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<title>19 March, 2024</title>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="covid-19-sentry">Covid-19 Sentry</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-preprints">From Preprints</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-clinical-trials">From Clinical Trials</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-pubmed">From PubMed</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-patent-search">From Patent Search</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-preprints">From Preprints</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Lateral Flow Assays Biotesting by Utilizing Plasmonic Nanoparticles Made of Inexpensive Metals - Replacing Colloidal Gold</strong> -
<div>
Nanoparticles (NPs) can be conjugated with diverse biomolecules and employed in biosensing to detect target analytes in biological samples. This proven concept was primarily used during the COVID-19 pandemic with gold NPs-based lateral flow assays (LFAs). Considering the gold price and its worldwide depletion, here we show that novel plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) based on inexpensive metals, titanium nitride (TiN) and copper covered with a gold shell (Cu@Au), perform comparable or even better than gold nanoparticles. After conjugation, these novel nanoparticles provided high figures of merit for LFA testing, such as high signals and specificity and robust naked-eye signal recognition. To the best of our knowledge, our study represents the 1st application of laser-ablation-fabricated nanoparticles (TiN) in the LFA and dot-blot biotesting. Since the main cost of the Au NPs in commercial testing kits is in the colloidal synthesis, our development with TiN is very exciting, offering potentially very inexpensive plasmonic nanomaterials for various bio-testing applications. Moreover, our machine learning study showed that the bio-detection with TiN is more accurate than that with Au.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.01.08.574723v2" target="_blank">Lateral Flow Assays Biotesting by Utilizing Plasmonic Nanoparticles Made of Inexpensive Metals - Replacing Colloidal Gold</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Identification of unique and potent inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 main protease from DNA-encoded chemical libraries</strong> -
<div>
In vitro screening of large libraries of compounds with automated High-throughput screening is expensive, time consuming and requires dedicated infrastructures. Conversely, the screening of DNA-encoded chemical libraries can be rapidly performed with basic equipment available in most laboratories. In this study we identified novel inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro) through the affinity screening of the commercially available ''DELopen'' library, containing 4.2 billion compounds. The identified inhibitors were peptidomimetics compounds containing a C-terminal electrophilic group able to covalently bind to Mpro reactive Cys145 (confirmed by x-ray crystallography). Compound SLL11 had IC50 = 30nM and was found to be well optimized, proving that the rapid exploration of large chemical spaces, enabled by DECL technology, allows the direct identification of potent inhibitors avoiding several rounds of iterative medicinal chemistry. Compound MP6, a close analogue of SLL11, showed antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 in the low micromolar range when tested in Caco-2 and Calu-3 (EC50 = 2.3 M) cell lines. As peptidomimetics compounds can suffer from low cell permeability and metabolic stability, the cyclization of the compounds as well as the substitution of selected residues with D-enantiomers will be explored in the future to improve the antiviral activity of these novel compounds.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.16.585341v1" target="_blank">Identification of unique and potent inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 main protease from DNA-encoded chemical libraries</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>A Protein Language Model for Exploring Viral Fitness Landscapes</strong> -
<div>
Successively emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants lead to repeated epidemic surges through escalated spreading potential (i.e., fitness). Modeling genotype-fitness relationship enables us to pinpoint the mutations boosting viral fitness and flag high-risk variants immediately after their detection. Here, we introduce CoVFit, a protein language model able to predict the fitness of variants based solely on their spike protein sequences. CoVFit was trained with genotype-fitness data derived from viral genome surveillance and functional mutation data related to immune evasion. When limited to only data available before the emergence of XBB, CoVFit successfully predicted the higher fitness of the XBB lineage. Fully-trained CoVFit identified 549 fitness elevation events throughout SARS-CoV-2 evolution until late 2023. Furthermore, a CoVFit-based simulation was able to predict the higher fitness of JN.1 subvariants before their detection. Our study provides both insight into the SARS-CoV-2 fitness landscape and a novel tool potentially transforming viral genome surveillance.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.15.584819v1" target="_blank">A Protein Language Model for Exploring Viral Fitness Landscapes</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Modulation of SARS-CoV-2 spike binding to ACE2 throughconformational selection</strong> -
<div>
The first step of SARS-CoV-2 infection involves the interaction between the trimeric viral spike protein () and the host angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (2). The receptor binding domain () of adopts two conformations: open and closed, respectively, accessible and inaccessible to 2. Therefore, motions are suspected to affect 2 binding; yet a quantitative description of the underlying mechanism has been elusive. Here, using single-molecule approaches, we visualize opening and closing and probe the /2 interaction. Our results show that RBD dynamics affect 2 binding but not unbinding. The resulting modulation is quantitatively predicted by a conformational selection model in which each protomer behaves independently. Our work reveals a general molecular mechanism affecting binding affinity without altering binding strength, helping to understand coronavirus infection and immune evasion.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.15.585207v1" target="_blank">Modulation of SARS-CoV-2 spike binding to ACE2 throughconformational selection</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Binding of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein to uninfected epithelial cells induces antibody-mediated complement deposition</strong> -
<div>
SARS-CoV-2 infection triggers strong antibody response toward Nucleocapsid-Protein (NP), suggesting extracellular presence beyond its intra-virion RNA binding. Interestingly, NP was found to decorate infected and proximal uninfected cell-surfaces. Here, we propose a new mechanism through which extracellular NP on uninfected cells contributes to COVID-19 pathogenicity. We show that NP binds to cell-surface sulfated linear-glycosaminoglycans by spatial rearrangement of its RNA-binding sites facilitated by the flexible, positively charged, linker. Coating of uninfected lung-derived cells with purified NP attracted anti-NP-IgG from lung fluids and sera collected from COVID-19 patients. The magnitude of this immune recognition was significantly elevated in moderate compared to mild COVID-19 cases. Importantly, binding of anti-NP-IgG present in sera generated clusters that triggered C3b deposition by the classical complement pathway. Heparin analog enoxaparin outcompeted NP-binding, rescuing cells from anti-NP IgG-mediated complement deposition. Our findings unveil how extracellular NP may exacerbate COVID-19 tissue damage, and suggest leads for preventative therapy.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.17.585388v1" target="_blank">Binding of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein to uninfected epithelial cells induces antibody-mediated complement deposition</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>CORACLE (COVID-19 liteRAture CompiLEr): A platform for efficient tracking and extraction of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 literature, with examples from post-COVID with respiratory involvement</strong> -
<div>
Background: During COVID-19 pandemic there emerged a need to efficiently monitor and process large volumes of scientific literature on the subject. Currently, as the pandemic is winding down, the clinicians encountered a novel syndrome - Post-acute Sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) - that affects over 10% of those who contract SARS-CoV-2 and presents a significant and growing challenge in the medical field. The continuous influx of new research publications underscores a critical need for efficient tools for navigating the literature. Objectives: We aimed to develop an application which will allow monitoring and categorizing COVID-19-related literature through building publication networks and medical subject headings (MeSH) maps to be able to quickly identify key publications and publication networks. Methods: We introduce CORACLE (COVID-19 liteRAture CompiLEr), an innovative web application designed for the analysis of COVID-19-related scientific articles and the identification of research trends. CORACLE features three primary interfaces: The "Search" interface, which displays research trends and citation links; the "Citation Map" interface, allowing users to create tailored citation networks from PubMed Identifiers (PMIDs) to uncover common references among selected articles; and the "MeSH" interface, highlighting current MeSH trends and associations between MeSH terms. Results: Our web application, CORACLE, leverages regularly updated PubMed data to aggregate and categorize the extensive literature on COVID-19 and PASC, aiding in the identification of relevant research publication hubs. Using lung function in PASC patients as a search example, we demonstrate how to identify and visualize the interactions between the relevant publications. Conclusion: CORACLE proves to be an effective tool for the extraction and analysis of literature. Its functionalities, including the MeSH trends and customizable citation mapping, facilitate the discovery of relevant information and emerging trends in COVID-19 and PASC research.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.18.584627v1" target="_blank">CORACLE (COVID-19 liteRAture CompiLEr): A platform for efficient tracking and extraction of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 literature, with examples from post-COVID with respiratory involvement</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Young Parents’ Experiences of Pregnancy and Parenting during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A qualitative study in the United Kingdom</strong> -
<div>
Young parents (aged 16-24 years) in the perinatal period may be at an increased risk of poor mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, due to multiple risk factors, including social and economic instability. COVID-19 related restrictions had significant implications for the delivery of some perinatal care services and other support structures for young parents. Investigating young parents’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, including their perceived challenges and needs, is important to inform good practice and provide appropriate support for young parents. Qualitative interviews were conducted with young parents (n=21) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom from February – May 2021. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Three key themes were identified to describe parents’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents reported specific COVID-19 related anxieties and stressors, including worries around contracting the virus and increased feelings of distress due to uncertainty created by the implications of the pandemic. Parents described feeling alone both at home and during antenatal appointments and highlighted the absence of social support as a major area of concern. Also, parents felt their perinatal care had been disrupted by the pandemic and experienced difficulties accessing care online or over the phone. This study highlights the potential impact of COVID-19 on young parents, including on their mental wellbeing and the perinatal support they were able to access during the pandemic. Insights from this study could inform the support and services offered to families during future pandemics. Specifically, the findings underlie the importance of (a) supporting both parents during perinatal appointments, (b) providing parents with early mental health support and (c) finding ways to facilitate communication pathways between professionals and parents.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/h3b6y/" target="_blank">Young Parents’ Experiences of Pregnancy and Parenting during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A qualitative study in the United Kingdom</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Demographic and health factors associated with pandemic anxiety in the context of COVID-19</strong> -
<div>
Objectives The mental health consequences of COVID-19 are predicted to have a disproportionate impact on certain groups. We aimed to develop a brief measure, the Pandemic Anxiety Scale, to capture the specific aspects of the pandemic that are provoking anxiety, and explore how these vary by health and demographic factors. Design Data were from a convenience sample of parents (N=4,793) and adolescents (N=698) recruited in the first 6 weeks of lockdown. Methods Factor analytic and IRT methods were used to validate the new measure in both parent and adolescent samples. Associations between scores on the new measure and age, gender, household income, and physical health status were explored using structural equation modelling (SEM). Results Two factors were identified in both samples: disease-anxiety (e.g. catching, transmitting the virus) and consequence anxiety (e.g. impact on economic prospects), and unique associations with health and demographic factors were observed. Conclusions Anxieties due to the COVID-19 are multifaceted, and the PAS is a short, reliable and valid measure of these concerns. These anxieties are differentially associated with demographic, social and health factors, which should be considered when developing strategies to mitigate the mental health impact of the pandemic.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/2eksd/" target="_blank">Demographic and health factors associated with pandemic anxiety in the context of COVID-19</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>A three-wave network analysis of COVID-19’s impact on schizotypal traits, paranoia and mental health through loneliness</strong> -
<div>
