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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>Differences in risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Healthcare workers (HCWs) are a risk group for SARS-CoV-2 infection, but which healthcare work that conveys risk and to what extent such risk can be prevented is not clear. Starting on April 24th, 2020, all employees at work (n=15,300) at the Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden were invited and 92% consented to participate in a SARS-CoV-2 cohort study. Complete SARS-CoV-2 serology was available for n=12,928 employees and seroprevalences were analyzed by age, sex, profession, patient contact, and hospital department. Relative risks were estimated to examine the association between type of hospital department as a proxy for different working environment exposure and risk for seropositivity, adjusting for age, sex, sampling week, and profession. Wards that were primarily responsible for COVID-19 patients were at increased risk (adjusted OR 1.95 (95% CI 1.65-2.32) with the notable exception of the infectious diseases and intensive care units (adjusted OR 0.86 (95% CI 0.66-1.13)), that were not at increased risk despite being highly exposed. Several units with similar types of work varied greatly in seroprevalences. Among the professions examined, nurse assistants had the highest risk (adjusted OR 1.62 (95% CI 1.38-1.90)). Although healthcare workers, in particular nurse assistants, who attend to COVID-19 patients are a risk group for SARS-CoV-2 infection, several units caring for COVID-19 patients had no excess risk. Large variations in seroprevalences among similar units suggest that healthcare work-related risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection may be preventable.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.30.21254653v1" target="_blank">Differences in risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Smoking modulates different secretory subpopulations expressing SARS-CoV-2 entry genes in the nasal and bronchial airways</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which infects host cells with help from the Viral Entry (VE) proteins ACE2, TMPRSS2, and CTSL. Proposed risk factors for viral infection, as well as the rate of disease progression, include age, sex, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cancer, and cigarette smoking. To investigate whether the proposed risk factors increase viral infection by modulation of the VE genes, we examined gene expression profiles of 796 nasal and 1,673 bronchial samples across four lung cancer screening cohorts containing individuals without COVID-19. Smoking was the only clinical factor reproducibly associated with the expression of any VE gene across cohorts. ACE2 expression was significantly up-regulated with smoking in the bronchus but significantly down-regulated with smoking in the nose. Furthermore, expression of individual VE genes were not correlated between paired nasal and bronchial samples from the same patients. Single-cell RNA-seq of nasal brushings revealed that an ACE2 gene module was detected in a variety of nasal secretory cells with the highest expression in the C15orf48+ secretory cells, while a TMPRSS2 gene module was most highly expressed in nasal keratinizing epithelial cells. In contrast, single-cell RNA-seq of bronchial brushings revealed that ACE2 and TMPRSS2 gene modules were most enriched in MUC5AC+ bronchial goblet cells. The CTSL gene module was highly expressed in immune populations of both nasal and bronchial brushings. Deconvolution of bulk RNA-seq showed that the proportion of MUC5AC+ goblet cells was increased in current smokers in both the nose and bronchus but proportions of nasal keratinizing epithelial cells, C15orf48+ secretory cells, and immune cells were not associated with smoking status. The complex association between VE gene expression and smoking in the nasal and bronchial epithelium revealed by our results may partially explain conflicting reports on the association between smoking and SARS-CoV-2 infection.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.30.21254564v1" target="_blank">Smoking modulates different secretory subpopulations expressing SARS-CoV-2 entry genes in the nasal and bronchial airways</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>A novel variant of interest of SARS-CoV-2 with multiple spike mutations is identified from travel surveillance in Africa</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
At the end of 2020, the Network for Genomic Surveillance in South Africa (NGS-SA) detected a SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern (VOC) in South Africa (501Y.V2 or PANGO lineage B.1.351)1. 501Y.V2 is associated with increased transmissibility and resistance to neutralizing antibodies elicited by natural infection and vaccination2,3. 501Y.V2 has since spread to over 50 countries around the world and has contributed to a significant resurgence of the epidemic in southern Africa. In order to rapidly characterize the spread of this and other emerging VOCs and variants of interest (VOIs), NGS-SA partnered with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the African Society of Laboratory Medicine through the Africa Pathogen Genomics Initiative to strengthen SARS-CoV-2 genomic surveillance across the region. Here, we report the first genomic surveillance results from Angola, which has had 21 500 reported cases and around 500 deaths from COVID-19 up to March 2021 (Supplemental Fig S1). On 15 January 2021, in response to the international spread of VOCs, the government instituted compulsory rapid antigen testing of all passengers arriving at the main international airport, in addition to the existing requirement to present a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of travel. All individuals with a positive antigen test are isolated in a government facility for a minimum of 14 days and require two negative RT-PCR tests at least 48 hours apart for de-isolation, whilst all travelers with a negative test on arrival proceed to mandatory self-quarantine for 10 days followed by a repeat test. In March 2021, we received 118 nasopharyngeal swab samples collected between June 2020 and February 2021, a number of which were from incoming air travelers (Supplemental Fig S1). From these, we produced 73 high quality genomes (&gt;80% coverage), 14 of which were known VOCs/VOIs (seven 501Y.V2/B.1.351, six B.1.1.7, one B.1.525), 44 of which were C.16 (a common lineage circulating in Portugal), and twelve of which were other lineages (Supplemental Fig S2). In addition, we detected a new VOI in three incoming travelers from Tanzania who were tested together at the airport in mid-February. The three genomes from these passengers were almost identical and presented highly divergent sequences within the A lineage (Figure 1A &amp; 1B). The GISAID database contains nine other sequences reported to be sampled from cases involving travel from Tanzania, two of which are basal to the three sampled in Angola (Figure 1A, Supplemental Table S1). This new VOI, temporarily designated A.VOI.V2, has 31 amino acid substitutions (11 in spike) and three deletions (all in spike) (Figure 1C &amp; 1D). The spike mutations include three substitutions in the receptor-binding domain (R346K, T478R and E484K); five substitutions and three deletions in the N-terminal domain, some of which are within the antigenic supersite (Y144Δ, R246M, SYL247-249Δ and W258L)4; and two substitutions adjacent to the S1/S2 cleavage site (H655Y and P681H). Several of these mutations are present in other VOCs/VOIs and are evolving under positive selection.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.30.21254323v1" target="_blank">A novel variant of interest of SARS-CoV-2 with multiple spike mutations is identified from travel surveillance in Africa</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Predictive modeling of COVID-19 New Confirmed Cases in Algeria using Artificial Neural Network</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
This study investigates the potential of a simple artificial neural network for the prediction of COVID-19 New Confirmed Cases in Algeria (CNCC). Four different ANN models were built (GRNN, RBFNN, ELM, and MLP). The performance of the predictive models is evaluated based on four numerical parameters, namely root mean squared error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE), and Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Taylor diagram was also used to examine the similarities and differences between the observed and predicted values obtained from the proposed models. The results showed the potential of the multi-layer perceptron neural network (MLPNN) which exhibited a high level of accuracy in comparison to the other models.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.29.21254532v1" target="_blank">Predictive modeling of COVID-19 New Confirmed Cases in Algeria using Artificial Neural Network</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>RELATIONSHIP OF LIVER ENZYME LEVELS WITH THE CLINICAL COURSE OF COVID-19</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Introduction: Covid 19 infection, which can affect many systems in the human body, can cause organ dysfunction. High liver serum enzymes can be found in covid-19 patients, and many factors cause this stop. Patients with high levels of liver enzymes that require invasive mechanical ventilation during their follow-up were examined, and it was aimed to determine whether it was among the predictive indicators of mortality. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Patients infected with covid 19 who were hospitalized in the intensive care unit between March 30 and December 1, 2020 according to the criteria of hospitalization in the intensive care unit, clinical trials such as age, gender, length of stay, additional diseases, liver enzyme levels and whether invasive mechanical ventilation is required their characteristics were recorded and analyzed retrospectively and compared. RESULTS: Data were collected from 111 patients whose liver enzyme levels were measured from 131 patients included in the study. It was found that aspartate transaminase, alanine aminotransferase, and gamma-glutamyl transferase levels were statistically higher in the invasive mechanical ventilation group compared to the patients who did not undergo invasive mechanical ventilation. CONCLUSION: Alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and gamma-glutamyl transferase levels were statistically higher in COVID19-infected patients who were treated in intensive care and undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation. These enzymes are easily accessible and are shown among predictive values in mortality.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.29.21254559v1" target="_blank">RELATIONSHIP OF LIVER ENZYME LEVELS WITH THE CLINICAL COURSE OF COVID-19</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Factors associated with nonessential workplace attendance during the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK in early 2021: evidence from cross-sectional surveys</strong> -
<div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background and aims: Working from home where possible is important in reducing spread of Covid-19. In early 2021, a quarter of people in England who believed they could work entirely from home reported attending their workplace. To inform interventions to reduce this, this study examined associated factors. Methods: Data from the ongoing CORSAIR survey series of nationally representative samples of people in the UK aged 16+ years in January-February 2021 were used. The study sample was 1422 respondents who reported that they could work completely from home. The outcome measure was self-reported workplace attendance at least once during the preceding week. Factors of interest were analysed in three blocks: 1) sociodemographic variables, 2) variables relating to circumstances of respondents, and 3) psychological variables. Results: 26.8% (95%CI=24.5%-29.1%) of respondents reported having attended their workplace at least once in the preceding week. Sociodemographic variables and living circumstances significantly independently predicted non-essential workplace attendance: male gender (OR=1.85,95%CI=1.33-2.58), dependent children in the household (OR=1.65,95%CI=1.17-2.32), financial hardship (OR=1.14,95%CI=1.08-1.21), socio-economic grade C2DE (OR=1.74, 95%CI=1.19-2.53), working in sectors such as health or social care (OR=4.18, 95%CI=2.56-6.81), education and childcare (OR=2.45, 95%CI=1.45-4.14) and key public service (OR=3.78, 95%CI=1.83-7.81), and having been vaccinated (OR=2.08,95%CI=1.33-3.24). Conclusions: Non-essential workplace attendance in the UK in early 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic was significantly independently associated with a range of sociodemographic variables and personal circumstances. Having been vaccinated, financial hardship, socio-economic grade C2DE, having a dependent child at home, working in certain key sectors were associated with higher likelihood of workplace attendance.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.30.21254333v1" target="_blank">Factors associated with nonessential workplace attendance during the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK in early 2021: evidence from cross-sectional surveys</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Determining the cutoff points of the 5C scale for assessment of COVID-19 vaccines psychological antecedents among the Arab population: A multinational study</strong> -
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Background: One of the newly faced challenges during the COVID-19 is vaccine hesitancy (VH). The validated 5C scale, which assesses five psychological antecedents of vaccination, could be effective in exploring COVID-19 VH. This study aimed to determine a statistically valid cutoff point for the 5C sub-scales among the Arab population. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 446 subjects from three Arab countries (Egypt, United Arab Emirates UAE, and Jordan). Information regarding sociodemographics, clinical history, COVID-19 infection and vaccination history, and 5C scale were collected online. The 5C scores were analyzed to define the cutoff points using the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and to verify the capability of the questionnaire to differentiate whether responders are hesitant or non-hesitant to accept vaccination. ROC curve analysis was conducted setting for previous vaccine administration as a response, with the predictors being the main five domains of the 5C questionnaire. The mean score of each sub-scale was compared with COVID-19 vaccine intake Results: The mean age of the studied population was 37+11, 42.9% were males, 44.8% from Egypt, 21.1% from Jordan, and 33.6% from UAE. Statistically significant differences between vaccinated and unvaccinated participants, respectively, were detetd in the median score of confidence [6.0(1.3) versus 4.7(2.0)], complacency [(2.7(2.0) versus 3.0(2.0), constraints [1.7(1.7) versus 3.7(2.3)], and collective responsibility [6.7(1.7) versus 5.7(1.7)]. The area under the curve of the five scales was 0.72, 0.60, 0.76, 0.66, 0.66 for confidence, complacency, constraints, calculation, and collective responsibility at cutoff values of 5.7, 4.7, 6.0, 6.3, and 6.2, respectively. Conclusion the Arabic validated version of the 5C scale has a good discriminatory power to predict COVID-19 vaccines antecedent.
