Medicine & Healthcare Infectious disease

News

Hemorrhagic pneumonia
11 May 2026
Drug resistance of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia prompts need for effective alternative treatments
14 Apr 2026
Researchers from The University of Osaka have shown that the MIC11 gene of Toxoplasma gondii is essential for the parasite to egress, or exit, the host cell, a key part of the lifecycle. Deletion of MIC11 caused parasites to be unable to permeabilize host cell membranes and prevented egress. This study identifies potential new therapeutic targets for human diseases caused by parasites, such as toxoplasmosis and malaria, which represent a major global health problem.
05 Feb 2026
Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo have used 3D-printing technology to improve the viral titer of microneedle array patches, resulting in effective immunogenicity and protection against infection in mice
29 Jan 2026
The University of Osaka study shows that declining clinical tests lead to an underestimation of COVID-19 cases. By analyzing wastewater, researchers found viral loads remained high even as reported cases dropped. This highlights wastewater surveillance as a crucial, objective tool for accurately monitoring community-wide infection levels. The findings advocate for a multi-layered public health approach that is not solely reliant on testing data, ensuring a more realistic assessment of infection risks.
tobacco and Long COVID survey results
26 Jan 2026
Smokers could be at higher risk of post-COVID symptoms
26 Jan 2026
A study by The University of Osaka reveals that people who have had COVID-19 are more likely to wear masks. This is driven not by fear, but by an increased awareness of being a potential "silent carrier." The finding suggests that public health messages based on patients' real experiences, highlighting the risk of asymptomatic spread, could be more effective in encouraging preventive behaviors in the general population for future pandemics.
25 Dec 2025
Researchers from The University of Osaka found that common arguments used to encourage COVID-19 vaccination increase compliance but also intensify negative attitudes toward people with opposing views. The study highlights the need for public health communication strategies that promote vaccination while reducing social polarization.
15 Dec 2025
Leveraging cutting-edge tools in genomics, medical imaging and data science, five research teams from Duke and Duke-NUS have been awarded joint Research Collaboration Pilot Project grants.
10 Dec 2025
Researchers from The University of Osaka have developed a novel reverse genetics system to study norovirus, the leading cause of gastroenteritis. This efficient system can generate infectious viral particles by simply injecting viral genetic material into zebrafish embryos. They were able to alter the genetic material to create modified viruses, enabling the evaluation of antiviral drugs and novel vaccine development. The advances provided by this new system will have a significant effect on public health.
28 Oct 2025
The COVID-19 pandemic has provided researchers with a wealth of information on contemporary successes and failures in combating an emerging pathogen. This study outlines a total of 22 opportunities and strategies based on urban functionality and typology to help communities better prepare for and mitigate the effects of the next pandemic.
Asia Research News Editors Choice
07 Oct 2025
Ancient black holes, How good cholesterol is made, Self-healing plastic, Dengue’s genetic imprint, Korean mussel power & Space clean-up. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.
Dengue-infected cells taken under a microscope
08 Sep 2025
Research helps explain why vaccines work better for people with prior infection and why even an imperfect vaccine can be used safely to prevent dengue.
30 Jul 2025
A group of researchers led by The University of Osaka have identified a novel genetic mutation in Streptococcus pyogenes, a common bacterium which causes strep throat, significantly associated with severe invasive infections. A single mutation in the bacterial ferric ion transporter enhances bacterial growth in human blood. This mutation, unique to Japanese isolates, indicates a novel pathogenic mechanism. This world-first discovery offers a potential new target for treatments and preventive measures.
