Latest news with #virus
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
New high-resolution structures of measles virus enzyme could lead to protective measures
May 30—Using high-resolution cryo-electron microscopy (cryoEM), researchers at The Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota, have revealed the first high-resolution renderings of the measles virus's (MeV) polymerase. This enzyme is crucial for the virus's ability to hijack cells and make copies of itself, which is one aspect that makes the virus so effective at infecting people and spreading throughout the body. For a virus that's been documented since at least the ninth century, there is still plenty we have to learn about the measles virus and how it operates, Associate Professor Bin Liu, PhD, explained as he discussed his new study published in Nature Communications. "Even well-known viruses like measles still have uncharted molecular terrain, and illuminating its structure provides valuable insights for therapeutic development," Liu said. By revealing measles' structure, Liu, along with Postdoctoral Researchers Dong Wang, PhD, and Ge Yang, PhD, have unlocked valuable insights that could help other researchers develop preventative and therapeutic measures to combat this deadly virus that can cause complications ranging from pneumonia to ear infections to encephalitis (inflammation of the brain). "Although an effective vaccine is available, recent measles outbreaks highlight the urgent need for alternative antiviral treatments," Liu said. "Because the polymerase is essential for viral genome replication, it represents a critical target for antiviral intervention." The study presents two new, distinct renderings of MeV polymerase complexes known as Lcore-P and Lfull-P-C. According to Liu, one of the most intriguing findings is the structural role of the measles virus C protein in forming the Lfull-P-C complex with two other proteins, L and P. This is surprising because the C protein was traditionally seen as a regulatory protein, not part of its core replication machinery. Now, it's shown to physically bridge and modulate the L protein's activity, potentially influencing how efficiently the virus replicates. Additionally, the study shows that the C protein widens the polymerase's RNA channel in the polymerase, possibly enhancing the processivity of RNA synthesis. That kind of physical alteration, revealed via cryoEM at near-atomic resolution, is a remarkable mechanistic insight. It suggests that the measles virus has evolved an elegant, multi-protein solution for efficient replication inside host cells. This kind of structural adaptation is a biological engineering marvel, and it highlights how even simple viruses can have complex, dynamic protein machinery. By revealing detailed interactions within the Lfull-P-C complex, the paper opens doors for next-generation antiviral drug designs that halt viral replication. "This shifts the measles conversation from 'solved by vaccines' to 'still relevant for therapeutic innovation,'" Liu concluded.
CBS News
23-05-2025
- Health
- CBS News
U.S. reports cases of new COVID variant NB.1.8.1 behind surge in China
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's airport screening program has detected multiple cases of the new COVID-19 variant NB.1.8.1, which has been linked to a large surge of the virus in China. Cases linked to the NB.1.8.1 variant have been reported in arriving international travelers at airports in California, Washington state, Virginia and the New York City area, according to records uploaded by the CDC's airport testing partner Ginkgo Bioworks. Details about the sequencing results, which were published in recent weeks on the GISAID, or Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data, virus database, show the cases stem from travelers from a number of countries, including Japan, South Korea, France, Thailand, the Netherlands, Spain, Vietnam, China and Taiwan. The travelers were tested from April 22 through May 12, the records show. A spokesperson for the CDC did not immediately respond to CBS News' request for comment. Cases of NB.1.8.1 have also now been reported by health authorities in other states, including Ohio, Rhode Island and Hawaii, separate from the airport cases. In California and Washington state, the earliest cases date back to late March and early April. Experts have been closely watching the variant, which is now dominant in China and is on the rise in parts of Asia. Hong Kong authorities say that rates of COVID-19 in the city have climbed to the worst levels they have seen in at least a year, after a "significant increase" in reported emergency room visits and hospitalizations driven by COVID-19. While authorities in Hong Kong say there is no evidence that the variant, a descendant of the XDV lineage of the virus, is more severe, they have begun urging residents to mask when in public transportation or crowded places as cases have climbed. Health authorities in Taiwan have also reported a rise in emergency room visits, severe cases and deaths. Local health authorities say they are stockpiling vaccines and antiviral treatments in response to the epidemic wave. Preliminary data from researchers in China suggest the NB.1.8.1 variant is not better at evading the immune system compared to other strains on the rise, but it does have a greater ability to bind to human cells, suggesting it could be more transmissible. "A more predictable pattern" The strain came up multiple times during a Thursday meeting of the Food and Drug Administration's outside vaccine advisers, as they wrestled with whether and how to recommend updating COVID-19 vaccines for the coming fall and winter seasons. Vaccines from last season targeted a descendant of the JN.1 variant called KP.2. Early data presented to the committee by Pfizer and Moderna suggested switching to a different JN.1 descendant that has been dominant in recent months, called LP.8.1, could boost protection against NB.1.8.1, too. "The LP.8.1 vaccine has the highest titers against LP.8.1, which is dominant in the U.S. and many other regions and cross-neutralizes other currently circulating variants, including NB.1.8.1, a dominant JN.1 subvariant in many Asian countries," Darin Edwards, lead of Moderna's COVID-19 program, told the panel. The committee unanimously backed recommending that the coming season's vaccines should target some kind of JN.1 variant, but was split on the details. Some favored allowing vaccine makers to stick with last season's vaccines, while others called for the update to target the LP.8.1 descendant of JN.1 that Pfizer and Moderna have prototyped. "Although one can't predict evolution, and you don't know how this is going to keep diversifying, the overwhelming odds are that what does come and predominate in the next few months, the next six months, next year will come from something that's circulating now. It won't come from something that doesn't exist any longer," Jerry Weir, director of the FDA's division of viral products, said. For now, CDC and FDA officials told the panel that only one strain — a variant called XFC — has been significantly growing in the U.S. But they cautioned that the evolution of the virus has been unpredictable, even as the country has settled into a relatively predictable pattern of two surges a year: once in the summer and once over the winter. This past season only saw an evolutionary "drift" in the virus, as opposed to the kind of sweeping replacements driven by highly mutated strains in some earlier years. While COVID-19 trends climbed over the winter, they remained far below previous peaks. "Throughout this winter, we didn't see that strain replacement that we have in the past couple of years. But I'm not saying that the virus will not shift again in the immediate future," the CDC's Natalie Thornburg told the panel. Thornburg is the acting chief of the laboratory branch in the CDC's division for coronaviruses and other respiratory viruses. Rates of COVID-19 have now fallen back to low levels nationwide, measured through emergency room visits and wastewater testing. "I do think after five years now, we are seeing very distinct patterns that [are] falling into a more predictable pattern," Thornburg said, citing a "seasonality analysis" that the agency has been working on about the virus.
