Infections

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a smart bandage that changes color to signal either drug-resistant or drug-sensitive bacteria. It can then be triggered to release antibiotics or other chemicals to kill off the bugs.

Currently, in order to determine if someone has a urinary tract infection, their urine sample has to be sent off to a lab – it takes days to get results. Now, scientists have created a smartphone-enabled system that works in less than 25 minutes.

Parents of children with autism have often reported a strange phenomenon: when their child has a fever, their behavioral symptoms seem to improve. Now a new study from MIT and Harvard may have uncovered why.

Since ancient times, honey has been used to boost the healing of wounds. In a 21st Century twist, it has now also been incorporated into a surgical mesh coating that could help prevent post-operative infections.

Bacteria tend to build colonies behind barriers known as biofilms, which are hard for antibiotics to penetrate. Now, researchers at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) have developed a hybrid antibiotic that can punch through some biofilms.

The number of healthcare-associated urinary tract infections could soon drop dramatically, thanks to the use of special antimicrobial glass.

Although antibiotic levels are currently measured via blood samples, the task could soon be better-managed using a microneedle skin patch.

Researchers have developed a device that assesses ear infections using ultrasound.

Researchers from the University of Virginia may have found a way to prevent infections. The team has uncovered how pathogenic E. coli senses its environment to stay stealthy until it reaches the right spot to kickstart an infection.

The results from a Phase 1 trial into the safety of a landmark chlamydia vaccine have just been published demonstrating promising signs the treatment is safe, and potentially effective in preventing the most common bacterial sexually transmitted infection in the world.

Bacteria are rapidly developing resistance to our best drugs, hurtling us towards a future where antibiotics simply don’t work anymore. Now researchers have uncovered a potentially exploitable chink in the armor of a particularly troublesome group of bacteria.

Microorganisms are becoming resistant to drugs, hurtling us towards a terrifying future where once-easily-treated infections become potentially life-threatening again. Now researchers have tested an alternative to antibiotics, using existing drugs to starve a fungal infection of vital nutrients.