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High levels of trust in science can make people more confident about COVID-19 vaccines

People are more likely to get vaccinated against diseases such as COVID-19 in countries where societal trust in science is high.

18 May 2021

COVID-19 pandemic causes disproportionate rise in cardiovascular deaths among racial, ethnic minorities

In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States experienced higher rates of heart disease and cerebrovascular disease deaths, relative to the corresponding months the previous year.

18 May 2021

SpaceX study profiles evolution of antibody response during COVID-19 infection

New research published on the preprint server bioRxiv* suggests S2-specific antibody responses are critical in recovering from mild to severe COVID-19 infection. Compared to patients who died within 28 days of their COVID-19 diagnosis, patients who produced a wide range of S2-specific responses were more likely to survive.

18 May 2021

ErbB inhibitor lapatinib exhibits potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity

A team of scientists from the USA and Belgium has recently revealed that the ErbB family of receptor tyrosine kinases play a vital role in regulating severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) lifecycle in host cells and that inhibition of these receptors can protect against SARS-CoV-2-induced acute and chronic lung injuries and inflammation.

18 May 2021

A possible human-to-canine transmission of SARS-CoV-2

Now, researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified a case of human to animal transmission when SARS-CoV-2 was detected in a healthy poodle dog living with four family members who had COVID-19.

18 May 2021

COVID-19 public health interventions reduced other respiratory infections

Wearing masks and quarantining while sick has helped mitigate the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). An indirect benefit of these efforts appears to be a decrease in flu cases and other respiratory infections. New research led by Lisa G. Winston of the University of California, San Francisco, confirmed COVID-19 public health interventions helped decrease the number of airborne viruses.

18 May 2021

Around half of U.S. parents unwilling to vaccinate their children against COVID-19

A national online survey in March 2021 found only 49.4% of parents living in the United States were planning to vaccinate their child. A parents’ vaccination status and level of vaccine hesitancy were associated with adolescent vaccinations against COVID-19.

18 May 2021

Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine elicits six-month antibody responses to variants

Researchers in the United States have demonstrated the long-term durability of the antibody responses elicited by Moderna’s mRNA-1273 vaccine against variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

18 May 2021

A promising drug delivery system for therapeutics that shut down harmful genes

Viruses attack the body by sending their genetic code -- DNA and RNA -- into cells and multiplying. A promising class of therapeutics that uses synthetic nucleic acids to target and shut down specific, harmful genes and prevent viruses from spreading is gaining steam.

18 May 2021

Stabilizing mutations in SARS-CoV-2 immunogens improve vaccine design

Researchers in the United States have developed stabilized immunogens presenting the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that may improve the scalability of RBD-based coronavirus vaccines.

18 May 2021

Milder COVID-19 in children may be due to higher memory B cells responses to SARS-CoV-2

A new research paper published in the journal Science explores the differences in coronavirus-specific B memory cell repertoires in children versus adults, as well as the functional importance of this discovery.

18 May 2021

COVID-19 mRNA vaccines safe and effective for pregnant and breastfeeding women

The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has brought untold devastation in its wake, with its rapid and asymptomatic spread to hundreds of millions of people the world over. Vaccines have been hailed as the way out of this situation, and a dozen or so are being rolled out in many different countries.

18 May 2021

Breastfeeding safe and beneficial in SARS-CoV-2 infection

\With the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, hundreds of millions of people became infected worldwide, including thousands of pregnant women near term. The question of vertical transmission to the infant via the placenta or breast milk was very real, leading to a near-total ban on breastfeeding in this group.

17 May 2021

Study shows how Swedish people perceive information about COVID-19

Swedes' confidence in government officials varies greatly depending on their political leanings. Politicians are perceived as more in agreement when it comes to their views on how the corona pandemic is being handled in Sweden.

17 May 2021

Study provides valuable insight for preventing global pandemics

Whether it's plankton exposed to parasites or people exposed to pathogens, a host's initial immune response plays an integral role in determining whether infection occurs and to what degree it spreads within a population, new University of Colorado Boulder research suggests.

17 May 2021

Employment for frontline healthcare workers should be conditional on COVID-19 jab, argue ethicists

Employment for frontline healthcare workers should be conditional on COVID-19 vaccination, and unless they have a valid medical reason for not getting the jab, persistent refusniks should be temporarily redeployed to protect their colleagues and patients, argue ethicists in the Journal of Medical Ethics.

17 May 2021

Government’s covid-19 travel plan will let new variants into the UK, experts warn

The government’s covid-19 travel plan will let new variants into the UK, warn experts in The BMJ today.

17 May 2021

Delaying second dose of covid-19 vaccine could result in lower mortality under certain conditions

Delaying the second dose of covid-19 vaccines, at least for people aged under 65, could result in up to 20% lower mortality, but only under certain conditions, finds a US study published by The BMJ today.

17 May 2021

A leading group of scientists working in universities, research centres, and innovative companies across Belgium, Germany, Greece, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland just initiated a groundbreaking project hoping to treat stroke once and for all. The project, given the code name “ANGIE”, is backed by EU funding. "European scientists started developin

17 May 2021

Study reveals the first complete 3D molecular structure of immature flavivirus

Better designed vaccines for insect-spread viruses like dengue and Zika are likely after researchers discovered models of immature flavivirus particles were originally misinterpreted.

17 May 2021