Virus Weekly articles from July 2008

Virus Weekly archives from July 2008

Studies from Y. Tokuda and co-researchers in the area of B-cell lymphoma published.
July 29, 2008... "Cutaneous Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated B-cell lymphoma (EBVBL) in non-immunocompromised patients is very rare. Here, we report a case of cutaneous EBVBL in a 72-year-old Japanese woman without any signs of immunosuppression,"...

Findings from Rockefeller University advance knowledge in Epstein-Barr virus.
July 29, 2008... According to a study from the United States, "Cells of the innate immune system act in synergy to provide a first line of defense against pathogens. Here we describe that dendritic cells ( DCs), matured with viral products or mimics thereof,...

Report summarizes Epstein-Barr virus study findings from T.E. Mcmanus and co-researchers.
July 29, 2008... "Latent viral infection has been implicated in the pathophysiology of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is known to be important in pulmonary fibrosis," researchers in North Ireland report (see also...

Research from University of Sussex broadens understanding of Epstein-Barr virus.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research from Brighton, the United Kingdom, "Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) causes infectious mononucleosis and is associated with various malignancies, including Burkitt's lymphoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Like all...

Research on Epstein-Barr virus reported by scientists at University of California.(Report)
July 29, 2008... "The development of human periodontitis may depend upon cooperative interactions among herpesviruses, specific pathogenic bacteria and tissue-destructive inflammatory mediators. This study sought to identify associations among human...

Reports outline influenza study findings from University of Marburg.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research published in the journal Plos Pathogens, "We have previously reported that mutations in the polymerase proteins PB1, PB2, PA, and the nucleocapsid protein NP resulting in enhanced transcription and replication...

New life sciences research from H. Chen and colleagues discussed.
July 29, 2008... According to a study from the United States, "An artificial intron containing the insect cell polyhedrin (polh) promoter was designed, constructed, and inserted into the adeno-associated virus (AAV) Rep and Cap coding sequences to express the...

New findings from S.M.K. Buckley and co-authors describe advances in adenovirus.
July 29, 2008... "Due to its early onset and severe prognosis, cystic fibrosis (CF) has been suggested as a candidate disease for in utero gene therapy. In 1997, a study was published claiming that to how transient prenatal expression of CF transmembrane...

Researchers from Inha University discuss findings in adenovirus.(Report)
July 29, 2008... "This study was undertaken to establish a Peyronie's disease model with penile curvature by using recombinant transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) protein or adenovirus (ad-TGF-beta 1). Four-month-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were...

Studies from University of Iowa in the area of adenovirus published.
July 29, 2008... "Understanding host responses to viral gene therapy vectors is necessary for the development of safe and efficacious in vivo gene transfer agents. We describe the use of high-density spotted complementary DNA microarrays in monitoring the in...

New allergic reactions study results reported from D.S. Mastrokalos et al.
July 29, 2008... "We report a case of a systemic allergic reaction to biodegradable poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) interference screws after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction with bone-patellar tendon-bone graft. A 30-year-old patient complained of...

Research from University of Rochester broadens understanding of Alzheimer disease.
July 29, 2008... "Immunotherapeutics designed to dissolve existing amyloid plaques or to interrupt amyloid-beta (A beta) accumulation may be feasible for treatment and/or prevention of Alzheimer's disease ( AD). ''Shaping'' the immune responses elicited...

New arenaviridae research from University of Texas outlined.
July 29, 2008... "The results of analyses of glycoprotein precursor and nucleocapsid protein gene sequences indicated that an arenavirus isolated from a Mexican woodrat (Neotoma mexicana) captured in Arizona is a strain of a novel species (proposed name Skinner...

New cytomegalovirus study findings reported from D.R. Goldwater and co-authors.(Clinical report)
July 29, 2008... "Maribavir, an oral antiviral drug with activity against cytomegalovirus, is currently undergoing studies to assess its efficacy and safety as cytomegalovirus prophylaxis following stem cell or solid organ transplantation. The main objective of...

Scientists at Tohoku University publish new data on cytomegalovirus.
July 29, 2008... "The Arabidopsis thaliana ENHANCED DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY 5 gene (EDS5) is required for salicylic acid (SA) synthesis in pathogen-challenged plants. SA and EDS5 have an important role in the Arabidopsis RCY1 gene-conferred resistance against...

Studies from A. Srivastava and colleagues reveal new findings on cytomegalovirus.
July 29, 2008... "Coat protein (CP)-mediated resistance against an Indian isolate of the Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) subgroup IB was demonstrated in transgenic lines of Nicotiana benthamiana through Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. Out of the...

