Respiratory News and Research

RSS

Study reports persistent SARS-CoV-2 with increasing viral variants in pediatric patients

New research, published on medRxiv preprint server, has reported the effect of prolonged SARS-CoV-2 infection in immunocompromised children and young adults.

4 Mar 2021

Rapid point-of-care test used to diagnose respiratory infections can reduce antibiotic prescribing

A rapid microbiological point-of-care test to diagnose respiratory infections has proved popular with GPs and could reduce antibiotic prescribing in primary care, according to a National Institute for Health Research funded study by researchers at the Centre for Academic Primary Care, University of Bristol.

4 Mar 2021

SARS-CoV-2 variants do not substantially affect CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses, study shows

Researchers from California in the United States have conducted a study showing that important adaptive immune responses to infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are not affected by four recently emerged variants of the virus.

3 Mar 2021

Study shows lower antibody cross-reactivity after infection with the B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 variant

In a recent research paper currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server, a diverse group of researchers has examined the immunogenicity of antibodies against the variant B.1.1.7 of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) initially found in the United Kingdom – and revealed diminished recognition and neutralization of either parental strains or the South African variant.

3 Mar 2021

COVID risk to households and teachers from in person schooling

When researchers analyzed the responses of the COVID-19 Symptom Survey in the United States, they found an increased risk of COVID-19 for household members when children had in-person schooling.

3 Mar 2021

Results from phase 2 trial of Novavax recombinant nanoparticle SARS-CoV-2 vaccine

Novavax, Inc., the American vaccine development company, has been developing a recombinant protein nanoparticle COVID-19 vaccine currently termed NVX-CoV2373. The full-length spike protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is created in a baculovirus vector, which is then inserted into a lipid nanoparticle around 50 nm in diameter.

3 Mar 2021

Genetic variation associated with COVID-19 outcome

Host genetics play a role in disease progression and prognosis. A paper recently uploaded to the preprint server medRxiv by Dubé et al. (1st March 2021) identifies several alleles associated with the gene natriuretic peptide receptor C (NPR3) that may impact disease severity.

3 Mar 2021

Study reveals how racial discrimination in home-renting affects environmental inequality

Economists and urban planners generally agree that local pollution sources disproportionally impact racial minorities in the U.S. The reasons for this are largely unclear, but a University of Illinois study provides new insights into the issue.

3 Mar 2021

Low-cost, non-electric ventilator allows non-specialized workers to treat COVID-19 patients

A team of engineers from Loughborough University has designed and built a unique low-cost, non-electric ventilator in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

3 Mar 2021

Cigarette smoke toxicity impacts protective biofilm in the lungs, study finds

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Researchers (BGU) have found for the first time that cigarette smoke toxicity impacts the protective biofilm in the lungs, particularly concerning when paired with COVID-19 respiratory issues.

3 Mar 2021

Pfizer SARS-CoV-2 vaccine effective from day 11 post 1st vaccination

New research from a team of scientists in Australia finds that the second ‘booster’ dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine did not increase vaccine efficacy against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The results suggest one dose of the vaccine was sufficient in providing a robust immune response 11 days after inoculation.

3 Mar 2021

Genomic surveillance can help identify how SARS-CoV-2 spreads in care homes

Care homes are at high risk of experiencing outbreaks of COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. Older people and those affected by heart disease, respiratory disease and type 2 diabetes - all of which increase with age - are at greatest risk of severe disease and even death, making the care home population especially vulnerable.

3 Mar 2021

Vaccine candidate shows promise to protect against dozen-plus flu strains

Ask Eric Weaver about pandemics, and he's quick to remind you of a fact that illustrates the fleeting nature of human memory and the proximal nature of human attention: The first pandemic of the 21st century struck not in 2019, but 2009.

3 Mar 2021

First detailed images of newborn babies' lungs captured at birth

Researchers have captured the first detailed images of newborn babies' lungs as they take their first breaths.

3 Mar 2021

UK public health authorities review early data on the effectiveness of Pfizer and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines

A team of UK scientists has recently evaluated the effectiveness of the Pfizer (BNT162b2) and AstraZeneca (ChAdOx1) vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The findings reveal that both vaccines are effective in significantly reducing SARS-CoV-2 infection in older adults and providing long-term protection.

3 Mar 2021

Researchers develop ultrapotent miniproteins that target SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain

Researchers have investigated the effectiveness of a bioengineered miniprotein in protecting against SARS-CoV-2 infection in vivo. The researchers evaluated the miniprotein, LCB1, against SARS-CoV-2-mediated lung disease in human ACE2-expressing transgenic mice.

3 Mar 2021

Obesity may reduce COVID-19 vaccine efficacy, say researchers

A startling indicates that obesity may reduce the immune response to the current COVID-19 vaccines, along with other factors like age and sex. This could have significant implications for vaccination strategies in obese people.

3 Mar 2021

Delayed second dose strategy with mRNA vaccines may reduce COVID-19 mortality, say researchers

An interesting new preprint shows that even if countries are forced to delay the second dose of the current vaccines administered against SARS-CoV-2, to arrest the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the cumulative mortality would still fall significantly.

3 Mar 2021

Researchers conduct large meta-analysis of COVID-19’s neurological manifestations

The global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2, has led to intense interest in the various manifestations of the infection, including its neurological features. A compact summation by researchers across the UK of what is known at present about this facet of the disease is presented in a new paper.

3 Mar 2021

Researchers examine long-term immune responses following COVID-19 across clinically diverse cohort

A new study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, discusses the different aspects of long-term immune responses in a wide sample of patients, as well as how they vary in clinical severity and sequelae.

3 Mar 2021

Respiratory News and Research

Study reports persistent SARS-CoV-2 with increasing viral variants in pediatric patients

Rapid point-of-care test used to diagnose respiratory infections can reduce antibiotic prescribing

SARS-CoV-2 variants do not substantially affect CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses, study shows

Study shows lower antibody cross-reactivity after infection with the B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 variant

COVID risk to households and teachers from in person schooling

Results from phase 2 trial of Novavax recombinant nanoparticle SARS-CoV-2 vaccine

Genetic variation associated with COVID-19 outcome

Study reveals how racial discrimination in home-renting affects environmental inequality

Low-cost, non-electric ventilator allows non-specialized workers to treat COVID-19 patients

Cigarette smoke toxicity impacts protective biofilm in the lungs, study finds

Pfizer SARS-CoV-2 vaccine effective from day 11 post 1st vaccination

Genomic surveillance can help identify how SARS-CoV-2 spreads in care homes

Vaccine candidate shows promise to protect against dozen-plus flu strains

First detailed images of newborn babies' lungs captured at birth

UK public health authorities review early data on the effectiveness of Pfizer and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines

Researchers develop ultrapotent miniproteins that target SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain

Obesity may reduce COVID-19 vaccine efficacy, say researchers

Delayed second dose strategy with mRNA vaccines may reduce COVID-19 mortality, say researchers

Researchers conduct large meta-analysis of COVID-19’s neurological manifestations

Researchers examine long-term immune responses following COVID-19 across clinically diverse cohort

Discover how SciY empowers scientists

Why use light scattering to analyze proteins and viral vectors?

Changing the landscape of R&D to build clinical success from the ground up

Latest News