Hepatitis B virus monitoring needed after liver transplantation

(HealthDay)—Health care providers should test liver recipients for hepatitis B virus (HBV) given the slight risk for unexpected donor-derived HBV infection, according to research published in the July 9 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Danae Bixler, M.D., from the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues analyzed […]

UK sees just 15 virus cases from events attended by 60,000

Only 15 people out of almost 60,000 who attended nine pilot events for mass gatherings have since tested positive for coronavirus, British health officials said Friday. The government allowed limited crowds at the events—including two FA Cup games, the World Snooker Championship and the Brit Awards—over recent weeks to assess their impact on COVID-19 transmission. […]

Sweden tops EU virus case rates

For the first time this year, Sweden’s incidence rate of coronavirus cases has topped European Union figures, the EU’s health authority said Thursday, but associated deaths are among the lowest. The country had a 14-day-notification rate of 577 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Passing one million […]

Malaysia logs record virus cases, warns situation ‘dire’

Malaysia on Wednesday reported a record 6,075 coronavirus cases in a single day, with authorities warning of a “dire” situation as hospitals rapidly fill up in the worst-hit areas. The Southeast Asian nation has been battling a growing outbreak for months and had already tightened curbs nationwide ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr […]

Regular virus tests can curb infection rates

At its peak, the current COVID-19 pandemic has all but brought social and economic life to a virtual standstill. Although lockdowns and social distancing have proven effective in bringing down infection rates and COVID-associated deaths, they did so at considerable costs and thus at far unpredictable medical and psychological long-term effects. Rather than imposing mobility […]

Can an immunosuppressive cancer drug promote SARS-CoV-2 entry into host cells?

A new study, released on the bioRxiv* preprint server, shows that rapamycin, an immunosuppressive drug used in some cancers, and its analogs, may have an undesirable effect on viral entry into the host cells. This finding could inform their use to treat symptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). There is a serious lack of effective antivirals […]

India’s capital to lock down amid explosive virus surge

New Delhi imposed a weeklong lockdown Monday night to prevent the collapse of the Indian capital’s health system, which authorities said had been pushed to its limit amid an explosive surge in coronavirus cases. In scenes familiar from surges elsewhere, ambulances catapulted from one hospital to another, trying to find an empty bed over the […]

Plant-derived compound isorhamnetin may have antiviral potential against SARS-CoV-2

The lack of new or repurposed drugs to treat patients with severe or critical coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been one of the biggest hurdles to reducing mortality rates in the ongoing pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). A new study, published online in the journal Drug Development Research, describes […]

Overwhelming evidence SARS-CoV-2 is airborne

Researchers in the United States, UK, and Canada have published a commentary challenging the suggestion that the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may not be airborne. The novel SARS-CoV-2 virus is the agent responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that continues to pose a significant threat to global public […]

US setting up $1.7B national network to track virus variants

The U.S. is setting up a $1.7 billion national network to identify and track worrisome coronavirus mutations whose spread could trigger another pandemic wave, the Biden administration announced Friday. White House officials unveiled a strategy that features three components: a major funding boost for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health departments […]