</p>
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.27.21254461v1" target="_blank">Determining the cutoff points of the 5C scale for assessment of COVID-19 vaccines psychological antecedents among the Arab population: A multinational study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>GUIdEStaR (G-quadruplex, uORF, IRES, Epigenetics, Small RNA, Repeats), the integrated matadatabase: transcript-indexed binary information creation for chaining with neural network analysis</strong> -
<div>
GUIdEStaR integrates existing databases of important compositional and structural elements of sequences- various types of G-quadruplex, upstream open reading frame (uORF), Internal Ribosome Entry Site (IRES), epigenetic modification (histone protein and RNA), and repeats. It contains binary information (presence/absence of the elements) that are organized into 5 regions (5’UTR, 3’UTR, exon, intron, and biological region) per transcript and per gene. These elements are highly interdependent in controlling functional interaction of a gene. The database contains information of approx. 40,000 genes and 320,000 transcripts, where each transcript has 845 presence/absence information. Recently, artificial intelligence (AI) based analysis of sequencing data has been gaining popularity in the area of bioinformatics. To create a dataset that can be used as an input to AI methods, GUIdEStaR comes with example Java codes. Here, we demonstrates the database usage with three neural network classification examples- 1) small RNA example for identifying the attributes that are unique to transcription factor (TF) genes mediated by small RNAs originated from SARS-CoV-2 vs. from human, 2) cell membrane receptor study for classifying virus interacting vs. non-interacting receptors, and 3) receptors targeted by nonsense mediated mRNA decay (NMD) vs. of non-target. GUIdEStaR is freely available at www.guidestar.kr and https://sourceforge.net/projects/guidestar.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.02.25.432957v2" target="_blank">GUIdEStaR (G-quadruplex, uORF, IRES, Epigenetics, Small RNA, Repeats), the integrated matadatabase: transcript-indexed binary information creation for chaining with neural network analysis</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Preprints in motion: tracking changes between posting and journal publication</strong> -
<div>
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, preprints in the biomedical sciences are being posted and accessed at unprecedented rates, drawing widespread attention from the general public, press and policymakers for the first time. This phenomenon has sharpened longstanding questions about the reliability of information shared prior to journal peer review. Does the information shared in preprints typically withstand the scrutiny of peer review, or are conclusions likely to change in the version of record? We assessed preprints that had been posted and subsequently published in a journal between 1st January and 30th April 2020, representing the initial phase of the pandemic response. We utilised a combination of automatic and manual annotations to quantify how an article changed between the preprinted and published version. We found that the total number of figure panels and tables changed little between preprint and published articles. Moreover, the conclusions of 6% of non-COVID-19-related and 15% of COVID-19-related abstracts undergo a discrete change by the time of publication, but the majority of these changes do not reverse the main message of the paper.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.02.20.432090v2" target="_blank">Preprints in motion: tracking changes between posting and journal publication</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Sex differences in lung imaging and SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses in a COVID-19 golden Syrian hamster model</strong> -
<div>
In the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), more severe outcomes are reported in males compared with females, including hospitalizations and deaths. Animal models can provide an opportunity to mechanistically interrogate causes of sex differences in the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2. Adult male and female golden Syrian hamsters (8-10 weeks of age) were inoculated intranasally with 105 TCID50 of SARS-CoV-2/USA-WA1/2020 and euthanized at several time points during the acute (i.e., virus actively replicating) and recovery (i.e., after the infectious virus has been cleared) phases of infection. There was no mortality, but infected male hamsters experienced greater morbidity, losing a greater percentage of body mass, developing more extensive pneumonia as noted on chest computed tomography, and recovering more slowly than females. Treatment of male hamsters with estradiol did not alter pulmonary damage. Virus titers in respiratory tissues, including nasal turbinates, trachea, and lungs, and pulmonary cytokine concentrations, including IFNb and TNFa, were comparable between the sexes. However, during the recovery phase of infection, females mounted two-fold greater IgM, IgG, and IgA responses against the receptor-binding domain of the spike protein (S-RBD) in both plasma and respiratory tissues. Female hamsters also had significantly greater IgG antibodies against whole inactivated SARS-CoV-2 and mutant S-RBDs, as well as virus neutralizing antibodies in plasma. The development of an animal model to study COVID-19 sex differences will allow for a greater mechanistic understanding of the SARS-CoV-2 associated sex differences seen in the human population.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.04.02.438292v1" target="_blank">Sex differences in lung imaging and SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses in a COVID-19 golden Syrian hamster model</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Membrane lectins enhance SARS-CoV-2 infection and influence the neutralizing activity of different classes of antibodies</strong> -
<div>
Investigating the mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 cellular infection is key to better understand COVID-19 immunity and pathogenesis. Infection, which involves both cell attachment and membrane fusion, relies on the ACE2 receptor that is paradoxically found at low levels in the respiratory tract, suggesting that additional mechanisms facilitating infection may exist. Here we show that C-type lectin receptors, DC-SIGN, L-SIGN and the sialic acid-binding Ig-like lectin 1 (SIGLEC1) function as auxiliary receptors by enhancing ACE2-mediated infection and modulating the neutralizing activity of different classes of spike-specific antibodies. Antibodies to the N-terminal domain (NTD) or to the conserved proteoglycan site at the base of the Receptor Binding Domain (RBD), while poorly neutralizing infection of ACE2 over-expressing cells, effectively block lectin-facilitated infection. Conversely, antibodies to the Receptor Binding Motif (RBM), while potently neutralizing infection of ACE2 over-expressing cells, poorly neutralize infection of cells expressing DC-SIGN or L-SIGN and trigger fusogenic rearrangement of the spike promoting cell-to-cell fusion. Collectively, these findings identify a lectin-dependent pathway that enhances ACE2-dependent infection by SARS-CoV-2 and reveal distinct mechanisms of neutralization by different classes of spike-specific antibodies.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.04.03.438258v1" target="_blank">Membrane lectins enhance SARS-CoV-2 infection and influence the neutralizing activity of different classes of antibodies</a>
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<li><strong>Recovery from acute SARS-CoV-2 infection and development of anamnestic immune responses in T cell-depleted rhesus macaques</strong> -
<div>
Severe COVID-19 has been associated with T cell lymphopenia 1,2, but no causal effect of T cell deficiency on disease severity has been established. To investigate the specific role of T cells in recovery from SARS-CoV-2 infections we studied rhesus macaques that were depleted of either CD4+, CD8+ or both T cell subsets prior to infection. Peak virus loads were similar in all groups, but the resolution of virus in the T cell-depleted animals was slightly delayed compared to controls. The T cell-depleted groups developed virus-neutralizing antibody responses and also class-switched to IgG. When re-infected six weeks later, the T cell-depleted animals showed anamnestic immune responses characterized by rapid induction of high-titer virus-neutralizing antibodies, faster control of virus loads and reduced clinical signs. These results indicate that while T cells play a role in the recovery of rhesus macaques from acute SARS-CoV-2 infections, their depletion does not induce severe disease, and T cells do not account for the natural resistance of rhesus macaques to severe COVID-19. Neither primed CD4+ or CD8+ T cells appeared critical for immunoglobulin class switching, the development of immunological memory or protection from a second infection.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.04.02.438262v1" target="_blank">Recovery from acute SARS-CoV-2 infection and development of anamnestic immune responses in T cell-depleted rhesus macaques</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Structure and dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 proofreading exoribonuclease ExoN</strong> -
<div>
High-fidelity replication of the large RNA genome of coronaviruses (CoVs) is mediated by a 3’-to-5’ exoribonuclease (ExoN) in non-structural protein 14 (nsp14), which excises nucleotides including antiviral drugs mis-incorporated by the low-fidelity viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) and has also been implicated in viral RNA recombination and resistance to innate immunity. Here we determined a 1.6-[A] resolution crystal structure of SARS-CoV-2 ExoN in complex with its essential co-factor, nsp10. The structure shows a highly basic and concave surface flanking the active site, comprising several Lys residues of nsp14 and the N-terminal amino group of nsp10. Modeling suggests that this basic patch binds to the template strand of double-stranded RNA substrates to position the 3’ end of the nascent strand in the ExoN active site, which is corroborated by mutational and computational analyses. Molecular dynamics simulations further show remarkable flexibility of multi-domain nsp14 and suggest that nsp10 stabilizes ExoN for substrate RNA-binding to support its exoribonuclease activity. Our high-resolution structure of the SARS-CoV-2 ExoN-nsp10 complex serves as a platform for future development of anti-coronaviral drugs or strategies to attenuate the viral virulence.
