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<title>14 January, 2024</title>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="covid-19-sentry">Covid-19 Sentry</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Human mobility patterns to inform sampling sites for early pathogen detection and routes of spread: a network modeling and validation study</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Detecting and foreseeing pathogen dispersion is crucial in preventing widespread disease transmission. Human mobility is a critical issue in human transmission of infectious agents. Through a mobility data-driven approach, we determined municipalities in Brazil that could make up an advanced sentinel network, allowing for early detection of circulating pathogens and their associated transmission routes. Methods: We compiled a comprehensive dataset on intercity mobility spanning air, road, and waterway transport, and constructed a graph-based representation of Brazil9s mobility network. The Ford-Fulkerson algorithm, coupled with centrality measures, were employed to rank cities according to their suitability as sentinel hubs. Findings: Our results disentangle the complex transportation network of Brazil, with flights alone transporting 79.9 million (CI 58.3 to 10.1 million) passengers annually during 2017-22, seasonal peaks occurring in late spring and summer, and roadways with a maximum capacity of 78.3 million passengers weekly. We ranked the 5,570 Brazilian cities to offer flexibility in prioritizing locations for early pathogen detection through clinical sample collection. Our findings are validated by epidemiological and genetic data independently collected during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic period. The mobility-based spread model defined here was able to recapitulate the actual dissemination patterns observed during the pandemic. By providing essential clues for effective pathogen surveillance, our results have the potential to inform public health policy and improve future pandemic response efforts. Interpretation: Our results unlock the potential of designing country-wide clinical sample collection networks using data-informed approaches, an innovative practice that can improve current surveillance systems.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.12.24301207v1" target="_blank">Human mobility patterns to inform sampling sites for early pathogen detection and routes of spread: a network modeling and validation study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Critically-ill COVID-19 susceptibility gene CCR3 shows natural selection in sub-Saharan Africans</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The prevalence of COVID-19 critical illness varies across ethnicities, with recent studies suggesting that genetic factors may contribute to this variation. The aim of this study was to investigate natural selection signals of genes associated with critically-ill COVID-19 in sub-Saharan Africans. Severe COVID-19 SNPs were obtained from the HGI website. Selection signals were assessed in 661 sub-Sahara Africans from 1000 Genomes Project using integrated haplotype score (iHS), cross-population extended haplotype homozygosity (xpEHH), and fixation index (Fst). Allele frequency trajectory analysis of ancient DNA samples were used to validate the existing of selection in sub-Sahara Africans. We also used Mendelian randomization to decipher the correlation between natural selection and critically-ill COVID-19. We identified that CCR3 exhibited significant natural selection signals in sub-Sahara Africans. Within the CCR3 gene, rs17217831-A showed both high iHS (Standardized iHS = 2) and high XP-EHH (Standardized XP-EHH = 2.5) in sub-Sahara Africans. Allele frequency trajectory of CCR3 rs17217831-A revealed natural selection occurring in the recent 1,500 years. Natural selection resulted in increased CCR3 expression in sub-Sahara Africans. Mendelian Randomization provided evidence that increased blood CCR3 expression and eosinophil counts lowered the risk of critically ill COVID-19. Our findings suggest that sub-Saharan Africans are less vulnerable to critically ill COVID-19 due to natural selection and identify CCR3 as a potential novel therapeutic target.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.12.24301202v1" target="_blank">Critically-ill COVID-19 susceptibility gene CCR3 shows natural selection in sub-Saharan Africans</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Risk factors for experiencing Long-COVID symptoms: Insights from two nationally representative surveys</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Long COVID (LC) is a complex and multisystemic condition marked by a diverse range of symptoms, yet its associated risk factors remain poorly defined. Methods: Leveraging data from the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), both representative of the United States population, this study aimed to identify demographic characteristics associated with LC. The sample was restricted to individuals aged 18 years and older who reported a positive COVID-19 test or doctor9s diagnosis. We performed a descriptive analysis comparing characteristics between participants with and without LC. Furthermore, we developed multivariate logistic regression models on demographic covariates that would have been valid at the time of the COVID-19 infection. Results: Among the 124,313 individuals in BRFSS and 10,131 in the NHIS reporting either a positive test or doctor9s diagnosis for COVID-19 (Table), 26,783 (21.5%) in BRFSS and 1,797 (17.1%) in NHIS reported LC. In the multivariate logistic regression model, we found middle age, female gender, Hispanic ethnicity, lack of a college degree, and residence in non-metropolitan areas associated with higher risk of LC. Notably, the initial severity of acute COVID-19 was strongly associated with LC risk. In contrast, significantly lower ORs were reported for Non-Hispanic Asian and Black Americans compared to Non-Hispanic White. Conclusions: In the United States, there is marked variation in the risk of LC by demographic factors and initial infection severity. Further research is needed to understand the underlying cause of these observations.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.12.24301170v1" target="_blank">Risk factors for experiencing Long-COVID symptoms: Insights from two nationally representative surveys</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Estimated number of lives directly saved by COVID-19 vaccination programs in the WHO European Region, December 2020 to March 2023</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: By March 2023, 54 countries, areas and territories (thereafter “CAT”) reported over 2.2 million coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) deaths to the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe (1). Here, we estimate how many lives were directly saved by vaccinating adults in the Region, from December 2020 through March 2023. Methods: We estimated the number of lives directly saved by age-group, vaccine dose and circulating Variant of Concern (VOC) period, both regionally and nationally, using weekly data on COVID-19 mortality and COVID-19 vaccine uptake reported by 34 CAT, and vaccine effectiveness (VE) data from the literature. We calculated the percentage reduction in the number of expected and reported deaths. Findings: We found that vaccines reduced deaths by 57% overall (CAT range: 15% to 75%), representing ~1.4 million lives saved in those aged ≥25 years (range: 0.7 million to 2.6 million): 96% of lives saved were aged ≥60 years and 52% were aged ≥80 years; first boosters saved 51%, and 67% were saved during the Omicron period. Interpretation: Over nearly 2.5 years, most lives saved by COVID-19 vaccination were in older adults by first booster dose and during the Omicron period, reinforcing the importance of up-to-date vaccination among these most at-risk individuals. Further modelling work should evaluate indirect effects of vaccination and public health and social measures.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.12.24301206v1" target="_blank">Estimated number of lives directly saved by COVID-19 vaccination programs in the WHO European Region, December 2020 to March 2023</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The relationship between gut and nasopharyngeal microbiome composition can predict the severity of COVID-19</strong> -
<div>
Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory illness caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that displays great variability in clinical phenotype. Many factors have been described to be correlated with its severity but no specific determinants of infection outcome have been identified yet, maybe due the complex pathogenic mechanisms. The microbiota could play a key role in the infection and in the progression and outcome of the disease. Hence, SARS-CoV-2 infection has been associated with nasopharyngeal and gut dysbiosis and higher abundance of opportunistic pathogens. Methods: To identify new prognostic markers for the disease, a multicenter prospective observational cohort study was carried out in COVID-19 patients that were divided in three cohorts according to their symptomatology: mild (n=24), moderate (n=51) and severe/critical (n=31). Faecal and nasopharyngeal samples were taken and the microbiota was analysed. Results: Microbiota composition could be associated with the severity of the symptoms and the linear discriminant analysis identified the genera Mycoplasma and Prevotella as severity biomarkers in nasopharyngeal samples, and Allistipes, Enterococcus and Escherichia in faecal samples. Moreover, M. salivarium was defined as a unique microorganism in COVID-19 patients' nasopharyngeal microbiota while P. bivia and P. timonensis were defined in faecal microbiota. A connection between faecal and nasopharyngeal microbiota in COVID-19 patients was also identified as a strong positive correlation between P. timonensis (faeces) towards P. dentalis and M. salivarium(nasopharyngeal) was found in critically ill patients. Conclusions: This ratio could be used as a novel prognostic biomarker for severe COVID-19 patients.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.11.575201v1" target="_blank">The relationship between gut and nasopharyngeal microbiome composition can predict the severity of COVID-19</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Drug Discovery in Low Data Regimes: Leveraging a Computational Pipeline for the Discovery of Novel SARS-CoV-2 Nsp14-MTase Inhibitors</strong> -
<div>
The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has led to significant global morbidity and mortality. A crucial viral protein, the non-structural protein 14 (nsp14), catalyzes the methylation of viral RNA and plays a critical role in viral genome replication and transcription. Due to the low mutation rate in the nsp region among various SARS-CoV-2 variants, nsp14 has emerged as a promising therapeutic target. However, discovering potential inhibitors remains a challenge. In this work, we introduce a computational pipeline for the rapid and efficient identification of potential nsp14 inhibitors by leveraging virtual screening and the NCI open compound collection, which contains 250,000 freely available molecules for researchers worldwide. The introduced pipeline provides a cost-effective and efficient approach for early-stage drug discovery by allowing researchers to evaluate promising molecules without incurring synthesis expenses. Our pipeline successfully identified seven promising candidates after experimentally validating only 40 compounds. Notably, we discovered NSC620333, a compound that exhibits a strong binding affinity to nsp14 with a dissociation constant of 427 {+/-} 84 nM. In addition, we gained new insights into the structure and function of this protein through molecular dynamics simulations. We identified new conformational states of the protein and determined that residues Phe367, Tyr368, and Gln354 within the binding pocket serve as stabilizing residues for novel ligand interactions. We also found that metal coordination complexes are crucial for the overall function of the binding pocket. Lastly, we present the solved crystal structure of the nsp14-MTase complexed with SS148 (PDB:8BWU), a potent inhibitor of methyltransferase activity at the nanomolar level (IC50 value of 70 {+/-} 6 nM). Our computational pipeline accurately predicted the binding pose of SS148, demonstrating its effectiveness and potential in accelerating drug discovery efforts against SARS-CoV-2 and other emerging viruses.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.10.03.560722v3" target="_blank">Drug Discovery in Low Data Regimes: Leveraging a Computational Pipeline for the Discovery of Novel SARS-CoV-2 Nsp14-MTase Inhibitors</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Intestinal microbiota programming of alveolar macrophages influences severity of respiratory viral infection</strong> -
