A molecule impedes the destruction of the 'Brucella' bacteria
Research carried out with the participation of the University of Navarra has shown how a determinate molecule helps an important pathogen, Brucella abortus, escape destruction within the cells charged with eliminating infectious agents (macrophages). view more (2005-06-15)
Balancing male fertility and disease resistance
An international collaboration of researchers, headed by Dr. Shiping Wang (Huazhong Agricultural University, China) has discovered that a single gene in rice regulates both male fertility and pathogen resistance, providing an unexpected genetic link between reproductive success and the disease resistance. view more (2006-05-08)
Salmonella survives better in stomach due to altered DNA
Since 1995 there has been a considerable increase in the number of infections with a specific type of Salmonella bacteria transmitted via food. This type, Salmonella serovar Typhimurium DT104, is resistant to at least five different antibiotics. view more (2007-01-31)
Marine pathogens spread much faster than their terrestrial counterparts
It has become increasingly clear that pathogen epidemics are as significant a component of marine systems as they are in terrestrial systems. At an National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) working group on Diseases in the Ocean, McCallum, Harvell and Dobson collated data on epidemic spread from both terrestrial and marine... view more... (2003-11-24)
Potato blight plight looks promising for food security
Over 160 years since potato blight wreaked havoc in Ireland and other northern European countries, scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) finally have the blight-causing pathogen in their sights and are working to accelerate breeding of more durable, disease resistant potato varieties. view more (2009-08-10)
Serious setback in the long-term treatment of HIV infection
Structured therapeutic interruptions (STI), long hailed as a way of reducing the side effects of long-term AIDS treatment, has been shown to be ineffective, according to a collaborative study between Swiss and British researchers. Professor Rodney Phillips and colleagues at Oxford University's Peter Medawar Building for Pathogen Research and the... view more... (2002-10-10)
Researcher discovers pathway plants use to fight back against pathogens
Plants are not only smart, but they also wage a good fight, according to a University of Missouri biochemist. Previous studies have shown that plants can sense attacks by pathogens and activate their defenses. view more (2008-04-01)
Nightshades: 'overflowing' with Phytophthora resistant genes?
The potato and other related varieties of the Solanum species contain scores or perhaps even hundreds of genes that can give the plant a degree of resistance to 'potato blight', a disease caused by Phytophthora infestans. This is one of the conclusions that came to light in Vivianne Vleeshouwers' thesis, with which she recently earned her doctoral... view more... (2001-02-01)
Breakthrough in combating the growing risk from E.coli food poisoning
Certain pathogenic strains of the E. coli bacteria appear to harpoon themselves into intestine lining cells in order to colonise large sections of the gut, say scientists at Imperial College in London. The researchers, reporting the breakthrough in the new edition of BBSRC Business today, hope that by understanding how the bacteria latches onto... view more... (2001-04-05)
Modeling pathogen responses
The search for a vaccination against HIV has been in progress since 1984, with very little success. Traditional methods used for identifying potential cellular targets can be very costly and time-consuming. view more (2007-10-12)
Virginia Bioinformatics Institute launches microbial database
Researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech have launched a publicly-available microbial database to host a range of microbial genome sequences. view more (2006-03-08)
Fungus Found in Humans Shown To Be Nimble in Mating Game
Brown University researchers have determined that Candida albicans, a human fungal pathogen, pursues both same-sex and the more conventional opposite-sex mating. The findings are published in the August 2009 edition of the journal Nature. view more (2009-08-13)
Uncovering the mystery of a major threat to wheat
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists have solved a longstanding mystery as to why a pathogen that threatens the world's wheat supply can be so adaptable, diverse and virulent. It is because the fungus that causes the wheat disease called stripe rust may use sexual recombination to adapt to resistant varieties of wheat. view more (2010-06-02)
Three human gene variants appear to influence tb susceptibility
Three variations of a human gene appear to impact human tuberculosis susceptibility, providing insight into why some patients infected with the Mycobacterium tuberculosis pathogen develop the full-blown disease and others do not. view more (2006-06-23)
Study finds key distinction between outbreaks that die out and epidemics
In an important study forthcoming in the March 2006 issue of the American Naturalist, biologists from Yale University, University of Florida, and Dartmouth University explore the dynamics of pathogen survival and shed new light on a longstanding mystery: why some infectious diseases are limited to small outbreaks and others become full-blown... view more... (2006-02-22)
How Good Are Indicator Bacteria at Predicting Pathogens in Recreational Water?
Bacteria commonly used to indicate health risks in recreational waters might not be so reliable after all. Pathogenic E. coli were pervasive in stream-water samples with low concentrations of fecal indicator bacteria. view more (2009-09-23)
Increased environmental carbon levels - the good news!
Increasing carbon levels can be a good thing in some cases: scientists at the University of Durham propose that higher levels of inorganic carbon can have a positive influence on human health. view more (2006-04-03)
Tree-Killing Fungus Officially Named by Scientists
The USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station (SRS) today announced that an SRS scientist and other researchers have officially named the fungus responsible for killing redbay and other trees in the coastal plains of northeastern Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. view more (2008-07-01)
Californians urged to help reduce spread of Sudden Oak Death
An update on the increased spread of Sudden Oak Death, a plant disease devastating many of California's coastal oak and tanoak trees, and information on what Californians can do to help reduce its spread will be presented during a news conference on plant diseases that are of importance to California's economy and agriculture. view more (2007-07-16)
New method for testing condition of seeds
Wageningen UR develops method for testing condition of seeds Flow-cytometry, the technique for studying large numbers of individual cells in a fluid, can be combined with the use of special fluorescent colouring agents to form a valuable method of determining the health of seeds and seed consignments. This is shown in the thesis with which... view more... (2001-04-03)
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