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Adaptimmune to report Phase 2 trial data on synovial sarcoma at ASCO congress

Adaptimmune Therapeutics plc, a leader in cell therapy to treat cancer, will report initial data from its Phase 2 SPEARHEAD-1 trial, with afamitresgene autoleucel (afami-cel, formerly ADP-A2M4), at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) congress. Full abstracts were released online today.

21 May 2021

Study shows distinctive mutation in rapidly emerging SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 sublineage

In a new study currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server, US researchers report the detection of a specific sub-lineage of B.1.1.7 severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variant harboring a novel S:D178H mutation and elucidate its transmission and evolutionary patterns.

21 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 spike mutation can independently predict viral evolution

A team of scientists from Portugal has recently estimated the rate of mutation in two circulating variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) using experimental evolution methods. Their findings reveal that in a condition with no immune surveillance, SARS-CoV-2 can potentially undergo evolution during the first stages of infection. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

21 May 2021

Researchers define immune determinants of protection against SARS-CoV-2 in mice

Researchers in the United States have conducted a preclinical study defining the roles that different arms of the immune system play in fighting primary infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), as well as reinfection and infection following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.

21 May 2021

Pfizer-BioNTech and Sinovac vaccines boost SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing responses

Researchers in the United States and Chile have provided preliminary evidence that individuals infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – mount a robust neutralizing antibody response against the virus that can be significantly boosted by two doses of Sinovac Biotech’s CoronaVac vaccine or one dose of Pfizer-BioNTech’s BNT162b2 vaccine.

21 May 2021

North America has 87% of all unique SARS-CoV-2 S protein variants in the NCBI database among six continents

Recently, a team of researchers from various countries analyzed the unique variants of S proteins across six continents, including Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, South America, and North America. They wanted to characterize the unique S protein variants embedded in SARS-CoV-2 genomes infecting millions of people globally.

20 May 2021

Swiss study suggests very low prevalence of long COVID in pediatric population

Researchers from Switzerland recently analyzed long COVID symptoms in children and adolescents with a 6-month follow-up based on their SARS-CoV-2 serology. A longitudinal cohort analysis, the Ciao Corona study investigated SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence and case clustering among ~2500 children from 55 primary and secondary schools in Zurich, Switzerland.

20 May 2021

Intranasal COVID-19 therapeutic shows promise in preclinical trials

Researchers from the US and Denmark recently described a novel therapeutic option that targets the SARS-CoV-2 ribonucleic acid (RNA) using locked nucleic acid antisense oligonucleotides (LNA ASOs). They identified an LNA ASO that binds to the 5’ leader sequence of SARS-CoV-2 ORF1a/b. This disrupts a highly conserved stem-loop structure with nanomolar efficacy and inhibits viral replication in host cells.

20 May 2021

Resuming global childhood vaccination campaigns during the COVID-19 pandemic

New research published on the medRxiv* preprint server suggests childhood vaccination to prevent other infectious diseases has plummeted during the pandemic. The decrease appears to stem from the suspension of health campaigns promoting immunization and the risk of catching the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative pathogen of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

20 May 2021

How is COVID-19 changing hunting patterns during lockdown in India?

To examine the real impact of COVID-19 lockdown on wildlife hunting across India, a team of researchers conducted a study from March-May 2020. Using media reports and online interviews with wildlife researchers, enforcement staff and NGO employees, the research team explored the change in hunting patterns and the socio-economic and institutional factors underlying these changes.

20 May 2021

Does cross-immunity exist between SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.28 and P.1 variants?

A team of researchers recently cross-tested severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies to assess their neutralization activity against different variants. The team recently released their findings as a preprint on the medRxiv* server.

20 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 variant spread study in France shows B.1.351/V2 variant outgrowing B.1.1.7/V1 variant

A recent study by researchers in France has compared the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants of concern. The team found a significant transmission advantage of V2 (from lineage B.1.351) over V1 (from lineage B.1.1.7). A pre-print version of the research paper is available on the medRxiv* server.

20 May 2021

Could graphene oxide nanosheets be an effective SARS-CoV-2 antiviral in PPE?

A new study has been published in Small, which has combined in silico and in vitro analysis to examine if graphene oxide (GO) sheets have an inhibitory effect against SARS‐CoV‐2 surface proteins.

20 May 2021

A SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate based on B.1.351 spike trimer shows broad neutralizing capability

Researchers tested the vaccine candidate in mice with up to three doses and found it produces high levels of antibodies against both SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern and the original virus strain.

20 May 2021

Two new SARS-like coronaviruses described in Russian horseshoe bats

Horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus sp.) are known reservoirs of zoonotic coronaviruses (CoVs). Over the last twenty years, viruses thought to have originated from these bats have given rise to two severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic outbreaks in humans: SARS-CoV-1 in 2002/2003, which was limited mostly to Asia, and the currently globally circulating SARS-CoV-2, first identified in December 2019.

20 May 2021

Tokyo sees rapid rise of SARS-CoV-2 R.1 lineage

A new research paper posted to the preprint server medRxiv* reports the rise of a new lineage in Tokyo, Japan, bearing a combination of two biologically important mutations.

20 May 2021

Are COVID-19-related complications in children explained by abnormal immune responses?

A common theme in reports on COVID-19 around the world has been the large number of children who have not been infected or shown signs of disease. However, though the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes less acute infection in this age group, it is associated with a severe immune-mediated multisystemic illness called multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).

20 May 2021

Early treatment may prevent clotting in COVID-19 vaccine-related thrombocytopenia

Now, a new report in the Journal of Thrombosis and Hemostasis reveals that timely diagnosis and treatment of this condition may prevent further morbidity and mortality, and enable the vaccine to be used widely with confidence.

20 May 2021

Plant-produced COVID-19 vaccine shows potent immunogenic profile in humans

An interim report on a phase 2 clinical trial indicates both the safety and efficacy of a plant-produced virus-like particle vaccine candidate against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The vaccine candidate has shown an acceptable safety profile and high potency in inducing humoral and cellular immune responses in adults (18 – 64 years) and elderly (65 years and above) individuals. The report is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server.

20 May 2021

Monoclonal antibody bamlanivimab reduces hospitalization and death in moderate-to-severe COVID-19

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center found that monoclonal antibodies, a COVID-19 treatment administered early after infection, reduce the risk of hospitalization and death by 60 percent in people at high risk of suffering complications from the condition.

20 May 2021