Immunology

Hong Kong Virus Prevents Uprising Of Norwegian Supergenius Army, For Now

Science is great at finding new rules for expectant mothers.  They already can’t have alcohol, caffeine, or cigarettes. They also need to stay away from their cat’s litterbox, stay off of planes and rollercoasters, stay off of antidepressants, drop their a ...

Article - Stephanie Pulford - Apr 26 2009 - 2:45pm

How Lice Can Be Nice

Parasite infestations might have a good side. Wild mice from a Nottinghamshire forest have given experts at The University of Nottingham clues as to the importance of some parasites, such as lice, for the conditioning of a "natural" immune system ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 24 2009 - 9:40am

Cholera Cases In Africa Increased Due To Global Warming, Say Researchers

A study led by researchers from the Madrid Carlos III Institute of Health associates the increase of cholera cases in Zambia with climate factors.  They say their results confirm that the increase in environmental temperature six weeks before the rain seas ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 25 2009 - 11:04pm

New Swine Flu Virus Supports 'Mixing Vessel' Theory

A new influenza virus discovered in Missouri pigs has a combination of genes from avian and swine flu viruses, supporting the theory that pigs can serve as a mixing vessel for flu viruses and a potential source for a human pandemic strain, according to a r ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 10:58am

Human Swine Flu Cases With Unique Strain Raise Concern (Though The Possibility Was Mentioned Over A Year Ago)

Two California children who had not had contact with pigs recently recovered from infections with "unique" swine flu/swine influenza viruses, raising concern about possible human-to-human transmission and putting health authorities on alert, the ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 3:03pm

Update On Swine Flu (Influenza A H1N1) Infections- California And Texas, April 2009

On April 21, 2009, CDC reported that two recent cases of febrile respiratory illness in children in southern California had been caused by infection with genetically similar swine influenza A (H1N1) viruses. The swine flu viruses contained a unique combina ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 3:01pm

Swine Flu Monitoring Needed For Farm Workers- Study

A University of Alberta study recommends that workers on pig farms be monitored as part of influenza pandemic preparedness, after a child on a communal farm in Canada was diagnosed with swine flu in 2006. Though the seven-month-old boy made a full recovery ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 2:51pm

A Better Method For Engineering Flu Vaccines

A new computerized method of testing could help world health officials better identify flu vaccines that are effective against multiple strains of the disease. Rice University scientists who created the method say tests of data from bird flu and seasonal f ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 2:59pm

Lab-Made Proteins Neutralize Multiple Strains Of Seasonal And Pandemic Flu Viruses

Scientists have identified a small family of lab-made proteins that neutralize a broad range of influenza A viruses, including the H5N1 avian virus, the 1918 pandemic influenza virus and seasonal H1N1 flu viruses. These human monoclonal antibodies, identic ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 3:14pm

'Achilles Heel' In Seasonal And Pandemic Flu Viruses

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California have identified a common Achilles' heel in a wide range of seasonal and pandemic influenza A viruses. The study found an infection-fighting protein, or human antibody, that neutrali ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 26 2009 - 3:15pm