It may come as a bit of a surprise to learn that bacteria have an immune system - in their case to fight off invasive viruses called phages. And like any immune system - from single-celled to human - the first challenge of ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 13, 2015
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Humans have fewer remnants of viral DNA in their genes compared to other mammals, a new study has found. This decrease could be because of reduced exposure to blood-borne viruses as humans evolved to use tools rather than ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 2, 2015
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In a contribution to an extraordinary international scientific collaboration the University of Sydney found that genomic 'fossils' of past viral infections are up to thirteen times less common in birds than mammals.
Plants & Animals
Dec 12, 2014
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A hinge in the RNA genome of the virus that causes hepatitis C works like a switch that can be flipped to prevent it from replicating in infected cells. Scientists have discovered that this shape is shared by several other ...
Biochemistry
Oct 27, 2014
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Scientists at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) have proposed a set of standards aimed at developing a common "language" among investigators working to sequence viral genomes and characterize ...
Biotechnology
Jun 25, 2014
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Symmetry is ubiquitous in the natural world. It occurs in gemstones and snowflakes and even in biology, an area typically associated with complexity and diversity. There are striking examples: the shapes of virus particles, ...
Condensed Matter
Apr 10, 2014
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(Phys.org) —Retroviruses go to a lot of trouble to replicate themselves in our cells and further their infectious cycle. The human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1), the virus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 18, 2014
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Disease is one of the most challenging issues facing the Norwegian fish farming industry today. Infectious diseases caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites impair fish welfare, lead to profit losses and can potentially also ...
Ecology
Sep 12, 2013
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MIT researchers have shown that they can turn genes on or off inside yeast and human cells by controlling when DNA is copied into messenger RNA—an advance that could allow scientists to better understand the function of ...
Biotechnology
Sep 3, 2013
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A new study by Anna Maria Niewiadomska and Robert Gifford, of The Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, New York, reveals that reticuloendotheliosis viruses (REVs), which originated in mammals, spread to birds as a result of ...
Cell & Microbiology
Aug 27, 2013
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