Virology
Venezuela is still polio-free
By Vincent Racaniello | | Basic virology, Information
In early June it was widely reported that the first case of poliomyelitis in 30 years had been identified in Venezuela (see this Tech Times report as an example). Fortunately these reports were incorrect, and Venezuela remains free of polio. Let€™s unpack exactly what happened.
TWiV 498: Salivating at ASM Microbe
By Vincent Racaniello | | This Week in Virology
Vincent, Kathy and Rich travel to ASM Microbe 2018 in Atlanta where they speak with Stacy Horner and Ken Stapleford about their careers and their research. <span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;” class=”mce_SELRES_start”></span><span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;” class=”mce_SELRES_start”></span>&lt;span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: …
A Mouse Model System for Zika Virus Infection
By Gertrud U. Rey | | Basic virology, Gertrud Rey, Information
By Gertrud U. Rey Zika virus (ZIKV) infection causes microcephaly in newborns and is causally associated with Guillian-Barré syndrome in adults. To date, there are no drugs available to prevent or treat ZIKV infection. ZIKV vaccine research is challenging because adult immunocompetent mice are resistant to ZIKV infection and disease.
TWiV 497: Europic 2018
By Vincent Racaniello | | This Week in Virology
At Europic 2018, a meeting on picornaviruses in the Netherlands, Vincent speaks with Sasha Gorbalenya, Jim Hogle, Ann Palmenberg and Frank van Kuppeveld about their careers and their research. <span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;” class=”mce_SELRES_start”></span><span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;” class=”mce_SELRES_start”></span>&lt;span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; …
Blocking rhinovirus infection by inhibiting a cell enzyme
By Vincent Racaniello | | Basic virology, Information
The common cold is an infection of the upper respiratory tract that may be caused by many different viruses, but most frequently by rhinoviruses. A compound that inhibits a cell enzyme and blocks rhinovirus replication has the potential to be developed into an antiviral drug (link to paper).
TWiV 496: Vaccines work, whether or not you believe in them
By Vincent Racaniello | | This Week in Virology
Vincent and Rich recorded this episode at Vaccines in the 21st Century, a meeting held at the University of California, Irvine, where they spoke with Stacy Schultz-Cherry, Douglas Diekema, and Andrew Noymer about vaccine facts and fiction. <span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;” class=”mce_SELRES_start”></span><span data-mce-type=”bookmark” style=”display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; …
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David Tuller
Trial By Error: Claims Built on Fraudulent Trials Should Be Ignored
By David Tuller, DrPH When researchers cite fraudulent studies in support of their claims, it is best not to take anything they write at face value. That is certainly the case with a recent paper titled “Persistent physical symptoms not explained by structural abnormalities or disease processes: a primary care approach to promote recovery,” published …
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Trial By Error: Is Professor Crawley Retired from Bristol, or Isn’t She?
By David Tuller, DrPH Professor Esther Crawley, the methodologically and ethically challenged pediatrician and former grant queen at the University of Bristol, retired from medical practice and, apparently, from academia at some point in the recent past. So why does her name still appear on websites as if she were an active participant in research …
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Trial By Error: Norway Disability Case Exposes Flaws in Draft Guideline for “Long-Term Fatigue–including ME/CFS”
By David Tuller, DrPH A recent disability case in Norway provides a good example of why the draft of a new guideline for “long-term fatigue—including ME/CFS” is so problematic. As I reported last week, the draft guideline, produced by the Norwegian Directorate of Health*, generally favors the biopsychosocial approach. The guideline offers few specifics about …
Trial By Error: Why is Professor Crawley Still on the COFFI Steering Committee?
By David Tuller, DrPH Several years ago, the leaders of the biopsychosocial ideological brigades decided to create the Collaborative On Fatigue and related symptoms Following Infection, or COFFI. According to its website, COFFI’s “overarching aim” is “to investigate factors influencing the development of long-term symptoms (in particular fatigue) following certain infectious diseases.” Akershus University Hospital …
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Trial By Error: Aussie GPs Still Push Graded Exercise Therapy
By David Tuller, DrPH When I was in Australia for the first time in 2018, it was clear that the country’s general practitioners were fervent supporters of the biopsychosocial ideology when it came to ME/CFS. That hasn’t changed, according to a recent exchange of views published in the Australian Journal of General Practice. The debate …
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Trial By Error: Dutch Agency Funds CBT Training Program Based on Flawed Long COVID Trial
By David Tuller, DrPH Here is how bullshit replicates itself in today’s medical world: Conduct a flawed trial, declare success despite serious questions, then develop health policy based on these hyped-up claims. ZonMW, a major Dutch healthcare funding agency, is supporting a new program led by Professor Hans Knoop, a longtime supporter of the fraudulent …
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