All posts tagged: Virus

Sabalenka Avoids Madrid Open Virus Scare and Osaka Upset in Her Title Defense

Sabalenka Avoids Madrid Open Virus Scare and Osaka Upset in Her Title Defense

Published by Sam Flores

MADRID (AP) — Tennis players are facing an unknown opponent at the Madrid Open. A stomach virus or food poisoning has affected Coco Gauff, Marin Cilic and a few others, causing some concern. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoided an upset by Naomi Osaka on the court on Monday and said she’s trying to avoid illness by sticking to a simple diet of chicken breast, rice and salad. The rumor among the players was bad shrimp tacos were to blame. Sabalenka knocked on wood and said, “So far, so good. I heard that I have to avoid those tacos (laughing). I stick to the same food, same meal that I’ve been having since the very beginning of the tournament.” Sabalenka said she was spending as little time as possible on site at the Caja Magica tennis complex. “I try not to stay for too long,” she said. “Extra vitamin C, I guess, extra IM8, and I’m good to go, hopefully.” Gauff vomited on the court on her way to a victory over Sorana Cirstea on …

Huge study reveals how Epstein-Barr virus may cause multiple sclerosis

Huge study reveals how Epstein-Barr virus may cause multiple sclerosis

Published by skeptic

Most people catch the Epstein-Barr virus, but only a small proportion become seriously ill Kateryna Kon/Shutterstock Evidence is mounting that the Epstein-Barr virus contributes to multiple sclerosis, and we’re starting to understand how. A study of more than 600,000 people has revealed that the virus hijacks our immune cells, disrupting the normal functioning of the immune system, and activates genes that increase the risk of multiple sclerosis. The virus – which most people catch at some point in their lives, but few develop complications from – seems to particularly affect a type of immune cell called B-cells, which produce antibodies against infections. “I think it’s very clear that this virus lives in B-cells,” says Kate Attfield at the University of Oxford, who wasn’t involved in the study. “It’s manipulating B-cells to its own advantage.” Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune condition, in which the body’s immune system goes rogue and attacks healthy tissues. It involves other types of immune cells, called T-cells, entering the brain and causing widespread damage, especially to the fatty substance that …

After fighting malware for decades, this cybersecurity veteran is now hacking drones

After fighting malware for decades, this cybersecurity veteran is now hacking drones

Published by skeptic

Mikko Hyppönen is pacing back and forth on the stage, with his trademark dark blonde ponytail resting on an impeccable teal suit. A seasoned speaker, he is trying to make an important point to a room full of fellow hackers and security researchers at one of the industry’s global annual meet-ups. “I often call this ‘cybersecurity Tetris’,” he tells the audience with a serious face, reeling off the rules of the classic video game. When you complete a whole line of bricks, the row vanishes, leaving the rest of the bricks to fall into a new line. “So your successes disappear, while your failures pile up,” he tells the audience during his keynote at Black Hat in Las Vegas in 2025. “The challenge we face as cybersecurity people is that our work is invisible… when you do your job perfectly, the end result is that nothing happens.” Hyppönen’s work, however, has certainly not been invisible. As one of the industry’s longest serving cybersecurity figures, he has spent more than 35 years fighting malware. When he …

Virus from marine animals is causing weird eye problems in people

Virus from marine animals is causing weird eye problems in people

Published by skeptic

Dozens of people with glaucoma-like symptoms have tested positive for a virus that we thought affected only marine life Virginie Vaes/Getty Images A virus that ordinarily affects marine animals has caused glaucoma-like symptoms and even irreversible vision loss in a small but growing group of people in China. This is the first known time that a virus that originates from aquatic animals has infected people and caused ill health. The cases are thought to have developed after eating raw seafood and handling aquatic animals, but there are also signs of human-to-human transmission. “That this virus can infect invertebrates, fish and mammals is pretty remarkable,” says Edward Holmes at the University of Sydney, Australia. “I can’t think of a virus with such a broad host range.” Cases of a condition called persistent ocular hypertension viral anterior uveitis (POH-VAU) have been increasing in China, with no clear cause. It is defined as inflammation and high pressure within the eye, similar to glaucoma, which damages the optic nerve and can cause vision loss. To understand why cases are …

