Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Research suggests SARS-CoV-2 vaccine distribution strategy focusing on where virus spreads more easily

The United States is a few days from reaching President Biden's goal of vaccinating 100 million people 100 days since he took office. While the United States leads the world in both the number of COVID-19 cases at over 29.7 million and deaths reaching past 539,000, it has stepped up as a leader in vaccinating its population.

21 Mar 2021

ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 offers less protection against South African SARS-CoV-2 variant

The results of a double-blind, randomized, multisite placebo-controlled trial that was conducted in South Africa show that Oxford’s ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) vaccine has no efficacy against the B.1.351 variant in preventing mild-to-moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and shows reduced neutralization properties of developed antibodies. The findings are published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

21 Mar 2021

Genetic engineering strategy dramatically reduces tau levels in Alzheimer's animal model

Researchers have used a genetic engineering strategy to dramatically reduce levels of tau--a key protein that accumulates and becomes tangled in the brain during the development of Alzheimer's disease--in an animal model of the condition.

21 Mar 2021

Joint project aims to establish automated system for SARS-CoV-2 analysis in wastewater

On March 19, 2021, Hokkaido University, Robotic Biology Institute Inc., iLAC Co., Ltd., and Shionogi & Co., Ltd. have entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) toward the establishment of an automated system for the analysis of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in wastewater.

20 Mar 2021

Wildlife protection, surveillance of zoonosis are the key to preventing future pandemics

Understanding animal disease is essential if we want to prevent future pandemics, writes Keith Hamilton.

20 Mar 2021

FDA authorizes first machine learning-based COVID-19 non-diagnostic screening device

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the first machine learning-based Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) non-diagnostic screening device that identifies certain biomarkers that are indicative of some types of conditions, such as hypercoagulation (a condition causing blood to clot more easily than normal).

20 Mar 2021

In-school COVID-19 transmission is rare with masking, social distancing and hand-washing

In-school COVID-19 transmission is rare - even among close school contacts of those who test positive for the virus - when schools heed public health precautions such as mandatory masking, social distancing and frequent hand-washing, according to results of a pilot study in Missouri aimed at identifying ways to keep elementary and secondary schools open and safe during the pandemic.

20 Mar 2021

COVID-19 patients have higher risk of stroke, finds study

New research found patients hospitalized with COVID-19 had a higher risk of stroke, compared with patients who had similar infectious conditions such as influenza and sepsis in prior studies.

19 Mar 2021

Developing a COVID-19 vaccine using inactivated E. coli

A team of researchers inactivated whole-cell E.coli with a reduced genome and utilized this to express coronavirus-specific fusion peptides, demonstrating a potent anamnestic response.

19 Mar 2021

How effective has rapid COVID-19 vaccination been in Israel?

Despite high vaccination rates, analysis shows a definite positive impact, but patience is needed to see the real-world impacts in Israel, a pattern that may hold true in other countries also.

19 Mar 2021

SARS-CoV-2 spike stimulates hyperinflammation via Toll-like receptor 2

A new study, released on the bioRxiv* preprint server, describes the mechanism of inflammation in severe COVID-19, besides revealing a potential new therapeutic target to modulate the severity of COVID-19.

19 Mar 2021

DNA spike-ins increase reliability of amplicon-based sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 genomes

In the interests of cost-effectiveness and rapidity, amplicon-based sequencing of the viral genome has been used to provide a sensitive means of genomic surveillance. A new preprint, which was released on the bioRxiv* server, shows how this can be tweaked to make it a reliable source of genomic data by reducing the known potential for contamination.

19 Mar 2021

The case for donating US Covid vaccines overseas

A Senate committee grilled federal officials about the shortage of vaccines to protect Americans against a pandemic virus. Two months later, the U.S. public had lost interest in the virus, and millions of vaccines were sitting in warehouses — although poor countries still needed them.

19 Mar 2021

New variant may not have changed COVID-19 pandemic course in UK, says study

A new study examines the effect of the new "Kent variant" of SARS-CoV-2 on the epidemic course within the UK.

19 Mar 2021

Researchers explore nanotechnology’s potential to deliver synergistic therapeutics for COVID-19

A team of scientists reviewed the nanoencapsulation approaches of synergistic compounds (Lectins, Caffeine, Cocoa, Flavonoids, Quercetin) and the role of nanotechnology in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic.

19 Mar 2021

Researchers investigate the effect of COVID-19 vaccines on residents of long-term care homes

Long-term care homes have been at the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, with 70 percent of COVID-19 deaths having occurred in long-term care or nursing homes.

19 Mar 2021

New proteomics method helps confirm COVID-19 transmission from mother to fetus

Researchers from Skoltech were part of a research consortium studying a case of vertical COVID-19 transmission from mother to her unborn child that resulted in major complications in the pregnancy, premature birth and death of the child.

19 Mar 2021

Study reveals how SARS-CoV-2 spread in Wuhan before the lockdown

Using molecular dating tools and epidemiological simulations, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues at the University of Arizona and Illumina, Inc., estimate that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was likely circulating undetected for at most two months before the first human cases of COVID-19 were described in Wuhan, China in late-December 2019.

19 Mar 2021

N-terminal domain antibodies play a key role in COVID immunity

Scientists are learning that a lesser-studied region on the pandemic coronavirus is recognized by COVID-19 infection-fighting antibodies. These antibodies were identified in blood samples from previously infected patients, and were found to potently prevent the virus from infecting cells.

19 Mar 2021

Researchers use combined approach to estimate the timing of first SARS-CoV-2 case

Researchers who simulated early stages of the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in Wuhan, China, conclude that the virus was likely circulating earlier than has been described, possibly even in mid-October 2019.

19 Mar 2021

Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Research suggests SARS-CoV-2 vaccine distribution strategy focusing on where virus spreads more easily

ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 offers less protection against South African SARS-CoV-2 variant

Genetic engineering strategy dramatically reduces tau levels in Alzheimer's animal model

Joint project aims to establish automated system for SARS-CoV-2 analysis in wastewater

Wildlife protection, surveillance of zoonosis are the key to preventing future pandemics

FDA authorizes first machine learning-based COVID-19 non-diagnostic screening device

In-school COVID-19 transmission is rare with masking, social distancing and hand-washing

COVID-19 patients have higher risk of stroke, finds study

Developing a COVID-19 vaccine using inactivated E. coli

How effective has rapid COVID-19 vaccination been in Israel?

SARS-CoV-2 spike stimulates hyperinflammation via Toll-like receptor 2

DNA spike-ins increase reliability of amplicon-based sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 genomes

The case for donating US Covid vaccines overseas

New variant may not have changed COVID-19 pandemic course in UK, says study

Researchers explore nanotechnology’s potential to deliver synergistic therapeutics for COVID-19

Researchers investigate the effect of COVID-19 vaccines on residents of long-term care homes

New proteomics method helps confirm COVID-19 transmission from mother to fetus

Study reveals how SARS-CoV-2 spread in Wuhan before the lockdown

N-terminal domain antibodies play a key role in COVID immunity

Researchers use combined approach to estimate the timing of first SARS-CoV-2 case

A new way of characterising biomolecules eBook

How can super-resolution technology help study neurotransmission?

The Proteoform Puzzle: Unlocking the Next Frontier

Synthetic Biology and the Pursuit of Living Diagnostics

Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

A new way of characterising biomolecules eBook

How can super-resolution technology help study neurotransmission?

The Proteoform Puzzle: Unlocking the Next Frontier

Synthetic Biology and the Pursuit of Living Diagnostics

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