<div>
Susceptibility to respiratory virus infections (RVIs) varies widely across individuals. Because the gut microbiome impacts immune function, we investigated the influence of intestinal microbiota composition on RVI and determined that segmented filamentous bacteria (SFB), naturally acquired or exogenously administered, protected mice against influenza virus (IAV) infection. Such protection, which also applied to respiratory syncytial virus and SARS-CoV-2, was independent of interferon and adaptive immunity but required basally resident alveolar macrophages (AM). In SFB-negative mice, AM were quickly depleted as RVI progressed. In contrast, AM from SFB-colonized mice were intrinsically altered to resist IAV-induced depletion and inflammatory signaling. Yet, AM from SFB-colonized mice were not quiescent. Rather, they directly disabled IAV via enhanced complement production and phagocytosis. Accordingly, transfer of SFB-transformed AM into SFB-free hosts recapitulated SFB-mediated protection against IAV. These findings uncover complex interactions that mechanistically link the intestinal microbiota with AM functionality and RVI severity.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.09.21.558814v2" target="_blank">Intestinal microbiota programming of alveolar macrophages influences severity of respiratory viral infection</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Neural Network-Assisted Humanization of COVID-19 Hamster scRNAseq Data Reveals Matching Severity States in Human Disease</strong> -
<div>
Translating findings from animal models to human disease is essential for dissecting disease mechanisms, developing and testing precise therapeutic strategies. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has highlighted this need, particularly for models showing disease severity-dependent immune responses. Single-cell transcriptomics (scRNAseq) is well poised to reveal similarities and differences between species at the molecular and cellular level with unprecedented resolution. However, computational methods enabling detailed matching are still scarce. Here, we provide a structured scRNAseq-based approach that we applied to scRNAseq from blood leukocytes originating from humans and hamsters affected with moderate or severe COVID-19. Integration of COVID-19 patient data with two hamster models that develop moderate (Syrian hamster, Mesocricetus auratus) or severe (Roborovski hamster, Phodopus roborovskii) disease revealed that most cellular states are shared across species. A neural network-based analysis using variational autoencoders quantified the overall transcriptomic similarity across species and severity levels, showing highest similarity between neutrophils of Roborovski hamsters and severe COVID-19 patients, while Syrian hamsters better matched patients with moderate disease, particularly in classical monocytes. We further used transcriptome-wide differential expression analysis to identify which disease stages and cell types display strongest transcriptional changes. Consistently, hamster's response to COVID-19 was most similar to humans in monocytes and neutrophils. Disease-linked pathways found in all species specifically related to interferon response or inhibition of viral replication. Analysis of candidate genes and signatures supported the results. Our structured neural network-supported workflow could be applied to other diseases, allowing better identification of suitable animal models with similar pathomechanisms across species.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.11.574849v1" target="_blank">Neural Network-Assisted Humanization of COVID-19 Hamster scRNAseq Data Reveals Matching Severity States in Human Disease</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Investigating willingness to share autonomous shuttles with strangers: The mediating effects of trust and optimism</strong> -
<div>
If autonomous vehicles are to have beneficial impacts on society, people must be willing to use them in their everyday lives. Many studies have engaged in questions regarding the technology of automation and how drivers will interact with it. However, little research has focused on the social situation arising from small shared autonomous shuttles (SASs) used in public transportation. This study aims to investigate a conceptual framework suggested by previous research and the MAVA-model. We tested a conceptual model where the background variables’ impact is mediated through trust in SASs and technology optimism. Our two dependent variables were the intention to use SASs with strangers without a steward onboard and the importance of social distance. The current article uses data collected using two identical online surveys conducted in 2020 (n=922) and 2021 (n=608). The data were collected before and after a pilot using SAS was employed in a suburban area outside Oslo. Examining the same population before and after the pilot gives us crucial insight into the development of attitudes toward automated vehicles when exposed to them in regular traffic. We find that trust in SASs and technological optimism positively predict willingness to use SAS. However, the passage of time had a negative effect on trust and tech-optimism, which in turn lowered the intentions to use. The background variables have little effect on the mediators. Contrary to previous research, we find that familiarity with the pilots predicted lower technological optimism and thus lower intentions to use. Older participants and women reported less trust in SASs and less tech-optimism compared to others. In the next step, these mediators lowered the intention to use SASs. These two groups also feel that it is more important to be able to keep social distance while riding SASs. The participants who use active transport modes think it is less important with social distance. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may also impact the results. The proposed model was less suited for predicting desire for social distance than for intentions to use. Our results suggest that future pilots should take care not to leave a negative impression by employing immature technology in neighborhoods, as this may be detrimental to the perception of SASs. Furthermore, transportation providers should take care to meet the social needs of exposed groups in the novel social context created by SASs.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/x4v3h/" target="_blank">Investigating willingness to share autonomous shuttles with strangers: The mediating effects of trust and optimism</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Proteolytic cleavage and inactivation of the TRMT1 tRNA modification enzyme by SARS-CoV-2 main protease</strong> -
<div>
Nonstructural protein 5 (Nsp5) is the main protease of SARS-CoV-2 that cleaves viral polyproteins into individual polypeptides necessary for viral replication. Here, we show that Nsp5 binds and cleaves human tRNA methyltransferase 1 (TRMT1), a host enzyme required for a prevalent post-transcriptional modification in tRNAs. Human cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 exhibit a decrease in TRMT1 protein levels and TRMT1-catalyzed tRNA modifications, consistent with TRMT1 cleavage and inactivation by Nsp5. Nsp5 cleaves TRMT1 at a specific position that matches the consensus sequence of SARS-CoV-2 polyprotein cleavage sites, and a single mutation within the sequence inhibits Nsp5-dependent proteolysis of TRMT1. The TRMT1 cleavage fragments exhibit altered RNA binding activity and are unable to rescue tRNA modification in TRMT1-deficient human cells. Compared to wildtype human cells, TRMT1- deficient human cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 exhibit reduced levels of intracellular viral RNA. These findings provide evidence that Nsp5-dependent cleavage of TRMT1 and perturbation of tRNA modification patterns contribute to the cellular pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.02.10.527147v3" target="_blank">Proteolytic cleavage and inactivation of the TRMT1 tRNA modification enzyme by SARS-CoV-2 main protease</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Science knowledge and trust in medicine affect individuals’ behavior in pandemic crises</strong> -
<div>
In pandemic crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals’ behavior has a strong impact on epidemiological processes. Compliance with prevention guidelines, such as social distancing, is critical to avoid further spreading an infectious disease or to slow down its spread. However, some individuals also or instead engage in panic behavior, such as hoarding. We investigate how education prepares individuals to respond adequately by modelling the path from seeking information about COVID-19 to eventual behavior. Based on a sample of N = 1,182 adult Americans, gathered at the pandemic’s onset (March 2020), we conclude that science knowledge helps individuals convert information into coronavirus knowledge. This knowledge then helps individuals avoid panic behavior. Individuals lacking coronavirus knowledge and science knowledge still comply with prevention guidelines when they have a general trust in medicine. Individuals lacking knowledge still follow prevention guidelines when they trust in medicine. Facilitating science knowledge and trust in science through education and targeted public health messaging are likely to be of fundamental importance for bringing crises such as the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic under control.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/tmu8f/" target="_blank">Science knowledge and trust in medicine affect individuals’ behavior in pandemic crises</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Individual Psychological Responses to the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: Different Clusters and Their Relation to Risk-Reducing Behavior</strong> -
<div>
Understanding individual difference in psychological responses toward the Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) crisis is essential to the adequate handling of the current pandemic. Based on a sample of 1,182 American adult residents (stratified for age and gender; data collection March 13 to 15, 2020), we found three distinct clusters of psychological responses (i.e., informed, panic, and ignorant). Clusters differed regarding their knowledge about the virus, SARS-CoV-2-related anxiety (i.e., worry and emotionality), and evaluation of the SARS-CoV-2 crisis’s severity. Cluster membership was strongly associated with both SARS-CoV-2 risk-reducing, reasonable behavior and unreasonable behavior. Finally, clusters could be linked to systematic differences in broader personality dimensions (i.e., Dark Triad and Big Five). Our study provides and validates a set of clusters of individual psychological responses to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the resulting behavior. It functions as a pivotal starting point for longitudinal observations on the effectiveness of public health communications in this global challenge.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/k8unc/" target="_blank">Individual Psychological Responses to the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: Different Clusters and Their Relation to Risk-Reducing Behavior</a>
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<li><strong>The pandemic, COVID-19 disease and perinatal health</strong> -
