Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Dana-Farber launches clinical test of blood cancer drug in COVID-19 patients

Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have launched a clinical test of a blood cancer drug in patients infected with the COVID-19 virus. T

20 May 2020

Doctoral candidate receives NIH fellowship to study how adenovirus affects heart function

A dose of adenovirus hits most people like a common cold - a cough, a fever, maybe a sore throat. But for an unfortunate few, the usually benign bug hacks the heart's cellular electrical communication system and sometimes proves fatal.

20 May 2020

Current antibody tests are good enough to inform decisions about public health, say experts

While it's too soon to use COVID-19 antibody testing to issue "immunity passports", antibody tests that are available today are good enough to inform decisions about public health and relaxing social distancing interventions, says an international group of infectious disease and public health experts in Science Immunology today.

20 May 2020

Methodologies to detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2

In an important, comprehensive, and timely review, an expert team from the University of California Berkeley details the methodologies used in nucleic acid-based tests for detecting the presence of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

20 May 2020

Retrofitted VW diesel engines emit less harmful nitrogen oxides

The VW diesel scandal began with a bang on September 18, 2015. On exactly the opening day of the Frankfurt International Motor Show (IAA), the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published its "Notice of Violation": VW diesel engines with 1.6 and 2.0 liters displacement (type code EA 189) contained illegal software designed to manipulate emissions.

20 May 2020

Aerosol transmission through new vs. reused N95 masks

The world is grappling with the worst pandemic in over 100 years. Caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel coronavirus which emerged in China in December 2019 but has now spread across the globe. With a rapid rate of transmission, SARS-CoV-2 has now affected over 4.88 million people and resulted in over 322,000 deaths.

19 May 2020

The use of rheumatoid arthritis drug sarilumab in severe COVID-19 pneumonia

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020 reports the beneficial effects of the monoclonal antibody sarilumab in severe COVID-19 pneumonia.

19 May 2020

Sleep apnea may increase the risk of severe COVID-19, say researchers

An analysis conducted by researchers at the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital in Finland has suggested that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may be a risk factor for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019).

19 May 2020

No SARS-COV-2 among young children in Belgium attending daycare, report researchers

A study conducted by researchers in Belgium has found no evidence to support concerns that asymptomatic young children may be a source of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus disease 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission.

19 May 2020

Hop supplements used by menopausal women are not likely to cause drug interactions

Hop-based dietary supplements that many women use to ease the night sweats and hot flashes commonly reported during menopause aren't likely to cause drug interactions, new research from Oregon State University's Linus Pauling Institute and College of Pharmacy shows.

19 May 2020

NEJM Group releases a series of five Covid-19 interactive cases

NEJM Group today released Covid-19 Rx: Treatment Simulations, a series of five Covid-19 interactive cases that range from a mild self-limited flu-like illness to life-threatening multi-organ failure.

19 May 2020

New capsules are critical for addressing the rapidly changing bacteria, says expert

Vaccines that protect people from infection by Streptococcus pneumonia, which kills up to 1 million children every year worldwide, train the immune system to recognize the pathogen's thick sugar capsule.

19 May 2020

Mount Sinai researchers are first to use AI model to analyze COVID-19 patients

Mount Sinai researchers are the first in the country to use artificial intelligence (AI) combined with imaging, and clinical data to analyze patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

19 May 2020

COVID-19 is more deadly than flu, concludes new study

Is COVID-19 more deadly than the flu? It's a lot more deadly, concludes a new study by the University of Washington published May 7 in the journal Health Affairs.

19 May 2020

New animal model for COVID-19

As the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to ravage the world, scientists are frantically searching for a vaccine or new drug that will effectively counter the lethal effects of the virus that leads to COVID-19 disease.

19 May 2020

Three FDA-approved drugs can block the replication of COVID-19 virus

Three drugs that are already approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or other international agencies can block the production of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 in human cells, according to computational and pharmaceutical studies performed by UT Southwestern scientists.

19 May 2020