Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

COVID-19 increases flu vaccine acceptance in the U.K., study finds

In the United Kingdom, a team of researchers at Imperial College London has found that the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has increased vaccination acceptance among the study participants. The research is published on the preprint server medRxiv.

6 Oct 2020

HPV vaccination mandates did not improve rates of HPV vaccine series completion, shows study

A postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Riverside, has discovered human papillomavirus, or HPV, vaccination mandates fall short of ensuring both higher levels of uptake and equal uptake of the vaccine across socioeconomic and racial-ethnic groups.

6 Oct 2020

Thiopurines could help stop viral replication in human coronaviruses

Researchers from the Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University, University of Calgary, and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia, Canada, worked with human coronaviruses in cell cultures to look for drugs that might prevent accumulation and replication of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

6 Oct 2020

Severe COVID-19 in pregnancy increases risk for adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes

A new study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in September 2020 reports the impact of severe COVID-19 on pregnancy, making an important contribution to the management of the condition in this subgroup of patients.

5 Oct 2020

Macrophage subgroups may play pivotal role in COVID-19 lethality

Many researchers are attempting to identify risk factors for severe or critical COVID-19. A recent paper in the journal Medical Hypotheses in September 2020 suggests that macrophage class activation is one of the factors that determine the clinical phenotype of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection.

5 Oct 2020

Severe lymphatic disorder reversed through genetic sequencing and targeted treatment

Through genetic sequencing and targeted treatment, researchers from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have resolved a severe lymphatic disorder in a young woman with kaposiform lymphangiomatosis (KLA), a complex and rare disorder that causes lymphatic vessels around the heart and lung to leak fluid, causing breathing difficulties, infections, and often death.

5 Oct 2020

Social media policies can help control HPV vaccine misinformation, shows study

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted disease and the primary cause of several cancers. Recent estimates indicate that 70-90 percent of HPV-related cancers may be prevented through vaccination.

5 Oct 2020

Will COVID-19 become a seasonal virus?

In this interview, Dr. Hadi Yassine and Dr. Hassan Zaraket speak about their research into whether COVID-19 will become a seasonal virus.

5 Oct 2020

Feasibility of using dry reagents LAMP assay for SARS-CoV-2 detection

In a new study published on the preprint server medRxiv, researchers evaluated the suitability of the Loopamp SARS-CoV-2 Detection kit from Eiken Chemica, Japan, for detecting SARS-CoV-2. This is a LAMP method that uses dry reagents for RNA amplification.

5 Oct 2020

An effective Origami mask for COVID-19

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in September 2020 reports constructing disposable masks using simple paper folding or origami steps, from filter material. This could make mask-wearing more acceptable and their construction less cumbersome.

5 Oct 2020

A comprehensive clinical and genetic model for predicting severe COVID-19 risk

While determining the risk of severe COVID-19, age, and gender are usually the only considerations. A recent preprint paper published in medRxiv, discusses how researchers from Genetic Technologies Limited, Australia, used the UK Biobank data to develop a comprehensive model that can predict severe COVID-19 risk by incorporating comorbidity risk factors, demographic information, and a set of genetic markers.

4 Oct 2020

Anti-sense agents suppress SARS-CoV-2 virus

Researchers in the United States have conducted a study showing that anti-sense agents called peptide-conjugated morpholino oligomers (PPMOs) have the ability to specifically and potently suppress the growth of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent responsible for the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

4 Oct 2020

Parkinson's disease is an independent risk factor for dying from COVID-19, study suggests

A new study of approximately 80,000 patients shows that people with Parkinson's disease (PD) have a 30% higher risk of dying from COVID-19 than people without the neurodegenerative condition.

1 Oct 2020

Study examines the impact of Viagra drug advertising on birth rates

Many marketing studies have examined the impact of direct-to-consumer advertising of pharmaceuticals on sales and market shares. But in a new study, a researcher from The University of Texas at Dallas wanted to know whether drug advertising might have some unintended, population-level health consequences.

1 Oct 2020

Study reveals how immune cells sacrifice themselves to help fight off infections

Whether flu or coronavirus, it can take several days for the body to ramp up an effective response to a viral infection.

1 Oct 2020

Children are active transmitters of COVID-19, shows study

A team of investigators from CDDEP, the Government of Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh studied disease transmission patterns in 575,071 individuals exposed to 84,965 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

1 Oct 2020

AI can be nearly as accurate as a physician in diagnosing COVID-19

The new UCF co-developed algorithm can accurately identify COVID-19 cases, as well as distinguish them from influenza.

30 Sep 2020

Researchers develop single-use treatment for ear infections that doesn't need refrigeration

Outer ear infections, which affect millions of people each year, are typically caused by the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Staphylococcus aureus.

30 Sep 2020

Researchers identify the target structures for T-cell response against SARS-CoV-2

Our immune system can efficiently fend off viral diseases. Two types of immune cells play an important role in this process: The T-cells, which firstly can directly destroy virus-infected cells and secondly enable the formation of efficient, virus-neutralizing antibodies by B-cells.

30 Sep 2020

Discovery of high affinity binders for SARS-CoV-2 spike protein

An exciting, 'tour-de-force' paper by researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology describes de novo discovery of high-affinity peptide binders for SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein, which opens the door for the development of rapid viral identification or conjugates for virus-directed delivery of therapeutics.

30 Sep 2020