Virus News and Research

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A virus is a microscopic infectious agent that can reproduce only inside a host cell. Viruses infect all types of organisms: from animals and plants, to bacteria and archaea. Since the initial discovery of tobacco mosaic virus by Martinus Beijerinck in 1898, more than 5,000 types of virus have been described in detail, although most types of virus remain undiscovered. Viruses are ubiquitous, as they are found in almost every ecosystem on Earth, and are the most abundant type of biological entity on the planet. The study of viruses is known as virology, and is a branch of microbiology.

Study shows how proteins act as a defense mechanism to protect their own DNA

Viruses usually inject their DNA into a host cell to multiply. As soon as this foreign material penetrates the intracellular fluid, it activates a defense mechanism called the cGAS-STING pathway.

18 Aug 2020

Study shows how viruses escape the immune system

Scientists from the University of Otago have gained a deeper understanding of how viruses work and escape the immune system. The team is presently using this finding to find out more about the COVID-19 pandemic.

18 Aug 2020

High-speed AFM enables real-time visualization of influenza A hemagglutinin during viral entry

Unlike living organisms, to avoid extinction, viruses need to hijack living host machineries to generate new viruses.

18 Aug 2020

Novel receptor protein can be a promising treatment for COVID-19

A novel receptor protein that binds to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and prevents it from entering cells may hold promise for treating COVID-19 and other coronavirus-related diseases, according to research published online Aug. 4 in the journal SCIENCE.

18 Aug 2020

Antibodies from natural controllers appear to play crucial role in eliminating hepatitis B virus

Infections in humans caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV) represent a major public health problem. Despite the availability of effective protective vaccines, more than 250 million individuals worldwide are chronically infected according to WHO estimates.

From Institut Pasteur 14 Aug 2020

Researchers use supercomputer to gain new insights into hepatitis B virus

Researchers at the University of Delaware, using supercomputing resources and collaborating with scientists at Indiana University, have gained new understanding of the virus that causes hepatitis B and the "spiky ball" that encloses the virus's genetic blueprint.

14 Aug 2020

Study identifies a protein that facilitates spread of SARS-CoV-2 virus through cells

Eric Ross and Sean Cascarina, biochemistry and molecular biology researchers at Colorado State University, have released a research paper identifying a protein encoded by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, that may be associated with the quick spread of the virus through cells in the human body.

13 Aug 2020

Study shows MARCH8 protein protects against infection through antiviral mechanisms

A protein known as MARCH8 protects humans from infection by tagging the vesicular stomatitis virus for destruction, while simply holding the HIV hostage.

12 Aug 2020

COVID-19 Prevention Network announces two trials to evaluate monoclonal antibodies

The COVID-19 Prevention Network (CoVPN) today announced two Phase 3 trials to determine whether monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) can prevent SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

11 Aug 2020

Adapting the equipment and expertise of agtech labs could help combat pandemics

Just as redeploying a fleet of small British fishing boats helped during the Battle of Dunkirk, marshalling the research equipment and expertise of the many agtech labs around the world could help combat pandemics, say the authors of a just-published article in Nature Biotechnology.

11 Aug 2020

Study suggests that coronavirus does not directly damage taste bud cells

A new study from the Regenerative Bioscience Center at the University of Georgia is the first to suggest that COVID-19 does not directly damage taste bud cells.

From University of Georgia 11 Aug 2020

Modeling predicted movements of aphids could help fight against banana bunchy top virus

Modelling the predicted movements of pervasive sap-sucking tiny insects before they infest banana crops has the potential to become a key tactic in the fight against a devastating virus, according to QUT research.

11 Aug 2020

$1.2 million NIH grant awarded to create humanized mice susceptible to COVID-19

The National Institutes of Health has awarded a grant of $1.2 million to the Mouse Biology Program at the University of California, Davis, to create mice that are susceptible to the COVID-19 virus, and to distribute them to researchers.

11 Aug 2020

COVID-19 patients have higher incidence of abnormal liver tests

Researchers at the Yale Liver Center found that patients with COVID-19 presented with abnormal liver tests at much higher rates than suggested by earlier studies.

10 Aug 2020

New method targets hidden HIV viral reservoirs during antiretroviral therapy

Scientists at The Wistar Institute may have discovered a new way of identifying and targeting hidden HIV viral reservoirs during treatment with antiretroviral therapy (ART).

10 Aug 2020

Study reveals coronavirus-specific structure that may lead to new antiviral strategies

By visualizing coronavirus replication in an infected host cell, researchers may have answered a long-standing question about how newly synthesized coronavirus components are able to be incorporated into fully infectious viruses.

7 Aug 2020

Study may point to new therapeutic options for COVID-19

Contrary to what has been generally assumed so far, a severe course of COVID-19 does not solely result in a strong immune reaction - rather, the immune response is caught in a continuous loop of activation and inhibition.

7 Aug 2020

Researchers identify new mechanism of papillomavirus that tricks the human immune system

Certain antibodies are known to protect humans from viral infections—or perhaps not?

6 Aug 2020

New UK supply contract for COVID-19 sample collection kits

EKF Diagnostics Holdings plc, the AIM listed point-of-care business, announces that it has received an initial order worth £3 m from a partner from the private sector to supply PrimeStore MTM, a novel patented sample collection device, to be used in a COVID-19 testing programme for UK staff.

From EKF Diagnostics 5 Aug 2020

NIH clinical study to evaluate potential new therapeutics for mild, moderate COVID-19

A Phase 2 clinical trial will evaluate the safety and efficacy of potential new therapeutics for COVID-19, including an investigational therapeutic based on synthetic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to treat the disease.

5 Aug 2020

Virus News and Research

Study shows how proteins act as a defense mechanism to protect their own DNA

Study shows how viruses escape the immune system

High-speed AFM enables real-time visualization of influenza A hemagglutinin during viral entry

Novel receptor protein can be a promising treatment for COVID-19

Antibodies from natural controllers appear to play crucial role in eliminating hepatitis B virus

Researchers use supercomputer to gain new insights into hepatitis B virus

Study identifies a protein that facilitates spread of SARS-CoV-2 virus through cells

Study shows MARCH8 protein protects against infection through antiviral mechanisms

COVID-19 Prevention Network announces two trials to evaluate monoclonal antibodies

Adapting the equipment and expertise of agtech labs could help combat pandemics

Study suggests that coronavirus does not directly damage taste bud cells

Modeling predicted movements of aphids could help fight against banana bunchy top virus

$1.2 million NIH grant awarded to create humanized mice susceptible to COVID-19

COVID-19 patients have higher incidence of abnormal liver tests

New method targets hidden HIV viral reservoirs during antiretroviral therapy

Study reveals coronavirus-specific structure that may lead to new antiviral strategies

Study may point to new therapeutic options for COVID-19

Researchers identify new mechanism of papillomavirus that tricks the human immune system

New UK supply contract for COVID-19 sample collection kits

NIH clinical study to evaluate potential new therapeutics for mild, moderate COVID-19

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