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.04.02.438274v1" target="_blank">Structure and dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 proofreading exoribonuclease ExoN</a>
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<li><strong>Some Mathematics for the Method of Pooled PCR Test</strong> -
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At the time of the worldwide COVID-19 disaster, the author learned about the pooled (RT-) PCR test from the news. From the common sense of individual tests, the idea of mixing multiple samples seems taboo, however in fact many samples can be tested with a smaller number of tests by the method. As a retired researcher of mathematical engineering, the author was deeply interested in the idea and absorbed in the mathematical formulation and intensive analysis of the method. Later, he found that the original basic equation was already proposed in the old (1943) treatise [1] and so many related research works have been done and available as materials on the web [2], although many of those seem to be based on qualitative or intuitive analysis. In that sense, some of the analysis here seems to be already known in the field, but some results might be novel, such as boundary conditions, derivation of limit values, estimation of infection rate and adaptive optimization scheme of pool test, strict extension to multi-stage pool test, and explicit derivation of asymptotic approximate solutions of optimal pooling number and achieved efficiency measure, etc. In any case, he decided to put it together here as a material rather than a formal treatise, hoping that the results here would be useful for deeper mathematical insights into and better understanding of the pool inspection, and also in its actual practice.
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🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.26.21254430v2" target="_blank">Some Mathematics for the Method of Pooled PCR Test</a>
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<li><strong>Rapid, point-of-care molecular diagnostics with Cas13</strong> -
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Rapid nucleic acid testing is a critical component of a robust infrastructure for increased disease surveillance. Here, we report a microfluidic platform for point-of-care, CRISPR-based molecular diagnostics. We first developed a nucleic acid test which pairs distinct mechanisms of DNA and RNA amplification optimized for high sensitivity and rapid kinetics, linked to Cas13 detection for specificity. We combined this workflow with an extraction-free sample lysis protocol using shelf-stable reagents that are widely available at low cost, and a multiplexed human gene control for calling negative test results. As a proof-of-concept, we demonstrate sensitivity down to 40 copies/μL of SARS-CoV-2 in unextracted saliva within 35 minutes, and validated the test on total RNA extracted from patient nasal swabs with a range of qPCR Ct values from 13-35. To enable sample-to-answer testing, we integrated this diagnostic reaction with a single-use, gravity-driven microfluidic cartridge followed by real-time fluorescent detection in a compact companion instrument. We envision this approach for Diagnostics with Coronavirus Enzymatic Reporting (DISCoVER) will incentivize frequent, fast, and easy testing.
</p>
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<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.12.14.20247874v2" target="_blank">Rapid, point-of-care molecular diagnostics with Cas13</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>Pilot Trial of XFBD, a TCM, in Persons With COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Xuanfei Baidu Granules;   Other: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Darcy Spicer<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>SERUR: COVID-19 Serological Survey of Staff From the University Reims-Champagne Ardennes</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Diagnostic Test: Anti-SARS-CoV2 Serology<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne<br/><b>Completed</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>Study of DS-5670a (COVID-19 Vaccine) in Japanese Healthy Adults and Elderly Subjects</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: DS-5670a;   Biological: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Daiichi Sankyo 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>ANTIcoagulation in Severe COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Tinzaparin, Low dose prophylactic anticoagulation;   Drug: Tinzaparin, High dose prophylactic anticoagulation;   Drug: Tinzaparin,Therapeutic anticoagulation<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris<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>Neuromodulation in COVID-19 Patients</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Device: Transcranial direct-current stimulation;   Device: Sham Transcranial direct-current stimulation<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   D’Or Institute for Research and Education;   Rio de Janeiro State Research Supporting Foundation (FAPERJ);   Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico;   Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior.<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>A Study to Evaluate MVC-COV1901 Vaccine Against COVID-19 in Elderly Adults</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19 Vaccine<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: MVC-COV1901 (High-Dose);   Biological: MVC-COV1901(Mid-Dose)<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp.<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>Immunogenicity and Safety of Recombinant COVID-19 Vaccine (CHO Cells)</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: a middle-dose recombinant COVID-19 vaccine (CHO Cell) (18-59 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a high-dose recombinant COVID-19 vaccine (CHO Cell) (18-59 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a middle-dose recombinant COVID-19 vaccine (CHO Cell) (60-85 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a high-dose recombinant COVID-19 vaccine (CHO Cell) (60-85 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a middle-dose placebo (18-59 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a high-dose placebo (18-59 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a middle-dose placebo (60-85 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56;   Biological: a high-dose placebo (60-85 years) at the schedule of day 0, 28, 56<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Jiangsu Province Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;   Academy of Military Medical Sciences，Academy of Military Sciences，PLA ZHONGYIANKE Biotech Co, Ltd. LIAONINGMAOKANGYUAN Biotech 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>Efficacy, Immunogenicity and Safety of Inactivated ERUCOV-VAC Compared With Placebo in COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Biological: ERUCOV-VAC 3 µg/0.5 ml Vaccine;   Biological: ERUCOV-VAC 6 µg/0.5 ml Vaccine;   Other: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Health Institutes of Turkey;   Erciyes University Scientific Research Projects Coordination<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>STOP-COVID19: Superiority Trial Of Protease Inhibition in COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Brensocatib;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   University of Dundee;   NHS Tayside;   Insmed Incorporated<br/><b>Completed</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>The Effects of Web-Based Training for Covid-19 Patients on Symptom Management, Medication Compliance and Quality of Life</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Intervention</b>:   Other: intervention group<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Eskisehir Osmangazi University<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>Post COVID-19 Syndrome and the Gut-lung Axis</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Dietary Supplement: Omni-Biotic Pro Vi 5;   Dietary Supplement: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Medical University of Graz;   CBmed Ges.m.b.H.<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>A Dose Finding, Efficacy and Safety Study of Ensovibep (MP0420) in Ambulatory Adult Patients With Symptomatic COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   COVID-19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: ensovibep;   Drug: Placebo<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Molecular Partners AG;   Novartis Pharmaceuticals;   Iqvia Pty Ltd;   Datamap;   SYNLAB Analytics &amp; Services Switzerland AG;   Q2 Solutions<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>The Impact of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation as an Immunomodulation on the Risk Reduction of COVID-19 Disease Progression With Escalating Cytokine Storm and Inflammatory Parameters</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Drug: Human fecal microbiota, MBiotix HBI;   Drug: Placebo;   Drug: SOC<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Medical University of Warsaw;   Human Biome Institute, Poland<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>Vitamin D, Omega-3, and Combination Vitamins B, C and Zinc Supplementation for the Treatment and Prevention of COVID-19</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Dietary Supplement: Vitamin D;   Dietary Supplement: Omega DHA / EPA;   Dietary Supplement: Vitamin C, Vitamin B complex and Zinc Acetate<br/><b>Sponsors</b>:   Hospital de la Soledad;   Microclinic International<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>Respiratory Tele Monitoring COVID 19 (TMR COVID-19)</strong> - <b>Condition</b>:   Covid19<br/><b>Interventions</b>:   Device: Radius PPG Tetherless Pulse Oximetry (Masimo);   Device: usual monitoring<br/><b>Sponsor</b>:   Assistance Publique Hopitaux De Marseille<br/><b>Recruiting</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>Mesenchymal Stem Cells for the Compassionate Treatment of Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Due to COVID 19</strong> - Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) have received particular attention due to their ability to inhibit inflammation caused by cytokine storm induced by COVID-19. In this way some patients have been treated successfully. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and describe the clinical changes after IV administration of allogeneic human umbilical cord MSC (ahUCMSC), in patients with bilateral pneumonia caused by COVID-19, complicated with severe ARDS, as compassionate treatment. This was 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>Repurposing Anti-Malaria Phytomedicine Artemisinin as a COVID-19 Drug</strong> - Artemisinin is an anti-inflammatory phytomedicine with broad-spectrum antiviral activity. Artemisinin and its antimalarial properties were discovered by the Chinese scientist Tu Youyu, who became one of the laureates of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for this breakthrough in tropical medicine. It is a commonly used anti-malaria drug. Artemisinin has recently been repurposed as a potential COVID-19 drug. Its documented anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity has been attributed to its ability to…</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>A Scoping Insight on Potential Prophylactics, Vaccines and Therapeutic Weaponry for the Ongoing Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic- A Comprehensive Review</strong> - The emergence of highly virulent CoVs (SARS-CoV-2), the etiologic agent of novel ongoing “COVID-19” pandemics has been marked as an alarming case of pneumonia posing a large global healthcare crisis of unprecedented magnitude. Currently, the COVID-19 outbreak has fueled an international demand in the biomedical field for the mitigation of the fast-spreading illness, all through the urgent deployment of safe, effective, and rational therapeutic strategies along with epidemiological control….