This manuscript is now published in open access UCL Open Environment: https://ucl.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14324/111.444/000092.v2 <strong>This manuscript has been submitted for publication and is likely to be edited as part of the peer-review process. Correspondence regarding this paper should be addressed to Keri Ka-Yee Wong, keri.wong@ucl.ac.uk.</strong> Background. The 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted people’s mental wellbeing. Studies to date have examined the prevalence of mental health symptoms (anxiety, depression, loneliness), yet fewer longitudinal studies have compared across background factors and other psychological variables to identify vulnerable sub-groups. This study tests to what extent higher levels of psychotic-like experiences – indexed by schizotypal traits and paranoia – are associated with various mental health variables 6- and 12-months since April 2020. Methods. Over 2,300 adult volunteers (18-89 years, female=74.9%) with access to the study link online were recruited from the UK, USA, Greece, and Italy. Self-reported levels of schizotypy, paranoia, anxiety, depression, aggression, loneliness, and stress from three timepoints (17 April to 13 July 2020, N1 =1,599; 17 October to 31 January 2021, N2 =774; and 17 April to 31 July 2021, N3 =586) were mapped using network analysis and compared across time and background variables (sex, age, income, country). Results. Schizotypal traits and paranoia were positively associated with poorer mental health through loneliness, with no effect of age, sex, income levels, countries, and timepoints. Loneliness was the most influential variable across all networks, despite overall reductions in levels of loneliness, schizotypy, paranoia, and aggression during the easing of lockdown. Individuals with higher levels of schizotypal traits/paranoia reported poorer mental health outcomes than individuals in the low-trait groups. Conclusion. Schizotypal traits and paranoia are associated with poor mental health outcomes through self-perceived loneliness, suggesting that increasing social/community cohesion may improve individuals’ mental wellbeing in the long run.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/p9wrv/" target="_blank">A three-wave network analysis of COVID-19’s impact on schizotypal traits, paranoia and mental health through loneliness</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on young people from black and mixed-ethnic groups’ mental health: A qualitative study</strong> -
<div>
Author Notes This is now published in BMJ Open on 5 May 2023: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/5/e071903.full <strong>This manuscript has been submitted for publication and is likely to be edited as part of the peer-review process. Correspondence regarding this paper should be addressed to Dr Keri Ka-Yee Wong, keri.wong@ucl.ac.uk</strong> Abstract Objectives The Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted vulnerable groups’ physical and mental health, especially young people and minority ethnic groups, yet little is known about how this is taking place and what support they would like. To address this gap, this qualitative study aims to uncover the effect of the Covid-19 outbreak on young people with ethnic minority backgrounds’ mental health, how this changed since the end of lockdown and what support they need to cope with these issues. Setting and Participants Ten 20-minute in-person semi-structured interviews were conducted with young people aged 12 to 17 years old from black and mixed-ethnic groups who regularly attend a community centre in West London. Results Through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, results indicated that the participants’ mental health was negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, with feelings of loneliness being the most common experience. However, positive effects were concurrently observed including improved well-being and better coping strategies post-lockdown, which is a testament to the young people’s resilience. That said, it is clear that young people from minority ethnic backgrounds lacked support during the Covid-19 pandemic and would now need psychological, practical and relational assistance to cope with these challenges. Conclusions Whilst future studies would benefit from a larger ethnically-diverse sample, this is a start. Study findings have the potential to inform future government policies around mental health support and access for young people from ethnic minorities, notably prioritising support for grassroots initiatives during times of crisis. Strengths and limitations • This qualitative interview study during Covid-19 gives voice to the experiences of young people from black and mixed-ethnic backgrounds in the UK • The in-person quality of the interviews helped build rapport between the researcher and the young people and sharing of sensitive issues around mental health access and support, increasing the results’ validity • This is a convenient sample, with girls and those aged 15 years and above being disproportionately represented in our data as they provided most of the answers. • The small sample size and lack of ethnic diversity limits the generalisability of the study to individuals from other ethnic minority groups.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/fe36p/" target="_blank">The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on young people from black and mixed-ethnic groups’ mental health: A qualitative study</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Reflections, Resilience, and Recovery: A qualitative study of the COVID-19 impact on an international general population’s mental health and priorities for support</strong> -
<div>
<strong>This paper is now published in open access UCL Open Environment: https://ucl.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14324/111.444/000119.v2</strong>* The impact of the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on different countries and populations is well documented in quantitative studies, with some studies showing stable mental health symptoms and others showing fluctuating symptoms. However, the reasons behind why some symptoms are stable and others change are under-explored, which in turn makes identifying the types of support needed by participants themselves challenging. To address these gaps, this study thematically analysed 925 qualitative responses from five open-ended responses collected in the UCL-Penn Global COVID Study between 17 April to 31 July 2021 (wave 3). Three key themes comprised of 13 codes were reported by participants across countries and ages regarding the impact of COVID-19 on their health, both mental and physical, and livelihoods. These include: 1) Outlook on self/life, 2) Self-improvement, and 3) Loved ones (friends and family). In terms of support, while 2.91% did not require additional support, 91% wanted support beyond financial. Other unexpected new themes were also discussed regarding vulnerable populations suffering disproportionately. The pandemic has brought into sharp focus various changes in people’s mental health, physical health, and relationships. Greater policy considerations should be given to supporting citizens’ continued access to mental health when considering pandemic recovery. Keywords: COVID-19; mental health; behavioural change; qualitative; financial burden; support.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/8sdg4/" target="_blank">Reflections, Resilience, and Recovery: A qualitative study of the COVID-19 impact on an international general population’s mental health and priorities for support</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Child Externalizing and Internalizing Behavior and Parental Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic</strong> -
<div>
Author Notes <strong>This manuscript is now published in open access UCL Open Environment: https://ucl.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14324/111.444/ucloe.000040</strong>. <strong>This manuscript has been submitted for publication and is likely to be edited as part of the peer-review process. Correspondence regarding this paper should be addressed to Keri Ka-Yee Wong, keri.wong@ucl.ac.uk.</strong> Abstract In this study we surveyed families’ experiences with parental depression, stress, relationship conflict, and child behavioral issues during six months of the COVID-19 pandemic through the COVID-19: Global Social Trust and Mental Health Study. The current analyses used data collected from online surveys completed by adults in 66 countries from April 17, 2020-July 14, 2020 (Wave I), followed by surveys six months later at Wave II (October 17, 2020-January 31, 2021). Analyses were limited to 175 adult parents who reported living with at least one child under 18 years old at Wave I. Parents reported on children’s level of externalizing and internalizing behavior at Wave I. At Wave II, parents completed self-reported measures of stress, depression, and inter-partner conflict. Child externalizing behavior at Wave I significantly predicted higher levels of parental stress and marginally predicted parental depression at Wave II, controlling for covariates. Child internalizing behavior at Wave I did not predict parental stress or depression, controlling for covariates. Neither child externalizing nor internalizing behavior predicted parental relationship conflict. The overall findings demonstrate that child behavior likely influenced parental stress and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings suggest that mental health interventions for children and parents may improve the family system during times of disaster.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/4tpsr/" target="_blank">Child Externalizing and Internalizing Behavior and Parental Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Cell culture differentiation and proliferation conditions influence the in vitro regeneration of the human airway epithelium</strong> -
<div>
The human airway mucociliary epithelium can be recapitulated in vitro using primary cells cultured in an Air-Liquid Interface (ALI), a reliable surrogate to perform pathophysiological studies. As tremendous variations exist between media used for ALI-cultured human airway epithelial cells, our study aimed to evaluate the impact of several media (BEGM, PneumaCult, "Half½" and "Clancy") on cell type distribution using single-cell RNA sequencing and imaging. Our work revealed the impact of these media on cell composition, gene expression profile, cell signaling or epithelial morphology. We found higher proportions of multiciliated cells in PneumaCult-ALI and Half½, stronger EGF signaling from basal cells in BEGM-ALI, differential expression of the SARS-CoV-2 entry factor ACE2, and distinct secretome transcripts depending on media used. We also established that proliferation in PneumaCult-Ex Plus favored secretory cell fate, showing the key influence of proliferation media on late differentiation epithelial characteristics. Altogether, our data offer a comprehensive repertoire for evaluating the effects of culture conditions on airway epithelial differentiation and will help to choose the most relevant medium according to the processes to be investigated such as cilia, mucus biology or viral infection. We detail useful parameters that should be explored to document airway epithelial cell fate and morphology.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.16.584842v1" target="_blank">Cell culture differentiation and proliferation conditions influence the in vitro regeneration of the human airway epithelium</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Protein-based cell population discovery and annotation for CITE-seq data identifies cellular phenotypes associated with critical COVID-19 severity</strong> -
<div>
Technologies such as Cellular Indexing of Transcriptomes and Epitopes sequencing (CITE-seq) and RNA Expression and Protein sequencing (REAP-seq) augment unimodal single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) by simultaneously measuring expression of cell-surface proteins using antibody derived oligonucleotide tags (ADT). These protocols have been increasingly used to resolve cellular populations that are difficult to infer from gene expression alone, and to interrogate the relationship between gene and protein expression at a single-cell level. However, the ADT-based protein expression component of these assays remains widely underutilized as a primary tool to discover and annotate cell populations, in contrast to flow cytometry which has used surface protein expression in this fashion for decades. Therefore, we hypothesized that computational tools used for flow cytometry data analysis could be harnessed and scaled to analyze ADT data. Here we apply Ozette Discovery, a recently-developed method for flow cytometry analysis, to re-analyze a large (&gt;400,000 cells) published COVID-19 CITE-seq dataset. Using the protein expression data alone, Ozette Discovery is able to identify granular, robust, and interpretable cellular phenotypes in a high-throughput manner. In particular, we identify a population of CLEC12A+CD11b+CD14- myeloid cells that are specifically expanded in patients with critical COVID-19, and can only be resolved by their protein expression profiles. Using the longitudinal gene expression data from this dataset, we find that early expression of interferon response genes precedes the expansion of this subset, and that early expression of PRF1 and GZMB within specific Ozette Discovery phenotypes provides a RNA biomarker of critical COVID-19. In summary, Ozette Discovery demonstrates that taking a protein-centric approach to cell phenotype annotation in CITE-seq data can achieve the potential that dual RNA/protein assays provide in mixed samples: instantaneous in silico flow sorting, and unbiased RNA-seq profiling.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.14.584720v1" target="_blank">Protein-based cell population discovery and annotation for CITE-seq data identifies cellular phenotypes associated with critical COVID-19 severity</a>
</div></li>
<li><strong>Differential Patterns of Cross-Protection against Antigenically Distinct Variants in Small Animal Models of SARS-CoV-2 Infection</strong> -
<div>
Continuous evolution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) will likely force more future updates of vaccine composition. Based on a series of studies carried out in human ACE2 transgenic mice (K18-hACE2) and Syrian hamsters, we show that immunity at the respiratory tract, acquired through either previous infection or vaccination with an in-house live attenuate virus, offers protection against antigenically distinct variants in the absence of variant spike-specific neutralizing antibodies. Interestingly, immunity acquired through infection of a modern variant (XBB.1.5) was insufficient in preventing brain infection by the ancestral virus (WA1/2020) in K18-hACE2 mice. Similarly, previous infection with WA1/2020 did not protect against brain infection by XBB.1.5. Our results highlight the importance of immune components other than neutralizing antibodies in maintaining protection against new variants in the respiratory tract, but also paint scenarios where a monovalent vaccine based on a contemporary variant may be less effective against the ancestral strain.