Impact of pneumococcal vaccination support program on pneumonia mortality
02 Jul 2025
Findings based on efforts in Sera Town, Japan showed the pneumococcal vaccination support program reversed the previously increasing trend in pneumonia mortality rate in the community.
25 Jun 2025
A groundbreaking study led by a global research consortium offers new hope for patients with mycetoma, a neglected tropical disease. Researchers using an insect model and transcriptome analysis have unravelled the mechanism of iron regulation between host tissue and the mycetoma grain, a fungal mass characteristic of the disease. This discovery illuminates how the causative fungus invades and develops these protective grains within subcutaneous tissue, paving the way for new drug development and less invasive treatment strategies beyond surgical removal, potentially reducing the burden on patients significantly.
17 Apr 2025
Widespread contamination by emerging foodborne pathogen detected in retail chicken meat
18 Mar 2025
Effective treatment of gastric cancer-bacterial infections begins with understanding differing clinical methods
Side view of the gliding machinery (top) and detail of the internal chain (above).
04 Mar 2025
Cryo-electron microscopy reveals molecular structure of twin motors that power mycoplasma’s ability to glide
04 Mar 2025
Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, have found a surprisingly simple way of understanding social-distancing behavior during an epidemic.
Researchers found one of the E. coli strains isolated in cheese in Egypt in 2018 had the same properties as the E. coli in the milk that caused food poisoning in more than 1,800 schoolchildren in Toyama Prefecture in Japan in 2021.
28 Feb 2025
Popular milk and dairy products in Egypt show over 25% prevalence of E. coli
Salivary proteins reduced disinfection effect of ozonated water
03 Feb 2025
Amylase and mucin decrease the effects of ozonated water
hand and key
24 Jan 2025
At Duke-NUS Medical School scientists are pioneering breakthroughs in precision medicine and regenerative therapies, targeting everything from muscle loss to dramatically extending our years of health.
Clusters of T cells under a microscope
10 Jan 2025
Duke-NUS study findings challenge the longstanding reliance on neutralising antibodies for assessing viral immunity, and suggest that development of future vaccines must consider both antibody and T-cell responses for comprehensive protection.
Clostridium perfringens spore formation in the intestines
12 Dec 2024
Amino acid serine inhibits Clostridium perfringens spore formation
23 Oct 2024
A research team including Osaka University analyzed wastewater surveillance methods for accurately tracking COVID-19 infection trends. Using wastewater data from Sapporo dating from April 2021–September 2023, they explored survey conditions obtaining strong correlation between viral concentration in wastewater and infection incidence. The study identified key methods, including high-sensitivity analysis and geometric mean data processing, as essential for effective regional surveillance, providing critical insights for future public health monitoring.
Graphical representation of Providencia rustigianii and select genes
17 Oct 2024
Pathogenic system found on plasmid can lead to severe food poisoning symptoms
Editor's Choice
07 Oct 2024
Mirror, mirror, in my tank, who’s the biggest fish of all? Sigma bond spotted, Balancing cell membrane, Exploring quantum squeezing and Outbreak preparedness. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.
Campylobacter jejuni
25 Sep 2024
By targeting multiprotein molecule, antibody inhibits bacteria’s growth, pathogenicity
24 Sep 2024
• Two-year assessment provides critical insights and recommendations for strengthening genomic sequencing for infectious disease surveillance in 13 South and Southeast Asian countries. • Research helps to step up Asia’s preparedness across wide range of diseases.
COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis
20 Sep 2024
Incidence, risk factors found for pulmonary aspergillosis, an invasive fungal infection of lungs, among COVID-19 patients

