Pandemic News and Research

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A pandemic is a global disease outbreak. During a pandemic, transmission can be anticipated in the workplace, not only from patient to workers in health care settings, but also among co-workers in general work settings. A pandemic would cause high levels of illness, death, social disruption, and economic loss. Everyday life would be disrupted because so many people in so many places become seriously ill at the same time. Impacts could range from school and business closings to the interruption of basic services such as public transportation and food delivery.

Redhill Biopharma announces completion of Phase 2/3 COVID-19 study of oral opaganib

RedHill Biopharma Ltd., a specialty pharma company that is a leader in the development of novel oral therapies for COVID-19, today announced that all treatment and follow-up has now been completed in the 475-patient global Phase 2/3 study with opaganib (ABC294640) in patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19 pneumonia (NCT04467840). Top-line results are expected in the coming weeks.

20 Jul 2021

Researchers develop new tool to simulate the impact of SARS-CoV-2 strains and vaccines

The MOMAT research group from Universidad Complutense de Madrid has worked with Universidad de Almería, to develop a mathematical model that simulates the impact of SARS-CoV-2 strains and vaccines together, combined with many other biological and social processes in the propagation of COVID-19.

19 Jul 2021

Researchers investigate the prevalence of food insecurity and insufficiency among emerging adults

University of Minnesota School of Public Health researchers recently completed a study to determine how food-insecure young (emerging) adults (18-29 years of age) adapted their eating and child feeding behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic.

19 Jul 2021

New project receives NIHR funding to develop personalized rehabilitation program for long Covid patients

A new research project, led by a team from St George's, University of London and Kingston University as well as Cardiff University, has received major funding from the National Institute for Health Research to develop personalized rehabilitation programmes to help patients live well with long Covid.

19 Jul 2021

COVID-19 first wave increased the sale of antibiotic formulations in India

The first wave of COVID-19 in 2020 in India saw a substantial increase in the sale of antibiotic formulations used in adults and adolescents, especially azithromycin, says a study.

19 Jul 2021

Scientists deconstruct the protein-based machine responsible for SARS-CoV-2 replication

In February 2020, a trio of bio-imaging experts were sitting amiably around a dinner table at a scientific conference in Washington, D.C., when the conversation shifted to what was then a worrying viral epidemic in China.

19 Jul 2021

Novel coronavirus found in UK horseshoe bats

A coronavirus related to the virus that causes Covid-19 in humans has been found in UK horseshoe bats - according to new collaborative research from the University of East Anglia, ZSL (Zoological Society of London), and Public Health England (PHE).

19 Jul 2021

Study reveals the impact of high respiratory efforts on the lungs of COVID-19 patients

The impact of high breathing efforts on the lungs of patients suffering with acute respiratory failure due to COVID-19 has been investigated by researchers at the University of Warwick, who assessed the likelihood of resulting lung injury.

19 Jul 2021

Dysbiosis in gut microbiota may cause severe secondary infection in COVID-19 patients

An interesting study led by scientists in the U.S. has recently revealed that the microbial community in the gut is directly affected by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and that virus-mediated gut microbiome dysbiosis may cause severe secondary infections in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

19 Jul 2021

Grab your mask and notepad, we’re headed back to California’s state Capitol

The best part about returning to the pandemic-besieged state Capitol is that the elected officials are so unused to seeing us reporters after more than a year that some are occasionally extra chatty. The bad part is that the masks make it harder to eavesdrop on the rest of them.

19 Jul 2021

Do mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines induce memory T cell response similar to natural infection?

A team of scientists from the United States has recently compared the epitope-specific T cell response after natural severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection or vaccination in both naïve and previously infected individuals.

19 Jul 2021

Analysis shows the amount of testing for COVID-19 matters more than the sensitivity of the tests

Results from sensitive RT-PCR tests can be similar in accuracy to the less sensitive antigen tests, providing valuable insight for testing policies.

19 Jul 2021

Stronger and longer SARS-CoV-2 RBD-ACE2 binding associated with glycans in new study

A new study has been published on the bioRxiv* preprint server, which focuses on the mechanism behind the binding of SARS-CoV-2 with the host receptor, using a molecular dynamics approach. The authors of this study aim to highlight the role of glycans in initiating the interaction between S and ACE2.

19 Jul 2021

Researchers conduct molecular dynamic study of SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein and human skin model interactions

Currently, there is a lack of understanding of the physico-chemical features of the interaction between coronaviruses and different surfaces. However, new research has been published on the bioRxiv* preprint server that documents the molecular details of the interaction between the human skin and SARS-CoV-2.

19 Jul 2021

Preventing lethal blood clots

In our latest interview, we spoke to Professor Robert Ariëns from the University of Leeds about his latest research into blood clots and how they can be prevented.

19 Jul 2021

Government’s plan recklessly exposes millions in the UK to infection, warn experts

The UK government’s latest pandemic plan involves recklessly exposing millions of people to the acute and long-term effects of mass infection, warn experts in The BMJ today.

19 Jul 2021

Health impacts of lockdowns unlikely to be worse than the impact of COVID-19 pandemic

Although lockdowns are undoubtedly associated with health harms, their impact on health is unlikely to be worse than the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic itself, concludes a review published in the online journal BMJ Global Health.

19 Jul 2021

Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 by bentonite-based nasal spray

Therefore, the nose is an important target for prophylaxis and also for therapy. In a recent study posted to the bioRxiv* preprint server, Fabio Fais et al. developed a safe and easy-to-use nasal spray, AM-301, a medical device marketed as Bentrio, to protect against infection by SARS-CoV-2 and potentially other viruses.

19 Jul 2021

Plant-based vaccines for COVID-19 and other viruses

A review published in the journal Vaccines, explored the history and current status of plant-produced vaccine candidates against enveloped viruses, focusing on virus-like particles (VLPs), which mimic authentic viral structures without containing infectious genetic material.

19 Jul 2021

An assay capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in breast milk and other samples

In a recent study by US researchers (currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server), a specific immunoassay based on the spike glycoprotein’s receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is not only well suited for the detection of antibody response after infection and vaccination but may also represent a method of choice when conducting seroepidemiological studies.

19 Jul 2021

Pandemic News and Research

Further Reading

Redhill Biopharma announces completion of Phase 2/3 COVID-19 study of oral opaganib

Researchers develop new tool to simulate the impact of SARS-CoV-2 strains and vaccines

Researchers investigate the prevalence of food insecurity and insufficiency among emerging adults

New project receives NIHR funding to develop personalized rehabilitation program for long Covid patients

COVID-19 first wave increased the sale of antibiotic formulations in India

Scientists deconstruct the protein-based machine responsible for SARS-CoV-2 replication

Novel coronavirus found in UK horseshoe bats

Study reveals the impact of high respiratory efforts on the lungs of COVID-19 patients

Dysbiosis in gut microbiota may cause severe secondary infection in COVID-19 patients

Grab your mask and notepad, we’re headed back to California’s state Capitol

Do mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines induce memory T cell response similar to natural infection?

Analysis shows the amount of testing for COVID-19 matters more than the sensitivity of the tests

Stronger and longer SARS-CoV-2 RBD-ACE2 binding associated with glycans in new study

Researchers conduct molecular dynamic study of SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein and human skin model interactions

Preventing lethal blood clots

Government’s plan recklessly exposes millions in the UK to infection, warn experts

Health impacts of lockdowns unlikely to be worse than the impact of COVID-19 pandemic

Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 by bentonite-based nasal spray

Plant-based vaccines for COVID-19 and other viruses

An assay capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in breast milk and other samples

Best practices - optimize qPCR processes for pathogen detection eBook

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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