Scientists Discover Potential Silver Bullet For Fight Against Viral Infection
(Los Angeles, CA) -- Researchers think they may have found a way to eliminate viruses responsible for diseases ranging from flu to AIDS and even Ebola. Scientists at UCLA along with others from the University of Texas at Galveston, Harvard and Cornell set out to find one thing common to as many viruses as possible. They discovered a small molecule that prevents a virus from inserting its genome into a host cell, infecting it. In addition to working against known viruses, the researchers say a drug they've developed should also be effective against yet-to-be discovered viruses. The drug has already been tested in animals and produced no toxic side effects. The researchers say they aren't sure how their discovery works and they're continuing studies to determine that. The study is published online in "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences." |