All USA & Canada articles
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NewsResearchers discovered replication hubs for human norovirus
Researchers have reported the discovery of replication hubs for human norovirus, which could lead to designing antiviral drugs to prevent, control or treat these infections.
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NewsSeasonal flu vaccine study reveals host genetics’ role in vaccine response
Scientists have found that influenza subtype-bias is primarily driven by host genetics, particularly major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class-II polymorphisms, with prior exposure playing a secondary role.
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NewsPotentially harmful bacteria slip through antimicrobial showerheads
Researchers report that antimicrobial silver-containing showerheads are no ’silver bullet’. In real-world showering conditions, most microbes aren’t exposed to the silver long enough to be killed.
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NewsThe surprising role of gut infection in Alzheimer’s disease
A new study implicates link between a common virus and the disease, which travels from the gut to the brain and may be a target for antiviral treatments.
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NewsTinkering with the ‘clockwork’ mechanisms of life
Scientists have successfully recreated and validated two distinct mechanisms that can program both the activation and deactivation rates of nanomachines in living organisms across multiple timescales.
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NewsNature’s instructions: How fungi make a key medicinal molecule
Scientists outline how they deciphered nature’s own instructions — namely, the genes of the mold Penicillium citrinum — to discover a previously unreported enzyme that catalyzes the creation of cyclopentachromone-containing compounds.
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News‘Unbreakable’ Lassa vaccine shows promising results
A live-attenuated vaccine candidate against Lassa virus completely protected guinea pigs exposed to an otherwise lethal dose of the virus, researchers have reported.
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NewsDiarrheal diseases remain a leading killer for children under 5, adults 70+
A new global study reports a 60% drop in global mortality from diarrheal diseases, but children and the elderly still have the highest death rates, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
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NewsNew discovery provides hope in fighting drug-resistant malaria
Researchers have described how they may have found a new target in Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite: a cholesterol-managing protein called PfNCR1.
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NewsLiving in the deep, dark, slow lane: first global appraisal of microbiomes in earth’s subsurface environments
A new study reveals astonishingly high microbial diversity in some of the Earth’s deepest, darkest subsurface environments, including gold mines, in aquifers and deep boreholes in the seafloor.
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NewsOcean microbe’s unusual pair of enzymes may boost carbon storage, study suggests
Scientists have discovered multiple forms of a ubiquitous enzyme in microbes that thrive in low-oxygen zones off the coasts of Central and South America.
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NewsGiant virus encodes key piece of protein-making machinery of cellular life
Researchers recently discovered that a virus, FloV-SA2, encodes one of the proteins needed to make ribosomes, the central engines in all cells that translate genetic information into proteins. This is the first eukaryotic virus found to encode such a protein.
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NewsBad bacteria can trigger painful gut contractions; new research shows how
After a meal of questionable seafood or a few sips of contaminated water, bad bacteria can send your digestive tract into overdrive. Your intestines spasm and contract, efficiently expelling everything in the gut. Source: Parthasarathy Lab and Guillemin Lab Immune cells (magenta) and cells expressing a reporter of ...
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NewsCases of whooping cough growing, but knowledge about it is lacking
Many in the public are not familiar with symptoms of whooping cough. Almost a third of respondents (30%) are not sure if pertussis is the same as whooping cough and not sure (30%) whether a vaccine exists to prevent it.
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NewsStudy shows drop in use of antiviral medications in young children with influenza
Despite national medical guidelines supporting the use of antiviral medications in young children diagnosed with influenza, a recent study reports an underuse of the treatment.
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NewsWhat a century-old grapevine reveals about a disease that plagues wine country
Researchers used bacterial DNA from a 120-year-old herbarium specimen to reconstruct the history of Pierce’s disease in California.
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NewsResearchers find previously unknown links between microbial bile acids and the risk of colon cancer
Microbes living in our guts help us digest food by reshaping the bile acids that our livers produce for breaking down fats. It turns out that two of these microbially-modified bile acids may affect our risk — in opposite directions — for developing colon cancer. Source: Photo by ...
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NewsStudy assesses virulence of Cryptococcus strains, laying groundwork for improved treatment
A research group has just completed a six-year study to examine the virulence of 38 clinical isolates from various strains of Cryptococcus, taking us a step closer towards improved treatment of the fungal pathogen.
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NewsStaphylococcus aureus thwarts vaccines by turning on a protein that halts immune response
Approximately 30 clinical trials to date have failed to result in an effective human vaccine for Staphylococcus aureus but researchers have now identified a key reason for these failures, indicating that it may be possible to modify the vaccines to work in humans.
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NewsScientists collect ‘microbial fingerprints’ found in household plumbing
Scientists sampled faucets in eight homes for seven days to see the flow and change of different bacteria populations. They found that, though houses generally shared major categories of bacteria, down to the species level, there was wide variation from house to house.
