Severe Acute Respiratory News and Research

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Study shows increasing size of respiratory droplets under cold humid conditions

Considerable evidence has accumulated to suggest that the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus may spread through prolonged or brief contact with infected patients - with the infection being spread through respiratory droplets and aerosols. The need to understand how these infectious droplets behave becomes ever more urgent. A recent study published in the preprint server medRxiv* in October 2020 reports the results of such an investigation.

8 Nov 2020

Second wave of COVID-19 in UK has reached “critical” stage, says study

The current paper reports the preliminary findings of the sixth round of the REal-time Assessment of Community Transmission-1 (REACT-1) study, which has traced the path of the outbreak in England since May this year (2020).

8 Nov 2020

Universal nanoparticle platform may help in rapid development of a COVID-19 vaccine

A research group in China recently published a paper on the pre-print server bioRxiv* that reports the performance of a potentially universal nanoparticle platform that may prove useful for the rapid development of a COVID-19 vaccine, as well as other vaccines in the future.

8 Nov 2020

COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths skew towards older males of non-European ancestry

A team of researchers recently investigated the genetic determinants of COVID-19 risk and severity in humans.

6 Nov 2020

Anxiety disorders increase among US citizens during COVID-19 pandemic

Scientists from the University of North Carolina and City University New York have recently revealed that a majority of United States citizens have suffered from anxiety disorders amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Financial adversity is one of the major causative factors for anxiety symptoms. The study is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server.

5 Nov 2020

A digital CRISPR-based method for quick detection and absolute quantification of SARS-CoV-2

In a recent medRxiv* preprint manuscript, researchers from Singapore and the United States report the development of a digital CRISPR method for the sensitive, specific, and rapid detection of viral nucleic acids at a constant temperature, which could be exploited for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

5 Nov 2020

New Zealand case study shows room for improvement in genomic sequencing of COVID-19 outbreaks

Researchers in New Zealand, the United States and Australia have demonstrated the effectiveness of real-time genomic sequencing at tracking the re-emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in New Zealand, in August this year.

5 Nov 2020

Pre-existing anti-IFN autoantibodies may worsen COVID-19 in lupus patients

“Our observations suggest that the presence of these autoantibodies may predispose SLE patients to infection with SARS-CoV-2 with a more severe presentation and represent an additional risk factor in this patient population,” write Sarthak Gupta and colleagues from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases in Bethesda, Maryland.

5 Nov 2020

Persistent and extensive lung damage seen in COVID-19 patients

A team of researchers at the University of Trieste in Italy aimed to determine the extent and the causes of lung damage from COVID-19 to better understand the pathological correlates of the disease.

5 Nov 2020

Occupational risk of COVID-19 in 3.5 million Norwegians

A team of researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health have sought to determine which among workers and employees have higher odds of COVID-19 infection in the first and second waves of the outbreak.

5 Nov 2020

Green tea and some fruit juices inhibit SARS-CoV-2 in vitro

Green tea, chokeberry juice, and pomegranate juice killed flu and SARS-CoV-2 viruses when incubated with the viruses in vitro. Thus, oral rinsing using these might be effective in preventing COVID-19.

5 Nov 2020

Election rallies linked to an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations

Researchers from Ben-Gurion University, Israel, Harvard Medical School, Boston, and Tel Aviv University, Israel, have studied the correlation between large gatherings and hospitalization risk due to COVID-19. Their study titled, “Association of Mass Gatherings and COVID-19 Hospitalization,” was published as a preprint on the medRxiv server.

4 Nov 2020

Novel approach for modeling spread of infectious disease

The rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 across the world despite the early shutdown of borders and the cessation of international travel has sparked interest and given rise to changes in knowledge regarding the spread of infections.

4 Nov 2020

Zinc-embedded polyamide fabrics are effective in absorbing and inactivating SARS-CoV-2

An international team of scientists has recently demonstrated that zinc-embedded polyamine fibers can effectively absorb and inactivate human respiratory viruses, including influenza A virus and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Thus, a face mask or other personal protective equipment (PPE) made from this fiber is expected to provide better protection against viral transmission.

4 Nov 2020

Computational study reveals SARS-CoV-2 spike protein structural stability

Using dynamic contact maps and energy differences between different conformations of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein (or S-protein), an international team of researchers have recently published an article on the bioRxiv preprint server showing the different stable conformations of the spike protein.

4 Nov 2020

An analysis of genetic diversity of D614G mutation in SARS-CoV-2

A new study published in the preprint server bioRxiv in November 2020 reports that the effect of the mutation is minimal, in terms of pathogenicity or altered response to neutralizing antibodies elicited against the native virus strain.

4 Nov 2020

Ozone water found to rapidly inactivate SARS-Cov-2

As the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic appears here to stay, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in November 2020 reports an effective and rapid inactivation tactic for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2); namely, through the use of ozone water.

4 Nov 2020

RNA-binding proteins may suppress antiviral defenses against SARS-CoV-2

Conducted by researchers in South Korea at the Institute for Basic Science and the International Vaccine Institute, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in November 2020 describes the many host proteins that bind with the ribonucleic acid (RNA) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and regulate the replication of the virus.

4 Nov 2020

Study shows brilacidin strongly inhibits SARS-CoV-2 in laboratory cell lines

A recent study by US researchers reveals that brilacidin, a small synthetic molecule with peptide-like properties, exerts potent in vitro antiviral activity against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – both as a standalone treatment and in combination with FDA-approved remdesivir. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv preprint server.

4 Nov 2020

Correlations found between 'long-COVID' patients and preexisting health conditions

Researchers from the nference (a biotech information firm) in Cambridge, MA, USA, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, USA, and nference Labs based in Bengaluru, India, recently performed a retrospective analysis of 266 COVID-19 patients.

4 Nov 2020