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.

Researchers describe important cause of fatal influenza

It is largely unknown why influenza infections lead to an increased risk of bacterial pneumonia. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have now described important findings leading to so-called superinfections, which claim many lives around the world every year.

25 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein antibodies can persist up to 200 days after symptom onset

Researchers report SARS-CoV-2 antibodies to the spike protein (S protein) can persist 200 days after symptom onset, but that antibodies to the nucleoprotein (N protein) can reduce much more rapidly.

25 Nov 2020

The American Lung Association say to wear masks to stop the spread of COVID-19; Here’s why

Dr. Albert Rizzo speaks to News-Medical about the importance of wearing masks to help control the spread of COVID-19.

25 Nov 2020

Health risks of prolonged sitting are reduced by exceeding weekly activity goals

Research has shown that people who sit for long periods are at an increased risk of early death and several health issues.

25 Nov 2020

Researchers review key elements of crisis decision making during public health emergencies

In mid-March, public health officials across the San Francisco area issued the first U.S. regional shelter-in-place order in response to the emerging COVID-19 pandemic.

25 Nov 2020

Germicidal lamps used to sanitize against COVID-19 may damage the cornea

In a paper published in the journal of Ocular Immunology and Inflammation, physicians from the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine reported that several patients using germicidal lamps in an attempt to sanitize against the coronavirus.

25 Nov 2020

Consistent use of face masks slows the spread of COVID-19

The use of face masks to help slow the spread of COVID-19 has been widely recommended by health professionals.

25 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 versus Zika: Comparing and contrasting the flow of research

An interesting study published on the preprint server medRxiv in November 2020, dealing not with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic, but with the publications that have appeared as a consequence of the outbreak, comparing them with the similar trove of publications that followed the Zika virus outbreak in 2016.

25 Nov 2020

School closures caused by COVID-19 may reduce life expectancy in U.S. children

A team that includes UCLA Fielding School of Public Health researchers has found American children whose educations have been disrupted by the pandemic, even as little as 2-4 months, may face shortened life spans.

25 Nov 2020

Scientists use demographic data to estimate test-based case fatality rates across California

A team of UCLA Fielding School of Public Health researchers has developed analyses to identify those most at risk from the pandemic, using demographic data to estimate test-based infection and test-based case fatality rates across California.

24 Nov 2020

A review of Traditional Chinese herbal medicine in management of COVID-19

Now researcher have summarized the experiences with the use of traditional Chinese herbal medicines for the management of COVID-19. Their study titled, “Traditional Chinese herbal medicine at the forefront battle against COVID-19: Clinical experience and scientific basis,” was published in the January 2021 issue of the journal Phytomedicine.

24 Nov 2020

Tracking the effect of mitigation measures on COVID-19 spread in hard-hit states

Currently, there are over 10 million confirmed cases and more than 240,000 casualties attributed to COVID-19 in the U.S. Researchers at Louisiana State University have applied computational models to investigate infection rates in relation to social distancing measures.

24 Nov 2020

Mefloquine shows potential as anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug

A team of scientists from Japan has identified the approved anti-material drug, mefloquine, as a potential candidate to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Specifically, mefloquine has been shown to prevent the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into host cells and reduce the viral load in vitro.

24 Nov 2020

Researchers receive $1.1 million NSF grant to improve in-home physical therapy

Scientists at the VTC Smart Rehab Lab are developing breakthrough, affordable technology and methods to connect stroke survivors to physical therapy at home through tele-rehabilitation.

24 Nov 2020

Researchers launch study to determine effects of increased access to rapid COVID-19 testing

Researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine and the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) are launching an investigational study to determine the effects of increased education and access to rapid, FDA-approved COVID-19 testing on community perceptions, access, and use of COVID-19 testing resources.

24 Nov 2020

Inexpensive molecule shows potential to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria causing gonorrhea, meningitis

A team from the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) has demonstrated the effectiveness of an inexpensive molecule to fight antibiotic-resistant strains of the bacteria responsible for gonorrhea and meningococcal meningitis.

24 Nov 2020

Disproportionate COVID-19 mortality in England linked to non-white ethnicity and poverty

In a paper published on the preprint server medRxiv, researchers from various departments of Imperial College London, UK, discuss how they analyzed mortality data of individuals 40 years and above in local communities in England to determine local variations in increased mortality during the first wave of the pandemic – between 1 March and 31 May 2020 - and to identify the community factors associated with these mortality patterns.

24 Nov 2020

Pandemic News and Research

Further Reading

Researchers describe important cause of fatal influenza

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein antibodies can persist up to 200 days after symptom onset

The American Lung Association say to wear masks to stop the spread of COVID-19; Here’s why

Health risks of prolonged sitting are reduced by exceeding weekly activity goals

Researchers review key elements of crisis decision making during public health emergencies

Germicidal lamps used to sanitize against COVID-19 may damage the cornea

Consistent use of face masks slows the spread of COVID-19

SARS-CoV-2 versus Zika: Comparing and contrasting the flow of research

School closures caused by COVID-19 may reduce life expectancy in U.S. children

Scientists use demographic data to estimate test-based case fatality rates across California

A review of Traditional Chinese herbal medicine in management of COVID-19

Tracking the effect of mitigation measures on COVID-19 spread in hard-hit states

Mefloquine shows potential as anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug

Researchers receive $1.1 million NSF grant to improve in-home physical therapy

Researchers launch study to determine effects of increased access to rapid COVID-19 testing

Inexpensive molecule shows potential to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria causing gonorrhea, meningitis

Disproportionate COVID-19 mortality in England linked to non-white ethnicity and poverty

Protection of upper respiratory tract will require vaccines that mimic natural infection by SARS-CoV-2

Air quality could influence the virulence of COVID-19 disease

AI platform rapidly, accurately spots COVID-19 in X-ray images

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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