In a recent study in Nature, scientists demonstrated how the influenza virus hijacks host cell RNA to proliferate within the human body. The research identified a specific mechanism common across all influenza strains, providing a new drug target with the potential to treat any influenza infection. In the paper, the investigators used the Influenza A,
Research from geneticists at Trinity College Dublin, recently published in Nature Communications, has identified a short list of genes implicated in many neurodevelopmental disorders and diseases, including autism, schizophrenia, ADHD and epilepsy. The study focused on regions of the genome called ‘copy number variants’ (CNVs). Common in humans, CNVs are areas of DNA that are
Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by Plasmodium parasites. Anopheles mosquitos act as vectors for the disease, and Plasmodium parasites are transmitted through the bites of infected female mosquitos. Malaria transmission is most common in regions where Anopheles mosquitos are prevalent, such as in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. In 2015, 214 million worldwide cases
Bacteria gain resistance to antibiotics via mutation events in their genome. A recent study published in Nature Communications sheds new light on a gene that decreases mutation rates in Mycobacterium smegmatis, a model for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. M. tuberculosis is a highly infectious microbe that is the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB). According to the Centers