Bacteria have tiny channels in their walls which operate like the valve on a pressure cooker - they open to release material when the pressure in a bacterial cell gets too great. If the channel didn't open to relieve pressure the bacteria would explode and die, so this is a target for drug development.
An international aid agency has confirmed some cases of cholera in Myanmar's cyclone-hit Irawaddy delta but the number is line with normal levels in previous years.
The death toll in China's outbreak of hand-foot-mouth disease has risen to 42 children, with the capital Beijing reporting its first case on Wednesday.
A report from Sun 11 May 2008 shows that 183 children from the capital city Ulaanbataar and provincess have been infected and have been admitted to hospitals for treatment.
Researchers have measured concentrations of bacteria in the cabin air of 12 commercial passenger aircraft and found that flying may be safer than we think.
A woman whose husband died after receiving a liver transplant infected with a rodent virus is suing PetSmart claiming the chain should have warned customers that hamsters can carry lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus.
As of 28 March, 2008, the Brazilian health authorities have reported a national total of 120,570 cases of dengue including 647 dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF) cases, with 48 deaths.
US researchers have discovered a promising new drug for schistosomiasis, a parasitic worm disease that affects more than 200 million people in 70 countries.
An experimental, combination vaccine against Ebola and Marburg viruses using virus-like particles (VLPs) provides complete protection against infection in monkeys.
The 1918 influenza strain developed two mutations in the hemagglutinin which allowed it to bind tightly to receptors in the human upper respiratory tract.
Scientists are no further forward in developing a vaccine against HIV after more than 20 years of research says Nobel Prize-winning biologist David Baltimore.
Ciguatera poisoning is caused by the consumption of tropical reef fish that have assimilated ciguatoxins through the marine food chain from toxic microscopic algae.
The Ministry of Health, Brazil has reported a total of 48 cases of yellow fever including 13 deaths. This outbreak of yellow fever follows an epizootic outbreak in monkeys that started in April 2007 and has since spread to 80 municipalities.
Scientists announce that they had been able to pass on human rhinovirus to a special strain of genetically modified mice – the first time a non-primate has caught a cold.
There is seemingly consistent and compelling evidence that there is no association between breastfeeding and breast cancer. We challenge the assumption follows that milk borne viruses cannot be associated with human breast cancer.
Yoghurt health drinks are at the centre of safety fears after 24 patients died during clinical trials of probiotics, the dietary supplements containing potentially beneficial bacteria.
Due to widespread resistance of bacteria to the available drugs, the discovery of new antibiotics is urgently needed, and naturally occurring antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are promising candidates for future therapeutic use. Amphibian skin is one of the r
This study shows that Campylobacter bacteriophage can easily be isolated from free-range chickens and form part of the normal microbiological biota of environmentally exposed birds.
The highly contagious Norovirus can be passed from one person to another through contact with commonly shared items such as computer keyboards and computer mice, U.S. health officials report.
A single vaccine based on the M2 protein that could give lifelong protection against all types of influenza A has produced promising results in human trials.
A new, low-cost screening strategy could make it easier for poor countries to target and treat Chagas disease, a deadly parasite-borne condition found mainly in Latin America.
Mycobacterium paratuberculosis releases a molecule that prevents a type of white blood cell from killing E. coli, which is known to be present within Crohn's disease tissue in increased numbers.
Pseudomonas bacteria which are normally found in soil and ground water and rarely affect healthy people, but are most likely to affect those who are already very sick.
The latest UK MRSA blood poisoning figures show a 10% decrease in the last complete year, with 6,381 cases of MRSA reported in England between April 2006 and March 2007, compared to 7096 between April 2005 and March 2006. Latest annual cases of C. diffici
Welcome to Adopt A Microbe. Inspired by my brother and sister's suggestions, here at AAM you can take home a snuggly little bacteria, virus or parasite of your own, to love and care for.
The finding that mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) can replicate and spread in human cells adds weight to the theory that MMTV might be involved in causing human breast cancer.
Dengue fever is reaching epidemic levels in the Caribbean and Latin America. Changing weather patterns and increased tourism and migration have raised the prevalence of the disease.
Sewage systems do not break down Tamiflu, which means the main weapon against bird flu could seep into natural waters and make certain viruses resistant to the drug during a pandemic.
A vaccine against Epstein Barr virus (EBV) is being used to stimulate the body's immune system to attack cancer cells. Initial tests show the vaccine has produced promising results.
A hunt is on for 2 patients with a deadly form of tuberculosis who disappeared after the Cape High Court ordered they return to a South African hospital. The pair, diagnosed with extremely drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis, are presumed to be in hiding.
A US meat company has issued a nationwide recall for 21.7 million pounds (9843 tons) of ground beef products after reports of up to 25 cases of illness caused by suspected E. coli [O157:H7] in 8 states, including New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.