Virus Archives

Turning bad fat into good – A future treatment for obesity

Turning ‘bad’ fat into ‘good’: A future treatment for obesity? — Johns Hopkins researchers transform inert white fat into brown fat to burn off calories and weight – By knocking down the expression of a protein in rat brains known to stimulate eating, Johns Hopkins researchers say they not only reduced the animals’ calorie intake and weight, but also transformed their fat into a type that burns off more energy. The finding could lead to better obesity treatments for humans, the scientists report.

HIV infection may be a risk factor for heart failure

HIV Infection May Be a Risk Factor for Heart Failure – Patients with HIV infection without a prior history of coronary heart disease may be at a higher risk of developing heart failure, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Fighting HIV in South Africa should focus on couples

Fighting HIV in South Africa should focus on couples, study finds — Risky behaviors among HIV-positive members of long-term relationships concerns researchers – HIV-positive people in South Africa take almost as much risk in their behavior when they know their partner is HIV-negative or don’t know their status, as when they know their partner is already infected.

Swine flu vaccine causing sudden sleep disorder narcolepsy in children

Swine flu vaccine causing sudden sleep disorder narcolepsy in children – A swine flu vaccine which has been given to thousands of children in Britain may cause the sleep disorder narcolepsy. Symptoms include excessive daytime sleepiness and nodding off suddenly without warning.

Nanomedicine closer to reality, Stanford

Stanford research moves nanomedicine one step closer to reality – A class of engineered nanoparticles — gold-centered spheres smaller than viruses — has been shown safe when administered by two alternative routes in a mouse study led by investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

New GM-SCF therapy to defeating flu shows promise

New approach to defeating flu shows promise – New research on mice has shown that pulmonary administration of granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) significantly reduces flu symptoms and prevents death after a lethal dose influenza virus.

Omalizumab relieves seasonal asthma attacks in youth

NIH study finds omalizumab relieves seasonal asthma attacks in youth — Symptoms reduced in children and young people with moderate to severe disease – A drug that targets the antibody immunoglobulin E (IgE), a key player in asthma, nearly eliminated seasonal increases in asthma attacks and decreased asthma symptoms among young people living in inner city environments, a clinical trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health has found.

HIV rates declined in Zimbabwe driven by fear of infection

Huge decline in HIV rates in Zimbabwe driven by fear of infection, says study – The big drop in the numbers of people infected with HIV in Zimbabwe is because of mass social change, driven by fear of infection, according to an international study reported in the journal PLoS Medicine.

New treatment for severe 2009 H1N1 infection

Study suggests possible new treatment for severe 2009 H1N1 infection – Convalescent plasma therapy-using plasma from patients who have recovered from an infection to treat those with the same infection-has been used to treat multiple diseases.

Stroke rate rises in HIV patients

Spike reported in number of people with HIV having a stroke – While the overall hospitalization rate for stroke has declined in recent years, the numbers have jumped dramatically for patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), suggesting they may be up to three times more likely to suffer a stroke than people uninfected by the virus that causes AIDS.

Preventing future bird flu epidemics – GM chickens

GM chickens that don’t transmit bird flu developed – Breakthrough could prevent future bird flu epidemics – Chickens genetically modified to prevent them spreading bird flu have been produced by researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh. They developed a new gene coding that controls bird flu virus progress.

Gardasil approved to prevent anal cancer

FDA: Gardasil approved to prevent anal cancer – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the vaccine Gardasil for the prevention of anal cancer and associated precancerous lesions due to human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6, 11, 16, and 18 in people ages 9 through 26 years.