Researchers in the U.K. have developed an AI-driven method of identifying viruses in wild animals with the potential to spillover into humans. The technique makes it possible to use the genome sequences of the spike proteins by which viruses enter host cells to assess the potential to infect humans without having to isolate an individual virus and tests its infectivity in the lab.
Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii are both major contributors to the global antimicrobial resistance crisis, causing rapidly progressive and often severe infections. Researchers from Vaxdyn SL and collaborators presented efficacy data for K-Vax, an inactivated, LPS-null whole-cell A. baumannii-based vaccine engineered to display conserved K. pneumoniae outer-membrane proteins on the bacterial cell surface.
As U.S. President Donald Trump’s third nominee for CDC director, Erica Schwartz will soon find out if three times really is a charm. Trump announced the nomination on social media April 16, touting Schwartz’s credentials for the job. Calling her “incredibly talented,” Trump cited her “distinguished career” as a military doctor, in the Navy and Coast Guard, and her service as deputy surgeon general during his first term in office.