Archives: 2020-08-20

Effects of COVID-19 on the nervous system: a review published on Cell

Neurological complications have emerged as a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Beside respiratory insufficiency, many hospitalized patients exhibit neurological manifestations, ranging from headache and loss of smell, to confusion and disabling strokes. COVID-19 is also anticipated to take a toll on the nervous system in the long term. In

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Two existing drugs point to a potential new target against COVID-19

New lab-based studies show that two existing drugs, including one developed by a researcher at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital, inhibit SARS-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — from infecting human cells in a dish. Both drugs, vacuolin-1 and apilimod, originally developed years ago, target a large enzyme called PIKfyve kinase. Before

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The six strains of SARS-CoV-2

The virus causing the COVID-19 pandemic, SARS-CoV-2, presents at least six strains. Despite its mutations, the virus shows little variability, and this is good news for the researchers working on a viable vaccine. These are the results of the most extensive study ever carried out on SARS-CoV-2 sequencing. Researchers at the University of Bologna drew

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Quick and affordable saliva-based COVID-19 test developed by Yale scientists receives FDA Emergency Use Authorization

A saliva-based laboratory diagnostic test developed by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health to determine whether someone is infected with the novel coronavirus has been granted an emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The method, called SalivaDirect, is being further validated as a test for asymptomatic individuals through

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Regenerative Medicine & Advanced Therapies Sector Thriving Despite COVID-19 following a new report by ARM

In the early days of COVID-19, the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM) was unsure how the pandemic and its accompanying economic downturn would affect the cell and gene therapy space. “It was a really specific time when the world and the markets were clearly reeling from the first appreciation for the seriousness of COVID-19,” Janet

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Addressing Challenges Associated with Operationalizing a CSC Protocol for the Covid-19 Pandemic

The imminent threat of a Covid-19 surge overwhelming available resources for critically ill patients prompted many state-level public health officials to rapidly develop triage protocols for scarce resources, known as Crisis Standards of Care (CSC). It is important, however, for health care organizations to develop their own local CSC plans to address unique staff and

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