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☆ Fact Check-PCR test for COVID-19 uses gene cloning but cannot be used to clone humans
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test kits for COVID-19 use what’s known as gene cloning – not reproductive cloning – to detect the presence or absence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, but social media posts claim that humans are being cloned using COVID-19 PCR tests. The claim appears to originate from an Aug. 18 segment of the Stew Peters Show titled, “Patent PCR Test Linked To Human Cloning Video Shows Animal Experiments, Cross Species Genetics” (here). The 2015 paper by Hoseini and Sauer explains methods for gene cloning with PCR and used a gene encoding a red fluorescent protein as its example. PCR tests for COVID-19 cannot be used for human cloning. Molecular cloning, or gene cloning, that is described in a 2015 paper about using PCR to copy individual genes is an entirely different process.

☆ W.H.O. renames monkeypox as mpox, citing racism concerns
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The World Health Organization has renamed monkeypox as mpox, citing concerns the original name of the decades-old animal disease could be construed as discriminatory and racist. The U.N. health agency said in a statement Monday that mpox was its new preferred name for monkeypox, saying that both monkeypox and mpox would be used for the next year while the old name is phased out. WHO said it was concerned by the “racist and stigmatizing language” that arose after monkeypox spread to more than 100 countries. Scientists believe monkeypox triggered outbreaks in Western countries after spreading via sex at two raves in Belgium and Spain. Mpox was first named monkeypox in 1958 when research monkeys in Denmark were observed to have a “pox-like” disease, although they are not thought to be the disease’s animal reservoir.

☆ Fauci shares lessons from pandemic, criticism of China’s zero-Covid policy ahead of his departure from government
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Katherine Dillinger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Covid-19 pandemic has carried a key lesson for public health officials, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday: When talking to Americans, be clear that science is often a moving target. “Hopefully, we could have been more on top of appreciating the dynamic nature of how things change, thinking that it wasn’t aerosol spread in the beginning, and then you find out it is aerosol spread. Experts agree that the virus almost certainly jumped into humans from an animal market in China but that they may never know for sure. “It’s possible that there was a lab leak,” Fauci said. Fauci criticized China’s controversial zero-Covid policy, saying shutdowns “should always be a temporary phenomenon, not a long-range strategy,” and should be done with an end point in mind, such as buying time to secure PPE or provide vaccinations.

☆ House Republicans are going after Hunter Biden. Here's why the White House should be worried.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The new GOP House majority will likely subpoena Hunter Biden as they dig into his business dealings. The career of Hunter Biden, on the other hand, has all the earmarks of a real one. Nor will it protect the Biden White House from potential fallout stemming from the Justice Department's own criminal investigation of Hunter Biden, which is ongoing. During Joe Biden's vice presidency, Hunter Biden was openly trading on the Biden family name. A lawyer for Hunter Biden did not respond to Insider's request for comment Friday about the looming possibility of a congressional inquiry.

☆ Explainer: How the World Health Organization might fight future pandemics
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A new pact is a priority for WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as his second five-year term at the head of the global health agency gets underway. It seeks to shore up the world's defences against new pathogens following the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 6.5 million people, according to the WHO. The global health agency itself is facing calls for reform after an independent panel described it as "underpowered" when COVID-19 struck, with limited ability to investigate outbreaks and coordinate containment measures. The WHO already has binding rules known as the International Health Regulations (2005) which set out countries' obligations where public health events have the potential to cross borders. Adopted after the 2002/3 SARS outbreak, these regulations are still seen as functional for regional epidemics like Ebola but inadequate for a global pandemic.

Moderna’s updated Covid booster appears to increase the immune response to omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5, as well as another subvariant, called BQ.1.1, that's gaining ground in the United States, the company said in a release Monday. The results are based on blood samples taken from 511 adults who got the updated booster, which targets BA.4 and BA.5, along with the original coronavirus strain, in a single shot. In people who got the updated booster, neutralizing antibodies against BA.4 and BA.5 were about fivefold higher in those with a previous Covid infection and sixfold higher in those without a documented infection, the company said. Moderna also said an additional analysis of 40 people found the updated booster demonstrated “robust neutralizing activity” against the subvariant BQ.1.1, though the response wasn’t as strong as what was seen against BA.4 and BA.5. Earlier this month, Pfizer and BioNTech said their updated booster shot generated a stronger immune response against BA.4 and BA.5 compared with their original Covid vaccine.

