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Poor gut health may adversely affect COVID-19 prognosis

People infected with COVID-19 experience a wide range of symptoms and severities, the most commonly reported including high fevers and respiratory problems.

12 Jan 2021

Nanobodies have potential to be developed into a treatment for COVID-19

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have developed, in collaboration with researchers in Germany and the U.S., new small antibodies, also known as nanobodies, which prevent the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus from entering human cells.

12 Jan 2021

Will the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine be effective against the new N501Y SARS-CoV-2 variant?

Researchers from Pfizer and the University of Texas, USA, have presented evidence showing that people in a previously reported trial of the mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine, BNT162b2 – commonly known as the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine – had equivalent neutralizing titers to the N501 and Y501 viruses.

12 Jan 2021

Researchers identify shorter form of ACE2 that lacks SARS-CoV-2 binding site

A shadow over the promising inhaled interferon beta COVID-19 therapy has been cleared with the discovery that although it appears to increase levels of ACE2 protein - coronavirus' key entry point into nose and lung cells - it predominantly increases levels of a short version of that protein, which the virus cannot bind to.

12 Jan 2021

Discovery of SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies from a naïve human Ab library

Now, a new preprint research paper published on the bioRxiv server shows how closely the antibodies formed in exposed humans resemble the germline antibody molecules. This could lead to the development of novel therapeutics to counter the pandemic.

12 Jan 2021

Patient with hypertension or cardiovascular diseases experienced critical disease progression with COVID-19

COVID-19 patients who also suffer from high blood pressure are more likely to fall severely ill with the disease, which also leaves them at greater risk of death.

11 Jan 2021

Vimentin could be a major co-factor that aids SARS-CoV-2 infection

A recent study has found that extracellular vimentin can bind to SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in vitro, and antibodies against vimentin can decrease virus infectivity by up to 80%. This suggests vimentin could aid the virus’s binding to host cells and help in infection.

11 Jan 2021

SARS-CoV-2-induced innate immune responses may vary with disease severity, finds study

Scientists from Germany and China recently conducted a large meta-analysis using transcriptome data of SARS-CoV-2 to evaluate the routes of viral entry and the characteristics of innate immune responses induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection.

11 Jan 2021

Tetherin downregulation by SARS-CoV-2 enhances viral spread

A new preprint research paper published on the bioRxiv server describes the role of a host protein called tetherin in the spread of the novel coronavirus.

10 Jan 2021

Synthetic lung organoids provide high-throughput platform to identify new cellular targets of SARS-CoV-2

An interesting new study published on the bioRxiv preprint server describes a new platform that allows a high-throughput workflow to generate matched human lung buds in the tens of thousands. This allows researchers to study SARS-CoV-2 infection and therapeutics in lung tissue that mirrors the key aspects of human lung development.

10 Jan 2021

Naturally selected mutations of SARS-CoV-2 easily duplicated in vitro

In a recent and timely paper, currently available on the bioRxiv preprint server, researchers from Israel and France demonstrated how in vitro evolution of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) receptor-binding domain (RBD) follows contagious mutation spread – but can also generate an efficient infection inhibitor.

10 Jan 2021

Researchers pinpoint spike protein regions as targets for passive and active COVID-19 vaccines

Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have identified regions of the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that have relatively few mutations and might therefore serve as important targets for prophylactic agents against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

10 Jan 2021

Link between fever, diarrhea, severe COVID-19, and persistent anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies

A new preprint research paper appearing on the medRxiv server describes a link between the persistence of neutralizing antibodies against the virus, disease severity, and specific COVID-19 symptoms.

7 Jan 2021

High-affinity SARS-CoV-2 RBD drives mutation spread, forms basis of new COVID-19 inhibitor

Now, an intriguing recent study appeared on the bioRxiv * preprint server describes the use of in vitro evolution to elicit affinity maturation of the viral receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein to bind the host cell angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) with greater affinity.

7 Jan 2021

Potential role of chitinase 3-like-1 in severity of COVID-19

Now, an intriguing preprint research paper on the bioRxiv server reports the identification of an enzyme called chitinase 3-like-1 (CHI3L1) that mediates this age-dependent impact of the virus and could serve as a powerful therapeutic approach in mitigating the severity of COVID-19 in this high-risk group.

7 Jan 2021

Potential treatment approach to new COVID-19 variant

Researchers in the United States have demonstrated a potential new approach to treating infection with the new variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

7 Jan 2021

Which strain should SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates target?

A researcher at Clemson University, USA, has recently explored how governments might effectively combat the pandemic through strategic vaccination as new variants and strains of the virus emerge. The study suggests that vaccine candidates should target the fast-spreading variant, even when the initial prevalence is much lower.

7 Jan 2021

ACE2 receptor is responsible for the wide host range of SARS-CoV-2

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is thought to have a zoonotic origin, perhaps originating in a bat coronavirus with an unknown intermediate host. It is not only very infectious but has been found to infect a wide range of mammals, including dogs, cats, ferrets, hamsters, and minks, besides non-human primates. This range may be still higher, claims a recent preprint that appeared in January 2021 on the bioRxiv server.

6 Jan 2021

In-silico modeling provides new understanding of immune response to SARS-CoV-2

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has crippled global healthcare systems and triggered an economic crisis in many countries. The pandemic is not showing signs of a slowdown even in 2021 with a new and more infectious variant of the virus wreaking havoc in the UK and many other parts of the world.

6 Jan 2021

Neutralization antibodies affected by only a few mutations to the SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain

In a recent bioRxiv* preprint paper, US researchers mapped in detail how mutations to the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) affected antibody binding in convalescent human serum – and revealed that it is influenced by mutations at only a handful of dominant epitopes.

6 Jan 2021

ACE2 News and Research

Poor gut health may adversely affect COVID-19 prognosis

Nanobodies have potential to be developed into a treatment for COVID-19

Will the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine be effective against the new N501Y SARS-CoV-2 variant?

Researchers identify shorter form of ACE2 that lacks SARS-CoV-2 binding site

Discovery of SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies from a naïve human Ab library

Patient with hypertension or cardiovascular diseases experienced critical disease progression with COVID-19

Vimentin could be a major co-factor that aids SARS-CoV-2 infection

SARS-CoV-2-induced innate immune responses may vary with disease severity, finds study

Tetherin downregulation by SARS-CoV-2 enhances viral spread

Synthetic lung organoids provide high-throughput platform to identify new cellular targets of SARS-CoV-2

Naturally selected mutations of SARS-CoV-2 easily duplicated in vitro

Researchers pinpoint spike protein regions as targets for passive and active COVID-19 vaccines

Link between fever, diarrhea, severe COVID-19, and persistent anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies

High-affinity SARS-CoV-2 RBD drives mutation spread, forms basis of new COVID-19 inhibitor

Potential role of chitinase 3-like-1 in severity of COVID-19

Potential treatment approach to new COVID-19 variant

Which strain should SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates target?

ACE2 receptor is responsible for the wide host range of SARS-CoV-2

In-silico modeling provides new understanding of immune response to SARS-CoV-2

Neutralization antibodies affected by only a few mutations to the SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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