covid 19 News and Research

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Facing COVID-19 patients on ventilators down may cause nerve damage

Some people are more likely to experience severe coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). These include the elderly, people who are obese and have underlying medical conditions, such as diabetes, obesity, heart disease, lung illness, and kidney disease, among others.

14 Sep 2020

Single-molecule imaging of SARS-CoV-2 spikes on virus particles

Using single-molecule FRET analysis, a team of researchers has revealed how the different conformations of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein are interconnected. Figuring out the different conformations in real-time and which conformations antibodies prefer may help design effective vaccines and drugs. The research is published on the preprint server bioRxiv*.

14 Sep 2020

Study reveals a small but perceptible drop in experts' rating of overall quality of US democracy

The health of democracy in the United States has reached its lowest point since an academic watchdog group of political scientists began tracking its performance in 2017.

14 Sep 2020

Doctors develop new data mining method to detect young people with emerging psychosis

Doctors have developed a new data mining method to detect many young people with emerging psychosis.

14 Sep 2020

Balancing COVID-19 risk with educational benefits in school reopening decisions

Now a new study by researchers at the Institute for Disease Modeling and published on the preprint server medRxiv* in September 2020 focuses on modeling the potential risk of COVID-19 for school students and staff if schools are re-opened in a range of scenarios. This could guide further research on the health and educational outcomes of school reopenings.

14 Sep 2020

Susceptibility of domestic pigs to SARS-CoV-2

A recent study published on the preprint server bioRxiv sought to determine the susceptibility of domestic swine to SARS-CoV-2. Domestic swine is one of the most highly produced agricultural species that has the potential to impact public health significantly.

14 Sep 2020

International trial of blood thinners for COVID-19 treatment begins

These trials, known as ACTIV-4 Antithrombotics, are part of the three planned adaptive trials in this area of clinical research, included in the Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) initiative. They are expected to yield new data on the safety and efficacy of these drugs in the treatment of active and convalescent COVID-19 treatment.

13 Sep 2020

Potential sea animal reservoirs for coronaviruses?

The COVID-19 pandemic has focused, yet again, intense research interest on coronaviruses, due to the high toll the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has taken on human life, health, economic well-being, and social activity. A recent paper published on the server Preprints in September 2020 reviews what is known about this viral infection in water life.

13 Sep 2020

Climatic changes may potentially impact COVID-19 pandemic

A recent epidemiological study by Princeton University researchers suggests that the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak during the winter season depends on the susceptibility of the population to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-induced infection as well as the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical control measures applied to control the virus spread.

13 Sep 2020

New insights into structural stability of SARS-CoV-2 main protease

In a recent bioRxiv preprint paper, researchers from the US and Italy utilized molecular dynamics simulations and revealed that the conformational stability of the SARS-CoV-2 binding site, bound inhibitors, and the hydrogen bond networks of the viral main protease (Mpro) are highly sensitive to protonation assignments.

13 Sep 2020

A map of SARS-CoV-2 escape mutations enables the development of therapeutic antibody cocktails

A recent tour-de-force study by the US researchers describes a comprehensive approach to completely map mutations to the SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain (RBD) that escape antibody binding – enabling, in turn, rational design of antibody therapeutics and appraisal of the antigenic consequences of viral evolution. The results are currently available in a bioRxiv preprint paper.

13 Sep 2020

Shedding light on altered blood cell traits involved in severe COVID-19

Researchers at the University of Georgia in the United States have shed light on the pathological mechanisms underlying the association between the genetic locus 3p21.31 and severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

13 Sep 2020

India's whole-virion inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine shows promise

Researchers in India have conducted a preclinical study demonstrating the safety and efficacy of a new candidate vaccine for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

13 Sep 2020

Cardiac MRI effective in identifying inflammation of the heart muscle in athletes

A cardiac MRI is effective in identifying inflammation of the heart muscle in athletes and can help determine when those who have recovered from COVID-19 can safely return to play in competitive sports, according to a new study by researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

12 Sep 2020

ACP highlights the importance of planned increases in payments for E/M services

Today the American College of Physicians sent a letter to every member of Congress stressing the importance that the planned increases in payments for evaluation and management services and other changes to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule move forward as scheduled on Jan. 1.

12 Sep 2020

Severely ill COVID-19 patients on ventilators can experience permanent nerve damage

Severely ill COVID-19 patients on ventilators are placed in a prone (face down) position because it's easier for them to breathe and reduces mortality.

12 Sep 2020

Health-related inequities among people of color in the U.S. have been exacerbated by COVID-19

In an editorial for the American Journal of Public Health, faculty from the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy led by Dean Ayman El-Mohandes highlight the long-standing public health-related inequities among people of color in the United States--which have only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic--and call upon New York City lawmakers to put forth policies to achieve a more equitable distribution of basic necessities such as employment, food, health care, housing, and education.

12 Sep 2020

Study: Public health regulation to tackle unhealthy diets is consistently opposed by food industry

A new study out this week during the Global Week for Action on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) highlights that global public health regulation intended to tackle unhealthy diets, a key risk factor for NCDs, is being consistently opposed by the food and drinks lobby.

12 Sep 2020

Researchers develop highly scalable, accurate antibody test for COVID-19

An antibody test for the virus that causes COVID-19, developed by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin in collaboration with Houston Methodist and other institutions, is more accurate and can handle a much larger number of donor samples at lower overall cost than standard antibody tests currently in use.

12 Sep 2020

Antiviral effects of honeysuckle decoction affected in SIDT1poly population

Previously, Chen-Yu Zhang's group have identified SID1 transmembrane family member 1 (SIDT1) as a critical membrane protein mediating dietary miRNAs absorption, which is abolished in SIDT1 deficient mice.

11 Sep 2020