Studies from S.R. Desilva and co-researchers in the area of cytomegalovirus published.
July 29, 2008... "A 22-year-old immunocompetent woman who presented with a 3-week history of fever, headache, and visual loss and was found to have subnormal visual acuity and bilateral optic disc swelling. Serum cytomegalovirus (CMV) IgM and IgG and polymerase...

Recent findings from University of Oxford highlight research in dengue fever.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research published in the journal Plos Pathogens, "Macrophages ( MO) and mononuclear phagocytes are major targets of infection by dengue virus ( DV), a mosquito-borne flavivirus that can cause haemorrhagic fever in humans....

Research on Epstein-Barr virus discussed by scientists at University of Wisconsin.
July 29, 2008... "Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a herpes virus that is associated with several human cancers. Infection of B cells by EBV leads to their induction and maintenance of proliferation and requires the oncogene, latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1),"...

Study findings from University of London, Imperial College provide new insights into human t-lymphotropic virus.
July 29, 2008... According to a study from London, the United Kingdom, "Human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) causes leukaemia or chronic inflammatory disease in similar to 5% of infected hosts. The level of proviral expression of HTLV-1 differs...

Research by G. Derrico and colleagues in immunodeficiency provides new insights.
July 29, 2008... "P59, a 20-mer peptide modeled on the membrane-proximal external region (MPER) of the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) gp36 ectodomain, has potent antiviral activity. The lipoylated analogue, lipo-P59, displays a similar activity, which is...

Data on influenza published by researchers at Pennsylvania State University.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research published in the journal Plos Pathogens, "The H1N1 subtype of influenza A virus has caused substantial morbidity and mortality in humans, first documented in the global pandemic of 1918 and continuing to the present...

New influenza data have been reported by scientists at Nagoya City University.(Report)
July 29, 2008... "Oseltamivir phosphate (Tamiflu), an anti-influenza virus drug, is hydrolyzed by carboxylesterase to an active metabolite. The metabolite inhibits the influenza virus-specific neuraminidase," scientists writing in the journal Biological &...

New influenza research has been reported by scientists at Shantou University, Medical Department.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research published in the journal Cellular & Molecular Immunology, "Patients with an influenza virus infection can be complicated by acute encephalopathy and encephalitis. To investigate the immune reactions involved in the...

New influenza study findings have been reported from National Institutes of Health.
July 29, 2008... "Cholesterol-specific interactions that affect membrane fusion were tested for using insect cells; cells that have naturally low cholesterol levels ( "Enrichment of HAS cells with cholesterol reduced the delay between triggering and lipid...

Reports from Chiba University highlight recent research in influenza.
July 29, 2008... "The ultrastructure of the frozen-hydrated influenza A virus was examined by Zernike phase contrast electron microscopy. Using this new microscopy, not only lipid bilayers but also individual glycoprotein spikes on viral envelopes were clearly...

Reports outline influenza research from E.N. Prokudina and colleagues.
July 29, 2008... "Intracellular influenza virus nucleoprotein (NP) is characterized by a high efficiency of homo-polymers formation, however their antigenic structure is still incompletely known. Herein, we report that RNase-resistant intracellular NP...

Research from Cardiff University provide new insights into influenza.
July 29, 2008... "Currently, our understanding of mechanisms underlying cell-mediated immunity and particularly of mechanisms that promote robust T cell memory to respiratory viruses is incomplete. Interleukin (IL)-6 has recently re-emerged as an important...

Research from Children's Hospital reveals new findings on influenza.
July 29, 2008... "If highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza viruses acquire affinity for human rather than avian respiratory epithelium, will their susceptibility to neuraminidase (NA) inhibitors (the likely first line of defense against an influenza pandemic) change...

Research from P.J. Collins and co-authors yields new data on influenza.
July 29, 2008... "The potential impact of pandemic influenza makes effective measures to limit the spread and morbidity of virus infection a public health priority. Antiviral drugs are seen as essential requirements for control of initial influenza outbreaks...

Studies from University of Wisconsin, Medical Department add new findings in the area of influenza.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research published in the journal Virus Research, "In the late 1990s, triple reassortant H3N2 influenza A viruses emerged and spread widely within the swine population of the United States. We have shown previously that an...

Study results from China Agricultural University provide new insights into influenza.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research from Beijing, People's Republic of China, "In 2004, H9N2 influenza A viruses were isolated from pigs with respiratory syndrome in commercial swine farms in Henan province, China. Antigenic and genetic...

Data on life sciences discussed by M. Fang and colleagues.
July 29, 2008... "Ectromelia virus ( ECTV) is an orthopoxvirus ( OPV) that causes mousepox, the murine equivalent of human smallpox. C57BL/6 (B6) mice are naturally resistant to mousepox due to the concerted action of innate and adaptive immune responses,"...