</div>
<div class="article-link article-html-link">
🖺 Full Text HTML: <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.03.14.584985v1" target="_blank">Differential Patterns of Cross-Protection against Antigenically Distinct Variants in Small Animal Models of SARS-CoV-2 Infection</a>
</div></li>
</ul>
<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>Valacyclovir Plus Celecoxib for Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: PASC Post Acute Sequelae of COVID 19; Long COVID <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: 1500 Valacyclovir 200 Celecoxib; Drug: 750 Valacyclovir 200 Celecoxib; Drug: Placebo <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Bateman Horne Center <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>Supervised Computerized Active Program for People With Post-COVID Syndrome (SuperCAP Study)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Post-COVID Condition <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Device: SuperCAP Program <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Fundación FLS de Lucha Contra el Sida, las Enfermedades Infecciosas y la Promoción de la Salud y la Ciencia; Institut de Recerca de la SIDA IrsiCaixa; Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital <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>Utilizing Novel Blood RNA Biomarkers as a Diagnostic Tool in the Identification of Long COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Diagnostic Test: RNA Biomarker Blood Test <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: MaxWell Clinic, PLC <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>Home-Based Circuit Training in Overweight/Obese Older Adult Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis and Type 2 Diabetes</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Aerobic Exercise; Strength Training; Glycemic Control; Blood Pressure; Oxidative Stress; Metabolic Syndrome <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Behavioral: 12-week home-based circuit training (HBCT); Behavioral: Standard of care (CONT) <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University <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>RECOVER-AUTONOMIC Platform Protocol</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; Long Covid19; Long Covid-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: IVIG + Coordinated Care; Drug: IVIG Placebo + Coordinated Care; Drug: Ivabradine + Coordinated Care; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo + Coordinated Care; Drug: IVIG + Usual Care; Drug: IVIG Placebo + Usual Care; Drug: Ivabradine + Usual Care; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo + Usual Care <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman <br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</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>SVF for Treating Pulmonary Fibrosis Post COVID-19</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Pulmonary Fibrosis <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Biological: Autologous adipose-derived SVF IV administration <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Michael H Carstens; Ministerio de Salud de Nicaragua; Wake Forest University; National Autonomous University of Nicaragua <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>RECOVER-AUTONOMIC: Platform Protocol, Appendix B (Ivabradine)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; Long Covid19; Long Covid-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: Ivabradine; Drug: Ivabradine Placebo; Behavioral: Coordinated Care; Behavioral: Usual Care <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman <br/><b>Enrolling by invitation</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>RECOVER-AUTONOMIC: Platform Protocol, Appendix A (IVIG)</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long COVID; Long Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid19); Long Covid-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Drug: IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulin); Drug: IVIG Placebo; Behavioral: Coordinated Care; Behavioral: Usual Care <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: Kanecia Obie Zimmerman <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>Understanding Adaptive Immune Response After COVID-19 Vaccination Boosters to Improve Vaccination Strategies in Vulnerable Groups.</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: COVID-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Other: Analisys of cellular response and humoral response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccine booster doses <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: IRCCS Sacro Cuore Don Calabria di Negrar <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>COVIDVaxStories: Randomized Trial to Reduce COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in Populations of Color</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Vaccine Hesitancy <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Behavioral: Storytelling; Behavioral: Learn More (Active Comparator) <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: University of Massachusetts, Worcester; Merck Sharp &amp; Dohme LLC <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>An E-health Psychoeducation for People With Bipolar Disorders</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Bipolar Disorder; Psychoeducation; COVID-19 Pandemic <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Other: e-health psychoeducation <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: University of Cagliari; Alessandra Perra <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>Sulfureous Water Therapy in Viral Respiratory Diseases</strong> - <b>Conditions</b>: Long-COVID; Post COVID-19 Condition; Chronic COVID-19 Syndrome; Post Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 <br/><b>Interventions</b>: Other: Inhalation of Sulfurous Thermal Water; Other: Inhalation of Sterile Distilled non-pyrogenic Water <br/><b>Sponsors</b>: University of Roma La Sapienza; Università degli studi di Roma Foro Italico; Queen Mary University of London; Bios Prevention Srl <br/><b>Completed</b></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-pubmed">From PubMed</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Health-promoting benefits of lentils: Anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial effects</strong> - This paper describes how lentils (Lens culinaris species) can positively affect health by reducing inflammation, providing antioxidants, and displaying antimicrobial properties. Lentils are rich in proteins, essential amino acids, minerals, and fibers, making them a valuable source of nutrition, particularly in low and middle-income countries. Lentils have many health benefits, including positive effects on diabetes management, support for cardiovascular health, and antioxidative properties. The…</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>Happy Hour: The association between trait hedonic capacity and motivation to drink alcohol</strong> - The (over)consumption of alcohol and other addictive substances is often conceptualized as a problem of low self-control (i.e., people’s inability to inhibit unwanted impulses). According to that view, people drink because they cannot resist. In the present studies, we approached this from a different perspective and tested whether alcohol consumption might also be a problem of low hedonic capacity (i.e., people’s inability to experience pleasure and relaxation, often due to intrusive thoughts)….</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>Compound C inhibits the replication of feline coronavirus</strong> - Feline Coronavirus (FCoV) is a viral pathogen of cats and a highly contagious virus. Cats in a cattery can be infected by up to 100%, and even household cats are infected by 20-60%. Some strains of FCoV are known to induce a fatal disease in cats named Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). However, no effective treatments are available. We demonstrated that compound C (dorsomorphin) can potentially inhibit feline coronavirus replication. Compound C treatment decreased the FCoV-induced plaque…</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>Hyperoside inhibits EHV-8 infection via alleviating oxidative stress and IFN production through activating JNK/Keap1/Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathways</strong> - Equine herpesvirus type 8 (EHV-8) causes abortion and respiratory disease in horses and donkeys, leading to serious economic losses in the global equine industry. Currently, there is no effective vaccine or drug against EHV-8 infection, underscoring the need for a novel antiviral drug to prevent EHV-8-induced latent infection and decrease the pathogenicity of this virus. The present study demonstrated that hyperoside can exert antiviral effects against EHV-8 infection in RK-13 (rabbit kidney…</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Effect of polyphenols against complications of COVID-19: current evidence and potential efficacy</strong> - The COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2019 and resulted in significant morbidity and mortality continues to be a significant global health challenge, characterized by inflammation, oxidative stress, and immune system dysfunction.. Developing therapies for preventing or treating COVID-19 remains an important goal for pharmacology and drug development research. Polyphenols are effective against various viral infections and can be extracted and isolated from plants without losing their therapeutic…</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 Poly Aptamer Encoded DNA Nanocatcher Informs Efficient Virus Trapping</strong> - Broad-spectrum antiviral platforms are always desired but still lack the ability to cope with the threats to global public health. Herein, we develop a poly aptamer encoded DNA nanocatcher platform that can trap entire virus particles to inhibit infection with a broad antiviral spectrum. Ultralong single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) containing repeated aptamers was synthesized as the scaffold of a nanocatcher via a biocatalytic process, wherein mineralization of magnesium pyrophosphate on the ssDNA…</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>Unveiling the Antiviral Capabilities of Targeting Human Dihydroorotate Dehydrogenase against SARS-CoV-2</strong> - The urgent need for effective treatments against emerging viral diseases, driven by drug-resistant strains and new viral variants, remains critical. We focus on inhibiting the human dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (HsDHODH), one of the main enzymes responsible for pyrimidine nucleotide synthesis. This strategy could impede viral replication without provoking resistance. We evaluated naphthoquinone fragments, discovering potent HsDHODH inhibition with IC(50) ranging from 48 to 684 nM, and promising…</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>Targeting G9a translational mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis for multifaceted therapeutics of COVID-19 and its sequalae</strong> - By largely unknown mechanism(s), SARS-CoV-2 hijacks the host translation apparatus to promote COVID-19 pathogenesis. We report that the histone methyltransferase G9a noncanonically regulates viral hijacking of the translation machinery to bring about COVID-19 symptoms of hyperinflammation, lymphopenia, and blood coagulation. Chemoproteomic analysis of COVID-19 patient peripheral mononuclear blood cells (PBMC) identified enhanced interactions between SARS-CoV-2-upregulated G9a and distinct…</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>Soluble ACE2 correlates with severe COVID-19 and can impair antibody responses</strong> - Identifying immune modulators that impact neutralizing antibody responses against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is of great relevance. We postulated that high serum concentrations of soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (sACE2) might mask the spike and interfere with antibody maturation toward the SARS-CoV-2-receptor-binding motif (RBM). We tested 717 longitudinal samples from 295 COVID-19 patients and showed a 2- to 10-fold increase of enzymatically active…</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>Evaluating Critical Thinking Disposition, Emotional Intelligence, and Learning Environment of Nursing Students: A Longitudinal Study</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: Critical thinking and emotional intelligence did not change, but students favored the online learning environment over the traditional. These findings suggest that nurse educators persevered, adapted, and maintained the quality of the learning environment despite the pandemic. Moreover, the utilization of an online learning environment may have led to enhanced enjoyment and engagement for students, which could potentially result in improved learning outcomes.