</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>Targeted design of drug binding sites in the main protease of SARS-CoV-2 reveals potential signatures of adaptation</strong> - Several existing drugs are currently being tested worldwide to treat COVID-19 patients. Recent data indicate that SARS-CoV-2 is rapidly evolving into more transmissible variants. It is therefore highly possible that SARS-CoV-2 can accumulate adaptive mutations modulating drug susceptibility and hampering viral antigenicity. Thus, it is vital to predict potential non-synonymous mutation sites and predict the evolution of protein structural modifications leading to drug tolerance. As two…</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>ALG-097111, a potent and selective SARS-CoV-2 3-chymotrypsin-like cysteine protease inhibitor exhibits in vivo efficacy in a Syrian Hamster model</strong> - There is an urgent need for antivirals targeting the SARS-CoV-2 virus to fight the current COVID-19 pandemic. The SARS-CoV-2 main protease (3CLpro) represents a promising target for antiviral therapy. The lack of selectivity for some of the reported 3CLpro inhibitors, specifically versus cathepsin L, raises potential safety and efficacy concerns. ALG-097111 potently inhibited SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro (IC(50) = 7 nM) without affecting the activity of human cathepsin L (IC(50) &gt; 10 μM). When ALG-097111…</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>Porcine deltacoronavirus nsp10 antagonizes interferon-β production independently of its zinc finger domains</strong> - Porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV) is a novel swine enteropathogenic coronavirus that causes serious vomiting and diarrhea in piglets. Previous work demonstrated that PDCoV infection inhibits type I interferon (IFN) production. Here, we found that ectopic expression of PDCoV nsp10 significantly inhibited Sendai virus (SeV)-induced IFN-β production by impairing the phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of two transcription factors, IRF3 and NF-κB p65 subunit. Interestingly, experiments with…</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>Antiviral effect of fufang yinhua jiedu (FFYH) granules against influenza A virus through regulating the inflammatory responses by TLR7/MyD88 signaling pathway</strong> - CONCLUSION: FFYH not only showed a broad-spectrum of anti-influenza virus activity in vitro, but also exhibited a significant protective effect against lethal influenza virus infection in vivo. Furthermore, our results indicated that the in vivo antiviral effect of FFYH against influenza virus may be attributed to suppressing the expression of inflammatory cytokines via regulating the TLR7/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway. These findings provide evidence for the clinical treatment of influenza 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>BET inhibition blocks inflammation-induced cardiac dysfunction and SARS-CoV-2 infection</strong> - Cardiac injury and dysfunction occur in COVID-19 patients and increase the risk of mortality. Causes are ill defined but could be through direct cardiac infection and/or inflammation-induced dysfunction. To identify mechanisms and cardio-protective drugs, we use a state-of-the-art pipeline combining human cardiac organoids with phosphoproteomics and single nuclei RNA sequencing. We identify an inflammatory “cytokine-storm”, a cocktail of interferon gamma, interleukin 1β, and poly(I:C), induced…</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>New Approaches to the Prevention and Treatment of Viral Diseases</strong> - The review discusses a new approach to the prevention and treatment of viral infections based on the use of pine needles polyprenyl phosphate (PPP) and associated with the infringement of prenylation process-the attachment of farnesol or geranyl geraniol to the viral protein. Currently, prenylation has been detected in type 1 adenovirus, hepatitis C virus, several herpes viruses, influenza virus, HIV. However, this list is far from complete, given that prenylated proteins play an extremely…</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>Supplementary Therapeutic Possibilities to Alleviate Myocardial Damage Due to Microvascular Dysfunction in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)</strong> - Myocardial damage with a consequent rise in cardio-specific troponin level is a frequent phenomenon in severe cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Its causes are capillary endothelial cell dysfunction, associated carditis, low oxygenization, and increased sympathetic tone, which all worsen myocardial stiffness and microvascular dysfunction (MD). They lead to severe myocardial dysfunction, arrhythmia, acute congestive heart failure, and a significant rise in death cases. During COVID-19,…</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 induces double-stranded RNA-mediated innate immune responses in respiratory epithelial-derived cells and cardiomyocytes</strong> - Coronaviruses are adept at evading host antiviral pathways induced by viral double-stranded RNA, including interferon (IFN) signaling, oligoadenylate synthetase-ribonuclease L (OAS-RNase L), and protein kinase R (PKR). While dysregulated or inadequate IFN responses have been associated with severe coronavirus infection, the extent to which the recently emerged SARS-CoV-2 activates or antagonizes these pathways is relatively unknown. We found that SARS-CoV-2 infects patient-derived nasal…</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>Synthesis and Characterization of a Minophosphonate Containing Chitosan Polymer Derivatives: Investigations of Cytotoxic Activity and in Silico Study of SARS-CoV-19</strong> - Chitosan is broadly used as a biological material since of its excellent biological activities. This work describes investigations of chitosan interaction with SARS-CoV-2, which is occupied by human respiratory epithelial cells through communication with the human angiotension-converting enzyme II (ACE2). The β-chitosan derivatives are synthesized and characterized by FT-IR, nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H and ^(13)C NMR), mass spectrometry, X-ray diffraction, TGA, DSC, and elemental analysis….</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>Growth Arrest-Specific Factor 6 (GAS6) Is Increased in COVID-19 Patients and Predicts Clinical Outcome</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: Plasma GAS6 and AXL levels reflect COVID-19 severity and could be early markers of disease prognosis, supporting a relevant role of the GAS6/AXL system in the immune response in COVID-19.</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>In Vitro Assessment of the Antiviral Activity of Ketotifen, Indomethacin and Naproxen, Alone and in Combination, against SARS-CoV-2</strong> - The 2019 coronavirus infectious disease (COVID-19) is caused by infection with the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Currently, the treatment options for COVID-19 are limited. The purpose of the experiments presented here was to investigate the effectiveness of ketotifen, naproxen and indomethacin, alone or in combination, in reducing SARS-CoV-2 replication. In addition, the cytotoxicity of the drugs was evaluated. The findings showed that the combination of…</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>Antiviral Cyanometabolites-A Review</strong> - Global processes, such as climate change, frequent and distant travelling and population growth, increase the risk of viral infection spread. Unfortunately, the number of effective and accessible medicines for the prevention and treatment of these infections is limited. Therefore, in recent years, efforts have been intensified to develop new antiviral medicines or vaccines. In this review article, the structure and activity of the most promising antiviral cyanobacterial products are presented….</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>5-(4-TERT-BUTOXY PHENYL)-3-(4N-OCTYLOXYPHENYL)-4,5-DIHYDROISOXAZOLE MOLECULE (C-I): A PROMISING DRUG FOR SARS-COV-2 (TARGET I) AND BLOOD CANCER (TARGET II)</strong> - The present invention relates to a method ofmolecular docking of crystalline compound (C-I) with SARS-COV 2 proteins and its repurposing with proteins of blood cancer, comprising the steps of ; employing an algorithmto carry molecular docking calculations of the crystalized compound (C-I); studying the compound computationally to understand the effect of binding groups with the atoms of the amino acids on at least four target proteins of SARS-COV 2; downloading the structure of the proteins; removing water molecules, co enzymes and inhibitors attached to the enzymes; drawing the structure using Chem Sketch software; converting the mol file into a PDB file; using crystalized compound (C-I) for comparative and drug repurposing with two other mutated proteins; docking compound into the groove of the proteins; saving format of docked molecules retrieved; and filtering and docking the best docked results. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN320884617">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>USING CLINICAL ONTOLOGIES TO BUILD KNOWLEDGE BASED CLINICAL DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR NOVEL CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) WITH THE ADOPTION OF TELECONFERENCING FOR THE PRIMARY HEALTH CENTRES/SATELLITE CLINICS OF ROYAL OMAN POLICE IN SULTANATE OF OMAN</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU320796026">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Peptides and their use in diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU319943278">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>A PROCESS FOR SUCCESSFUL MANAGEMENT OF COVID 19 POSITIVE PATIENTS</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU319942709">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>IN SILICO SCREENING OF ANTIMYCOBACTERIAL NATURAL COMPOUNDS WITH THE POTENTIAL TO DIRECTLY INHIBIT SARS COV 2</strong> - IN SILICO SCREENING OF ANTIMYCOBACTERIAL NATURAL COMPOUNDS WITH THE POTENTIAL TO DIRECTLY INHIBIT SARS COV 2Insilico screening of antimycobacterial natural compounds with the potential to directly inhibit SARS COV2 relates to the composition for treating SARS-COV-2 comprising the composition is about 0.1 – 99% and other pharmaceutically acceptable excipients. The composition also treats treating SARS, Ebola, Hepatitis-B and Hepatitis–C comprising the composition is about 0.1 – 99% and other pharmaceutically acceptable excipients. - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=IN320777840">link</a></p></li>
<li><strong>Aronia-Mundspray</strong> -
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Anordnung zum Versprühen einer Substanz in die menschliche Mundhöhle und/oder in den Rachen oder zum Trinken, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die Anordnung eine Flasche mit einer Substanz aufweist, die wenigstens Aroniasaft und eine Alkoholkomponente aufweist und einen Sprühkopf besitzt.
