Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Latest Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Study: SARS-CoV-2 can infect human neural progenitor cells and brain organoids

SARS-CoV-2 can infect human neural progenitor cells and brain organoids, as shown by researchers from the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and their collaborators from The University of Hong Kong (HKU).

25 Aug 2020

Advances in Virus Epigenetics

Growing evidence shows viruses exploit epigenetic processes to control their life cycles but epigentic regulation of viral infections is not fully understood.

From Chromatrap® - Porvair Sciences Ltd 25 Aug 2020

Italy starts human trials of potential COVID-19 vaccine

Rome's Lazzaro Spallanzani Institute, a hospital specializing in infectious diseases will conduct trials on 90 volunteers in the coming weeks, joining a global effort to develop an immune response to the virus.

25 Aug 2020

COVID specific IgA monoclonal antibodies may provide effective immunity against coronavirus

A new study by researchers at MassBiologics of UMass Medical School published in Nature Communications suggests that COVID specific IgA monoclonal antibodies may provide effective immunity in the respiratory system against the novel coronavirus - a potentially critical feature of an effective vaccine.

25 Aug 2020

World's first confirmed case of SARS-CoV-2 re-infection

A team of researchers at the University of Hong Kong said that they have proven that a 33-year-old man was infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus for a second time. The man was discharged from a hospital in April but contracted the infection again after returning from Spain via the United Kingdom in August.

24 Aug 2020

Relative humidity could play a role in transmission of SARS-CoV-2 indoors

A new study has explored the role of relative humidity in the transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from person to person indoors. The study titled, “An Overview on the Role of Relative Humidity in Airborne Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in Indoor Environments,” is published in the latest issue of the journal Aerosol and Air Quality Research.

24 Aug 2020

Single dose nasal vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 shows promise in animal studies

Now researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have worked on developing a candidate vaccine against the infection that could be administered in a single dose via a nasal spray rather than an injection. In their preliminary studies using lab mice, this single dose of the nasal vaccine successfully prevented the infection with the novel coronavirus.

24 Aug 2020

Sociopaths less likely to comply with COVID mask, hygiene and social distancing

Now, a new study by researchers from Brazil has found that people who are unconcerned with adhering to measures to mitigate the COVID-19 spread tend to manifest higher levels of traits tied to antisocial personality disorder, which is also known as sociopathy.

24 Aug 2020

Genomic analysis reveals many animal species vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2

Now, a new genomics study by University of California, Davis, California researchers identifies a large number of mammals that can potentially be infected by SARS-CoV-2 via their ACE2 proteins.

24 Aug 2020

Study reveals protective potential of all three major immunoglobulin isotypes against SARS-CoV-2

In a recent medRxiv preprint paper, researchers from Mount Sinai in New York showed that all three major immunoglobulin isotypes (IgM, IgG, and IgA) produced by our immune cells were capable of mediating neutralization of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). However, neutralization titers correlated much better with binding levels of IgM and IgA1 than IgG.

24 Aug 2020

Ferrets not susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection

A recent study by scientists at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University has revealed that ferrets are not susceptible to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection even if they are directly exposed to symptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients for a prolonged time.

24 Aug 2020

Research suggests seaweed extract and xylitol may help protect against COVID-19

Researchers in the United States have demonstrated the antiviral effect of three candidate nasal spray formulations against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

24 Aug 2020

A better understanding of SARS-CoV-2 in children

Researchers at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina, have conducted a study showing that Hispanic ethnicity is associated with an increased risk of infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) among children.

24 Aug 2020

FDA issues emergency use authorization for convalescent plasma in COVID-19

The FDA said that based on the scientific evidence available, it had released a decision memorandum that convalescent plasma may be useful in treating COVID-19 in hospitalized patients, and the known potential benefits of use outweigh the risks.

24 Aug 2020

Antihypertensives improve COVID-19 survival rates

Previous studies have also linked hypertension to severe coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Now, a new study by researchers at the University of East Anglia's Norwich Medical School has found that the risk of severe COVID-19 and death was reduced for patients with high blood pressure who were taking Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) or Angiotensin Receptor Blockers (ARB).

24 Aug 2020

Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 transmission on an airplane

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the world, air travel restrictions are slowly being eased in some regions. Now, a new report published in the JAMA Network Open journal in August 2020 shows that the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can spread among passengers on international flights unless proper precautions are taken.

23 Aug 2020

Equine antibody preparation shows greater capacity to neutralize SARS-CoV-2 isolate than human convalescent plasma

A recent Brazilian study demonstrates that hyperimmune globulin formulations generated against the recombinant spike protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) provide significantly high antibody titer with highly neutralizing capacity. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv preprint server.

23 Aug 2020

No evidence pregnancy increases the risk of COVID-19 morbidity or severity

Albeit pregnancy is generally considered a significant risk factor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and more severe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outcomes, a recent study by a multinational team of researchers shows that symptoms are generally comparable between pregnant and non-pregnant cohorts of women – with the exception of gastrointestinal symptoms. This paper is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server.

23 Aug 2020

Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine candidate BNT162b2 profiled for large scale clinical trials

Although two RNA-based severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine candidates elicited similar, dose-dependent neutralizing antibody titers in both younger and older adults, a recent study by researchers from the U.S. and Germany has shown that BNT162b2 is associated with less systemic reactogenicity in elderly individuals – supporting its selection for further phase 2/3 clinical trials. The study is currently available on medRxiv* preprint server.

23 Aug 2020

Scientific review on on link between air pollution and COVID-19

Researchers at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have conducted a “state-of-the-science” review of the evidence available on potential associations between exposure to air pollution and health outcomes in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

23 Aug 2020