The raccoon spreads dangerous diseases as it invades Europe

30-Aug-2012 - Furry, agile, intelligent and voracious: the raccoon is far from being a cuddly toy, which is what many people believe when they get one as a pet. It is more like an invader that escapes and is able to adapt and survive in new habitats. According to a study, its expansion across Spain and Europe ...

Virus detector harnesses ring of light in 'whispering gallery mode'

27-Aug-2012 - By affixing nanoscale gold spheres onto a microscopic bead of glass, researchers have created a super-sensor that can detect even single samples of the smallest known viruses. The sensor uses a peculiar behavior of light known as "whispering gallery mode," named after the famous circular gallery ...

Targeting sugars in the quest for a vaccine against HIV

23-Aug-2012 - As a step toward designing the first effective vaccine against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, scientists are reporting new insights into how a family of rare, highly potent antibodies bind to HIV and neutralize it — stop it from infecting human cells. The antibodies were isolated from people ...

Scientists discover new type of virus responsible for a devastating disease in snakes

15-Aug-2012 - A mysterious condition called Inclusion Body Disease (IBD) strikes captive boa constrictors and pythons, causing bizarre behavioral changes and eventually death. Scientists investigating an outbreak of IBD among snakes at the Steinhart Aquarium in San Francisco report they may well have found a ...

Crucell and Scripps Research discover and describe broad-spectrum antibodies against influenza B

14-Aug-2012 - In a landmark discovery, researchers from Crucell Holland B.V. and The Scripps Research Institute, announced the identification of the first human monoclonal antibodies that appear capable of disabling all influenza B viruses. The discovery, published in the journal Science, addresses a ...

Potential drug molecule shows enhanced anti-HIV activity

Small change locks molecule into shape, yields major effect

14-Aug-2012 - Researchers from Munich and Naples have shown that minimal modification of a synthetic peptide with anti-HIV activity results in a new compound with more than two orders of magnitude higher binding affinity to the chemokine receptor CXCR4 and greatly improved anti-HIV activity. This could be a ...

New bat virus could hold key to Hendra virus

06-Aug-2012 - Australian scientists have discovered a new virus in bats that could help shed light on how Hendra and Nipah viruses cause disease and death in animals and humans. The new virus - named 'Cedar' after the Queensland location where it was discovered - is a close relative of the deadly Hendra and ...

Can a virus fight cancer?

Canadian Cancer Society grants new funding

27-Jul-2012 - Two Ottawa researchers are taking innovative approaches to improving virus-based cancer therapy with new funding from the Canadian Cancer Society. Viruses that selectively target and kill cancer cells — called oncolytic viruses — are an exciting new avenue for treating cancer because healthy ...

UF veterinary researchers discover new virus linked to death of Australian snakes

23-Jul-2012 - A University of Florida researcher and colleagues in Australia and Germany have discovered what might be a deadly new snake virus. Dubbed the “Sunshine virus” because of its discovery in Australia’s Sunshine Coast region, the organism causes nervous system and respiratory disease and is the first ...

UGA researchers develop rapid diagnostic test for pathogens, contaminants

23-Jul-2012 - Using nanoscale materials, researchers at the University of Georgia have developed a single-step method to rapidly and accurately detect viruses, bacteria and chemical contaminants. In a series of studies, the scientists were able to detect compounds such as lactic acid and the protein albumin in ...