Encouraging the resumption of economic activity after COVID-19: Evidence from a large scale field experiment in China -
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+As the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end, governments find themselves facing a new challenge: motivating citizens to resume economic activity. What is an effective way to do so? We investigate this question using a field experiment in the city of Zhengzhou, China immediately following the end of the city’s COVID-19 lockdown. Using self-reports and GPS trajectory data from participants’ phones, we assessed the effect of providing information about the proportion of participants’ neighbors who have resumed economic activity. We find that informing individuals about their neighbors’ plans to visit restaurants increases the fraction of participants visiting restaurants by 12 percentage points (37%), amongst those participants who underestimated the proportion of neighbors who resumed economic activity. Those who overestimated did not respond by reducing restaurant attendance, so the intervention yielded no `boomerang’ effect. We explore moderators, risk perceptions, and a placebo intervention for parks. All of these analyses suggest our intervention worked by reducing the perceived risk of going to restaurants.
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Longitudinal change in adolescent depression and anxiety symptoms from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic: An international collaborative of 12 samples -
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+The study aimed to examine changes in depression and anxiety symptoms from before to during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic in a large, diverse, international sample of 1,339 adolescents (9-18 years, 59% female). We also examined if age, race/ethnicity, disease burden, or strictness of government restrictions moderated change in symptoms. Data from 12 longitudinal studies (10 U.S., 1 Netherlands, 1 Peru) were combined. Linear mixed effect models showed that depression symptoms increased significantly (median increase=28%), whereas anxiety symptoms remained stable overall. The most negative mental health impacts were reported by multiracial adolescents and those under ‘lockdown’ restrictions. Policy makers need to consider these impacts by investing in ways to support adolescents’ mental health during the pandemic.
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Assessing Self-Other Distinctions Through Decision-making Under Risk in The Era of Covid-19 -
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+The current Covid-19 pandemic has demanded a degree of sacrifice from individuals for the sake of the greater good. Individuals have taken costly actions, both volitional and imposed, to reduce harm to strangers. The pandemic oers a unique opportunity to examine a fundamental question: where does the distinction between self and other lie? This question can be framed as a moral dilemma between competing motives of self-serving and pro-social behavior. Given the multifaceted uncer- tainty surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic, we propose to assess self-other distinction using models of decision-making under risk. We administered two surveys, where participants selected between sure and risky treatments for fictitious diseases, for themselves, a loved one and a stranger. Choice of treatment option showed risk-seeking tendencies that decreased with expected disease severity, across all targets, suggesting risk preferences for the other parallel those for the self. However, distinctions across targets emerged when decisions were conditioned on treatment cost, with sure treatments cho- sen more often for self and a close other; and sure treatment assigned a higher price for diseases with low expected severity, for self and other. These findings inform on what constitutes a measure of self-other distinction; and the limits of what can be asked of an individual in service to a stranger.
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Where All the Roads Meet? A Cross Over Perspective on Host Factors Regulating SARS-CoV-2 Replication -
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+In the recent issue of Cell, four studies utilized genome wide CRISPR/Cas screens to identify host factors critical for the SARS-CoV-2 replication. We performed a comparative analysis of significant host factors (p<0.05) that were identified in these studies and found that fifteen candidates were common in at least three studies. Apart from ACE2 other common host factors included COG3, COG8, GDI2, ARPP19, SLC35B2, LIMA1, TLR9, VPS26A, CSNK2B, LRRN2, DDX51, ALG6, C1QTNF7 and BCOR. Interestingly, some of these host factors have been shown to be critical for other viruses including HIV-1, Dengue, Influenza, Zika etc., suggesting their crucial role in viral biology. Additionally, viral interactome of these host factors revealed that they were associated with several SARS-CoV-2 proteins as well. Hence, we present here, a comparative analysis of four genome wide screens against SARS-CoV-2, revealing common host factors that could be modulated to regulate SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses as well.
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SARS-CoV-2 Worldwide Replication Drives Rapid Rise and Selection of Mutations across the Viral Genome: A Time-Course Study Potential Challenge for Vaccines and Therapies -
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+Scientists and public were alarmed at first viral variant of SARS-CoV2 reported in December 2020. We have followed time course of emerging viral mutants and variants during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in ten countries. We examined complete SARS-CoV-2 nucleotide sequences in GISAID with sampling extending until January 20, 2021. These sequences originated from ten different countries: United Kingdom, South Africa, Brazil, USA, India, Russia, France, Spain, Germany, and China. Among the novel mutations, some previously reported mutations waned and some of them increased over time. VUI2012/01 (B.1.1.7) and 501Y.V2 (B.1.351), the UK and South Africa variants, respectively, and two variants from Brazil, 484K.V2, P.1 and P.2, increased in prevalence. Despite lockdowns, worldwide active replication in genetically and socio-economically diverse populations facilitated selection of new mutations. The data on mutant and variant SARS-CoV-2 strains provided here comprise a global resource for easy access to the myriad mutations and variants detected to date globally. Rapidly evolving new variant and mutant strains might give rise to escape variants, capable of limiting the efficacy of vaccines, therapies, and diagnostic tests.
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Prioritizing allocation of COVID-19 vaccines based on social contacts increases vaccination effectiveness -
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+We study allocation of COVID-19 vaccines to individuals based on the structural properties of their underlying social contact network. Even optimistic estimates suggest that most countries will likely take 6 to 24 months to vaccinate their citizens. These time estimates and the emergence of new viral strains urge us to find quick and effective ways to allocate the vaccines and contain the pandemic. While current approaches use combinations of age-based and occupation-based prioritizations, our strategy marks a departure from such largely aggregate vaccine allocation strategies. We propose a novel approach motivated by recent advances in (i) science of real-world networks that point to efficacy of certain vaccination strategies and (ii) digital technologies that improve our ability to estimate some of these structural properties. Using a realistic representation of a social contact network for the Commonwealth of Virginia, combined with accurate surveillance data on spatiotemporal cases and currently accepted models of within- and between-host disease dynamics, we study how a limited number of vaccine doses can be strategically distributed to individuals to reduce the overall burden of the pandemic. We show that allocation of vaccines based on individuals9 degree (number of social contacts) and total social proximity time is significantly more effective than the currently used age-based allocation strategy in terms of number of infections, hospitalizations and deaths. Our results suggest that in just two months, by March 31, 2021, compared to age-based allocation, the proposed degree-based strategy can result in reducing an additional 56−110k infections, 3.2− 5.4k hospitalizations, and 700−900 deaths just in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Extrapolating these results for the entire US, this strategy can lead to 3−6 million fewer infections, 181−306k fewer hospitalizations, and 51−62k fewer deaths compared to age-based allocation. The overall strategy is robust even: (i) if the social contacts are not estimated correctly; (ii) if the vaccine efficacy is lower than expected or only a single dose is given; (iii) if there is a delay in vaccine production and deployment; and (iv) whether or not non-pharmaceutical interventions continue as vaccines are deployed. For reasons of implementability, we have used degree, which is a simple structural measure and can be easily estimated using several methods, including the digital technology available today. These results are significant, especially for resource-poor countries, where vaccines are less available, have lower efficacy, and are more slowly distributed.
