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☆ A scientist is using AI to design a nasal spray that could protect us from the flu, COVID, and colds
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Sarah Braner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A researcher is developing a nasal spray using custom proteins that could protect against COVID-19. Baker's lab plans to start early human testing of the nasal spray later this year to make sure it's safe and test its efficacy. Using AI, his ultimate goal is to create a nasal spray that's full of proteins that can block many different viruses. Then the proteins could be manufactured and placed in a nasal spray. Baker said that designed proteins are more stable than naturally occurring proteins, so they won't degrade before they make it to one's nose.

☆ Fact Check-Vaccine work before SARS-CoV-2 had a name does not prove pandemic was planned
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Users online are circulating that widely-known fact to imply the COVID-19 pandemic was planned. At timestamp 0:17-0:42, Bancel says Moderna was working on a COVID-19 vaccine before the virus had an official name, saying “I think there was no name at that time” (here). On Jan. 23, 2020, the WHO-affiliated Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) announced funding for three separate research teams to work on potential vaccines against the novel coronavirus (here). One of the research teams included a partnership between drug and vaccine developer Moderna and the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Neither the disease nor the virus that causes it had formal names until February 2020.

☆ FDA pulls authorization for AstraZeneca’s Covid antibody drug Evusheld
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

The Food and Drug Administration has withdrawn emergency use authorization for AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 antibody cocktail Evusheld as the treatment is not expected to neutralize the currently dominant XBB.1.5 subvariant of omicron. Omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 has been spreading rapidly in the country since December and it made up nearly half of all U.S. Covid cases last week, according to government data. The drugmaker plans to continue to share relevant data with the FDA and other health authorities regarding Evusheld and SARS-CoV-2 variants. In November, the U.S. health regulator also pulled emergency use authorization for Eli Lilly's Covid drug bebtelovimab, citing similar concerns. Evusheld was first authorized in late 2021 by the FDA to prevent Covid infections in individuals with weak immune systems or a history of severe side effects from coronavirus vaccines.

"Today we have additional evidence to show that these updated vaccines are protecting people against the latest COVID-19 variants," Dr. Brendan Jackson, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's COVID-19 response, told reporters in a briefing. Released last fall, the updated boosters target the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which are no longer dominant. It showed that the updated vaccine helped prevent illness in roughly half of the people who had previously received two to four doses of the original COVID-19 vaccine, CDC said. The CDC said the updated vaccine worked similarly against BA.5-related infections and XBB/XBB.1.5-related infections. Given the findings, the CDC urged people to stay up to date on their recommended COVID-19 vaccines.

☆ House GOP seeks Biden family 'suspicious activity reports' from Treasury
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Jonathan-Allen-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Jonathan Allen | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — House Republicans asked the Treasury Department Wednesday to turn over documents related to the business ventures of President Joe Biden's family members, including "suspicious activity reports" connected to Biden's son Hunter Biden and brother James Biden. And Hunter Biden is under investigation by federal prosecutors in Delaware. Trump and congressional Republicans have called on the Justice Department to prosecute Hunter Biden for a variety of alleged misdeeds. In Wednesday's letter, Comer asked Treasury for records of suspicious activity reports related to Biden family members and their business associates. In addition to Hunter Biden and James Biden, the letter names Sara Biden, James Biden's wife and President Biden's sister-in-law, and Biden family business associates Rob Walker, Eric Schwerin and Devon Archer.

☆ British scientists plan to expand genomic sequencing from COVID to flu
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Jennifer Rigby | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEXU Science Communication/via REUTERSLONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Genomic sequencing allowed the world to track new coronavirus variants throughout the pandemic. Now British researchers plan to use it to better understand a host of other respiratory pathogens, from influenza to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The work will begin later this year by using leftover material from swabs taken for COVID-19 diagnostic purposes, sequencing SARS-CoV-2, influenza, RSV and other common respiratory viruses in a combined process. While some of the viruses targeted typically cause mild, cold-like symptoms, others can cause serious illness, particularly in vulnerable populations. The five-year initiative aims to begin work from spring this year and is funded by Wellcome.

