Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Differential NK cell activity found to contribute to SARS-CoV-2 infection resistance

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected millions of people worldwide and is the leading cause of mortality in Brazil in 2020 as well as early 2021. Clinical manifestations of COVID-19 disease range from no symptoms and mild flu-like symptoms to severe cases leading to hospitalization and death.

3 May 2021

Monoclonal antibody neutralizes all SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern

Researchers in Canada and the United States have identified a monoclonal antibody that potently neutralizes variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent responsible for the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVIdD-19) pandemic.

3 May 2021

COVID-19 may not have appeared first in China, suggests new genomic study

A new study in Acta Mathematica Scientia suggests that the virus may have originated in multiple countries almost simultaneously, rather than spreading from China to the rest of the world.

3 May 2021

Class I HLA alleles shape CD8+ T cell repertoire in SARS-CoV-2 infection

An interesting new study discusses how adaptive cellular immunity against the SARS-CoV-2 is dependent on differences in HLA-encoding genes between patients.

3 May 2021

Most long COVID-19 sequelae affect people under 65, finds study

A new study, released as a preprint on the medRxiv* server, discusses the typical symptoms and signs of this syndrome, with the intention of improving the specificity of detection and reporting.

3 May 2021

Detecting rare blood clots was a win, but US vaccine safety system still has gaps

The quick detection of an ultra-rare blood clotting reaction in some Covid-19 vaccine recipients showed the power of a federal warning system for vaccine safety issues, but experts worry that blind spots in the program could hamper detection of other unexpected side effects.

3 May 2021

Study estimates true number of COVID-19 deaths by U.S. county

Every country has been affected by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that has spawned a pandemic. For several factors, the United States has been hit hard by the number of coronavirus cases and death. The country currently leads the world with over 32.4 million infections and more than 577,000 COVID-19 deaths.

3 May 2021

Comprehensive "cell atlas" shows how COVID-19 can lead to organ failure and death

Scientists from several hospitals and research centers have shown what happens in individual cells of patients who died of COVID-19. In a study published in Nature, the researchers describe how infected cells from multiple organs exhibited a range of molecular and genomic changes.

3 May 2021

Interdisciplinary project explores the phenomenon of so-called “superspreaders”

Scientists from the Departments of Physics, Biomedical Sciences and Process Engineering at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg are in the process of analyzing the emergence and spread of infectious air bubbles in our breath, known as aerosols, using tissue cultivations and artificially-produced, virus-filled suspended particles.

3 May 2021

Could CRISPR be used as a SARS-CoV-2 antiviral?

The potential of using this gene manipulation technology as a SARS-CoV-2 inhibitor or prophylactic is investigated in a review recently uploaded to the journal Experimental Biology and Medicine (April 25th, 2021) by Arnab Banerjee and colleagues.

2 May 2021

Study implies a likely rise of future SARS-CoV-2 recombinants

A recent astonishing feat by US researchers revealed that recombination is not only widespread in the evolutionary history of SARS-like coronaviruses, but it can also increase fitness traits of seasonal coronaviruses. Their paper is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server and sets the stage for phylogenetic tracking of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

2 May 2021

Live "attenuated" influenza virus vaccine protects animals against respiratory infections, including SARS-CoV-2

Researchers in the United States and Austria have demonstrated the potential of a modified influenza virus as a vaccine to protect against viral respiratory pathogens, including the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

2 May 2021

Arresting tumor growth for a variety of cancers through T cell engineering

Through T cell engineering, researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center show that it's possible to arrest tumor growth for a variety of cancers and squash the spread of cancer to other tissues.

30 Apr 2021

Vaccines can save lives and safeguard health and well-being

Effectively and safely protecting against disease--this is what makes vaccines a vital and successful public health tool that saves lives and safeguards health and well-being. Today, vaccines shield us from more than 20 life-threatening diseases.

30 Apr 2021

Applications of nanoparticles in combating COVID-19

Researchers review the various properties and use of nanoparticles in targeting SARS-CoV-2 and how they could be used to develop new therapeutics and diagnostics for SARS-CoV-2.

30 Apr 2021

Furin cleavage site crucial in SARS-CoV-2 for viral transmission in ferrets, finds study

Researchers based at Imperial College London, UK, have recently highlighted the effects of these deleterious CS mutations through a ferret animal model, demonstrating that furin cleavage sites are a necessary component in the virus’ ability to replicate.

30 Apr 2021

Despite all the talk, Covid vaccination does not infect people with shingles

Posts are showing up all over social media tying Covid-19 vaccinations to shingles and other painful skin disorders.

30 Apr 2021

The vulnerable homebound are left behind on vaccination

It was April, more than three months into the vaccination campaign against covid-19, and Jim Freeman, 83, still had not gotten his first dose.

30 Apr 2021

Delayed antibiotic prescribing unlikely to lead to poorer symptom control

Delayed antibiotic prescribing is a safe and effective strategy for most patients with respiratory tract infections, finds an analysis of patient data published by The BMJ today.

30 Apr 2021

Novel integrative genetic screening platform offers insights into role of DNA accessibility in cancer

In a new resource for the scientific community, published today in Nature Biotechnology, researchers in the lab of Neville Sanjana, PhD, at the New York Genome Center (NYGC) and New York University (NYU) developed CRISPR-sciATAC, a novel integrative genetic screening platform that jointly captures CRISPR gene perturbations and single-cell chromatin accessibility genome-wide.

30 Apr 2021