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Research shows Black individuals are twice as likely to test positive for COVID-19

Results of an analysis published in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society found that Black individuals were twice as likely as White individuals to test positive for COVID-19.

9 Jul 2020

Health care providers should increase access to nature, indicates study

While access to nature is an established social determinant of health with clear benefits to physical, mental, and social health, it does not receive as must attention by health care providers or health systems as other social concerns, according to a new piece by a Penn Medicine physician published today in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

9 Jul 2020

Cloth face coverings, masks are effective in reducing the spread of COVID-19, study says

Cloth face coverings, even homemade masks made with the correct material, are effective in reducing the spread of COVID-19 - for the wearer and those around them - according to a new study published today from Oxford’s Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science.

9 Jul 2020

Ozone gas can provide a safe means to disinfect personal protective equipment

A new study shows that ozone gas, a highly reactive chemical composed of three oxygen atoms, could provide a safe means for disinfecting certain types of personal protective equipment that are in high demand for shielding health care personnel from Covid-19.

9 Jul 2020

Research shows how SARS-CoV-2 alters translation

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in July 2020 shows that the 5’ end of the RNA molecule is capable of inhibiting the binding of mRNA to the ribosomal 40S subunit, thus preventing translation.

9 Jul 2020

Researchers map RNA structure throughout SARS-CoV-2 genome

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which is currently at the heart of a pandemic that has cost the world more than 550,000 lives, 12 million infections, and uncounted years of productivity, is an RNA virus with the largest genome among all such viruses. This 30 kb size virus has caused many difficulties for scientists in search of a vaccine.

9 Jul 2020

Tracing adaptation to ACE2 use in sarbecoviruses

A detailed study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in July 2020 argues that recombination accounts for the appearance of the ability of both SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 to use the human angiotensin-converting enzyme (hACE) 2 as the binding receptor mediating viral infection of human cells.

8 Jul 2020

Research sheds doubt on the Pangolin link to SARS-CoV-2

A startling new study by researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and the University of British Columbia and published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in July 2020 casts doubt on the hypothesis that the current severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was transmitted from pangolins acting as the intermediate host. Instead, the authors suggest, the pangolins themselves were incidentally infected from other animals in captivity or from humans.

8 Jul 2020

Researchers propose novel approach to limit life-threatening complications related to COVID-19

Patients with severe COVID-19 frequently experience a life-threatening immune reaction, sometimes called a cytokine storm, which can lead to respiratory failure, organ damage and potentially death.

8 Jul 2020

COVID-19 cases and deaths found to be higher among U.S. prison residents than general population

A new analysis led by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that the number of U.S. prison residents who tested positive for COVID-19 was 5.5 times higher than the general U.S. population, with a prisoner case rate of 3,251 per 100,000 residents as compared to 587 cases per 100,000 in the general population.

8 Jul 2020

Lung physiology and immune function could spare children from severe COVID-19

Differences in lung physiology and immune function in children could be why they are more often spared from severe illness associated with COVID-19 than adults, according to pediatric and adult physicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and Baylor College of Medicine, who teamed up to investigate the disparity.

8 Jul 2020

UofSC researchers win NIH grant to develop data-driven system to track COVID-19

University of South Carolina researchers from its Big Data Health Science Center initiative have received $1.25 million in grant funding from the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to develop a data-driven system to track COVID-19 in South Carolina.

8 Jul 2020

A biomaterial vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 - quick and scalable

A recent 'tour-de-force' research endeavor, led by scientists from Harvard University, explored the propensity of a biomaterial vaccine based on mesoporous silica rods to spawn highly protective humoral responses against relevant antigens of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

8 Jul 2020

Tuberculosis vaccine may play a significant role in mitigating COVID-19 mortality rates

One of the emerging questions about the coronavirus that scientists are working to understand is why developing countries are showing markedly lower rates of mortality in COVID-19 cases than expected.

8 Jul 2020

Community coronavirus testing in England shows lockdown had "intended effect"

UK researchers say the proportion of people testing positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) significantly declined in England between 26 April and 28 June 2020.

8 Jul 2020

Small molecule drugs binding Mac1 domain of SARS-CoV-2

Now, an intriguing new study out of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee reveals that numerous small molecule drugs like the proton pump inhibitors omeprazole and rabeprazole bind the important Mac1 domain on the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus.

8 Jul 2020

Brigham experts develop reusable N95 mask alternative

With N95 masks in short supply, a team of bioengineers and clinical experts from Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has been developing a new, sustainable solution for health care workers to provide protection during the pandemic.

8 Jul 2020

In Texas, individual freedoms clash with efforts to slow the surge of COVID cases

The Fourth of July was a little different this year here in Texas' biggest city. Parades were canceled and some of the region's beaches were closed. At the city's biggest fireworks show, "Freedom Over Texas," fireworks were shot higher in the air to make it easier to watch from a distance. Other fireworks displays encouraged people to stay in their cars.

8 Jul 2020

QUT and Oxford collaborate on clinical trial to test asthma inhalers as treatment for COVID-19

QUT researchers are collaborating with colleagues at the University of Oxford on a UK clinical trial to test common asthma inhalers as a treatment for COVID-19 infection.

8 Jul 2020

New technology can rapidly disrupt existing biofilms that account for chronic diseases

Chronic and recurrent bacterial diseases are treatment-resistant due to the ability of the pathogens to establish biofilms, which act as fortresses built of extracellular DNA and proteins to protect populations of the bacteria.

8 Jul 2020

Respiratory News and Research

Research shows Black individuals are twice as likely to test positive for COVID-19

Health care providers should increase access to nature, indicates study

Cloth face coverings, masks are effective in reducing the spread of COVID-19, study says

Ozone gas can provide a safe means to disinfect personal protective equipment

Research shows how SARS-CoV-2 alters translation

Researchers map RNA structure throughout SARS-CoV-2 genome

Tracing adaptation to ACE2 use in sarbecoviruses

Research sheds doubt on the Pangolin link to SARS-CoV-2

Researchers propose novel approach to limit life-threatening complications related to COVID-19

COVID-19 cases and deaths found to be higher among U.S. prison residents than general population

Lung physiology and immune function could spare children from severe COVID-19

UofSC researchers win NIH grant to develop data-driven system to track COVID-19

A biomaterial vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 - quick and scalable

Tuberculosis vaccine may play a significant role in mitigating COVID-19 mortality rates

Community coronavirus testing in England shows lockdown had "intended effect"

Small molecule drugs binding Mac1 domain of SARS-CoV-2

Brigham experts develop reusable N95 mask alternative

In Texas, individual freedoms clash with efforts to slow the surge of COVID cases

QUT and Oxford collaborate on clinical trial to test asthma inhalers as treatment for COVID-19

New technology can rapidly disrupt existing biofilms that account for chronic diseases

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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