Disease/Infection News

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Sleep disorders common during COVID-19 pandemic

A recent study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in October 2020 reveals the significant prevalence of sleep abnormalities among the population in areas affected by COVID-19. This is likely to cause a heavy toll on mental and physical health if sustained over the long run.

13 Oct 2020

New computational approach improves characterization of cellular diversity

Researchers in the United States have developed a computational method called “weighted-nearest neighbor” (WNN) analysis that can significantly improve the ability to define cellular states across various biological contexts and data types.

13 Oct 2020

How SARS-CoV-2's spike protein highjacks the host cell trafficking machinery

Researchers at The Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology have conducted a study showing how the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein interacts with host cell factors in ways that promote the formation of syncytia.

13 Oct 2020

COVID-19 causes potentially damaging neurological injuries, study shows

Without directly invading the brain or nerves, the virus responsible for COVID-19 causes potentially damaging neurological injuries in about one in seven infected, a new study shows.

13 Oct 2020

Black doctors work to make coronavirus testing more equitable

When the coronavirus arrived in Philadelphia in March, Dr. Ala Stanford hunkered down at home with her husband and kids.

13 Oct 2020

IVI hosts virtual State Forum to promote partnership and equity in global health

The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) hosted a virtual State Forum today to advocate for multilateral cooperation through vaccine diplomacy.

13 Oct 2020

Researchers launch new clinical trial to investigate role of vitamin D against COVID-19

Researchers from Queen Mary University of London, funded by Barts Charity, have launched a new clinical trial to investigate whether taking vitamin D could protect people from COVID-19

13 Oct 2020

Researchers explore molecular factors that drive the severity of COVID-19

While most COVID-19 cases are asymptomatic or mild, severe complications associated with acute respiratory distress have led to more than one million deaths worldwide in just several months.

13 Oct 2020

Study: Deaths recorded during pandemic is higher than those attributed to COVID-19

For every two deaths attributed to COVID-19 in the U.S., a third American dies as a result of the pandemic, according to new data publishing Oct. 12 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

13 Oct 2020

Researchers call for nutritional guidelines and regulations on use of vitamin D

The professional perception of vitamin D as a medicine, rather than as a key nutrient, is constraining practice and jeopardizing the health of elderly care home residents in England, conclude researchers in the journal BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health.

13 Oct 2020

Study offers a better understanding of protective antibodies induced by coronavirus

As vaccine trials progress and public health officials brace for a rise in COVID-19 cases, understanding how the body defends itself from SARS-CoV-2 infection is essential.

13 Oct 2020

New study details how Michigan nursing homes limited the spread of coronavirus

Seven months ago, the nation first heard of a surge of COVID-19 deaths in a Washington nursing home – an early warning sign of how the coronavirus could rip through such facilities.

13 Oct 2020

COVID-19 vaccine candidate shows potent immune response

A COVID-19 vaccine candidate that underwent extensive preclinical testing at the University of Alabama at Birmingham this spring and summer shows potent preclinical immune responses -; including several that distinguish it from other COVID-19 vaccine approaches -; according to a preprint deposited in the BioRxiv repository this week.

13 Oct 2020

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and COVID symptoms can last at least 3 months

Recent research published as a preprint on the medRxiv preprint server, Elizabeth T. Cirulli et al., studies the self-reported short and long-term symptoms in a large general adult population cohort.

13 Oct 2020

Scientists explain why some COVID-19 patients develop neurological symptoms

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv sheds light on the mechanism behind brain involvement in the COVID-19 pandemic. A team of researchers at the Krembil Research Institute and the University of Toronto in Canada aimed to understand further the potential mechanisms underlying SARS-CoV-2 tropism for brain vasculature to see how infection occurs in the brain.

13 Oct 2020

Zinc deficiency linked to poor COVID-19 outcomes

A team of researchers from various universities and institutes in Spain recently published a paper on the preprint server medRxiv,* in which they hypothesize that serum zinc levels have a significant influence on COVID-19 progression and thus may be a useful biomarker in predicting severe disease in early stages of COVID-19 infection.

12 Oct 2020

Why blood type O might lower risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection

The author hypothesizes that people with non-O blood groups may have highest contact with the SARS-CoV-2 virus via the formation of in intermediate structure, resulting in possibly higher infection rates and more severe symptoms.

12 Oct 2020

Genoscience Pharma's GNS561 shows potential against SARS-CoV-2 in vitro

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in October 2020 shows that a combination of a new compound GNS561 and remdesivir act synergistically against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This suggests that autophagy inhibitors could be an alternative strategy for SARS-CoV-2 infection.

12 Oct 2020

Suramin shows promise as COVID-19 treatment

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv reports the elucidation of the mechanism of inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 by a non-nucleotide inhibitor called suramin. This is the first such compound to be shown to have such activity and shows promise for use as a repurposed drug against COVID-19.

12 Oct 2020

Integrin b3 and ACE2 linked by short linear motifs enabling endocytosis and autophagy of SARS-CoV-2

A new study by Uppsala University researchers published on the preprint server bioRxiv in October 2020 shows possible links between the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) host cell receptors for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the entry of viral particles into the cell via endocytosis and autophagy.

12 Oct 2020