Chinese researcher, Jainkui He claims to have created the world’s first genome-edited twins. Such action would pose unknown risks to the lives of these children and to humanity as a whole.
X-ray of the lungs in a 5-year-old child who has pneumonia.
Shutterstock
Nicole Wolter, National Institute for Communicable Diseases
There have been many advances made in the prevention and treatment of pneumonia, but providing for people’s basic needs can help reduce the disease burden.
Hand washing is an effective way to help prevent the spread of bacteria.
rawpixel/unsplash
Millions of bacteria live on our skin without making us sick. It’s when they manage to get through that they can be dangerous – particularly if they’re resistant to antibiotics.
Electron microscopy image of 1918 influenza virus particles near a cell.
NIAID
International outbreaks of the almost-forgotten disease diphtheria and pockets of low immunisation coverage put Australians at risk of catching the disease.
Symptoms of the flu generally develop more quickly and are more severe than the common cold.
By txking/Shutterstock
Frédéric Keck, Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS)
A scientific question fascinates experts : under which conditions can bird flu virus be transmitted to humans by aerial particles, and what will be the consequences for those who aren’t immune?
Many people think green snot means you are really sick, or that you need antibiotics. Not true. Green snot is actually a sign that our immune system is working and that we are getting better.
A microscopy image of Aspergillus fumigatus fungus, one of the biggest killers of patients with weak immune systems.
Mark Stappers/Kevin Mackenzie
Fungi perform a vital role in the biological cycle, but pose an increasing danger to human health – invasive fungal infections kill three times more people than malaria.
The tiny mosquito can be a big summer nuisance.
(Pexels)
The obesity epidemic, the flu epidemic, the opioid epidemic… in the 21st century, everything seems to be an “epidemic”. But what does the term actually mean?
Scabies led to the closure of migrant camps such as these in Calais, France, in 2014.
Pascal Rossignol/Reuters
Migrants face many health problems, from mental health issues to diseases. The latest threat is scabies.
In low-resource settings many patients cannot access the tests they need for accurate diagnosis, treatment and a chance of survival. Here, patients wait in the Edna Adan University Hospital in Somalia, 2010.
(Shutterstock)
Olivier Telle, Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS)
The spread of infectious diseases such as chikungunya is closely linked to urban mobility, yet small Indian cities could play a crucial role in the resilience process.
In Australia, cases of Buruli ulcer have been associated with coastal areas – like Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula.
Bernard Spragg. NZ/Flickr
The Victorian community is seeing a worsening epidemic of flesh-eating bacteria that causes Buruli ulcer. But how can we prevent this disease if we don’t know where it comes from and how it spreads?
A prisoner looks out a window on March 26, 2015, from Zhdanivskaya prison in Ukraine, were TB is rampant.
AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov
World TB Day will be observed March 24, with the good news that deaths from tuberculosis are declining. But a trend toward confining those with TB threatens to stall advances.
Shantytown near Lima, Peru.
Inspired By Maps/Shutterstock.com