Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Latest Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

UK variant of SARS-CoV-2 could be more deadly than previous strains

Researchers have conducted a study showing that the B.1.1.7 variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that has emerged in the UK is associated with a significantly increased risk of death compared with the viral strain previously circulating in the country.

9 Mar 2021

A genetic variant of TMPRSS2 may confer protection against severe COVID-19

Among a large sample of COVID-19 patients, researchers found that a genetic variant – caused by an amino acid substitution from valine to methionine – is associated with a reduced chance of severe disease.

9 Mar 2021

Researchers examine susceptibility of raccoons and striped skunks to SARS-CoV-2 infection

Researchers from the University of Georgia, USA, have found some members of the superfamily Musteloidea – the group that includes badgers and weasels – appear to not only have no effects of the virus, but do little in spreading it.

9 Mar 2021

Researchers report zoonotic spillover of adapted SARS-CoV-2 from minks to humans

In a recent report made available on bioRxiv* preprint server, researchers from Poland and Finland reveal a spillover event of mink-adapted severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from farmed mink to humans after an extensive adaptation process.

9 Mar 2021

SARS-CoV-2's amyloid-driving nucleoprotein could inform future therapeutic research

New research led by researchers at the University of California Los Angeles and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in the US suggests that functional amyloid fibrils could play an integral role in developing COVID-19 treatments.

9 Mar 2021

Greater cross-neutralization against UK SARS-CoV-2 variant in vaccinated individuals with prior infection

A team of researchers in Spain has observed that, of those who have been vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, higher titers of neutralizing antibodies for the B.1.1.7 variant (originating in the UK) were present in those who had previously been infected with the virus.

9 Mar 2021

Optimized SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate could be less reactogenic, say researchers

A new study, released as a preprint on the bioRxiv* server, reports an optimized coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine candidate, which, claim the researchers, may be less likely to produce reactions like fevers. It may also have increased protective potential against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the pathogen that causes COVID-19.

9 Mar 2021

Proteomics shows SARS-CoV-2 NSP7 and NSP8 forms stable dimeric unit

A new preprint, released on the bioRxiv* preprint server, describes the structure of part of the dynamic protein-RNA complex known as the replication-transcription complex (RTC), which is crucial in the replication of the large ribonucleic acid (RNA) genome of this virus.

9 Mar 2021

Rapid increase of UK SARS-CoV-2 variant found in sewage in England between October 2020 to January 2021

A new study confirms the utility of wastewater surveillance as an important new tool in this regard by showing the presence of the UK SARS-CoV-2 variant in wastewater samples from London early in November, with increasing frequency thereafter.

9 Mar 2021

Ultraviolet light therapy reduces viral load in critically ill COVID-19 patients

Scientists from the United States has recently evaluated the safety and efficacy profiles of ultraviolet-A (UVA) light applied via an endotracheal tube to critically ill COVID-19 patients.

9 Mar 2021

Study suggests sewer rats immune to SARS-CoV-2

Although the researchers found that the rats tested negative for the virus, they say it is important to continue monitoring animals for the virus as it mutates, making previously resistant species susceptible to infection.

8 Mar 2021

Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech SARS-CoV-2 vaccine induce humoral protection against U.K. and S.A. variants

Researchers at the Pitié Salpêtrière Hospital, Department of Virology, Paris, France determined that in BNT162b2-vaccinated participants who received two doses, their sera harbored at least a neutralizing titer against the three SARS-CoV-2 variants.

8 Mar 2021

Worse problems with SARS-CoV-2 variants may be on the way

Researchers at the Department of Integrative Biomedical Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa, found evidence of a significant change in the selective forces acting on immunologically important SARS-CoV-2 genes, such as N and S. These likely coincided with the emergence of the 501Y lineages.

8 Mar 2021

How do viruses evolve in bats?

