Presenting the Award for Best Supporting Role in a Medical Drama
And the award for Best Supporting Role in a Medical Drama goes to… With the Oscars fast approaching, FBR is recognizing two special supporting actors that have played outstanding roles in the ongoing medical drama of human and animal health advancement: the rat and the mouse. Together, rats and mice make up approximately 95% of […]
Stimulating Interferon to Fight the Flu
You may have heard of interferon. It has been tossed around as a major player in many disease processes from mild infections to cancer and Hepatitis C. Now researchers at Ohio State University have uncovered another purpose for interferon — it may help hijack the flu virus. Using mouse cells, researchers have been able to […]
Influenza: Starting the fight from the other side
In order to predict the flu viruses that will be the most prevalent in the upcoming year, a lot of work goes on behind the scenes. Scientists collaborate to study strains all over the world in an effort to predict which strains will pose the biggest threats during the next flu season. Researchers work on […]
Canine Influenza: Working to Fight H3N2
By now, you’ve probably heard about the new strain of canine influenza that has infected dogs across the Midwest U.S. Over 1,000 dogs have been infected with the H3N2 virus over the course of about a month, and unfortunately, there have been some fatalities. Something needs to be done, but what? Well, researchers are working […]
Flu season: Why is it so severe this year?
Why is the flu so severe this season? Let’s start at the beginning: rewind to February 2014. In order to get enough of a head start on manufacturing such a huge volume of flu vaccines, experts study tracking and surveillance data to predict which strains of the flu will be the biggest threat in the […]
Viagra could give researchers a leg up on Ebola and influenza treatments!
Viagra?? Yes, that little blue pill might be the silver bullet in treating viruses and brain cancer! New research suggests that some viruses previously considered ‘untreatable’ could actually be treatable, thanks to Viagra. By targeting a specific protein called GRP78, researchers were able to use Viagra, combined with another drug called AR-12, to prevent viral […]
Ferrets could help researchers understand the flu!
Ferrets are adorable. Come on, look at that face! And if the cuteness factor wasn’t enough, new research is giving us an even better reason to appreciate these guys. Did you know that ferrets are an excellent model for studying the flu virus? It’s been known for years that ferrets are susceptible to the human […]