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Assessing the performance of a serological point-of-care test in measuring detectable antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 -
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+Objective: To investigate the performance of a rapid point-of-care antibody test, the BioMedomics COVID-19 IgM/IgG Rapid Test, in comparison with a high-quality, validated, laboratory-based platform, the Roche Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 assay. Methods: Serological testing was conducted on 708 individuals. Concordance metrics were estimated. Logistic regression was used to assess associations with seropositivity. Results: SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was 63.4% (449/708; 95% CI 59.8%-66.9%) using the BioMedomics assay and 71.9% (509/708; 95% CI 68.5%-75.1%) using the Elecsys assay. There were 62 discordant results between the two assays. One specimen was seropositive in the BioMedomics assay, but seronegative in the Elecsys assay, while 61 specimens were seropositive in the Elecsys assay, but seronegative in the BioMedomics assay. Positive, negative, and overall percent agreements between the two assays were 88.0% (95% CI 84.9%-90.6%), 99.5% (95% CI 97.2%-99.9%), and 91.2% (95% CI 88.9%-93.1%), respectively, with a Cohen kappa of 0.80 (95% CI 0.77-0.83), indicating excellent agreement. Excluding specimens with lower antibody titers, the agreement improved with positive, negative, and overall percent concordance of 91.2% (95% CI 88.2%-93.6%), 99.5% (95% CI 97.2%-99.9%), and 93.9% (95% CI 91.7%-95.5%), respectively, and a Cohen kappa of 0.87 (95% CI 0.84-0.89). Logistic regression confirmed better agreement with higher antibody titers. Conclusion: The BioMedomics COVID-19 IgM/IgG Rapid Test demonstrated excellent performance in measuring detectable antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, supporting the utility of such rapid point-of-care serological testing to guide the public health responses and possible vaccine prioritization.
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Symptom Prediction and Mortality Risk Calculation for COVID-19 Using Machine Learning -
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+Background Early prediction of symptoms and mortality risks for COVID-19 patients would improve healthcare outcomes, allow for the appropriate distribution of healthcare resources, reduce healthcare costs, aid in vaccine prioritization and self-isolation strategies, and thus reduce the prevalence of the disease. Such publicly accessible prediction models are lacking, however. Methods Based on a comprehensive evaluation of existing machine learning (ML) methods, we created two models based solely on the age, gender, and medical histories of 23,749 hospital-confirmed COVID-19 patients from February to September 2020: a symptom prediction model (SPM) and a mortality prediction model (MPM). The SPM predicts 12 symptom groups for each patient: respiratory distress, consciousness disorders, chest pain, paresis or paralysis, cough, fever or chill, gastrointestinal symptoms, sore throat, headache, vertigo, loss of smell or taste, and muscular pain or fatigue. The MPM predicts the death of COVID-19-positive individuals. Results The SPM yielded ROC-AUCs of 0.53-0.78 for symptoms. The most accurate prediction was for consciousness disorders at a sensitivity of 74% and a specificity of 70%. 2440 deaths were observed in the study population. MPM had a ROC-AUC of 0.79 and could predict mortality with a sensitivity of 75% and a specificity of 70%. About 90% of deaths occurred in the top 21 percentile of risk groups. To allow patients and clinicians to use these models easily, we created a freely accessible online interface at www.aicovid.org. Conclusions The ML models predict COVID-19-related symptoms and mortality using information that is readily available to patients as well as clinicians. Thus, both can rapidly estimate the severity of the disease, allowing shared and better healthcare decisions with regard to hospitalization, self-isolation strategy, and COVID-19 vaccine prioritization in the coming months.
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Was R<1 before the English lockdowns? On modelling mechanistic detail, causality and inference about Covid-19 -
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+Detail is a double edged sword in epidemiological modelling. The inclusion of mechanistic detail in models of highly complex systems has the potential to increase realism, but it also increases the number of modelling assumptions, which become harder to check as their possible interactions multiply. Knock et al (2020) fit an age structured SEIR model with added health service compartments to data on deaths, hospitalization and test results from Covid-19 in seven English regions for the period March to December 2020. The simplest version of the model has 684 states per region. One main conclusion is that only full lockdowns brought the pathogen reproduction number, R, below one, with R >> 1 in all regions on the eve of March 2020 lockdown. We critically evaluate the Knock et al. epidemiological model, and the semi-causal conclusions made using it, based on an independent reimplementation of the model designed to allow relaxation of some of its strong assumptions. In particular, Knock et al. model the effect on transmission of both non-pharmaceutical interventions and weather using a piecewise linear function, b(t), with 12 breakpoints at selected government announcement or intervention dates. We replace this representation by a smoothing spline with time varying smoothness, thereby allowing the form of b(t) to be substantially more data driven. We conclude that there is no sound basis for using the Knock et al. model and their analysis to make counterfactual statements about the number of deaths that would have occurred with different lockdown timings. However, if fits of this epidemiological model structure are viewed as a reasonable basis for inference about the time course of incidence and R, then without very strong modelling assumptions, the pathogen reproduction number was probably below one, and incidence in substantial decline, some days before either of the first two English national lockdowns. Of course this does not imply that lockdowns had no effect, but it does suggest that other non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were much more effective than Knock et al. imply.
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The Benefits of Living with Close Others: A Longitudinal Examination of Mental Health Before and During a Global Stressor -
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+For better or worse, the people we live with may exert a powerful influence on our mental health, perhaps especially during times of stress. The COVID-19 pandemic—a large-scale stressor that prompted health recommendations to stay home to reduce disease spread—provided a unique opportunity to examine how the people we share our homes with may shape our mental health. A seven-wave longitudinal study assessed mental health month-to-month before and during the pandemic (February through September, 2020) in two diverse samples of U.S. adults (N=656; N=544). Pre-registered analyses demonstrated that people living with close others (children and/or romantic partners) experienced better well-being, before and during the pandemic’s first six months. These groups also experienced unique increases in ill-being during the pandemic’s onset, but parents’ ill-being also recovered more quickly. These findings highlight the crucial protective function of close relationships for mental health both generally and amidst a pandemic.
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Pharmacokinetics of Orally Administered GS-441524 in Dogs -
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+Despite being FDA-approved for COVID-19, the clinical efficacy of remdesivir (Veklury) remains contentious. We previously described the pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and toxicological rationales on the greater suitability of its parent nucleoside, GS-441524, for COVID-19 treatment. Here, we assess the oral bioavailability of GS-441524 in beagle dogs and show that plasma concentrations approximately 24-fold higher than the EC50 against SARS-CoV-2 are easily and safely sustained. These data support translation of GS-441524 as an oral agent for COVID-19.
