Respiratory News and Research

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Study uncovers protein 'signature' of severe COVID-19

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have identified the protein "signature" of severe COVID-19, which they describe in a new study published in Cell Reports Medicine.

4 May 2021

New testing technology can accurately differentiate between viral and bacterial infections

When patients complain of coughing, runny nose, sneezing and fever, doctors are often stumped because they have no fundamental tool to identify the source of the respiratory symptoms and guide appropriate treatments.

4 May 2021

Wyss Institute licenses nasal swab collection technology to Massachusetts-based startup

The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Harvard Medical School (HMS) and the Massachusetts-based startup Rhinostics announced today that the University's sample collection swab and high-throughput automation technologies have been licensed to Rhinostics.

4 May 2021

Researchers identify mechanism of platelet hyperactivation in COVID-19 patients

A recent study conducted at the University of Pennsylvania and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, USA, has revealed the mechanism of platelet hyperactivation in critically ill coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients.

4 May 2021

ATS publishes new clinical practice guideline on community-acquired pneumonia

In its latest clinical practice guideline on community-acquired pneumonia the American Thoracic Society's guidelines panel addresses the use of nucleic acid-based testing for non-influenza viral pathogens.

4 May 2021

What happens in the first few days of SARS-CoV-2 infection?

New research, published in PLOS Biology, has evaluated SARS-CoV-2 infection in primary cultures of well-differentiated cells to determine how the virus affects the body and how the infection starts. Answers to these questions are essential to forming a general understanding of viral pathogenesis, which helps us develop effective prevention and treatment strategies for COVID-19.

4 May 2021

Can SARS-CoV-2’s impairment of endothelium cause vascular disease?

The study, published in the journal Circulation Research, suggests that COVID-19 is not only a respiratory disease but also a vascular disease. It highlights how the virus attacks the vascular system, causing endothelial impairment.

4 May 2021

Moderna COVID-19 vaccine makes it on WHO Emergency Use Listing

Moderna has announced Emergency Use Listing granted by the World Health Organization for its COVID-19 mRNA vaccine.

4 May 2021

COVID-19 in pregnancy does not significantly increase respiratory illness in newborns, says study

A new study published in the journal JAMA offers reassuring evidence that infants born to mothers with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), or even asymptomatic infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), have little increase in respiratory symptoms over babies born to uninfected mothers.

4 May 2021

Could in vitro glycoengineering help produce better SARS-CoV-2 spike candidates for vaccine research?

A vexing problem in the development of vaccines has been the need to achieve the right glycosylation profile for the viral antigens. A new study, recently released as a preprint on the bioRxiv* server, shows how a sequential cell-free approach produced complex N-glycans from simpler types, in a one-pot reaction.

4 May 2021

Rapid and sensitive SARS-CoV-2 detection from saliva using CRISPR

In a paper recently uploaded to the preprint server medRxiv by Edward Málaga Trillo et al. (April 29th, 2021), these methods are tested in combination with CRISPR-Cas detection in the field, demonstrating a sensitivity and specificity of 93.8% and 99%, respectively.

4 May 2021

Evidence that elevated blood glucose is a significant risk factor for severe COVID-19

The literature analysis pointed to elevated blood glucose levels as a leading facilitator in the progression of COVID-19. Evidence linking elevated glucose to various steps in the life cycle of the virus and presentation of COVID-19 symptoms were also found.

3 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 study in human gut organoids

Most of the major life-threatening symptoms of COVID-19 disease are associated with the host's generation of an exacerbated pro-inflammatory immune response. Many studies have correlated the intensity of the immune response with the severity of disease.

3 May 2021

Study shows a protective association between anticoagulants and COVID-19

In a new study, researchers investigated the association between the use of oral anticoagulants and warfarin in COVID-19 disease outcomes. They published their results in a paper on the medRxiv* preprint server.

3 May 2021

Differential NK cell activity found to contribute to SARS-CoV-2 infection resistance

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected millions of people worldwide and is the leading cause of mortality in Brazil in 2020 as well as early 2021. Clinical manifestations of COVID-19 disease range from no symptoms and mild flu-like symptoms to severe cases leading to hospitalization and death.

3 May 2021

Monoclonal antibody neutralizes all SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern

Researchers in Canada and the United States have identified a monoclonal antibody that potently neutralizes variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent responsible for the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVIdD-19) pandemic.

3 May 2021

Researchers demonstrate real-world effectiveness of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine

Researchers in the United States and India have conducted a study demonstrating the real-world effectiveness of a single dose of Johnson & Johnson’s Ad26.COV2.S vaccine at preventing infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

3 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies are detectable up to a year after infection, finds study

A team of scientists from the United States has recently investigated the robustness and durability of anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. Their findings reveal that COVID-19 patients exhibit a strong anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody response for up to 1 year and that the robustness of antibody response depends on the patient’s age and disease severity.

3 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 spike mutations during transmission among humans and to animals

A fascinating new study discusses the 40 mutations that are seen on the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein and their potential effects on viral biology.

3 May 2021

COVID-19 may not have appeared first in China, suggests new genomic study

A new study in Acta Mathematica Scientia suggests that the virus may have originated in multiple countries almost simultaneously, rather than spreading from China to the rest of the world.

3 May 2021