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Could cow's milk provide some passive immunity against COVID-19?

Researchers at the Department of Animal Health, University of Cordoba, Córdoba, Spain, speculate that bovine milk consumption – specifically from cows with resistance to bovine coronaviruses – may potentially provide at least some degree of protection from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The article is available to read in full on the Frontiers in Immunology website.

13 Apr 2021

New fluorescent probe can differentiate between B and T lymphocytes

Human blood contains several different components, including plasma, red blood cells (RBCs), white blood cells (WBCs), and platelets. Among these, WBCs are divided into numerous subcategories each with unique functions and characteristics, such as lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, and others.

13 Apr 2021

Researchers develop broad-spectrum SARS-CoV-2 RBD-based vaccine

In a recent bioRxiv* preprint, the large team of researchers evaluated a SARS-CoV-2 Spike receptor-binding domain ferritin nanoparticle protein vaccine (RFN) in a nonhuman primate challenge model. This study addresses the need for a next-generation, efficacious vaccine with an increased pan-SARS breadth of coverage.

13 Apr 2021

Measurable antibody response to mRNA COVID-19 vaccine in elderly care home residents

A new preprint research paper posted to the medRxiv* server explores the antibody response to COVID-19 vaccines in elderly residents of nursing homes in the USA. As of March 2021, there have been over 1.4 million infections from SARS-CoV-2 and over 175,000 deaths related to the pandemic among nursing home residents in the country.

13 Apr 2021

New technology shows encouraging results for treating osteosarcoma

A preclinical study led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center shows an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) targeting surface protein MT1-MMP can act as a guided missile in eradicating osteosarcoma tumor cells without damaging normal tissues.

13 Apr 2021

Nanobody cocktails neutralize SARS-CoV-2 and variants

Researchers report a collection of nanobodies derived from llamas, some of which can work synergistically and work against newer virus variants.

12 Apr 2021

Broadly cross-reactive antibody to SARS-CoV-2 RBD with robust resistance to mutational escape

A new study addresses an urgent need – namely, a therapeutic antibody directed specifically against a key SARS-CoV-2 antigen which is highly conserved among similar viruses, and is not easily bypassed by viral escape mutations.

12 Apr 2021

P681 mutation has little impact on transmissibility in the SARS-CoV-2 UK variant, finds study

A new preprint, recently released on the bioRxiv* server, explores the impact of a single mutation, the P681H mutation, on the transmissibility of the virus.

12 Apr 2021

Current hygiene guidelines appropriate for UK and SA variants of SARS-CoV-2, study finds

Many different variants and lineages have arisen from the ancestral Wuhan-Hu1 strain of the SARS-CoV-2. This requires careful attention to control measures since many are more infective and transmissible than the older strains. A recent study compares the UK variant of this virus with the wildtype in terms of susceptibility to routine cleaning and disinfection measures.

12 Apr 2021

Researchers provide ultrastructural details of SARS-CoV-2-infected respiratory epithelial cells

A team of scientists from the United Kingdom recently investigated the ultrastructural details of the attachment, entry, and budding processes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in the human airway epithelium. They have used a highly differentiated air-liquid interface cultures of airway epithelium to thoroughly investigate the viral infection cycle. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

12 Apr 2021

Researchers explore an inhalable SARS-CoV-2 nanobody therapy

Even as vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 are being developed and administered at an unprecedented pace, treating this infection remains a challenge. To address this, researchers from China have used nanobodies (Nb) as a possible therapeutic approach. They reported Nb phage display libraries derived from four camels immunized with the SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD.

12 Apr 2021

SARS-CoV-2 spike E484K mutation reduces antibody neutralization

Researchers at the Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York, USA, showed that the SARS-CoV-2 spike E484K mutation reduces antibody neutralization.

12 Apr 2021

Researchers work to develop dual antigen COVID-19 vaccine candidate

A new study has been published on the medRxiv* preprint server, which focuses on the development of a dual-antigen COVID-19' T cell' vaccine. This vaccine is developed based on the expression of both S protein and nucleocapsid (N) protein of SARS-CoV-2, using a next-generation human adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5) platform.

12 Apr 2021

Could N protein-based COVID-19 vaccines hinder SARS-CoV-2's NK cell inhibition?

Upon SARS-CoV-2 infection, what are the changes occurring on the surface of the host cell? To address this, and a team of researchers undertook a study exploring the natural killer (NK) cells and their role during a SARS-CoV-2 infection.

12 Apr 2021

Screening for SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein 14 inhibitors

In a paper recently uploaded to the preprint server bioRxiv* by Diffley et al. (April 8th, 2021), inhibitors of one essential SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein are explored, with four compounds, in particular, identified as potential antiviral leads that exhibit synergistic effects with antiviral drug remdesivir.

12 Apr 2021

Commercial assays detect mRNA-1273 and BNT162b2 vaccine-induced SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in most vaccinated participants

A recent study by researchers from Canada aimed to examine the ability of commercial assays to detect vaccine-induced antibodies and recognize the vaccination response.

12 Apr 2021

The role and ancestry of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein glycan shield

In a research paper recently uploaded to the preprint server bioRxiv by Harbison et al. (April 1st 2021) a set of multi-microsecond long molecular dynamics simulations study the effects of altering glycosylation at sites N234, N165, N343, and the newly identified ancestral site N370, uncovering the influence of these sites on infectivity.

12 Apr 2021

mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy provides passive SARS-CoV-2 immunity to neonates 16 days after first dose

Recently, a group of researchers analyzed 122 pregnant women and their neonates at the time of birth. All the women studied received 1 or both doses of a messenger RNA (mRNA)-based vaccine for COVID-19. Of the 122 women part of the study, 55 had received only the first dose of the vaccine while 67 women had received both doses of the mRNA vaccine by the time they gave birth; 85 women had received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, and 37 women received the Moderna vaccine. The study is published on the preprint server, bioRxiv.

11 Apr 2021

Pregnant women transmit SARS-CoV-2 and vaccine-induced antibodies to fetus

Pregnant women are at high risk for severe COVID-19 infection and death. Yet, insufficient safety data on babies has led many guidelines to leave the decision-making and potential threats to future mothers. While the vaccine trials did not directly test pregnant women, more real-world data suggests the vaccine may provide immunity benefits to newborns through breastmilk.

11 Apr 2021

New polypeptide could provide universal protection against coronaviruses

Researchers in the United States have developed an inhibitor of the spike protein found on the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that limits its formation in host human cells that would otherwise be the source of newly generated virions.

11 Apr 2021