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Serological Profile Of Specific Antibodies Against Dominant Antigens Of SARS-CoV-2 In Chilean COVID-19 Patients. -
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+Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by SARS-CoV-2 and has been a pandemic since March 2020. Currently, the virus has infected more than 50 million people worldwide and more than half a million in Chile. For many coronaviruses, Spike (S) and Nucleocapsid (N) proteins are described as major antigenic molecules, inducing seroconversion and production of neutralizing antibodies. In this work, we evaluated the presence in serum of IgM, IgA and IgG antibodies against N and S proteins of SARS-CoV-2 using western blot, and developed an ELISA test for the qualitative characterization of COVID-19 patients. Patients with an active infection or who have recovered from COVID-19 showed specific immunoblotting patterns for the recombinants S protein and its domains S1 and S2, as well as for the N protein of SARS-CoV-2. Anti-N antibodies were more frequently detected than anti-S or anti-S1-RBD antibodies. People who were never exposed to SARS-CoV-2 did not show reactivity. Finally, indirect ELISA assays using N and S1-RBD proteins, alone or in combination, were established with variable sensitivity and specificity depending on the antigen bound to the solid phase. Overall, Spike showed higher specificity than the nucleocapsid, and comparable sensitivity for both antigens. Both approaches confirmed the seroconversion after infection and allowed us to implement the analysis of antibodies in blood for research purposes in a local facility.
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Furin cleavage of the SARS-CoV-2 spike is modulated by O-glycosylation -
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+The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus responsible for the global pandemic contains a unique furin cleavage site in the spike protein (S) that increases viral infectivity and syncytia formation. Here, we show that O-glycosylation near the furin cleavage site is mediated by specific members of the GALNT enzyme family and is dependent on the novel proline at position 681 (P681). We further demonstrate that O-glycosylation of S decreases furin cleavage. Finally, we show that GALNT family members capable of glycosylating S are expressed in human respiratory cells that are targets for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our results suggest that O-glycosylation may influence viral infectivity/tropism by modulating furin cleavage of S and provide mechanistic insight into the potential role of P681 mutations in the recently identified, highly transmissible B.1.1.7 variant.
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Post-infection treatment with a protease inhibitor increases survival of mice with a fatal SARS-CoV-2 infection -
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+Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection continues to be a serious global public health threat. The 3C-like protease (3CLpro) is a virus protease encoded by SARS-CoV-2, which is essential for virus replication. We have previously reported a series of small molecule 3CLpro inhibitors effective for inhibiting replication of human coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2 in cell culture and in animal models. Here we generated a series of deuterated variants of a 3CLpro inhibitor, GC376, and evaluated the antiviral effect against SARS-CoV-2. The deuterated GC376 displayed potent inhibitory activity against SARS-CoV-2 in the enzyme and the cell-based assays. The K18-hACE2 mice develop mild to lethal infection commensurate with SARS-CoV-2 challenge doses and was proposed as a model for efficacy testing of antiviral agents. We treated lethally infected mice with a deuterated derivative of GC376. Treatment of K18-hACE2 mice at 24 hr post infection with a derivative (compound 2) resulted in increased survival of mice compared to vehicle-treated mice. Lung virus titers were decreased, and histopathological changes were ameliorated in compound 2-treated mice compared to vehicle-treated mice. Structural investigation using high-resolution crystallography illuminated binding interactions of 3CLpro of SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV with deuterated variants of GC376. Taken together, deuterated GC376 variants have excellent potential as antiviral agents against SARS-CoV-2.
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Protein glycosylation is essential for SARS-CoV-2 infection -
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+SARS-CoV-2 extensively N-glycosylates its surface spike (S) proteins. This post-translational modification is essential to modulate protein conformation and host cell invasion. Each S monomer can be modified with up to 22 N-glycans. To meet the high demand of protein glycosylation during virus replication, SARS-CoV-2 upregulates the expression of host N-glycosylation genes. Although a substantial amount of detail is known about the structure of S protein N-glycans, the role of N-glycosylation in SARS-CoV-2 infection remains largely undetermined. Here, we investigated the essentiality of the host N-glycosylation pathway and viral N-glycans for SARS-CoV-2 infection. When either monkey or human cells were preincubated with glycosylation inhibitors, including FDA-approved iminosugars, virus infection was significantly reduced. This infection phenotype was confirmed after RNAi knockdown of several glycosylation genes. In addition, enzymatic deglycosylation of whole viral particles confirmed that accessible oligosaccharides on the SARS-CoV-2 surface are essential for host cell infection. Altogether, we show evidence that the normal functioning of the host N-glycosylation machinery is essential not only for SARS-CoV-2 to infect, but also to produce new functional virions. These findings open the door for developing new approaches targeting N-glycosylation against COVID-19.
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Study to Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of a Single Dose of STI-2020 (COVI-AMG™) to Treat COVID-19 - Condition: Covid19 Interventions: Biological: COVI-AMG; Drug: Placebo Sponsor: Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc. Not yet recruiting
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Study to Evaluate a Single Dose of STI-2020 (COVI-AMG™) in Adults With Mild COVID-19 Symptoms - Condition: Covid19 Interventions: Biological: COVI-AMG; Drug: Placebo Sponsor: Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc. Not yet recruiting
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Phase III Study of AZD7442 for Treatment of COVID-19 in Outpatient Adults - Condition: COVID-19 Interventions: Drug: AZD7442; Drug: Placebo Sponsor: AstraZeneca Not yet recruiting
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TOCILIZUMAB - An Option for Patients With COVID-19 Associated Cytokine Release Syndrome; A Single Center Experience - Condition: Covid19 Intervention: Drug: Tocilizumab Sponsor: FMH College of Medicine and Dentistry Completed
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Convalescent Plasma in the Treatment of Covid-19 - Condition: Covid19 Interventions: Biological: Convalescent plasma from COVID-19 donors; Biological: Placebo Sponsors: Helsinki University Central Hospital; Finnish Red Cross Recruiting
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A Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of VB-201 in Patients With COVID-19 - Condition: Severe COVID-19 Interventions: Drug: VB-201 + Standard of care; Drug: Standard of care Sponsor: Vascular Biogenics Ltd. operating as VBL Therapeutics Recruiting
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Efficacy of Nano-Ivermectin Impregnated Masks in Prevention of Covid-19 Among Healthy Contacts and Medical Staff - Condition: Covid-19 Intervention: Other: ivermectin impregnated mask Sponsor: South Valley University Recruiting
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An Outpatient Clinical Trial Using Ivermectin and Doxycycline in COVID-19 Positive Patients at High Risk to Prevent COVID-19 Related Hospitalization - Condition: Covid19 Interventions: Drug: Ivermectin Tablets; Drug: Doxycycline Tablets; Drug: Placebo Sponsor: Max Health, Subsero Health Recruiting
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CPI-006 Plus Standard of Care Versus Placebo Plus Standard of Care in Mild to Moderately Symptomatic Hospitalized Covid-19 Patients - Condition: Covid-19 Interventions: Drug: CPI-006 2 mg/kg + SOC; Drug: CPI-006 1 mg/kg + SOC; Drug: Placebo + SOC Sponsor: Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Recruiting
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Effectiveness of Ivermectin in SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Patients - Condition: Covid19 Intervention: Drug: Ivermectin Sponsor: FMH College of Medicine and Dentistry Completed
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Famotidine vs Placebo for the Treatment of Non-Hospitalized Adults With COVID-19 - Condition: Covid-19 Interventions: Drug: Famotidine; Drug: Placebo Sponsors: Northwell Health; Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Recruiting
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Study to Assess Efficacy and Safety of Inhaled Interferon-β Therapy for COVID-19 - Conditions: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2; COVID-19 Interventions: Drug: SNG001; Drug: Placebo Sponsor: Synairgen Research Ltd. Recruiting
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COVID-19 and Pregnancy: Placental and Immunological Impacts - Condition: Covid19 Intervention: Other: Specimens specific for the study Sponsor: Hopital Foch Recruiting
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Safety, Tolerability and Efficacy Of S-1226 in Moderate Severity Covid-19 Bronchiolitis/Pneumonia - Conditions: Covid19; SARS-CoV-2 Infection Intervention: Drug: S-1226 Sponsor: SolAeroMed Inc. Not yet recruiting
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Restoration of Endothelial Integrity in Patients With COVID-19 (RELIC) - Condition: COVID-19 Intervention: Biological: Thawed plasma Sponsor: University of Alabama at Birmingham Not yet recruiting
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From PubMed
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Thrombin generation in patients with COVID-19 with and without thromboprophylaxis - CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 patients showed increased TG at diagnosis. Standard thromboprophylaxis reduced TG to levels of healthy controls. Intermediate sub-therapeutic thromboprophylaxis more effectively inhibited TG by decreasing ETP with TM.