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Adverse effects of COVID-19 on perinatal health have been documented, however there is a lack of research that separates individual disease from other changing risks during the pandemic period. We linked California statewide birth and hospital discharge data for 2019-2020, and compared health indicators among 3 groups of pregnancies: [a] 2020 delivery with COVID-19, [b] 2020 delivery with no documented COVID-19, and [c] 2019 pre-pandemic delivery. We aimed to quantify the links between COVID-19 and perinatal health, separating individual COVID-19 disease (a vs b) from the pandemic period (b vs c). We examined the following health indicators: preterm birth, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, gestational diabetes mellitus and severe maternal morbidity. We applied model based standardization to estimate “average effect of treatment on the treated” risk differences (RD), and adjusted for individual and community-level confounders. Among pregnancies in 2020, those with COVID-19 disease had higher burdens of preterm birth (RD[95% confidence interval (CI)]=2.8%[2.1,3.5]), hypertension (RD[95% CI]=3.3%[2.4,4.1]), and severe maternal morbidity (RD[95% CI]=2.3%[1.9,2.7]) compared with pregnancies without COVID-19 (a vs b) adjusted for confounders. Pregnancies in 2020 without COVID-19 had a lower burden of preterm birth (RD[95% CI]=-0.4%[-0.6,-0.3]), particularly spontaneous preterm, and a higher burden of hypertension (RD[95% CI]=1.0%[0.9,1.2]) and diabetes RD[95%CI]=0.9%[0.8,1.1] compared with pregnancies in 2019 (b vs c) adjusted for confounders. Protective associations of the pandemic period for spontaneous preterm birth may be explained by socioenvironmental and behavioral modifications, while increased maternal conditions may be due to stress and other behavioral changes. To our knowledge, our study is the first to distinguish between individual COVID-19 disease and the pandemic period in connection with perinatal outcomes.
</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.11.24301106v1" target="_blank">The pandemic, COVID-19 disease and perinatal health</a>
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<li><strong>Impact of COVID-19 vaccination on symptoms and immune phenotypes in vaccine-naÏve individuals with Long COVID</strong> -
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: Long COVID contributes to the global burden of disease. Proposed root cause hypotheses include the persistence of SARS-CoV-2 viral reservoir, autoimmunity, and reactivation of latent herpesviruses. Patients have reported various changes in Long COVID symptoms after COVID-19 vaccinations, leaving uncertainty about whether vaccine-induced immune responses may alleviate or worsen disease pathology. Methods: In this prospective study, we evaluated changes in symptoms and immune responses after COVID-19 vaccination in 16 vaccine-naïve individuals with Long COVID. Surveys were administered before vaccination and then at 2, 6, and 12 weeks after receiving the first vaccine dose of the primary series. Simultaneously, SARS-CoV-2-reactive TCR enrichment, SARS-CoV-2-specific antibody responses, antibody responses to other viral and self-antigens, and circulating cytokines were quantified before vaccination and at 6 and 12 weeks after vaccination. Results: Self-report at 12 weeks post-vaccination indicated 10 out of 16 participants had improved health, 3 had no change, 1 had worse health, and 2 reported marginal changes. Significant elevation in SARS-CoV-2-specific TCRs and Spike protein-specific IgG were observed 6 and 12 weeks after vaccination. No changes in reactivities were observed against herpes viruses and self-antigens. Within this dataset, higher baseline sIL-6R was associated with symptom improvement, and the two top features associated with non-improvement were high IFN-β and CNTF, among soluble analytes. Conclusions: Our study showed that in this small sample, vaccination improved the health or resulted in no change to the health of most participants, though few experienced worsening. Vaccination was associated with increased SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein-specific IgG and T cell expansion in most individuals with Long COVID. Symptom improvement was observed in those with baseline elevated sIL-6R, while elevated interferon and neuropeptide levels were associated with a lack of improvement.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.11.24300929v1" target="_blank">Impact of COVID-19 vaccination on symptoms and immune phenotypes in vaccine-naÏve individuals with Long COVID</a>
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<li><strong>Genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 and emergence of XBB.1.16 variant in Rajasthan</strong> -
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background &amp; objectives: Genomic surveillance of positive SARS-CoV-2 samples is important to monitor the genetic changes occurring in virus, this was enhanced after the WHO designation of XBB.1.16 as a variant under monitoring in March 2023. From 5th February till 6th May 2023 all positive SARS-CoV-2 samples were monitored for genetic changes. Methods: A total of 1757 samples having Ct value &lt;25 (for E and ORF gene) from different districts of Rajasthan were processed for Next Generation sequencing (NGS). The FASTA files obtained on sequencing were used for lineage determination using Nextclade and phylogenetic tree construction. Results and discussion: Sequencing and lineage identification was done in 1624 samples. XBB.1.16 was the predominant lineage in 1413(87.0%) cases while rest was other XBB (207, 12.74%) and other lineages (4, 0.2%). Of the 1413 XBB.1.16 cases, 57.47% were males and 42.53% were females. Majority (66.53%) belonged to 19-59 year age. 84.15% of XBB.1.16 cases were infected for the first time. Hospitalization was required in only 2.2% cases and death was reported in 5 (0.35%) patients. Most of the cases were symptomatic and the commonest symptoms were fever, cough and rhinorrhoea. Co-morbidities were present in 414 (29.3%) cases. Enhanced genomic surveillance helped to rapidly identify the spread of XBB variant in Rajasthan. This in turn helped to take control measures to prevent spread of virus and estimate public health risks of the new variant relative to the previously circulating lineages. XBB variant was found to spread rapidly but produced milder disease.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.11.24300881v1" target="_blank">Genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 and emergence of XBB.1.16 variant in Rajasthan</a>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sodium Citrate in Smell Retraining for People With Post-COVID-19 Olfactory Dysfunction</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long Haul COVID-19; Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome; Anosmia; Olfaction Disorders <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Sodium Citrate; Drug: Normal Saline; Other: Olfactory Training Kit - “The Olfactory Kit, by AdvancedRx” <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill <br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Phase II, Double Blind, Randomized Trial of CX-4945 in Viral Community Acquired Pneumonia</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Community-acquired Pneumonia; SARS-CoV-2 -Associated Pneumonia; Influenza With Pneumonia <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: CX-4945 (SARS-CoV-2 domain); Drug: Placebo (SARS-CoV-2 domain); Drug: CX-4945 (Influenza virus domain); Drug: Placebo (Influenza virus domain) <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Senhwa Biosciences, Inc. <br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Edge AI-deployed DIGItal Twins for PREDICTing Disease Progression and Need for Early Intervention in Infectious and Cardiovascular Diseases Beyond COVID-19 - Investigation of Biomarkers in Dermal Interstitial Fluid</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Heart Failure <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Device: Use of the PELSA System for dISF extraction <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Charite University, Berlin, Germany <br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Phase III Clinical Study Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of WPV01 in Patients With Mild/Moderate COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Mild to Moderate COVID-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: WPV01; Drug: Placebo <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Westlake Pharmaceuticals (Hangzhou) Co., Ltd. <br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Integrated Mindfulness-based Health Qigong Intervention for COVID-19 Survivors and Caregivers</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: COVID-19 Infection <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Other: Mindfulness-based Health Qigong Intervention <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University <br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effect of Aerobic Exercises Versus Incentive Spirometer Device on Post-covid Pulmonary Fibrosis Patients</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Lung Fibrosis Interstitial; Post-COVID-19 Syndrome <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Other: Aerobic Exercises; Device: Incentive Spirometer Device; Other: Traditional Chest Physiotherapy <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: McCarious Nahad Aziz Abdelshaheed Stephens; Cairo University <br/><b>Active, not recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza A/B in Point-of-Care and Non-Laboratory Settings</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: SARS-CoV-2 Infection; Influenza A; Influenza B <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Diagnostic Test: Aptitude Medical Systems Metrix COVID/Flu Test <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Aptitude Medical Systems; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority <br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Can Doctors Reduce COVID-19 Misinformation and Increase Vaccine Uptake in Ghana? A Cluster-randomised Controlled Trial</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: COVID-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Behavioral: Motivational Interviewing, AIMS; Behavioral: Facility engagement <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: London School of Economics and Political Science; Innovations for Poverty Action; Ghana Health Services <br/><b>Not yet recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Long COVID Ultrasound Trial</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long Covid <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Device: Splenic Ultrasound <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: SecondWave Systems Inc.; University of Minnesota; MCDC (United States Department of Defense) <br/><b>Recruiting</b></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Immunogenicity After COVID-19 Vaccines in Adapted Schedules</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Coronavirus Disease 2019; COVID-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: BNT162b2 30µg; Drug: BNT162b2 20µg; Drug: BNT162b2 6µg; Drug: mRNA-1273 100µg; Drug: mRNA-1273 50µg; Drug: ChAdOx1-S [Recombinant] <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Universiteit Antwerpen <br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-pubmed">From PubMed</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Massively parallel profiling of RNA-targeting CRISPR-Cas13d</strong> - CRISPR-Cas13d cleaves RNA and is used in vivo and for diagnostics. However, a systematic understanding of its RNA binding and cleavage specificity is lacking. Here, we describe an RNA Chip-Hybridized Association-Mapping Platform (RNA-CHAMP) for measuring the binding affinity for &gt; 10,000 RNAs containing structural perturbations and other alterations relative to the CRISPR RNA (crRNA). Deep profiling of Cas13d reveals that it does not require a protospacer flanking sequence but is exquisitely…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Human conjunctiva organoids to study ocular surface homeostasis and disease</strong> - The conjunctival epithelium covering the eye contains two main cell types: mucus-producing goblet cells and water-secreting keratinocytes, which present mucins on their apical surface. Here, we describe long-term expanding organoids and air-liquid interface representing mouse and human conjunctiva. A single-cell RNA expression atlas of primary and cultured human conjunctiva reveals that keratinocytes express multiple antimicrobial peptides and identifies conjunctival tuft cells. IL-4/-13…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Inactivation mechanism of cold plasma combined with 222 nm ultraviolet for spike protein and its application in disinfecting of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a highly transmissible virus that has precipitated a worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease since 2019. Developing an effective disinfection strategy is crucial to prevent the risk of surface cross-contamination by SARS-CoV-2. This study employed pseudovirus and the receptor-binding domain (RBD) protein of SARS-CoV-2 as models to investigate the spike protein inactivation process and its underlying mechanisms using a novel…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Role of TNF<em>-α</em> in the Pathogenesis of Migraine</strong> - CONCLUSION: To this end, TNF-α plays a critical role in chronification, and inhibiting its signaling would likely be a crucial strategy for migraine therapy.