Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Qatar worker communities may have attained herd immunity against SARS-CoV-2

Now, a recent study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in September 2020 shows the achievement of herd immunity for SARS-CoV-2 infection by at least some expatriate worker communities in Qatar.

29 Sep 2020

Discovery of specific kinase as a novel drug target against SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses

By using a modern genome-wide knockout approach to single out coronavirus host factors in human cells, researchers from Rega Institute in Belgium discovered a potential new target that might be exploited for developing drugs against the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, but also future outbreaks of highly pathogenic coronaviruses

29 Sep 2020

Naturally occurring enzyme holds potential as low-cost therapeutic to treat COVID-19

Researchers from UCLA and China have found that catalase, a naturally occurring enzyme, holds potential as a low-cost therapeutic drug to treat COVID-19 symptoms and suppress the replication of coronavirus inside the body.

29 Sep 2020

Normal conversations can spread exhaled particles inside buildings

With implications for the transmission of diseases like COVID-19, researchers have found that ordinary conversation creates a conical 'jet-like' airflow that quickly carries a spray of tiny droplets from a speaker's mouth across meters of interior space.

29 Sep 2020

Efforts to keep COVID-19 out of prisons fuel outbreaks in county jails

When Joshua Martz tested positive for COVID-19 this summer in a Montana jail, guards moved him and nine other inmates with the disease into a pod so cramped that some slept on mattresses on the floor.

29 Sep 2020

PrimeStore® MTM novel viral transport media successfully evaluated by Public Health England for SARS-CoV-2 inactivation

EKF Diagnostics announces that the novel viral transport media PrimeStore® MTM has been successfully evaluated for effective SARS-CoV-2 inactivation.

From EKF Diagnostics 29 Sep 2020

How might India's monsoon season impact COVID-19 ?

A new study, by two Goethe University Frankfurt researchers, published on the preprint server medRxiv* in September 2020 explores the relationship between the monsoon season, the chances of exposure to ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, and the COVID-19 mortality.

29 Sep 2020

Smell and taste changes last longer than other COVID-19 symptoms

A preprint paper published on the medRxiv server details a recent study by researchers from The Hebrew University, Hadassah-Hebrew University medical center, and Hadassah University Hospital, which addresses this gap in knowledge about the symptoms experienced by COVID-19 patients.

28 Sep 2020

Hemi-gland cryoablation provides a high rate of effective prostate cancer control

A less-invasive treatment technique called hemi-gland cryoablation (HGCryo) - destroying the areas of the prostate where cancers are located by freezing them - provides a high rate of effective prostate cancer control, according to a new study published in The Journal of Urology, Official Journal of the American Urological Association.

28 Sep 2020

SARS-CoV-2 re-infection is real but rare: Case study

Now, American researchers have looked at all reported cases of re-infection and the possible reasons behind them. Their study titled, “Re-infection with SARS-CoV-2 and Failure of Humoral Immunity: a case report,” is published online on the preprint server medRxiv in September 2020.

28 Sep 2020

Healthy vitamin D levels could reduce COVID-19 complications

Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study investigates the link between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and its effect on adverse clinical outcomes and parameters of immune function and mortality due to COVID-19.

28 Sep 2020

One-third of parents in the U.S. won’t get flu shots for their kids during the pandemic

A survey from the National Poll on Children’s Health, however, revealed that one-third of American parents have no plans of getting their children vaccinated for the flu virus this year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

28 Sep 2020

Study pinpoints heating element in vaping devices as cause for lung injuries

Early results of an experimental vaping study have shown significant lung injury from E-cigarette (eC) devices with nickel-chromium alloy heating elements.

28 Sep 2020

Researchers discover specific cellular pathway involved in lung tissue regeneration

Researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have identified a cellular pathway that can be targeted with a naturally occurring drug to stimulate lung tissue regeneration, which is necessary for recovery from multiple lung injuries.

28 Sep 2020

Resveratrol and pterostilbene inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro

A team of scientists at the University of Groningen, in the Netherlands, demonstrates that a natural plant product, resveratrol, and its structural analog, pterostilbene, have long-lasting antiviral effects against severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv preprint server.

28 Sep 2020

Life-threatening COVID-19 associated with specific genetic variants

Results of a genome-wide association study on 2,244 critically-ill patients due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) from 208 intensive care units across the United Kingdom revealed significant host-specific genetic determinants that can predispose people to the severe form of the disease. The report is currently available on the medRxiv preprint server.

28 Sep 2020

Evaporation is critical for coronavirus transmission in colder months

Dr. Talib Dbouk and Professor Dimitris Drikakis speak to News-Medical about how evaporation is essential for coronavirus transmission in the winter.

28 Sep 2020

Genetic mutations hinder immune response in severe COVID-19

Now, a truly international team of nearly 140 researchers aimed to determine why some people develop severe illness when once infected by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19 disease.

28 Sep 2020

Auto-antibodies may explain why some people develop severe COVID-19

Now, a new study by an international team of health experts shows that some life-threatening cases of COVID-19 can be traced to specific weak spots in the patients' immune system.

28 Sep 2020

Special formulation of inhaled niclosamide may be effective against SARS-CoV-2

Now in new research published on the preprint server bioRxix*, a novel formulation of the drug Niclosamide (NIC) is observed to be effective against SARS-CoV-2 and MERS-CoV in mouse models; it also protects against methicillin-resistance Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia and inflammatory lung damage.

28 Sep 2020