</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=DE321222630">link</a></li>
</ul></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>一种用于检测新型冠状病毒COVID-19的引物组及试剂盒</strong> - 本发明涉及生物技术领域，特别是涉及一种用于检测冠状病毒的引物组及试剂盒，所述引物组包括以下中的一对或多对：外侧引物对：所述外侧引物对包括如SEQ ID NO:1所示的上游引物F3和如SEQ ID NO:2所示的下游引物B3；内侧引物对：所述内侧引物对包括如SEQ ID NO:3所示的上游引物FIP和如SEQ ID NO:4所示的下游引物BIP；环引物对：所述环引物对包括如SEQ ID NO:5所示的上游引物LF和如SEQ ID NO:6所示的下游引物LB。试剂盒包括所述引物组。本发明在一个管中整合了RT‑LAMP和CRISPR，能依据两次颜色变化检测病毒和各种靶标核酸。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN321132047">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>新冠病毒中和性抗体检测试剂盒</strong> - 本发明提供一种新冠病毒中和性抗体检测试剂盒。所述试剂盒基于BAS‑HTRF技术，主要包含：生物素标记的hACE2、新冠病毒棘突蛋白RBD‑Tag1、能量供体Streptavidin‑Eu cryptate、能量受体MAb Anti‑Tag1‑d2和新冠病毒中和性抗体。本发明将BAS和HTRF两种技术相结合，用于筛选新型冠状病毒中和性抗体，3小时内即可实现筛选，且操作简单，无需经过多次洗板过程。BAS和HTRF联用大大提升了反应灵敏度，且两种体系都能最大限度地减少非特异的干扰，适用于血清样品的检测。该方法可实现高通量检测，对解决大批量样品的新冠病毒中和性抗体的检测具有重要意义。 - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=CN321131958">link</a></p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Infektionsschutzmaske</strong> -
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
</p><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">Infektionsschutzmaske (1) zum Schutz vor Übertragung von Infektionskrankheiten mit einer Außen - und einer Innenseite (2,3) sowie Haltemitteln (5) zum Befestigen der Infektionsschutzmaske (1) am Kopf eines Maskenträgers, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass an der Infektionsschutzmaske (1) mindestens eine Testoberfläche (6) zum Nachweis von Auslösern einer Infektionskrankheit derart angeordnet ist, dass diese bei korrekt angelegter Infektionsschutzmaske (1) mit der Ausatemluft des Maskenträgers unmittelbar in Kontakt gelangt.</p></li>
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<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=DE321222652">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sars-CoV-2 vaccine antigens</strong> - - <a href="https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=AU318283136">link</a></p></li>
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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>Is Biden Really the Second Coming of F.D.R. and L.B.J.?</strong> - Proposing historic legislation is not transformative; passing it is. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/is-biden-really-the-second-coming-of-fdr-and-lbj">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Bellingcat Unmasked Putin’s Assassins</strong> - The collective’s innovation has been to recognize that the digital-age panopticon actually works in two directions. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/how-bellingcat-unmasked-putins-assassins">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Biden’s New Deal and the Future of Human Capital</strong> - The President introduced the first part of his economic program, involving airports and bridges. The second, which invests in “human infrastructure,” could define his Administration. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-populism/bidens-new-deal-and-the-future-of-human-capital">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Powerful New Financial Argument for Fossil-Fuel Divestment</strong> - A report by BlackRock, the world’s largest investment house, shows that those who divested have profited not only morally but also financially. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-powerful-new-financial-argument-for-fossil-fuel-divestment">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Randi Weingarten on Opening Schools Safely</strong> - The head of the American Federation of Teachers discusses why she’s skeptical of new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/randi-weingarten-on-opening-schools-safely">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Study: Republican control of state government is bad for democracy</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A woman stands in front of the Georgia Capitol holding a bullhorn." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/oKsLTDUzNV8t0s3YEKZWx_pR6vo=/318x0:5405x3815/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69076567/1231601716.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Demonstrators protest against voter suppression bills outside the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta on March 8. | Megan Varner/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
New research quantifies the health of democracy at the state level — and Republican-governed states tend to perform much worse.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5yNl9t">
In late March, Georgia passed a restrictive new voting law that, in effect, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22352112/georgia-voting-sb-202-explained">permits the Republican state legislature</a> to put partisan operatives in charge of disqualifying ballots in Democratic-leaning precincts. The law is one of at least <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/us/politics/republicans-election-laws.html">eight proposals</a> from GOP lawmakers in state legislatures around the country for increasing partisan influence over electoral administration — and one of <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/voting-laws-roundup-march-2021">more than 360 state bills</a> that would curtail voting rights in one way or another.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wuq0xT">
New political science research suggests this wave of attempts to restrict the franchise is not an anomaly: Republican control over state government is correlated with <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/c682q88keqycp6s/grumbach_laboratories_of_democratic_backsliding.pdf?raw=1">large and measurable declines in the health of a state’s democracy</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YWegWQ">
The paper, by University of Washington professor Jake Grumbach, constructs a quantitative measure of democratic health at the state level in the US. He looked at all 50 states between 2000 and 2018 to figure out why some states got more democratic over this period and others less. The conclusions were clear: The GOP is the problem.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="j2Rh12">
“Results suggest a minimal role for all factors except Republican control of state government, which dramatically reduces states’ democratic performance during this period,” he writes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="icBtxF">
While many researchers have attempted to quantify the health of democracy in different countries around the world, Grumbach’s paper is the first effort to develop some kind of ranking system for US states. It’s still in working paper form, which means it has not been peer-reviewed. But Grumbach’s work has been <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FJakeMGrumbach%2Fstatus%2F1375480082056183821&amp;src=typed_query">widely praised</a> by other political scientists who had read a draft or seen him present it at a conference.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7TRIHl">
“This is one of those papers that makes me proud to be an empirical political scientist. It’s important, carefully done, and just plain smart,” <a href="https://twitter.com/VinArceneaux/status/1376545717242707969">writes Vin Arceneaux</a>, a professor at Temple University. “It helps us not only understand American politics but democratic backsliding in general.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xqPJtY">
And it’s yet another piece of evidence that <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/22274429/republicans-anti-democracy-13-charts">the Republican Party has become an anti-democratic political faction</a>.
</p>
<h3 id="Tlf3R6">
What the paper found
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eAI74w">
When I spoke to Grumbach on the phone about his work, he explained that his approach was inspired by <a href="https://www.v-dem.net/en/">V-Dem</a>, the political science gold standard for quantitatively measuring democracy in countries around the world.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PWi7Jy">
V-Dem breaks down democracy into individual component parts, like whether the press is free or the people can assemble peacefully, which can be measured and added together to produce an overall “democracy” score for any one country. You can’t just apply this to American states directly; no place in the United States is violently repressive in the way that China or Russia is, so the measurements might not be precise enough to clearly illustrate differences between states.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sNVlvs">
Grumbach’s State Democracy Index (SDI) is the first attempt to use a V-Dem-style approach to measure the more subtle ailments afflicting democracy in the United States. Metrics include the extent to which a state is gerrymandered at the federal level, whether it permits same-day voter registration, and whether felons are permitted to vote. He also includes criminal justice indicators, like a state’s Black incarceration rate, that are designed to measure state coercion.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tuNoY8">
To turn these metrics into an actual score, Grumbach uses a process that’s part subjective and part algorithmic.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lgkdAh">
The subjective part strives to determine whether an individual practice, like voter ID laws, is helpful or harmful to democracy. Grumbach then uses an algorithm to determine how much each of these practices should count toward a state’s overall score, either negatively or positively. This automated process ended up downplaying the criminal justice metrics, which barely factor into a state’s ultimate score. By contrast, the algorithm gave significant weight to electoral practices like gerrymandering (negative) and same-day registration (positive).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Ckw6Cl">
With a system in hand, Grumbach then proceeded to score all 50 states in every year between 2000 and 2018, from -3 (worst) to 2 (best). The following maps show the changes in state scores; the lighter the color, the worse the score is.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/uJP_NrCpSoC2fLKKRsBITSdtoyE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22408248/Screen_Shot_2021_03_30_at_12.31.20_PM.png"/> <cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/c682q88keqycp6s/grumbach_laboratories_of_democratic_backsliding.pdf?raw=1" target="_blank">Jake Grumbach</a></cite>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jXnmWS">
Just eyeballing the map, you can pick up on the clear pattern of states with Republican governments scoring lower in 2018 than they did in 2000. That year, the average GOP-controlled state was slightly more small-d democratic than its average Democratic-controlled peer. Over the next two decades, the average Republican score declined dramatically.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KxnJS3IM1u6FuFZuQLVsg0NvuuU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22408267/Screen_Shot_2021_03_30_at_12.38.55_PM.png"/> <cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/c682q88keqycp6s/grumbach_laboratories_of_democratic_backsliding.pdf?raw=1" target="_blank">Jake Grumbach</a></cite>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="o94Tvl">
There could be all sorts of reasons why this is happening. Maybe Republican states had high levels of demographic change, causing white voters to embrace voter suppression in response. Maybe Republicans won power in states in which the parties were highly polarized, which raised the stakes of political conflict and caused incumbents to try to secure their hold on power.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="e2p3L2">
To test these theories, Grumbach ran a series of regression analyses designed to isolate correlations between a state’s democracy score and variables like percentage of nonwhite voters and measures of state-level polarization. Strikingly, these things either barely mattered or didn’t matter at all.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ncH1Ya">
Only two things really did: whether a state was controlled by Republicans and whether Republicans had gained that control recently. Republican-controlled states in general were far more likely to perform worse in the State Democracy Index over time; Republican states with a recent history of close elections, like Wisconsin and North Carolina, were especially likely to decline from 2000 to 2018.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1gM3Wq">
“Among Republican controlled states … those whose recent elections have been especially competitive are the states to take steps to reduce their democratic performance,” he writes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BZnlyL">
The paper’s findings suggest a consistent national Republican policy on democracy being enacted at the state level to make it harder for voters to take away their power.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3WSByB">
“Regardless of the particular circumstances or geography, state governments controlled by same party behave similarly when they take power,” Grumbach writes. “The Republican controlled governments of states as distinct as Alabama, Wisconsin, Ohio, and North Carolina have taken similar actions with respect to democratic institutions.”
