Author: Claudinne Miller
COVID-19 vaccine patent battles continue into 2023
(Reuters) A tangle of high-stakes U.S. patent disputes over COVID-19 vaccines could be tamed by court rulings or grow even more complex next year. In the headlining fight, Moderna sued Pfizer and BioNTech in August, accusing them of infringing three patents on mRNA-related innovations Moderna said it developed before the COVID-19 pandemic. Pfizer and BioNTech responded earlier this month […]
Dec 27, 2022
How our pandemic toolkit fought the many viruses of 2022
(Popular Science) COVID-19 caused headlines again this year, but it was matched by a slew of other newsworthy viruses: the adenoviruses suspected to be behind the rise in hepatitis cases in early spring, the outbreak of mpox—formerly known as monkeypox—in the summer, an early surge in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and a peak in influenza cases following the Thanksgiving holiday season. […]
Dec 27, 2022
Persistent post–COVID-19 smell loss is associated with immune cell infiltration and altered gene expression in olfactory epithelium
(Science) SARS-CoV-2 causes profound changes in the sense of smell, including total smell loss. Although these alterations are often transient, many patients with COVID-19 exhibit olfactory dysfunction that lasts months to years. Although animal and human autopsy studies have suggested mechanisms driving acute anosmia, it remains unclear how SARS-CoV-2 causes persistent smell loss in a […]
Dec 27, 2022
Cholera Returns With a Vengeance
(MedPageToday) OPINION – It has been a bad year for cholera, the fecally transmitted scourge once depicted as a supernatural reaper wielding a giant scythe. When the artwork above, “Le Choléraopens in a new tab or window,” first appeared in 1912, cholera’s pathophysiology was still a mystery, but its clinical wrath wasn’t. By then, it […]
Dec 27, 2022
2022 in Review
Google recently released their annual “year in search” video. The 2022 edition was vastly different that the previous year. COVID didn’t show up on the list this year, I think my searches alone would have put it in the top ten. 2021 searches reflected getting through COVID, the lockdowns, mental health, and how to develop […]
Dec 27, 2022
Israel researchers discover 100,000 new RNA viruses
(Jerusalem Post) RNA viruses infect cells by injecting RNA into the cytoplasm of the host cells to transcribe and replicate viral proteins. Since the appearance of COVID-19, viruses have gotten a very bad name in the general public. These tiny intracellular parasites of living organisms are the most numerous biological entities on Earth and cause disease […]
Dec 27, 2022
5 big questions we still need to answer about long covid (Opinion)
(Washington Post) We are nearly three years into the covid-19 pandemic, and the debate about the need for health measures such as vaccine and mask mandates is as hot as ever. One big reason for that: long covid. What even is “long covid”? Broadly speaking, the condition refers to any symptoms persisting weeks to months after […]
Dec 27, 2022
Saliva antibody-fingerprint of reactivated latent viruses after mild/asymptomatic COVID-19 is unique in patients with myalgic-encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome
(Frontiers in Immunology) Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a chronic disease considered to be triggered by viral infections in a majority of cases. Symptoms overlap largely with those of post-acute sequelae of COVID-19/long-COVID implying common pathogenetic mechanisms. SARS-CoV-2 infection is risk factor for sustained latent virus reactivation that may account for the symptoms of […]
Dec 27, 2022
COVID isn’t just infecting you—it could be reactivating viruses that have been dormant in your body for years
(Fortune) You had COVID a few months ago and recovered—but things still aren’t quite right. When you stand up, you feel dizzy, and your heart races. Even routine tasks leave you feeling spent. And what was once a good night’s sleep no longer feels refreshing. Long COVID, right? It may not be so simple. A […]
Dec 27, 2022
As Covid Deaths Climb, Even Seniors Skip the Latest Booster
(NYT) Nearly all Americans over 65 got their initial Covid vaccines. But that immunity is waning, and this time, the government is offering far less support for new shots.
Dec 27, 2022