</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>Asiatic acid cyclodextrin inclusion micro-cocrystal for insoluble drug delivery and acute lung injury therapy enhancement</strong> - CONCLUSION: The micro-sized inclusion cocrystals AA/γCD were successfully delivered into the lungs by pulmonary administration and had a significant therapeutic effect on ALI.</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>Thai traditional medicines reduce CD147 levels in lung cells: Potential therapeutic candidates for cancers, inflammations, and COVID-19</strong> - CONCLUSIONS: UMD and UMM are potential for reduction of CD147 levels which provide a useful information for further development of UM as potential therapeutic candidates for CD147-associated diseases such as cancers, inflammations, and 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>Design, synthesis, and antiviral activity of 1-aryl-4-arylmethylpiperazine derivatives as Zika virus inhibitors with broad antiviral spectrum</strong> - Zika virus (ZIKV) disease has been given attention due to the risk of congenital microcephaly and neurodevelopmental disorders after ZIKV infection in pregnancy, but no vaccine or antiviral drug is available. Based on a previously reported ZIKV inhibitor ZK22, a series of novel 1-aryl-4-arylmethylpiperazine derivatives was designed, synthesized, and investigated for antiviral activity by quantify cellular ZIKV RNA amount using RT-qPCR method in ZIKV-infected human venous endothelial cells…</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 combination of nirmatrelvir and ombitasvir boosts inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 replication</strong> - Antiviral therapeutics are highly effective countermeasures for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, development of resistance to antivirals undermines their effectiveness. Combining multiple antivirals during patient treatment has the potential to overcome the evolutionary selective pressure towards antiviral resistance, as well as provide a more robust and efficacious treatment option. The current evidence for effective antiviral combinations to inhibit severe acute…</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>Novel nitric oxide donors are coronary vasodilators that also bind to the papain-like protease of SARS-CoV-2</strong> - Several investigational nitric oxide donors were originally created to correct vascular endothelial dysfunction in cardiovascular diseases. These 48 compounds contain an urea-like moiety attached to the well-known NO donors isosorbide 2- and 5-mononitrate. CR-0305 and CR-0202 were synthesized and found to be nontoxic in the cell lines HMEC-1, A549/hACE2 and VeroE6. CR-0305 induced vasodilation in human coronary arteries ex vivo. Since NO can also have antiviral properties, a study of…</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-patent-search">From Patent Search</h1>
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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Quinta Brunson Hacked the Sitcom with “Abbott Elementary”</strong> - With “Abbott Elementary,” the comedian and writer found fresh humor and mass appeal in a world she knew well. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/quinta-brunson-profile">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Crime Rings Stealing Everything from Purses to Power Tools</strong> - In Los Angeles, a task force of detectives is battling organized retail theft, in which boosted goods often end up for sale online—or commingled on store shelves with legitimate items. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/the-crime-rings-stealing-everything-from-purses-to-power-tools">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>How Julien’s Auctions Leads the Booming Market in Celebrity Memorabilia</strong> - As the art market cools, Julien’s Auctions earns millions selling celebrity ephemera—and used its connections to help Kim Kardashian borrow Marilyn Monroe’s J.F.K.-birthday dress. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/how-juliens-auctions-leads-the-booming-market-in-celebrity-memorabilia">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Has Putin’s Invasion of Ukraine Improved His Standing in Russia?</strong> - As Russians go to the polls, the economy is booming and the public feels hopeful about the future. But the politics of Putinism still depend on the absence of any means to challenge it. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-weekend-essay/has-putins-invasion-of-ukraine-improved-his-standing-in-russia">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Mike Johnson, the First Proudly Trumpian Speaker</strong> - Though he has adopted a “nerd constitutional-law guy” persona, he is in lockstep with the law-flouting former President. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/25/mike-johnson-profile">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Where is Kate Middleton?</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Princess Kate, in a royal blue coat and hat, bends down to accept a bouquet of red roses from a little girl amid a crowd of onlookers." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/r3Rxp_A7LmaHjg8JxF88a3D7_t8=/645x0:5808x3872/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73175779/1874660179.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Princess Kate the last time she was seen in public, greeting the crowd after attending a Christmas morning service at Sandringham Church on December 25, 2023, in Sandringham, Norfolk. | Stephen Pond/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Her disappearance from public view is getting weirder.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TwBP4b">
Princess Kate, formerly Kate Middleton, one day to become Catherine, Queen Consort of the United Kingdom, has finally reappeared — and this time, she’s live in living color.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lt6VLA">
On March 18, <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2024/03/18/kate-middleton-seen-new-video-windsor-farm-shop-prince-william/">TMZ published a video of Kate</a>, smiling and apparently happy as she walked with Prince William through a grocery store parking lot. Lest anyone think it’s fake, TMZ reports that it has vetted the metadata, and the video was recorded Saturday night in Windsor. It is the least suspicious image of Kate anyone has seen in a good long while.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ueSppB">
For months, one of the world’s most photographed women, a figure who has lived her life genteelly in public since she was Prince William’s college girlfriend, had apparently vanished from public view.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="E8vaLz">
On January 17, <a href="https://www.royal.uk/news-and-activity/2024-01-17/a-statement-from-kensington-palace">Kensington Palace announced</a> that Kate had entered the hospital the day before for planned abdominal surgery. “The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate,” the announcement read. “She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; and her wish that her personal medical information remains private.” It added that she was “unlikely” to resume her public duties until Easter, which falls this year on March 31.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="A2Mu7b">
So far, Kate has stuck to the previously announced schedule. <a href="https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/1751938452721996034">Kensington Palace announced on January 29</a> that she had returned home, on track with her planned 10 to 14 days of hospital recovery. Currently, it is not yet Easter, and she has not yet resumed her duties. Yet the long pause in Kate’s public appearances and the lack of concrete information about her health has created a fertile breeding ground for conspiracy theories. When <a href="https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/tradition/a46986618/kate-middleton-update-prince-william-misses-memorial/">Prince William canceled a planned appearance</a> of his own on February 27, citing a “personal matter,” rumors began to fly.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IedlAr">
Something, some people theorized, had gone terribly wrong with Kate’s health. Perhaps she was in real danger of dying. <a href="https://www.thelist.com/1526431/concha-calleja-kate-middleton-coma-claims/">Perhaps she was in an induced coma</a>. Perhaps her marriage to William was on the rocks, and she was in hiding. Perhaps she’d been killed and would be replaced by a body double. As the story took off, the joke theories began to take up more space: Kate was waiting for bad bangs to grow out, or to recover from plastic surgery; she’d become the villain in the viral <a href="https://www.vox.com/technology/2024/2/28/24086217/willy-wonka-glasgow-scotland">Willy Wonka experience</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="x3XuUp">
Meanwhile, responses from Kensington Palace have failed to set the public’s mind at ease. At first, <a href="https://people.com/kate-middleton-doing-well-recovery-surgery-prince-william-pulls-out-memorial-service-8600805">all the Palace would say</a> was that Kate “continues to be doing well.” On March 4, <a href="https://www.etonline.com/see-kate-middleton-for-the-first-time-since-hospitalization-for-abdominal-surgery-pic-220894">she was photographed</a> driving in a car with her mother, Carol Middleton, in a grainy image that the Palace firmly disavowed as unsanctioned.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9SGoLX">
On March 10, Kensington Palace <a href="https://uk.news.yahoo.com/picture-agencies-pull-kate-photo-214600346.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAHC97tmmo87KJOEm7YLrtZPfWYUeiEdxu2M0I_5TFSPzME8LtpX4vswH1EqzcAK6_RwwS8ag2Qdm4tWLp3fuQDbonpf_Ee4KLPdbqkVTfdeei8gbv9Jm8zaIlYiRzswOIGJFS2VTEzG-MfUl-wuMwOa2XoVsBNHRVvJodV4Jj64S">circulated a picture</a> of the Princess of Wales smiling with her children in honor of Mother’s Day in the UK. The picture would have marked the second of only two public appearances by Kate since Christmas Day — but shortly after the picture came out, it was marred by scandal. Multiple major photo agencies, including the AP and Reuters, concluded that the image had been “manipulated” and issued a kill notice for it.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eiaiiD">
The next day, on March 11, the X account for the Prince and Princess of Wales <a href="https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/1767135566645092616">posted an apology</a> reading, “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day.” It was signed “C,” for Catherine. Later that same day, she was reportedly photographed leaving Windsor Castle, according to the <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2024/03/11/royal-family-photo-kate-princess-of-wales-live-latest/">Telegraph</a>. The picture shows Prince William in a car next to a brunette woman, with her ear and a bit of cheek visible.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="C4XL1x">
In the absence of a clear image of Kate, the rumors roared on. Most of the conspiracy theories are silly, but they were all reacting to a real issue. Kate has long been a reliable pillar of the British family, showing up and smiling at every public event at which she was asked to appear, reacting to the Sturm und Drang of royal drama with an air of determined normalcy. Then she did something decidedly out of the ordinary: She disappeared.
