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.

British and South African SARS-CoV-2 variants show some resistance to neutralizing antibodies

Researchers in France report impaired neutralization of two new SARS-CoV-2 variants by antibodies induced by vaccination or natural infection.

16 Feb 2021

Clonally expanded plasma cell lineages in SARS-CoV-2 produce specific neutralizing antibodies

A new preprint research paper posted to the bioRxiv server provides a greater understanding of the aspect of humoral immunity against the virus – the plasma cells that pour out a flood of specific antibodies targeting various epitopes on the pathogen.

16 Feb 2021

Mink-derived SARS-CoV-2 mutations reduce antibody effectiveness

A new preprint research paper posted to the bioRxiv* server shows that these mutations disrupt inhibition by neutralizing antibodies, both natural and therapeutic.

16 Feb 2021

CDC says vaccinated individuals can skip COVID quarantines

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic's global case toll has surpassed 109 million globally. Of these infections, 2.4 million people have already succumbed to the disease. As the pandemic continues to spread, many countries have rolled out vaccinations.

15 Feb 2021

What makes some people COVID superspreaders?

The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, showed that older, obese people who have an acute COVID-19 infection release more aerosols, increasing viral transmission potential.

15 Feb 2021

Nanoparticle COVID-19 vaccine stimulates robust and long lasting immunity in primates

In the study, published on the preprint server bioRxiv, the team evaluated the ability of AS03, CpG 1018 formulated in Alum, the TLR-7 agonist adsorbed to Alum (AS37), the squalene-in-water emulsion (O/W), and Alum to boost protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2.

15 Feb 2021

Research shows rapid global spread of Southern California COVID-19 strain

A new strain of the coronavirus in Southern California, first reported last month by Cedars-Sinai, is rapidly spreading across the country and around the world as travelers apparently carry the virus with them to a growing list of global destinations, according to new research published today in the peer-reviewed Journal of the American Medical Association.

15 Feb 2021

Study broadens the definition of self-injury mortality to encompass most drug overdose deaths

Classifying a death as suicide may be easiest for medical examiners and coroners in the western United States, which reports the highest suicide rates officially. Suicide by firearm is the leading method there, and usually clear in terms of evidence.

15 Feb 2021

How SARS-CoV-2 enters the central nervous system

The central nervous system (CNS) is highly protected in the human body. Yet, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) invades the CNS, causing profound clinical complications. How is the CNS involved in a respiratory virus infection?

15 Feb 2021

First wearable device for simultaneous monitoring of cardiovascular signals and biochemical levels

Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a soft, stretchy skin patch that can be worn on the neck to continuously track blood pressure and heart rate while measuring the wearer's levels of glucose as well as lactate, alcohol or caffeine.

15 Feb 2021

New poll highlights how COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted children's dental care

A third of parents say the COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult to get dental care for their children, a new national poll suggests.

15 Feb 2021

Pitt scientists develop fast, efficient technique for discovering tiny antibody fragments

By capitalizing on a convergence of chemical, biological and artificial intelligence advances, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists have developed an unusually fast and efficient method for discovering tiny antibody fragments with big potential for development into therapeutics against deadly diseases.

15 Feb 2021

Researchers report a new SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern in Uganda

An interdisciplinary research team from Uganda and the UK report the emergence and spread of a new SARS-CoV-2 variant of the A lineage with multiple protein changes throughout the viral genome.

15 Feb 2021

Researchers observe rapid increase of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in plasma over pandemic's course

Researchers found that neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 can increase over time. They observed that samples taken from convalescent plasma in September 2020 would likely have high enough values by July 2021 to protect immunodeficient patients who receive intravenous immunoglobulins as part of their treatment.

15 Feb 2021

SARS-CoV-2 South Africa and Brazil variants show resistance to therapeutic antibodies

Scientists from Germany have determined the efficacy of currently used therapeutics in treating newer variants of SARS-CoV-2, including the UK, South Africa, and Brazil variants. Their findings reveal that both B.1.351 and B.1.1.248 variants are able to escape humoral immune responses induced by therapeutic antibodies, vaccinations, or natural SARS-CoV-2 infection.

15 Feb 2021

Pandemic News and Research

Further Reading

British and South African SARS-CoV-2 variants show some resistance to neutralizing antibodies

Clonally expanded plasma cell lineages in SARS-CoV-2 produce specific neutralizing antibodies

Mink-derived SARS-CoV-2 mutations reduce antibody effectiveness

CDC says vaccinated individuals can skip COVID quarantines

What makes some people COVID superspreaders?

Nanoparticle COVID-19 vaccine stimulates robust and long lasting immunity in primates

Research shows rapid global spread of Southern California COVID-19 strain

Study broadens the definition of self-injury mortality to encompass most drug overdose deaths

How SARS-CoV-2 enters the central nervous system

First wearable device for simultaneous monitoring of cardiovascular signals and biochemical levels

New poll highlights how COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted children's dental care

Pitt scientists develop fast, efficient technique for discovering tiny antibody fragments

Researchers report a new SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern in Uganda

Researchers observe rapid increase of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in plasma over pandemic's course

SARS-CoV-2 South Africa and Brazil variants show resistance to therapeutic antibodies

Researchers develop protocols for rapid serological surveys of SARS-CoV-2 infection

LifeArc supports the GenOMICC COVID-19 Study

High-throughput sequencing could allow detection of new SARS-CoV-2 variants in wastewater

Immunosuppressive therapies may be linked to severe COVID-19 in those with multiple sclerosis

Can Pfizer and Moderna end the pandemic by sharing their vaccine designs? It’s not that simple

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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