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Novel clinical trial fast tracks testing of COVID-19 therapies

A novel clinical trial developed by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine launched today at UPMC to address one of the most important debates during the COVID-19 pandemic:

9 Apr 2020

Microneedle patches for potential COVID-19 vaccines or therapeutics

The COVID-19 pandemic is spreading over the world, causing panic and illness on a scale unprecedented in one hundred years. Even while the death toll nears 100,000, with over 1.5 million confirmed cases worldwide, public health experts and medical professionals are battling it using all the weapons available. Unfortunately, these are all too few.

9 Apr 2020

Testing One, Two, Three - Over 75% of people with COVID-19 are asymptomatic

A new study published in the British Medical Journal in April 2020 suggests that the number of people infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is astonishingly higher than the number of cases reported so far. This could help shape future social distancing measures.

9 Apr 2020

Weekly COVID-19 fatality predictions from leading epidemiologists

While many developed and developing countries are reeling under the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19 disease, preventive and therapeutic measures alike need more accurate forecasts of fatal and non-fatal events to achieve preparedness and ensure an optimal outcome. Now scientists at Imperial College, London, have come up with a new weekly forecast of the number of deaths due to coronavirus and the likely number of cases reported in countries where the virus is actively spreading.

9 Apr 2020

Hypertensive patients on ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers may have improved COVID-19 prognosis

Emerging concerns that common antihypertensive treatment approaches with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) – jointly known as renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) inhibitors – may exert a negative effect in COVID-19 patients are not grounded in scientific evidence, as reported by researchers in a recent review article published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings journal.

9 Apr 2020

Clinical trial to investigate effectiveness of antimalarial drugs for COVID-19 treatment

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is launching a clinical trial for patients hospitalized with COVID-19 at Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

9 Apr 2020

Quantifying the risk among health care providers who intubate COVID-19 patients

A team at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania launched the United States component of a global registry that aims to help protect health care providers who intubate patients with COVID-19 and better quantify their risk of developing the disease.

9 Apr 2020

‘Entry Point’ enzyme for COVID-19 higher in COPD patients and smokers

News-Medical speaks to Professor Don Sin on his research into COVID-19 and its effect on smokers and people suffering from COPD.

9 Apr 2020

Novel coronavirus targets specific secretory cells in the lungs

Viruses attack specific host cells, which can cause chaos in the body. The novel coronavirus, now called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 or SARS-CoV-2 for short, infects respiratory epithelial cells in the lining of the lung, causing difficulty of breathing. The usual cause of death of those who contract the virus is pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Now, a new study has found that SARS-CoV-2 specifically attack certain progenitor cells called bronchial transient secretory cells in the lungs.

9 Apr 2020

Chinese newborns experienced mild form of COVID-19

A new paper published by Dr. Zhi-Jiang Zhang and colleagues from Wuhan University in the European Respiratory Journal in April 2020 reports that COVID-19 apparently left little impact on newborns born to infected mothers at the height of the epidemic.

9 Apr 2020

LGC launches new proficiency testing program for SARS-CoV-2 detection

LGC today launched a Proficiency Testing service for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID 19) by nucleic acid amplification testing, one of the first global schemes for COVID-19.

From ATCC 9 Apr 2020

PCR Biosystems continues to scale up production to ensure uninterrupted supply of COVID-19 test reagents

PCR Biosystems, the UK-based PCR experts, are continuing to scale up operations to ensure the critical enzyme mix for COVID-19 tests remain available to the UK and global healthcare systems as demand for testing rises.

9 Apr 2020

Smokers have more ACE2 receptors making it easier for SARS-CoV-2 to infect

A new study published in the European Respiratory Journal in April 2020 reveals that people with smoking-damaged lungs and those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are likely to have a higher level of the angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE2).

9 Apr 2020

Ai used to detect COVID-19 pneumonia

Coronaviruses have 'spilled over' to human populations throughout history, causing respiratory illnesses, often associated with pneumonia. The severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which emerged in 2002 in China, and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), which was first seen in Saudi Arabia in 2012, are similar to the current global pandemic spreading worldwide, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

9 Apr 2020

PIV5-based MERS vaccine shows promise for COVID-19

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread to 184 countries and territories. Currently, there is no vaccine available for COVID-19 disease, or SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, scientists around the world are racing to find ways to block the virus.

8 Apr 2020

Top NAU microbiologist joins Arizona COVID-19 Genomics Union

The Translational Genomics Research Institute, an affiliate of City of Hope, The Pathogen and Microbiome Institute at Northern Arizona University and the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at the University of Arizona have formed a union dedicated to tracking the COVID-19 coronavirus, it was announced today.

8 Apr 2020

More than half of COVID-19 patients in Brazil came from Italy

Italy has grappled with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), with more than 139,000 people infected and more than 17,000 people dead. In the first week of March, the number of cases in Italy skyrocketed before the lockdown was set in place. Prior to the country shutting down its border, many people had already left, flocking to other countries in an attempt to escape the virus.

8 Apr 2020

Air pollution and PM2.5 raise risk of COVID-19 death

According to a new analysis, air pollution is associated with more deaths in the currently raging COVID-19 pandemic. A new American study from researchers at Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, showed that a single unit increase in particle pollution levels in the air could raise the risk of death by 15 percent and that before this pandemic if the air was cleaner, it could have saved many lives.

8 Apr 2020

Ebola drug now being tested against COVID-19

As the coronavirus pandemic claims lives and overwhelms health care systems throughout the world, scientists are closely watching several late-stage trials of the antiviral drug remdesivir.

8 Apr 2020

Infectious diseases from animals likely to cause further pandemics

As humans move to cities to settle, there is a sharp decline in biodiversity leading to several disturbances in the balance and relationship between humans and wild animals. A new study from researchers at the University of California, Davis' One Health Institute, shows that this has led to the spread of zoonotic viruses from animals to humans, such as COVID-19, which has caused a global pandemic involving over 184 countries and territories. The study was published in the latest issue of Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

8 Apr 2020