Posts by: Magdalena Kegel

Magdalena Kegel

Magdalena holds an MSc in Pharmaceutical Bioscience and an interdisciplinary PhD merging the fields of psychiatry, immunology and neuropharmacology. Her previous research focused on metabolic and immunologic changes in psychotic disorders. She is now focusing on science writing, allowing her to culture her passion for medical science and human health.

May 9, 2017May 9, 2017

PaxVax Updating 30-Year-Old Vaccine Against Pneumonia Virus That Can Hit Military Recruits

PaxVax is modernizing a pneumonia virus vaccine that hasn’t been updated in 30 years, partly to help protect military recruits. Because the virus often impacts recruits, the armed forces is blessing ... Read more

March 21, 2017March 21, 2017

Breath Test May Soon Detect Pneumonia-Causing Bacteria in ICU Patients on Ventilation

A non-invasive test that relies only on collecting gases from a person’s breath may soon help doctors detect a potentially aggressive species of bacteria that causes pneumonia in intensive care unit (ICU) ... Read more

March 14, 2017March 14, 2017

Three Sugar Molecules Enough to Make Vaccine Against Aggressive Pneumonia Bacteria

Using only three linked sugar molecules, German researchers have created a potential vaccine against an aggressive and antibiotic-resistant strain of Streptococcus pneumoniae — a discovery that eventually strengthen current pneumonia vaccines. Unlike ... Read more

February 16, 2017February 16, 2017

Pneumococcal Vaccine Seen as Ineffective Against Pneumonia in RA Patients

A vaccine against pneumococcal pneumonia does not prevent rheumatoid arthritis patients from contracting the disease, according to the results of a large clinical trial. Although the analysis included 900 patients, ... Read more

December 13, 2016December 13, 2016

Study Urges Standards for Recognizing, Treating Aspiration Pneumonia Because of Risks It Carries

Among people with community-acquired pneumonia, those with aspiration pneumonia are likely to have worse outcomes than other patients, according to a review of previously published data. The study, “Prognostic implications of ... Read more

November 22, 2016November 22, 2016

Scientists Uncover Key to Formation of Bacterial Traps, Which Fight Pneumonia

Scientists have discovered the key factor in the release of defender bacterial traps called NETs (neutrophil extracellular traps) from immune cells in response to Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection — one of ... Read more

October 6, 2016October 6, 2016

Common Bacteria in Pneumonia May Trigger Guillain-Barré Syndrome

The common pneumonia-causing bacterium Mycoplasma pneumoniae can trigger Guillain-Barré syndrome, an autoimmune disease, because antibodies attacking the bacterium can mistake molecules on nerve cells for the intended target. The study, “Mycoplasma pneumoniae ... Read more

September 8, 2016September 8, 2016

Arsanis’ Antibodies Targeting Pneumonia Are One Step Closer to Trials

Two recent publications by the biotech company Arsanis confirmed that the two human antibodies ASN-1 and ASN-2 that make up Arsanis’ lead compound ASN100 effectively target infections with the bacteria ... Read more

September 6, 2016September 6, 2016

Cracking Genome of Feared Pneumonia Bacteria Allows Researchers to Fight Antibiotic Resistance

In an attempt to beat the superbug Klebsiella pneumoniae, a bacteria that causes life-threatening pneumonia resistant to antibiotics, researchers have decoded the bacteria’s entire genome, identifying the regions responsible for antibiotic resistance. ... Read more

September 1, 2016September 1, 2016

Knowledge of Pneumonia Is Poor in West African Country of Ghana, Researchers Find

Parents of toddlers in Ghana in West Africa know little about the signs and symptoms of pneumonia nor how to best provide care for a sick child, researchers from the Ghana ... Read more