Reinvigorating exhausted T cells in cancer and chronic viral infections cells. However, in chronic viral infection and cancer, the killer cells often lapse into “exhausted” CD8+ T cells that no longer can stem disease
Peer-Reviewed Publication
This month, we’re focusing on infectious diseases, a topic that affects lives and communities around the world. Here, you’ll find the latest research news, insights, and discoveries shaping how infectious diseases are being studied, prevented, and treated globally.
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 19-Dec-2025 04:11 ET (19-Dec-2025 09:11 GMT/UTC)
In chronic viral infection and cancer, CD8+ T killer cells often lapse into “exhausted cells” that no longer can stem disease. Researchers show that a transcriptional repressor called Gfi1, or growth factor independent-1, is a key regulator of the subset formation of exhausted CD8+ T cells and may offer a key to reducing exhaustion.
They should be in a hospital bed, getting care to help them recover from a medical emergency. But instead, more and more Americans sick enough to require hospitalization find themselves spending hours or even days in emergency departments until a bed opens up for them, a new study shows.
A surprising new drug combo—including a compound found in chocolate—has outperformed Tamiflu in fighting the flu, according to a study published in PNAS. The mix of Theobromine and Arainosine proved far more effective against a range of flu strains, including drug-resistant versions of bird and swine flu. By targeting a key viral weakness, this breakthrough could lead to stronger, longer-lasting treatments—not just for the flu, but potentially for other viruses as well.
Transmission dynamics are complicated by mosquitoes' ability to carry multiple viruses simultaneously. For complex infections that may involve multiple viruses and pathogens, metagenomics next-generation sequencing (mNGS) technology is a more comprehensive approach. It offers in-depth reports for rapid and accurate detection.
A study of migrants in Italy has shown how statistical modelling can help improve the identification of Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) infections.
Research in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases focussed on soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections using a case study of migrants in Italy’s Campania region.
STH is a type of worm infection caused by different species of roundworms with three types caused by A. lumbricoides, hookworms, and T. trichiura.
The data included 3,830 migrants from 64 countries, with over 87% male and with a median age of 27.