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.

Study provides the most comprehensive look yet on COVID-19 hospital mortality

A new study of hospital deaths in the United States, published today in JAMA Network Open, is the most comprehensive look yet at changes in hospital mortality during the pandemic.

3 May 2021

Health anxiety in childhood and adolescence can become a permanent problem

Symptoms of health anxiety are common already during childhood and adolescence - and if the children do not receive the correct help, the anxiety can become a permanent problem with serious personal and socio-economic consequences.

3 May 2021

Simple application of UVC light could make common disinfectants safer to use

Over 400 common disinfectants currently in use could be made safer for people and the environment and could better fight the COVID-19 virus with the simple application of UVC light, a new study from the University of Waterloo shows.

3 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies are detectable up to a year after infection, finds study

A team of scientists from the United States has recently investigated the robustness and durability of anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. Their findings reveal that COVID-19 patients exhibit a strong anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody response for up to 1 year and that the robustness of antibody response depends on the patient’s age and disease severity.

3 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 spike mutations during transmission among humans and to animals

A fascinating new study discusses the 40 mutations that are seen on the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein and their potential effects on viral biology.

3 May 2021

COVID-19 may not have appeared first in China, suggests new genomic study

A new study in Acta Mathematica Scientia suggests that the virus may have originated in multiple countries almost simultaneously, rather than spreading from China to the rest of the world.

3 May 2021

Class I HLA alleles shape CD8+ T cell repertoire in SARS-CoV-2 infection

An interesting new study discusses how adaptive cellular immunity against the SARS-CoV-2 is dependent on differences in HLA-encoding genes between patients.

3 May 2021

Most long COVID-19 sequelae affect people under 65, finds study

A new study, released as a preprint on the medRxiv* server, discusses the typical symptoms and signs of this syndrome, with the intention of improving the specificity of detection and reporting.

3 May 2021

As schools spend millions on air purifiers, experts warn of overblown claims and harm to children

Last summer, Global Plasma Solutions wanted to test whether the company's air-purifying devices could kill covid-19 virus particles but could find only a lab using a chamber the size of a shoebox for its trials. In the company-funded study, the virus was blasted with 27,000 ions per cubic centimeter.

3 May 2021

Detecting rare blood clots was a win, but US vaccine safety system still has gaps

The quick detection of an ultra-rare blood clotting reaction in some Covid-19 vaccine recipients showed the power of a federal warning system for vaccine safety issues, but experts worry that blind spots in the program could hamper detection of other unexpected side effects.

3 May 2021

As vaccine demand slows, political differences go on display in California Counties

Demand for Covid vaccines is slowing across most of California, but as traffic at vaccination sites eases, the vaccination rates across the state are showing wide disparities.

3 May 2021

A new SARS-CoV-2 variant (HMN.19B) has been identified in France

New research published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s journal Emerging Infectious Diseases has confirmed the emergence of a new SARS-CoV-2 variant called HMN.19B from the viral clade 19B in France. The 19B viral clade — which includes the D614G variant — was prevalent in late 2019 but had since been rarely observed since early 2020 because of newer viral clades.

3 May 2021

Vaccine candidate targeting SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein elicits protective immune response in animal model

New preclinical results from a study led by David Masopust of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, USA, show that a Had5-based vaccine targeting the nucleocapsid protein can also elicit a protective immune response.

3 May 2021

Competitive multiplex binding assay can monitor SARS-CoV-2 immune responses using nanobodies

Researchers at the Eberhard Karls University and the University of Tübingen in Germany described 11 unique nanobodies (Nbs) specific for the SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor-binding domain (RBD), of which 8 Nbs potentially inhibit the connection of RBD with the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).

3 May 2021

Study estimates true number of COVID-19 deaths by U.S. county

Every country has been affected by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that has spawned a pandemic. For several factors, the United States has been hit hard by the number of coronavirus cases and death. The country currently leads the world with over 32.4 million infections and more than 577,000 COVID-19 deaths.

3 May 2021

2018 legislation calls for assessment tool to predict recidivism in federal prison inmates

Passed in 2018, the First Step Act sought to address re-entry challenges for inmates in the federal prison system. The legislation called for developing an assessment tool to identify inmates for release who had the lowest likelihood of recidivism.

3 May 2021

Study reveals new broadly neutralizing and protective antibody against coronaviruses

In the setting of potentially reduced vaccine efficacy against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) due to emerging viral variants, the deployment of effective treatments based on monoclonal antibodies may be an additional strategy to help control the pandemic. A new study by US researchers, currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server, describes the action of a specific antibody known as DH1047.

3 May 2021

Researchers identify novel SARS-CoV-2 variant with mutations in membrane protein-encoding gene

A recent study published in the Journal Emerging Microbes and Infections has highlighted the emergence of a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variant with mutations in the membrane protein-encoding gene. Two potential mutations, M:I82T and M:V70L, have been identified within the transmembrane helices, which are expected to improve viral fitness by modulating glucose uptake during replication.

3 May 2021

Study implies a likely rise of future SARS-CoV-2 recombinants

A recent astonishing feat by US researchers revealed that recombination is not only widespread in the evolutionary history of SARS-like coronaviruses, but it can also increase fitness traits of seasonal coronaviruses. Their paper is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server and sets the stage for phylogenetic tracking of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

2 May 2021

Live "attenuated" influenza virus vaccine protects animals against respiratory infections, including SARS-CoV-2

Researchers in the United States and Austria have demonstrated the potential of a modified influenza virus as a vaccine to protect against viral respiratory pathogens, including the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

2 May 2021

Pandemic News and Research

Further Reading

Study provides the most comprehensive look yet on COVID-19 hospital mortality

Health anxiety in childhood and adolescence can become a permanent problem

Simple application of UVC light could make common disinfectants safer to use

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies are detectable up to a year after infection, finds study

SARS-CoV-2 spike mutations during transmission among humans and to animals

COVID-19 may not have appeared first in China, suggests new genomic study

Class I HLA alleles shape CD8+ T cell repertoire in SARS-CoV-2 infection

Most long COVID-19 sequelae affect people under 65, finds study

As schools spend millions on air purifiers, experts warn of overblown claims and harm to children

Detecting rare blood clots was a win, but US vaccine safety system still has gaps

As vaccine demand slows, political differences go on display in California Counties

A new SARS-CoV-2 variant (HMN.19B) has been identified in France

Vaccine candidate targeting SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein elicits protective immune response in animal model

Competitive multiplex binding assay can monitor SARS-CoV-2 immune responses using nanobodies

Study estimates true number of COVID-19 deaths by U.S. county

2018 legislation calls for assessment tool to predict recidivism in federal prison inmates

Study reveals new broadly neutralizing and protective antibody against coronaviruses

Researchers identify novel SARS-CoV-2 variant with mutations in membrane protein-encoding gene

Study implies a likely rise of future SARS-CoV-2 recombinants

Live "attenuated" influenza virus vaccine protects animals against respiratory infections, including SARS-CoV-2

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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