Acinetobacter baumannii is commonly isolated from organ fluids of infected patients. Given that A. baumannii is inherently resistant to multiple antibiotics, new categorical antibiotics are needed that target a narrow, not broad, spectrum of bacteria.
A new study has shown that a uterine bacterium is one cause of endometriosis and that preventing the infection could prevent development of the pathology, in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows in the abdominal cavity.
Two new polio vaccine candidates designed to prevent the emergence of vaccine-derived virulent polioviruses have been shown to induce immune responses in mice, raising the possibility of eradicating the virus. For that to happen, the transmission of all poliovirus serotypes must be blocked. However, the vaccine used to control polio prevents disease but does not stop transmission, enabling the virus to mutate and regain virulence.
La Crosse virus (LACV) is one of the most common causes of arboviral encephalitis in children, which causes CNS damage owing to infection in children, but not adults. LACV pathology indicates significant breakdown of the blood-brain barrier, which is strengthened during developmental transition from child to adult.
For Jeff Galvin, the CEO and founder of newly launched Addimmune Inc., HIV is not a condition that’s in the rearview mirror. It needs a functional cure to save lives, make people healthier and save money that need not have been spent. People wonder why it’s worth bothering to cure HIV, Galvin told BioWorld, when they are taking their medications every day and they are feeling pretty close to normal. But it’s not close for Galvin, who noted that there are side effects from taking the pills that can cause headaches, fatigue, nausea and diarrhea.
Asep Medical Holdings Inc. reported “ground-breaking” use of artificial intelligence in its SepsetER test to rapidly identify infections at increased risk of severe sepsis. Developed under guidance by Professor Robert E.W. Hancock at the University of British Columbia, analysis of dysfunctional immune responses to identify particular sets of genes could signal when a patient is at risk of acquiring and potentially dying from severe sepsis.
Tuberculosis (TB) is the 13th leading cause of death in the world, and it is rising together with the increased prevalence of drug-resistant TB in many countries. The Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine is the only available TB vaccine, and it has been given to more people than any other vaccine. While the BCG vaccine has saved tens of millions of lives, it confers suboptimal protection against pulmonary TB as it is limited to providing protection only until early childhood. Significantly, the BCG vaccine is administered intradermally to confer exceptional mucosal immunity as compared to most other vaccines, which are more commonly administered intramuscularly. Novel strategies to improve the duration of TB mucosal immunity are urgently needed.
The U.S. FDA’s Antimicrobial Drugs Advisory Committee voted unanimously, 21-0, June 8 in support of Astrazeneca plc’s nirsevimab as a one-dose prophylactic for infants born during or entering their first respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) season.