On episode #345 of the science show This Week in Virology, the TWiVonauts review how the weather affects West Nile virus disease in the US, benefit of B cell depletion for ME/CFS patients, and an autoimmune reaction induced by influenza virus vaccine that leads to narcolepsy. You can find TWiV #345 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
Patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) showed clinical improvement after extended treatment with the anti-B-cell monoclonal antibody rituximab. This result suggests that in a subset of patients, ME/CFS might be an autoimmune disease. Rituximab is a monoclonal antibody against a protein on the surface of B cells known as CD20. When the antibody is given to …
Episode #344 of the science show This Week in Virology was recorded at the Glasgow Science Festival microTALKS, where Vincent spoke with Ruth, Glen, and Esther about their research on viruses and Hodgkin lymphoma, adenovirus structure and entry into cells, and interactions between arthropod borne viruses and their hosts. You can find TWiV #344 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
Back in 2013 I built a Wall of Polio in my laboratory – a large stack of six-well cell culture plates that have been used to measure the concentration of polioviruses in various samples by plaque assay. It became a focal point of the lab at which many guests came to have their photographs taken. Sadly, the …
On episode #343 of the science show This Week in Virology, the TWiVerinoes discuss the potential for prion spread by plants, global circulation patterns of influenza virus, and the roles of Argonautes and a viral protein in RNA silencing in plants. You can find TWiV #343 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.
Chronic wasting disease is a prion disease of cervids (deer, elk, moose) that is potentially a threat to human health. A role for environmental prion contamination in transmission is supported by the finding that plants can take up prions from the soil and transmit them to animals. A concern is that prions of chronic wasting …
