RNA News and Research

RSS

Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a biologically important type of molecule that consists of a long chain of nucleotide units. Each nucleotide consists of a nitrogenous base, a ribose sugar, and a phosphate.

COVID-19 tests with the new assay may be just as reliable as laboratory-based molecular tests

Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago have designed a high-quality assay that can be used in at-home tests for rapid COVID-19 screening.

3 Jan 2022

SARS-CoV-2 Omicron study on hamsters, shows virus results in a less severe disease

Researchers investigate the ability of immunity acquired from SARS-CoV-2 wild-type infection to protect against the Omicron variant in Syrian hamster models.

3 Jan 2022

Echinacea, a potent antiviral against SARS-CoV-2

Researchers present available evidence on the activity of Echinacea purpure against coronavirus infections.

3 Jan 2022

Genomic variant may help predict which patients will experience chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity

A team of investigators have discovered a genomic variant that may help clinicians predict which patients will experience cardiotoxicity from a widely used chemotherapy drug, according to a Northwestern Medicine study published in Circulation.

3 Jan 2022

TriSb92 as a potential inhibitor against SARS-CoV-2 variants including Omicron

New findings indicate that TriSb92 is a potent inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2 infection targeting a conserved site in the RBD of the spike, which is insensitive for immune escape mutations found in the relevant variants of concern, including Omicron

31 Dec 2021

Less severe clinical consequences of infection with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant

New evidence implies that the Omicron variant may cause a less severe and/or faster recovery from clinical COVID-19 disease.

31 Dec 2021

SARS-CoV-2 infection and immunity in pregnancy and fetal development

A review conducted by a team of researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, the University of Colorado, and Active Motif, Incorporated compiles information on SARS-CoV-2 virology, in utero transmission from infected pregnant mothers to fetuses, new findings on possible methods of SARS-CoV-2 cellular trafficking through exosomes, and the transcriptomic effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection, in order to inform future studies aimed at a better understanding of COVID-19 and the development of therapeutic solutions against SARS-CoV-2.

30 Dec 2021

Antibody neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant via BNT162b2 vaccine booster dose

New study findings highlight the need for a rapid booster vaccine campaign to prevent COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant since the neutralization of Omicron by the two-dose BNT162b2 vaccine is not effective in controlling the spread of the infection.

30 Dec 2021

Clinical-grade soluble human ACE2 shown to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant

New study findings show that the clinical-grade soluble ACE2 effectively inhibits the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, which proves the principle of an effective therapeutic approach against Omicron-driven COVID-19 infections.

30 Dec 2021

P323L mutations in SARS-CoV-2 are highly predictive of the emergence of new variants

In a new study, findings suggest that in some cases, tracking the distribution and frequency of SARS-CoV-2 minor variant genomes at a population level would help in predicting the emergence of a new dominant viral genome sequence.

30 Dec 2021

Study explores relative reproduction of the SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant in South Africa

A new study, focused on the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, presented a modeling result from an analysis of genome surveillance data in Gauteng province, South Africa, using an existing estimation technique.

30 Dec 2021

Rapid antigen tests show lower sensitivity for Omicron than for earlier SARS-CoV-2 variants

Researchers carried out an analytical susceptibility test with cultured SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in seven antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic (Ag-RDTs).

29 Dec 2021

Animal study suggests Omicron is less infectious than previous SARS-CoV-2 strains

A new study suggests the Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant is not as infectious as scientists initially assumed.

29 Dec 2021

Study suggests saliva swabs may be more suitable for omicron detection

New study findings reveal that saliva samples are more useful than mid-turbinate samples for the accurate detection of omicron infection.

29 Dec 2021

New strategy to create a cheap and rapid COVID-19 test based on isothermal amplification

Russian researchers have developed a strategy to create a cheap and rapid COVID-19 test based on isothermal amplification. According to their publication in Applied Biochemistry and Microbiology, use of this strategy will make it possible to create universal test systems for any of the COVID-19 variants.

29 Dec 2021

An evaluation of the association between COVID vaccination and myocarditis in 42 million people aged 13 or older

A new study posted to the medRxiv* pre-print server included individuals over 13 years of age receiving the third vaccine dose to further evaluate the association between myocarditis and COVID-19 vaccination or infection. The study took place from December 1, 2020, to November 15, 2021.

28 Dec 2021

SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant mutated to evade the immune system

The SARS-CoV-2 Alpha (B.1.1.7) variant mutated to evade our 'innate immune system', helping establish it as the world's first 'Variant of Concern', finds a new study led by researchers at UCL and the Quantitative Biosciences Institute, University of California San Francisco.

24 Dec 2021

LJI researchers discover how loss of TET enzymes can lead to B cell lymphoma

Scientists at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology have uncovered how loss of TET enzymes can lead to B cell lymphoma. Their research, published in Nature Immunology, could potentially open opportunities for designing drug treatment strategies to target malignant cells in many cancers.

24 Dec 2021

Single-patient pilot study shows the ability of antisense oligonucleotide to suppress mutant ALS gene

Using a short, synthetic chain of chemically modified nucleotides engineered in the RNA Therapeutics Institute at UMass Chan Medical School, Robert H. Brown Jr., DPhil, MD, Jonathan Watts, PhD, and colleagues have shown the ability to suppress mutant forms of an ALS gene known as C9ORF72 in a single-patient pilot study.

24 Dec 2021

Allele-specific RT-qPCR assay to identify SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in wastewater

Researchers develop a new allele-specific RT-qPCR to detect the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in wastewater.

23 Dec 2021

RNA News and Research

Further Reading

COVID-19 tests with the new assay may be just as reliable as laboratory-based molecular tests

SARS-CoV-2 Omicron study on hamsters, shows virus results in a less severe disease

Echinacea, a potent antiviral against SARS-CoV-2

Genomic variant may help predict which patients will experience chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity

TriSb92 as a potential inhibitor against SARS-CoV-2 variants including Omicron

Less severe clinical consequences of infection with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant

SARS-CoV-2 infection and immunity in pregnancy and fetal development

Antibody neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant via BNT162b2 vaccine booster dose

Clinical-grade soluble human ACE2 shown to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant

P323L mutations in SARS-CoV-2 are highly predictive of the emergence of new variants

Study explores relative reproduction of the SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant in South Africa

Rapid antigen tests show lower sensitivity for Omicron than for earlier SARS-CoV-2 variants

Animal study suggests Omicron is less infectious than previous SARS-CoV-2 strains

Study suggests saliva swabs may be more suitable for omicron detection

New strategy to create a cheap and rapid COVID-19 test based on isothermal amplification

An evaluation of the association between COVID vaccination and myocarditis in 42 million people aged 13 or older

SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant mutated to evade the immune system

LJI researchers discover how loss of TET enzymes can lead to B cell lymphoma

Single-patient pilot study shows the ability of antisense oligonucleotide to suppress mutant ALS gene

Allele-specific RT-qPCR assay to identify SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in wastewater

Latest eBooks

Industry Focus eBook - Analytical Chemistry (3rd edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Microbiome (1st edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Cell biology (5th edition)

Advancing degrader and proximity-based drug development

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo