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Study suggests spike mutation makes SARS-CoV-2 Omicron milder

The Omicron spike is relatively poorly cleaved and impaired in mediating cell-cell fusion and syncytia formation, contrary to predictions.

28 Dec 2021

Allele-specific RT-qPCR assay to identify SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in wastewater

Researchers develop a new allele-specific RT-qPCR to detect the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in wastewater.

23 Dec 2021

Omicron has enhanced infectivity that is only weakly neutralized by vaccination or prior infection

Scientists used virus-like particles and found that Omicron showed increased infectivity, relative to the B.1 and B.1.1 strains, which was similar to the Delta variant.

23 Dec 2021

T-cell response to Omicron after an mRNA COVID vaccine booster

In a recent prospective observational study posted to the medRxiv* preprint server, researchers determined Omicron variant-associated T cell responses before and after a third dose of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccination against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in anti-CD20-treated multiple sclerosis (MS) patients.

22 Dec 2021

Protein-based nanoparticle vaccines for protection against SARS-CoV-2

A recent review article discusses recent advances in protein-based nanoparticle vaccines against SARS-CoV-2.

22 Dec 2021

COVID can affect sperm quality for three months

Researchers determine whether SARS-CoV-2 could cross the blood-testis barrier and be detected in human semen after infection.

22 Dec 2021

How COVID vaccines protected Americans against the Delta variant

A new study analyzed the COVID-19 breakthrough case and death rates among fully vaccinated individuals who were 12 years of age or above.

22 Dec 2021

Role of novel SARS-CoV-2-derived svRNAs and the involvement of tRF in COVID-19

A new study revealed new long sv-COV-2 using T4 PNK pretreatment and qRT-PCR and also identified piRNAs and tRFs as the most abundant sncRNAs in COVID-19 positive samples.

22 Dec 2021

Researchers identify novel cancer markers in patients with aggressive prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men and is among the top five causes of cancer-related death. In most cases, prostate cancer can be successfully treated but there is a group of patients who suffer an aggressive course and often fatal outcome.

22 Dec 2021

Two-dose ChAdOx1 vaccine protection wanes after three months

New research reported in the journal The Lancet examines the temporal association between the two-dose ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca) vaccination regimen and the risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19 in Scotland vs. Brazil, where the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 was dominant and rare, respectively.

21 Dec 2021

Effect of T cell reactivity in COVID-19 infection and vaccination

Researchers recently developed an immunodiagnostic T cell assay to classify T cell immune responses of the subjects based on their coronavirus disease 2019 infection and vaccination history.

21 Dec 2021

An Omicron wave predicted for England from December 2021 to April 2022

A study, published on the medRxiv* preprint server, focuses on the interaction between Omicron variants and public health interventions in England that promote immunity.

20 Dec 2021

New oral pill for COVID-19 home treatment

As cases and hospitalizations continue to rise in many countries, new treatments are being sought to arrest the progression of the disease, preventing severe illness and death or disability. One such is the small molecule molnupiravir, the focus of a new research paper.

20 Dec 2021