</p>
<div id="1DCFWR">
</div>
<h3 id="C7o4ms">
Why some people think Kate’s cover story was fishy
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Eisuz1">
Officially, Kate was in the hospital for planned abdominal surgery. Still, skeptical onlookers pounced almost immediately on an apparent discrepancy in <a href="https://www.royal.uk/news-and-activity/2024-01-17/a-statement-from-kensington-palace">Kensington Palace’s first statement about her health</a> on January 17. If Kate’s surgery was “planned,” the onlookers demanded to know, then why had the Palace also said that she was “postponing her upcoming engagements?” How far in advance could this surgery really have been planned?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FZ254J">
Also raising eyebrows was the detail that Kate would be recovering from her surgery for “10 to 14 days.” Some abdominal surgeries can be minor, like an appendectomy, but those procedures don’t come with such lengthy in-patient stays. What kind of surgery was Kate undergoing that she wouldn’t be able to go back home for two weeks afterward?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cUrLzT">
The speculation only increased when Buckingham Palace announced the same day that King Charles would be receiving treatment for an enlarged prostate. For two such high-ranking royals to be undergoing medical procedures at the same time was unusual, almost shocking. Royal watchers speculated that <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/royals/king-charles-protected-kate-middleton-31937497">the palace was trying to cover something up</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kxQvAt">
As the weeks went by, Kate’s condition remained mysterious, while Charles was almost pointedly transparent about his own health. In February he announced that <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/king-charles-cancer-diagnosis-health-update-undergoing-treatment/">he had been diagnosed with cancer</a>, that it had been caught early, that he was doing well, and that he had begun treatment. As for Kate, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/28/style/princess-kate-middleton-health.html">Kensington Palace would only say tersely</a> that her condition was “not cancerous.” Why, royal watchers demanded, was Kate’s condition so much more mysterious than the king’s was?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="159FsB">
The more time went by without so much as a single blurry telephoto lens shot of Kate, the more the rumors built. <a href="https://people.com/prince-william-visits-kate-middleton-hospital-after-abdominal-surgery-8431213">William was photographed visiting the hospital</a>, but no one saw Kate make her way out of the hospital and back to her own home in Windsor Home Park.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AMN9Z4">
Under normal circumstances, the lack of photos of a woman recovering from a medical procedure would be recognized as a reasonable respect for someone’s privacy. However, the life of a future queen of England is not normal circumstances. In a country with a <a href="https://www.rd.com/list/why-british-tabloids-are-more-extreme-than-americas/">notoriously ruthless tabloid press</a>, royals are considered to be fair game as much as anyone.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wwLL0P">
Royals are expected to keep the public informed on their well-being, to play the game with <a href="https://www.vox.com/media">the media</a>. The royal women, particularly, are expected to meet nearly impossible expectations: to be always beautifully groomed, always pleasant, always available to their public, no matter the circumstances. Kate has traditionally done so with reliable goodwill. <a href="https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/tradition/a19674665/kate-middleton-post-birth-appearance-differences-comparison/">After the birth of each of her three children</a>, Kate appeared dutifully in front of the hospital in full hair and makeup for a photo op for the paparazzi within 24 hours, and she did it with a cheerful smile each time to boot. What made this particular procedure different? What had kept Kate from wanting to show her face, and kept the press from demanding to show it anyway? Why did the palace eventually feel driven to release an apparently manipulated photo of her?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="V0fgPs">
“You’re telling me that Kate Middleton—the same woman who posed outside the hospital like a freaking supermodel mere hours after giving birth—suddenly requires months of recovery before showing her face?” <a href="https://twitter.com/MRSFVenom/status/1762128060185219379">posted one onlooker on X, summing up the skepticism</a>. “And the British press now magically respects privacy? This feels…sinister.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jHet8u">
“Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates. That guidance stands,” <a href="https://people.com/palace-responds-kate-middleton-conspiracy-theories-online-surgery-recovery-rare-statement-8602191">palace representatives said in February</a>.
</p>
<h3 id="HDBe3H">
A brief history of Princess Kate’s reliability
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="pyIyjW">
Kate’s disappearance seems to strike people as odd because it is so counter to her brand. For as long as she has been in the public eye, Kate has been dependable, reliable, and always there. Constancy is so clearly central to Kate’s public image that the press has made it at various points her most heroic trait and her only liability.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LR9EzM">
Even early in her relationship with Prince William, during which the press granted her the humiliating nickname of “Waity Katie,” Kate was polite to the paparazzi. She didn’t cultivate a chummy relationship with them, as the late Princess Diana did at certain parts of her career, but she also didn’t try to outmaneuver them. She knew what they wanted and she was matter-of-fact about it. In <em>The Palace Papers</em>, royal journalist Tina Brown describes how the paparazzi would show up outside the midmarket fashion line where Kate worked while she and William were dating. Her boss would ask if she wanted to sneak out the back, but Kate would reply, “To be honest, they’re going to hound us until they’ve got the picture. So why don’t I just go, get the picture done, and then they’ll leave us alone.” She was right.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="U1miTG">
After Kate and William married in 2011, Kate enjoyed a brief honeymoon period as one of the most popular members of the royal family. With her famously shiny hair and demurely polished wardrobe, she had, like Diana before her, a dash of the kind of glamor that could make the dowdy Windsor brand feel new again. At the same time, she was so sensible, so straightforward, so clearly walking into her fate with open eyes and a cool head. She was not the kind of woman who would be destroyed by the pressures of royal life. She would be, as Brown writes in <em>The Palace Papers</em>, “unlike the child-bride Diana, road tested in resilience as well as royal life.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dzNQIa">
When <a href="https://www.vox.com/culture/22323456/harry-meghan-markle-diana-oprah-interview-cbs">Prince Harry married Meghan Markle in 2018</a>, Kate and Meghan became each other’s foils in the press, and once again, Kate’s constancy was her defining feature. When Meghan was popular, Kate was the drab and conservative duchess of yesterday compared to Meghan’s exciting progressivism. When Meghan was unpopular, <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ellievhall/meghan-markle-kate-middleton-double-standards-royal">or the British press was feeling particularly racist</a>, Kate was the steadfast maternal icon who could be counted on to lead the British in times of trouble, whereas Meghan was troublingly mercurial and far too trendy to be trusted.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dzy1wQ">
The royal family has contracted over the past few years, with <a href="https://www.vox.com/culture/2022/9/8/22846451/queen-elizabeth-ii-death-96-obituary-reign-monarchy">the older generation dying off</a> and members of the younger generation <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2020/1/8/21057103/meghan-harry-step-back-royal-duties">drawing back</a> or <a href="https://www.vox.com/2019/11/17/20969336/prince-andrew-epstein-bbc-interview-statement-news">becoming mired in scandal</a>. Yet as her press coverage fluctuates, Kate has continued performing her duties, almost always with her signature public smile: cheerful, reliable, the face of a woman pleased to be doing what’s right. She is a star player for the royal family in a dangerous time of transition. She is always where she should be.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wM2ybk">
“The inescapable truth is that in the unlikely event that the Cambridge marriage [between William and Kate] ever becomes troubled, the whole Windsor house of cards could come tumbling down,” writes Brown in <em>The Palace Papers</em>. “Kate has become a cherished national icon of flawless motherhood.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="07CfRr">
Under these circumstances, Kate’s disappearance goes from benign oddity to near scandal: something totally out of the norm for a very public and very reliable figure. Even now that she’s begun to reemerge, it’s unlikely that waiting watchers will learn more about what she’s been up to than they can glean from a silent phone camera video. If there’s one thing Princess Kate knows how to do as well as smile, it’s how to keep her mouth shut.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IRx9IJ">
<em><strong>Update, March 18, 5:15 pm</strong></em><em>: This story was originally published on March 1 and has been updated multiple times, most recently to include mention of TMZ’s publication of a video reported to be Kate.</em>
</p></li>
<li><strong>Brett Kavanaugh rides to the Biden administration’s defense in a big First Amendment case</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="President Joe Biden and Justice Kavanaugh, both wearing suits, smile at each other." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hM8OSCBlXOZiXUkIlvDQ0Jh3qd0=/234x0:4279x3034/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73216162/1246877112.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
President Joe Biden greets Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh before delivering the State of the Union address on February 7, 2023, in Washington, DC. | Jacquelyn Martin/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The Supreme Court’s center right appears increasingly frustrated with the judiciary’s far right.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mLK3ac">
There are several recent signs that the federal judiciary’s center right is losing patience with its far right.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rLc3wS">
Last week, a policymaking body within the judiciary announced new steps to <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/2024/3/12/24098760/supreme-court-matthew-kacsmaryk-judge-shopping-republicans-judicial-conference">combat “judge shopping,”</a> a practice that has allowed Republican litigants to <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2022/12/17/23512766/supreme-court-matthew-kacsmaryk-judge-trump-abortion-immigration-birth-control">choose to have their cases heard by partisan judges</a> who are well to the right of even the median Trump appointee. The <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus">Supreme Court</a> has also heard several cases in its current term where it appears likely to <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/23845702/supreme-court-fifth-circuit-term-cfpb-guns-voting-chevron">reverse rulings made by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit</a>, a MAGA stronghold that frequently hands down decisions that appear designed to sabotage the <a href="https://www.vox.com/joe-biden">Biden administration</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kNIOFH">
On Monday, the Supreme Court held oral arguments in one of these Fifth Circuit cases, known as <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/murthy-v-missouri-3/"><em>Murthy v. Missouri</em></a>, where the lower court handed down a <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/2024/3/11/24092227/supreme-court-murthy-missouri-nra-vullo-first-amendment-social-media">sweeping injunction</a> forbidding much of the federal government from having any communications at all with social <a href="https://www.vox.com/media">media companies</a>. A majority of the justices appeared very unlikely to sustain that injunction on Monday, with Justice Brett Kavanaugh repeatedly noting that the Fifth Circuit’s approach would prevent the most routine interactions between government officials and the media.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3c6Rrx">
<em>Murthy</em> was one of two cases heard by the justices on Monday involving so-called “jawboning” — cases where the government tried to pressure private companies into taking certain actions, without necessarily using its coercive power to do so. The other case, known as <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/national-rifle-association-of-america-v-vullo/"><em>National Rifle Association v. Vullo</em></a><em>, </em>involves a fairly egregious violation of the First Amendment. Based on Monday’s argument, as many as all nine of the justices may side with the NRA in that case. (You can read our coverage of the <em>NRA</em> case <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/2024/3/11/24092227/supreme-court-murthy-missouri-nra-vullo-first-amendment-social-media">here</a>.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rmN4OZ">
Most of the justices, in other words, appeared eager to resolve both cases without significantly altering their Court’s First Amendment doctrines, and without disrupting the government’s ability to function. That’s good news for the NRA, but also good news for the Biden administration.
