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Probiotics as adjuvant therapy for COVID-19 patients

In a recent review published in the Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews, Luigi Santacroce and Francesco Inchingolo et al. address the many factors such as dysbiosis (imbalance in the microbiota) that could influence the SARS-CoV-2 infection course.

25 Jan 2021

New SARS-CoV-2 variants resistant to convalescent sera and and monoclonal antibodies

Researchers studying the effect of convalescent sera and monoclonal antibodies from recovered patients found the UK and South African SARS-CoV-2 variants are more resistant to neutralization compared to the wild-type virus.

25 Jan 2021

New drug screening platform identifies inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2

Researchers in the UK and the United States have developed a stem-cell-based screening platform for identifying compounds that inhibit infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the causative agent for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

25 Jan 2021

UK COVID-19 death to case ratio increased in December 2020, say researchers

Researchers in Scotland have conducted a study showing that the proportion of deaths due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) resulting from infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) increased in the UK after November 2020.

25 Jan 2021

New, highly accurate 20-minute COVID-19 test is trialed across the University of Surrey

A new, highly accurate COVID-19 test, Virus Hunter 6 (VH6), which delivers results in under 20 minutes is being trialed across the University of Surrey, this week.

25 Jan 2021

Scientists develop a model to track viral load in COVID-19 patients

Scientists from the University of Alberta, Canada, have developed a model to determine patient-specific viral load curves for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The data obtained from this model can be used in other higher-level models to evaluate the physiological and pathological impacts of virus infection and determine patient risks.

25 Jan 2021

Bispecific antibody shows efficacy against new SARS-CoV-2 variants

A team of international scientists has recently developed a bispecific antibody that can bind two non-overlapping regions of the spike receptor-binding domain of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and completely prevent the viral-host interaction.

25 Jan 2021

Herd immunity to SARS-CoV-2 may not be achievable with current vaccines

A recent preprint research paper posted on the medRxiv server asks the question: “Is “herd immunity” to COVID-19 a realistic outcome of any immunization program with the two main vaccines currently licensed in the UK?”

25 Jan 2021

European soccer players may have up to 3.5 times higher risk for COVID-19

As efforts are underway to keep the season going under existing restrictions, a preprint research paper appearing on the medRxiv server describes the estimated incidence and the risk of infection with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) among European soccer players.

25 Jan 2021

COVID-19 diagnostic tests remain able to detect all published virus strains

Paris, France and Camberley, UK – 21 December 2020 – Novacyt (EURONEXT GROWTH: ALNOV; AIM: NCYT), an international specialist in clinical diagnostics, announces that following the detection of a new variant of COVID-19 by the UK’s COVID19 Genomics UK consortium, known as VUI-202012/01, the Company has carried out a detailed analysis of the mutations in this new variant and in all published COVID-19 strains to fully assess the reliability of its existing diagnostic tests.

From AFSBio 25 Jan 2021

Socioeconomic conditions linked to high viral load despite treatment for HIV patients in Ethiopia

For those who are diagnosed and have begun treatment for HIV, it is standard practice to regularly monitor viral load in the blood to assess response to treatment.

25 Jan 2021

Study identifies early warnings of COVID-19 outbreak on Twitter posts

Even before public announcements of the first cases of COVID-19 in Europe were made, at the end of January 2020, signals that something strange was happening were already circulating on social media.

25 Jan 2021

Promising nanobodies against COVID-19 produced by llamas

News-Medical speaks to Dr. David Brody about his latest research that involved discovering nanobodies produced by llamas that could help combat coronavirus.

25 Jan 2021

Experts provide overview of deaths reported in Europe following BNT162b2 vaccination

The GACVS COVID-19 Vaccine Safety subcommittee met virtually on Tuesday, 19 January 2021, to review available information and data on deaths reported in frail, elderly individuals who had received the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 mRNA vaccine, BNT162b2 (hereafter, BNT162b2).

25 Jan 2021

Scientists call for strict control measures to reduce the spread of new COVID-19 variants

A group of scientists is calling on governments to consider the continued use of strict control measures as the only way to reduce the evolution and spread of new COVID-19 variants.

25 Jan 2021

Second-generation double antibody protects from SARS-CoV-2 and its tested variants

The Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB; Bellinzona, Switzerland), affiliated to the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) developed a second-generation 'double antibody' that protects from SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, and all its tested variants. It also prevents the virus from mutating to resist the therapy.

24 Jan 2021

Study looks at anxiety of HCW during the COVID-19 pandemic

The study reveals that healthcare workers from Saudi Arabia suffer from a high level of anxiety due to a higher risk of acquiring severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The study is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server.

24 Jan 2021

Transcriptional regulator BRD2 as a potential therapeutic target for COVID-19

A team of international scientists has demonstrated that therapeutic inhibition of a transcriptional regulator BRD2, required for the endogenous expression of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), can potentially suppress severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

24 Jan 2021

Experts advise disaggregating data on COVID-19 patients by sex

Researchers at Yale University School of Medicine have highlighted the importance of ensuring studies of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) report data in a sex-disaggregated manner.

24 Jan 2021

Researchers show how to estimate long-term efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines

Researchers at the University of North Carolina and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Washington have developed a way to evaluate vaccines' long-term efficacy against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

24 Jan 2021