☆ Fact Check-No evidence COVID-19 Omicron XBB variant has higher mortality rate, or is five times more ‘toxic,’ than Delta
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Social media users in Singapore are copy-pasting a text post which warns that the COVID-19 Omicron XBB variant, first discovered in August, is five times more “toxic” and has a higher mortality rate than the Delta variant. However, there is no evidence to support this, according to Singapore’s Ministry of Health. Likewise, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says current data does not suggest XBB is more deadly than Omicron, which itself is less lethal than Delta. There is, however, early evidence pointing at a higher reinfection risk, as compared to other circulating Omicron sublineages.”VERDICTFalse. There is no evidence the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron XBB variant is more deadly or causes more severe COVID-19 than the Delta variant.

☆ Repeat COVID is riskier than first infection, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Nancy Lapid | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"Reinfection with COVID-19 increases the risk of both acute outcomes and long COVID," said Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. "Even if one had prior infection and was vaccinated - meaning they had double immunity from prior infection plus vaccines - they are still susceptible to adverse outcomes upon reinfection," Al-Aly, the study leader, said. The higher risks were most pronounced in the first month after reinfection but were still evident six months later. The cumulative risks and burdens of repeat infection increased with the number of infections, even after accounting for differences in COVID-19 variants such as Delta, Omicron and BA.5, the researchers said. "We had started seeing a lot of patients coming to the clinic with an air of invincibility," Al-Aly told Reuters.

The recently authorized booster vaccine protects against the original SARS-CoV-2 virus and the more recent omicron variants, BA.4 and BA.5. But there's a new batch of so-called "Scrabble" variants circulating globally. But experts still expect the shots to ramp up your immunity against all Covid variants, to some degree. The Scrabble variants are descendants of omicronThe new variants are descendants of omicron, which is a promising initial sign for the boosters. That can "restore a level of immunity and patch up the holes that some of these new Scrabble variants have found," she explains.

☆ Reported Ransomware Incidents, Costs Soared in 2021, Treasury Says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( James Rundle | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

U.S. banks flagged ransomware-related transactions adding up to more than $1 billion in 2021, the Treasury Department said, although risk experts said that barely scratches the surface of cybercrime’s true economic scale. In 2020, such transactions totaled $416 million across 487 reports. FinCEN is an arm of the Treasury that analyzes financial data to identify money laundering, terrorist financing and other crimes. Reports from the first six months of 2021 alone exceeded the total for all of 2020, FinCEN said, noting that around 75% of incidents in 2021 stemmed from Russia-based cyber actors. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ Pro Cybersecurity Cybersecurity news, analysis and insights from WSJ's global team of reporters and editors.

☆ Factbox: What are the new BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 coronavirus variants, and why it matters
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Julie Steenhuysen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The following describes the new coronavirus subvariants and how they may impact people. WHAT ARE BQ.1 AND BQ.1.1? In early July, BA.5 became the dominant subvariant of the coronavirus circulating in the United States, but in October it started giving way to BQ.1 and BQ.1.1. A study of blood from three dozen adults showed the shot increased neutralizing antibodies against the BA.4/BA.5 Omicron subvariants by fourfold compared with the original shot after one month. read moreIt is not yet clear whether that will translate into higher protection against the BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 subvariants, but their close relationship to BA.5 may work in the booster's favor.

Across the United States, cases of respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, and influenza are increasing. Influenza activity continues to increase in the US – the number of flu illnesses, hospitalizations and deaths so far this season nearly doubled in the past week. RSV cases are also increasing nationally, although there are regional differences in the circulation of these viruses, Romero said. In the South and Mountain West, RSV cases appear to have peaked in October. There are signs that RSV cases are slowing in the southern region of the US, but test positivity rates and cases continue to rise in other regions, especially the Midwest.