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Officials warn it's 'a matter of time' before highly contagious virus spreads through the UK
Health officials have warned that a highly contagious virus will inevitably return to the UK if the government does not act quickly to stop it. Foot-and-mouth disease, an infectious virus that causes blisters to form inside the mouths and under the hooves of animals, was eradicated from the UK in 2007. The painful condition can cause lameness and problems feeding in animals. It is not transmissible to humans, but any products of animal origin—such as meat and dairy—could potentially be contaminated. Cases have been reported of people becoming infected with the condition after drinking raw milk from contaminated cows, although it is thought to be incredibly rare. The warning comes as outbreaks of the disease have been reported across Germany, Hungary and Slovakia, prompting border closures and the culling of thousands of animals. In the current outbreak, the virus was first detected on a Hungarian cattle farm in early March. Within two weeks, it had spread to three farms in neighbouring Slovakia - marking the first outbreak in both countries for more than 50 years. Now, a councillor responsible for environment at the Port of Dover has said the authority is 'barely scratching the surface' when it comes to suitable checks at the Kent port. Jamie Pout, of Dover District Council, added that it was 'a matter of time' until foot-and-mouth disease or African swine fever arrived in the country. The UK suffered major outbreaks of the disease in 2001 and 2007, leading to millions of pigs, cattle and sheep being slaughtered across the country and costing both the public and private sector billions. The disease can have a devastating financial and emotional impact on affected farmers, who face production losses like reduced milk yields and culling their livestock. But it can also lead to wider economic impacts with the loss of access to foreign markets for animals, meat and milk for affected countries. All commercial imports of livestock—such as cattle, pigs, sheep and deer, as well as meat and dairy products from the affected countries —are currently banned from entering the UK. Health certificates, which approve import requirements for animals, fresh meat and animal products, are also no longer being issued to those susceptible to the disease. And in April, the British Government placed a ban on 'bringing items like sandwiches, cheese, cured meats, raw meats or milk into Great Britain'. Britons must refrain from bringing dairy products from certain animals back to the country if they are returning from the EU, EFTA States, the Faroe Islands or Greenland. But Labour MP Josh Newbury, who sits on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee (EFRA), said last week that he saw health inspections at the port being done under 'rusty canopies, with nesting pigeons [in buildings] that had no walls'. Facilities had 'no ability to wash down' and lacked personal protection equipment other than gloves, he added. The government lifted restrictions on livestock from Germany last week, declaring the country disease free. A case of foot-and-mouth disease was detected near Berlin in January—the first in Germany for over three decades—prompting swift bans and culling. But after review, the UK health authorities say they're now satisfied that Germany has contained the outbreak. In response to allegations from the border, the government has said it will do 'whatever it takes' to protect British farmers from disease. It added it had significantly increased seizures of illegal meat products, restricted animal products from EU countries with outbreaks and banned personal meat and dairy imports for EU travellers. It also said it was investing more than £200 million in the UK's main research and laboratory testing facilities at Weybridge to bolster protection against animal disease.
Bloomberg
16-05-2025
- Health
- Bloomberg
US Measles Cases Grow 2.3% in a Week as Outbreak Appears to Slow
The US reported 23 new confirmed measles cases on Friday, a 2.3% increase from the week prior as the spread of the highly contagious virus appears to be slowing. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the US now has tallied 1,024 infections in 30 states since the start of the year. This week's increase was below the 7% gain on May 9 and the 6% added May 2.
NHK
15-05-2025
- Health
- NHK
Scientists examine wild bats in Vietnam to prepare for future pandemic
A team from the University of Tokyo has begun a survey of wild bats in Vietnam to look for a virus with the potential to cause another pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic is thought to have been caused by a virus that jumped from a wild animal to humans. Health experts have warned that another previously unknown virus could spread from wild animals to humans. A research team at the University of Tokyo's Institute of Medical Science plans to take samples in Southeast Asia, including Thailand and Malaysia. On Monday, the group started work in a cave in the northern Vietnamese province of Lao Cai, targeting a particular species of wild bat known to host COVID-19 and other viruses. The survey is being conducted with Japan's Nagasaki University and the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology. Samples taken from the bats are being analyzed at a laboratory in Vietnam to see what kinds of pathogen they contain and whether any of them may be infectious to humans. The team hopes the data could be used to develop vaccines or treatments. Professor Sato Kei, the head of the project team, says identifying and analyzing previously unknown high-risk viruses from wild animals will go a long way toward preparing for a future pandemic.