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PDE3-inhibitor enoximone prevented mechanical ventilation in patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia - BACKGROUND: Standard care in severe SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia complicated by severe dyspnea and respiratory failure, consists of symptom reduction, ultimately supported by mechanical ventilation. Patients with severe SARS-CoV-2, a prominent feature of COVID-19, show several similar symptoms to Critical Asthma Syndrome (CAS) patients, such as pulmonary edema, mucus plugging of distal airways, decreased tissue oxygenation, (emergent) exhaustion due to severe dyspnea and respiratory failure. Prior…
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Immune Checkpoint Inhibition in COVID-19: Risks and Benefits - INTRODUCTION: Immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) is a novel cancer immunotherapy, which is administered in patients with metastatic, refractory, or relapsed solid cancer types. From the initiation of the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic many studies reported a higher severity and mortality rate of COVID-19 among patients with cancer in general.
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In silico Screening of Natural Compounds as Potential Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease and Spike RBD: Targets for COVID-19 - Historically, plants have been sought after as bio-factories for the production of diverse chemical compounds that offer a multitude of possibilities to cure diseases. To combat the current pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), plant-based natural compounds are explored for their potential to inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2), the cause of COVID-19. The present study is aimed at the investigation of antiviral action of several groups of…
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Structural basis for the inhibition of the SARS-CoV-2 main protease by the anti-HCV drug narlaprevir - No abstract
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Potent and Selective Knockdown of Tyrosine Kinase 2 by Antisense Oligonucleotides - Tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2) is a member of the JAK family of nonreceptor tyrosine kinase, together with JAK1, JAK2, and JAK3. JAKs are important signaling mediators of many proinflammatory cytokines and represent compelling pharmacological targets for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Pan-acting small-molecule JAK inhibitors were approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis. However, their limited selectivity among JAK members have led to undesirable side effects,…
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A Neutralization Assay Based on Pseudo-Typed Lentivirus with SARS CoV-2 Spike Protein in ACE2-Expressing CRFK Cells - Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a highly pathogenic zoonotic virus that spreads rapidly. In this work, we improve the hitherto existing neutralization assay system to assess SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors using a pseudo-typed lentivirus coated with the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (LpVspike +) and angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)-transfected cat Crandell-Rees feline kidney (CRFK) cells as the host cell line. Our method was 10-fold more sensitive compared to the typical…
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Mechanisms of Coronavirus Nsp1-Mediated Control of Host and Viral Gene Expression - Many viruses disrupt host gene expression by degrading host mRNAs and/or manipulating translation activities to create a cellular environment favorable for viral replication. Often, virus-induced suppression of host gene expression, including those involved in antiviral responses, contributes to viral pathogenicity. Accordingly, clarifying the mechanisms of virus-induced disruption of host gene expression is important for understanding virus-host cell interactions and virus pathogenesis. Three…
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SARS-CoV-2 entry inhibitors by dual targeting TMPRSS2 and ACE2: An in silico drug repurposing study - The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is spreading between human populations mainly through nasal droplets. Currently, the vaccines have great hope, but it takes years for testing its efficacy in human. As there is no specific drug treatment available for COVID-19 pandemic, we explored in silico repurposing of drugs with dual inhibition properties by targeting transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2) and human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) from FDA-approved drugs. The TMPRSS2 and ACE2…
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An Urgent Industrial Scheme both for Total Synthesis, and for Pharmaceutical Analytical Analysis of Umifenovir as an Anti-Viral API for Treatment of COVID-19 - CONCLUSION: The most important pharmaceutical analytical methods containing OVI test (mainly ethanol (about 171 ppm) much lower than the limits, by gas chromatography-Flame Ionization Detector (GC-FID) instrument), Assay content (about 99.6% by potentiometric titration), and related purity analysis (by High performance liquid chromatography-Ultraviolet Detector (HPLC-UV)) (about 99.8%) were performed and described to give a more clear industrial scheme.
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Ethical Dilemma: An Unprecedented Strike by Health care Workers in Early February 2020 in Hong Kong - Urging the government to exercise a complete border closure to inhibit the spread of the novel coronavirus from Mainland China, about 8,000 health care workers participated in a 5-day strike in early February 2020 in Hong Kong. Despite gaining 61% support from the public, dissenters criticised that the participants violated professional ethics and abandoned their accountabilities, which led to moral distress. However, the participants were guided by the four fundamental medical principles…
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Complement inhibition initiated recovery of a severe myasthenic crisis with COVID-19 - We report on a patient with refractory Myasthenia gravis with acetylcholine receptor antibodies with two prior myasthenic crises suffering from COVID-19 with rapid evolving weakness and respiratory failure. Respiratory failure developed and prolonged mechanical ventilation was necessary. After plasmapheresis, residual, severe generalized and bulbar weakness persisted. Complement inhibition with eculizumab was, therefore, introduced and lead to rapid recovery. In refractory myasthenic crisis…
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Association between antidepressant use and reduced risk of intubation or death in hospitalized patients with COVID-19: results from an observational study - A prior meta-analysis showed that antidepressant use in major depressive disorder was associated with reduced plasma levels of several pro-inflammatory mediators, which have been associated with severe COVID-19. Recent studies also suggest that several antidepressants may inhibit acid sphingomyelinase activity, which may prevent the infection of epithelial cells with SARS-CoV-2, and that the SSRI fluoxetine may exert in-vitro antiviral effects on SARS-CoV-2. We examined the potential usefulness…
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Native High-Density Lipoproteins (HDL) with Higher Paraoxonase Exerts a Potent Antiviral Effect against SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), While Glycated HDL Lost the Antiviral Activity - Human high-density lipoproteins (HDL) show a broad spectrum of antiviral activity in terms of anti-infection. Although many reports have pointed out a correlation between a lower serum HDL-C and a higher risk of COVID-19 infection and progression, the in vitro antiviral activity of HDL against SARS-CoV-2 has not been reported. HDL functionality, such as antioxidant and anti-infection, can be impaired by oxidation and glycation and a change to pro-inflammatory properties. This study compared the…
