Author: Claudinne Miller
This Fall’s COVID-19 Vaccines Will Target Omicron XBB Subvariants, but Who Needs Them Remains to Be Seen
JAMA On June 15, members of the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted unanimously to recommend updating the COVID-19 vaccine composition to a monovalent XBB lineage. On June 16, the FDA announced that it had advised manufacturers planning to update their COVID-19 vaccines that they should specifically target XBB.1.5. Scientists […]
Jul 5, 2023
Detrimental effects of COVID-19 in the brain and therapeutic options for long COVID: The role of Epstein–Barr virus and the gut–brain axis
Nature The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection has resulted in a serious public health burden worldwide. In addition to respiratory, heart, and gastrointestinal symptoms, patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 experience a number of persistent neurological and psychiatric symptoms, known as long COVID or “brain fog”. Studies […]
Jul 5, 2023
A Rare Domestic Resurgence of Malaria Is Circulating in the US
Wired AT LEAST FOUR people in Florida and one in Texas have been diagnosed with malaria that they must have caught near where they live—because, according to health officials, none of them traveled outside the US or their own states. The very unusual discovery has left infectious disease specialists wondering: Who else might be ill, and will local […]
Jul 5, 2023
Federal Officials Hatch a Three-Pronged Defense Against Another ‘Tripledemic’
New York Times This fall, Americans will be urged to get shots against the flu, Covid and, if they’re older, R.S.V. To prevent a repeat of last winter’s “tripledemic” of respiratory illnesses, Americans will be encouraged to roll up their sleeves not just for flu shots but for two other vaccines, one of them entirely […]
Jul 5, 2023
No more rides to Hel on bus 666 in Poland
AP There will be no more going to Hel on bus 666. The bus to the town of Hel on Poland’s Baltic coast has long been popular with tourists. But some Christian conservatives have protested the number signifying the devil on a bus leading to a place that sounds like the word “hell” in English. […]
Jun 27, 2023
If You Suffer from Urgent Normal Syndrome, Ask for Help
Ko-Fi A woman finds a mask in her coat pocket, leftover from the 2021 mandate. It triggers such a violent emotional reaction in her mind that she throws the mask across the room and starts sobbing, then tweets about the experience. This woman might be suffering from urgent normal syndrome. What’s that, you ask? As […]
Jun 27, 2023
COVID Update
Dr. James Lawler reviews studies reinforcing lessons learned throughout the pandemic including air travel surveillance, variant trends, excess mortality, the role of children in household transmission, and more.
Jun 27, 2023
Blood Group A Enhances SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Key Points Among risk factors for SARS-CoV-2, ABO(H) blood group antigens have been one of the most recognized predictors of infection. However, the mechanisms whereby ABO(H) antigens influence susceptibility to COVID-19 remain incompletely understood. The receptor binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2, which facilitates host cell engagement, bears significant similarity to galectins, an ancient family of […]
Jun 27, 2023
Texas A&M Expert Testifies On Preparing For Future Public Health Threats And Disasters
Texas A&M Dr. Gerald Parker, Texas A&M University’s associate dean for Global One Health at the School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) and director of the Pandemic & Biosecurity Policy Program, recently testified before the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health on the importance of being prepared for emerging threats and […]
Jun 27, 2023