Topic description and stories

Combating infectious diseases and the threat of antimicrobial resistance remains one of the greatest global challenges.

3D print of HIV (edited)

Study clears important hurdle towards developing an HIV vaccine

13 Sep 2017

An international team of researchers has demonstrated a way of overcoming one of the major stumbling blocks that has prevented the development of a...

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Life cycle of sleeping sickness causing parasite

Cambridge researchers help develop new diagnostic test for African sleeping sickness

11 Sep 2017

A new diagnostic test developed from research at the Universities of Cambridge and Dundee has been launched with the aim of helping eliminate the...

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Hand showing leprosy

Leprosy turns the immune system against itself, study finds

23 Aug 2017

Leprosy hijacks our immune system, turning an important repair mechanism into one that causes potentially irreparable damage to our nerve cells...

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A fishing village along Lake Victoria in the Mayuge District of Uganda, close to where researchers gathered data for the latest study.

Target ‘best connected neighbours’ to stop spread of infection in developing countries

24 Jul 2017

An innovative new study takes a network theory approach to targeted treatment in rural Africa, and finds that a simple algorithm may be more...

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Global teamwork brings low-cost test for Weil's disease a step closer

10 Jul 2017

An on-the-spot, low-cost diagnostic test for leptospirosis (Weil's disease), a bacterial infection recognised as a neglected disease by the World...

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Baby with microcephaly

New insights into how the Zika virus causes brain birth defect

01 Jun 2017

Scientists have uncovered why Zika virus may specifically target neural stem cells in the developing brain, potentially leading to microcephaly – a...

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Grobidon

Infections during pregnancy may interfere with key genes associated with autism and prenatal brain development

21 Mar 2017

If a mother picks up an infection during pregnancy, her immune system will kick into action to clear the infection – but this self-defence mechanism...

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HIV-infected T cell

Opinion: Want to eradicate viruses? They made us who we are

28 Feb 2017

We are still part-virus, writes Edward Emmott, Research Associate in Virology, for The Conversation. Human DNA plays host to a range of different...

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Ian Goodfellow

Call of duty: fighting Ebola in Sierra Leone

13 Jan 2017

Working in a lab as a basic scientist can often seem far removed from the real world. A year since the World Health Organization declared the Ebola...

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Norovirus

Opinion: Why is the norovirus such a huge problem for the NHS?

13 Jan 2017

Writing for The Conversation, Edward Emmott, Research Associate in Virology explores why this notorious virus can cause the NHS such difficulty.

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Blue and Brown Anatomical Lung Wall Decor. Hand Embroidery Applique by Hey Paul Studios

Multi-drug resistant infection spreading globally among cystic fibrosis patients

10 Nov 2016

A multi-drug resistant infection that can cause life-threatening illness in people with cystic fibrosis (CF) and can spread from patient to patient...

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Harry Reasoner introduces the 60 Minutes program featuring ‘Patient Zero’ and the American AIDS crisis, broadcast on CBS in November 1987.

Research reveals accidental making of ‘Patient Zero’ myth during 1980s AIDS crisis

26 Oct 2016

A combination of historical and genetic research reveals the error and hype that led to the coining of the term ‘Patient Zero’ and the blaming of one...

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