Going off on an Arc Tangent
A capsid-like protein derived from an ancient retrotransposon family may help regulate learning and memory.
Basic virology
Test prudently
by Amy B. Rosenfeld I do not advocate testing for any person vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 unless they display severe symptoms or live with those who for whom vaccines are not yet approved. I understand that testing and isolation are mechanisms to break virus transmission chains and were used at the beginning of the pandemic to …
A Viral Heist
HSV-1 virions capture the cellular motor protein kinesin from initially infected epithelial cells and ferry it to subsequently infected neuronal cells to deliver their genome into the nucleus of those cells.
A controlled trial of face masks for COVID-19
It will be some time before a substantial fraction of the human population is immunized to prevent COVID-19. In the meantime, widespread use of face masks can have an impact on disease, a conclusion suggested by results of a trial carried out in Bangladesh. WHO would not recommend the use of face masks until June …
The Esperanza Patient
This post describes the case of a woman who appears to have been naturally cured of her HIV infection.
Pills for COVID-19
Multiple vaccines have been developed that have made substantial contributions to controlling the COVID-19 pandemic, but where are the antivirals? Only repurposed drugs have been used and not with much success. That situation seems about to change with the authorization of drugs that target the RNA polymerase (Molnupiravir) and a viral protease (Paxlovid). Molnupiravir is …