</p>
<h3 id="vLX7id">
The GOP’s anti-democratic agenda is real
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LrQz9b">
To be sure, this is just one study and not yet peer-reviewed, to boot, so it shouldn’t be taken as definitive. And skeptics can certainly poke holes in some of Grumbach’s choices.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FilSYV">
For instance, one could question just how bad the anti-democratic infractions Grumbach cites really are. Voter ID laws, to take one example, counted against many Republican states — but the evidence on whether they actually reduce voter turnout <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/2/21/18230009/voter-id-laws-fraud-turnout-study-research">is surprisingly mixed</a>. A conservative might object that Grumbach is making a mountain out of a molehill: creating a metric that makes Republican states look worse than Democratic ones when, in reality, the differences just aren’t that big.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fgYkfi">
But methodological quibbles aside, the paper does seem to capture something real. One of its most valuable contributions is the way it treats gerrymandering.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mUunAB">
Drawing lines to give your party a leg up disproportionate to its numbers is one of those practices that no one can really defend in democratic terms. Elected authoritarians abroad, like Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, have <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/10/world/europe/hungary-orban-democracy-far-right.html">abused gerrymanders</a> to ensure that they maintain a hammerlock on national power despite winning less than a majority of national votes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NjFsPN">
The SDI shows that, in the United States, gerrymandering is not a “both sides” problem. It uses 16 different measurements of gerrymandering to assess how prevalent the tactic is in different states; 10 of these measures are the most heavily weighted factors in a state’s ultimate democracy score. These metrics show that Republican legislators abuse gerrymandering in a way that Democrats simply do not.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="52IN4k">
Some of this abuse has happened quite recently. Take a look at North Carolina’s SDI score over time — it starts to plunge shortly after <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/05/north-carolina-gerrymandering/527592/">Republicans drew new maps in 2011</a>, ones that allowed them to win 77 percent of the state’s House seats in 2018 with just under 50 percent of the state vote:
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MqkphfkitV7dzKwxqUDkm_aB6pI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22408760/Screen_Shot_2021_03_30_at_3.29.04_PM.png"/> <cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/c682q88keqycp6s/grumbach_laboratories_of_democratic_backsliding.pdf?raw=1" target="_blank">Jake Grumbach</a></cite>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jC37P4">
(It’s worth noting that one of the worst abuses by North Carolina’s Republican legislature — stripping Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper of key powers after his 2016 victory — doesn’t factor into the state’s score, as Grumbach hasn’t decided on a satisfactory way to quantify it. A similar maneuver <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/21/us/wisconsin-lame-duck-laws-upheld.html">performed by the Wisconsin state legislature</a> after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’s victory in 2018 also doesn’t count against the state’s already dismal SDI score.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Gwam15">
Offering empirical ballast for a phenomenon we’ve observed in real time these past few years, Grumbach’s paper is another passage in the dominant political story of our time: <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/22274429/republicans-anti-democracy-13-charts">the Republican Party’s drift against democracy</a>.<strong> </strong>And, crucially, it’s a drift that began before Trump and his allegations of fraud in 2020. Republicans didn’t need Trump to enact extreme gerrymandering after the 2010 census; his anti-democratic instincts helped bring out something that was already there.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="43uH4C">
We have every reason to expect things will get worse, not better.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZbDtYF">
Georgia’s law, for example, is more worrying than even voter ID laws. It gives Republicans more direct control over election administration, allowing them to bend the rules in their favor: enforcing strict standards for ballot disqualification in Democratic-leaning precincts and lax ones in Republican-leaning ones, for example.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6I7loY">
Once 2020 census data is available, states will do another round of redistricting. This time, those who want to tilt the field in their favor will have a freer hand due to <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/27/18681923/supreme-court-gerrymandering-partisan-rucho-common-cause">a 2019 Supreme Court ruling</a> that partisan gerrymanders can’t be stopped by courts.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JLj2kV">
There’s a reason that Grumbach calls states, in the paper’s title, “Laboratories of Democratic Backsliding.” Republicans have been engaging in a series of grand experiments in rigging a political system one state at a time — one that is, slowly but surely, undermining the foundations of America’s free political system.
</p></li>
<li><strong>The pandemic didn’t kill the bra</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/CSJgK2CjdPhThCsuA4yceC704_I=/0x652:1600x1852/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69076448/570160251_DKN_000719_front.0.jpeg"/>
<figcaption>
Comfortable, often wireless bras are booming in the pandemic, like this one from Soma. | Soma
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Soft, no-wire bras are finally getting the support they deserve.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IT03si">
A few months into the pandemic, speculation went wild about the variety of industries it might kill. Influencer culture. Real pants. Lipsticks! One of these prematurely announced casualties was the bra. Finding themselves in new and surprising lockdown conditions, <a href="https://twitter.com/rgay/status/1246551081628209152">famous</a> and non-famous brassiere-wearers worldwide had stopped wearing them altogether, succumbing to the comfort — or was it the sheer panic? — this new reality brought. The media, looking for pandemic-inspired shifts in our closets, homes, and habits, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jul/05/death-of-bra-will-great-lingerie-liberation-lockdown-last">ate it up</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4Fbly6">
This wasn’t the first time the bra was pronounced dead. A classic scene from <em>Mad Men </em>comes to mind: Joan, the office goddess, arrives home after a hard day at work and starts taking off her cumbersome bra, revealing the deep marks the straps had left on her shoulders. You don’t need to be a ’60s secretary to identify — wearing a tight bra to work and taking it off as soon as you walk through the bedroom door is a well-known ritual.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Q7mjm6o3qwYW74mqeGK7qan6684=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22400044/GettyImages_464507377.jpg"/> <cite>Paul Walters Worldwide Photography Ltd./Heritage Images/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
An ad for Truline bras, 1963.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r6Mxcs">
Gripping and restricting, the item had long been considered a symbol of oppression. Having begun as a successor to the corset and evolved with perceptions of femininity (and the male gaze that shaped them), they were infamously burned at the 1969 Miss America protest — or, more accurately, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-45303069">tossed into a symbolic trash can</a>. In 2020, as Covid-19 shut down workplaces and day cares, it was perhaps fatigue, rather than feminism, that led many women, myself included, to temporarily dump the bra. Declaring it “over” felt good. Life seemed horrible and unfair, so why not get rid of one small contraption, at the very least?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6Ysb2I">
It might come as a surprise, then, that the year of the pandemic, starting roughly in March 2020, <a href="https://grow.acorns.com/coronavirus-spending-bra-sales/">was actually very kind to (some) bras</a>. According to a report from NPD Group, the market has seen a 32 percent increase in sports bra sales, while bralettes and wireless bras were up 5 percent. Instead of banishment, the undergarment has been undergoing a reevaluation, emerging for the first time in history as a product that really answers women’s needs for comfort and support.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OqOt8P">
For many women, this reevaluation looked something like Marisa Speer’s. The pandemic caught Speer, a registered nurse living in Philadelphia, in “two different stages of busy.” First, after graduating from nursing school in late 2019, she was stuck at home looking for a job. Then, having found one at a local birth center in early 2020, she faced long shifts, often stepping in for colleagues who were out of commission with Covid-19. Prior to the pandemic, Speer was an underwire bra kind of woman, favoring lacy European styles. But, “being at home, I was looking for less supportive, comfy bras, just to have around the house,” Speer says.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XP5kOs">
Upon returning to work, Speer realized that she’s not willing to give up the comfort, but also found herself seeking more support and posture improvement. She found both in Kinflyte Essentials, a brand she discovered via an Instagram ad. Speer was attracted to the promise of posture improvement and size inclusivity. “I find myself cued by the way the bra sits on me, reminding me to sit straighter,” she says. Speer currently wears mostly Kinflyte bras — for work, at home, even for bedtime.
</p>
<div class="c-float-left">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IkAfzPRaBWxzMQRA6kkBweN0xoE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22400046/RISE_BRA___Green___Audrey.png"/> <cite>Kinflyte</cite>
<figcaption>
The Kinflyte “rise” bra
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l92S9a">
The brand, which launched in 2019, just months before the pandemic started, specializes in bras that err on the sportier side of things, with a bonus tech side; they’re constructed in 3D and utilize a patent-pending design that grips the shoulders and supports the lower back. According to founder Vivian Lee, its 2020 sales grew 240 percent, taking off after April. This year is looking good, too. “Based on our 2021 forecast, we’re looking at 450 percent sales growth compared to 2019,” Lee says. The key word in Kinflyte’s vocabulary is “multifunctional” — easy to wear under a Zoom-appropriate sweatshirt, fit for a workout, forgiving enough to lounge in.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6o9KVO">
Stepping away from padded, underwired bras into a hybrid territory of function and performance has been the leading trend of pandemic lingerie. On the website of the online lingerie retailer Bare Necessities, the bestselling items in 2020 were a wire-free T-shirt bra and a stretchy bralette, among others, reports Heather Garcia, senior director of merchandising. Like Kinflyte, other direct-to-consumer brands that focus on underwire alternatives and strip the bra down to its basics have been enjoying increased interest — especially the ones that underscore high-tech fabrics, advanced engineering, and a clean, simple look and feel.
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<a href="https://www.intelliskin.net/collections/womens-tops/products/essential-bra-copy">Intelliskin</a>, which promises to cool the wearer and eliminate bacteria, is a Kinflyte competitor. Its bra fabric is created with antibacterial silver ion technology, and the bras are marketed as the perfect companion for computer work thanks to posture-supporting features. Pepper, a lingerie brand for smaller breast sizes that launched in 2017, is advertising its wireless, lifting bra as the <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516588&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wearpepper.com%2Fcollections%2Fall-products%2Fproducts%2Fpepper-limitless-wirefree-bra&amp;referrer=vox.com&amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vox.com%2Fthe-goods%2F22352318%2Fpandemic-bra-sales-wireless-instagram" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">lingerie equivalent of yoga pants</a>.
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Soma, a brand dedicated to loungewear and smooth, seamless, no-frills lingerie, is another player catering to post-pandemic clientele; the <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516588&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.soma.com%2Fstore%2Fproduct%2Fenbliss%2Bwireless%2F570222679%3Fcolor%3D8123%26catId%3Dcat12269300&amp;referrer=vox.com&amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vox.com%2Fthe-goods%2F22352318%2Fpandemic-bra-sales-wireless-instagram" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Enbliss collection</a>, composed of wireless bras and bralettes, includes a new shoulder-supporting, front-zipping racerback that’s easy to put on and take off. Soma’s <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516588&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.soma.com%2Fstore%2Fcategory%2Fvanishing%2Bbras%2Fcat5969283%2F&amp;referrer=vox.com&amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vox.com%2Fthe-goods%2F22352318%2Fpandemic-bra-sales-wireless-instagram" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Vanishing</a> collection is designed to disappear under the thinnest of T-shirts, lifting the breasts without the help of underwires or heavy straps. According to Vanessa Dusold, SVP of merchandising and design, Soma’s fourth-quarter sales in 2020 were the highest in the history of the brand.
