H5N1 strain of bird flu found in milk: WHO
The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown.
The H5N1 bird flu virus strain has been detected in very high concentrations in raw milk from infected animals, the WHO said Friday, though how long the virus can survive in milk is unknown.
Veterinary medicine
18 hours ago
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29
Researchers led by a scientist at Keele University in Staffordshire have studied the previously unknown flight mechanisms of a common crop pest, to learn more about their movements in a bid to improve food security and prevent ...
Ecology
18 hours ago
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21
A research team has engineered a "broadband nanogap gold spectroscopic sensor" using a flexible material capable of bending to create a controlled gap. With the developed technology, it is possible to rapidly test various ...
Bio & Medicine
Apr 17, 2024
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9
Health officials around the globe, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention, are monitoring the ongoing avian influenza outbreak. Also known as bird ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 16, 2024
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3
Understanding how proteins interact with each other is crucial for developing new treatments and understanding diseases. Thanks to computational advances, a team of researchers led by Assistant Professor of Chemistry Alberto ...
Biochemistry
Apr 16, 2024
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42
The rise of RNA viruses like SARS-CoV-2 highlights the need for new ways to fight them. RNA-targeting tools like CRISPR/Cas13 are powerful but inefficient in the cytoplasm of cells, where many RNA viruses replicate.
Biotechnology
Apr 12, 2024
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99
Over the past four years, many of us have become accustomed to a swab up the nose to test for COVID-19, using at-home rapid antigen tests or the more accurate clinic-provided PCR tests with a longer processing time. Now a ...
Bio & Medicine
Apr 8, 2024
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69
A new study looking at the replication stage of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 reveals important mechanisms in its replication that could be the foundation for new antiviral therapies.
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 5, 2024
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9
By harnessing the power of composite polymer particles adorned with gold nanoparticles, a group of researchers have delivered a more accurate means of testing for infectious diseases. Details of their research are published ...
Bio & Medicine
Apr 4, 2024
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3
A poultry facility in Michigan and egg producer in Texas both reported outbreaks of avian flu this week. The latest developments on the virus also include infected dairy cows and the first known instance of a human catching ...
Veterinary medicine
Apr 3, 2024
0
19
I: dsDNA viruses II: ssDNA viruses III: dsRNA viruses IV: (+)ssRNA viruses V: (−)ssRNA viruses VI: ssRNA-RT viruses VII: dsDNA-RT viruses
A virus (from the Latin virus meaning toxin or poison) is a microscopic infectious agent that can reproduce only inside a host cell. Viruses infect all types of organisms: from animals and plants, to bacteria and archaea. Since the initial discovery of tobacco mosaic virus by Martinus Beijerinck in 1898, more than 5,000 types of virus have been described in detail, although most types of virus remain undiscovered. Viruses are ubiquitous, as they are found in almost every ecosystem on Earth, and are the most abundant type of biological entity on the planet. The study of viruses is known as virology, and is a branch of microbiology.
Viruses consist of two or three parts: all viruses have genes made from either DNA or RNA, long molecules that carry genetic information; all have a protein coat that protects these genes; and some have an envelope of fat that surrounds them when they are outside a cell. Viruses vary in shape from simple helical and icosahedral shapes, to more complex structures. They are about 1/100th the size of bacteria. The origins of viruses in the evolutionary history of life are unclear: some may have evolved from plasmids—pieces of DNA that can move between cells—while others may have evolved from bacteria. In evolution, viruses are an important means of horizontal gene transfer, which increases genetic diversity.
Viruses spread in many ways; plant viruses are often transmitted from plant to plant by insects that feed on sap, such as aphids, while animal viruses can be carried by blood-sucking insects. These disease-bearing organisms are known as vectors. Influenza viruses are spread by coughing and sneezing, and others such as norovirus, are transmitted by the faecal-oral route, when they contaminate hands, food, or water. Rotaviruses are often spread by direct contact with infected children. HIV is one of several viruses that are transmitted through sexual contact.
Not all viruses cause disease, as many viruses reproduce without causing any obvious harm to the infected organism. Viruses such as hepatitis B can cause life-long or chronic infections, and the viruses continue to replicate in the body despite the hosts' defence mechanisms. In some cases, these chronic infections might be beneficial as they might increase the immune system's response against infection by other pathogens. However, in most cases viral infections in animals cause an immune response that eliminates the infecting virus. These immune responses can also be produced by vaccines that give lifelong immunity to a viral infection. Microorganisms such as bacteria also have defences against viral infection, such as restriction modification systems. Antibiotics have no effect on viruses, but antiviral drugs have been developed to treat both life-threatening and more minor infections.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA