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.

Reducing COVID-19 burden with monoclonal antibodies and vaccination

Researchers in the United States, the UK and France have shown that using antiviral monoclonal antibodies in combination with vaccination can be expected to suppress the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) and reduce the burden of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) more than vaccination alone.

26 May 2021

Will SARS-CoV-2 eventually become just another seasonal coronavirus?

Could SARS-CoV-2 become just a seasonal nuisance in the next decade, causing just coughs and sniffles like a common cold, suggests new research? Scientists at the University of Utah, USA, tried to predict the possible future of the novel coronavirus using mathematical models that use learnings from the current pandemic on changes in human immunity over time.

26 May 2021

Can certain aircraft boarding procedures increase SARS-CoV-2 transmission risks?

In a study published in the Royal Society Open Science journal, researchers simulated many aircraft boarding processes to assess their impact on social proximity during boarding. They also studied the dominant mechanisms by which these processes generate social proximity. The researchers systematically measured proximity by measuring the number of contacts originating from the following situations: 1. contacts between seated passenger pairs; 2. contacts between aisle passenger pairs; and 3. contacts between a seated passenger and an aisle passenger.

26 May 2021

CASdetec: new CRISPR-based SARS-CoV-2 detection platform detects nucleic acids with high sensitivity and specificity

To add to existing CRISPR-based nucleic acid detection protocols, a team of researchers recently established a new SARS-CoV-2 detection protocol based on their previously reported platform - CDetection (Cas12b-mediated DNA detection). They combined nucleic-acid amplification methods and sample treatment protocols with CDetection and established an integrated nucleic acid detection platform called CRISPR-assisted detection or CASdetec. CASdetec has a detection limit of 1×104 copies/mL for SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus, without any observed cross-reactivity.

26 May 2021

A behavioral health care app to address COVID-related health disparities in racial, ethnic populations

A University of Houston researcher is developing a behavioral health care app to address COVID-related health disparities in racial and ethnic populations, where health inequality has been magnified during the pandemic.

26 May 2021

New COVID-19 test can deliver highly accurate results in less than 15 minutes

A new rapid coronavirus test developed by KAUST scientists can deliver highly accurate results in less than 15 minutes.

26 May 2021

Intensity and duration of SARS-CoV-2 immunity may depend on ABO blood group

A team of scientists from Canada and Spain recently evaluated the durability of antigen-specific immune responses in COVID-19 recovered individuals. They have also identified potential host factors associated with robust and long-lasting anti-SARS-CoV-2 immunity.

26 May 2021

Researchers develop a method to detect SARS-CoV-2 and variants simultaneously

Researchers demonstrate a method of detecting the presence and mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 virus using the smaller and cheaper Oxford Nanopore sequencer, a method they believe could make pandemic surveillance faster and cheaper.

26 May 2021

Could GRP78 be a therapeutic target against COVID-19?

A new study by a team of researchers at the Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, USA, reports a potentially important therapeutic target in the form of a molecule called GRP78 that promotes the entry and protein production by many viruses. The team's paper has been published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

26 May 2021

New study launched to understand COVID impact on mental health in parents and babies

The COVID-19 pandemic turned the lives of many all over the world upside down. Nowhere has this been more obvious than the interactions between parents and children, beginning during pregnancy, over the past year of the pandemic. A new study from Oxford and Cambridge in the UK will explore the reality of changes in this area, and how they have impacted early human development.

26 May 2021

New SARS-CoV-2 variants emerge among children in United States, suggests study

As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic approaches its eighteenth month, new variants of concern (VOCs) of the causative pathogen – severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – continue to emerge all over the world. A new study explores the emergence of such VOCs among young children, below 12 years of age, and the potential consequences of this phenomenon.

26 May 2021

‘Better than the hospital’: Pandemic boosts care for serious illnesses at home

Late last year, Janet Yetenekian was one of the thousands of people in Southern California whose case of covid-19 was serious enough to send her to the hospital.

26 May 2021

International Day of Action for Women’s Health: An Interview with UN Women

In commemoration of the International Day of Action for Women's Health, we interviewed Nazneen Damji, from UN Women, about women's health in 2021.

26 May 2021

Italian HCW study reaffirms Pfizer-BioNTech effectiveness against COVID-19

Real-world data from Pasquale Stefanizzi of Aldo Moro University in Italy and colleagues confirm that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine effectively prevents COVID-19 infection.

26 May 2021

Zoonotic and vector-borne emerging tropical diseases pose a constant threat

A recent article published in the journal Frontiers in Tropical Diseases assessed the threat of emerging zoonotic and vector-borne tropical diseases.

26 May 2021

Non-droplet routes of SARS-CoV-2 transmission

In a recent review article published in the Science of The Total Environment journal, a group of Polish researchers discussed the different transmission routes of the severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In their work, the researchers focused on the extent of SARS-CoV-2 survival in the environment, particularly in sewages and contaminated surfaces.

26 May 2021

Immunologists decode T cell responses that occur during COVID-19 infection

An international team of researchers from the Institute for Research in Biomedicine, affiliated to the Università della Svizzera italiana, has deciphered, at single cell resolution, the T cell responses occurring during COVID-19 infection.

26 May 2021

Decreased screening and testing may lead to future surge in sexually transmitted infections

Screening and testing for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) decreased by 63% for men and 59% for women during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study led by Penn State and Quest Diagnostics researchers. The researchers said this may be the result of restrictions placed on direct patient care and shifts to telehealth and could lead to a possible future surge in STI cases.

26 May 2021

Study can help determine which diabetic individuals can donate corneas for keratoplasty

About a third of the corneal transplant surgeries in the United States involve people with diabetes who donate their corneas after death.

26 May 2021

Popular television shows can bolster teenagers' mental health

Popular television shows and movies can bolster teenagers' mental health and help them cope with bullying, sexual assault, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse and depression when these issues are depicted with empathy and appropriate resources are provided, a report published by UCLA's Center for Scholars and Storytellers shows.

26 May 2021