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What all of these brands have in common is the focus on what the bra is for,<em> </em>rather than<em> </em>how it looks. That is not to say that aesthetics are unimportant, but that details without functional purpose — bows, frills, and scalloping — are filtered out, while posture-enhancing, fabric-smoothing, and contact-reducing touches, such as tagless care labels, are added.
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It’s not a coincidence that these bras have taken off in the last year. We <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/22280750/covid-19-one-year-fashion-sweatpants-style">dress differently</a> and move differently these days, sinking into soft sofas and working out from our living rooms. Shouldn’t bras get with the program?
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Content writer Kimberly Zerkel is a good example of this shift; she recently left her communications job at a San Francisco restaurant group due to the pandemic and returned to her hometown of Joplin, Missouri, to work from home on writing projects. For Zerkel, lacy, wired bras have always been a part of “feeling nicely dressed from the skin up, especially when I’d go out or to the office.” Now, that doesn’t happen much, and Zerkel spends her days in sports bras, which isn’t ideal. “I’m looking for a comfortable bra with no wire that can either be worn casually around the house under a sweatshirt, or a sports bra that I wear all day long with activewear,” she says. Having said that, a perfect pandemic-era bra, Zerkel suggests, would be “a sexy sports bra, one with soft materials and lots of straps, or sheer mesh or an interesting, plunge-y design.”
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<a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516588&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fnegativeunderwear.com%2F&amp;referrer=vox.com&amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vox.com%2Fthe-goods%2F22352318%2Fpandemic-bra-sales-wireless-instagram" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Negative Underwear</a>, a lingerie brand that walks the fine line of cute and functional, might just be the ticket. “We’ve always been about less is more — minimalism, removing unnecessary clutter,” says co-founder Marissa Vosper. Their wireless game has been strong since the 2014 launch, Vosper says, but in 2020 their sales tripled, and endless DMs on Instagram followed, with customers asking for the best WFH undergarments. As the size goes up, Negative bras increase in strap strength and sewn-in support. They also feature demure, sheer fabrics. “We are not of the mindset that nipples are offensive and should be hidden,” co-founder Lauren Schwab laughs. In 2021, a sporty mesh style will launch, as well as a silky wireless bra that’s actually made of stretchy nylon.
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<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JIgnhH8SRgQ4Uia7PTFnUUu6bPg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22415846/Bra_CottonTriangle_Black_Ksenia_02.jpg"/> <cite>Negative</cite>
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Negative Underwear also uses unorthodox bra sizes and sheer materials.
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Negative, like Kinflyte, Pepper, and many other new-wave bra brands, relies on online shopping and Instagram advertising, as well as <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/22346750/online-shopping-social-commerce-platforms">social commerce</a>, i.e., shopping on the social media platform directly. With the pandemic’s social distancing as a priority, more and more find such contactless bra shopping options logical, and it just so happens that wireless, flexible, and adjustable models are simply easier to shop for. “The fact the Kinflyte bra doesn’t have cups certainly helped me go for it online,” says Marissa Speer. Kinflyte bra sizes go from XS to 5XL; Negative — in wireless bras — from 0 to 5; Intelliskin ranges from XS to 2X. When shopping for pandemic bras online, Zerkel, too, was less hesitant. “I never really ordered bras online before,” she says, “but I entered my size and hoped for the best.”
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Both Zerkel and Speer still have the bras of yesteryear — structured, textured, intricate, and decorated — in the backs of their drawers, but these are now deemed “special occasion.” In everyday life, it seems like we’ve reached a point of no return. “Women have the default of having underwear to be uncomfortable to look good, but they’re taking comfort back,” Vosper says. Comfort no longer means going braless. Bras didn’t really go anywhere during the pandemic, but those who wear them can finally forget they exist.
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<li><strong>15 million ruined vaccine doses mean Johnson &amp; Johnson will take charge of Baltimore plant</strong> -
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The Emergent BioSolutions plant in Baltimore, Maryland, on April 1. | Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
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J&amp;J says it will still meet US delivery targets for the single-shot Covid-19 vaccine.
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After a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/politics/johnson-johnson-coronavirus-vaccine.html">mistake</a> at a Baltimore manufacturing plant last week ruined millions of doses of the <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22301014/covid-19-vaccine-johnson-and-johnson-coronavirus">Johnson &amp; Johnson Covid-19 vaccine</a>,<strong> </strong>the Biden administration is putting Johnson &amp; Johnson in charge of the plant, it <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/03/us/politics/emergent-vaccine-plant-johnson-johnson.html">announced</a> Saturday.
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The plant, which belongs to manufacturing contractor Emergent BioSolutions, was previously producing two varieties of Covid-19 vaccine, of which only the Johnson &amp; Johnson shot was approved for emergency use in the United States. Now, Johnson &amp; Johnson will be the sole vaccine produced at the facility as the company takes control, reported the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/politics/johnson-johnson-coronavirus-vaccine.html">New York Times</a> on Saturday.
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The Johnson &amp; Johnson shot, <a href="https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-issues-emergency-use-authorization-third-covid-19-vaccine">authorized</a> by the Food and Drug Administration in late February, is a <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/1/29/22238591/johnson-and-johnson-jnj-vaccine-effective-safety-one-dose-fda">single-shot vaccine</a>, unlike the mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines produced by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna that require two doses to be fully effective, and it only requires a refrigerator, rather than a freezer, to store.
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It’s also <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/1/29/22238591/johnson-and-johnson-jnj-vaccine-effective-safety-one-dose-fda">extremely effective</a> — results from clinical trials suggest it prevents about 85 percent of “severe and critical cases of Covid-19” and 100 percent of deaths and hospitalizations after four weeks — despite some early concerns about how the Johnson &amp; Johnson shot stacks up against the Pfizer and Moderna shots.
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<a href="https://www.vox.com/22311625/covid-19-vaccine-efficacy-johnson-moderna-pfizer">As Vox’s Umair Irfan explained last month</a>,
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[Johnson &amp; Johnson] reported that its overall efficacy in preventing Covid-19 cases that produced symptoms was 66.1 percent. The Moderna vaccine and the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines reported efficacy levels around 95 percent.
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That gap in efficacy numbers is fueling some people’s perception that the Johnson &amp; Johnson Covid-19 vaccine isn’t as good.
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<a href="https://www.vox.com/22311625/covid-19-vaccine-efficacy-johnson-moderna-pfizer">According to Johns Hopkins University’s Dr. Amesh Adalja</a>, however, such a direct comparison is fraught, and the vaccines are “basically interchangeable.”
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“I don’t even look at those efficacy numbers and compare them head-to-head like that,” Adalja told Vox. “Biostats 101: You cannot compare trial results like that unless they were done in a head-to-head fashion.”
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In a <a href="https://www.jnj.com/johnson-johnson-statement-on-u-s-covid-19-vaccine-manufacturing-updated">statement</a>, Johnson &amp; Johnson said it was “assuming full responsibility” for manufacturing at the Baltimore plant and would “significantly” increase its staff there.
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<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/politics/johnson-johnson-coronavirus-vaccine.html">According to the Times</a>, the error that precipitated Saturday’s announcement — and ruined some 15 million vaccine doses — came after a mixup between distinct vaccine vectors used by Johnson &amp; Johnson and AstraZeneca, which are incompatible.
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However, Johnson &amp; Johnson emphasized in a <a href="https://www.jnj.com/johnson-johnson-statement-on-u-s-covid-19-vaccine-manufacturing">statement</a> Wednesday that it would continue to seek an emergency use authorization for Emergent’s Baltimore facility, and that it would still meet its vaccine delivery targets.
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Johnson &amp; Johnson is set to deliver about <a href="https://www.jnj.com/johnson-johnson-statement-on-u-s-covid-19-vaccine-manufacturing">24 million</a> additional vaccine doses by the end of April, and nearly <a href="https://www.jnj.com/johnson-johnson-statement-on-u-s-covid-19-vaccine-manufacturing-updated">100 million</a> total by the end of May. President Joe Biden has <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/11/22326478/biden-speech-covid-19-vaccine-may-adults">pledged</a> that every US adult will be eligible for a Covid-19 vaccine by May 1, and recently set a new target of <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/25/22350718/biden-200-million-covid-19-vaccines-100-days-coronavirus">200 million shots in arms</a> by the end of his first 100 days in office.
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In a <a href="https://www.astrazeneca-us.com/content/az-us/media/press-releases/2021/statement-on-azd1222-us-government-drug-substance-production-04032021.html">statement</a> Saturday, AstraZeneca, which developed the other vaccine being produced at the Emergent plant in Baltimore, said it was working to “identify an alternative location” for manufacturing.
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The US invested in stockpiling AstraZeneca doses for use in the US last year in anticipation of an emergency use authorization that has yet to materialize, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/11/us/politics/coronavirus-astrazeneca-united-states.html">according to the New York Times</a>.
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Even before Saturday, however, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22346789/astrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine-oxford-efficacy-results-nih-fda">AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine</a> has had a troubled go of things as the company hopes it will become the fourth coronavirus vaccine to receive an <a href="https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/covid-19-vaccines">emergency use authorization</a> in the US.
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In March, an independent advisory board at the National Institutes of Health criticized the company for using “outdated and potentially misleading” efficacy data in a press release, <a href="https://www.vox.com/22346789/astrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine-oxford-efficacy-results-nih-fda">according to Vox’s Umair Irfan</a>; since then, AstraZeneca has released more complete data showing a slightly lower — but still strong — efficacy rate of about 76 percent.
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Separately, there was a surge of concern last month after regulators in several European countries paused distribution of the AstraZeneca vaccine over worries about blood clots, but the European Union has since <a href="https://www.vox.com/22334719/astrazeneca-vaccine-blood-clot-numbers-covid-19-europe-eu-germany">concluded</a> that the shot is “safe and effective.”