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SARS-CoV-2 recruits a haem metabolite to evade antibody immunity - The coronaviral spike is the dominant viral antigen and the target of neutralizing antibodies. We show that SARS-CoV-2 spike binds biliverdin and bilirubin, the tetrapyrrole products of haem metabolism, with nanomolar affinity. Using cryo-electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography we mapped the tetrapyrrole interaction pocket to a deep cleft on the spike N-terminal domain (NTD). At physiological concentrations, biliverdin significantly dampened the reactivity of SARS-CoV-2 spike with immune…
A PHARMACEUTICAL COMPOSITION OF NITAZOXANIDE AND MEFLOQUINE AND METHOD THEREOF - A pharmaceutical composition for treating Covid-19 virus comprising a therapeutically effective amount of a nitazoxanide or its pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof and an mefloquine or its pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof is disclosed. The pharmaceutical composition comprises the nitazoxanide in the ratio of 0.05% to 66% w/v and the mefloquine in the ratio of 0.05% to 90% w/v. The composition is found to be effective for the treatment of COVID -19 (SARS-CoV2). The pharmaceutical composition of nitazoxanide and mefloquine has been found to be effective and is unexpectedly well tolerated with a low rate of side-effects, and equally high cure-rates than in comparable treatments. - link
METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ACQUIRING POWER CONSUMPTION IMPACT BASED ON IMPACT OF COVID-19 EPIDEMIC - - link
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A PHARMACEUTICAL COMPOSITION OF ARTESUNATE AND MEFLOQUINE AND METHOD THEREOF - A pharmaceutical composition for treating Covid-19 virus comprising a therapeutically effective amount of an artesunate or its pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof and a mefloquine or its pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof is disclosed. The pharmaceutical composition comprises the artesunate in the ratio of 0.25% to 66% w/v and mefloquine in the ratio of 0.25% to 90% w/v. The composition is found to be effective for the treatment of COVID -19 (SARS-CoV2). The pharmaceutical composition of Artesunate and Mefloquine has been found to be effective and is unexpectedly well tolerated with a low rate of side-effects, and equally high cure-rates than in comparable treatments. The present invention also discloses a method to preparing the pharmaceutical composition comprising of Artesunate and Mefloquine. - link
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Zahnbürstenaufsatz, elektrische Versorgungseinheit einer elektrischen Zahnbürste, elektrische Zahnbürste mit einem Zahnbürstenaufsatz, Zahnbürste sowie Testaufsatz für eine elektrische Zahnbürste -
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Zahnbürstenaufsatz für eine elektrische Zahnbürste (20) umfassend einen Koppelabschnitt (2), über den der Zahnbürstenaufsatz (1) mit einer elektrischen Versorgungseinheit (10) der elektrischen Zahnbürste (20) verbindbar ist und einen Bürstenabschnitt (3), der zur Reinigung der Zähne ausgebildete Reinigungsmittel (3.1) aufweist, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass an dem Zahnbürstenaufsatz (1) eine Sensoreinheit (4) vorgesehen ist, die dazu ausgebildet ist, selektiv das Vorhandensein eines Virus oder eines Antigen im Speichel eines Nutzers des Zahnbürstenaufsatzes (1) durch Messen zumindest eines virusspezifischen Parameters zu bestimmen.
一种医用可佩戴式防护口鼻的微型气幕系统 - 本发明公开了一种医用可佩戴式防护口鼻的微型气幕系统，包括框柱，框柱一侧开凿有气幕送风口和呼吸用送风口，气幕送风口和呼吸用送风口内分别连接有软管一和软管二，框柱内开凿有水平条缝和垂直条缝，水平条缝与垂直条缝均与气幕送风口相连通，框柱靠近水平条缝的一侧贯穿开凿有出风口，出风口内设有滤网，出风口贯穿框柱的一端连接有高效过滤器，滤网与高效过滤器之间连接有吸气泵，框柱靠近出风口的一侧连接有电池和开关。本发明通过提出一种在口腔处应用洁净空气幕阻挡气溶胶传播的可佩戴装置，可以在口腔类相关诊疗过程，保护医生和周围人的健康，避免引起可能引发的呼吸道疾病交叉感染。 - link
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COVID-19 CLASSIFICATION RECOGNITION METHOD BASED ON CT IMAGES OF LUNGS - - link
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Vorrichtung umfassend einen Schutzschirm und einen Filter zum Herausfiltern von Viren aus einem Schall erzeugenden Luftstrom -
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Vorrichtung (10) umfassend einen Schutzschirm (12) und einen Filter (14) zum Herausfiltern von Viren (16) aus einem Schall erzeugenden Luftstrom (18), der von einem Musiker (20) beim Musizieren mit einem Musikinstrument oder beim Singen erzeugt wird, wobei der Schutzschirm (12) zur Verringerung des Risikos einer Infektion mit den Viren (16) dafür vorgesehen ist, wenigstens einen Teil der mit dem Luftstrom transportierten Viren (16) aufzufangen, der Schutzschirm (12) eine erste Seite (22) und eine zweite Seite (24) aufweist, die voneinander abgewandt sind, und der Schutzschirm (12) wenigstens einen sich von der ersten (22) bis zu der zweiten Seite (24) erstreckenden Durchlass (26) aufweist, wobei dieser Durchlass (26) zum Durchströmen mit wenigstens einem Teil des beim Musizieren erzeugten Luftstroms (18) vorgesehen ist und der Filter (14) zum Herausfiltern von Viren (16) aus dem Luftstrom (18) in dem Durchlass (26) des Schutzschirms (12) angeordnet ist.
Examining the Case Against the Filibuster - In a new book, Adam Jentleson blames government failures on more than a century of Southern obstruction in the Senate. - link
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Joe Biden Is Playing It Cool with Benjamin Netanyahu - The Biden Administration’s support for the Abraham Accords is having unintended consequences for Israel’s Prime Minister. - link
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On Climate, Biden’s Administration Needs to Combat Zombie Trumpism Quickly - And Montana’s Yaak Valley is a good place to start. - link
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The Indoor-Dining Debate Isn’t a Debate at All - On Valentine’s Day, New Yorkers will be allowed to eat inside restaurants again. We shouldn’t. - link
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The World Likes Biden But Doubts the U.S. Can Reclaim Global Leadership - The new President’s core problem is convincing allies to believe in America again. - link
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From Vox
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Biden will reverse Trump’s decision to label Yemen’s Houthis as terrorists -
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+Houthi supporters take part in a drive for rebel fighters on February 4 in Sana’a, Yemen. | Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images
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+The move reinforces Biden’s swift new direction on Yemen policy.
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+The Biden administration plans to remove Yemen’s Houthi rebels from the Foreign Terrorist Organizations list as soon as Friday, reversing a last-minute move by the Trump administration and reinforcing President Joe Biden’s new approach to the conflict in Yemen.
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+In mid-January, just days before Biden would be sworn into office, then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced President Trump’s intent to designate the Iran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen as a “foreign terrorist organization.”
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+The Houthis, formally known as Ansar Allah, are an armed rebel group of Zaydi Shia (a minority sect within Shia Islam) who have been fighting a civil war against Yemen’s Saudi-backed government since 2014. That civil war morphed into an international one in March 2015, when Saudi Arabia and several of its allies in the Gulf decided to intervene militarily in the civil war, waging war against the Houthis. Meanwhile, Iran, Saudi Arabia’s regional foe, has backed the Houthis.