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>TXM peptides inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection, syncytia formation, and lower inflammatory consequences</strong> - After three years of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the search and availability of relatively low-cost benchtop therapeutics for people not at high risk for a severe disease are still ongoing. Although vaccines and new SARS-CoV-2 variants reduce the death toll, the long COVID-19 along with neurologic symptoms can develop and persist even after a mild initial infection. Reinfections, which further increase the risk of sequelae in multiple organ systems as well as the risk of death, continue to require…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Natural flavonoid pectolinarin computationally targeted as a promising drug candidate against SARS-CoV-2</strong> - Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has become a global pandemic, necessitating the development of new medicines. In this investigation, we identified potential natural flavonoids and compared their inhibitory activity against spike glycoprotein, which is a target of SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV. The target site for the interaction of new inhibitors for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 has 82% sequence identity and the remaining 18% dissimilarities in RBD S1-subunit, S2-subunit, and 2.5% others. Molecular…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Structure-based Virtual Screening from Natural Products as Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein and ACE2-h Receptor Binding and their Biological Evaluation In vitro</strong> - CONCLUSION: Compound B-8 can be used as a scaffold to develop new and more efficient antiviral drugs.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Lipid Metabolism Modulation during SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Spotlight on Extracellular Vesicles and Therapeutic Prospects</strong> - Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have a significant impact on the pathophysiological processes associated with various diseases such as tumors, inflammation, and infection. They exhibit molecular, biochemical, and entry control characteristics similar to viral infections. Viruses, on the other hand, depend on host metabolic machineries to fulfill their biosynthetic requirements. Due to potential advantages such as biocompatibility, biodegradation, and efficient immune activation, EVs have emerged as…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong><em>FHL2</em> Inhibits SARS-CoV-2 Replication by Enhancing <em>IFN-β</em> Expression through Regulating <em>IRF-3</em></strong> - SARS-CoV-2 triggered the global COVID-19 pandemic, posing a severe threat to public health worldwide. The innate immune response in cells infected by SARS-CoV-2 is primarily orchestrated by type I interferon (IFN), with IFN-β exhibiting a notable inhibitory impact on SARS-CoV-2 replication. FHL2, acting as a docking site, facilitates the assembly of multiprotein complexes and regulates the transcription of diverse genes. However, the association between SARS-CoV-2 and FHL2 remains unclear. In…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Comparative Analysis of Cyclization Techniques in Stapled Peptides: Structural Insights into Protein-Protein Interactions in a SARS-CoV-2 Spike RBD/hACE2 Model System</strong> - Medicinal chemistry is constantly searching for new approaches to develop more effective and targeted therapeutic molecules. The design of peptidomimetics is a promising emerging strategy that is aimed at developing peptides that mimic or modulate the biological activity of proteins. Among these, stapled peptides stand out for their unique ability to stabilize highly frequent helical motifs, but they have failed to be systematically reported. Here, we exploit chemically diverse helix-inducing i,…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Computer-Aided Prediction of the Interactions of Viral Proteases with Antiviral Drugs: Antiviral Potential of Broad-Spectrum Drugs</strong> - Human society is facing the threat of various viruses. Proteases are promising targets for the treatment of viral infections. In this study, we collected and profiled 170 protease sequences from 125 viruses that infect humans. Approximately 73 of them are viral 3-chymotrypsin-like proteases (3CL^(pro)), and 11 are pepsin-like aspartic proteases (PAPs). Their sequences, structures, and substrate characteristics were carefully analyzed to identify their conserved nature for proposing a…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Viral Targeting of Importin Alpha-Mediated Nuclear Import to Block Innate Immunity</strong> - Cellular nucleocytoplasmic trafficking is mediated by the importin family of nuclear transport proteins. The well-characterized importin alpha (IMPA) and importin beta (IMPB) nuclear import pathway plays a crucial role in the innate immune response to viral infection by mediating the nuclear import of transcription factors such as IRF3, NFκB, and STAT1. The nuclear transport of these transcription factors ultimately leads to the upregulation of a wide range of antiviral genes, including IFN and…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>5’-cap RNA/SAM mimetic conjugates as bisubstrate inhibitors of viral RNA cap 2’-O-methyltransferases</strong> - Viral RNA cap 2’-O-methyltransferases are considered promising therapeutic targets for antiviral treatments, as they play a key role in the formation of viral RNA cap-1 structures to escape the host immune system. A better understanding of how they interact with their natural substrates (RNA and the methyl donor SAM) would enable the rational development of potent inhibitors. However, as few structures of 2’-O-MTases in complex with RNA have been described, little is known about substrate…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Correction to: Dihydroisocoumarins of Hydrangea macrophylla var. thunbergii inhibit binding of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to ACE2</strong> - No abstract</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Gut microbiota-derived butyrate promotes coronavirus TGEV infection through impairing RIG-I-triggered local type I interferon responses via class I HDAC inhibition</strong> - Swine enteric coronaviruses (SECoVs) infection in vivo alters the composition of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs)-producing gut microbiota, but whether microbiota-derived SCFAs impact coronavirus gastrointestinal infection is largely unknown. Here, we demonstrated that SCFAs, particularly butyrate, substantially increased alphacoronavirus TGEV infection at the late stage of infection, without affecting viral attachment or internalization. Furthermore, enhancement of TGEV by butyrate depended on…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Elusive Promise of a Real 2024 Republican Race Against Donald Trump</strong> - On the Nikki Haley scenario and the eternal optimism of a New Year. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/the-elusive-promise-of-a-real-2024-republican-race-against-donald-trump">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How the Biden Administration Defends Its Israel Policy</strong> - Isaac Chotiner interviews John Kirby, the strategic-communications coördinator for the National Security Council, about the Biden Administration’s policy on Israel. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/how-the-biden-administration-defends-its-israel-policy">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Did Nikki Haley Lose Her Nerve?</strong> - The former U.N. Ambassador has been gaining ground on Donald Trump. But, at the fifth Republican debate, she remained stuck in a race for second place. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/did-nikki-haley-lose-her-nerve">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Deadly Challenges of War Coverage in Gaza</strong> - Clarissa Ward, the first Western reporter to enter Gaza without an I.D.F. escort since October 7th, has faced accusations of pro-Israel bias even as she strives to highlight Arab suffering. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-communications/the-deadly-challenges-of-war-coverage-in-gaza">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Israel’s Inspection Process Is Obstructing Aid Delivery</strong> - Senator Chris Van Hollen describes what he witnessed on the Egypt-Gaza border. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/how-israels-inspection-process-is-obstructing-aid-delivery">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>The fight over plagiarism is the harbinger of a messy new era</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A pixelated rectangular field is split into two halves. The left half is pink and contains a white apple. The right half is white and contains an identical pink apple." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/V6khgZ2ExwWtPm6T8_DS00jrpiE=/240x0:1680x1080/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73053708/Plagiarism_option4.0.png"/>
<figcaption>
Paige Vickers/Vox; Getty Images
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
How plagiarism became the latest weapon in the culture wars.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sdKw5v">
Plagiarism accusations are being wielded like weapons right now — and the multi-headed plagiarism controversy involving Claudine Gay, Bill Ackman and his wife, and Business Insider is a particularly bizarre one.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0iuyMt">
It began with Gay, who <a href="https://www.vox.com/24025151/claudine-gay-harvard-resignation-conservative-culture-war">stepped down from her position as Harvard’s president</a>, ostensibly because critics found instances of (real) plagiarism in her work, but really because people didn’t like her congressional testimony on antisemitism at Harvard. Shortly thereafter, Business Insider published accusations of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/neri-oxman-plagiarize-wikipedia-mit-dissertation-2024-1">plagiarism against designer and former MIT professor Neri Oxman</a>. Oxman is married to Bill Ackman, a major Harvard donor who <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/12/business/bill-ackman-harvard-antisemitism.html">vocally participated</a> in a public campaign led by right-wing activists against Gay. Ackman, in response, <a href="https://twitter.com/BillAckman/status/1743792224020619450">announced</a> that he would be launching his own plagiarism investigation into every person currently serving on MIT’s faculty, administration, and board.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2M8kVm">
<em>[Related:</em><em><strong> </strong></em><a href="https://www.vox.com/24025151/claudine-gay-harvard-resignation-conservative-culture-war"><em><strong>The culture war came for Claudine Gay — and isn’t done yet</strong></em></a><em>]</em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cxgO0W">
Very few people involved in the mudslinging seem to cherish longstanding commitments to academic integrity, but they are more than willing to act as though they care about plagiarism a lot — or, alternatively, that plagiarism is no big deal — when it serves their political purposes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eeycKW">
As this latest battle of our neverending culture wars rages, it’s worth taking a step back and looking at some basic principles. Why is plagiarism a big deal? What does it mean to argue about it?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AZjfFl">
What even <em>is</em> plagiarism, anyway?
