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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
April 17, 2025Sabrina Absalon, PhD's research uncovers the essential role of PfAnchor in apicoplast division, opening avenues for targeted antimalarial therapies. A newly characterized protein, dubbed PfAnchor, is essential for the division and inheritance of a vital organelle in Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite. The discovery, published as a preprint on bioRxiv, could open the door to novel antimalarial strategies targeting parasite-specific processes.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) relies on a unique DNA structure called cccDNA to initiate infection. This viral DNA forms a minichromosome by associating with host histone proteins, but the role of this structure in regulating viral gene expression has been unclear.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
Today, April 16, 2025, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met to review and vote on vaccine recommendations. The discussions covered meningococcal vaccines, the RSV vaccine for adults, and the chikungunya vaccine for travelers and at-risk individuals. Meningococcal VaccineThe ACIP recommends that GSK’s MenABCWY vaccine may be used when both MenACWY and MenB vaccines are indicated at the same visit.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
Research presented at this year’s ESCMID Global Congress 2025 highlights a steep and deadly rise in pediatric AMR cases, particularly in Southeast Asia and Africa, which together accounted for more than 1.4 million of the total deaths. Most of these fatalities were linked to the use of Watch and Reserve antibiotics, which are typically intended for limited use due to their high potential to drive resistance.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
As of April 2025, the CDC has reported 70 confirmed and probable human cases of H5N1 avian influenza since the outbreak began in 2024 in the United States. The majority of these cases have been linked to exposure through commercial agricultural settings, with 41 individuals exposed through infected dairy herds and 24 associated with poultry farms and culling operations.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
On April 1, 2025, the closure of the CDC's hepatitis laboratory significantly affected the United States' ability to manage hepatitis outbreaks and prevent further transmission of viral hepatitis. The lab, part of the National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and Tuberculosis Prevention, was essential for testing, surveillance, and monitoring hepatitis viruses, including hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV).
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
Longhorn Vaccines and Diagnostics has introduced a novel single-composite peptide vaccine that offers broad protection against human, avian, and swine influenza strains including pandemic variants such as H5N1. The unconjugated vaccine combines highly conserved epitopes from key influenza proteins, hemagglutinin (HA), neuraminidase (NA), and matrix proteins (M1, M2, M2e)—with the ALFQ adjuvant to stimulate a strong immune response.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
A new study out of North Carolina reveals that most patients tested for potentially serious tick-borne diseases like ehrlichiosis and spotted fever rickettsiosis are not completing the full two-step testing process necessary for a confirmed diagnosis, leaving significant gaps in public health surveillance and clinical care. Researchers analyzed more than 4,400 patient records from a major academic center in North Carolina between 2017 and 2020.
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1 week ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
Canine serologic testing data indicate a broader geographic distribution of coccidioidomycosis (Valley fever) in the United States than previously recognized, suggesting that current human surveillance may underestimate the true burden of the fungal disease. Researchers analyzed 834,899 serologic test results from dogs across the US between 2012 and 2022, using data from all known diagnostic laboratories performing anti-Coccidioides antibody testing in dogs.
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2 weeks ago | 
contagionlive.com | Sophia Abene
A phase 2, double-blind, randomized trial of nirmatrelvir-ritonavir for Long COVID published in The Lancet, showed no statistically significant improvements in health outcomes compared to placebo. The trial included 100 participants (66% female, 34% male) from 48 US states, all with persistent Long COVID symptoms, who were randomly assigned to either the nirmatrelvir-ritonavir (49 participants) or placebo-ritonavir (51 participants) group to assess efficacy, safety, and tolerability.