CDC: Little-Known Virus With No Vaccine Spreading In US

CDC: Little-Known Virus With No Vaccine Spreading In US

Published by Jenni Sidey

Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is spreading in the United States, including in California and the Great Lakes region, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A person receives a vaccine in Los Angeles in a file photograph. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images Symptoms include cough, fever, and nasal congestion, and, unlike better-known respiratory viruses, HMPV does not have a vaccine or known treatments, the CDC stated. “There’s no specific treatment that’s generally recommended,” Dr. Dean Blumberg, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at the University of California–Davis Children’s Hospital, said in a video released by the school. “For the youngest children, using a bulb syringe to clear the congestion can be useful. Sometimes a humidifier or vaporizer may be useful, especially if they have something like croup as a complication of infection and trying to make sure that they don’t get dehydrated and get enough fluids.” Hospitalized patients typically receive supportive care, or oxygen if they need it, and intravenous fluids to prevent or …

The Shingles Virus May Be Aging You More Quickly

The Shingles Virus May Be Aging You More Quickly

Published by skeptic

In 2010, a university lecturer from Colorado started experiencing worrying signs of cognitive decline. The lecturer—a 63-year-old viral immunologist whose identity has been kept anonymous—suffered alarming symptoms, including impaired memory, waning concentration, and difficulty reading. While giving lectures to students, he found he had difficulty focusing and was often unable to finish sentences without pausing. But medical tests, including a brain biopsy, failed to get to the source of the problem, and over the next four years, his symptoms continued to progress. His decline would have likely continued unabated had he not heard about a case of encephalitis—serious brain inflammation caused by a reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus, most commonly associated with childhood chickenpox and, later in life, shingles. Remembering that his own symptoms had been preceded by a brief case of shingles, subsequent tests confirmed the patient had indeed experienced a reactivation of varicella-zoster. And so he decided to treat the problem with a course of acyclovir, an antiviral drug commonly prescribed to shingles patients. To his colleagues’ amazement, the Colorado lecturer’s symptoms quickly …

Discover Ushikuvirus, a giant DNA virus that could reshape cellular evolution

Discover Ushikuvirus, a giant DNA virus that could reshape cellular evolution

Published by Jenni Sidey

The story of life’s beginnings gets stranger when you look closely at viruses. These tiny entities seem to sit at the edge of biology. They carry genetic material, but they cannot make proteins on their own. That single limitation keeps them from acting like independent life. Still, viruses have likely been around since the first cells appeared. That long history has kept one question alive for decades. Where did viruses come from, and how did they shape the living world? A new discovery from researchers in Japan adds a fresh clue. The team reports a newly identified giant DNA virus that infects amoebae. They named it ushikuvirus, after Lake Ushiku in Japan’s Ibaraki Prefecture, where they isolated it. The finding matters because this virus behaves in ways that connect two different viral strategies. It also adds weight to a provocative idea about evolution. That hypothesis suggests viruses may have helped create one of the defining parts of complex cells, the nucleus. Morphological features of ushikuvirus particles and CPE of infected cells. (CREDIT: Journal of Virology) …

Singapore to ease Nipah virus measures, stop airport temperature screening as India outbreak stabilises

Singapore to ease Nipah virus measures, stop airport temperature screening as India outbreak stabilises

Published by Sam Flores

SINGAPORE: Singapore will cease Nipah virus temperature screenings at the airport and seaports from Monday (Feb 23), progressively easing some measures as the outbreak in India stabilises. No cases of the Nipah virus have been reported in Singapore in connection with the outbreak in West Bengal or the case in Bangladesh, the Communicable Diseases Agency (CDA) said on Friday.  “The Nipah virus situation in West Bengal has stabilised, with no new cases reported. No human-to-human Nipah virus transmission has been detected in Bangladesh,” CDA said, adding that it will remain vigilant against the virus even as Singapore returns to baseline surveillance levels. Authorities will also stop disseminating Nipah virus health advisories for travellers at Singapore’s points of entry. Measures are being eased less than a month after heightened measures were announced, including temperature screening for travellers arriving on flights from areas where Nipah virus outbreaks have been reported. To maintain surveillance levels, however, the virus will continue to be covered by the SG Arrival health declarations and the Maritime Declaration of Health. The Ministry of …