Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Latest Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome News and Research

Convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19 is safe and effective

A new systematic review available on medRxiv preprint server shows that using convalescent plasma in patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is well-tolerated and may prompt the clearance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), as well as decrease disease severity; however, these effects are more pronounced in younger patients.

9 Jun 2020

COVID-19 survivors could suffer long-term health effects

Patients recovering from COVID-19 could suffer significant long-term effects, according to research into the experiences of people hospitalized by previous coronavirus outbreaks.

9 Jun 2020

Protease inhibition could help defeat SARS-CoV-2

As the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to spread around the world, many researchers are studying epidemiological models to predict its propagation. As of yet, there are no effective vaccines that could counter the SARS- CoV-2 infection or drugs to treat COVID-19 disease

9 Jun 2020

Anti-RBD antibodies shown to neutralize active SARS-CoV-2

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in June 2020 reports the discovery of multiple severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies in samples from healthy donors, collected before the pandemic. These antibodies are capable of inhibiting the binding of the spike protein of the virus to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) molecule and can neutralize active infection of cells in culture.

9 Jun 2020

COVID-19 produces lung inflammation in non-human primate experiments

A new study published on the online preprint server bioRxiv in June 2020 reports the successful use of three primate species to model the infection, pathogenesis, and clinical features associated with COVID-19. The research provides useful and immediately available models to test new vaccines and treatments.

9 Jun 2020

Metabolic diseases alter ACE2 expression and increase COVID-19 severity

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in June 2020 reports that one mechanism for this variable severity is the differential expression of the ACE2 receptor in various metabolic conditions, thereby facilitating viral entry into the host cells.

9 Jun 2020

New study shows possible alternative pathway of SARS-CoV-2 infection in overactive bladder

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv*, in June 2020, reports that the condition of overactive bladder (OAB) could be associated with a different route of infection by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent for COVID-19 disease.

8 Jun 2020

56 percent of pregnant women in UK hospitals with COVID-19 are BAME

According to a new national surveillance study released this week, over half of the pregnant women admitted to a hospital in the United Kingdom with COVID-19 are either black or belong to other ethnic minority groups.

8 Jun 2020

Synthetic monoclonal antibodies effectively neutralize SARS-CoV-2 in laboratory conditions

In a new study available on the preprint server bioRxiv*, a multinational research group demonstrated how monoclonal antibodies strongly inhibit severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in vitro at even sub-nanomolar concentrations. This makes them a prime candidate for the treatment of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

8 Jun 2020

Improving detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection among severely ill children

Researchers in the UK have conducted a study showing that children with a severe inflammatory syndrome had high levels of antibodies against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), despite having tested negative for the virus by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

8 Jun 2020

Irradiation with UV light kills SARS-CoV-2

Researchers in Italy have found that it is possible to completely inactivate severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) using short-wavelength UV (UV-C) irradiation.

8 Jun 2020

Monocytes could be critical in dysregulated immunity in COVID-19

A new study by Spanish researchers as part of the GEN-COVID Project, and published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020, suggests that monocytes are primarily involved in triggering the hyperinflammatory immune response that may underlie severe COVID-19 infection.

8 Jun 2020

The receptor binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2

With the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) across most of the world, scientists are working strenuously to find effective therapies or vaccines. Most strategies being worked on at present are targeting viral entry into the host cells, mainly through the interaction of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein with the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor.

8 Jun 2020

Inhibition of coronavirus spike protein binding to ACE2

A novel coronavirus, CoV-19, and a later phenotype CoV-2 were identified as the primary cause for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS CoV-2). The spike (S) protein of CoV-2 is one target for the development of a vaccine to prevent the viral entry into human cells. The inhibition of the direct interaction between ACE2 and the S-protein could provides a suitable strategy to prevent the membrane fusion of CoV-2 and the viral entry into human cells. Using MD simulations, we investigate the assembly process of a Coronavirus Spike protein fragment, the hexapeptide YKYRYL on the ACE2 receptor and its inhibitzory effect on the aggregation and activation of the CoV-2 spike receptor protein at the same receptor protein.

8 Jun 2020

SARS-CoV-2 invasion of central nervous system through olfactory tract

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to claim lives throughout the world, the evidence is mounting that the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) affects the respiratory tract as well as the central nervous system. Now, a new study by German researchers published on the preprint server bioRxiv in June 2020 describes various neurological manifestations of COVID-19, as well as the underlying pathophysiology.

7 Jun 2020

Tocilizumab in COVID-19 patients on mechanical ventilation

Now, a new study by researchers from the University of Michigan and published on the online preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 shows that the cytokine inhibitor tocilizumab could have a favorable effect on survival in the most severely infected patients who require mechanical ventilation. This needs to be confirmed by clinical trials.

7 Jun 2020

New strategy may facilitate development of multi-epitope peptide vaccine against SARS-CoV-2

By combining T and B lymphocyte analysis with manufacturability heuristic, researchers from the US and Germany proposed a set of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine peptides to use in subsequent animal studies and clinical trials. Their paper is currently available on the bioRxiv preprint server.

7 Jun 2020

Zinc-finger antiviral protein makes SARS-CoV-2 highly susceptible to interferons

By looking into zinc-finger antiviral proteins (ZAP), a new study from Germany and the United Kingdom (UK) and available on the preprint server bioRxiv suggests that zoonotic transmission of a coronavirus with a specific genetic make-up facilitated the pandemic spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but also its sensitivity to interferons.

7 Jun 2020

Antiviral effects for COVID-19: Early is better

A new study by an international team of researchers and published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 describes the possible reasons for inconsistent or null findings in clinical studies of antiviral drugs to date. It proposes a new approach to decide the sample size in light of its findings.

5 Jun 2020

Precautions for intimacy, sex, during COVID-19

Amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, safe sex practices are as important as other measures to prevent infection. Little focus has been given to sexual health, but a new study highlights how couples can reduce the transmission of the novel coronavirus.

5 Jun 2020