SARS CoV 2 News and Research

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Siemens Healthineers releases test kit for coronavirus COVID-19

Siemens Healthineers announced today the availability of its molecular Fast Track Diagnostics SARS-CoV-2 Assay test kit used to aid in the diagnosis of infection by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes the COVID-19 disease.

From Siemens Healthineers Point of Care Diagnostics 6 Apr 2020

Asthma and coronavirus disease - COVID-19

On the 11th of March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome SARS CoV-2, a pandemic.

5 Apr 2020

COVID-19 and renin-angiotensin system inhibitors

A new viewpoint article published in the journal JAMA Network in April 2020 deals with the use of a widely used category of cardiovascular medications in COVID-19 patients with hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (CVD). These are the most common medical conditions that are found in COVID-19 patients and contribute disproportionately to mortality.

5 Apr 2020

Scientists show how normal speech may produce aerosolized particles to transmit coronavirus

Normal speech by individuals who are asymptomatic but infected with coronavirus may produce enough aerosolized particles to transmit the infection, according to aerosol scientists at the University of California, Davis.

5 Apr 2020

Removing SARS-CoV-19 virus from the water cycle

Scientists know that coronaviruses, including the SARS-CoV-19 virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, can remain infectious for days -- or even longer -- in sewage and drinking water.

5 Apr 2020

Antibody recovered from SARS survivor reveals potential vulnerability of new coronavirus

An antibody recovered from a survivor of the SARS epidemic in the early 2000s has revealed a potential vulnerability of the new coronavirus at the root of COVID-19, according to a study from scientists at Scripps Research.

3 Apr 2020

Virological findings from Germany's first group of COVID-19 patients

In early February, research teams from Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, München Klinik Schwabing and the Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology published initial findings describing the efficient transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

3 Apr 2020

Deaths of Chinese children, adolescents from infectious diseases prior to COVID-19 found to be rare

Deaths of children and adolescents in China due to infectious diseases were becoming rare prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study.

3 Apr 2020

South Australian researchers make rapid progress in developing a COVID-19 vaccine

South Australian researchers working with Oracle Cloud technology and vaccine technology developed by local company Vaxine Pty Ltd are testing a vaccine candidate against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

3 Apr 2020

Researchers develop a computer simulator that helps study evolution of COVID-19 in Europe

A team of Spanish researchers have designed and validated a simulator to enable study of the evolution of the COVID-19 illness in Spain and in all Europe, based on parameters such as climate, social distancing policies and transportation.

3 Apr 2020

First genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 viruses in Austria openly available

The first 21 SARS-CoV-2 genomes in Austria have now been completed and published within the scope of the “Mutational Dynamics of SARS-CoV-2” project recently launched by CeMM, the Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, in close collaboration with the Medical University of Vienna.

3 Apr 2020

Australian scientists identify possible coronavirus drug

A collaborative study led by Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute in Melbourne, Australia, with the Peter Doherty Institute of Infection and Immunity, has shown that an anti-parasitic drug already available around the world kills the virus within 48 hours.

3 Apr 2020

Who should be taking antimalarial drugs as treatment against COVID-19?

Researchers provide a guideline regarding who should be actually taking antimalarial drugs as prophylaxis to prevent getting COVID-19. They say health professionals who are being exposed to COVID-19 positive patients and those who test positive but are asymptomatic should be taking drugs such as Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine. They explain that these populations remain most in need, and because of limited supply, these individuals need to be prioritized.

2 Apr 2020

Scientists find important clues to vaccine in SARS-CoV-2 genome

A new research paper published by scientists at the University of Bristol who sequenced the genome of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is causing the worldwide COVID-19 illness, reveals some significant findings that could help researchers working on rolling out vaccines to stop the relentless march of the virus. The study was published online on the preprint site bioRxiv in April 2020.

2 Apr 2020

Can cats and dogs catch or spread COVID-19?

A recent report from Hong Kong that two dogs had tested positive for the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 had pet owners in a tizzy. This was compounded by news that a cat owned by a COVID-19 patient had developed symptoms of the illness in Belgium – such as breathing trouble and diarrhea – a week after the owner tested positive. The cat’s vomit and feces were subsequently found to be positive for the viral genome.

2 Apr 2020

Promising vaccine patch candidate for COVID-19

In a breath of fresh air, scientists from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine reported that they had developed a potential new vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is causing the current COVID-19 pandemic. The vaccine has been tested in mice. When administered through a small patch only the size of a fingertip, the vaccine was found to generate protective neutralizing antibodies against the virus, in adequate quantities.

2 Apr 2020

Web portal provides information on how to decontaminate used N95 masks

As health workers and first responders in the United States try to stem a pandemic without adequate protective gear, health officials are forced to consider a stopgap - decontaminating and reusing N95 masks to shield those whose jobs expose them to the virus that causes COVID-19.

2 Apr 2020