☆ ‘Scrabble variants’ now cause the majority of new Covid-19 infections in the US
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Omicron BA.5 subvariant is no longer the dominant cause of Covid-19 infections in the United States, according to estimates released Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The gaggle of new variants have been gaining ground against BA.5, which has dominated Covid-19 infections in the United States since July. Together, they now account for more than 1 in 4 new Covid-19 infections nationwide, according to CDC data. BQ.1.1 is now causing about 1 in 5 new Covid-19 infections in the Northeast, where cases and hospitalizations are rising. But that strain is causing just 3% of new Covid-19 infections in the Pacific Northwest.

☆ Climate Change Is Real. Markets, Not Governments, Offer the Cure. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Bret Stephens | Mr. Stephens Is An Opinion Columnist. Mr. Winter Is A Staff Photographer On Assignment In Opinion. | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +32 min

worse-case, highest-carbon-emission scenario.” (The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is the U.N. body that assesses climate change.) How do we weigh the risks of underreacting to climate change against the risks of overreacting to it? While he’s not an expert on climate change, he has spent decades thinking deeply about every manner of risk. That’s particularly true if climate change is akin to cancer — manageable or curable in its earlier stages, disastrous in its later ones. Maybe, I realized, in assessing my newfound concerns about climate change, my long-held beliefs might provide a solution — look to the market.

☆ FDA says two studies showing omicron boosters weren't much better than old Covid shots were too small to come to any conclusions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The recently authorized booster vaccine protects against the original SARS-CoV-2 virus and the more recent omicron variants, BA.4 and BA.5. The Food and Drug Administration said two studies this week showing that the new omicron boosters weren't that much better than the old shots were too small to come to any real conclusions. The antibody responses were slightly higher with the omicron boosters, though the studies concluded the difference wasn't significant. The studies are of public interest because there's very limited human data on how the omicron BA.5 boosters perform right now. The FDA also looked at data directly on the BA.5 shots that came from animal studies.

☆ Fact Check-Boston University hybrid COVID virus kills 80% of mice, not people
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The authors then infected different sets of transgenic mice designed to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 with one of the three strains: Omicron, the ancestral virus, or the Omi-S hybrid virus (here). In the study, 100% of mice infected with the ancestral virus strain died, while 80% of those infected with Omi-S died, and none of the mice infected with Omicron died. Others shared the claim that the Omi-S had an “80% kill rate,” without specifying whether this referred to mice or humans. The ancestral virus (the viruses as they were when introduced in Europe and the US) in this mouse model kills 100% of the animals. Early in the pandemic, the fatality rate of the ancestral virus for people in a multicountry European analysis was estimated at about 4% (here).

☆ Fact Check-Preventing transmission never required for COVID vaccines’ initial approval; Pfizer vax did reduce transmission of early variants
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +11 min

To get emergency approval, companies needed to show that the vaccines were safe and prevented vaccinated people from getting ill. They did not have to show that the vaccine would also prevent people from spreading the virus to others. Pfizer ‘vaccine’ wasn’t intended to prevent transmission. The newest family of Omicron variants has further eroded vaccine effectiveness against infection and transmission (here) . But even Omicron does not escape vaccine protection completely.

☆ Long COVID at 12 months persists at 18 months, study shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Nancy Lapid | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Carlo AllegriOct 13 (Reuters) - Most patients with COVID-19 who have lingering symptoms at 12 months are likely to still have symptoms at 18 months, new data suggest. Among a subset of 197 survivors of symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections who completed surveys at 12 months and 18 months, most reported lingering symptoms at both time points, researchers reported in Nature Communications. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterRates of no recovery at 12 months were 11% with 51% partial recovery and 39% complete recovery. At six months, 8% reported no recovery, 47% reported partial recovery, and 45% reported complete recovery. Those rates had barely changed at 12 months, with 8% reporting no recovery, 46% partial recovery and 46% complete recovery.