☆ Leading WHO advisers call for 'realistic' COVID data from China at key meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Jennifer Rigby | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] The World Health Organization logo is pictured at the entrance of the WHO building, in Geneva, Switzerland, December 20, 2021. REUTERS/Denis BalibouseLONDON, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Leading scientists advising the World Health Organization said they wanted a "more realistic picture" about the COVID-19 situation from China's top experts at a key meeting on Tuesday as worries grow about the rapid spread of the virus. The WHO has invited Chinese scientists to a virtual closed meeting with its technical advisory group on viral evolution on Tuesday, to present data on which variants are circulating in the country. Speaking to Reuters ahead of the meeting, she said some of the data from China, such as hospitalisation numbers, is "not very credible". A WHO spokesperson said that a "detailed discussion" was expected about circulating variants in China, and globally, with Chinese scientists expected to make a presentation.

☆ Are Vaccines Fueling New Covid Variants?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Allysia Finley | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Public-health experts are sounding the alarm about a new Omicron variant dubbed XBB that is rapidly spreading across the Northeast U.S. Some studies suggest it is as different from the original Covid strain from Wuhan as the 2003 SARS virus. Should Americans be worried? It isn’t clear that XBB is any more lethal than other variants, but its mutations enable it to evade antibodies from prior infection and vaccines as well as existing monoclonal antibody treatments. Growing evidence also suggests that repeated vaccinations may make people more susceptible to XBB and could be fueling the virus’s rapid evolution.

Rapid tests have always been second to polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, assays when it comes to accuracy. Home-test kits have expiration datesAt-home COVID-19 test kits are one of the more convenient inventions to come out of the pandemic. Over-the-counter test kits typically have a sticker on the box indicating an expiration date and manufacturing date. One study found that false positives showed up when unexpected substances were directly applied to test kits. That is if you use the rapid test correctly and wait at least three-to-five days since a COVID-19 exposure to swab yourself.

☆ U.S. to impose mandatory COVID-19 tests for travelers from China
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Julie Steenhuysen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

CHICAGO, Dec 28 (Reuters) - The United States will impose mandatory COVID-19 tests on travelers from China, U.S. health officials said on Wednesday, joining India, Italy, Japan and Taiwan in taking new measures after Beijing's decision to lift stringent zero-COVID policies. The United States also is expanding its voluntary genomic sequencing program at airports, adding Seattle and Los Angeles to the program. Beijing has faced international criticism that its official COVID data and its tally of deaths are inconsistent with the scale of its outbreak. In June, the United States rescinded a 17-month-old requirement that people arriving in the country by air test negative for COVID-19. It still requires most non-U.S. citizens to be vaccinated against COVID to travel to the United States.

The country will also scrap all other restrictive Covid measures for travelers, including quarantines for positive patients and contact tracing. China downgraded Covid management to a less-strict “Class B disease,” in the same category as less-severe diseases, such as Dengue fever. The existing quarantine policy for international arrivals to China was first launched in 2020 and modified over the course of the past several years. Since the world’s second largest economy drastically eased its Covid restrictions, there has been no clear data on the extent of the virus’ spread on the national level. China’s current focus is to prepare sufficient medical resources, according to the NHC statement.

☆ China’s Let-It-Rip Covid Reopening
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Ezekiel J. Emanuel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China put the world in peril with its coverup and slow response to the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 three years ago. The country’s current approach to Covid-19 is creating new risks—in China and beyond. Xi Jinping has made an abrupt about-face—swinging from total Covid suppression to population-wide immunity through viral spread. Chinese experts predict a Covid explosion, with hundreds of millions of cases. China will also become a petri dish for new variants, which will inevitably spread globally.

☆ What could GOP control of the House mean for U.S.-China tensions?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Megan Lebowitz | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +10 min

McCarthy also says he plans to create a House select committee on China, the first since the late 1990s. House Republicans will also investigate the origins of the coronavirus and “the CCP’s role in the spread,” the blog post said, although it is unclear whether that investigation would be part of the select committee. Tensions were further inflamed in August by Pelosi’s Taiwan visit, the first by a sitting U.S. House speaker since 1997. The most volatile issue in U.S.-China relations is the status of Taiwan, which Beijing has not ruled out seizing by force. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen in Taipei, Taiwan on Aug. 3, 2022.

☆ New York and L.A. meet CDC criteria for masking in public. How much will masks help this winter?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Aria-Bendix-Byline-Jm.Jpg | Aria Bendix | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

The Philadelphia school district announced Wednesday that students and staff will be required to wear masks indoors for two weeks in January in an effort to slow transmission after the holidays. The New York City Department of Education issued a letter this week strongly encouraging students and staff to wear a well-fitting mask indoors. After three years of Covid, however, experts recognized that few people are inclined to wear masks as often as they had previously while in public spaces. But Luby said he still wears a mask in public, even when others around him do not. “I find myself in that situation a lot — I’m the only person in the room wearing a mask," he said.

