Coronavirus Disease COVID 19 News and Research

Latest Coronavirus Disease COVID 19 News and Research

SARS-CoV-2 T-cell immunity is retained for at least six months

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv shows that functional SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell responses are retained for six months following infection. However, the strength of this response depends on the clinical features of the primary infection.

3 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 attack rates among household contacts higher than among non-household contacts

Now, a team of researchers at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases in Singapore aimed to determine the transmission risk factors of SARS-CoV-2 among household and non-household contacts.

3 Nov 2020

AI speech processing framework detects inaudible COVID-19 cough

Now, a team of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has found that asymptomatic people may differ from those who are healthy in the way they cough. The differences are inaudible to the human ear but can be detected by artificial intelligence (AI).

3 Nov 2020

16 new lineages of SARS-CoV-2 emerge in South Africa despite lockdown

Published in a recent medRxiv* paper, researchers from South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Brazil found that these mutations in SARS-CoV-2 lineages are localized to South Africa. These unique strains, not found elsewhere in the world, are thought to have contributed around 42% to the country's total infection rate.

3 Nov 2020

Adaptive evolution of human coronaviruses may necessitate frequent reformulation of vaccines

Researchers from the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, USA, have revealed that adaptive evolution in the antigenic regions facilitates seasonal coronaviruses to escape the host immune responses and to cause recurrent infections.

3 Nov 2020

Some of the main osteoporosis treatments could have a protective effect against COVID-19

Some of the principal treatments for osteoporosis, denosumab, zoledronate and calcium, could have a protective effect against COVID-19 in patients who take them, specifically a 30 to 40% reduction in the rate of infection, according to the results of a joint study by Hospital del Mar, the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Pompeu Fabra University and the Pere Virgili Health Park.

3 Nov 2020

Rapid generation of divergent synthetic antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in a cell-free engineering platform

In a groundbreaking bioRxiv paper, a research group from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard University and Howard Hughes Medical Institute in the US engineered antibodies against the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike glycoprotein by using a novel approach. In doing so, they also identified more than 800 predicted binder families.

3 Nov 2020

Primary care for acute health conditions declined dramatically since UK lockdown

Researchers have conducted a study showing substantial reductions in the number of people attending primary care services for key physical and mental health conditions in the UK since lockdown was introduced on March 23rd this year.

3 Nov 2020

Eye's cornea can resist infection from novel coronavirus

New findings from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggest the eye's cornea can resist infection from the novel coronavirus.

3 Nov 2020

Re-thinking advance care planning during COVID-19 pandemic

Researchers in the UK have warned that healthcare professionals and providers need to consider how Advance Care Planning (ACP) can be resourced and normalized as part of standard care during the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), ahead of recurrent or future waves.

3 Nov 2020

Machine-learning algorithm helps sort out huge amounts of data for protein research

Sorting huge amounts of data is a bottleneck in protein research, a field that is crucial to make use of the gene-editing technology CRISPR and fully understand diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's

3 Nov 2020

Infection prevention practices during COVID-19 result in shorter hospital stays for moms, babies

New infection prevention practices implemented during the coronavirus pandemic have resulted in significantly shorter hospital stays for mothers and their babies, according to investigators at Cedars-Sinai, with no changes in the rates of cesarean deliveries, complications or poor outcomes.

3 Nov 2020

Beta-blockers could be used to treat COVID-19, study finds

Beta-blockers could potentially be used to treat COVID-19, according to a new international study by Italian and Australian scientists.

3 Nov 2020

The best COVID warning system? Poop and pooled spit, says one Colorado school

Carol Wilusz's mornings now often start at 4 a.m., scanning the contents of undergraduates' feces. Specifically, scanning the data on how much coronavirus they flushed into the shadows, destined to be extracted from 17 manholes connected to dorm buildings on Colorado State University's Fort Collins campus.

3 Nov 2020

Seniors form COVID pods to ward off isolation this winter

Over the past month, Dr. Richard Besdine and his wife have been discussing whether to see family and friends indoors this fall and winter.

3 Nov 2020

Study estimates the proportion of COVID-19 deaths due to air pollution

Long-term exposure to air pollution generated by human activity is linked to about 27 per cent of COVID-19-related deaths in East Asia and 15 per cent mortality in South Asia and worldwide. These deaths could be largely prevented by adopting air quality regulations, says a new study.

3 Nov 2020

Ziath Supports Local Food Charity

Ziath has announced support for their local food bank charity in Cambridge, UK. Famous as a centre of elite learning and high-tech industry, Cambridge also has areas of high social deprivation.

From Ziath Ltd 3 Nov 2020

Scientists identify neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies against SARS-CoV-2

University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists have discovered the fastest way to identify potent, neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

3 Nov 2020

New articles focus on policy considerations for post-COVID presidency

The Gerontological Society of America's highly cited, peer-reviewed journals are continuing to publish scientific articles on COVID-19.

3 Nov 2020

New model uses people’s breathing rates to track virus-carrying droplets

How many virus particles you inhale and where they land within the respiratory tract can affect your chances of contracting COVID-19, according to assistant professor Saikat Basu of South Dakota State University's Department of Mechanical Engineering.

3 Nov 2020