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Researchers are developing an mRNA-based vaccine against the contagious H5N1 bird flu virus that is spreading rapidly among poultry and cattle and has already infected two humans in the United States.
Neanderthal remains from the Altai Mountains contain human viruses, a team of researchers has found, suggesting that infectious diseases may have been transmitted between anatomically modern humans and our closest (extinct) cousins.
The new strain of bird flu has infected more than 90 million chickens and has spread to dairy cows and even humans. Here's what you need to know about the "global pandemic for animals."
The deodorant of the future might be possible thanks to viruses that hunt down stink-making bacteria. Scientists in Japan believe they’ve discovered a chemical weapon sourced from bacteriophages that can target a species of bacteria known for contributing to body odor emitted by our armpits.
A Hong Kong man’s scrape with monkeys led to him contract a potentially deadly germ. This week, local health officials reported a case of B virus in a 37-year-old man—the first ever reported in the region. Human B virus infections are rare, and they can be life-threatening without urgent treatment. The man is…
A mosquito-borne disease best known for causing severe cranial deformities in babies may someday become humanity’s ally. Duke University scientists and others have created a weakened version of the Zika virus that could potentially be repurposed into a treatment for often fatal brain cancer. In lab experiments, their…
Our mouths and guts are teeming with mysterious somethings that are unknown to science, new research suggests. A team says they’ve discovered distinct virus-like structures hanging out among the bacteria that live in our bodies. The researchers have coined these structures “obelisks,” and they might further redefine…
DNA from ancient humans is providing some vital clues about the emergence of multiple sclerosis and other devastating neurodegenerative conditions. In a series of new research papers out this week, scientists detail evidence that many genetic variants linked to MS first began to spread globally about 5,000 years ago,…