Tag: Disease

  • Mosquitoes, Scents, and Viruses

    Many viral diseases are spread via mosquitoes. Some of the more familiar viral diseases in the Americas that are transmitted by these insects include West Nile, Saint Louis encephalitis (SLE), Zika, and dengue fever. Mosquitoes are typically not the primary host for these viruses and are just vectors that carry the virus from animal to…

  • New  Predictive Biomarkers for Cardiovascular Disease

    Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a catchall term for any medical condition affecting the heart or the blood vessels. Serious cardiovascular health issues include heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure, events often preceded by hypertension (high blood pressure) and/or atherosclerosis (plaque in the arteries). Even with medical monitoring and a large array of cardiovascular drugs, CVD…

  • Viruses: Intimate Invaders

    My book on virology for the general public is now available at Springer as either an ebook or a softcover bound volume. It is also available on Amazon.

  • Rabies – A TrueScience Public Service Announcement

    Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a stark reminder about the dangers of rabies in their Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). After two consecutive years with no rabies deaths in the United States, there were five deaths in 2021, including a 7-year old child. Four of the recent…

  • Viruses and Brain Disease

    Humans may produce upwards of 100,000 proteins. Each different type of protein normally folds into a unique shape (its tertiary structure) that is essential to its function. Proteins can misfold due to mutations that change the amino acid sequence of the protein leading to a defective protein. Alternatively, sometimes a wild-type protein (the normal protein)…

  • Dangerous Vocations

    Accidents happen. Even in laboratories where safety is a priority they occur despite our best (and sometimes not so best) efforts to keep ourselves and our co-workers protected from injury and disease. Scientists working with infectious agents are particularly at risk even though there are numerous physical and procedural requirements in labs to ameliorate the…

  • Polio – The End of an Era?

    What do polio and smallpox have in common? These are both dreaded viral diseases that science has (smallpox) or soon will (polio) completely eliminate from the planet through vaccination. Unlike many viruses that lurk in animal reservoirs, only humans are the natural hosts for both of these viruses. Smallpox virus and poliovirus persist by spreading…

  • Hayflick’s Lament Revisited

    Many of us desire to live longer, but we also want to remain healthy and be physically and mentally strong. Diet, exercise, and lifestyle can contribute to health and longevity, but there is a limit to what even the healthiest of choices can do to stop the biological deterioration of our bodies over time. In…