</p>
<h3 id="1gfNxE">
So what is the <em>Murthy</em> case about?
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cqCSec">
The general rule in First Amendment cases is that the federal government may not coerce a media company into changing which content it publishes, but it can ask a platform or outlet to remove or alter its content. Indeed, as Kavanaugh pointed out a few times during the oral argument, if the government were not allowed to do so, White House press aides and the like wouldn’t be allowed to speak to reporters to try to shape their coverage.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mXFJ5j">
In <em>Murthy</em>, various officials throughout the federal government had many communications with major social media platforms, where the officials either asked the platforms to remove certain content or provided them with information that convinced the platforms to do so.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LwEsqr">
These communications <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/2024/3/11/24092227/supreme-court-murthy-missouri-nra-vullo-first-amendment-social-media">concerned many topics</a>. The FBI, for example, frequently contacts social media platforms to warn them about criminal or terroristic activity that is occurring online. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) flags social media content for the platforms that contains election-related disinformation, such as false statements about when an election will take place. The White House sometimes asks social media companies to remove accounts that falsely impersonate a member of the president’s family.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Y457yv">
Many of these communications also involved government requests that the platforms pull down information that contains false and harmful health information, including misinformation about <a href="https://www.vox.com/coronavirus-covid19">Covid-19</a>. And these communications were center stage during the <em>Murthy</em> oral argument — the <em>Murthy</em> plaintiffs include several individuals who are <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/23/23-411/299644/20240202144405984_2024-02-02%20-%20Murthy%20v.%20Missouri%20-%20Brief%20of%20Respondents%20-%20Final%20with%20Tables.pdf">upset that their content was removed</a> because the platforms determined that it was Covid misinformation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KlWRyo">
These plaintiffs were able to identify several examples where government officials were curt, bossy, or otherwise rude to representatives from the social media companies when those companies refused to pull down content that the government asked them to remove. Notably, however, <a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/2024/3/11/24092227/supreme-court-murthy-missouri-nra-vullo-first-amendment-social-media">neither these plaintiffs nor the Fifth Circuit identified a single example</a> where a government official threatened some kind of consequence if a platform did not comply with the government’s requests.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0qf1EU">
Instead, the Fifth Circuit appeared to complain about the fact that the government has so many communications with social media companies. It claimed that the Biden administration violated the First Amendment because government officials “<a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/2023/9/22/23883888/supreme-court-social-media-first-amendment-netchoice-paxton-murthy-missouri-twitter-facebook">entangled themselves in the platforms’ decision-making processes</a>,” and ordered the government to stop having “consistent and consequential” communications with social media platforms.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BCVF8W">
It’s unclear what that decision even means — how many times, exactly, may the government talk to a social media company before it violates the Fifth Circuit’s order? — and at least six of the justices appeared frustrated by the Fifth Circuit’s ham-handed approach to this case.
</p>
<h3 id="mf3mZa">
The two justices who’ve worked in senior White House jobs appeared especially dismissive of the Fifth Circuit’s position
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZEKq2a">
Justices Elena Kagan and Kavanaugh seemed especially frustrated with the Fifth Circuit’s attempt to shut down communication between the government and the platforms, and for the same reason. Both Kagan and Kavanaugh worked in high-level White House jobs — Kagan as deputy domestic policy adviser to President Bill Clinton, and Kavanaugh as staff secretary to President George W. Bush — and both recoiled at the suggestion that the White House can’t try to persuade the media to change what it publishes.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Fah2ab">
Kavanaugh, a Republican appointed by <a href="https://www.vox.com/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>, even rose to the government’s defense after Justice Samuel Alito attacked Biden administration officials who, Alito claimed, were too demanding toward the platforms.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="z8zvBd">
After Alito ranted about what he called “constant pestering” by White House officials who would sometimes “curse” at corporate officials or treat them like “subordinates,” Kavanaugh said that, in his experience, White House press aides often call up members of the media and “berate” them if they don’t like the press’s coverage.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="LOeA7P">
Similarly, Kagan admitted that “like Justice Kavanaugh, I’ve had experience encouraging people to suppress their own speech” after a journalist published a bad editorial or a piece with a factual error. But this sort of routine back-and-forth between White House officials and reporters is not a First Amendment violation unless there is some kind of threat or coercion. Why should the rule be any different for social media companies?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="K5oq8E">
So Benjamin Aguiñaga, the lawyer trying to defend the Fifth Circuit’s order, arrived at the Court this morning facing an already skeptical bench. And his disastrous response to a hypothetical from <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/22995032/supreme-court-nominee-ketanji-brown-jackson">Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson</a> only dug him deeper into a hole.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="z7r7t4">
Jackson imagined a scenario where various people online challenged teenagers to jump out of windows and that there actually was an epidemic of teens seriously injuring themselves by doing so. Could the government, she asked, encourage the platforms to pull down content urging young people to defenestrate themselves?
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fyaqS4">
Aguiñaga’s answer was “no” — an answer that provoked an incredulous Chief Justice John Roberts to restate the question and ask Aguiñaga to answer it again. And yet the lawyer still clung to his view that the government cannot encourage <a href="https://www.vox.com/twitter">Twitter</a> or <a href="https://www.vox.com/facebook">Facebook</a> to remove content urging people to hurl themselves out of windows.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TgRSuv">
It is likely, for what it’s worth, that at least two justices will dissent. Last October, the Court <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23a243_7l48.pdf">temporarily blocked the Fifth Circuit’s <em>Murthy</em> decision</a> while this case was being litigated before the justices, but it did so over objections by three justices: Alito, plus Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jfXMDu">
On Monday, Gorsuch did ask a few questions suggesting that he may have reconsidered his previous position because he now views the Fifth Circuit’s injunction as too broad, but Thomas and Alito appeared determined to back their fellow members of the judiciary’s far right.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7hWQsx">
So, while an alliance between the Court’s center left and its center right appears likely to hold in the <em>Murthy</em> case, that could change rapidly if former President Donald Trump is returned to office and gets to replace some of the current justices with members of the Fifth Circuit (or with other judges who share Thomas and Alito’s MAGA-infused approach to judging).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WMPZSX">
But for the time being, at least, most of the justices appear to recognize that the government needs to function. And that means that the Fifth Circuit’s attempt to cut off communications between the Biden administration and the platforms is likely to fail.
</p></li>
<li><strong>The Mr. Beastification of entertainment</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FOfw-RwO6D_1OFmAnpMc5VbLROs=/76x0:987x683/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73216060/GettyImages_1247748364.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Jimmy Donaldson, a.k.a. Mr. Beast, at the 2023 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards. | Michael Tran/AFP via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The most popular YouTuber in the world is going Hollywood.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="itrZzj">
A helicopter drops Mr. Beast and his friends onto the roof of an abandoned hotel, resting on the water’s edge of a Mediterranean resort town. They’re about to spend the next seven days there, trying not to die, all in service of a recent YouTube video called “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWYsfOSY9vY">I Survived 7 Days in an Abandoned City</a>.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SF0i8A">
“This once beautiful city was bombed and abandoned because of war,” Mr. Beast’s voiceover explains. Which city? What war? It’s not yet clear, and at no point in the rest of the 17-minute video does MrBeast (as it’s styled on his channel) — age 25, real name Jimmy Donaldson — explain where he is. Outside of a half-second appearance of a postcard with the town’s name (Kupari), the location and its history as a casualty of the Croatian War of Independence in the early 1990s goes unacknowledged.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HGFCI6">
Why he’s there, however, is obvious to anyone familiar with his oeuvre. Mr. Beast is a <a href="https://www.vox.com/youtube">YouTube</a> creator whose approach to video production is far less interested in what is on screen than in what will make the numbers in the bottom left corner go up. What matters is more views, longer watch times, and more subscribers, and nothing in a Mr. Beast video is not in service of this goal: not the creepily airbrushed thumbnails, not the titles with an ever-increasing number of zeros (“<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxYjTTXc-J8">Last to Leave Circle Wins $500,000</a>,” “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktyJIj6i4Qw">If You Can Carry $1,000,000 You Keep It!</a>,” “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ryID_SwU5E">$1 vs $100,000,000 House</a>!”), not the watch time (usually around 20 minutes, or roughly the length of a meal), not the total lack of politics, current events, or extraneous details like, say, the complex aftermath of the breakup of Yugoslavia.
</p>
<div id="rUhBbe">
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;">
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Vyfx9A">
Since starting his YouTube channel in 2012 at age 13, Donaldson has been a devoted student of virality, shirking basically everything else in his life in service to the YouTube algorithm. It worked; at 244 million subscribers, his is currently the second most popular channel in the world, second only to T-Series, an Indian record label. (Cocomelon, the <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/12/20/21025139/youtube-kids-coppa-law-ftc-2020">beloved of iPad babies</a>, is third.) His enormous fanbase, largely made up of children and teenagers, doesn’t mind that he is, as the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/12/magazine/mrbeast-youtube.html">New York Times magazine put it</a>, “not particularly funny or well spoken or physically striking,” nor that he’s a socially awkward introvert <a href="https://archive.is/MpzVg">who is</a> “not really good at keeping friends.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="SCQrfe">
They care about him because Donaldson has figured out what makes a perfect YouTube video, how to capture young people’s dwindling attention spans by giving them nonstop visual stimulation with just enough real human drama and glimpses of the American dream that they can feel good about watching it. Now, with a just-<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/mr-beast-tv-series-amazon-youtube-1235854631/">announced deal</a> — rumored to be worth as much as <a href="https://variety.com/2024/digital/news/mrbeast-reality-show-amazon-prime-video-1235882230/">$100 million</a> — to host an <a href="https://www.vox.com/amazon">Amazon</a> reality competition show with the biggest single prize in TV history ($5 million), he’s coming for Hollywood, too.
