25 May 2022
Plague may seem like an ancient disease, but the bacterium that causes it persists in rodents and fleas around the world. Researchers are warning that it could resurface in a form that our antibiotics can't treat and cause another pandemic
25 May 2022
The history books say the infamous plague pandemic of the 14th century killed at least half of the population of Europe. But recent scientific investigations have called that figure into question
3 March 2021
From habitat degradation to squalid animal treatment, our part in allowing “zoonotic” diseases like covid-19 to leap into humans is becoming ever clearer
29 April 2020
Four coronaviruses cause around a quarter of all common colds, but each was probably deadly when it first made the leap to humans. We can learn a lot from what happened next
20 December 2018
No one knew climate change would affect viruses that spread from person to person, but it does. For the eighth of our 12 Days of Culture we look at how disease may change
2 January 2018
100 years ago, a global flu pandemic claimed the lives of up to 5 per cent of humanity. It’s not the only time the virus has taken on a new, far deadlier form
2 January 2018
At least two flu strains are only a few mutations away from developing deadly human-to-human transmission. So how do we minimise the impact?
2 January 2018
This year’s flu jab is working, but not working well – throwing a spotlight on the commercial and other factors that prevent us developing something better
2 January 2018
We will all be exposed to flu this winter, but not all of us will get sick. The best way to minimise the risk is clear – although it’s a far from perfect solution
2 January 2018
Flu is an underestimated killer, taking more than a million lives around the globe annually. This time, the mutated virus seems to be hitting even harder
