly increased risk of heart disease and coronary artery disease, according to a study.
NewsProbe into human cervical stem cells shows lactic acid bacteria can prevent cervical cancer
Researchers have revealed the identity and differentiation process of human cervical stem cells in a world first study. The results showed that lactic acid bacteria can inhibit the development of cervical cancer.