The boy who can't go near pregnant women: Teenager has contagious virus that can cause disabilities in unborn babies
Bryant Hackett, 14, from Sunderland, has cytomegalovirus which is usually harmless for adults but can cause deafness and learning disabilities in unborn babies. (Source: the Mail online | Health)
Source: the Mail online | Health - January 31, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

Functional Properties of Virus-Encoded and Virus-Regulated G Protein-Coupled Receptors
During coevolution with their hosts, viruses have developed several survival strategies that involve exploitation of 7 transmembrane spanning (7TM) G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). These include virus-encoded GPCRs and ligands and viral regulation of endogenous GPCRs. Many functional properties have been ascribed to virus-exploited GPCRs, and although the list of putative functions is steadily growing, the presence and/or function of virus-associated GPCRs is still poorly understood. This review focuses on three well-described functional properties of virus-associated GPCRs: (1) the immune evasion strategies, exemplifi...
Source: Springer protocols feed by Pharmacology/Toxicology - January 27, 2014 Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news

CMV Infection Tied to Response to Arthritis Tx (CME/CE)
(MedPage Today) -- A specific immune response signature associated with latent cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection may help predict response to treatment in very early rheumatoid arthritis, researchers reported. (Source: MedPage Today Geriatrics)
Source: MedPage Today Geriatrics - November 26, 2013 Category: Geriatrics Source Type: news

CMV rapidly evolves as it spreads from mother to fetus, providing genetic targets for new therapeutics
New insights into how human cytomegalovirus (CMV), the leading cause of birth defects associated with infection spreads from pregnant mother to fetus and from organ to organ in newborns provides translational researchers an exciting new avenue for investigation that may lead to the development of therapeutic interventions. Using next generation sequencing and population genetic modeling, scientists at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) and the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have found that CMV evolves rapidly and dramatically in humans... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - November 4, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pregnancy / Obstetrics Source Type: news

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Heart Disease: Mayo Clinic Studies Shed Light on Dangerous Connection
Mayo Clinic studies presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting reveal factors that seem to put some rheumatoid arthritis patients in greater jeopardy of heart problems: early menopause, more severe rheumatoid arthritis and immunity to a common virus, cytomegalovirus, among others. (Source: Mayo Clinic Research News)
Source: Mayo Clinic Research News - October 29, 2013 Category: Research Authors: Mayo Clinic Source Type: news

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Heart Disease: Mayo Clinic Studies Shed Light on Dangerous Connection
Mayo Clinic studies presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting reveal factors that seem to put some rheumatoid arthritis patients in greater jeopardy of heart problems: early menopause, more severe rheumatoid arthritis and immunity to a common virus, cytomegalovirus, among others. (Source: News from Mayo Clinic)
Source: News from Mayo Clinic - October 29, 2013 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Mayo Clinic Source Type: news

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Heart Disease: Mayo Clinic Studies Shed Light on Dangerous Connection
Mayo Clinic studies presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting reveal factors that seem to put some rheumatoid arthritis patients in greater jeopardy of heart problems: early menopause, more severe rheumatoid arthritis and immunity to a common virus, cytomegalovirus, among others. (Source: Mayo Clinic Rochester News)
Source: Mayo Clinic Rochester News - October 29, 2013 Category: Hospital Management Authors: Mayo Clinic Source Type: news

Ella’s legacy: Turning tragedy into an international advocacy network for PVNH
By Yolaine Dupont Ella She was born in Vancouver, British-Columbia at 39 weeks, weighing 5 lbs. and 7 oz. With a nearly flawless APGAR score, her father’s mouth and nose, along with my eyes and full set of dark hair. Just as I imagined she would be, Ella was picture perfect. Still, I had an uneasy feeling. Ella was frail, and her breathing seemed off. I mentioned it to her doctor and nurse, only to be quickly reassured that all was okay. After five days, I took her home. But that upsetting feeling would not go away. The old expression “Mom knows best” turned out to be true. By Ella’s second month, she was admi...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - October 15, 2013 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Guest Blogger Tags: All posts Diseases & conditions Our patients’ stories Research cytomegalovirus our patients' stories PVNH Source Type: news

Valganciclovir Effective in Infants With CytomegalovirusValganciclovir Effective in Infants With Cytomegalovirus
The first major trial of oral valganciclovir for infants showed that a 6-month course of the drug improves hearing and nerve development. Medscape Medical News (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - October 10, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Infectious Diseases News Source Type: news

PodMed: A Medical News Roundup from Johns Hopkins (with audio)
(MedPage Today) -- This week's topics include a robotic leg, a new drug against cytomegalovirus, guidelines for breast cancer prevention medications, and arsenic levels and cardiovascular disease. (Source: MedPage Today Cardiovascular)
Source: MedPage Today Cardiovascular - September 27, 2013 Category: Cardiology Source Type: news

Common viral disease prevented in stem-cell transplant patients
A new drug can often prevent a common, sometimes severe viral disease in patients receiving a transplant of donated blood-making stem cells, a clinical trial led by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital indicates. In a paper in the Sept. 26 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, the researchers report that patients who took the drug CMX001 shortly after transplant were far less likely to develop cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection than were patients who took a placebo... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - September 27, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Transplants / Organ Donations Source Type: news

Novel Antiviral Blocks CMV After Stem Cell Tx (CME/CE)
(MedPage Today) -- A novel antiviral may help prevent cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease in allogeneic hematopoietic-cell transplantation, a phase II trial showed. (Source: MedPage Today Surgery)
Source: MedPage Today Surgery - September 26, 2013 Category: Surgery Source Type: news

Cidofovir Showing Promise for Resistant CytomegalovirusCidofovir Showing Promise for Resistant Cytomegalovirus
Cidofovir is an alternative to foscarnet for patients with ganciclovir-resistant cytomegalovirus, new research suggests. Medscape Medical News (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - September 23, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Infectious Diseases News Source Type: news

Study Casts Doubt on Cytomegalovirus Prevention StrategyStudy Casts Doubt on Cytomegalovirus Prevention Strategy
The new standard of care, valganciclovir, is inferior to established combination therapy in preventing infections in liver transplant patients. Medscape Medical News (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - September 20, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Infectious Diseases News Source Type: news

Novel vaccine approach to human cytomegalovirus found effective
An experimental vaccine against human cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, which endangers the developing fetus, organ transplant recipients, patients with HIV and others who have a weakened immune system, proved safe and more effective than previous vaccines developed to prevent infection by the ubiquitous virus. The first-of-its-kind approach to preventing human CMV infection, developed by a team of scientists at UC Davis and the University of Alabama, Birmingham, induced broader immunological protection in an animal model... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - September 19, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Immune System / Vaccines Source Type: news