BEIJING (Reuters) – An outbreak of African swine fever has been confirmed in piglets being illegally transported through Funing county in China’s southwestern province of Yunnan, the farm ministry said. The case comes amid growing concern that a severe wave of disease in recent months has hit China’s hog herd, the world’s largest. Six of […]
China puts 20,000 villagers in central quarantine over virus risk
China has sent over 20,000 rural residents living in the epicentre of the country’s latest virus outbreak to state-run quarantine facilities, as Beijing on Friday reported the worst nationwide figures since March. The country had largely brought the virus under control after strict measures including mass testing and travel restrictions. But recent weeks have seen […]
China places 5 million more under lockdown to stamp out virus cluster
Chinese authorities sealed off a city of almost five million people and imposed strict travel restrictions on several others on Tuesday as they worked to quash a number of COVID-19 clusters near Beijing. The country had largely curbed the spread of the coronavirus, which first emerged in Wuhan in late 2019, with small outbreaks swiftly […]
Coronavirus: Covid-19 reinfection unlikely for at least 6 months, study finds
People who’ve had Covid-19 are highly unlikely to contract it again for at least six months after their first infection, according to a British study of healthcare workers on the frontline of fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The findings should offer some reassurance for the more than 51 million people worldwide who have been infected […]
Coronavirus pandemic: New evidence of waning antibody immunity to Covid-19 over time found
Antibodies against the novel coronavirus declined rapidly in the British population during the summer, a study found on Tuesday, suggesting protection after infection may not be long lasting and raising the prospect of waning immunity in the community. Scientists at Imperial College London have tracked antibody levels in the British population following the first wave […]
Claire Chung, Former YNAP China GM, Joins Beauty Start-up Ignae as CEO
LONDON — After taking a long break, staying at a secluded resort in Sir Lanka, attending breakfast with the governor of Tokyo and sailing on the Atlantic Ocean, Claire Chung is ready to make a comeback to the business arena. The former general manager of Yoox Net-a-porter China, who has spent more than two decades […]
Covid-19 pandemic: Single-use N95 respirators can be used again after decontamination
N95 respirators, which are widely worn by health care workers treating COVID-19 patients, and are designed to be used only once, can be decontaminated effectively and worn up to three times, according to a new study that could help reuse these scarce resources amidst the pandemic. Researchers, including those from The University of California Los […]
D614G: More infectious, less deadly coronavirus mutation may be ‘a good thing’, says disease expert
An increasingly common mutation of the novel coronavirus found in Europe, North America and parts of Asia may be more infectious but appears less deadly, according to a prominent infectious diseases doctor. Paul Tambyah, senior consultant at the National University of Singapore and president-elect of the International Society of Infectious Diseases, said evidence suggests the […]
Study reveals where first cases of COVID-19 outside China may have originated based on case travel histories
Web-based surveillance of the global spread of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) during the first 11 weeks of the outbreak (Dec 31, 2019, to March 10, 2020), reveals that three-quarters (75/99) of affected countries outside mainland China reported their first COVID-19 case in people who had recently travelled to an affected country—with almost two-thirds […]
Season of two viruses? Scientists worried that dengue outbreak may aggravate Covid-19 crisis
As dengue season sets in across large parts of India with the onset of the monsoon, scientists warn that COVID-19 and the mosquito-borne disease have overlapping symptoms and worry the country’s healthcare infrastructure won’t be able to cope with this double whammy. The impact of a ‘dengue-COVID-19’ season would entail two different diagnostic tests and […]