The 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome(SARS) epidemic in China has lessons to teach hospitals on how to prevent the spread of other respiratory diseases, according to new research appearing in the April 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, currently available online.

Scientists have highlighted for the first time the plight of the growing number of older children and adolescents living with undiagnosed HIV and AIDS in Africa. In a study published today in Clinical Infectious Diseases, Wellcome Trust researchers claim that delay in recognising this problem means that the needs of this important group are not being met.

Scientists hoping to find new treatments for one of the world's most deadly infectious diseases say drugs used to treat common fungal infections may provide the answer.

Protein interactions direct cellular functions and their responses to pathogens and are important therapeutic targets. Scientists from the GSF Research Centre for Environment and Health have recently developed a method enabling simultaneous visualization of individual proteins and their interactions in living cells. This is achieved by engineering the proteins to constantly emit red or blue fluorescent signals and to produce an additional yellow fluorescent signal upon interaction (see image below).

Inadequate intellectual stimulation and poor nutrition, especially iodine and iron deficiencies, are likely to blame for hindering more than 200 million children in developing countries from meeting their full potential, says a Purdue University researcher.

New evidence suggests that the risk of HIV transmission may be highest in the early stages of infection. According to a study published in the April 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online, early infection accounted for nearly half of all transmission occurrences in an HIV-infected population in the province of Quebec, Canada.

The Influenza Genome Sequencing Project, funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today that it has achieved a major milestone. The entire genetic blueprints of more than 2,000 human and avian influenza viruses taken from samples around the world have been completed and the sequence data made available in a public database.

New evidence supports the link between a cause of the common cold and more severe respiratory infections such as pneumonia and acute bronchitis. The study is published in the March 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online.

A newly released study suggests that the majority of cases of drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) among patients undergoing treatment for the disease may be due to new infections, not acquired resistance. If confirmed in future studies the research, in the March 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, may drive a major shift in strategy for controlling TB.

A new study suggests the effects of long-standing, undiagnosed HIV infection are hanging over a generation of adolescents in Zimbabwe, causing organ damage, chronic ill health, stunted growth, and other problems. The research demonstrates the need to reduce barriers to early testing and admission to care for these adolescents. It appears in the March 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, currently available online.