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$3.7 million NIH grant supports development of biosensor technology for diagnosing viral diseases

For over ten years, Ali Yanik has been working to develop novel biosensor technology to provide rapid, low-cost testing for disease diagnostics and precision medicine.

16 Dec 2020

SARS-CoV-2 RNA can be reverse-transcribed to be part of chimeric viral-human genome

A new study reveals that the genome of SARS-CoV-2 is inserted into the human genome, accounting for the detection of viral RNAs.

16 Dec 2020

SARS-CoV-2 unique deletion variants found in clinical specimens

While participating in the SPHERES Consortium project, US researchers sequenced 2,726 clinical patient specimens gathered in March 2020 and identified eight unique ORF7a deletion variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Their results are currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

15 Dec 2020

World Health Organization issues notice for in vitro diagnostics users

Nucleic acid testing (NAT) technologies that use real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for detection of SARS-CoV-2.

14 Dec 2020

Less sensitive rapid tests may miss asymptomatic/presymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection

The rapid transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2 has posed a significant challenge to COVID-19 containment measures.

14 Dec 2020

Prior T cell immunity to SARS-CoV-2 unlikely to be the result of seasonal coronavirus infection

Scientists have suggested that a proportion of the population have pre-existing immunity to COVID-19 because of T cells primed against SARS-CoV-2 antigens.

14 Dec 2020

WVU, DHHR team up to create new COVID-19 testing laboratory in Morgantown

To address the challenges of COVID-19 testing shortages and lagging turnaround times, West Virginia University and the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources have teamed up to create a new testing laboratory at the Health Sciences Center thanks to funding made possible by Gov. Jim Justice.

11 Dec 2020

Case study suggests kindergartens are not SARS-CoV-2 super-spreaders

A new study by researchers at the Institute of Tropical Medicine and International Health at the Charite Universitaetsmedizin Berlin found that kindergartens are not silent transmission reservoirs.

11 Dec 2020

Saliva-based smartphone COVID-19 testing platform provides results within 15 minutes

Offering an ultrasensitive yet accessible approach to COVID-19 testing, a portable saliva-based smartphone platform provides results within 15 minutes without the resource-intensive laboratory tests the current gold standard requires, according to a new study.

11 Dec 2020

Current testing-isolation policies effectively prevent campus transmission of COVID-19

A new study, shows that while students showed a high degree of compliance with restrictive measures, they continued to contract the infection from off-campus.

11 Dec 2020

Rapid lateral flow immunoassay enables fluorescence detection of SARS-Cov-2 RNA

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for rapid and accurate nucleic acid detection at the point of care. To meet this need, scientists from the Suzhou Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Technology have developed a novel amplification-free rapid SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid detection platform based on hybrid capture fluorescence immunoassay (HC-FIA).

11 Dec 2020

Hydroxychloroquine found ineffective as post-exposure SARS-CoV-2 prophylaxis

Now, a study on the utility of hydroxychloroquine as prophylaxis against COVID-19, has been released in the latest issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.

10 Dec 2020

Single N primer sufficient for SARS-CoV-2 molecular diagnosis

There is a huge and growing demand for better molecular diagnostic tests for COVID-19, as the pandemic shows few signs of coming under control.

10 Dec 2020

Could anterior nasal swabs be an effective alternative for SARS-CoV-2 testing?

Researchers from various institutions in Germany and Switzerland recently performed a prospective diagnostic accuracy study, in which they compared professional-collected anterior nasal swabs to nasopharyngeal swabs, using WHO-listed SARS-CoV-2 Ag-RDT (STANDARD Q COVID-19 Ag Test, SD Biosensor) test kits.

10 Dec 2020

UCI researchers develop noninvasive, at-home saliva test to detect COVID-19

Researchers in the Henry Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Irvine announced promising results in the development of a noninvasive at-home antigen test to detect the spike of SARS-CoV-2 proteins in saliva.

9 Dec 2020

Amilorides reduce SARS-CoV-2 viral replication in vitro

A new U.S. study published on the bioRxiv preprint server reports the use of an amiloride-based scaffold that targets a viral RNA structure known to be essential in viral replication in the 5’-untranslated region (UTR) of the virus. The researchers say this heralds the application of these molecules as chemical probes to explore viral biology and produce specific antivirals targeting RNA regions of the coronavirus genome.

8 Dec 2020

People with Bartonella infection exhibit neuropsychiatric symptoms, skin lesions

Bartonella bacteria are increasingly recognized as an emerging infectious disease threat. A new study by North Carolina State University researchers has found additional instances of Bartonella infection in humans who exhibited neuropsychiatric symptoms, a subset of whom also had skin lesions.

8 Dec 2020

New 'nanoPCR' technology can accurately diagnose COVID-19 in less than 20 minutes

A "nanoPCR" technology was developed for the point-of-care (POC) diagnosis of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19).

8 Dec 2020

COVID-19 may be linked to acute appendicitis in children

Researchers at the University of Virginia have recently presented a case series pointing to a potential association between infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the development of acute appendicitis in children.

8 Dec 2020

Saliva samples may be reliable alternative to nasal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 testing

A team of researchers from various institutes in Switzerland report how saliva samples may be a strong alternative to nasal swaps in PCR-related SARS-CoV-2 testing.

8 Dec 2020

Polymerase News and Research

$3.7 million NIH grant supports development of biosensor technology for diagnosing viral diseases

SARS-CoV-2 RNA can be reverse-transcribed to be part of chimeric viral-human genome

SARS-CoV-2 unique deletion variants found in clinical specimens

World Health Organization issues notice for in vitro diagnostics users

Less sensitive rapid tests may miss asymptomatic/presymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection

Prior T cell immunity to SARS-CoV-2 unlikely to be the result of seasonal coronavirus infection

WVU, DHHR team up to create new COVID-19 testing laboratory in Morgantown

Case study suggests kindergartens are not SARS-CoV-2 super-spreaders

Saliva-based smartphone COVID-19 testing platform provides results within 15 minutes

Current testing-isolation policies effectively prevent campus transmission of COVID-19

Rapid lateral flow immunoassay enables fluorescence detection of SARS-Cov-2 RNA

Hydroxychloroquine found ineffective as post-exposure SARS-CoV-2 prophylaxis

Single N primer sufficient for SARS-CoV-2 molecular diagnosis

Could anterior nasal swabs be an effective alternative for SARS-CoV-2 testing?

UCI researchers develop noninvasive, at-home saliva test to detect COVID-19

Amilorides reduce SARS-CoV-2 viral replication in vitro

People with Bartonella infection exhibit neuropsychiatric symptoms, skin lesions

New 'nanoPCR' technology can accurately diagnose COVID-19 in less than 20 minutes

COVID-19 may be linked to acute appendicitis in children

Saliva samples may be reliable alternative to nasal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 testing

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