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Despite the EU regulatory agency’s findings, the AstraZeneca vaccine is not yet authorized for use in the US; consequently, the Biden administration <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/19/979279426/biden-takes-first-jab-at-vaccine-diplomacy-sharing-doses-with-mexico-canada">announced</a> in March that it would send AstraZeneca doses from the US stockpile to Canada and Mexico, both of which have signed off on the vaccine.
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The US mass vaccination effort is accelerating
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Despite setbacks for Johnson &amp; Johnson and AstraZeneca last month, the vaccine news in the US is overwhelmingly good right now. With three coronavirus vaccines approved for emergency use and distribution ramping up, the country has continued to set vaccination records.
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On Saturday, <a href="https://twitter.com/aslavitt46/status/1378420737070014468?s=20">according to White House Covid-19 adviser Andy Slavitt</a>, the US administered more than 4 million vaccines, bumping the country’s average for the week above <a href="https://twitter.com/cyrusshahpar46/status/1378387604907773954?s=20">3 million shots per day</a> for the first time.
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NEW: 4.1 million vaccines reported today.<br/><br/>From 3.5 million last Saturday.
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— Andy Slavitt (<span class="citation" data-cites="aslavitt46">@aslavitt46</span>) <a href="https://twitter.com/aslavitt46/status/1378420737070014468?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 3, 2021</a>
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Additionally, more than 100 million people in the US have now received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, CNN’s Ryan Struyk <a href="https://twitter.com/ryanstruyk/status/1378099841381888005?s=20">tweeted</a> Friday. As of Saturday, <a href="https://twitter.com/ryanstruyk/status/1378421028200837129?s=20">according to Struyk</a>, that means 2 in 5 US adults have received at least one dose.
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There has also been positive news about the effectiveness of several Covid-19 vaccines already authorized for use in the US.
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A new study last week <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/03/29/vaccine-effective-essential-workers-study/">confirmed</a> that the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines provide substantial protection from Covid-19 under real-world conditions, even after just a single shot.
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According to the study, both vaccines were about 80 percent effective after the first doses, and fully 90 percent effective after two doses.
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The Wall Street Journal also <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/pfizer-biontech-covid-19-vaccine-protects-for-six-months-companies-say-11617273901">reported</a> Thursday that the Pfizer vaccine “remains highly effective six months after its second dose, an indication that protection could last for an even longer period.”
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Still, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr. Rochelle Walensky is <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2021/03/29/warning-impending-doom-cdc-director-covid-19/">urging caution</a>, despite the good news.
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“We have so much to look forward to, so much promise and potential of where we are and so much reason for hope, but right now I’m scared,” she said last week, warning that US Covid-19 cases have begun to climb again.
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According to coronavirus <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html">data</a> tracked by the New York Times, cases have climbed by 19 percent in the US over the last two weeks; the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html#cases">rolling seven-day average</a> stands at almost 65,200 cases per day as of Saturday.
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“We are just almost there, but not quite yet,” Walensky <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2021/03/29/warning-impending-doom-cdc-director-covid-19/">said</a>. “And so I am asking you to just hold on a little bit longer, to get vaccinated when you can so that all the people that we all love will still be here when this pandemic ends.”
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<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>WWE’s Bobby Lashley: ‘Drew McIntyre and I have a ‘Never Quit’ attitude in common’</strong> - A confident Bobby Lashley discusses his WrestleMania 37 opponent Drew McIntyre, a potential feud with Brock Lesnar, and tells us why nobody can break ‘The Hurt Lock’</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>IPL 2021 | Rajasthan Royals organise stadium live show to launch new jersey</strong> - The Sawai Mansingh Stadium was taken over by a 3D projection and light show as Rajasthan Royals players revealed their jersey for the 2021 season.</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>Fakhar Zaman run-out: MCC says it’s up to umpires to decide if de Kock was at fault</strong> - Zaman was run out in the 50th over and replays showed that de Kock tricked Zaman into believing that the throw was going to the other end</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>Valencia players walk off field after alleged racial insult</strong> - Valencia left the field after Mouctar Diakhaby accused Cádiz defender Juan Cala of insulting him.</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>Newcastle deny Spurs return to top four in 2-2 draw</strong> - The result leaves Spurs in fifth place with 49 points, two points behind fourth-placed Chelsea.</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>Annual convocation of Mangalore University on April 10</strong> - “Only gold medal winners, first rank holders and those who will receive their Ph.D. certificates will be allowed to attend the convocation in person in view of the COVID-19 situation,” Vice-Chancellor P. S. Yadapadithaya said.</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>North India likely to receive rainfall from April 5-9: IMD</strong> - It said a fresh western disturbance is very likely to affect western the Himalayan region from April 6</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>West Bengal Assembly elections | Confident of win in Bengal now, later in Delhi: Mamata</strong> - “I will win Bengal with one leg and Delhi with two legs,” West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said</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>BJP attacks Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray after Anil Deshmukh’s resignation</strong> - Addressing a press conference, senior BJP leader and Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad asked if Thackeray has no moral responsibility</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>Shivaram Karanth Layout: SC-appointed committee submits report against Kodihalli Chandrashekar for spreading misinformation</strong> - The Supreme Court appointed committee, which is looking into lawful constructions made on land notified for formation of Shivaram Karanth Layout, has</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>Covid: Paris police probe ‘secret luxury dinner parties’</strong> - French authorities investigate after an undercover video claims to show secret luxury dining.</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>Covid Greece: Waiting for the tourists to come back</strong> - As Europeans wait to see if foreign holidays are possible this summer, Greece hopes to open up soon.</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>Covid: Tests to be offered twice-weekly to all in England</strong> - The rapid tests are being made available for free, ahead of the next stage of lockdown easing.</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>Bernard Tapie: French tycoon and wife attacked in home</strong> - The former Adidas owner and his wife were tied up and assaulted by burglars at their estate near Paris.</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>Valencia: Alleged racist comment sees team leave pitch</strong> - Valencia walk off the pitch during their La Liga game at Cadiz in response to an alleged racist comment towards Mouctar Diakhaby.</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>Review: Sean Bean gives Snowpiercer a charismatic villain to stir the pot</strong> - With fictional world established, S2 is free to explore its complicated human dynamics. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1752340">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What we’re expecting from Google’s custom “Whitechapel” SoC in the Pixel 6</strong> - Google wants to dump Qualcomm, probably to give longer OS support? - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1754062">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Narwhal tusks tell a troubling tale</strong> - Narwhal diets are changing as the Arctic warms. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1754151">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>It’s the Tune Squad vs. the Goon Squad in Space Jam: A New Legacy trailer</strong> - LeBron James leads Looney Tunes characters in basketball rematch for the digital age. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1754311">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Xbox Game Streaming app is now live on Windows—via a sneaky download</strong> - Until we see planned web browser version, this loophole will have to suffice. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1754345">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>I was dismayed this afternoon when my wife told me my 6 year old son wasn’t actually mine.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
She then said I need to pay more attention at school pick up.
</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/4x4Xtrm"> /u/4x4Xtrm </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mkal54/i_was_dismayed_this_afternoon_when_my_wife_told/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mkal54/i_was_dismayed_this_afternoon_when_my_wife_told/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A man and his ever-nagging wife went on vacation</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Years ago, when one could actually enjoy travel, a man and his ever-nagging wife went on vacation in Jerusalem and while they were there, the wife unfortunately passed away.
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The undertaker told the husband, “You can have her buried here in the Holy Land for $150 or we can have her shipped back home for $5,000.” The husband thought about it and told the undertaker he would have her shipped back home. The undertaker asked him, “Why would you spend $5,000 to have her shipped home when you could have a beautiful burial here, and it would only cost $150?”
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The husband replied, “Long ago, a man died here, was buried, and three days later, rose from the dead. I just can’t take that chance!”
</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/flying_shark"> /u/flying_shark </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mjysi8/a_man_and_his_evernagging_wife_went_on_vacation/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mjysi8/a_man_and_his_evernagging_wife_went_on_vacation/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A blonde woman called her brunette friend. “I’m doing a jigsaw puzzle at my apartment, but it’s way too hard for me!”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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“What’s the jigsaw supposed to be?” asks the brunette.
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“According to the box,” says the blonde, “it’s supposed to be a rooster.”
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When the brunette arrives at the blonde’s apartment, she looks at the puzzle pieces. Then she look at the box. Then she says to the blonde, “I’m afraid you will not be able to make anything even remotely resembling a rooster.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
This makes the blonde furious. “Calm down,” says the brunette. “Once you are relaxed, we can start putting the corn flakes back into the box.”
</p>
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<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/mkbqqj/a_blonde_woman_called_her_brunette_friend_im/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mkbqqj/a_blonde_woman_called_her_brunette_friend_im/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>My wife said, “I can think of 14 reasons to leave you, plus your obsession with Tennis.”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
I replied, “That’s 15 love.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/4x4Xtrm"> /u/4x4Xtrm </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mk7qgr/my_wife_said_i_can_think_of_14_reasons_to_leave/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mk7qgr/my_wife_said_i_can_think_of_14_reasons_to_leave/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A policeman pulls a farmer over for speeding and proceeds to write him a ticket…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The farmer notices some flies buzzing around annoying the officer. The policeman is shooing flies more than he’s writing. The farmer says “I see you’re being bothered by those circle flies.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The policeman says, “If that’s what you call them, yes, they are somewhat annoying.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The farmer says, “Yeah, we call them that because we see them circling around the rear ends of horses.”
</p>
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The policeman says, “Hmmm. Did you just call me a horse’s ass?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The farmer says, “Oh, no sir, officer. I have way too much respect for those who serve in law enforcement to ever say such a thing.”
</p>
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The policeman says, “Well, that’s a good thing, then.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The farmer adds, “But it sure is hard to fool those circle flies.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Ralph-Hinkley"> /u/Ralph-Hinkley </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mk5vk7/a_policeman_pulls_a_farmer_over_for_speeding_and/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/mk5vk7/a_policeman_pulls_a_farmer_over_for_speeding_and/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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