</p>
<div>
<aside id="xW8dUU">
<q>If your first thought is that this sounds a little icky, you’ve probably aged out of the Mr. Beast demographic</q>
</aside>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9pRYio">
The Mr. Beast origin story, as recounted in profiles in <a href="https://time.com/collection/time100-leadership-series/6693255/mrbeast-interview/">Time</a>, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/mrbeast-youtube-cover-story-interview-1334604/">Rolling Stone</a>, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-22/who-is-mrbeast-meet-youtube-s-top-creator-of-2020">Bloomberg</a>, and the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/12/magazine/mrbeast-youtube.html">New York Times</a>, goes like this: After a Crohn’s disease diagnosis halted his baseball career in his sophomore year of high school, he turned his focus to his YouTube page, where he already had a presence making gaming content. Over time, his channel filled up with the standard fare of a teenage boy experimenting to see what sticks: There are bait-y headlines about “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qy17S3g8ZuY">HOW TO UNLOCK ANY IPHONE</a>,” <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSDBr0WjrwQ"><em>Bee Movie</em> memes</a>, silly stunts (he counts to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ax56oRhcZc">10,000</a> and later <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWcldHxHFpo">100,000</a> in one sitting, then watches fellow YouTuber Jake Paul’s terrible music video, “It’s Everyday Bro” <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJwX2jTXWwQ">for 10 hours straight)</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG1N5kzeAhM">letters to his future self</a> (naturally, they are all about how many subscribers he hopes to have).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dPwje9">
After dropping out of community college midway through his first semester, his mother kicked him out of the house. Luckily, he’d also just scored his first brand deal and used the money in a video called “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_GMakKf7G4">Giving A Random Homeless Man $10,000</a>” in which he does just that. Its success was the beginning of a cycle in which the more money he’d give away, the more attention it got, the more money he’d make from sponsorships, and the more money he’d be able to give away next time.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r3I6tn">
It’s a cycle that’s continued to this day, where a typical Mr. Beast video might pit <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxYjTTXc-J8">a hundred people against each other to win $500,000</a> (the last to leave a certain designated area wins the money; at one point the contestants were forced to stand still for 24 hours straight and the last 10 remained in the circle for a full 12 days), or, in his most popular video ever, create <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0e3GPea1Tyg">a real-life version</a> of the dystopian Korean <a href="https://www.vox.com/netflix">Netflix</a> series <em>Squid Game</em>. On his charity-focused channel, Beast Philanthropy, Donaldson films himself and his team <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCKQBMlXeGc">rebuilding a school in Cameroon</a>, paying for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q49kJeG6nr8">kids’ cleft palate surgeries</a>, and giving away <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idtvY5lN314">$30 million worth of food</a>.
</p>
<div id="vu5Oep">
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;">
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="QVDChZ">
If your first thought is that this sounds a little icky, you’ve probably aged out of the Mr. Beast demographic, who have grown up less on traditional film and <a href="https://www.vox.com/tv">television</a> created by adults and more on videos created by <a href="https://www.vox.com/influencers">influencers</a> not much older than themselves. Last year, when Donaldson advertised his video “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ2ifmkGGus">1,000 Blind People See for the First Time</a>,” the lawyer and popular TikToker Alex Clavering <a href="https://twitter.com/LolOverruled/status/1619538554555895808">tweeted</a>, “There is something so demonic about this and I can’t even articulate what it is.” 81,000 people liked the tweet, drawing the stark differences between the kind of people who watch Mr. Beast videos and (presumably older) people who use <a href="https://www.vox.com/twitter">Twitter</a>. While many have criticized Donaldson for <a href="https://www.deseret.com/entertainment/2023/8/29/23849563/mrbeast-criticized-white-savior-orphanage/">white saviorism</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVWAh8WlcHg&amp;t=3s">poverty profiteering</a>, and <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/social-media/2023/02/tasteless-dangerous-rise-charity-porn-content">exploitation</a>, Clavering <a href="https://twitter.com/LolOverruled/status/1619603876742832128">made clear</a> that it wasn’t Donaldson’s individual acts of <a href="https://www.vox.com/philanthropy">philanthropy</a> that felt off, it’s the implication that “a single rich guy paid for life-changing surgery for us, and it’s easy to do this.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="aASfss">
In response to such criticisms, Donaldson <a href="https://twitter.com/MrBeast/status/1720840900283163032">has tweeted</a>, “I already know I’m gonna get canceled because I uploaded a video helping people, and to be 100% clear, I don’t care.” As with any celebrity as famous as Mr. Beast, with every bit of criticism, the comments and replies are filled with his defenders.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eGfojm">
In part, this is because Mr. Beast’s viewers, like any fans, feel as though they know him, even if it’s mediated through a screen. His videos almost always feature his clique: employees-slash-friends Karl Jacobs, Chandler Hallow, Tareq Salameh, Nolan Hansen, and Kris Tyson, the latter of whom <a href="https://people.com/mrbeast-kris-tyson-6-months-on-hormone-replacement-therapy-new-photo-7567530">came out</a> as <a href="https://www.vox.com/lgbtq">transgender</a> last year. In the face of fans’ <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/mrbeast-fans-chris-tyson-gender-presentation-1234712381/">harassment</a>, Donaldson defended Tyson in a tweet, <a href="https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/mrbeast-anti-trans-chris-tyson-transphobia-video-1235583400/">writing</a> “All this transphobia is starting to piss me off.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="d5HVIc">
Donaldson has admitted he isn’t good at keeping friends <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/mrbeast-youtube-cover-story-interview-1334604/">and that</a> “all my friends revolve around work.” In recounting his first meeting with his now-girlfriend, South African esports caster Thea Booysen, Donaldson <a href="https://www.unilad.com/technology/social-media/mrbeast-girlfriend-test-860423-20231108">said on a podcast</a> that he had to pepper her with specific questions before dating because “I don’t really get along with women if they don’t love learning, they’re not obsessive, they don’t have a hobby.” His perfect idea of a date, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F73I47u1iQU">he said</a>, is the two of them taking an IQ test and then studying to see if they can beat their scores.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PiAkPL">
Donaldson currently employs 500 people, 300 on his production team and 200 at his snack company, Feastables, which <a href="https://time.com/collection/time100-leadership-series/6693255/mrbeast-interview/">reportedly</a> accounts for about 70 percent of his total revenue. They’re based in Greenville, North Carolina, where he’s <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/11/03/mr-beast-money-hometown-greenville-creator-economy/">transformed the town</a> into a creator economy paradise, complete with a five-home cul-de-sac locals call “Beastville” where he and his crew live and work. He’s now a citywide hero, acting as something between Santa Claus and Willy Wonka: Kids reportedly crowd around wherever he goes, dreaming of being in one of his videos.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Ym8a2DZ3Otb_iUl769ESM1yR2PE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25342761/GettyImages_1420812477.jpg"/> <cite>Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images for MrBeast Burger</cite>
<figcaption>
Mr. Beast at the opening of the first Mr. Beast Burger restaurant at the American Dream mall in New Jersey.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bmiUsZ">
The more immediate issue with producing the world’s most-viewed YouTube videos is what it takes to make them: Not only are they expensive (the <em>Squid Game</em> video reportedly cost <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/12/magazine/mrbeast-youtube.html">$3.5 million</a>), but former employees have accused the Mr. Beast company of fostering dangerous and exploitative conditions. One <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/technology/mr-beast-youtube.html">editor said</a> that Donaldson berated him almost every day, called him offensive names, and described a workplace of favoritism and toxic perfectionism. Another former employee <a href="https://time.com/collection/time100-leadership-series/6693255/mrbeast-interview/">said</a> that he believed he was let go because he was the only one campaigning for better safety protocols; in response, a Mr. Beast spokesperson told Time that “the company has high standards for performance and not everyone is best suited for this work.” Because of Donaldson’s reputation for giving money away to subscribers, scammers have <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/mrbeast-impersonators-scamming-fans-money-1234795000/">used his likeness</a> to promote <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/mrbeast-ai-tiktok-ad-deepfake-rcna118596">AI giveaways</a> and referral schemes (Donaldson has also been accused of misleading his followers by promoting a <a href="https://www.gfinityesports.com/gaming-news/MrBeasts-fans-believe-he-has-misled-them-into-a-Refinable-crypto-scam/">cryptocurrency that tanked in 2021</a>).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XX5WYb">
Despite pulling in around $600 million to $700 million per year, according to <a href="https://time.com/collection/time100-leadership-series/6693255/mrbeast-interview/">his own estimate</a>, Donaldson’s production company does not make a profit and does not expect to be profitable this year. Instead, he reinvests the money into his charity channel and his other videos, or his numerous other business ventures. Primary among them is Feastables, the snack brand that once included a chocolate bar called “Deez Nuts” (they’re no longer allowed to use the name after a company called Dee’s Nuts <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mrbeast-can-no-longer-use-deez-nuts-on-feastables-branding-2023-12">won a lawsuit</a> against it). He’s currently planning Mr. Beast-branded games and apps, and has a deal with the collectible toy company <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/beast-of-a-partnership-moose-toys-and-mrbeast-join-forces-for-most-anticipated-new-launch-of-the-year-302044637.html">Moose Toys</a>. Though he briefly ran a ghost kitchen burger chain, last year <a href="https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/mrbeast-burger-lawsuit-inedible-response-1235685415/">Donaldson sued</a> the operating company, calling the burgers “disgusting” and “inedible”; they then <a href="https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/mr-beast-sued-burger-company-100-million-1235689127/">countersued</a>.
</p>
<div>
<aside id="u1E09t">
<q>“The more I suffer, the more you guys watch”</q>
</aside>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="K3wqNL">
There’s a solid chance that, if you’re reading this, you find Mr. Beast’s whole thing rather distasteful and/or a grim signifier of the state of children’s entertainment: uninterested in quality and only making bigger, louder, more attention-grabbing and easier-to-consume content for kids to get addicted to and form misguided <a href="https://www.vox.com/ad/18080060/psychology-of-binge-watching-tv-movies">parasocial relationships</a> with. These interpretations may be true, but what’s at least a little bit interesting about Mr. Beast is that the man behind it <a href="https://twitter.com/MrBeast/status/1695493740331446648?s=20">doesn’t appear</a> to be enjoying himself.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AVRbD6">
Watch enough of his videos and you’ll have seen Donaldson spend <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bqk6ZUsKyA">50 hours buried alive</a> (and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dYTw-jAYkY">later a whole week</a>), <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IKab3HcfFk">50 hours in Antarctica</a>, 24 hours <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZQhgExjBvQ">trapped in ice</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaIgyRoUkQI">30 days without food</a>, seven days <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_CbgLpvH9E">alone in a white padded room</a> (a video that made me feel deranged by the end of it), and a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhB3BgJyGl8">full week on a small raft</a> in the middle of the ocean. (Which ocean? C’mon, we’ve been through this.) He has paid <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLt73w6criQ">assassins</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQHEJj68Jew">bounty hunters</a>, the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxwpkM5w3Cc">FBI</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbJJwaVdgIs">US military</a> members to try and hunt him and lost money in the process.
