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Single-dose vaccines may provide sufficient immunization for individuals previously infected with SARS-CoV-2

A group of researchers based at the Papa Giovanni XXIII hospital in Italy have submitted evidence to suggest that individuals previously infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may adequately benefit from a single dose of mRNA vaccine, rather than requiring the current two-vaccine regimen.

12 Mar 2021

An overview of the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine by Pfizer-BioNTech

In a study published in the journal Drugs, a researcher tackled the approval of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine, which has now been used in many countries.

12 Mar 2021

Otago researchers find how to treat heart disease in type-2 diabetics

University of Otago researchers have discovered one of the reasons why more than 50 per cent of people with type 2 diabetes die from heart disease.

12 Mar 2021

New examination method identifies high-risk plaques likely to cause adverse cardiac events

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden can now show that a new examination method identifies high-risk plaques in the blood vessels surrounding the heart, that cannot be seen solely with traditional angiograms.

12 Mar 2021

Study identifies three novel binding receptors for SARS-CoV-2

A team of scientists from the United Kingdom recently conducted a large-scale screening of several membrane-bound and soluble host cell receptors to identify novel binding partners for SARS-CoV-2. They have identified three novel receptors expressed on the human cell membrane; of which, one binds to SARS-CoV-2 spike with similar affinity as angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).

12 Mar 2021

How common are post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection?

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on human lives, with over two million casualties so far. Equally devastating has been its economic toll. Now, a new study describes the features and frequency of long-haul symptoms in COVID-19.

12 Mar 2021

Natural virus-induced immunity protective against UK and South African SARS-CoV-2 variants in hamster study

As new variants of SARS-CoV-2 continue to emerge, fueling the continued spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study offers encouragement.

12 Mar 2021

Impact of type I interferon (IFN) autoantibodies in critical COVID-19

A new preprint discusses the pathogenesis of this critical COVID-19 with reference to autoimmune phenomena involving the key antiviral type I interferon pathway.

12 Mar 2021

Antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and RBD detected in saliva of mRNA-vaccine recipients

A team of researchers from the US and the Netherlands recently reported that antibodies to the spike protein and the RBD are detected in saliva samples from healthcare workers vaccinated with mRNA vaccines.

12 Mar 2021

SARS-CoV-2 is extremely sensitive to type I IFN pre-treatment, study finds

Researchers have found that SARS-CoV-2 is extremely sensitive to type I IFN pre-treatment. Therefore, strategies such as focusing on limiting the production of IFN, rather than its function, could restrict the mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 that increases its viral load with delayed or absent symptoms.

12 Mar 2021

Pooling COVID-19 tests to detect future outbreaks

How could pooling SARS-CoV-2 tests help to detect future viral outbreaks? News-Medical spoke to Dr. Jean-François Rupprecht to find out more.

12 Mar 2021

New book provides general introduction about COVID-19, history, and diagnosis

Recently, a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) emerged in China and rapidly spread worldwide. It is declared an ongoing outbreak as a global public health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO).

12 Mar 2021

New study sheds light on cancer metastasis

Breast cancer is harmful enough on its own, but when cancer cells start to metastasize -- or spread into the body from their original location -- the disease becomes even more fatal and difficult to treat.

12 Mar 2021

Scientists increase potency of HIV-1 antibody, identify new ways to develop vaccines

Much like coronavirus, circulating HIV-1 viruses mutate into diverse variants that pose challenges for scientists developing vaccines to protect people from HIV/AIDS.

12 Mar 2021

COVID-19 mRNA vaccines can reduce risk of asymptomatic COVID-19 infection

Ten days after receiving a second dose of a messenger RNA, or mRNA, vaccine for COVID-19, patients without COVID-19 symptoms are far less likely to test positive and unknowingly spread COVID-19, compared to patients who have not been vaccinated for COVID-19.

12 Mar 2021

Exposure to COVID-19 can cause rare but life-threatening pediatric condition

Exposure to SARS-Co-V2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can put otherwise healthy children and adolescents at risk for Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), a rare but possibly life-threatening pediatric condition that can cause severe inflammation in organs like the heart, brain, lungs, kidneys and gastrointestinal system.

12 Mar 2021

New approach could treat infertility caused by abnormal GnRH secretion

Reports suggest that at least 25% of ovarian disorders are due to dysfunction of the brain mechanism in the hypothalamus that controls the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which is a molecule that governs the reproductive function in men and women by regulating the release of a range of reproductive hormones into the body, particularly gonadotropins, from the pituitary gland, which is located underneath the brain.

12 Mar 2021

Spike protein mutations in SARS-CoV-2 variants help resist antibody neutralization

Researchers based in Beijing and Shenzhen, China, report that they have identified mutations in the spike protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that may allow variant strains to avoid neutralization by monoclonal antibodies and convalescent blood plasma.

11 Mar 2021

N501Y mutation in SARS-CoV-2 responsible for increased viral transmission

Researchers at the University of Texas, USA, have confirmed the specific mutation in the B.1.1.7 variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has allowed for it to be more transmissible than the ancestral strain. The N501Y substitution is one of 8 spike protein substitutions present in the UK variant and has also appeared convergently in the Brazil (P.1) and South Africa (B.1.351) variants.

11 Mar 2021

Structure and function of locked conformation of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein identified

A new preprint research paper, posted to the bioRxiv* server, uncovered more information on the different structural conformations of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The findings suggest the spike protein turns into a locked state to stabilize the spike protein during virus egress.

11 Mar 2021