Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Structural analysis of SARS-CoV-2 can help develop COVID-19 vaccines

At the start of a COVID-19 infection, the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 docks onto human cells using the spike-like proteins on its surface.

19 Aug 2020

Large SARS-CoV-2 outbreak on a fishing boat - neutralizing antibodies prevent infection

Now, a team of researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine has found evidence that SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies can prevent infection in people, as they conducted a study before and after a COVID-19 outbreak on a fishing vessel.

19 Aug 2020

Public restrooms are dangerous places during COVID-19 pandemic

Think you don't need to worry about COVID-19 while using a public restroom? A group of researchers from Yangzhou University in China recently reported that flushing public restroom toilets can release clouds of virus-laden aerosols for you to potentially inhale.

19 Aug 2020

The world is 'nowhere near herd immunity,' WHO says

Now, the World Health Organization (WHO) says that the world is nowhere near the amount of coronavirus immunity needed to induce herd immunity, where enough people would develop the antibodies to stop the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

19 Aug 2020

Older adults with pre-existing depressive disorder exhibited resilience during COVID-19 pandemic

A study involving older adults with pre-existing major depressive disorder living in Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh, and St Louis found no increase in depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

19 Aug 2020

Routine BCG immunization in infancy and COVID-19 containment in Japan

. A new study explores whether and how the practice of routine BCG vaccination of infants may have curbed the initial spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in Japan. The research is published in the Journal of Infection.

19 Aug 2020

COVID-19 information fails to meet existing guidelines for clear communication

Information about COVID-19 offered by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the White House, and state health departments failed to meet recommendations for communicating with the public, according to a Dartmouth study.

19 Aug 2020

Study: Vitamin D supplementation is associated with compositional changes in a baby's microbiome

New research from the CHILD Cohort Study has shed light on the influence of vitamin D supplementation on a baby's developing gut microbiome.

19 Aug 2020

Antibody and cellular immunity in severe vs. mild COVID-19

Now, a new study published in the journal Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy in August 2020 shows that while humoral and T-cell immune responses are more robust in severe infection, the disease activates memory T cells as part of the adaptive immune system in COVID-19 patients irrespective of disease severity.

18 Aug 2020

New radiant cooling technology could mitigate climate change and COVID-19

When most people think of cooling, they automatically imagine air conditioning (AC), or cooling the air in a room. But, there is a much more efficient way to cool people, using your body's radiation.

18 Aug 2020

Smokers more likely to experience severe COVID-19 symptoms

Researchers in Germany and Turkey have conducted a study showing that tobacco smoking is associated with an increased risk of more severe disease in cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

18 Aug 2020

Research shows how smell loss linked to Covid-19 differs from the common cold

New research from a European group of smell disorder experts, including Prof Philpott at the University of East Anglia, shows how smell loss associated with Covid-19 infection differs from what you typically might experience with a bad cold or flu.

18 Aug 2020

COVID immunity related to how bad you get it

Researchers at Stanford University in California have shown that severely ill patients hospitalized with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection develop significantly higher levels of antibodies against the virus than asymptomatic individuals and outpatients.

18 Aug 2020

Rare COVID-19 related illness in children causes profound immune changes

Researchers have uncovered how the immune system is altered in a rare COVID-19 related illness in children referred to as paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS-TS).

18 Aug 2020

Study provides clues to why age is a major risk factor for COVID-19 patients

Genes that play an important role in allowing SARS-CoV-2 to invade heart cells become more active with age, according to research published today in the Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology.

18 Aug 2020

High humidity can extend the airborne lifetime of virus-laden exhaled droplets

The novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is thought to spread through natural respiratory activities, such as breathing, talking and coughing, but little is known about how the virus is transported through the air.

18 Aug 2020

Cryo-EM experiments offer important clues to chicken pox infection

Despite decades of study, exactly how herpesviruses invade our cells remains something of a mystery. Now researchers studying one herpesvirus, the varicella zoster virus (VZV) that causes chicken pox, may have found an important clue: A key protein the virus uses to initiate infection does not operate as previously thought, researchers at Stanford University and the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory report August 18 in Nature Communications.

18 Aug 2020