Coronavirus Disease COVID 19 News and Research

Latest Coronavirus Disease COVID 19 News and Research

ACE2-TMPRSS2 profiling indicates tissue vulnerability to SARS-CoV-2 infection

A new study published in April 2020 on the preprint server bioRxiv reports that the different levels of susceptibility of various organs to viral attack by the SARS-CoV-2 virus causing the huge pandemic of COVID-19 sweeping around the world can be predicted from the level of expression of two molecules, the ACE2 receptor, and the TMPRSS2 protein.

20 Apr 2020

Do ACE inhibitors increase SARS-CoV-2 binding to ACE2?

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced clinicians and academicians to intensive research to find evidence for many conventional therapies. A new round-up editorial published in the journal Cardiovascular Research in April 2020 summarizes the current clinical grounds for and against the use of the commonly used angiotensin axis inhibitors in patients with COVID-19.

20 Apr 2020

Attitudes towards vaccination vary significantly across Europe

Researchers in France have reported findings resulting from a web-based survey called Vaccinoscopie 2019 that asked 1,500 parents across five European countries how they feel about and what they know about vaccination.

20 Apr 2020

HIV-1 and influenza antivirals not effective for treating mild-to-moderate COVID-19 cases

An exploratory randomized, controlled study on the safety and efficacy of either lopinavir/ritonavir (LPV/r) or Arbidol--antivirals that are used in some countries against HIV-1 and to treat influenza , respectively--as treatments for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, suggests that neither drug improves the clinical outcome of patients hospitalized with mild-to-moderate cases of the disease over supportive care.

20 Apr 2020

New biosensor rapidly detects SARS-CoV-2 from nasopharyngeal swabs

According to many experts, early diagnosis and management are critical for slowing the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

20 Apr 2020

Antibody detection for COVID-19 - promise and risks

Recently, several research groups emphasized how the pervasive screening for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies may prove pivotal in determining infection seroprevalence in a given population defining previous exposure, screening health care workers, but also identifying highly reactive individuals that may act as donors for the therapeutic use of their convalescent serum.

20 Apr 2020

CRISPR technology mobilized for rapid COVID-19 diagnosis

A group of authors from the United States published a study in the scientific journal Nature Biotechnology in which they have described a CRISPR-Cas-based approach for rapid and accurate diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection – without the need for complex laboratory infrastructure.

20 Apr 2020

Cost-effective plastic canopy system protects health workers at risk of airborne coronavirus infection

Researchers have designed a cost-effective, constant flow plastic canopy system that can help to protect healthcare workers who are at risk of airborne coronavirus infection while delivering non-invasive ventilation or oxygen via high flow nasal canula, according to a research letter published in the European Respiratory Journal.

20 Apr 2020

Researchers to develop predictive COVID-19 Intervention Modelling for East Africa

A £1m grant from the Wellcome Trust has enabled researchers from the School of Life Sciences at the University of Warwick, to work with East African countries in their emergency preparations for COVID-19 as the pandemic spreads across Africa.

20 Apr 2020

Food insecurity in Vermont increased 33% during coronavirus pandemic, survey reveals

Food insecurity in Vermont has increased by one-third during the coronavirus pandemic, from 18.3% to 24.3%, according to a statewide survey conducted by the University of Vermont at the end of March and announced in a series of briefs today.

20 Apr 2020

A novel method for predicting promising antiviral drug or vaccine targets

A novel method to predict the most promising targets for antiviral drugs or vaccines is based on the conformational changes viral glycoproteins go through during the process of recognition and binding to the host cell.

20 Apr 2020

EMBL-EBI and partners launch new COVID-19 Data Portal

EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute and partners today launched the COVID-19 Data Portal, which enables the sharing and analysis of data related to the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2.

20 Apr 2020

Penn Medicine launches convalescent plasma therapy trial for COVID-19 patients

Convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19 patients -- an experimental approach of giving a transfusion of plasma collected from a donor who has recovered from COVID-19 to a patient with an active infection -- is the focus of a new two-part research initiative at Penn Medicine.

20 Apr 2020

Artificial 'candy canes' block viral entry and infection

Viruses are part of the human experience throughout our lives. They cause lots of different illnesses with the current coronavirus pandemic as just one example.

20 Apr 2020

Screen time for babies linked to higher risk of autism-like symptoms later in childhood

Sitting a baby in front of a screen and less parent-child play time, are associated with ASD-like symptoms later in childhood.

20 Apr 2020

New data supports role of nitrogen dioxide in the high number of Covid-19 deaths

Elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide in the air may be associated with a high number of deaths from Covid-19. A new study by Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) provides concrete data that back this assumption for the first time.

20 Apr 2020

Wavelength Pharmaceuticals expands supplies of key drug ingredients for critically ill COVID-19 patients

Wavelength Pharmaceuticals, a leading supplier of active pharmaceutical ingredients, today reported that it has greatly expanded production of APIs for certain pharmaceutical products needed to manage respiratory critical care patients.

From Wavelength Pharmaceuticals 20 Apr 2020

Before ‘tidal wave’ of illness, nursing home thought it had COVID-19 contained

More than 20 patients have died. Dozens more are still hospitalized. And residents who had already been sent back to a nursing home in Gallatin, Tennessee, have turned up with new cases of COVID-19.

20 Apr 2020

How climate change is putting doctors in the hot seat

A 4-year-old girl was rushed to the emergency room three times in one week for asthma attacks.

20 Apr 2020

Amid pandemic, FDA seizes cheaper drugs from Canada

The Food and Drug Administration in the past month has stepped up seizures of prescription drugs being sent to American customers from pharmacies in Canada and other countries, according to operators of stores in Florida that facilitate the transactions.

20 Apr 2020