☆ Here to stay? China's cityscapes transformed by thousands of COVID test booths
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Not so China itself - in cities big or small, routine PCR testing is the new normal. read moreRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterTens of thousands of kerbside sampling booths where people can be tested day and night have become a permanent feature of Chinese cityscapes. Testing booths, typically container-like structures erected in the middle of a pavement, are staffed by a few health workers in hazmat suits ready to take quick throat swabs. "Doing a PCR test every two days, I really feel it's a pure waste of resources," posted one user of Weibo, a popular Twitter-like microblog in China. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Kenneth MaxwellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Is Biden correct that the pandemic is over? Not exactly.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-24 | by ( Denis Nash | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

During a CBS “60 Minutes” interview that aired on Sunday, President Joe Biden said the SARS CoV-2 pandemic was over. If Biden was referring to the emergency phase of the pandemic being over, his statement is in some ways correct — at least for now. If Biden was referring to the emergency phase of the pandemic being over, his statement is in some ways correct — at least for now. The U.K.’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) has had a model long Covid surveillance system in place since February 2021. Displaying long Covid metrics and related trends on the Covid Data Tracker would be helpful.

☆ 2 companies were fined $325,000 after the EPA said they falsely marketed a pesticide as a weapon against COVID-19
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Zoono USA and Zoono Holdings were collectively fined $325,000. The EPA has reached settlements with the two companies: Zoono USA will pay a $205,000 civil penalty and Zoono Holdings will pay $120,000. Zoono USA and Zoono Holdings are owned by the New Zealand company Zoono Group. "Zoono Holdings takes regulatory responsibilities very seriously and as soon as Zoono Holdings received notification from the E.P.A. Zoono Group, Zoono USA, and United Airlines didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

☆ Fauci says the Chinese government is 'probably' hiding something about the origins of COVID, but he's not sure it's a lab leak
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Hilary Brueck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Dr. Anthony Fauci said he's "keeping a completely open mind" about the origins of the pandemic. Fauci told an audience the Chinese government is "probably" hiding something about the origins of the virus. Fauci recalls the painstaking efforts it took to get information on that outbreak from Chinese officials. Hiding information creates a perfect breeding ground for conspiracy theories, Fauci said"It's natural, totally natural for conspiracy people who are thinking it's a conspiracy to say, 'see? And, "they probably are," Fauci said, but it may not have anything to do with a lab leak at all.

☆ WHO warns ability to identify new Covid variants is diminishing as testing declines
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The World Health Organization on Thursday warned that it is struggling to identify and track new Covid variants as governments roll back testing and surveillance, threatening the progress made in the fight against the virus. The WHO is "deeply concerned" that it is evolving at a time when there is no longer robust testing in place to help rapidly identify new variants, Van Kerkhove said. "Our ability to track variants and subvariants around the world is diminishing because surveillance is declining," Van Kerkhove told reporters during an update in Geneva. "That limits our ability to assess the known variants and subvariants but also our ability to track and identify new ones." "In most countries, restrictions have ended and life looks much like it did before the pandemic," Tedros said.

☆ 'Should I get my omicron booster and flu shot at the same time?' and other questions about fall vaccines, answered
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Renée Onque | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Though the CDC says it's completely fine to get a flu vaccine and Covid-19 shot simultaneously, there hasn't been specific guidance pertaining to the newly formulated booster. 'When should I get my flu vaccine?' The timing of when you get your flu shot should be aligned with the time frame that would allow you to have the best antibody response during the beginning of flu season, Hatziioannou tells CNBC Make It. At this time, Hatziioannou recommends getting your flu shot at the end of October or early November to have the highest protection throughout December. 'Should I get my omicron booster and flu shot at the same time?'

☆ Fact Check-Vaccine-effectiveness study does not show ‘negative immunity’ or harm to the immune system
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

“The statement that ‘the vaccine destroys any protection a person has from natural immunity’ is unfounded,” Lin told Reuters in an email. The combination of prior infection with vaccination offered slightly better protection than vaccination alone or infection alone, the study also showed. Two of four curves (lines) in panel A, representing vaccine effectiveness among children who received their shots in late 2021, continue a downward path past the bottom of the graph. Similarly, in panel B, lines depicting waning vaccine effectiveness over time in previously-infected and -uninfected children continue past the bottom of the graph. “Our study shows that the vaccine was effective against infection for 4 months, although the effectiveness waned over time,” Lin explained.

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