</p>
<div id="wL3jNQ">
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;">
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UMdTTd">
After consuming enough Mr. Beast content, it’s hard not to wonder who’s actually having fun here and to think how much you’d rather watch a behind-the-scenes documentary about the grunt work that goes into each video. “The more I suffer, the more you guys watch,” he says on day four of being trapped at sea. Later, as a storm approaches and he and his crew attempt to build a waterproof structure that will last the night, he delivers an upbeat scripted ad for Shopify. (The structure does not hold and they all have to sleep under soaked-through towels; one of his crew members describes it as “the worst experience I’ve ever had in my entire life.”)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="8pDHWr">
Some of his former employees have spoken out against these kinds of stunts and brainless stimulation for clicks; one director of a Mr. Beast video <a href="https://time.com/collection/time100-leadership-series/6693255/mrbeast-interview/">told Time</a>, “These algorithms are poisonous to humanity. They prioritize addictive, isolated experiences over ethical social design, all just for ads. It’s not MrBeast I have a problem with. It’s platforms which encourage someone like me to study a retention graph so I can make the next video more addicting. At Beast I did that on steroids.” By <a href="https://twitter.com/bpoppenheimer/status/1633158463361634306?s=12&amp;t=GArJOEJ41SKT7sLfzFsugQ&amp;utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email">exploiting YouTube’s algorithm</a>, Mr. Beast has created a modern-day arena for influencer-gladiators to torture each other and where average Joes can compete for a piece of the spoils. It’s <em>Jackass</em> if the <em>Jackass</em> dudes read self-help books and <a href="https://twitter.com/MrBeast/status/1285974639462830081">idolized Elon Musk</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Qy12fc">
This is a strategy that legacy entertainment companies are looking to mimic. With his Amazon competition show, Donaldson is the latest in a long list of digital native influencers <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-youtubers-struggle-to-break-into-mainstream-entertainment-2019-12">who’ve attempted to go Hollywood</a>, usually with floundering success. That’s because famous influencers are in large part one-person shows who deeply understand their followers, and studio executives and traditional film and television producers have different goals and different audiences to attract. It hasn’t stopped them from trying to harness the popularity of influencers, of course, but the pivot doesn’t always land.
</p>
<p class="c-end-para" data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="MSaJ1s">
What’s easier to imagine than Mr. Beast becoming, say, a late-night talk show host or TV presenter is the entertainment industry continuing its current race to the bottom of <a href="https://www.honest-broker.com/p/the-state-of-the-culture-2024?utm_source=www.garbageday.email&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=the-cnn-mtv-and-disney-of-the-future">what’s profitable in the attention economy</a>. By leaning harder into algorithmically generated recommendations and lowest-common-denominator programming, they’re mirroring the Mr. Beast philosophy of creating content totally devoid of complexity and point of view in the hope that it’s addicting enough that people will pay $10 a month for it. Unfortunately for the Netflixes and NBCs of the world, however, they’re up against a guy who says he wants to give all his money away — just as long as you “like” and subscribe.
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Indian Premier League 2024 | Navjot Singh Sidhu set to be back to his first love — commentary box</strong> - After a decade-long stint in the unforgiving world of politics, Sidhu and his ‘Sidhuisms’ will be back on air starting with the IPL, which precedes the T20 World Cup in June.</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>Cricket Australia calls off Afghanistan T20 series over women’s rights concerns</strong> - The teams were scheduled to play three T20 matches in the UAE in August but Cricket Australia said that after consultations with the Australian government it had decided to call off the series.</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>Cricket Australia announces venues for 5-match Test series against India</strong> - With India and England set to travel to Australia over the next two years, Perth’s Test attendance figures are expected to rise</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>Morning Digest | In Tamil Nadu, PMK announces alliance with BJP for LS elections; vaccine for dengue may be available commercially by mid-2026, and more</strong> - Here is a select list of stories to start the day</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-17 | Suryakumar Yadav likely to miss MI’s first two games</strong> - The batter is still recuperating from sports hernia and yet to join the Mumbai Indians squad.</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>Candidates for Lok Sabha elections to be questioned on their stance on environmental issues</strong> - Activists want ropeway project to Chamundi Hill disbanded</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>Vilavancode Assembly Constituency has 2.37 lakh voters, says Kanniyakumari District Collector</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Telangana government achieved social justice in 100 days: Mallu Ravi</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Licenced arms must be deposited with local police in view of Lok Sabha elections</strong> - Election code of conduct mandates arms licence holders to deposit their weapons at the police station to ensure law and order, and peaceful conduct of elections</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>KRRS urges Congress to support Sarvodaya Karnataka candidate in Mysuru Lok Sabha constituency</strong> -</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>Thousands of children to leave Russian border city</strong> - Around 9,000 children will be sent away from Belgorod after strikes blamed on Ukraine.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Predicting Putin’s landslide was easy, but what comes next?</strong> - The Russian president will get a confidence boost from the tightly controlled election, says Steve Rosenberg.</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>Putin addresses Red Square crowds after claiming landslide election win</strong> - The Moscow rally is officially to mark the 10th anniversary of Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea.</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>No choice for Ukrainians: More Putin means more war</strong> - Russia’s leader is “sick with power”, says Ukraine’s president, whose country faces continued war.</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>Putin names Navalny and claims he agreed swap</strong> - Russia’s leader always refused to refer to the Kremlin critic by name, but now he is dead, that has changed.</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>The Super Mario Maker community faces its final boss</strong> - “Team 0%” is struggling to clear “Trimming the Herbs” before an April 8 server shutdown. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2010767">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Chrysotile asbestos finally banned in the US after decades of EPA efforts</strong> - But, companies will have up to 12 years to phase out chrysotile asbestos. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2011064">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Steam Families opens up game libraries for sharing, with a few caveats</strong> - It’s a more simple and somewhat more liberal version of “Family Sharing.” - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2011044">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Playtron’s wildly ambitious gaming OS aims to unite stores, lure “core casuals”</strong> - Headed by former Cyanogen CEO, it’s a Linux OS that might not be fully open. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2010961">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Google’s phone app no longer searches Google Maps</strong> - Google’s search-infused phone app was touted as a major feature a few years ago. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=2010954">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>An American, a Russian, and a Ukrainian</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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An American, a Russian, and a Ukrainian were sitting together on a train. Wanting to impress the others, the American pulls out a gun and throws it out the window.
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“What are you doing!?” The others exclaimed.
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“Aw, “ says the American, “we’ve got so many guns in America that I didn’t really need that one.”
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The Russian thinks on this and then pulls a bottle of expensive Russian vodka from his pocket and throws it out the window.
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“What are you doing!?” The others exclaimed.
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“Is nothing,” explained the Russian, “we have so many bottles of expensive vodka in Russia that I didn’t really need that one.
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The Ukrainian thinks on this and then throws the Russian out the window.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Mister-Grogg"> /u/Mister-Grogg </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bi7m9q/an_american_a_russian_and_a_ukrainian/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bi7m9q/an_american_a_russian_and_a_ukrainian/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>When my Tinder date arrived in the restaurant, I guided her to her seat, and asked, “Shall I push your stool in?”…</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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She said, “Let’s first see how this date goes.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/MrDagon007"> /u/MrDagon007 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bii6u6/when_my_tinder_date_arrived_in_the_restaurant_i/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bii6u6/when_my_tinder_date_arrived_in_the_restaurant_i/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>What’s the difference between your penis and your bonus?</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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Your wife will always blow your bonus.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/kingaling49"> /u/kingaling49 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bi2lb7/whats_the_difference_between_your_penis_and_your/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bi2lb7/whats_the_difference_between_your_penis_and_your/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Putin was traveling incognito in the Ukranian countryside and stopped to talk with a local farmer.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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Putin was traveling incognito in the Ukranian countryside and stopped to talk with a local farmer. “How big is your land” asked Putin. Farmer responded proudly “From here to that big oak tree in the near distance is one side of my land.” “Same square distance all around.” Farmer then asked Putin “How big is your land?” Putin responded he could get in his car all day and not reach the end of his land. Farmer replied “I once had a car like that.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/corporalcrocodile"> /u/corporalcrocodile </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bidzcm/putin_was_traveling_incognito_in_the_ukranian/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bidzcm/putin_was_traveling_incognito_in_the_ukranian/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Bath Night</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF --></p>
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A couple take in an 18-year-old girl as a lodger. She asked if she could have a bath but the woman of the house told her they didn’t have a bath but if she wanted to she could use a tin bath in front of the fire…….
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“Monday’s the best night, when my husband goes out to darts,” she said.
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The girl agreed to have a bath the following Monday….
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After her husband had gone to the pub for his darts match, the woman filled the bath and watched the girl get undressed. She was surprised to see that the lass didn’t have any pubic hair. She mentioned this to her husband when he came home. He didn’t believe her, so she said: “Next Monday, don?t go to darts. I’ll leave a gap in the curtains so you can see for yourself..”
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So the following Monday, while the girl again got undressed, the wife asked:
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“Do you shave?”
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“No,” replied the girl. “I’ve just never grown any hairs down there. Do you have hair?”
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“Oh, yes,” said the woman, and she showed the girl that indeed, she was far from hairless.
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When the girl went to bed the husband came in, and the wife asked:
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“Did you see it?”
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“Yes,” he said, “but why the hell did you have to show her yours.”
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“Why not?” she said. “You’ve seen it before.”
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“I know,” he said, "but the darts team hadn’t!!
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/whyamihere999"> /u/whyamihere999 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bhsazo/bath_night/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/1bhsazo/bath_night/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
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