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+Critics said the move was an attempt by Pompeo to both hurt Iran by punishing one of its proxies and box in the incoming Biden administration as he headed out the door, but Pompeo seems to truly believe the decision was the right one.
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+Pompeo’s hopes are about to be dashed.
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+NEW: The Biden administration will announce the revocation of the FTO designation on the Houthis today, per two sources.
Reverses a last minute Trump admin move and could make it easier for humanitarian aid to reach the most vulnerable.
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+According to three people familiar with the decision, the Biden administration will revoke the foreign terrorist organization designation — known as an FTO — from the rebel group as part of its new strategy to handle the Yemen war. Two of the sources said the State Department had formally notified Congress of its decision.
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+During a Thursday speech, President Joe Biden said the US would seek an elusive diplomatic settlement to the conflict, which would require the Houthis to strike a deal with Saudi Arabia, regional players, and possibly the US.
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+The Biden administration then moved quickly to revoke the FTO label: It’d be bad politics for the US to negotiate with a terrorist group.
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+But there’s another reason to do so, too: It could help Yemen’s most vulnerable. The war has killed about 233,000 people, mostly from indirect causes such as lack of food, water, and health services, while another roughly 24 million Yemenis require assistance to stay alive and fend off diseases like cholera.
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+Trump’s labeling of the Houthi rebels as terrorists made providing that assistance harder. Simply put, for aid groups to deliver assistance, they would have to negotiate with Houthi members who control a lot of Yemen’s territory. But US law essentially says no aid organization can do deals with terrorists, even if it’s to provide life-saving support to those in need
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+There’s a workaround if the US provides waivers to certain aid teams, but the Trump administration rushed its decision before working on and implementing an effective plan.
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+“This decision has nothing to do with our view of the Houthis and their reprehensible conduct, including attacks against civilians and the kidnapping of American citizens,” a State Department official told me on the condition of anonymity.
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+“Our action is due entirely to the humanitarian consequences of this last-minute designation from the prior administration, which the United Nations and humanitarian organizations have since made clear would accelerate the world’s worst humanitarian crisis,” the official said, adding that the US remains committed to protecting Saudi Arabia from further Houthi attacks.
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+Activist and humanitarian groups praised the administration’s decision.
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+“This purely counterproductive designation had caused months of uncertainty as aid organizations, banks, and importers of critical commodities like food and fuel were left in limbo,” said Scott Paul, Oxfam America’s policy advocacy director. “As the Biden administration has made clear, it is the humanitarian consequences of the designation, not the conduct of the de facto authorities, that warrants this reversal.”
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+With the new policy, the Biden administration reversed a notable Trump national security decision, put the US on the road to a diplomatic solution in Yemen, and perhaps ensured thousands of Yemenis get the care they need.
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+It shows how quickly Biden’s team is moving: In just two days, the new administration has sparked a major shift in America’s role in Yemen’s war.
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The UK ended deep coal production in 2016. So why is it opening a new coal mine in 2021? -
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+Miners react after their last shift at Kellingley Colliery on December 18, 2015 in Knottingley, England. | Nigel Roddis - WPA/Getty Images
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+Climate activists and scientists say the mine runs counter to the UK’s climate targets.
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+The United Kingdom is facing strong criticism from climate change scientists and activists for its decision to move ahead with plans to develop the country’s first deep coal mine in 30 years, despite warnings that doing so could destroy any chance of achieving the country’s climate change target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
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+In a January 29 letter, the Climate Change Committee, an independent body that advises the UK government on progress toward emissions targets, said opening the mine would lead to significant increases in the UK’s annual CO2 emissions. If the mine is allowed to operate through 2049 as is currently planned, the committee says the UK’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, which many experts have said isn’t fast enough as it is, will be in jeopardy.
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+The mine is set to be developed in west Cumbria, a county in northwest England that the Guardian reports “has seen years of redundancies and high unemployment rates” due to the closure of a major chemical plant and the decommissioning of a nuclear facility in the area. The Cumbria County Council, which approved the project, said it did so because it will create jobs in an area of high unemployment, according to the BBC.
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+West Cumbria Mining
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+Proposed design for Woodhouse Colliery. If opened, it will be the UK’s first operational deep coal mine in 30 years.
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+But scientists and climate activists have slammed the decision to go ahead with the mine.
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+On February 3, Jim Hansen, one of the world’s leading climate scientists, wrote a letter to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson warning that continuing with the plan to open the mine showed “contemptuous disregard of the future of young people and nature” and would result in Johnson’s “humiliation” at COP 26, the annual UN climate change conference which the UK is set to host in Glasgow later this year.
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+Hansen, who is famous for testifying to the science of human-induced warming before the US Congress way back in 1998, gave Johnson the option to be a part of changing history on climate change or face protests in the streets.
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+“In leading the UK, as host to the COP, you have a chance to change the course of our climate trajectory, earning the UK and yourself historic accolades — or you can stick with business-almost-as-usual and be vilified in the streets of Glasgow, London, and around the world,” Hansen’s letter reads.
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+But if the UK has committed to ending the domestic use of coal for electricity by 2025 and ending government support for overseas fossil fuel projects, how can it also be moving forward with opening a new coal mine?
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+Woodhouse Colliery won’t be your average coal mine — or so the mining company says
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+Woodhouse Colliery — the name of the Cumbria mine project, which is operated by West Cumbria Mining — would be the UK’s first new operational deep coal mine in 30 years. The last operating deep coal mine, in North Yorkshire, was capped off in 2016 — “bringing to an end centuries of deep coal mining in Britain,” in the words of a BBC report at the time.
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+ Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images
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+Coal miners finish the final shift before closure at the Kellingley Colliery in Yorkshire, northern England, on December 18, 2015.
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+According to West Cumbria Mining, the coal will be “processed in a plant which is a ‘building within a building’ to further minimize noise, dust and light impacts.” As a result, the company says the mines are “cleaner, safer to work in and more sympathetic to their environment.”
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+In March 2019 report,the Cumbria City Council claimed the mine would be carbon neutral — a term that refers to the state of producing net-zero carbon dioxide emissions, which is reached by eliminating the combustion of fossil fuels like coal, or by capturing or offsetting the carbon emissions through processes like planting trees. According to the Cumbria County Council’s report, coal from the Cumbria mine will replace the need for coal from elsewhere, which it says makes it carbon neutral.
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+But a January 2020 report by Green Alliance, an independent environmental think tank and charity in the UK, threw cold water on the Cumbria mine’s carbon neutral claims. The report argues that according to basic economic theory, “an increase in a supply of a commodity, such as coal, would reduce the price, leading to increased demand, and therefore, increased emissions.”
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+As a result of this increase in demand, the report’s authors say the steelmaking industry will have less incentive to efficiently use or recycle the coal it uses. The industry would also be less likely to pursue alternative ways to make steel, such as through the Direct Reduced Iron Process which uses natural gas — still a fossil fuel but one that is less polluting than coal.
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+In defense of the coal mine, the Cumbria County Council has also suggested that the coal produced would be used in the UK and EU, therefore ending emissions from coal imports. But according to the Green Alliance’s report, the county council claims without evidence that having no transport emissions will make up for emissions produced by mining the coal.
