As a general rule, whatever health condition a person may have, COVID-19 makes it worse. But COVID-19 also causes certain conditions or is being implicated in their earlier onset. Type 1 diabetes and Parkinson’s disease are prime examples. Now, researchers report that the SARS-CoV-2 virus may also cause fetal inflammation, even when the placenta itself is not inflamed.
Alzheimer’s-like changes found in COVID patients’ brains; flu shot, mRNA booster safe together
Alzheimer's, Alzheimer’s & Dementia, Beta Amyloid, Brain, Brain Cells, Columbia University, Coronavirus Tests, COVID-19 booster shots, Dementia, Flu Vaccines, Lancet Respiratory Medicine, Messenger RNA (mRNA) Vaccines, mRNA-1273/Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (Moderna), Poison, R&D, Sanofi, Seniors, TauPeople who die of severe COVID-19 have brain abnormalities that resemble changes seen in Alzheimer’s disease – accumulation of a protein called tau inside brain cells, and abnormal amounts of the protein beta-amyloid that accumulates into amyloid plaques – small studies found. In other news, seniors can safely get the high-dose flu vaccine and an mRNA COVID-19 booster dose at the same time, a new study confirms.
Paxlovid Deal Details and Assessment of Pandemic Response Begins
Antiparasitics, Antivirals, Biotechnology, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Boston University, Business, Children, Contracts, Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic, Covid-19 Data, COVID-19 Doses, COVID-19 Mortality, COVID-19 Vaccines, Cuba, Doctors, Inflammation, Ivermectin, Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine (J&J), Johns Hopkins, Nature, Omicron (B.1.1.529) (South Africa), Omicron BA.2, Paxlovid, Pfizer, R&D, RNA Polymerase, T-Cells, U.S. government, University of MichiganAside from vaccines, the advent of several effective COVID-19 antiviral therapies, including Pfizer’s Paxlovid, provides hope for ending the pandemic. Details about the U.S. government’s contract with Pfizer for 10 million doses of Paxlovid are emerging, with some unusual elements.
Researchers studying Merck & Co. Inc.’s cancer drug Keytruda for HIV patients who also have cancer say the immunotherapy may help displace the virus from human immune cells, offering an intriguing area of study for treatment of chronic HIV infection.
About 35% of People Who Received Placebo in Vaccine Trials Report Side Effects and More COVID-19 News
Adverse Events, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Business, CDC, Clinical Trials, COVID-19 Antibodies, COVID-19 forecasts, COVID-19 Studies, COVID-19 Vaccines, Harvard Medical School, Intensive Care Units (ICUs), JAMA, Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine (J&J), Johnson & Johnson, Long COVID, mRNA-1273/Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (Moderna), Nature Communications, Omicron (B.1.1.529) (South Africa), Placebo, R&D, Side Effects, The NetherlandsAccording to a recent study conducted by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 76 percent of the adverse side effects (such as fatigue or headache) that people experienced after receiving their first COVID-19 vaccination were also reported by participants who received a placebo shot.
Sinovac regimen gets strong boost from Pfizer, AstraZeneca or J&J COVID shots – study
AstraZeneca, BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), China, Clinical Trials, CoronaVac (Sinovac Biotech), COVID-19 booster shots, COVID-19 Infections, COVID-19 shots, COVID-19 Vaccines, Genetics, Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine (J&J), Messenger RNA (mRNA) Vaccines, Neutralizing Antibodies, R&D, Sinovac, The Lancet, Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca)A third booster dose of a COVID-19 vaccine made by AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech or Johnson & Johnson increases antibody levels significantly in those who have previously received two doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac shot, a study has found.
Rick Pazdur, director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Oncology Center of Excellence and longtime defender of the agency’s accelerated approval program, acknowledged that some changes are likely needed to the process to ensure timely receipt of confirmatory trial data.
Small children getting less sick from Omicron; Genetic mutation protects against severe COVID
BNT162b2 (Pfizer and BioNTech), Breakthrough COVID-19, Children, COVID-19 Vaccines, Delta Variant (B.1.617.2; India), Genetic Mutations, JAMA, mRNA-1273/Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine (Moderna), Nature Genetics, Omicron (B.1.1.529) (South Africa), R&D, Researchers, Severe Covid-19In very young children, the Omicron variant of the coronavirus causes less severe disease than the Delta variant, according to a new study. In other research, new findings add to evidence that people with a certain version of a gene are less likely to develop severe COVID-19.
Research Roundup: Nanotherapy and Islet Transplants for Diabetes and More
Business, Clinical Trials, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), Diabetes, DNA, Drug Delivery, Immunosuppressants, Islet cells, Messenger RNA (mRNA) Vaccines, Nature Nanotechnology, Northwestern University, R&D, San Diego (UCSD), San Francisco (UCSF), Transplants, Type 1 Diabetes, Viral InfectionsResearchers have been working to develop approaches to curing Type 1 diabetes by transplanting healthy islet cells into the pancreas. Investigators at Northwestern University have developed a technique to make the immunomodulation effect of immunosuppressive drugs more effective.
When used in children, rapid antigen tests for detecting the coronavirus do not meet accuracy criteria set by the World Health Organization and U.S. and UK device regulators, according to researchers who reviewed 17 studies of the tests. Other research appears to confirm smaller, earlier studies that suggested nursing mothers are unlikely to transmit the coronavirus in breastmilk.