News by Subject Biology

Australian researchers have used hepatitis B virus genome sequences to deduce that the mainland Aboriginal population separated from other early humans at least 59,000 years ago.

Herpes viruses reactivate in more than half of crew aboard Space Shuttle and International Space Station missions, according to NASA research published in Frontiers in Microbiology. While only a small proportion develop symptoms, virus reactivation rates increase with spaceflight duration and could present a significant health risk on missions to Mars and beyond.

Tiny organisms in a child's nose could offer clues to improving the diagnosis and treatment of severe lung infections, research shows.

When flu season peaks after mid-winter, tens of thousands of influenza cases and hundreds of deaths can likely be avoided if older adults wait until October to get their flu immunization.

Recently, the sensitivity of fecal microbiological cultures for detecting cholera has come under question. Researchers reporting in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases investigated this claim using a 'vaccine probe' analysis of a completed cholera vaccine cluster randomized trial to support the sensitivity of conventional microbiological culture for cholera.

Introducing hepatitis B vaccine in preadolescents meant a decline in the disease incidence rate by 52 percent according to a study in which the University of Barcelona took part. The study analyzed the efficiency and impact of the vaccination program set in Catalonia, Spain, 21 years ago. The results show that after introducing the program, the incidence rate in general population went from 2.5 per 100,000 people in 1991 to 1.2 per 100,000 people in 2014.

The respiratory systems of Atlantic salmon function normally even when carrying large loads of piscine orthoreovirus (PRV), new University of British Columbia research has found. The results are a positive step in reducing the uncertainty about the potential of infected farmed Atlantic salmon in marine pens to negatively impact migrating wild Pacific salmon.