Author: Claudinne Miller
Fibroblast-expressed LRRC15 is a receptor for SARS-CoV-2 spike and controls antiviral and antifibrotic transcriptional programs
(PLoS Biology) Although ACE2 is the primary receptor for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, a systematic assessment of host factors that regulate binding to SARS-CoV-2 spike protein has not been described. Here, we use whole-genome CRISPR activation to identify host factors controlling cellular interactions with SARS-CoV-2. Our top hit was a TLR-related cell […]
Feb 17, 2023
How Deadly Was China’s Covid Wave?
(New York Times) Two months after China ended “zero Covid,” rough estimates suggest that between 1 and 1.5 million people died — far more than the official count. After China relaxed the world’s most stringent Covid-19 restrictions in December, the virus exploded. Hints of the surge were everywhere: Hospitals turned away patients. Crematories were overwhelmed with […]
Feb 16, 2023
Causal Effects of COVID-19 on Structural Changes in Specific Brain Regions: A Mendelian Randomization Study
Lancet Preprint Background: Previous studies have found a correlation between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and changes in brain structure and cognitive impairment, but it remains unclear whether COVID-19 causes structural changes to the brain and which specific brain regions may be affected. Herein, we conduct a Mendelian randomization (MR) study to determine this causal relationship […]
Feb 16, 2023
Covid-19 Is Now Harder to Stop and Easier to Survive
(Washington Post) To figure out what’s going on with Covid-19, a good place to start is in the sewers. Since early in the pandemic, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority has been testing inflows to its Deer Island Wastewater Treatment Plant in Boston Harbor for the virus. The readings provide a remarkably detailed picture of the course […]
Feb 16, 2023
Zoonotic Mutation of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 Virus Identified in the Brain of Multiple Wild Carnivore Species
(Pathogens) Wild carnivore species infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus subtype H5N1 during the 2021–2022 outbreak in the Netherlands included red fox (Vulpes vulpes), polecat (Mustela putorius), otter (Lutra lutra), and badger (Meles meles). Most of the animals were submitted for testing because they showed neurological signs. In this study, the HPAI H5N1 […]
Feb 16, 2023
Explainer: What are the bird flu risks to people and animals?
(Reuters) Countries ranging from the United States and Britain to France and Japan have suffered record losses of poultry in outbreaks of avian flu in the past year. The disease, which experts said is being spread by migratory birds, reached South American nations such as Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia for the first time. SHOULD HUMANS WORRY ABOUT INFECTIONS? The risk to humans is low, said […]
Feb 15, 2023
What Not to Ask Me About My Long COVID
(Atlantic) Before I got long COVID, I tuned out virtually all stories about it. They were tedious because I was tired of the pandemic, because we are all tired of the pandemic, because it is as familiar as rain and honestly just as dreary; I can hardly believe we once called the coronavirus novel. Today, I still tune […]
Feb 15, 2023
Marburg virus outbreak: researchers race to test vaccines
(Nature) Control measures such as quarantine could end the outbreak in Equatorial Guinea quickly — good news for inhabitants but a mixed blessing for clinical trials. Health officials worldwide are sprinting to test whether experimental vaccines can protect against a deadly illness, after Equatorial Guinea confirmed its first outbreak of Marburg virus disease on 13 […]
Feb 15, 2023
Cameroon detects two suspected cases of Marburg virus near Eq. Guinea
(Reuters) – Cameroonian authorities detected two suspected cases of Marburg disease on Monday in Olamze, a commune on the border with Equatorial Guinea, the public health delegate for the region, Robert Mathurin Bidjang, said on Tuesday. Equatorial Guinea officially declared its first outbreak of the Marburg virus, an illness similar to Ebola, on Monday. Neighbouring Cameroon had restricted movement along the […]
Feb 14, 2023