New findings in life sciences described from University of Basel.
July 29, 2008... "Eukaryotic cells restrain the activity of foreign genetic elements, including viruses, through RNA silencing. Although viruses encode suppressors of silencing to support their propagation, viruses may also exploit silencing to regulate host...

New life sciences research reported from L. Dewitte and co-authors.
July 29, 2008... According to a study from Amsterdam, Netherlands, "Measles virus (MV) is among the most infectious viruses that affect humans and is transmitted via the respiratory route. In macaques, MV primarily infects lymphocytes and dendritic cells...

Reports outline life sciences study results from Harvard University, Medical Department.
July 29, 2008... "The TRIM family proteins share a conserved arrangement of three adjacent domains, an N-terminal RING domain, followed by one or two B-boxes and a coiled-coil, which constitutes the tripartite-motif for which the family is named. However, the...

Research from Dalhousie University provides new data about life sciences.
July 29, 2008... "The reovirus fusion-associated small transmembrane (FAST) proteins function as virus-encoded cellular fusogens, mediating efficient cell-cell rather than virus-cell membrane fusion. With ectodomains of only similar to 20-40 residues, it is...

Researchers from University of Louvain report on findings in life sciences.
July 29, 2008... "Interferons (IFN) exert antiviral, immunomodulatory and cytostatic activities. IFN-alpha/beta (type I IFN) and IFN-lambda (type III IFN) bind distinct receptors, but regulate similar sets of genes and exhibit strikingly similar biological...

Researchers from University of Oxford describe findings in life sciences.(Clinical report)
July 29, 2008... According to recent research from Oxford, the United Kingdom, "Gene therapy is being investigated in the treatment of lung-related aspects of the genetic disease, Cystic fibrosis (CF). Clinical studies have demonstrated CF transmembrane...

Studies from N. Stuebiger and co-authors have provided new information about necrosis.
July 29, 2008... "In acute retinal necrosis, which is caused by herpes virus, urgent treatment is essential. Here we present a 47years old male patient, who developed an acute retinal necrosis in his left eye," researchers in Tubingen, Germany report (see also...

New paramyxovirus research from K. Falk and co-researchers described.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research from Oslo, Norway, "Atlantic salmon paramyxovirus (ASPV) was isolated in 1995 from gills of farmed Atlantic salmon suffering from proliferative gill inflammation. The complete genome sequence of ASPV was determined,...

Study results from University of North Carolina provide new insights into pemphigus.(Report)
July 29, 2008... According to a study from the United States, "Pemphigus foliaceus (PF) and pemphigus vulgaris (PV) are autoimmune blistering diseases characterized by autoantibodies against desmoglein (Dsg)1 and Dsg3, respectively. The role of classical...

New findings from Nankai University in the area of peptide libraries published.
July 29, 2008... In this recently published article, scientists in Tianjin, People's Republic of China conducted a study "To screen for interferon (IFN) alpha-2b mimetic peptides with antiviral activity. Selecting IFN receptor-binding peptides from a...

Studies from I.I. Mendez et al have provided new data on reovirus.
July 29, 2008... According to recent research from the United States, "Many critical biologic processes involve dynamic interactions between proteins and nucleic acids. Such dynamic processes are often difficult to delineate by conventional static methods." ...

New virology research reported from Y.P. Zhang and co-authors.
July 29, 2008... "Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) belongs to the genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae. It is transmitted by the whitefly Bemisia tabaci," scientists in Shanghai, People's Republic of China report (see also Virology). "A pair of...

Reports outline virology study results from Shahid Bahonar University.
July 29, 2008... "Beet curly top Iran virus (BCTIV) was previously reported as a distinct curtovirus in Iran. Complete nucleotide sequences of three BCTIV isolates, one each from central, southern, and south eastern Iran were determined to be 2844, 2844, and...

Studies from R. Viswanathan et al provide new data on virology.(Report)
July 29, 2008... According to recent research published in the journal Virus Genes, "Sixty-three sugarcane leaf samples were collected from fifty-eight sugarcane varieties, evolved from eleven major sugarcane growing states in India, Australia, South Africa and...

Study data from Y.F. Fan and co-authors update knowledge of virology.(Report)
July 29, 2008... "The Thiverval vaccine strain of classical swine fever virus (CSFV) was derived from virulent Alfort strain through the serial passages in cells at 29-30C. In this study, we determined the complete genome sequence of this strain and found that...