Events

23 Nov 2020 to 24 Nov 2020
Global health emergencies look set to be a part of our lives. What awaits us in 2021 and what lessons can we draw from COVID-19 coverage? How can we support newsrooms and journalists for more informed and impactful journalism about global scientific, technical and human challenges? What role does journalism play in seeking solutions for a better world that is both healthy, and sustainable?

Researchers

Dr Sarkar is a senior research fellow at the Murdoch Children's Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia. She is actively engaged in collaborating with academic and industry stakeholders and leads multiple projects for the development of novel therapeutics/vaccines to tackle antimicrobial resistance.
Young scientist from Kulgam,  Kashmir.
Dr. Ashfaq Ahmad Shah 'اشفاک,' born on 6 June 1992, from south Kashmir, Dodarkoot ددیرکوٹ Kulgam, Jammu and Kashmir, India, is the microbiologist whose broad area of specialization incorporates infection immunity. He served as a researcher at the Graphic Era (Deemed to be University), Dehradun, UK, India, from 2020 to 2025. Currently he is working as Postdoctoral researcher and Junior Scientist in the KIET School of Pharmacy at KIET University. As a microbiology scientist, Dr. Shah has pursued novel dimensions of infection immunity pertaining to the correlation and impact of elicitation-triggered phytoalexins and phytoanticipins on the benign immune system of human beings. This parameter of immunology is termed phytoalexin-immunomodulation scrutiny in the contemporary era. Dr. Shah's research encompasses a range of areas, including the indagation on anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial compounds, evaluation of antibiotic resistance, study of immunomodulatory activities, disease model studies, protease isolation against specific protein antigens, study of novel compounds via the hyphenated techniques of GCMS, HPLC, FTIR-MS, etc., and the discipline of kalology, including tyrosinase inhibition, PPO inhibition, skin whitening agents, kerato-peeling, etc. Dr. Ashfaq is a scientist, doctoral researcher, reviewer, and editorial member of several journals and books of national and international repute. He has contributed extensively to scientific literature by publishing his research in journals of national and international repute. So far he has published more than forty infection/immunology/pharmacology scientific papers in Scopus and SCI-indexed journals, including two international books. In recognition of his contributions, Dr. Shah received the Young Scientist Award in August 2023 for his groundbreaking academic performance in the field of infection immunity. Dr. Shah has also been an active editor of Wikipedia pages in the field of medical science since 2015, with more than 1000 edits in medical topics available to medical literature worldwide.
Amit Singhal
Dr. Singhal serves as senior principal investigator at the Bacterial Immunopathology Lab at A*STAR ID Labs in Singapore. His work at A*STAR ID Labs revolves around three main pathogens: Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Gram-negative bacteria and Dengue virus.
Sophie St-Hilaire
Professor St-Hilaire is a professor at the Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, City University of Hong Kong (CityU). She has extensively researched fish nutrition and diseases, including treatment efficacy, and has helped investigate fish disease outbreaks.
Dr. Phan Thi Van
Dr. Van was previously the Director of the Research Institute for Aquaculture No.1 (RIA1) under Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. She has extensive expertise in aquatic animal health and aquaculture safety management.
Dr. Dong currently works at the Asian Institute of Technology. He does research in Aquaculture, Pathology, Infectious Diseases, and Aquatic Bioscience.
Suraj Bhattarai
Suraj Bhattarai is a global health specialist and tropical medicine physician with research interests in infectious disease epidemiology and surveillance, health systems, and urban health. He is a co-founder and research fellow at the Global Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, a Kathmandu-based academic institute that promotes and conducts interdisciplinary research. He is a member of Global Young Academy and an Alumni steering committee member of IAP-Young Physician Leaders Programme. He obtained medical training in Nepal and masters in Tropical Medicine & International Health from the LSHTM, UK.
Prof. Tomoharu Yasuda
Prof. Tomoharu Yasuda's laboratory studies how immune system is regulated through the antigen receptor, intracellular signaling and lymphocyte programming.
Picture of Prof. Antonio Bertoletti
Prof. Antonio Bertoletti's current research focuses on the development of new immunological based therapies (TCR-redirected T cells, HLA-peptide specific antibodies) for the treatment of HBV and Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and the characterization of human intra-sinusoidal hepatic immune system.
Linfa Wang
Professor Linfa Wang is a Professor with the Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.
Associate Professor Sophia Archuleta is the Head and Senior Consultant of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the National University Hospital, Singapore.
Ashley St. John
Prof. Ashley St. John is an expert in viral immunology and emerging infectious diseases, such as dengue and Zika viruses. She heads the Laboratory of Immunity and Immune Pathology at Duke-NUS Medical School.

Giants in history

Wu Lien-teh (10 March 1879 – 21 January 1960) was a Malaysian-born doctor who invented a mask that effectively suppressed disease transmission. Winning the prestigious Queen’s Scholarship enabled Wu to become the first Chinese student to study medicine at the University of Cambridge.
Minoru Shirota (April 23, 1899 – March 10, 1982) was a Japanese microbiologist who invented the popular fermented drink Yakult.