</p>
<h3 id="k1Rt3L">
Plagiarism has no straightforward and universal definition
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2GFo9A">
We’ll start with a basic working definition.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7CHkz9">
“Plagiarism is the use of someone else’s words or ideas without giving them credit,” says Susan Blum, an anthropology professor at Notre Dame and the author of <a href="https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9780801476617/my-word/#bookTabs=1"><em>My Word! Plagiarism and College Culture</em></a>. “But when you actually operationalize, that’s where this slipperiness comes in.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="akhzOZ">
Most people agree that it’s straightforwardly plagiarism to copy and paste someone else’s work whole cloth and slap your own name on it. Most people also agree that it’s plagiarism to copy someone else’s sentences or phrases, whether we’re talking about a middle school essay, a doctoral dissertation, or a newspaper article.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qJ58R4">
But what happens if those phrases are clichés? What if they’re definitions? What if they’re widely accepted facts phrased in commonly used language? What if we’re not even talking about words but about a specific chord progression or a bit of software coding? It gets tricky fast.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1R6lP7">
“We all think we are talking about the same thing when we say the word, ‘plagiarism,’ but that isn’t necessarily the case,” <a href="https://drsaraheaton.wordpress.com/2024/01/07/plagiarism-witch-hunts-cause-harm/">writes Sarah Eaton in a blog post</a>. Eaton is an education professor at the University of Calgary who studies academic ethics. “From my research, I can say with certainty that there is no singular or universally accepted definition of plagiarism.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kacjfw">
One of the biggest variations we see in how people talk about plagiarism comes from the different conventions in different disciplines within academia. Blum says that after she published <em>My Word</em> in 2009, academics in quantitative fields like engineering would tell her that it was common in their areas for people to plagiarize large chunks of their literature reviews. In these disciplines, what counted was the originality of your own research, not the originality of your summary of other people’s research.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iRmqcX">
Blum found this shocking. If a substantial part of someone’s work is expository, she says, “I would expect them — especially a professor — to follow the professional forms of citation.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sUYWoK">
The distinction Blum’s engineer is making between plagiarizing your literature review, which he says doesn’t matter, and plagiarizing your research, which he says does matter, echoes a larger distinction between how academics think about plagiarism and how many others, including journalists, think about plagiarism.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="gQiiiZ">
In journalism, it’s common for outlets to report on the same story, and they don’t always credit the outlet that broke it in the first place. “You can’t claim to own the news,” says Rod Hicks, the director of ethics and diversity at the Society of Professional Journalists.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yI60CB">
Hicks argues that, for a journalist, it’s hard to prove a plagiarism claim that doesn’t involve someone using your language verbatim. For an academic, on the other hand, plagiarism claims are most serious when they involve stealing other people’s research and ideas. For what it’s worth, that’s not what either Gay or Oxman have been accused of. Everyone agrees their ideas and research were original — it’s their words that weren’t.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M9Fal8">
Meanwhile, there’s also a widespread understanding that if you do enough nonfiction writing, you’ll end up with some sort of error of attribution somewhere in your work. Ackman, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/neri-oxman-plagiarize-wikipedia-mit-dissertation-2024-1">who called plagiarism “very serious”</a> when talking about the charges against Gay, seemed to change his mind after his wife was accused of similar plagiarism.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sQP3rL">
“It is a near certainty that authors will miss some quotation marks and fail to properly cite or provide attribution for another author on at least a modest percentage of the pages of their papers,” <a href="https://twitter.com/BillAckman/status/1743792224020619450">Ackman posted on X</a>. “The plagiarism of today can be best understood by comparison to spelling mistakes prior to the advent of spellcheck.” (In Ackman’s analogy, the new spellchecks are the <a href="https://www.vox.com/2023/4/28/23702644/artificial-intelligence-machine-learning-technology">AI</a> filters that can read for plagiarism.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JkSsR2">
“I worked as a proofreader for a long time, and I have never seen something published without errors,” says Blum. “There’s almost always some kind of error, especially in the bibliography. If you’re going to reduce all of professional writing ethics to something mechanical like this, you are bound to turn up a lot of instances of error.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cyY0FO">
The fact that a certain number of errors are unavoidable does not mean that all academics accept the level of plagiarism Gay committed as normal. In an article for the Atlantic, Ian Bogost ran his own dissertation through <a href="http://ithenticate.com">iThenticate</a>, one of the new AI plagiarism filters. The filter at first told Bogost that 74 percent of his dissertation was copied — but after Bogost went through each match in his similarity score, he found that most of them were from iThenticate comparing his dissertation to a book he wrote based on his dissertation. Once Bogost had eliminated the bogus errors, his similarity score went down to zero.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="b6dnUt">
“Does this imply that Gay’s record is unusual among professors? Not in and of itself,” <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/01/plagiarism-war-claudine-gay/677020/">Bogost wrote</a>. “But it does at least refute the case that this was nothing more than academic jaywalking, or, in its purest straw-man form, that <em>everybody does it</em>.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cGh33p">
Bogost is gesturing at one of the arguments that emerged on the left after Gay was accused of plagiarism: an argument over whether what Gay did was incredibly common and hence no big deal, or whether it was straightforward plagiarism that should be taken very seriously.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JtdQvd">
The split went all the way down to the sources from whom Gay copied. One of them, Gay’s old lab mate D. Stephen Voss, <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/why-some-academics-are-reluctant-to-call-claudine-gay-a-plagiarist">compared Gay’s infraction</a> to “driving fifty-seven miles per hour on a fifty-five-mile-per-hour highway”: technically against the rules, but nothing so egregious that it deserves outsized punishment. Meanwhile, Carol Swain, whose work was also copied by Gay, publicly called for Gay to be fired and announced she was considering her legal options. “I don’t know what to make of the scores of black and white professors who have either redefined plagiarism or stated that Gay’s misappropriation of their work is fine and dandy with them,” <a href="https://twitter.com/carolmswain/status/1735833763278434535">Swain posted on X</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FT3S57">
The debate here speaks to the murky way that the accusations against Gay emerged. Gay certainly copied from other people. But Christopher Rufo, the conservative activist who brought the accusations to light, is the same guy <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-inquiry/how-a-conservative-activist-invented-the-conflict-over-critical-race-theory">who stirred up the crusade against critical race theory</a>, and he openly did so as part of <a href="https://www.vox.com/24025151/claudine-gay-harvard-resignation-conservative-culture-war">a larger conservative battle against elite colleges</a>. Under those circumstances, for the left to join the calls for Gay to step down could feel like playing into the hands of the right. On the other hand — well, she does seem to have plagiarized, whether you consider this case to be a technicality or not. So how do you handle that?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0sehHf">
If history is our guide, the academy should respond in earnest. Blum points to the case of historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, who in 2002 was ousted from the Pulitzer board and from her position as a regular guest on <em>PBS NewsHour</em> over <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/mar/06/internationaleducationnews.humanities">a plagiarism scandal</a>. Goodwin blamed the problem on her habit of transcribing quotes out longhand from other sources and then getting confused when she assembled her notes into a book.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7av4L1">
“She was found guilty of forgetting the quotation marks around quotations,” says Blum. “Because she was not following proper citation guidelines, she was punished. I mean, she’s rehabilitated, it’s not fatal. But it was tangible.”
