Virus News and Research

Latest Virus News and Research

Three Australian experts explain the course of COVID-19

Researchers have been studying the ongoing pandemic of COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) closely since its beginning in December 2019. To date, the virus has infected over 850,000 individuals across the globe and killed over 41,000.

31 Mar 2020

Individuals taking glucocorticoids are at high risk if infected with COVID-19

Individuals taking a class of steroid hormones called glucocorticoids for conditions such as asthma, allergies and arthritis on a routine basis may be unable to mount a normal stress response and are at high risk if they are infected with the virus causing COVID-19, according to a new editorial published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

31 Mar 2020

Sheltered at home, families broach end-of-life planning

Long before she contracted COVID-19 at a Kirkland, Washington, nursing home, Barbara Dreyfuss made sure to document the wishes that would govern how she died.

31 Mar 2020

Cobra Biologics and Karolinska Institutet join forces to develop DNA vaccine against COVID-19

Cobra Biologics, an international CDMO for biologics and pharmaceuticals, and the Karolinska Institutet, one of the world’s leading medical universities, today announced they have been awarded €3 million emergency funding by Horizon 2020 for research and development, and phase I clinical trial testing of a DNA vaccine against COVID-19, as part of the OPENCORONA consortium to support global efforts tackling the pandemic.

31 Mar 2020

Novel approach to DNA synthesis could help tackle COVID-19 pandemic

Synthetic biology, and particularly DNA synthesis, is transforming diagnosis and treatment of disease, and may yet play a key role in halting the COVID-19 pandemic.

31 Mar 2020

Online coronavirus tests are just the latest iffy products marketed to anxious consumers

Companies with experience in the "at-home" testing market began announcing in mid-March that they would be offering direct-to-consumer test kits for COVID-19.

31 Mar 2020

Exploring how mucus plays a part in transferring coronaviruses

As the lethal COVID-19 coronavirus propagates around the globe, we know a sneeze, a cough or simply touching a surface with the virus can spread the infection.

31 Mar 2020

Pittcon 2020 a Success in Chicago

2020 Conference and Exposition Continued for the Sake of Science

From Pittcon 31 Mar 2020

Understanding the novel coronavirus genome

The novel coronavirus emerged in December 2019 in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, in China, and since then, it has rapidly spread to over 170 countries across the globe. Our knowledge of the virus, now officially named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is still in the early stages. However, scientists around the world are racing to better understand the virus, in the hope of shedding light on potential vaccines and therapies.

31 Mar 2020

INTEGRA, BioTools and Sullivan Nicolaides Pathology work together to accelerate COVID-19 testing

The global COVID-19 pandemic has placed unprecedented demands on pathology services to test patient samples for the novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus alongside their pre-existing respiratory virus panels.

From INTEGRA Biosciences 31 Mar 2020

Eight strains of coronavirus afflicting the world

Scientists around the world are racing to study the novel coronavirus strain severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Now, it appears that there are eight strains of SARS-CoV-2 circulating the globe. The good news is that according to infectious disease physician and clinical microbiologist Charles Chiu, “The virus mutates so slowly that the virus strains are fundamentally very similar to each other.”

31 Mar 2020

Critical care team creates blueprint for emergency operations during COVID-19 epidemic

As patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) flood hospitals, the health care system must not only determine how to redeploy limited resources and staff to care for them but must also make well-calculated decisions to provide other types of critical care.

31 Mar 2020

How to boost your immune system to fight coronavirus

As the world struggles with the coronavirus pandemic, more and more people are trying to protect themselves against the virus by all means possible. There are currently no vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), so boosting the immune system by way of diet, regular exercise, and sleep are sensible measures.

31 Mar 2020

New model offers ways to minimize risk of coronavirus during air travel

Fair or not, airplanes have a reputation for germs. However, there are ways to minimize the risks. Historic research based on group movements of humans and animals suggest three simple rules:

31 Mar 2020

New framework can help explore possible different paths ahead of corona pandemic

Umeå University in Sweden is leading a team of researchers across Europe in the development of a coronavirus simulation framework that can support decision makers to experiment and evaluate possible interventions and their combined effects, in a simulated controlled world.

31 Mar 2020

New mechanical ventilator ready to be manufactured on industrial level

Valencia's Polytechnic University (UPV) has headed the development of a new mechanical ventilator, which is ready to be manufactured on an industrial level, in turn helping supply these devices to hospitals where they can help patients affected by COVID-19.

31 Mar 2020

Researchers develop chemically modified phage capsid that “stifles” influenza viruses

A new approach brings the hope of new therapeutic options for suppressing seasonal influenza and avian flu: On the basis of an empty - and therefore non-infectious - shell of a phage virus, researchers from Berlin have developed a chemically modified phage capsid that "stifles" influenza viruses.

31 Mar 2020

United States tracking mobile phones to map spread of COVID-19

United States officials are using location data from mobile phone users to track the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which is causing the global pandemic of COVID-19. The USA, as of today, has a total of 163,807 cases of COVID-19 and has recorded 3,008 deaths.

30 Mar 2020

Origins of SARS-CoV-2 – natural or man-made?

With over 780,000 individuals across the world infected and over 37,000 dead, the world is gripped by the pandemic caused by the novel strain of coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

30 Mar 2020

COVID-19: What is social distancing?

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a novel coronavirus, akin to previous infections such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2002 and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus disease (MERS-CoV) in 2012.

30 Mar 2020