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+The bottom line, the Green Alliance says, is that Woodhouse Colliery won’t be carbon neutral with its plans to extract 2.43 million tons of coking coal per year. That will produce 9 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, a measure of greenhouse emissions based on their global warming potential, per year.
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+And that doesn’t even include the emissions from extraction.
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+The UK government has bought into the false dichotomy of climate action versus jobs
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+The new mine will be located in Cumbria county near Whitehaven, one of the UK’s poorest towns, with 14 percent of households having financial difficulty paying heating bills as of 2018. So the appeal of 500 new jobs, which the mining company says Woodhouse Colliery would produce, is hard for some local leaders and citizens to overlook (though there is some local opposition).
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+“But it’s not true,” Tim Crosland, director of Plan B, a UK organization that supports taking legal action to fight against climate change, told me in an interview. Crosland disputed that the promise of “a few hundred precarious jobs in a dying industry” would be worth it to the people of Cumbria in the end. “We need good quality sustainable jobs for the future,” Crosland added.
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+The government is afraid that canceling the mine is a choice between jobs and environmental concerns, Crosland told me.
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+“The government is sensitive to the perception that they seem to be sacrificing jobs to serve a metropolitan elite agenda,” he said. “But if you actually look at the expert evidence from the International Energy Agency, the International Monetary Fund, Oxford University — not radical but mainstream thinkers — they say you create more jobs by investing in clean infrastructure.”
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+Indeed, framing the need for continued investment in fossil fuels as important for jobs and arguing that moving away from fossil fuels will hurt jobs and the economy is a classic talking point the fossil fuel industry has used for decades to thwart climate action.
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+There’s still a chance the UK could reverse its decision
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+Ed Davey of the UK’s Liberal Democratic Party has written a letter urging Alok Sharma, the UK’s climate czar, to resign if Prime Minister Johnson doesn’t rescind his decision to approve the mine.
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+Sharma, who will help lead COP 26 later this year, is reported to be livid over the decision to open the mine.
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+After all, the COP 26 summit is where the UK is meant to urge other nations to phase out fossil fuels. That’ll be a lot harder to do if the UK itself just approved the development of a brand new coal mine right there at home.
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+But Crosland said it’s possible all of this opposition might convince Prime Minister Boris Johnson to reverse course. “We’ve seen that the one thing Johnson is is susceptible to this type of pressure, if he reads the signs,” Crosland said.
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+“If Johnson comes to believe that the Cumbria mine will jeopardize the prospects of the UK coming out of COP 26 with some sort of credibility intact, then I think there’s a chance the government will change its plans,” he said.
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Israel outpaced the world in vaccinations. Now it’s seeing the results. -
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+Israelis get the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at Clalit Health Services, in a gymnasium in the central Israeli city of Hod Hasharon, on February 4, 2021. | Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images
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+There’s still a long way to go, but also a reason for hope.
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+Israel has outpaced the world in vaccinating its population against Covid-19. Now the results are starting to come in. And, so far, the news is good for both Israel and the world.
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+Maccabi Health Services, one of Israel’s four health maintenance organizations (HMOs), tracked 163,000 Israelis who had received both of the two required doses of the Pfizer vaccine; only 31 of those people tested positive for Covid-19, compared to an unvaccinated sample in which about 6,500 did.
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+According to data from the Israeli Ministry of Health, 531 of 750,000 fully vaccinated people over 60 years old tested positive for Covid-19 — which is just 0.07 percent. Out of the people who tested positive, only 38 were hospitalized, with symptoms ranging from moderate to critical. Another Israeli HMO, Clalit, found that Covid-19 positivity decreased by 33 percent among 200,000 people 14 days after they’d received just the first Pfizer dose compared to the same number of unvaccinated people.
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+This is all very promising, especially as the world banks on a vaccine as the best path out of this pandemic and as new variants of the virus emerge. “We say with caution, the magic has started,” Eran Segal, a scientist at the Weizmann Institute, posted on Twitter, accompanied by data showing a decline in hospitalizations and critical illness among the 60-or-over group in recent weeks.
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+But scientists caution that there’s still a long way to go. Experts noted that serious cases are declining, but overall infections are not diminishing as swiftly. And many of these studies rely on preliminary data, and these findings may change over time, especially with these new coronavirus variants emerging.
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+Israel also entered a strict lockdown in early January, just as the vaccination campaign was ramping up, which may have also helped nudge cases downward.
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+Who’s getting vaccinated, and how people might behave once they get those shots, may also influence the findings. Those who got vaccinated early and have gotten their full two doses might have been highly motivated; now comes the more challenging part of inoculating vaccine-hesitant or more marginalized communities. Israel has also faced criticism for its failure to extend its vaccination program to Palestinians, which could also make herd immunity harder to achieve.
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+Israel offers lessons in how to vaccinate a population quickly, but it’s also starting to show the challenges — and how difficult global immunization efforts are going to be. “Israel is the canary in the coal mine,” said Bruce Rosen, director of the Smokler Center for Health Policy Research at the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute (MJB) in Jerusalem.
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+How Israel’s vaccination program offered a real-world vaccination test case
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+Israel achieved this largely because of its existing health infrastructure, a universal, digitized system that gave the country a ready-made way to track and communicate with people.
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+All Israeli citizensare enrolled in one of four health maintenance organizations (HMOs) for their care. Everyone has an ID number, which allows for easy access to electronic records.
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+This system also allows health care workers to update a person’s vaccination status, monitor any side effects, and schedule an appointment for the next dose. Many Israelis said they got their appointment for the second dose shortly after getting injected with the first, usually scheduled for exactly 21 days later.
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+This public health infrastructure meant massive vaccination sites popped up quickly, places that were accessible and big enough to be able to space people out and keep them as socially distanced as possible. Experts told me in January that Israel’s knack for responding in emergencies meant it was particularly suited for the logistical and speed challenges of a vaccination campaign.
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+Israel also benefits from being a small country, and word of mouth did help in the vaccination rollout. Though Israel prioritized people over 60 and health care workers in the first phase of the campaign, it embraced a “no waste” policy, meaning vaccine providers prioritized using the doses above all else. If there were extra jabs at the end of the day or week, they might call in the pizza guy or the lady standing at the bus stop.
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+“For a vaccination campaign, we are well-prepared, but we’re also flexible,” Hagai Levine, an epidemiologist at Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Public Health, told me in January. “When you plan, you don’t know, for example, how the cold chain will look, how many vaccines you will get — so you need to make rapid adjustments. And we are good at that.”
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+Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (who, with elections approaching, has a lot to gain from a successful vaccination campaign) has said that Israel’s population could be fully vaccinated by the end of March.
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+Experts said that’s still feasible, though it’s far from as simple as it sounds.
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+Important questions remain around Israel’s vaccination program — and the world’s
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+Israel’s data indicates that the vaccines are working at the individual level; the outcomes of those who have been inoculated compare favorably to those who haven’t. Israel’s streamlined health infrastructure makes it very easy to know who’s been vaccinated and how they’re responding, and compare it against those who haven’t.
