What is a virus ‘strain’? When scientists use the word strain, they are referring to a genetically distinct virus lineage, distinguishable by one or more mutations from another strain. Strains may or may not be biologically (functionally) distinguishable from one another and some virologists use the term strain only for the former. Two strains would […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the health of populations globally. Risk factors for severe and fatal disease are well recognised, and included male sex, black or Asian ethnic origin, obesity, deprivation and a range of comorbidities including diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, COPD and hypertension. There is growing evidence for population-based studies […]
Vaccines derived from chimpanzee adenovirus Y25 (ChAdOx1), human adenovirus type 26 (HAdV-D26) and human adenovirus type 5 (HAdV-C5) are critical in combating the severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. A new study published in the journal Science Advances by an international team of scientists believe they may have found the molecular mechanism that causes […]
A recently discovered COVID-19 variant has been discovered by scientists in South Africa. They are racing to track the concerning rise of new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infections. The new variant harbours a large number of the mutations that are also found in the other variants, including the Delta variant. According to the researchers the new […]
A large number of patients with COVID-19 develop severe and life-threatening hyper-inflammation and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and mortality from severe COVID-19 remains high, in part due to the limited range of specific immunomodulatory therapies available. Patients who survive and those with milder disease, may lose significant tissue function from persistent inflammation and fibrosis, […]
Antibodies after COVID-19 vaccination peak higher for women and younger people than men and individuals over the age of 65, respectively, but levels drop by half within six months for everyone in a study group. A new study led by Texas Biomedical Research Institute (Texas Biomed) and the University of Verona in Italy has found […]
All vaccines undergo rigorous safety tests before receiving approval for use in the general population. However, no drug is guaranteed to be free from side effects and risks. So, what are the side effects that children receiving the COVID-19 vaccine may present? The FDA approved the Pfizer vaccine for children from 5-11 years on October […]
Dexamethasone significantly improved outcomes in patients requiring supplementary oxygen and in ventilated patients with COVID-19 in the RECOVERY trial. It is now routinely used in these patients. However, dysglycaemia is commonly associated with steroid use and is an established risk factor for poorer outcomes in COVID-19. It can increase the risk of other infections and […]
The COVID-19 pandemic is estimated to have caused over 4.6 million deaths so far. The predominant cause of mortality is pneumonia and severe acute respiratory distress syndrome. However, COVID-19 can cause multiple organ failure through cytokine release, microvascular and macrovascular thrombosis, endothelial damage, acute kidney injury and myocarditis. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are used to […]
Fears of adverse effects of COVID-19 vaccination on fertility have affected vaccination rates in some communities all over the world. Despite the absence of supporting evidence for such a risk, low biological plausibility and preliminary data supporting the safety of mRNA vaccines in pregnancy, this claim has become widespread. This could have a substantial public […]