Are genetically-modified organisms now safer?
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have amazing potential for improving lives, from providing nutrients to undernourished populations to cleaning up pollutants to synthesizing drugs on large scales. Yet escape of GMOs into the environment could upset nature’s balance, just as invasive species can cause extinctions of native species. Recently, researchers have effectively encoded safety locks into the genomes of these organisms to prevent their proliferation into … Continue reading Are genetically-modified organisms now safer?
HIV Prevention Drug Shows Promise
As HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, continues to spread globally, there is increased demand for a drug that can effectively prevent HIV infection. Even more appealing is a drug that could guard against HIV over the long term, and not require a daily dose. Thanks to an experimental drug known as GSK744, hope may be on the horizon. Injection of GSK744 was found to … Continue reading HIV Prevention Drug Shows Promise
Choreographing a Dynamic DNA Dance
The sequence of DNA bases found within our chromosomes serves as the instruction manual of life. Prior to cell division, this genetic information is accurately copied by a complex of different enzymes known collectively as the replisome. An essential component of this machinery is the DNA polymerase, which acts as the DNA copying enzyme. DNA bases that have been chemically damaged block the progression of … Continue reading Choreographing a Dynamic DNA Dance
Neglected Tropical Diseases: Progress and Challenges for the Post-2015 Development Era
Health equity is based on the idea that all lives, anywhere in the world, have equal value. Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) are a group of 18 infectious diseases – caused by parasites, viruses, or bacteria – that disproportionately affect the poor and cause significant health and financial burdens. NTDs are endemic – meaning that they regularly infect humans – in 149 countries, with over 1 … Continue reading Neglected Tropical Diseases: Progress and Challenges for the Post-2015 Development Era
Chikungunya Virus on the Move
Chikungunya virus is a serious global threat for both the sheer number of individuals it infects, as well as the intensity and duration of the suffering it causes in each patient. The small virus is transmitted to humans by the simple bite of a mosquito, yet can cause months of debilitating joint pain. Since the 1950s, Chikungunya has spread throughout Africa and Asia, and in … Continue reading Chikungunya Virus on the Move
Plagues of the Past
Many diseases have affected the outcomes of battles or the political leanings of a country, but few have had consequences on society that continue to be felt in the present age. The plague is one such disease and its most famous pandemic – the Black Death – has changed the history, culture, and science of Western society. In July 2014, Chinese officials shut down entire … Continue reading Plagues of the Past
Regulatory Approval of Treatment for Ebola Virus: A U.S. and European Perspective
The spread of Ebola virus is unsettling to many living in the United States, yet to date the U.S. FDA and the EMA (the FDA’s European counterpart) have not approved any medicines or vaccines that could treat a potential global outbreak. In October, both agencies released guidelines for companies that hope to get accelerated approval for potential Ebola treatments and if warranted, mechanisms for patients … Continue reading Regulatory Approval of Treatment for Ebola Virus: A U.S. and European Perspective
Understanding Ebola Fears & Viral Mutations
Ebola hysteria dominated popular news in 2014. However, since the outbreak began to draw attention in March earlier this year, only two people have been infected in the United States. Did this really warrant non-stop media coverage? Much of this attention may have been attributed in part to the worry that Ebola may “mutate to become airborne,” but is this even something we need to … Continue reading Understanding Ebola Fears & Viral Mutations
Challenges of Care in Resource-Poor Environments: Dengue Fever
Diseases transmitted by arthropods (e.g. mosquitoes and ticks) are very common in areas with warmer climates such as Central and South America, Africa and Asia. These diseases, which include malaria, dengue fever, and Chikungunya, are classified as endemic, with outbreaks occurring seasonally, yearly or every few years. In these areas, medical resources are often scarce and/or easily overwhelmed, leading to challenges in the diagnosis and … Continue reading Challenges of Care in Resource-Poor Environments: Dengue Fever
An Introduction to Infectious Disease
How are other living organisms threatening to human beings? We could be mauled by bears, poisoned by mushrooms, or stung by wasps. However, what if that organism was small—microscopically small? These tiny organisms can sometimes make us sick with infectious diseases and, when they do, we call them pathogens. This article explores what these pathogens are, where they come from, how we recover from infections, … Continue reading An Introduction to Infectious Disease