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+But that system is also helping it win the vaccine race in another way: In a world where vaccines are in short supply, Israel is getting a regular stream in part because the country promised to provide the vast collection of vaccine data to Pfizer, so it can monitor the effects of the vaccine. (Israel, however, also reportedly paid a premium for the vaccine doses.)
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+But experts said it only gets more complicated from here, especially when it comes to achieving the goal of herd immunity — basically, when enough of the population is immune to the virus that it provides indirect protection to everyone else.
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+New variants of the virus pose a challenge, especially if those mutations make the virus better at getting around the protections offered by the vaccine. Right now, the vaccines available have shown to be broadly effective against these variants, but that could change.
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+There are other questions scientists and public health experts want to answer. Brian Wahl, an epidemiologist with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said that the vaccines are effective against the disease, they’re still learning about its impact on transmission. That is, how likely it is that a vaccinated person who doesn’t get ill from Covid-19 could still spread it.
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+Another question is how long the protection from the vaccine will last. “We need to be continuing to look at how well the vaccine protects several months beyond administration, Wahl said.
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+This is also a new vaccine, and not everyone is enthusiastic about getting it. Often the people first in line for their doses want to be there; it doesn’t take much to get them to their appointments. This is not always the case for vaccine-skeptical or -hesitant people, and getting those people vaccinated is a challenge Israel, and other countries, face.
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+But Ann Blake, a postdoctoral fellow at Baylor College of Medicine who’s been studying Israel’s efforts, said she feels optimistic about Israel’s ability to overcome some of this hesitancy.
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+“Israel’s vaccination campaign showcases a coordinated and organized communications campaign that uses local community leaders and credible messengers in tandem with a synchronized message from the highest levels of government with the specific aim of encouraging vaccination among the vaccine hesitant,” she wrote in an email, addingthat it could serveas a model for other countries, including here in the United States.
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+Beyond hesitancy, experts pointed out that, right now, only people 16 or older are eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine, and scientists are unsure when kids will be approved for Covid-19 vaccinations. All of that leaves a chunk of the population that won’t get vaccinated and could still transmit the virus. “If you had 100 percent [of people] vaccinated, it would be one thing,” Rosen said. “But you don’t. So this is much more complicated in reality.”
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+Israel has also faced criticism for excluding Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip from its vaccination campaign, despite making the shots available to Israeli settlers living in the West Bank.
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+Israel says that based on the terms of the Oslo Accords, the 1990s agreements signed between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the Palestinian Authority is responsible for health care in the Palestinian territories. But human rights and health groups have pressured Israel to “ensure that quality vaccines be provided to Palestinians living under Israeli occupation,” arguing that restrictions imposed by the occupation limit the Palestinian Authority’s purchasing and distribution capabilities.
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+Israel did send about 2,000 Moderna doses to Palestinian authorities this week, with a promise of 3,000 more. But that is nowhere close to enough to serve the entire population of more than 4.5 million.
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+If Palestinians lack safe and effective vaccines, that could also undermine Israel’s efforts at achieving herd immunity, especially since many Palestinian workers move back and forth into Israel every day.
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+“We have to insist that Israel is responsible for Palestinian health as an occupier, especially during pandemics, and that infectious diseases do not know borders,” Rita Giacaman, a professor of public health at the Institute of Community and Public Health at Birzeit University in the West Bank, told me.
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+Indeed, the uneven distribution of vaccines will ultimately prolong the coronavirus crisis everywhere. Israel’s example shows how a rapid campaign can work, but also the limitations of just one country succeeding against the pandemic.
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From The Hindu: Sports
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John Barnes: ‘Whether or not Liverpool retains Premier League title depends on Manchester City’ - Liverpool FC legend John Barnes discusses the club’s Premier League misfortunes this season, manager Jürgen Klopp’s legacy and the documentary on their 2019-20 title win
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Ind vs Eng, 1st Test Day 2 | Joe Root becomes first player to score 200 in 100th Test - On February 5, Root became the ninth player in the history of the game to score a ton on his 100th appearance when he brought up his 20th hundred
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Ind vs Eng, 1st Test | Joe Root’s double ton guides England to 555-8 at stumps on Day 2 - The 30-year-old Root became the first player to notch up a double ton in his 100th Test
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Win will be perfect way to round off Root’s ‘special’ Test: Stokes - Privileged to hand over Root his 100th Test cap at Chepauk, says the England vice-captain
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Injuries everywhere; Medvedev and Russia into ATP Cup final - “Crazy match,” Daniil Medvedev said. “Happy to win even if many things I didn’t like. Most important thing is to win for the country and be in the final.”
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From The Hindu: National News
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Sena mouthpiece indicates disquiet in alliance over Patole replacing Thorat - An editorial in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana said that the three coalition partners will take a decision on the Speaker’s post through negotiations now.
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Fishers opting for juvenile harvesting - As the fisheries sector enters another annual lean season, fishers in many parts are opting for juvenile harvesting, a dangerous and illegal practice
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Today’s times can’t be exaggerated as Emergency: N. Ram - There aree still spaces where one can air strong opinions and fight repression, he says
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Delhi Police warns strict action against air-travellers found carrying ammunition in baggage - A total of 13 cases, where ammunition has been found in the baggage of passengers during security check, have already been registered this year.
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New building of AMMA inaugurated - Actor Mohanlal refuses to comment on farmers’ protest
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From BBC: Europe
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Russia expels European diplomats over Navalny protests - Moscow say the diplomats attended weekend protests in support of Putin critic Alexei Navalny.
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Stutthof camp: Woman, 95, accused of aiding Nazi mass murder - The woman was the secretary to the SS commandant of the Stutthof camp.
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Romania baptisms: Six-week-old baby’s death sparks calls for change - The death of a six-week-old baby after a ceremony prompts a key archbishop to back reforms.
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French skiers swerve Covid in cross-country boom - Cross-country replaces downhill skiing in French resorts struggling to survive the pandemic.
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Denmark to build ‘first energy island’ in North Sea - The ambitious and costly artificial island will provide energy for three million households.
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From Ars Technica
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A new lens technology is primed to jumpstart phone cameras - Smartphone optics have been pretty much the same for more than a decade. - link
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Gaming sites are still letting streamers profit from hate - Far-right, racist figures monetize livestreams via “donation management services.” - link
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Tweaking COVID vaccines to fight variants won’t require big trials, FDA says - The regulatory agency is drawing on its experience with annually tweaked flu shots. - link
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Klobuchar targets Big Tech with biggest antitrust overhaul in 45 years - Big Tech got big through acquisitions—and this bill aims to prevent that in the future. - link
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Mac utility Homebrew finally gets native Apple Silicon and M1 support - There aren’t bottles for every package yet, but the work is in progress. - link
Superman is out flying and sees wonder woman naked on a rooftop with her legs wide open and moaning in delight -
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+He thinks to himself that as he is faster than a speeding bullet he can do his business with her and fly off before she knows it. He toys with the idea and decides to go for it. He swoops down fucks her with lightning thrusts and zooms off in a flash. The whole event lasts less than a second. As soon as he’s gone wonder woman gasps, sits up and yells “what the hell was that?!”
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+“I don’t know but my ass hurts like hell” replies the invisible Man
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Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images
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Our World in Data
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