Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Australia's lockdown measures halt COVID-19 for now

A new study from the University of Melbourne finds that measures taken by the Australian public and government have effectively contained the spread of COVID-19 in Australia for the present. The paper is published on the preprint server medRxiv in May 2020.

4 May 2020

Blood sugar control is key for people with type 2 diabetes and COVID-19

A study reported in the journal Cell Metabolism on April 30 adds to the evidence that people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at greater risk of a poor outcome should they become infected with the virus that causes COVID-19.

4 May 2020

New findings on polymer structures could improve targeted medicine delivery

The new development, recently reported in the scientific journal Nature Communications, was led by Christopher Li, PhD, a professor in Drexel's College of Engineering whose research has centered around engineering polymer structures for special applications, in collaboration with Bin Zhao, PhD, a professor in the Chemistry Department at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

3 May 2020

No rise in COVID-19 cases as Denmark eases lockdown

Outside of Asia, Denmark became the first nation to ease the forced social distancing norms or lockdown. Last week on Thursday, the officials declared that since the removal of the lockdown, there had been no rise in the number of COVID-19 cases. Their easing of the lockdown rules has been gradual, say the officials, and this process began in mid-April. There have been 9,721 reported cases and 484 deaths due to COVID-19 to date. The number of cases has also declined since 7th April.

3 May 2020

Study reveals antiviral properties of glycosaminoglycans against SARS-CoV-2

Glycosaminoglycans can inhibit cell invasion by acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and other coronaviruses, which supports the utilization of such therapeutics in the fight against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) – reports a new study available on the preprint server bioRxiv.

3 May 2020

Low molecular weight heparins inhibit SARS-CoV-2 cell invasion

A recent paper available on the preprint server bioRxiv* reports preliminary data on the ability of low molecular weight heparins to interact with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), elicit structural changes in its key proteins and subsequently halt cell invasion.

3 May 2020

Anti-malarial drug use for COVID-19 associated with increased risk of cardiac arrhythmias

Since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a Public Health Concern of Global Interest on January 30, more than one million have tested positive for the illness in the United States, and more than 62,000 have died.

3 May 2020

Inventor of hepatitis C cure wins prestigious award from University of Edinburgh

A medicinal chemist who found a cure for the viral disease hepatitis C has received a prestigious award from the University of Edinburgh.

3 May 2020

Study reports cryo-EM structure of Remdesivir-bound RNA replicase complex from SARS-CoV-2

A team of Chinese scientists have reported the high-resolution cryo-EM structure of Remdesivir-bound RNA replicase complex from SARS-CoV-2, the infective virus of COVID-19.

3 May 2020

High blood pressure drugs found to be safe for COVID-19 patients

Despite concerns expressed by some experts, common high blood pressure drugs did not increase the risk of contracting COVID-19 - or of developing severe disease - in a study of 12,594 patients.

3 May 2020

Aromatherapy may alleviate nurses’ on-the-job stress, study suggests

Even under normal circumstances, nursing can be a stressful profession. The COVID-19 pandemic only exacerbates it.

3 May 2020

AHA awards grants to 12 teams for fast-tracked heart and brain health research related to COVID-19

Less than a month after issuing a rapid response call for scientific research proposals for fast-tracked studies of the effects of COVID-19 on the body's cardiovascular and cerebrovascular systems, the American Heart Association has awarded $1.2 million in grants to teams at 12 institutions across the U.S. to begin this unprecedented work.

2 May 2020

Wake Forest Baptist Health creates special respiratory isolation unit for COVID-19

In an effort to rapidly provide specialized care for patients with coronavirus-like symptoms while protecting the safety of health care workers, doctors at Wake Forest Baptist Health created a special respiratory isolation unit from an existing 24-bed medical-surgical unit in the hospital in Winston-Salem.

2 May 2020

Researchers outline ways to manage life under COVID-19 pandemic

An international team of researchers has outlined ways to manage different facets of life under the spread of the COVID-19 virus, ranging from how we can combat racially driven bias and fake news to how we can increase cooperation and better manage stress.

2 May 2020

Trump’s claim that U.S. tested more than all countries combined is ‘pants on fire’ wrong

Responding to weeks of criticism over his administration's COVID-19 response, President Donald Trump claimed at a White House briefing that the United States has well surpassed other countries in testing people for the virus.

2 May 2020

Do-it-yourself cheek swab tested as next best thing to detect coronavirus

Coronavirus testing is commonly an unpleasant, even painful experience in which a health care provider pushes a torturously long swab up your nostril. President Donald Trump declared that submitting to the process was "a little bit difficult."

2 May 2020

Avacta Group plc forms COVID-19 antigen diagnostic collaboration with Adeptrix

Avacta Group plc is pleased to announce that it has entered into a collaboration with Adeptrix to develop a high throughput COVID-19 antigen test.

From Avacta Life Sciences Ltd. 1 May 2020

COVID-19 transmission model shows social distancing was effective in China

Most countries are at a standstill, with social distancing and physical distancing measures in place to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. Now, a new transmission model of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) confirms that social distancing measures were effective in Wuhan City, the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, and Shanghai in China.

1 May 2020

Switzerland relaxes coronavirus guidelines allowing children and grandparents to hug

Despite social distancing measures across the globe that cautions people against close contact with others, including kissing, hugging, and shaking hands, Switzerland says children below ten years old and grandparents can hug, emphasizing that children are less likely to transmit the coronavirus.

30 Apr 2020

Spike protein analysis from India's first SARS-CoV-2

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv analyzes viral spike protein sequences from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak in West Bengal, India, comparing them with sequences from other Indian states and Wuhan, China.

30 Apr 2020