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Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine offers decreased protection six months after second dose, suggests Israeli study

A recent study published on the preprint server medRxiv* determines whether the time elapsed since the second dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine is associated with an increased risk of breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infection.

6 Aug 2021

SARS-CoV-2 Beta variant associated with more critical and fatal disease than Alpha, suggests Qatar study

A new study traces the degree to which the Beta variant of this virus is associated with severe, critical or fatal disease, using a case-control model.

6 Aug 2021

Double vaccinated three times less likely to test positive for COVID-19 than unvaccinated, says study

In new research, scientists at Imperial College London report that double vaccinated individuals could be three times less likely than unvaccinated people to test positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection.

6 Aug 2021

Using two different CRISPR enzymes to develop a faster and easier COVID-19 diagnostic test

Frequent, rapid testing for COVID-19 is critical to controlling the spread of outbreaks, especially as new, more transmissible variants emerge.

5 Aug 2021

A correlation study between time-from-vaccine and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections

A new retrospective study compares the incidence rates of breakthrough infections between different time points at which individuals were vaccinated.

5 Aug 2021

Diagnosis of viral infections using micro and nanoscale technologies

In a recent study, the authors provide a review on both micro- and nanoscale technologies that advanced the diagnosis of viral diseases.

3 Aug 2021

Unvaccinated and vaccinated have similar viral load in communities high in SARS-CoV-2 delta

The findings reveal that vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals exhibit similar viral loads following delta infection and that vaccine breakthrough cases have the potential to transmit infection to others. The study is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server.

3 Aug 2021

National Qatari study shows vaccination reduces risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2 infection

A team of scientists from Qatar and the United States has recently studied the viral transmission potential of individuals with primary severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, reinfection, or vaccine breakthrough infection.

2 Aug 2021

Study shows efficacy of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 delta variant

Researchers in Singapore have conducted a study showing that the messenger RNA- (mRNA) based coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna are highly effective at protecting against symptomatic and severe disease following infection with the rapidly spreading B.1.617.2 (delta) variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

2 Aug 2021

New model can help clinicians to predict 40-day mortality risk in hospitalized COVID-19 patients

Researchers from Hackensack Meridian University Medical Center and Berry Consultants, LLC, Austin, Texas have developed a new model to help clinicians predict the risk of death within 40 days in patients who are hospitalized with COVID-19 infection.

2 Aug 2021

Researchers discover titanium oxide nanoparticle that recognizes SARS-CoV-2’s non-structural protein 1

A pioneering study reports on the interaction of a tailored titanium oxide nanoparticle (NP) with the full-length SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein 1 (nsp1). This should be of value in developing new therapeutic tools against coronaviruses that act by targeting their proteins. It could also help map the structure of activated proteins.

2 Aug 2021

Polyuridine sequence of mouse coronavirus can be targeted to prevent host cell death

A new study reports the use of a modified deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) oligonucleotide that has a 3’ polyadenine (polyA) tail to bind to the 5’-polyU tract in the mouse coronavirus (MHV-A59). Treatment of mouse cells infected with MHV-A59 with this molecule led to a marked reduction in cell deaths.

2 Aug 2021

Could novel biosensors facilitate SARS-CoV-2 antiviral drug research?

An intriguing new study presents a novel approach to biosensor-based evaluation of promising drugs that could inhibit the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) via its 3C-like protease (3CLpro), a viral protease.

2 Aug 2021

In-depth sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 variants crucial in controlling outbreaks

In this interview, News-Medical speaks to Professor Dana Crawford about her research efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

2 Aug 2021

Study examined 1,497 full-vaccinated healthcare workers for breakthrough infections

A new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found that in a very small number of cases, people with breakthrough infections might suffer long-lasting COVID-19 symptoms.

2 Aug 2021

Prior SARS-CoV-2 infection enhances effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

A study conducted by researchers in Qatar has found that Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine was more protective against infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) among individuals who had previously been infected with the virus than among those who had not.

29 Jul 2021

SARS-CoV-2 Beta variant marginally affects Pfizer vaccination efficacy in fully vaccinated

Researchers from Israel recently evaluated the efficacy of the Pfizer vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.351 variant.

28 Jul 2021

Amount of testing matters more than the sensitivity of COVID-19 tests

A computational analysis of COVID-19 tests suggests that, in order to minimize the number of infections in a population, the amount of testing matters more than the sensitivity of the tests that are used. Philip Cherian and Gautam Menon of Ashoka University in Sonipat, India, and Sandeep Krishna of the National Centre for Biological Sciences TIFR, Bangalore, India, present their findings in the open-access journal PLOS Computational Biology.

27 Jul 2021

Scientists identify an antiviral metabolite as a potential serum biomarker for SARS-CoV-2 infection

Scientists from the UK have recently identified an antiviral metabolite 3'-Deoxy-3',4'-didehydro-cytidine as a potential serum biomarker to diagnose active severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The study is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server while awaiting peer review.

27 Jul 2021

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in breast milk: Study

A new study published on the medRxiv* preprint server explores the presence of immunoglobulin (Ig) antibodies IgA and IgG against SARS-CoV-2 in breast milk secreted by women with confirmed infection. The scientists also delineated the specific antigens targeted by the antibodies.

26 Jul 2021

Polymerase News and Research

Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine offers decreased protection six months after second dose, suggests Israeli study

SARS-CoV-2 Beta variant associated with more critical and fatal disease than Alpha, suggests Qatar study

Double vaccinated three times less likely to test positive for COVID-19 than unvaccinated, says study

Using two different CRISPR enzymes to develop a faster and easier COVID-19 diagnostic test

A correlation study between time-from-vaccine and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections

Diagnosis of viral infections using micro and nanoscale technologies

Unvaccinated and vaccinated have similar viral load in communities high in SARS-CoV-2 delta

National Qatari study shows vaccination reduces risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2 infection

Study shows efficacy of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 delta variant

New model can help clinicians to predict 40-day mortality risk in hospitalized COVID-19 patients

Researchers discover titanium oxide nanoparticle that recognizes SARS-CoV-2’s non-structural protein 1

Polyuridine sequence of mouse coronavirus can be targeted to prevent host cell death

Could novel biosensors facilitate SARS-CoV-2 antiviral drug research?

In-depth sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 variants crucial in controlling outbreaks

Study examined 1,497 full-vaccinated healthcare workers for breakthrough infections

Prior SARS-CoV-2 infection enhances effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

SARS-CoV-2 Beta variant marginally affects Pfizer vaccination efficacy in fully vaccinated

Amount of testing matters more than the sensitivity of COVID-19 tests

Scientists identify an antiviral metabolite as a potential serum biomarker for SARS-CoV-2 infection

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in breast milk: Study

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

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