Cold News and Research

RSS

SpaceX study profiles evolution of antibody response during COVID-19 infection

New research published on the preprint server bioRxiv* suggests S2-specific antibody responses are critical in recovering from mild to severe COVID-19 infection. Compared to patients who died within 28 days of their COVID-19 diagnosis, patients who produced a wide range of S2-specific responses were more likely to survive.

18 May 2021

Stabilizing mutations in SARS-CoV-2 immunogens improve vaccine design

Researchers in the United States have developed stabilized immunogens presenting the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that may improve the scalability of RBD-based coronavirus vaccines.

18 May 2021

Single dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine protective in previously infected recipients, suggests study

A recent report on the medRxiv* preprint server suggests that a single dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) vaccine could elicit higher titers of neutralizing antibodies, effectively acting as a booster dose, in people who have already been infected by the SARS-CoV-2.

13 May 2021

Designer SARS-CoV-2 RBD vaccine produces dramatically improved antibody response in preclinical trials

The importance of computational modeling in the prediction of the course of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as well as evaluating multiple potential drug leads, has never been more clear. Now, a new study describes a set of designer vaccine antigens that may improve vaccine stability as well as enhance the neutralizing antibody response.

13 May 2021

Tympanostomy tubes have no long-term benefits for childhood ear infections

There is no long-term benefit to surgically placing tympanostomy tubes in a young child's ears to reduce the rate of recurrent ear infections during the ensuing two years compared with giving oral antibiotics to treat ear infections, a randomized trial led by UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh pediatrician-scientists determined.

13 May 2021

GeroSense AI tracks biological age and resilience via smartphone sensor data

Gero has developed and validated GeroSense AI to track biological age and resilience via smartphone sensor data. The performance of the new health and aging markers have been recently reported in a paper in Aging US.

11 May 2021

New model could help test vaccines against the deadly Strep A bacteria

Researchers have successfully developed a new Strep A human challenge model, paving the way to test vaccines against the common deadly bacteria that causes sore throats, scarlet fever and skin sores.

10 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 main protease conformations are temperature-dependent

New research led by Daniel A Keedy of City University of New York, USA, shows the structure of the main protease (Mpro) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the causative pathogen of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – reacts to being heated and cooled. The temperature-dependent conformations could act as potential therapeutic targets to neutralize the virus.

9 May 2021

Unique infectious profile explains why it is so hard to treat COVID-19

A comprehensive review into what we know about COVID-19 and the way it functions suggests the virus has a unique infectious profile, which explains why it can be so hard to treat and why some people experience so-called "long-COVID", struggling with significant health issues months after infection.

7 May 2021

Could antiviral surface designs help reduce SARS-CoV-2’s spread?

In an effort to improve surface decontamination methods, researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, looked at fabricating surfaces with virucidal properties. More specifically, these scientists investigated surface properties that could prevent the survival of viruses on these surfaces, particularly SARS-CoV-2.

7 May 2021

Study reports vitamin C inhibits SARS-CoV-2 virus main protease

Based on structural analysis, researchers found that vitamin C binds to 3CLpro, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) main protease essential in viral replication. In vitro cell inhibition studies also showed vitamin C could inhibit 3CLpro, indicating a possible new antiviral treatment method.

6 May 2021

World Health Organization lists Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use

Today, WHO listed the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine (mRNA 1273) for emergency use, making it the fifth vaccine to receive emergency validation from WHO.

6 May 2021

Prior MMR or Tdap vaccination may reduce risk of severe COVID-19

Researchers in the United States have shown that prior Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) or Tetanus-Diphtheria-pertussis (Tdap) vaccination may reduce the risk of severe outcomes in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

5 May 2021

Arresting tumor growth for a variety of cancers through T cell engineering

Through T cell engineering, researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center show that it's possible to arrest tumor growth for a variety of cancers and squash the spread of cancer to other tissues.

30 Apr 2021

Despite all the talk, Covid vaccination does not infect people with shingles

Posts are showing up all over social media tying Covid-19 vaccinations to shingles and other painful skin disorders.

30 Apr 2021

The vulnerable homebound are left behind on vaccination

It was April, more than three months into the vaccination campaign against covid-19, and Jim Freeman, 83, still had not gotten his first dose.

30 Apr 2021

Delayed antibiotic prescribing unlikely to lead to poorer symptom control

Delayed antibiotic prescribing is a safe and effective strategy for most patients with respiratory tract infections, finds an analysis of patient data published by The BMJ today.

30 Apr 2021

Novel integrative genetic screening platform offers insights into role of DNA accessibility in cancer

In a new resource for the scientific community, published today in Nature Biotechnology, researchers in the lab of Neville Sanjana, PhD, at the New York Genome Center (NYGC) and New York University (NYU) developed CRISPR-sciATAC, a novel integrative genetic screening platform that jointly captures CRISPR gene perturbations and single-cell chromatin accessibility genome-wide.

30 Apr 2021

Can control theory explain differences in virulence and transmission of SARS-CoV-2?

A new study discusses variations in viral pathogenicity and in transmission, which are responsible for asymptomatic infection and for superspreading events. The ability to understand this would open the way to understand how this virus behaves the way it does, in terms of its virulence, its spread, and its emergent variants of concern.

28 Apr 2021

Virtual care spreads in Missouri health system, home to ‘hospital without beds’

When Tom Becker was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat in March 2020, the 60-year-old EMS helicopter pilot from Washington, Missouri, worried he would never fly again.

23 Apr 2021