Recent News

By Category: Agents & Toxins

Anthrax bacteria play hide and seek

(EurekaAlert) An EPFL team discovers that, using exosomes, the lethal factor of the anthrax bacterium can travel undetected through the body for days. The bacterium responsible for anthrax develops a strategy reminiscent of the Trojan horse tale. Its pathogenic factor is able to penetrate inside a cell in such a way that it becomes completely Read More »

November 15, 2013
| Filed under Europe, North America, Agents & Toxins, Bioterrorism, and Research
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Researchers Keep Mum on Botulism Discovery

(ScientificAmerican) Scientists have discovered a new strain—the first in 40 years—of Clostridium botulinum, the bacterium that is ultimately responsible for causing botulism. And although they have reported their findings in a scientific journal, the investigators have taken the extraordinary step of withholding key details of the discovery. That’s because the toxins made by C. botulinum Read More »

October 23, 2013
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Biotechnology, and Research
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Flu virus wipes out immune system’s first responders to establish infection

(ScienceDaily) Revealing influenza’s truly insidious nature, Whitehead Institute scientists have discovered that the virus is able to infect its host by first killing off the cells of the immune system that are actually best equipped to neutralize the virus. Confronted with a harmful virus, the immune system works to generate cells capable of producing antibodies Read More »

October 21, 2013
| Filed under Asia/Pacific, Europe, North America, South America, Agents & Toxins, and Research
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Frankenskeeters: Scientists Using Genetically Altered Mosquitoes to Battle Disease

(RYOT) They’ve been called “suicide mosquitoes,” dead-end bugs and even Frankenskeeters. They’re gene-altered mosquitoes, and Panama is among a growing list of countries that are testing to see whether they have a place in the public health arsenal in the war against mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever. Dengue, which isn’t well-known outside tropical regions, Read More »

October 15, 2013
| Filed under North America, South America, Agents & Toxins, Biosafety, and Policy & Initiatives
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Bioterrorism Fear Led Scientists to Withhold Botulinum Toxin Info

(NationalJournal) Researchers have uncovered a new breed of Botulinum toxin, however, they are withholding certain information about the neurotoxin out of concern it could be misused by individuals seeking to develop a biological weapon, National Public Radio reported on Wednesday. Botulinum toxin is produced by the bacterium, Clostridium botulinum, which is present in soil all Read More »