☆ Spending more time with your kids, grandkids—and their germs—may lower risk of a severe outcome from Covid-19, recent studies show
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Renée Onque | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

That's according to two studies that were published in August and November of this year, which researched how exposure to younger kids and common colds may impact outcomes for adults after contracting Covid-19. Exposure to kids may lower your risk of hospitalization from Covid-19The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) in August, discovered an association between people who were exposed to young children and lower risk of severe illness from Covid-19. And researchers compared the severity of outcomes from Covid-19 for people without children and people with children in three different age ranges: 0-5, 6-11 and 12-18. The findings showed that chances of Veteran Affairs patients contracting Covid-19 decreased by 80% to 90% if they tested positive for any of the common coronaviruses between February 2020 and February 2021. This means developing a common cold may shield people from Covid-19 infection, even if for a short period time.

☆ U.S. should've spied on Chinese health officials who were hiding what they knew about Covid, Congress says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dilanianmug.Jpg | Ken Dilanian | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

U.S. intelligence agencies began warning that Covid-19 could become a pandemic just weeks after the coronavirus was first reported in China, but they missed an opportunity to better understand its spread because they didn’t quickly begin spying on Chinese health officials who were hiding what they knew, says a newly declassified report by the House Intelligence Committee. The report partly vindicates the CIA and other U.S. spy agencies, noting that they raised the specter of a pandemic well before the World Health Organization declared one on March 11, 2020. And it adds to the body of evidence showing that then-President Donald Trump misled the public about what he was hearing from advisers about the seriousness of the virus. Investigators said they were “unable to corroborate” reports by NBC News and ABC News that U.S. spies collected raw intelligence in November indicating a health crisis in Wuhan, China. The report says the first intelligence report mentioning the virus that would become known as coronavirus or Covid-19 came on the day of the first media report about it.

☆ POTS, a debilitating heart condition, is linked to Covid and, to a lesser degree, vaccines
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Berkeley-Lovelace-Jr.Jpg | Berkeley Lovelace Jr. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Research published Monday has confirmed a link between a Covid infection and a debilitating heart condition called POTS, or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, that has been diagnosed in some patients with long Covid. POTS was also linked, to a lesser degree, to Covid vaccination with an mRNA vaccine, according to the new study. He also said that the link between POTS and Covid vaccination needs to be confirmed with further studies. Other vaccines have also been linked to POTS in early accounts, but further research did not establish a causal link. The link between an infection — including Covid — and POTS, however, is more well-established.

☆ As 'zero-Covid' nears end, Chinese remember whistleblower doctor
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Dorothy Kam | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In this 2020 photo, flower bouquets sit outside of the Houhu Branch of Wuhan Central Hospital in honor of late ophthalmologist Li Wenliang. Li, a doctor who was punished after raising the alarm about the new coronavirus, died on Feb. 7, 2020 after being infected by the pathogen. As China moves away from its strict "zero-Covid" controls, there has been a resurgence of online tributes to Li Wenliang, a whistleblower doctor who became a symbol of public dissatisfaction with the ruling Communist Party's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. This week, Chinese officials announced they were abandoning key pillars of President Xi Jinping's "zero-Covid" strategy, including broad lockdowns, mass testing and quarantine in centralized government facilities. The latest easing of restrictions comes after mass protests across China against the "zero-Covid" controls, with some demonstrators calling for Xi to step down.

☆ Fact Check-Pepto-Bismol not a proven treatment for COVID-19
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Pepto-Bismol, the familiar pink over-the-counter medicine, might be expected to ease diarrhea symptoms in people with or without COVID-19. The claim that “big pharma” is hiding the benefits of Pepto-Bismol as a treatment for COVID-19 is part of a narrative that COVID-19 was manufactured for the pharmaceutical industry as a source of profit, previously debunked by Reuters (here). Bruce Yacyshyn, an adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati and co-principal investigator of the Pepto-Bismol clinical trial, told Reuters via email that there was a valid scientific reason to test the medication in the context of COVID-19. But it remained as yet an “unproven treatment” for the virus because “no placebo controlled, randomized clinical trial data is yet available for this drug in this indication.”WHY PEPTO-BISMOL? There is no scientific evidence that Pepto-Bismol provides any benefit as a treatment for COVID-19, and a clinical trial testing that question has not yet produced results.