Bats have played a crucial epidemiological role in the evolution of many viruses and house many coronaviruses. Until 2002, coronaviruses had been known to cause mild respiratory ailments in human beings. However, this notion changed in the same year when a bat-borne virus caused the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) pandemic.

8 Mar 2021

Self-assembling nanoparticles an effective vaccine candidate for SARS-CoV-2

The currently developed vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 include the RBD in their immunogen. With a similar objective, a new study developed an RBD protein-based vaccine candidate against the SARS-CoV-2, using self-assembling Helicobacter pylori-bullfrog ferritin nanoparticles as an antigen delivery system. The study is published recently in the journal mBio (by the American Society of Microbiology).

8 Mar 2021

SARS-CoV-2 vaccines modeled on South African variant may offer broad protection against other variants

Researchers in South Africa have submitted evidence that suggests that vaccines modeled on the South African variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) would not only be effective on that strain but would also function well against other variants.

8 Mar 2021

Continued vigilance needed as COVID lockdown is relaxed in England, warn researchers

Researchers have reported findings from round nine of the REal-time Assessment of Community Transmission Study (REACT-1) that estimates community prevalence of infections with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in England.

8 Mar 2021

Sniffer dogs could be used to detect SARS-CoV-2 infections, say researchers

Researchers in Germany suggest that sniffer dogs should be considered as an additional screening tool for detecting infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

8 Mar 2021

Narrowing down on small molecular inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 key protease

A recent methodological study by researchers from the University of Luxembourg shows that the combination of virtual screening approaches, molecular dynamics simulations and machine learning can substantially facilitate small molecule screening investigations targeted at key SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins.

8 Mar 2021

Data from Israel’s vaccination program suggests Pizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine induces strong host antibody response

A team of scientists from Israel has recently evaluated the efficacy of an mRNA-based coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine, BNT162b2, in inducing host humoral immune response. The findings reveal that the vaccine is capable of inducing strong anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibody response and that the response varies significantly with age. The study is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server.

8 Mar 2021

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Latest Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

UK variant of SARS-CoV-2 could be more deadly than previous strains

A genetic variant of TMPRSS2 may confer protection against severe COVID-19

Researchers examine susceptibility of raccoons and striped skunks to SARS-CoV-2 infection

Researchers report zoonotic spillover of adapted SARS-CoV-2 from minks to humans

SARS-CoV-2's amyloid-driving nucleoprotein could inform future therapeutic research

Greater cross-neutralization against UK SARS-CoV-2 variant in vaccinated individuals with prior infection

Optimized SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate could be less reactogenic, say researchers

Proteomics shows SARS-CoV-2 NSP7 and NSP8 forms stable dimeric unit

Rapid increase of UK SARS-CoV-2 variant found in sewage in England between October 2020 to January 2021

Ultraviolet light therapy reduces viral load in critically ill COVID-19 patients

Study suggests sewer rats immune to SARS-CoV-2

Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech SARS-CoV-2 vaccine induce humoral protection against U.K. and S.A. variants

Worse problems with SARS-CoV-2 variants may be on the way

How do viruses evolve in bats?

Self-assembling nanoparticles an effective vaccine candidate for SARS-CoV-2

SARS-CoV-2 vaccines modeled on South African variant may offer broad protection against other variants

Continued vigilance needed as COVID lockdown is relaxed in England, warn researchers

Sniffer dogs could be used to detect SARS-CoV-2 infections, say researchers

Narrowing down on small molecular inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 key protease

Data from Israel’s vaccination program suggests Pizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine induces strong host antibody response

Small solutions for big problems in drug discovery and delivery

Professor Nancy Ip: Pioneering New Paths in Neurodegenerative Therapy

Utilizing process Raman in optimizing cultivated meat production

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Latest Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Small solutions for big problems in drug discovery and delivery

Professor Nancy Ip: Pioneering New Paths in Neurodegenerative Therapy

Utilizing process Raman in optimizing cultivated meat production

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