Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Research sheds doubt on the Pangolin link to SARS-CoV-2

A startling new study by researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and the University of British Columbia and published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in July 2020 casts doubt on the hypothesis that the current severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was transmitted from pangolins acting as the intermediate host. Instead, the authors suggest, the pangolins themselves were incidentally infected from other animals in captivity or from humans.

8 Jul 2020

Researchers propose novel approach to limit life-threatening complications related to COVID-19

Patients with severe COVID-19 frequently experience a life-threatening immune reaction, sometimes called a cytokine storm, which can lead to respiratory failure, organ damage and potentially death.

8 Jul 2020

Lung physiology and immune function could spare children from severe COVID-19

Differences in lung physiology and immune function in children could be why they are more often spared from severe illness associated with COVID-19 than adults, according to pediatric and adult physicians at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and Baylor College of Medicine, who teamed up to investigate the disparity.

8 Jul 2020

Brain complications linked to COVID-19 found to be occurring across the globe

Cases of brain complications linked to COVID-19 are occurring across the globe, a new review by University of Liverpool researchers has shown.

8 Jul 2020

Community coronavirus testing in England shows lockdown had "intended effect"

UK researchers say the proportion of people testing positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) significantly declined in England between 26 April and 28 June 2020.

8 Jul 2020

Fred Hutch joins new clinical trials network to fight COVID-19

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center has been named the coordinating center for vaccine clinical trials of the COVID-19 Prevention Network.

8 Jul 2020

Small molecule drugs binding Mac1 domain of SARS-CoV-2

Now, an intriguing new study out of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee reveals that numerous small molecule drugs like the proton pump inhibitors omeprazole and rabeprazole bind the important Mac1 domain on the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus.

8 Jul 2020

Researchers isolate potent SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies

An important line of defense in the fight against the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is the formation of neutralizing antibodies.

8 Jul 2020

New machine learning tool identifies US counties at higher risk for COVID deaths

The task of controlling the COVID-19 pandemic nationwide and predicting where cases will spike next and which areas may have high mortality rates remains daunting for scientists and public officials.

8 Jul 2020

Study: Cellular therapy can improve critical cases of COVID-19

A cellular therapy tested on 13 intubated patients with mechanical ventilation has shown to be efficient for the clinical improvement of critical cases of COVID-19.

8 Jul 2020

COVID cuts a lethal path through San Quentin’s death row

The old men live in cramped spaces and breathe the same ventilated air. Many are frail, laboring with heart disease, liver and prostate cancer, tuberculosis, dementia. And now, with the coronavirus advancing through their ranks, they are falling one after the next.

8 Jul 2020

Rapid COVID-19 diagnostic infection testing

Porvair Sciences reports on the Vyon porous plastic filters it is supplying to University of Cambridge spinout company - Diagnostics for the Real World for their game-changing SAMBA II machine that provides diagnosis of COVID-19 infection in under 90 minutes.

From Porvair Sciences Limited 8 Jul 2020

Analysis: How a COVID-19 vaccine could cost Americans dearly

Yes, of course, Americans' health is priceless, and reining in a deadly virus that has trashed the economy would be invaluable.

8 Jul 2020

In Texas, individual freedoms clash with efforts to slow the surge of COVID cases

The Fourth of July was a little different this year here in Texas' biggest city. Parades were canceled and some of the region's beaches were closed. At the city's biggest fireworks show, "Freedom Over Texas," fireworks were shot higher in the air to make it easier to watch from a distance. Other fireworks displays encouraged people to stay in their cars.

8 Jul 2020

QUT and Oxford collaborate on clinical trial to test asthma inhalers as treatment for COVID-19

QUT researchers are collaborating with colleagues at the University of Oxford on a UK clinical trial to test common asthma inhalers as a treatment for COVID-19 infection.

8 Jul 2020

China reports Dengue fever after bubonic plague threat

The actively spreading coronavirus disease (COVID-19) first emerged in China in December 2019. More than six months after, the world grapples with nearly 11.8 confirmed cases of the viral infection. Now, as China slowly starts to reboot its economy and ease lockdown restrictions, two new health issues are emerging.

8 Jul 2020

Half of coronavirus disease cases could be caused by ‘silent spreaders’

A team of researchers at York University and the Yale School of Public Health evaluated the contribution of pre-symptomatic and asymptomatic transmission to the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19.

8 Jul 2020

EPA approves Lysol products that kill SARS-CoV-2 on surfaces

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) just approved two disinfection sprays that can kill severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), on surfaces.

8 Jul 2020

Study suggests natural UV radiation protects against coronavirus

A new study by scientists at the University of Edinburgh and published on the preprint server medRxiv* in July 2020 suggests an interesting link between ultraviolet A radiation and deaths due to COVID-19. While this is an observational study, which means that direct inferences cannot be drawn from this finding, it does, however, suggest better strategies for reducing the death rate due to COVID-19.

8 Jul 2020

Study of glycosylation on SARS-CoV-2 spike protein

The first intimation of the current COVID-19 crisis came with the news of severe pneumonic illness caused by an unknown agent in a Chinese city called Wuhan, issued on the last day of 2019. Following this, researchers found the cause to be a novel coronavirus, closely related to the earlier SARS virus, now called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.

8 Jul 2020