☆ As ‘zero-Covid’ nears end, Chinese remember whistleblower doctor
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Dorothy Kam | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Weeks later, as the coronavirus shut down cities in China and began spreading around the world, Li died from the disease after contracting it at work. This week, Chinese officials announced they were abandoning key pillars of President Xi Jinping’s “zero-Covid” strategy, including broad lockdowns, mass testing and quarantine in centralized government facilities. Many social media users rushed to tell Li, flooding his profile on Weibo, a Twitter-like platform, with expressions of gratitude, celebration and grief. The latest easing of restrictions comes after mass protests across China against the “zero-Covid” controls, with some demonstrators calling for Xi to step down. Some Weibo users vowed to make Li proud as case numbers rise.

In the central city of Wuhan, where the pandemic erupted in late 2019, there were more signs of life with some areas busy with commuters on Friday. "They've relaxed the measures but still, there’s nobody about," said a taxi driver surnamed Wang, who didn't want to give his full name. But there are signs the reassuring new message has still to convince many of the country's 1.4 billion people. China's current tally of 5,235 COVID-related deaths is a tiny fraction of its population of 1.4 billion, and extremely low by global standards. Some experts have warned that toll could rise above 1.5 million if the exit is too hasty.

☆ Pfizer rejects Moderna claim it copied Covid vaccine, accuses rival of rewriting history
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Vials with Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine labels are seen in this illustration picture taken March 19, 2021. Pfizer has rejected allegations made by rival Moderna that its Covid-19 vaccine is a copy, accusing the Boston biotech company of rewriting history to lay claim to technology developed by a field of scientists over many years. Pfizer asked a federal court in Massachusetts on Monday to dismiss Moderna's lawsuit seeking monetary damages for alleged patent violations related to the Boston company's Covid vaccine. "The Moderna inventions that Pfizer and BioNTech chose to copy were foundational for the success of their vaccine," the company claimed. Pfizer and BioNTech did not copy Moderna's technology," Pfizer said in its response.

HONG KONG, Dec 5 (Reuters) - China may announce 10 new COVID-19 easing measures as early as Wednesday, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, supplementing 20 unveiled in November that set off a wave of COVID easing steps nationwide. Management of the disease may be downgraded as soon as January, to the less strict Category B from the current top-level Category A of infectious disease, the sources said on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity. China will allow home quarantine for some of those testing positive, among the supplementary measures set to be announced, two sources told Reuters last week. COVID-19 could be downgraded to Category B management or even Category C, the expert told Yicai. read moreWriting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Alison Williams and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Conditions for China to downgrade its management of COVID-19 maturing - state media
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas PeterBEIJING, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Conditions for China to downgrade its management of COVID-19 as a serious contagious disease improving as the coronavirus weakens, state media outlet Yicai reported, among the first to float the idea. Category A diseases in China include bubonic plague and cholera, while SARS, AIDS and anthrax fall under Category B. Infectious diseases such as COVID-19 that have strong pathogenicity, a high fatality rate and strong infectivity are classified as Class A or Class B but managed as Class A. COVID-19 could be downgraded to Category B management or even Category C, the expert told Yicai. Any adjustment to the management of infectious diseases by the National Health Commission, China's top health authority, requires the approval of the State Council, or cabinet.

☆ Drop in COVID alertness could create deadly new variant - WHO
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Bhanvi Satija | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 2 (Reuters) - Lapses in strategies to tackle COVID-19 this year continue to create the perfect conditions for a deadly new variant to emerge, as parts of China witness a rise in infections, the head of the World Health Organization said on Friday. BAY ISMOYO/Pool via REUTERS 1 2"Gaps in testing ... and vaccination are continuing to create the perfect conditions for a new variant of concern to emerge that could cause significant mortality," Tedros said. COVID-19 infections are at record highs in China and have started to rise in parts of Britain after months of decline. Further easing of COVID-19 testing requirements and quarantine rules in some Chinese cities was met with a mix of relief and worry on Friday, as hundreds of millions await an expected shift in national virus policies after widespread social unrest. The WHO urged governments globally to focus on reaching those at risk, such as people over the age of 60 and those with underlying conditions, for vaccination.

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