</p>
<h3 id="qPjlYk">
New technology has made plagiarism accusations easier to come by than ever before
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eJ6ymA">
It seems almost accidental that Rufo and his right-wing allies went with plagiarism as their weapon of choice.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JjRVm5">
“Any activist campaign has three points of leverage: reputational, financial and political,” Rufo explained in a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-we-squeezed-harvard-claudine-gay-firing-dei-antisemitism-culture-war-a6843c4c">Wall Street Journal op-ed</a>. “For some institutions, one point of leverage is enough, but, for a powerful one such as Harvard, the ‘squeeze’ must work across multiple angles.” The plagiarism accusations were just leverage that happened to be particularly easy to acquire.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oTjeS2">
Plagiarism accusations are easier to come by now because of the rise of AI plagiarism detectors, which make it easy to comb through decades’ worth of text and compare it to a vast library of existing work. Ironically, those detectors themselves were built by what might be considered plagiarism. (“As far as I can tell, [AI is] just stealing,” <a href="https://www.vox.com/culture/23916182/fran-lebowitz-interview">Fran Lebowitz told Vox in October</a>.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Dl7d79">
We know for sure that Open AI’s ChatGPT was trained on a vast corpus that apparently includes pirated texts. Multiple high-profile authors have now <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/20/john-grisham-george-rr-martin-other-prominent-authors-sue-openai.html">sued Open AI for copyright infringement</a>, including Jonathan Franzen and George R.R. Martin. In December, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/27/business/media/new-york-times-open-ai-microsoft-lawsuit.html">the New York Times sued OpenAI as well</a>, arguing that ChatGPT is responsible for the “unlawful copying and use of The Times’s uniquely valuable works.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mgdfSQ">
This argument has persisted for a long time. In 2007, <a href="https://www.tuftsdaily.com/article/2008/03/after-the-dismissal-of-turnitin-com-lawsuit-by-district-court-web-site-will-continue-to-exist">a group of students sued the early plagiarism detector Turnitin</a>, alleging that it was plagiarizing their work. Turnitin, after all, works by archiving every student paper that’s uploaded to run through its filter, and then it charges schools for the use of that archive. The students argued — unsuccessfully — that Turnitin was making money from their intellectual property without their permission.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rvDCZa">
Blum says that every era has its own panic about how innovations are endangering intellectual property. “When I first started looking into plagiarism, there was a lot of stuff about how students didn’t have to go to the library anymore and copy things by hand. You could just scrape it off the internet and insert it,” she recalls. “There was a lot of discomfort about this new technology.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1FGf17">
Word processing and <a href="https://www.vox.com/google">Google</a>, a lethal combination, made language infinitely copyable and plagiarism incredibly easy to do, both intentionally and accidentally. Academia had to alter the way it thought about plagiarism to keep pace with the new tools. It developed new tools of its own, like Turnitin, and <a href="https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2017/05/30/5-ways-the-internet-changed-plagiarism/">started spending more time on classroom conversations</a> about how serious plagiarism is.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nSokX1">
Today, one of the great innovations of <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/how-chatgpt-works-large-language-model/">AI’s large language models like ChatGPT</a> is that they have made text into something not just copyable but synthesizable. The technology of the moment is manipulating texts in ways with which our current ethical frameworks are not built to reckon.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iKqR8K">
We don’t have precedents to tell us how to think about whether or not it is plagiarism to take every book ever written and use it to teach a neural network how to talk. We don’t have blueprints for dealing with what it means for someone to be able to go through your entire life’s work with a fine-tooth comb in a matter of days.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oSYsKm">
Our systems aren’t set up to deal with these problems, but these problems are also not going to go away. Our new tools are available to both good-faith and bad-faith actors, and that means we are at the beginning of a very messy new era indeed.
</p></li>
<li><strong>In Taiwan’s high-stakes elections, China is the loser</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Taiwan Presidential Election 2024" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Yl6mQkNlC65ZOJ5xeQ4nYm40oVI=/499x0:4488x2992/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73052705/1922566838.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Vernon Yuen/NurPhoto via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Beijing has branded incoming president Lai Ching-te a “troublemaker” for his pro-sovereignty stance.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Y3P2Rf">
Taiwan’s election results are in, and voters chose Lai Chiang-te in a three-way race as the candidate who best represented what they’re looking for in a leader — that is, the status quo.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l2LqH3">
Lai, the current vice president and head of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, declared victory Saturday with<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2024-taiwan-election/"> just over 40 percent of the vote</a>, crowding out his opponents, Hou Yu-ih of the Kuomintang (KMT) and Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan People’s Party. It’s the first time in Taiwan’s <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/polls-open-taiwans-critical-elections-watched-closely-by-china-2024-01-13/">democratic history that a political party has won a third term in office</a> — and Lai has repeatedly told voters he’ll preserve outgoing President Tsai Ing-wen’s <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy">policies</a> to preserve Taiwan’s democratic system and its sovereignty. While we don’t know what <a href="https://www.vox.com/china">China</a>’s response will be or when it will happen, there is expectation among some China experts that it will be “assertive”.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LkFYV0">
Though Taiwanese voters have a variety of concerns — including economic and social priorities — the primary question in a presidential election is how each candidate will manage relations with China, which claims Taiwan as its own. Though Lai is not specifically calling for independence from the mainland, both his predecessor’s stance and some of his past comments in favor of independence have gotten him branded a “troublemaker” by Beijing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mBZyuA">
The Chinese Communist Party has harbored the hope that Taiwan, where the nationalist <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Nationalist-Party-Chinese-political-party">Kuomintang fled following the Chinese civil war in 1949 and 1950</a>, would unify with the mainland and accept CCP rule. Lai’s win means that goal — at least by peaceful means, under the island’s own volition — is still quite far away, if it is to happen at all.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hsHb5Y">
During Tsai’s eight-year tenure, Taiwan asserted its independence from the mainland by strengthening its relationship with the US, to the ire of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Though the US was already Taiwan’s main security partner, more symbolic acts like former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island in 2022 and<a href="https://www.vox.com/world-politics/2023/4/1/23665178/taiwan-president-americas-china-tsai-ing-wen"> Tsai’s trip to the United States last April </a>infuriated Beijing, which <a href="https://chinapower.csis.org/analyzing-chinas-response-to-taiwan-president-tsai-ing-wen-transit/#:~:text=After%20Tsai's%20transit%20concluded%2C%20Chairman,to%20engage%20in%20targeted%20coercion.">in both instances</a> performed military drills in Taiwan’s vicinity and enacted punitive diplomatic measures.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r7guF3">
Though China has not yet responded to Lai’s win, Beijing has said that the election was illegitimate, given that it sees Taiwan as part of the mainland. China also attempted to <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/china-bombards-taiwan-with-fake-news-ahead-of-election/">spread disinformation in favor of Hou</a>, the KMT candidate, which it sees as more deferential to the mainland.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qPVJYz">
Lai won with only 40 percent of the vote, and<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/polls-open-taiwans-critical-elections-watched-closely-by-china-2024-01-13/"> the DPP has lost its parliamentary majority</a>, indicating that voters feel some measure of frustration, likely regarding social issues like the <a href="https://www.vox.com/economy">economy</a> and high cost of living.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1kADQ2">
Still, “I think the main headline is continuity over change,” Andrew Scobell, a distinguished fellow with the China program at the US Institute of Peace, told Vox.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nrWUpJ">
<strong>What Lai’s win means for Taiwan’s standing in the world</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xkZGTE">
Tsai’s tenure saw the loss of some of the island’s diplomatic allies — countries that had ties with Taipei rather than Beijing. Her 2023 trip to the Americas included stops not only in Washington, but in Latin American countries like Guatemala, too, in an attempt to protect those relationships from Beijing’s economic diplomacy. That policy has drawn Costa Rica, Panama, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, and Nicaragua into <a href="https://www.fpri.org/article/2023/10/honduras-ditches-taiwan-for-china/">China’s diplomatic orbit over the past 16 years</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tZqkDX">
China has often engaged in economic coercion in some form or another, whether it’s to <a href="https://www.fpri.org/article/2023/10/honduras-ditches-taiwan-for-china/">encourage cash-strapped Latin American and Caribbean nations to recognize Beijing</a>, or to tacitly control important infrastructure in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/25/world/asia/china-sri-lanka-port.html">places like Sri Lanka</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7mFeOG">
Efforts to turn Taiwan’s remaining diplomatic allies are likely to continue under Lai — but so are Taiwan’s efforts to cultivate powerful friends.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Bd4SZT">
Taiwan under Tsai shored up its relationship with the United States, as well as creating closer ties with Japan and European nations; all three candidates emphasized the importance of the US-Taiwan relationship, with little daylight on their foreign policy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7QEITV">
