Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Viral shedding among pre-symptomatic COVID-19 patients finds study

Researchers from Bangalore, India, have found that 68 percent of pre-symptomatic patients with COVID-19 may be shedding the virus and potentially infecting others. Their study titled, “Quantitative COVID-19 infectiousness estimate correlating with viral shedding and culturability suggests 68% pre-symptomatic transmissions,” was published on the open-access preprint server Medrxiv.

15 May 2020

Viral shedding seen in plasma donors who have recovered from COVID-19

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have found that plasma donors who have recovered from the deadly COVID-19 infection were still shedding viral RNA. This could be significant they write in their article titled, “Prolonged viral RNA shedding after COVID-19 symptom resolution in older convalescent plasma donors,” that is published on the preprint server Medrxiv* prior to peer review.

15 May 2020

BGU researcher develops one-minute COVID-19 breath test

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev's Prof. Gabby Sarusi has developed and is now validating a test that identifies carriers of the COVID-19 virus in less than a minute with greater than 90% accuracy and at a dramatically lower price than any other method available.

15 May 2020

A road map to find unanswered questions about COVID-19

There are many unanswered questions about COVID-19. A Kansas State University infectious disease scientist and collaborators are offering a possible research road map to find the answers.

15 May 2020

Antiviral agent accelerates virus clearance in cases of COVID-19

A team of researchers from have found an antiviral therapy that seems to be an effective treatment for patients with moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

15 May 2020

Does vitamin D deficiency increase COVID-19 risk?

A new paper published on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020 reports the first evidence that vitamin D deficiency and inadequate treatment could increase the chances of testing positive for COVID-19. This could shape the way for screening individuals at risk for vitamin D deficiency.

14 May 2020

COVID-19 and food insecurity in the U.S.

A new paper published on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020 reports that the measures taken to block the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) such as social distancing and lockdown are associated with widespread effects on food security in the US state of Vermont.

14 May 2020

SARS-CoV-2 will infect 250 million people in Africa

A study conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) has predicted that the coronavirus will infect almost one-quarter of a billion people in Africa during the first year of the pandemic. Unless immediate measures are taken to control the spread of the virus, as many as 190,000 of them are likely to die, the researchers warn.

14 May 2020

New insights into SARS-CoV-2 viral diversity

The first comprehensive, large-scale analysis available on the preprint server bioRxiv attempted to identify specific genomic signatures of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) strains within and across individual hosts – revealing recombination events, specific geographic profiles, as well as multi-strain and/or superinfections characteristic for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

14 May 2020

Continuously active antiviral coating may reduce the spread of COVID-19

Surfaces coated with a quaternary ammonium polymer have remarkable antiviral properties. They may even be capable of reducing the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in areas with high risk for contamination, such as indoor environments or public places. University of Arizona researchers explain the antiviral potential of these in a new study published on the preprint server medRxiv.

14 May 2020

NIH begins clinical study to evaluate hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for COVID-19

A clinical trial has begun to evaluate whether the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, given together with the antibiotic azithromycin, can prevent hospitalization and death from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

14 May 2020

New clinical trial to investigate the efficacy of ivermectin against COVID-19

Clínica Universidad de Navarra and the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by the "la Caixa" Foundation, have launched a clinical trial to investigate the efficacy of ivermectin against COVID-19.

14 May 2020

Study finds increase in home wine consumption during confinement

Among other conclusions, the study also adds that 33% of people polled declare they spend more on wine during confinement. Furthermore, solitary consumption has increased and the phenomenon of digital snacking has emerged.

14 May 2020

Two new devices could offer additional safety for health care workers during COVID-19

Treating patients with COVID-19 means health care workers are putting their own health and safety on the line each day.

14 May 2020

Novel study tracks symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 spread in pediatric dialysis unit

As COVID-19 continues its sweep around the globe, dialysis units have continued to be hotspots for the virus' spread. Researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine hope to combat that threat, through a novel study published May 14, 2020 in JAMA.

14 May 2020

Rice engineer receives NSF grant to study effect of varying temperatures on coronavirus

Daniel Preston, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Rice's Brown School of Engineering, has received a National Science Foundation Rapid Response Research grant to study the effect of varying temperatures on the lifetime of the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

14 May 2020

ACTG initiates clinical trial to evaluate treatment for COVID-19

The AIDS Clinical Trials Group, the world's largest and longest established HIV research network, today announced the initiation of ACTG 5395, a clinical trial to evaluate whether the drug combination hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin can prevent hospitalization and death from COVID-19 (which is caused by infection with the virus SARS-CoV-2).

14 May 2020

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: What’s in the next round of COVID-19 relief?

House Democrats are moving ahead with another round of COVID-19 relief, including additional funding for state Medicaid programs, an open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act's marketplace plans, and money to pay premiums for newly unemployed Americans to continue on their employer health coverage.

14 May 2020

In reversal, Kansas will count all positive COVID cases, even asymptomatic ones

Kansas leaders will include asymptomatic COVID-19 cases in their assessments of virus trends as they evaluate when to take further steps to ease stay-at-home orders and other social distancing measures.

14 May 2020

A 'window of vulnerability' for re-infection with HIV after stem cell transplantation

Some people with HIV need to undergo an allogeneic stem cell transplantation in order to treat different types of blood cancer. Most of the patient's immune cells are eliminated during these transplantations.

14 May 2020