Infection

Infex has positive phase IIa data in bronchiectasis; preps for next trial

Thu, 21 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

Infex Therapeutics Ltd. has published positive phase IIa data for its lead program, RESP-X, in the treatment of exacerbations of chronic respiratory infections caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and is now laying the ground for phase IIb development, after raising £4.3 million (US$5.8 million) in new capital.

Tennor’s $80M Hong Kong IPO to fund antibacterial drug pipeline

Thu, 21 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

Antimicrobial-focused Tennor Therapeutics Ltd. will debut in Hong Kong May 22, having priced a HK$626.84 million (US$80 million) IPO. The Suzhou, China-based biotech is waiting on China’s National Medical Products Administration approval of lead asset rifasutenizol (TNP-2198), which has potential to become the first targeted combination regimen to treat H. pylori infection.

Sizing up an epidemic, with diagnostics and bioinformatics

Thu, 21 May 2026 10:00:00 -0400

It is not surprising that a large Ebola outbreak would be considered a public health emergency of international concern. But the current PHEIC is notable for the speed with which it was declared, speaking to the urgency of the situation. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the outbreak a PHEIC on Sunday, May 17, without first convening an emergency committee. That step is unprecedented.

Sizing up an epidemic, with diagnostics and bioinformatics

Wed, 20 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

Maxwell’s Claromers show promise against Epstein-Barr virus

Wed, 20 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

Maxwell Biosciences Inc. has reported findings from a study showing that its broad-spectrum small molecules, named Claromers, are able to destroy Epstein-Barr virus. Claromers destroy pathogenic bacteria, viruses, fungi and biofilms, without harming healthy cells or the microbiome.

WHO declares Ebola outbreak a public health emergency of international concern

Tue, 19 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

The threat posed by the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has intensified, with the confirmation that it is caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus, for which there are no approved vaccines or antiviral therapies. At the same time, the high positivity rate, with eight laboratory confirmed cases out of 13 samples collected in various areas, and more reports of suspected cases and clusters of deaths, all point to a potentially much larger outbreak than currently is being detected and reported.

CDC vaccines panel to be ‘re-established’

Tue, 19 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

It’s back to the drawing board for the U.S. CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). After a year of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy gutting the panel and restocking it mostly with people who share his views on vaccines, the CDC published a notice in the May 19 Federal Register saying it’s withdrawing the amended ACIP charter renewal issued April 6 and is instead “re-establishing” the committee.

Bundibugyo is harsh reminder of need for broad vaccine strategies

Tue, 19 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

On Sunday, May 17th, 2026, the World Health Organization classified the ongoing Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). The rapid escalation to PHEIC is due to several factors. Given the high number of cases, the outbreak has likely been going undetected for some time, and may be a “much larger outbreak than what is currently being detected and reported, with significant local and regional risk of spread,” according to the WHO statement. The outbreak appears to already have crossed the border from the DRC into Uganda at least twice. And all this is happening with a virus for which there are no approved treatments or vaccines.

Sen. Cassidy’s primary loss increases uncertainty

Mon, 18 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

On the heels of the ouster of Marty Makary as the U.S. FDA commissioner and the serial leadership vacancies at the CDC and the FDA’s drugs and biologics centers, the government’s adherence to science took another blow May 16 when Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., lost the Louisiana primary, ending his bid for re-election.

Bundibugyo is harsh reminder of need for broad vaccine strategies

Mon, 18 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

WHO declares Ebola outbreak a public health emergency of international concern

Mon, 18 May 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Authorities work to quickly sequence Ebola species in latest outbreak

Fri, 15 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

If the recent hantavirus outbreak wasn’t enough to keep public health officials busy, a new Ebola virus disease outbreak has been confirmed by authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. While sequencing is ongoing to identify the Ebola species, experts have noted early results suggesting it appears to be different from the Zaire species that has caused previous outbreaks, including the deadliest outbreak in West Africa a decade ago, meaning existing vaccines and antibody treatments likely will not be effective.

ASGCT 2026: Directed evolution in gene therapy

Fri, 15 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

Directed evolution has become a central pillar in gene therapy. This engineering strategy enables the generation of more efficient variants of genetic editors and delivery vectors. Molecular diversification methods are increasingly sophisticated and are now accelerated by machine learning and AI tools, as showcased at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) held in Boston this week.

Andes virus cases rise to 11; Hondius passengers in quarantine to June 21

Thu, 14 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

The number of cases of hantavirus infection has risen from eight to 11, following the repatriation of passengers from the cruise ship MV Hondius, with World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warning the danger is not over. “In fact, it has entered a new phase as the passengers and crew return home,” he told attendees of a meeting at WHO’s headquarters in Geneva on May 13.

APAC monitors hantavirus as Singapore isolates 2 from cruise ship

Tue, 12 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

Singapore’s Communicable Diseases Agency on May 7 said that it isolated two residents for hantavirus testing after the individuals disembarked from an Atlantic cruise ship on May 2 and May 6, respectively. The measure comes in response to the cluster of cases from the cruise ship, MV Hondius, that has resulted in three deaths so far.

Two-step HIV vaccine induces broadly neutralizing antibodies

Tue, 12 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

A designed chimeric virus induced broadly neutralizing antibodies against the macaque equivalent of HIV. The strategy works in two steps: first it uses an envelope protein with a mutation that reduces the glycan shield that makes it invisible to the immune system, and then it exposes the part of the protein most likely to generate these antibodies capable of blocking many variants of the virus. The macaques developed potent and diverse antibodies with this approach, which pave the way for the development of an HIV-1 vaccine.

First cruise ship hantavirus genome points to zoonotic spillover

Tue, 12 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

The initial appraisal of the first complete genome sequence of a hantavirus isolated from a patient in Switzerland who was a passenger on the cruise ship MV Hondius is consistent with a spillover from its natural reservoir, rather than the emergence of a markedly altered virus.

Funding at Infex Therapeutics to advance anti-infectives

Tue, 12 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

Infex Therapeutics Ltd. has secured £4.3 million (US$5 million) to support the continued advancement of the company’s pipeline of novel anti-infectives targeting antimicrobial resistance and other priority infectious diseases.

Fibrobiologics explores use of fibroblast platform for hantavirus

Tue, 12 May 2026 09:00:00 -0400

Fibrobiologics Inc. is expanding its fibroblast-based therapeutic platform to target hantavirus. The pathophysiology of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome involves uncontrolled inflammatory responses, endothelial barrier dysfunction and progressive pulmonary fibrosis, mechanisms that Fibrobiologics’ fibroblast platform is specifically designed to modulate.

First cruise ship hantavirus genome points to zoonotic spillover

Mon, 11 May 2026 12:00:00 -0400

In vivo mRNA gene therapy platform reprograms cytotoxic T cells