Where Lai broke away with his competitors, and particularly Hou, was in his framing of Friday’s election as a choice “between democracy and autocracy,” as David Sacks, a fellow for Asia studies at the Council on Foreign Relations said <a href="https://www.cfr.org/event/virtual-media-briefing-elections-taiwan">in a panel discussion Wednesday</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="et0Qvi">
All the candidates indicated that they would continue Taiwan’s defense partnership with the US and would would increase the island’s defense budget, which currently stands at $19.1 billion, or 2.6 percent of GDP, indicating, as Sacks said, broad agreement that relying on dialogue with Beijing or Xi’s “goodwill” isn’t enough to keep China from trying to take the island by force. While Lai signaled that he’ll raise that percentage, it’s not yet clear by how much.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="huqD0L">
“The Tsai administration has gotten much more serious about how Taiwan can best defend itself against China,” Scobell said. “They’re grappling with, ‘How do we stop China from landing on Taiwan?’ But if they end up getting there, thinking of how Taiwan can resist.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ChwgoP">
That’s not to say that cross-strait dialogue is out of the question under Lai, Sacks said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GiPdQB">
“It’s certainly not like he doesn’t want dialogue with Beijing, he said that the door is open and he’s willing to talk on an equal footing.” However, “I don’t think it’s unfair to say that his top priority is really strengthening ties to the United States, Japan, and other democracies. And cross-strait communication is something that’s nice to have, but not something that you must have.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="c7Aztm">
<strong>Though foreign policy is important, it’s not the only issue voters care about</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3XhqoB">
The economy and cost of living are also important to Taiwanese voters, though perhaps less so than the existential threat of war or takeover by China.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4xJLNP">
Taiwan is dealing with a serious real estate crunch, as Margaret Lewis, a law professor at Seton Hall who focuses on human rights in China and Taiwan, told Wednesday’s panel. “Younger voters [are] more concerned about things like the price of housing,” Lewis said. “It’s very expensive to buy housing. So there’s talk about sort of preferential loans to first-time homebuyers, especially under a certain age.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="iheyLy">
Lai has pledged to increase the number of affordable housing units under the plan outlined by Tsai, as well as building new housing units and encouraging further participation in a government-sponsored subsidy program for landlords, according to <a href="https://focustaiwan.tw/politics/202309290019">Focus Taiwan</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WxsNH3">
Another problem is Taiwan’s sluggish economy; wages have failed to increase with the cost of living, and China’s economic retribution — <a href="https://time.com/6336441/taiwan-presidental-election-william-lai-profile/">banning key exports</a> and <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/taiwan-allow-chinese-tourists-business-people-visit-again-2023-08-24/">banning Chinese tourism to the island</a> in an effort to both punish Taiwan and encourage residents to favor more dialogue and cooperation with the mainland — is likely to continue after Lai’s win.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dF9Tl7">
Taiwan must also diversify its economy away from its focus on semiconductors, of which it is the world’s largest manufacturer. As Vox’s <a href="https://www.vox.com/world-politics/2024/1/6/24026992/taiwan-china-president-war-xi-jinping-asia-semiconductors-chips"><strong>Joshua Keating</strong></a><strong> </strong>wrote earlier this month:
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Z6FvSo">
“The world’s reliance on these chips is so great that it has sometimes been called Taiwan’s ‘silicon shield.’ The idea is that the global economy, very much including China itself, is simply too reliant on Taiwan-made semiconductors to risk any action that might take the supply offline. But as the invasion of Ukraine has shown, countries can be willing to incur severe economic costs to accomplish what they see as major geopolitical goals — and reunification is about as fundamental as it gets for China.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DIE6wY">
Ultimately, the economy is not just a domestic issue but a foreign policy and cross-strait issue, too — which points back to relations with China as Taiwan’s main concern. And Lai’s democratic and sovereignty bonafides are certain to garner an angry response from China, on multiple fronts.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5UzPio">
Though Scobell predicts an “assertive response” to Lai’s win on Beijing’s side, he said it’s likely to happen in the coming weeks or months, not in the next few days.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HnjPUq">
“We’re going to see a reaction from China; the question is, when and how,” Scobell said. “Whereas five, 10, 15 years ago, it was fairly predictable — the kinds of things that Beijing would do. But I think it’s increasingly difficult to predict what is going to happen and when it’s likely to happen.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>The US and UK hit Houthi targets in Yemen. It probably won’t stop Red Sea attacks.</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Two men raise weapons against a blue sky: on the left, a man in a tan suit jacket holds a photo of Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi in one hand and brandishes a curved knife in the other; on the right, a man in a grey suit jacket raises an automatic rifle." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/GwHqUEwtscfeVUJbJYWPxGOD-ok=/81x0:2493x1809/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73050250/GettyImages_1920121285.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Houthi militants raise their weapons during a rally following a US and UK strike against their positions. | Mohammed Huwais/AFP/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
It’s an escalation in the region, but we’re not actually headed to outright war with Iran.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dfo87M">
The United States and the United Kingdom on Thursday night launched strikes against targets in Yemen used by Houthi rebels to antagonize the global shipping industry in the Red Sea, raising fears of further escalation of the simmering conflict in the Middle East over <a href="https://www.vox.com/israel">Israel</a>’s war in <a href="https://www.vox.com/2018/11/20/18080046/gaza-palestine-israel">Gaza</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IEuXbc">
The strikes, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/u-s-led-yemen-strikes-heighten-risk-of-broader-middle-east-conflict-aedb0006">which were followed up by an additional, smaller salvo against a radar site Saturday</a>,<strong> </strong>were the most significant action the US has taken against the Houthis — a militant group in control of much of northern Yemen, who are funded and trained by <a href="https://www.vox.com/iran">Iran</a>, and who sympathize with the <a href="https://www.vox.com/palestine">Palestinian</a> cause — thus far. Their Red Sea operations, they say, are protesting Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed more than 23,000 Palestinians so far. In other words, the US/UK strikes are both part of and responding to the ongoing regional conflict that has included operations like targeted US attacks in Iraq and Syria for months. And as Thursday’s strikes demonstrate, that ongoing conflict shows little sign of slowing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="94dUXe">
US officials said the airstrikes, as well as missiles launched from ships and at least one Tomahawk cruise missile launched from a submarine, hit 60 targets, including Houthi weapons depots, drone and missile launch sites, and radar outposts. “These targets were very specifically selected for minimizing the risk of collateral damage,” a senior Pentagon official told reporters Thursday night. “We were absolutely not targeting civilian population centers. We were going after very specific [capabilities] in very specific locations with precision munitions.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0PmMpZ">
Houthi attacks on commercial vessels have been ongoing since mid-November, and have had serious effects on global trade. They have successfully deterred shipping giants like Maersk from traveling through the Red Sea and Suez Canal, an important route for trade between Asia and Western countries. The group claims it only targets ships headed to or affiliated with Israel to protest that country’s war in Gaza, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-rebels-red-sea-attacks-israel-f820b848eb76fa3ecc8056ca332cabae">though it seems to be abandoning that principle as the attacks continue</a>. The Houthis have carried out at least 27 attacks since November 19, and though they don’t typically cause casualties or damage, many companies have deemed the Red Sea route too risky and chosen to take the longer, more expensive route around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, driving up prices for consumer goods. The US began threatening retaliatory strikes against the Houthis over the past week, after the group ignored a “final warning” from the US, and continued its attacks on ships.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VdhufT">
In addition to the UK, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands also took part in coordinating the strikes, though their roles in the operation are not yet clear. But regional partners, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/12/world-reacts-to-us-uk-attacks-on-houthi-targets-in-yemen">expressed concern about maintaining stability</a> in the region and the possibility that the situation could spiral even more out of control. Some within the US government, like Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Val Hoyle (D-OR) questioned the constitutionality of the move, and Jeremy Corbyn, former leader of the UK’s Labour Party, denounced it. The US Department of Defense has not yet released information about casualties and continues to assess the success of the strikes. The <a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthis-us-ship-attacks-bombing-red-sea-iran-cc06d9186a00d1f22bea6b9c14dda12a">Houthis claim</a> the attacks killed five of their troops and wounded six others.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OaRA9F">
The Houthis, for their part, have promised to retaliate, saying that “all US, UK interests have become ‘legitimate targets.’” And according to <a href="https://www.wilsoncenter.org/person/james-f-jeffrey">James Jeffrey</a>, chair of the Middle East Program at the Wilson Center and former special envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, while Thursday’s strikes hit some significant targets, “they certainly didn’t take down the <a href="https://elinkeu.clickdimensions.com/m/1/82424616/p1-t24012-ec7deb5fa66842b68f60714d131079a6/1/1/1">Houthis’ ability</a> to launch these attacks into the Red Sea.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="O5CqNS">
So while there might not be a risk of confrontation between the US and Iran, there are likely more — and potentially larger — tit-for-tat attacks to come.