Studies from Charles University, Center for New Antivirals and Antineoplastics add new findings in the area of antivirals.
July 29, 2008... Scientists discuss in 'Transdermal and dermal delivery of adefovir: effects of pH and permeation enhancers' new findings in antivirals. According to recent research from Prague, Czech Republic, "The objective of this work was to investigate...

University Montpellier I reports research in cytokines.
July 29, 2008... Researchers detail in 'IL-2 triggers specific signaling pathways in human NKT cells leading to the production of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines,' new data in cytokines. "NKT cells belong to a conserved T lymphocyte subgroup that has been...

Researchers from University of Alabama provide details of new studies and findings in the area of cytomegalovirus.
July 29, 2008... A new study, 'Effect of oral treatment with (S)-HPMPA, HDP-(S)-HPMPA or ODE-(S)-HPMPA on replication of murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) or human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) in animal models,' is now available. "We utilized BALB/c mice infected with...

Research reports on encephalitis from B. Pastorino and colleagues provide new insights.
July 29, 2008... Fresh data on encephalitis are presented in the report 'Improvement of the purification of Saint Louis encephalitis virus NS2B-NS3 recombinant protease expressed in Escherichia coli.' According to recent research published in the Journal of...

Research on herpesvirus detailed by scientists at Karolinska Institute, Department of Laboratory Medicine.
July 29, 2008... Scientists discuss in 'Substrate specificity of feline and canine herpesvirus thymidine kinase' new findings in herpesvirus. "The thymidine kinases from feline herpesvirus (FHV TK) and canine herpesvirus (CHV TK) were cloned and characterized....

Data on influenza published by researchers at Institute for Biological Science.
July 29, 2008... Current study results from the report, 'Characterization of intact lipopolysaccharides from the Haemophilus influenzae strain RM 118 using electrophoresis-assisted open-tubular liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry,' have been published....

New influenza research from University of Naples, Department of Experimental Medicine outlined.(Report)
July 29, 2008... A new study, 'Pathophysiological changes of gram-negative bacterial infection can be reproduced by a synthetic peptide mimicking loop L7 sequence of Haemophilus influenzae porin,' is now available. "Several in vivo models have been used to...

Studies from Winthrop University, Department of Biology have provided new information about influenza genetics.
July 29, 2008... Current study results from the report, 'Origin of the 1918 Spanish influenza virus: a comparative genomic analysis,' have been published. According to a study from the United States, "To test the avian-origin hypothesis of the 1918 Spanish...

Investigators at China Agricultural University target life sciences.(Report)
July 29, 2008... Current study results from the report, 'Specific small interfering RNAs-mediated inhibition of replication of porcine encephalomyocarditis virus in BHK-21 cells,' have been published. "Encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) is recognized as a...

New life sciences data have been reported by V. Puro and co-authors.(Report)
July 29, 2008... New research, 'Risk management of febrile respiratory illness in emergency departments,' is the subject of a report. "Febrile Respiratory Illness (FRI) is defined as a new or worsening episode of either cough or shortness of breath, presenting...

Study findings from University of Alberta, Department of Cell Biology provide new insights into life sciences.(Report)
July 29, 2008... Research findings, 'Modulation of signaling pathways by RNA virus capsid proteins,' are discussed in a new report. "Capsid proteins are structural components of virus particles. They are nucleic acid-binding proteins whose main recognized...

Scientists at Utah State University, Institute for Antiviral Research detail research in severe acute respiratory syndrome therapy.(Report)
July 29, 2008... Research findings, 'Is the anti-psychotic, 10-(3-(dimethylamino)propyl)phenothiazine (promazine), a potential drug with which to treat SARS infections? Lack of efficacy of promazine on SARS-CoV replication in a mouse model,' are discussed in a...

Study data from Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, Gastroenterology Division update understanding of ulcerative colitis prognosis.
July 29, 2008... A new study, 'The role of endoscopic assessment in ulcerative colitis in the era of infliximab,' is now available. According to recent research published in the journal Digestive and Liver Disease, "Endoscopic evaluation of mucosal appearance...

Californians for SAFE Food Launches Campaign Opposing Proposition 2: 'The Un-SAFE Food Initiative'.
July 29, 2008... Californians for SAFE Food, a coalition of public health and food safety experts, labor unions, consumers, family farmers and veterinarians, today officially launched its campaign to oppose Proposition 2, the November ballot initiative that...

Micronics Names Larry Hambleton as Vice President of Sales and Marketing.
July 29, 2008... Micronics, Inc., a leading developer of rapid, molecular diagnostics for near patient, point of care detection of infectious diseases, announced that it has named Larry Hambleton as its Vice President of Sales and Marketing (see also Micronics,...