Influenza (the flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting a flu vaccination each year. Every year in the United States, on average 5% to 20% of the population gets the flu; more than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu complications, and; about 36,000 people die from flu-related causes. Some people, such as older people, young children, and people with certain health conditions, are at high risk for serious flu complications.
A population of unconventional white blood cells has recently captured the attention of immunologists and clinicians alike.
Genetic alterations that give rise to a rare, fatal disorder known as MOGS-CDG paradoxically also protect cells against infection by viruses.
A researcher at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine has created a novel, more effective therapy for acute respiratory viral infections, a significant global cause of illness each year.
A new approach to the genetic engineering of cells promises significant improvements in speed, efficiency, and reduction in cellular toxicity compared to current methods.
While the coronavirus continues to infect people around the world, researchers at the University of Missouri have identified a specific protein inside the human body that plays a critical role in how the virus spreads from cell to cell after infection -; a discovery that will help better understand the COVID-19 disease and could lead to the development of new antiviral drugs in the future.
Viruses like influenza A and Ebola invade human cells in a number of steps. In an interdisciplinary approach, research teams from Heidelberg University and Heidelberg University Hospital investigated the final stages of viral penetration using electron tomography and computer simulations.
The body’s biological clock is interfered with by abnormal sleep habits, such as those of night shift workers, which have been connected to lung health problems.
Researchers found that, despite being heavily immunocompromised, hematology patients generate strong cellular immune responses against SARS-CoV-2 after vaccination, on par with that of healthy individuals.
In the future, vaccines may be delivered with a puff of air rather than a needle, according to the promising results of new research presented at a meeting of the American Chemistry Society this March.
Influenza viruses have an enormous impact in the U.S., with an estimated 25 million illnesses and 18,000 deaths in the 2022-23 flu season alone.
A new software tool developed by Texas Biomedical Research Institute and collaborators can help scientists and vaccine developers quickly edit genetic blueprints of pathogens to make them less harmful.
The majority of what scientists know about viruses in animals comes from the list of nucleotides that constitute their genomic sequence, which, although useful, provides relatively few signals about a virus’ propensity to infect people.
A new study led by researchers at Harvard Medical School illuminates how the brain becomes aware that there is an infection in the body.
On March 2, BGI's Multiplex Real-time Fluorescent RT-PCR Kit for Detecting SARS-CoV-2, Influenza A Virus and Influenza B Virus obtained market access qualification to enter the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.
Experts from the University of Barcelona, the Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), the Institute of Microelectronics of Barcelona (IMB-CNM-CSIC) and the Aragon Nanoscience and Materials Institute of Aragon (INMA) -;a joint institute of the CSIC and the University of Zaragoza-; have developed a new method to detect RNA viruses based on the triplex-forming probe technology.
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Liège on group 2 innate lymphoid cells (or ILC2s) shows that the functional reprogramming of these cells following their exposure to viruses allows our body to react differently to exposure to certain respiratory allergens.
A new University of California, Irvine-led study uncovers how a protein, APOBEC3B, could protect cells against many different types of RNA viruses like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), SARS-CoV2, influenza virus, poliovirus and measles, helping to prevent disease.
A new grant of over $17 million from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has established La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) as the leading institute for human immunology data curation, analysis, and dissemination. With this funding, LJI has taken the helm of the Human Immunology Project Consortium Data Coordinating Center, a critical tool in the effort to fuel scientific collaboration in immunoprofiling and highlight findings from the overall Human Immunology Project Consortium (HIPC).
Jon Jacobs, a biochemist, has examined the blood of people suffering from diseases including Ebola, cancer, TB, hepatitis, diabetes, Lyme disease, brain damage, and influenza.
Viruses use the molecular repertoire of the host cell to replicate. Researchers from the Cluster of Excellence ImmunoSensation2 at the University of Bonn, together with Japanese researchers, want to exploit this for the treatment of influenza.