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<h3 id="Bo7qtY">
Expect continued, simmering hostilities in the future — but not an all-out war
</h3>
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While the strikes represent an escalation on the part of the US and its allies — marking a move from rhetoric to violence — they are unlikely to lead to a full-fledged war with the Houthis, or their sponsors in Iran, and may not change the reality on the water. The Houthis could continue to antagonize ships in the Red Sea, despite the known consequences, because they have much to gain by doing so — and little to lose, <a href="https://www.csis.org/people/jon-b-alterman">Jon Alterman</a>, director of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Vox.
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“It’s hard to [eliminate targets] that the Houthis find valuable,” he said. “You can spend a lot of money trying to destroy some very cheap installations.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wAkm31">
What’s more, the US-led strike (and any future actions against the group) can be interpreted as the Houthis being elevated on the global stage, giving them a legitimacy and prestige they previously lacked. That symbolic victory is only strengthened by the perception among<a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/12/world-reacts-to-us-uk-attacks-on-houthi-targets-in-yemen"> some supporters of Palestine</a> and the <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/12/world-reacts-to-us-uk-attacks-on-houthi-targets-in-yemen">Palestinian Islamic Jihad </a>that the Houthis are the only force willing to take big risks on behalf of the Palestinian cause. “They’ve become consequential when few other groups are, and they’ve done it from a pretty low base,” Alterman said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cVBECB">
A large part of the reason Thursday’s strikes probably won’t lead to an all-out war with Iran, according to <a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/who-we-are/people/ali-vaez">Ali Vaez</a>, the Iran director at the International Crisis Group, is that “there is only so far [Iran’s] command and control extend across its network.” Whereas <a href="https://www.vox.com/world-politics/2023/10/28/23935157/hezbollah-lebanon-israel-hamas-palestine-gaza-iran-militia-group">Hezbollah in Lebanon</a> is in lock-step with the <a href="https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/irans-revolutionary-guards">Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps</a>, there’s a spectrum of control that Iran has over its proxy groups. “It has the least amount of control of the Houthis,” Vaez said. And with its actions in the Red Sea, the Houthis are establishing themselves on their own terms, “painting themselves not as Iranian proxies,” Alterman said.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="p13F0u">
Iran has no appetite for an expanded conflict, Vaez said. But looking out over the wider region over the past week, it’s clear that lower-level conflict is already occurring on several fronts — in the Red Sea, in Lebanon, and in Iraq. So rather than Israel’s war in Gaza leading to a larger war between global and regional powers, it currently seems more likely the conflict could take the shape of “open-ended hostilities that you can’t find a reason to stop,” Alterman said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WLBu1i">
<em><strong>Update, January 13, 11:27 am ET:</strong></em><em> This story has been updated to include details of further attacks by the US and UK. </em>
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>PAK vs NZ, 2nd T20I | New Zealand beats Pakistan by 21 runs, leads 5-match series 2-0</strong> - Pakistan stumbled in the second half of its innings and was bowled out for 173 in the 20th over</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Indian shooters pick up more gold in Jakarta</strong> - India has won 32 medals, making this tournament the country’s successful outing in the continental tournament</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Cascade and Scaramanga excel</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>FIH defends its decision to legalise betting in hockey</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Australian Open tennis | Novak Djokovic launches bid for Grand slam history against qualifier</strong> - Women’s second seed Aryna Sabalenka starts her own title defence in sunny Melbourne, while men’s fifth seed Andrey Rublev is also in action.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Rejuvenation of twin lakes near Katpadi will be completed in six months: Duraimurugan</strong> - Spread over 100 acres, the twin lakes are separated by a narrow channel. Each lake, on an average, can store 35 mcft of water.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Need united stand against Centre’s unfriendly policies, says K.N. Balagopal</strong> - Finance Minister welcomes Opposition’s decision to accept CM’s invitation for talks on Monday</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Maldives asks India to withdraw troops by March 15</strong> - According to the latest government figures, there are 88 Indian military personnel in the Maldives</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sri City-based firm bags international award</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Karnataka government should not delay pensions for the old and needy: H.D. Kumaraswamy</strong> - The former Chief Minister cited a shocking incident where a senior citizen crawled for five km to seek her pension</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Queen Margrethe: Will abdication cause a ripple effect?</strong> - Nordic monarchies are known to embrace modernity. Abdication was one of the few customs they resisted - until now.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Boris Akunin: Russia designates author ‘foreign agent’</strong> - The Kremlin labels the bestselling author, Boris Akunin, a foreign agent over his stance on Ukraine.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Matteo Salvini: Italian deputy PM takes stand in migrant kidnap trial</strong> - Matteo Salvini said he acted ‘in the national interest’ by banning a rescue ship from docking in Italy.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Gabriel Attal: Youngest French PM hopes to revive Macron’s government</strong> - France’s youngest PM is already popular with the public but how long will the honeymoon period last?</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Huge fire rips through warehouse in Russia</strong> - Hundreds of firefighters battled to put out the blaze at the Wildberries warehouse in St Petersburg.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Would Luddites find the gig economy familiar?</strong> - Luddites were hardly the anti-tech dullards historians have painted them to be. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1995716">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>CDC reports dips in flu, COVID-19, and RSV—though levels still very high</strong> - The dips may be due to holiday lulls and CDC is monitoring for post-holiday increase. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1995823">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Reddit must share IP addresses of piracy-discussing users, film studios say</strong> - Reddit says First Amendment rights protect it from having to disclose users’ info. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1995738">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Space Force is changing the way it thinks about spaceports</strong> - There’s not much available real estate to grow Cape Canaveral’s launch capacity. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1995665">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>COVID shots protect against COVID-related strokes, heart attacks, study finds</strong> - Data provides more evidence older people should stay up to date on COVID vaccines. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1995767">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An elementary school teacher is about to have a bottle of apple cider for his lunch, when one of his student comes running up to him.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Would you mind pouring that bottle of cider into a bowl?” asks the little girl. “I got a thorn in my finger at recess.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Confused, the teacher pours the cider into a bowl. The girl dips her hand into the cider, and screams. “Ouch! The cider is making it worse!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Why would you think dipping your hand into apple cider would make the pain go away?” asks the teacher.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Because,” says the girl, “last weekend, when my sister came home from college, I overheard her saying that whenever she gets a prick in her hand, she can’t wait to get it in cider!”
</p>
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<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/wimpykidfan37"> /u/wimpykidfan37 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/195v7op/an_elementary_school_teacher_is_about_to_have_a/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/195v7op/an_elementary_school_teacher_is_about_to_have_a/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Two Stormtroopers are standing watch, when one of them notices the other has a new iPhone. He asks why he bought an iPhone?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The other Stormtroopers replies " I couldn’t the find the droid I was looking for"
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<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/4mla4speed"> /u/4mla4speed </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1964yad/two_stormtroopers_are_standing_watch_when_one_of/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1964yad/two_stormtroopers_are_standing_watch_when_one_of/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Watch out!</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A father and his 7 yr. old son are standing in line at the bank. The little boy notices a rather large lady wearing a yellow raincoat in line of front of them. The boy tells his dad that lady is big as a truck, the father whispers to his son that it isn’t nice to say that people are big. He asks the little boy to be nice. Just after he says this, the lady’s pager goes off. The little boy screams out really loud. “Watch out - Dad - she is backing up” .
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<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/4mla4speed"> /u/4mla4speed </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1966m4g/watch_out/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1966m4g/watch_out/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A foreign exchange student was caught masturbating furiously in the host couple’s bed</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Shocked and offended, the couple say to the kid ‘we gave you a place to stay and this is what you do. And why couldn’t you do it in your own room?’
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The student replied ’ i’m sorry, i thought this is where we were supposed to do it since you kept calling it the masturbate room’
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<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/pyrolid"> /u/pyrolid </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/196e5qw/a_foreign_exchange_student_was_caught/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/196e5qw/a_foreign_exchange_student_was_caught/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Why was the mole depressed</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
His life was boring.
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<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/MildlyJovian"> /u/MildlyJovian </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/196ao7r/why_was_the_mole_depressed/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/196ao7r/why_was_the_mole_depressed/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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