Higher levels of destructive white blood cells associated with more severe COVID-19

Researchers believe the NETs may be relevant to numerous aspects of novel coronavirus as thrombosis and inflammation are hallmarks of the severe infection. Source: University of Michigan New research finds a connection between destructive white blood cells and a more severe disease course in patients with COVID-19. “We found that patients with COVID-19 infection have higher

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COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Transfusion: European Commission support a study

EU CCP Database – Covid-19 convalescent plasma collection and transfusion in the EU The European Commission is working together with Member States, the European Blood Alliance (EBA), the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and other health professionals to support a study of convalescent plasma as a treatment for COVID-19 patients. The study complements the guidance issued

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Confirmation of the high cumulative incidence of thrombotic complications in critically ill ICU patients with COVID-19: An updated analysis

A high cumulative incidence of thrombotic complications was reported in critically ill patients with COVID-19 admitted to the intensive care units (ICUs) of three Dutch hospitals. The incidence was re-evaluated of the composite outcome of symptomatic acute pulmonary embolism (PE), deep-vein thrombosis, ischemic stroke, myocardial infarction and/or systemic arterial embolism in all COVID-19 patients admitted

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Convalescent plasma can become first-choice treatment for Covid-19

Antibodies from blood donated by people who recovered from the illness and hyper-immunoglobulins are becoming treatments of choice for COVID-19, with recombinant polyclonal antibody approaches to follow. A group of US academic researchers has sparked a nationwide effort to encourage people who have recovered from COVID-19 to donate plasma, which will be used to treat patients across

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Interactions between neutrophil extracellular traps and activated platelets enhance procoagulant activity. Possible role in Covid-19 complications

NETs played a pivotal role in the hypercoagulability of stroke patients. Strategies that prevent NET formation may offer a potential therapeutic strategy for thromboembolism interventions in Covid-19 patients. Sivelestat, anti-MMP9 antibody, and APC inhibit the cytotoxic effects of NET to protect ECs and decrease PCA, suggesting their critical role in preventing thrombotic complications in atherosclerosis

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Overview of convalescent plasma therapeutic use in Covid-19

An extensive overview of convalescent plasma therapeutic use in Covid-19 has just been published on JAMA 30 April. The analysed points are the following: need of randomised controlled trials: Without randomized controlled trials, researchers can’t be sure whether patients recovered because of an experimental therapy or in spite of it. Yet virtually everything that’s known

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New online index shows business concerns over COVID-19

Business in every sector is becoming increasingly concerned about the impact of COVID-19, according to the CoRisk-Index, a new online tool from the University of Oxford. The Index is the first economic indicator of industry-specific risk assessments related to the pandemic. Preliminary findings suggest sectors, such as manufacturing and retail, report strong exposure to supply and demand

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Researchers use virus genomic tracking to reveal the rise and fall of the COVID-19 epidemic in Guangdong Province

A new study led by researchers at Oxford and Guangdong Centre for Diseases Control and Prevention describes the epidemiology and genetic make-up of the COVID-19 outbreak in China’s most populous region, and shows how early and intensive testing and tracing helped to interrupt local transmission of the virus. The study combines genome sequencing and epidemiology

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