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Higher B.1.1.7 transmission in households than other SARS-CoV-2 variants

Contact tracing data from a new preprint study on the medRxiv* preprint server provides further evidence that the B.1.1.7 variant — first reported in the United Kingdom — has a high transmission rate. The research, led by Birgitte Freiseleben de Blasio from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the University of Oslo in Norway, estimates B.1.1.7 has a 60% greater transmission within households than other severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants of concern.

2 Apr 2021

Study finds CD8+ T cell responses detect all major SARS-CoV-2 variants

There have been concerns that several SARS-CoV-2 variants have mutations that allow them to evade the immune system. A new study published in the Open Forum Infectious Diseases suggests otherwise. Led by Aaron AR Tobian of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, results showed that except for one from the B.1.351 variant, CD8+ T cells showed a broad response to all SARS-CoV-2 variants.

2 Apr 2021

Muscle strength and mass may predict hospital stay duration in COVID-19 patients

Researchers found that COVID-19 patients with good muscle strength and higher muscle mass had a shorter stay in the hospital.

2 Apr 2021

Long-COVID-19 is a significant risk in recovered patients post-hospitalization

A new study, which appeared in the British Medical Journal, reports on a retrospective study to examine the incidence and risk factors for ‘long COVID-19’, the term used to describe the long-term effects of COVID-19 on affected individuals.

2 Apr 2021

Proper choice of control group nullifies most observed genetic markers for severe COVID-19, study suggests

A new study deals with the genetic contribution to severe disease following infection with this virus, showing that the association of severity with specific human genes described in an earlier study is not obvious.

2 Apr 2021

Researchers offer large-scale screening of potential broad-spectrum SARS-CoV-2 antivirals

A new study describes the identification of new compounds from a library, with inhibitory activity against several coronaviruses. This study shows the utility of this method, besides identifying compounds that not only inhibit viral shedding in SARS-CoV-2 cultures, but have an immunomodulatory effect that may be useful in mitigating the damaging cytokine storm typical of severe or critical COVID-19.

2 Apr 2021

Comparative study of SARS, MERS, BAT‐SARS, and SARS-CoV-2

Even though a comparative study on the genomic sequences of SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2 is available, there is a gap in the research in regards to the comparison between four types of coronaviruses, namely, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, BAT-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. A new study, which deals with the genomic comparison between the sequence of the above-stated four types of coronaviruses, has been published in the Journal of Medical Virology.

2 Apr 2021

Internal states can also have an impact on learning, shows study

We've all heard the adage, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again," but new research from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh finds that it isn't all about repetition. Rather, internal states like engagement can also have an impact on learning.

2 Apr 2021

Researchers investigate the long-term effects of injury

Close to 60% of working adults who were hospitalized as a result of an injury had returned to their jobs after being discharged, according to a recent study in the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery.

2 Apr 2021

Study explores long-term outcomes and costs of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer

A new research study leveraging a database from the largest equal access health system in the US, the Department of Veteran Affairs, offers insight into the outcome of specific treatment patterns for advanced bladder cancer patients.

2 Apr 2021

Suppressing facial expressions may be useful in certain contexts, shows study

How do our facial expressions in response to seeing others in pain influence how we see and feel their pain? There are many situations where it may be helpful to suppress our emotional responses to the pain of others.

2 Apr 2021

Highly contagious SARS-CoV-2 variant was spreading for months before its discovery

A highly contagious SARS-CoV-2 variant was unknowingly spreading for months in the United States by October 2020, according to a new study from researchers with The University of Texas at Austin COVID-19 Modeling Consortium.

2 Apr 2021

Diet and lifestyle may play a significant role in Alzheimer's disease

For years, research to pin down the underlying cause of Alzheimer's Disease has been focused on plaque found to be building up in the brain in AD patients.

2 Apr 2021

Mice experiencing hallucination-like events provide clues to understand psychosis

The humble lab mouse has provided invaluable clues to understanding diseases ranging from cancer to diabetes to COVID-19. But when it comes to psychiatric conditions, the lab mouse has been sidelined, its rodent mind considered too different from that of humans to provide much insight into mental illness.

1 Apr 2021

Restoring dysfunctional lymphatic networks to allow the body to fight disease

The human body is an incredibly designed machine, and mechanical processes such as those in the lymphatic system play major roles in maintaining healthy tissue and organs.

1 Apr 2021

Study finds vaccine distrust among majority of incarcerated people

Fewer than half of inmates in jails and prisons surveyed in a study by the CDC and University of Washington said they would accept a COVID-19 vaccine, while the majority either said they wanted to wait before getting the vaccine or would refuse one.

1 Apr 2021

Harnessing previous research to mitigate the mental health impacts of COVID-19 on adolescents

A team of researchers has sought to mitigate the mental health impacts of COVID-19 on adolescents by harnessing previous research on youth physical and mental health.

1 Apr 2021

HCAs are a promising risk indicator of type 2 diabetes

A series of studies led by researchers from Hong Kong Baptist University have revealed that hyocholic acid and its derivatives (collectively known as HCAs), a component of bile acids that facilitate fat digestion, are a promising risk indicator of type 2 diabetes.

1 Apr 2021

Wearing helmet during a crash associated with more arm and hand injuries

Maybe parents are right to bristle when their infatuated offspring brings home a motorcycle rider: despite only making up 10% of vehicles on US roads, motorcycle riders comprise 40% of all traffic accident trauma patients.

1 Apr 2021

Signal detection theory can be used to better understand cognitive fatigue

A team of New Jersey researchers has shown that changes in perceptual certainty and response bias, two central metrics of signal detection theory (SDT), correlate with changes in cognitive fatigue.

1 Apr 2021