The circulation of a new strain of the H5N1 avian flu virus from China and Vietnam has prompted calls from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN for health authorities to be ready for a possible…
By infecting mosquitoes with bacteria from flies that commonly live in kitchen fruit bowls, researchers have stopped the…
Professor Scott O'Neill inspects the first Wolbachia Aedes aegypti mosquitoes released in North Queensland. In this trial, Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes, which don’t pass dengue fever onto humans, went on to breed with local populations and begat new generations of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes.
Photo: Eliminate Dengue program
World-first field trials of a new technique to stop mosquitoes passing the dangerous and painful dengue virus onto humans have been declared a success, with plans afoot to roll out the method in dengue-plagued…
Legionella’s is rare but can have devastating effects on those with compromised immune systems.
Flickr/Alex R
Every few weeks or months we see another outbreak of the potentially deadly legionella bacteria. Today, it’s a regional South Australian hospital, where 36 aged residents have been exposed to a contaminated…
When you’re sick with a cold, you’re likely to be told to rest and drink plenty of fluids – water, juice, tea and the old favourite, chicken soup. This has been the prevailing advice for generations and…
A dog in Queensland has tested positive to Hendra virus, which has killed four of the seven people ever known to be infected.
AAP
In a world first, a dog has tested positive to the lethal Hendra virus, prompting the CSIRO to call for fresh research into the risk it could spread from canines to humans. Hendra virus, which is usually…
It’s wise to rug up outdoors but it won’t stop you getting a cold.
Flickr/foshydog
Colds are more common in the cold winter months. But does the weather have anything to do with why we get sick? These days, we use other terms such as “virus” or “the flu” to describe our sniffles because…
The number of people suffering from influenza in Australia this year has soared compared to recorded numbers from previous years, with nearly 8,000 cases so far compared to about 2,000 last year. We don’t…
Preventing infection with the Hendra virus remains the most effective measure against the virus.
AAP
Queensland authorities came under attack yesterday for being unprepared for a Hendra virus outbreak after it was found that they’d only stocked 15 doses of virus antibodies. But the case for stocking up…
Vaccines are history’s best public health tools but developing countries give low priority to health in their budgets.
AAP
The Lancet, one of most prestigious medical journals in the world recently published a series of five papers on “the new decade of vaccines”. These were followed by a sixth paper – A call to action for…
As Queensland authorities confirm the third outbreak of Hendra virus within a week, researchers are moving to fast track a horse vaccination for the deadly virus, which can spread from horses to humans…
For only the second time in history, scientists have eliminated a disease from the face of the Earth, saving billions of dollars and boosting food security in the process. Rinderpest, a deadly cattle disease…
Animals aren’t to blame – the bacteria came from humans.
The genomes of the recent German E. coli outbreak have revealed crucial insights into the origins of this deadly strain. The bacteria was found in German bean sprouts but it didn’t originate from the gut…
Queensland authorities on Wedneday confirmed that a horse had died of Hendra virus on a farm south of Brisbane. The virus, which can spread from horses to humans, has killed four of the seven people ever infected.
AAP
Queensland authorities have confirmed a horse on a farm south of Brisbane has died of Hendra virus, which can spread from horses to humans and has killed four of the seven people ever known to have been…
A genome mapping project revealed that Tasmanian devils are genetically vulnerable to disease but found that a devil from the island’s north west was initally able to fight the deadly face tumour disease decimating the population.
Flickr, Scott Savage
A Tasmanian devil genome mapping project by U.S. researchers has revealed how a tiny gene pool helped spread a deadly facial tumour disease throughout the population but also uncovered the first ever devil…
Honorary Professor Faculty of Health and Medical Science, Univeristy of Sydney; Senior Researcher Sydney Institue for Infectious Disease, University of Sydney., University of Sydney