News

To prevent next pandemic research suggests we need to restore wildlife habit

Preserving and restoring natural habitats in specific locations could prevent pathogens that originate in wildlife from spilling over into domesticated animals and humans, according to new research led by an international team of researchers, including Penn State.

Penn State community grieves loss of biomathematician Howard Weiss

Howard Weiss, professor of biology and mathematics at Penn State, passed away peacefully in his sleep on Nov. 5 at the age of 64.

Gut parasites may increase onward transmission of respiratory bugs in rabbits

Rabbits co-infected with a respiratory bacterial infection and one or more gut helminth parasites are more likely to shed bacteria that can infect others, according to a report led by researchers at Penn State and published today in eLife.

Newly engineered protein could be used to develop adaptation-proof COVID vaccine

A vaccine design approach that could protect against new variants of SARS-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — but also potentially protects against other coronaviruses is one step closer to reality as a result of research at Penn State College of Medicine.

Penn State, State College data on SARS-CoV2 in wastewater now available online

Data from Penn State researchers’ SARS-CoV2 wastewater monitoring program in Centre County is now available online on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS) website.

Rabbit virus has evolved to become more deadly, new research finds

A common misconception is that viruses become milder over time as they become endemic within a population. Yet new research, led by Penn State and the University of Sydney, reveals that a virus — called myxoma —that affects rabbits has become more deadly over time

Disease outcomes differ by new host species in virus spillover experiments

Why has the SARS-CoV-2 virus ravaged the global human population, but many other animal viruses haven't? Using nematode worms as a model, researchers at Penn State conducted a set of experiments to investigate the factors influencing the disease outcomes of virus spillover events.

What are potential animal reservoirs for monkeypox?

While monkeypox has been circulating in Africa for many years, the recent outbreak across the globe has exposed considerable uncertainties about the virus’ transmission.

COVID-19 drugs persist in wastewater, may pose risk to aquatic organisms

Certain drugs used to treat COVID-19 patients — including remdesivir, dexamethasone and antibiotics for associated bacterial infections — persist through wastewater treatment and may occur in waterways at levels high enough to negatively affect aquatic organisms, according to a new study led by researchers at Penn State.

Penn State team awarded $2.3M to assess disease vulnerability, improve response

An interdisciplinary team from Penn State has been awarded $2.3M from the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation’s joint Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Disease (EEID) program to evaluate the vulnerability of certain populations to disease outbreaks, with the goal of improving outbreak response and preventing future outbreaks.