Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Latest Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Research surveys hygiene practices in food supply chains during COVID-19 pandemic

Researchers survey hygiene procedures in food supply chains implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.

5 Apr 2021

Higher B.1.1.7 transmission in households than other SARS-CoV-2 variants

Contact tracing data from a new preprint study on the medRxiv* preprint server provides further evidence that the B.1.1.7 variant — first reported in the United Kingdom — has a high transmission rate. The research, led by Birgitte Freiseleben de Blasio from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the University of Oslo in Norway, estimates B.1.1.7 has a 60% greater transmission within households than other severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants of concern.

2 Apr 2021

Study finds CD8+ T cell responses detect all major SARS-CoV-2 variants

There have been concerns that several SARS-CoV-2 variants have mutations that allow them to evade the immune system. A new study published in the Open Forum Infectious Diseases suggests otherwise. Led by Aaron AR Tobian of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, results showed that except for one from the B.1.351 variant, CD8+ T cells showed a broad response to all SARS-CoV-2 variants.

2 Apr 2021

Long-COVID-19 is a significant risk in recovered patients post-hospitalization

A new study, which appeared in the British Medical Journal, reports on a retrospective study to examine the incidence and risk factors for ‘long COVID-19’, the term used to describe the long-term effects of COVID-19 on affected individuals.

2 Apr 2021

Proper choice of control group nullifies most observed genetic markers for severe COVID-19, study suggests

A new study deals with the genetic contribution to severe disease following infection with this virus, showing that the association of severity with specific human genes described in an earlier study is not obvious.

2 Apr 2021

Researchers offer large-scale screening of potential broad-spectrum SARS-CoV-2 antivirals

A new study describes the identification of new compounds from a library, with inhibitory activity against several coronaviruses. This study shows the utility of this method, besides identifying compounds that not only inhibit viral shedding in SARS-CoV-2 cultures, but have an immunomodulatory effect that may be useful in mitigating the damaging cytokine storm typical of severe or critical COVID-19.

2 Apr 2021

Comparative study of SARS, MERS, BAT‐SARS, and SARS-CoV-2

Even though a comparative study on the genomic sequences of SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2 is available, there is a gap in the research in regards to the comparison between four types of coronaviruses, namely, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, BAT-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. A new study, which deals with the genomic comparison between the sequence of the above-stated four types of coronaviruses, has been published in the Journal of Medical Virology.

2 Apr 2021

Study discovers new target on SARS-CoV-2 spike for protective antibodies

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute, USA, have described a potential target for COVID-19 vaccines. Dubbed as CC40.8 bnAb, it exhibited broad reactivity with human beta coronaviruses.

1 Apr 2021

Can asymptomatic COVID-19 confer long-term immunity?

Researchers examined the antibody responses in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals recovered from COVID-19 to see if there was a discernable difference in their humoral immune responses and long-term protection from reinfection with SARS-CoV-2.

1 Apr 2021

Glycans influence SARS-CoV-2 spike–ACE2 binding affinity, finds study

A study conducted at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA, and Concordia University, Canada, has explored the impact of different types of glycans on the interaction between SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and human ACE2 receptor.

1 Apr 2021

Could a flavonoid found in common fruit and vegetables combat COVID-19?

Researchers in India have gathered and presented a large body of evidence highlight quercetin – a flavonoid molecule found in many common fruits and vegetables – may be developed into drug therapies used to combat COVID-19.

1 Apr 2021

Researchers develop a recombinant SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain trimer vaccine candidate

New research deals with the development of RBD trimer as a potent target for SARS-CoV-2 subunit vaccines. This study revealed the development of a trimeric RBD subunit vaccine candidate that could induce strong humoral and cellular immune responses in nonhuman primates (NHPs), namely, rhesus macaques.

1 Apr 2021

Discovery of cryptic pocket in SARS-CoV-2 may lead to pan-coronavirus therapies

A new research paper published in the Biophysical Journal describes a novel binding pocket used by a viral non-structural protein (nsp) to form an activated complex with its partner nsp. In so doing, it may have revealed a common target that may be useful in the development of a broad-spectrum antiviral drug against all coronaviruses.

1 Apr 2021

COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in pregnancy

A new preprint research paper posted to the medRxiv* server shows that while pregnant women are seriously worried about their risk of contracting the infection caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but are also hesitant to take the vaccine.

1 Apr 2021

Antibodies produced from infection with SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 protect against other variants

A recent paper in the journal Nature shows that while earlier lineages do not elicit antibodies capable of efficiently neutralizing the newly emerged South African variant, SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 (B.1.351), the converse does occur.

31 Mar 2021

Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine effective against B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 variant

Published in The Lancet, the study explores if the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine works well in protecting against the B.1.1.7 variant, otherwise known as the U.K. variant.

31 Mar 2021

Study estimates impact of amino acid changes on SARS-CoV-2 infection

New research led by Costas D. Maranas from The Pennsylvania State University predicts amino acid changes to the receptor-binding domain of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein would negatively impact binding affinity and subsequent infection into human cells.

31 Mar 2021

Study reports on two cats that caught COVID-19

Our feline friends are also vulnerable to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, according to new research posted to the preprint server bioRxiv. The researchers diagnosed two cats living in France with mild symptomatic COVID-19 illness. The virus was most likely transmitted from their owners.

31 Mar 2021

Risk of SARS-CoV-2 from reinfected individuals with previous infection or vaccination

A technical report recently published by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has summarized all available literature regarding the risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission from asymptomatic reinfected individuals with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination.

31 Mar 2021

Are marine mammals are at risk of COVID-19?

Researchers have identified a number of marine mammal species native to Italian seawaters that may be highly susceptible to the disease. Additionally, these species inhabit ocean areas where the virus may be present even after receiving sewage treatment, thus highlighting the need for strict sewage improvement plans.

31 Mar 2021