Coronavirus Disease COVID 19 News and Research

Latest Coronavirus Disease COVID 19 News and Research

World's most sophisticated COVID-19 sequencing system

In response to the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 infections in the United Kingdom, the COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) consortium was formed to rapidly sequence SARS-CoV-2 genomes as part of a national-scale genomic surveillance strategy.

29 Jul 2021

99% of COVID-19 deaths in Italy occur among those not fully vaccinated

In a new report out of Italy, health officials reported that almost 99 percent of people who have died from COVID-19 since February 2021 were not fully vaccinated. The report released by the National Health Institute (ISS) showed that the few fully vaccinated people who died of COVID-19 were also older than those who died without complete COVID-19 vaccine doses.

29 Jul 2021

Prior SARS-CoV-2 infection enhances effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

A study conducted by researchers in Qatar has found that Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine was more protective against infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) among individuals who had previously been infected with the virus than among those who had not.

29 Jul 2021

NIH scientists demonstrate efficient aerosol transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in hamsters

Researchers in the United States have demonstrated the efficient aerosol transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – in a hamster model.

29 Jul 2021

SARS-CoV-2 Beta variant marginally affects Pfizer vaccination efficacy in fully vaccinated

Researchers from Israel recently evaluated the efficacy of the Pfizer vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.351 variant.

28 Jul 2021

Spike-containing virus-like particles induce robust sterilizing immunity against SARS-CoV-2 in macaques

A team of international scientists has recently developed virus-like particles (VLPs) by coating liposomes with the synthetic spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2.

28 Jul 2021

How SARS-CoV-2 variants effect maternal infection and pregnancy

A new study focuses on the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on maternal and perinatal outcomes.

28 Jul 2021

Mass spectrometry used to develop N-glycosylation profiles for SARS-CoV-2 D614G

A new study has characterized and compared the N-glycosylation of the wild type (S-614D) and variant (S-614G) of SARS-CoV-2 S glycoproteins using MS techniques.

28 Jul 2021

A quantitative assessment of SARS-CoV-2 bioaerosol production

In an effort to improve the sensitivity and sample recovery of mask sampling, researchers developed a mask sampling tool to assess bioaerosol variation.

28 Jul 2021

Kids with allergies less likely to get SARS-CoV-2

Asthma is not associated with worse outcomes among children and adolescents with COVID-19.

28 Jul 2021

Mini-antibodies efficiently block SARS-CoV-2 virus

Göttingen researchers have developed mini-antibodies that efficiently block the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and its dangerous new variants.

28 Jul 2021

Prevention of SARS-CoV-2 virus spread through aerosols

As the development of the COVID-19 pandemic to date has shown: aerosols contribute significantly to the occurrence of infection - and combating them can significantly reduce a resurgence of infection levels.

28 Jul 2021

Researchers investigate what motivates people to voluntarily wear masks

Protecting one's own health is generally an important motive for voluntarily wearing a face mask during the pandemic.

28 Jul 2021

Unraveling the mysterious mutations that make delta the most transmissible covid virus yet

Upon first inspection, the mutations in the highly contagious delta covid variant don't look that worrisome.

28 Jul 2021

Systematic review explores the effects of ivermectin in preventing and treating COVID-19

Ivermectin, a drug used to treat parasites such as scabies in humans and intestinal helminths in cattle, was screened in 2020 for activity against COVID-19. Laboratory tests suggested a weak effect on SARS-CoV-2 virus in a test tube but did not seem feasible in humans as the doses needed would be large.

28 Jul 2021

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern employ different strategies of antibody escape

A recent study in the field of fluid analysis reveals a diverse set of strategies utilized by alpha and beta variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) in order to evade antibodies generated during an earlier infection with this virus. The paper is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server while it undergoes a peer-review process.

28 Jul 2021