Author: Claudinne Miller
Pandemic response gets a permanent new home at the White House
(STAT News) The era of the rotating cast of public health czars at the White House may finally be over. Presidents for decades have brought fresh faces to the White House to coordinate federal responses to threats such as Covid-19, mpox, Ebola, AIDS, and the bird flu. Now, Congress aims to give pandemic response a permanent home […]
Jan 3, 2023
As Covid-19 Continues to Spread, So Does Misinformation About It
(NYT) Doctors are exasperated by the persistence of false and misleading claims about the virus. As Covid cases, hospitalizations and deaths rise in parts of the country, myths and misleading narratives continue to evolve and spread, exasperating overburdened doctors and evading content moderators. What began in 2020 as rumors that cast doubt on the existence or seriousness […]
Jan 3, 2023
Cold exposure impairs extracellular vesicle swarm–mediated nasal antiviral immunity
(Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology) The human upper respiratory tract is the first site of contact for inhaled respiratory viruses and elaborates an array of innate immune responses. Seasonal variation in respiratory viral infections and the importance of ambient temperature in modulating immune responses to infections have been well recognized; however, the underlying biological […]
Jan 3, 2023
Why Do You Get Sick in the Winter? Blame Your Nose
(Wired) A new study shows that as temperatures drop, nasal cells release fewer of the tiny protectors that bind and neutralize invading germs. Inside the sticky confines of the human nose, a gluey layer of mucus surrounds small hairs and cells. While this ooze may appear gross, it is teeming with important components of the […]
Jan 3, 2023
Comparative effectiveness of third doses of mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines in US veterans
(Nature) Vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 has been effective in reducing the burden of severe disease and death from COVID-19. Third doses of mRNA-based vaccines have provided a way to address waning immunity and broaden protection against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants. However, their comparative effectiveness for a range of COVID-19 outcomes across diverse populations is unknown. We emulated […]
Jan 3, 2023
China is flying blind as pandemic rages
(Science) Most scientists believe China’s decision to end its zero-COVID policy was long overdue. But now they have a new worry: that the country is collecting and sharing far too little data about the rough transition to a new coexistence with the virus. China abruptly dropped virtually all controls a month ago, after protests, a […]
Jan 3, 2023
Data-driven identification of post-acute SARS-CoV-2 infection subphenotypes
(Nature) The post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) refers to a broad spectrum of symptoms and signs that are persistent, exacerbated or newly incident in the period after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Most studies have examined these conditions individually without providing evidence on co-occurring conditions. In this study, we leveraged the electronic health record data of […]
Jan 3, 2023
Study identifies four major subtypes of long COVID
(Cornell) The post-COVID syndrome known as long COVID has four major subtypes defined by different clusters of symptoms, according to a study led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine. The study, published Dec. 1 in Nature Medicine, was the largest of its kind to examine long COVID. The researchers, who represent clinicians and informaticists, used a machine-learning […]
Jan 3, 2023
SARS-CoV-2 mucosal vaccine
(Nature) Currently approved SARS-CoV-2 vaccines induce robust systemic immunity but poor immunity at the respiratory mucosa, meaning that they are highly effective against symptomatic disease but do not prevent viral transmission. In Science, Mao et al. developed a vaccine strategy that induced mucosal immune memory within the respiratory tract and reduced viral transmission. K18-hACE2 mice were […]
Jan 3, 2023
COVID Smell Loss: ‘Retraining’ Mostly Flops in Trial
(MedPageToday) Bimodal olfactory training with visual cues and the use of patient-preferred scents did not produce a clinically meaningful improvement in sense of smell among individuals with COVID-19–related olfactory loss, a 275-patient randomized trial showed. Among participants with post-COVID infection olfactory loss equally randomized to bimodal patient-preferred, bimodal physician-assigned, unimodal patient-preferred, and unimodal physician-assigned scents arms, […]
Jan 3, 2023