Viruses, Infections & Disease, features and articles | Educational Science

Nov 6, 2013

HIV 'Invisibility Cloak' Allows Virus to Evade Immune System (Op-Ed)

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to LiveScience's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. HIV uses an “invisibility cloak” made up of a host body’s own cells, a team of researchers has found, in a discovery that represents a significant step forward in our...

Dec 19, 2013

HIV's Killer Tactics Revealed, New Therapy Approach Found

The reason people who are infected with HIV die is because their white blood cells die, leaving them unable to fight infections. Now, researchers show for the first time that this cell death is caused by cellular self-destruction, and is linked with inflammation. We found that depletion of [these cells]...

Feb 4, 2014

Cold-Weather Benefit: Shivering May Count As Exercise

Shivering triggers a response in muscles similar to that of exercise, new research suggests. The study, published today (Feb. 4) in the journal Cell Metabolism, found that the muscles of shivering people triggers the release of a hormone that activates brown fat, a type of fat that burns energy to...

Mar 6, 2014

Experimental Device Could Prevent HIV & Pregnancy in Women

An experimental device could protect women from HIV and herpes while also preventing pregnancy, studies in animals suggest. The device, a flexible plastic ring that is inserted into the vagina, delivers three months of both an antiretroviral drug and a contraceptive drug. So far, the ring has been tested only...

Mar 11, 2014

Rare Double Infection: Lupus Patient Makes Antibodies to Fight HIV

One woman's uncommon ability to fight her HIV infection may provide new insights for developing a vaccine that triggers a special immune response against the viral disease, researchers said. Scientists studied a 33-year old woman who had a rare combination of lupus, an autoimmune disease in which an overactive immune...

Mar 13, 2014

Rare Case of Female-to-Female HIV Transmission Reported

A 46-year-old woman in Texas likely acquired HIV from her female partner in what health officials say is a rare case of female-to-female transmission of the virus. The two women had been in a monogamous sexual relationship for six months. One was HIV-positive and had not taken medication for the...

May 7, 2014

Soy Sauce Yields Potential HIV Drug

In their quest for new medications, researchers have discovered drugs in some unusual places. Penicillin, for instance, was originally derived from a fungus called Penicillium, and quinine, a drug used to treat malaria, can be found in the bark of Cinchona trees. Now, in a surprising discovery, researchers from the...

Jul 10, 2014

HIV Returns in 'Cured' Mississippi Baby

A Mississippi child who was born with HIV but had remained free of the virus for more than two years after early treatment now has detectable levels of the virus, according to the researchers involved in the case. The child, known as the Mississippi baby, was born to a HIV-positive...

Jul 20, 2014

HIV Diagnoses Drop in US Overall, But Increase in Young Gay Men

The number of people diagnosed with HIV each year in the United States has declined over the last decade overall, but there have been increases in diagnoses among certain groups, especially young gay men, according to a new study. Researchers analyzed data on HIV diagnoses in the United States among...

Jul 21, 2014

Malaysia Airlines Disaster Could Be Setback for AIDS Research

The HIV/AIDS research community expressed sadness today over the loss of prominent AIDS researchers and activists who were aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, saying that the tragedy could also be a setback for research in the field. The flight, which was carrying nearly 300 passengers from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur,...

Jul 26, 2014

Getting Ahead of HIV (Op-Ed)

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. When AIDS first emerged in the early 1980s, HIV infection was a death sentence. But a global effort has ensured this is no longer the case for a growing...

Jul 29, 2014

Flight MH17 Victims Left Lasting Contributions to AIDS Advocacy

As families around the world mourn those lost in the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 disaster, a group dedicated to saving lives mourns its own: At least six public health AIDS researchers and advocates died in the flight shot down over Ukraine on July 17. These victims were on their way...

Aug 27, 2014

How HIV Co-Opts Gut Bacteria (Op-Ed)

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. One of the most effective methods used by HIV to evade control is to hide from the immune system. We’re getting to know much more about how the virus...

Sep 25, 2014

Only 1 Person Has Been Cured of HIV: New Study Suggests Why

To this date, only one person is thought to have been cured of HIV — the Berlin patient Timothy Ray Brown. But no one is exactly sure which aspect of Brown's treatment may have cured him. Now a new experiment on monkeys provides more evidence that a rare genetic mutation...

Nov 25, 2014

Shared Manicure Tools Linked to Rare HIV Infection

A 22-year-old woman in Brazil who tested positive for HIV likely contracted the virus through the use of manicure instruments that she had shared with an HIV-infected cousin, according to a new report of her case. The woman was diagnosed with HIV in 2013 when she donated blood. Doctors tried...