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University of Nebraska Medical Center

Category: COVID

What comes after Omicron? New variants are emerging.

National Geographic – Infections over the last three months have been dominated by new sublineages of Omicron: BA.2, BA.2.12.1, BA.4., and BA.5. In the U.K., symptomatic infections have steadily increased since August 27—the day they hit lowest level this year—according to the ZOE COVID-19 study, an App-based project in which patients enter their symptoms on their […]

Sep 29, 2022

Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

NIH – Both SARS-CoV-2 and the COVID-19 pandemic have significantly affected the mental health of adults and children. In a 2021 study, nearly half of Americans surveyed reported recent symptoms of an anxiety or depressive disorder, and 10% of respondents felt their mental health needs were not being met. Rates of anxiety, depression, and substance […]

Sep 29, 2022

Repurposing existing drugs to fight new COVID-19 variants

Michigan State University – MSU researchers are using big data and AI to identify current drugs that could be applied to treat new COVID-19 variants. Finding new ways to treat the novel coronavirus and its ever-changing variants has been a challenge for researchers, especially when the traditional drug development and discovery process can take years. […]

Sep 29, 2022

Association of SARS-CoV-2 Seropositivity With Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and/or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Among Children and Adolescents in Germany

JAMA – Question  Is SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity associated with symptoms of myalgic encephalomyelitis and/or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) in children and adolescents? Findings  This cross-sectional study of hospital-based SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence surveys in Germany compared seropositive and seronegative children and adolescents and identified an excess of possible ME/CFS symptoms with serological evidence of preceding SARS-CoV-2 infection. This association almost […]

Sep 28, 2022

Remdesivir resistance in transplant recipients with persistent COVID-19

Clinical Infectious Diseases – New mutations conferring resistance to SARS-CoV-2 therapeutics have important clinical implications. We describe the first cases of an independently acquired V792I RNA-dependent RNA polymerase mutation developing in renal transplant recipients after remdesivir exposure. Our work underscores the need for augmented efforts to identify concerning mutations and address their clinical implications. Download […]

Sep 28, 2022

SARS-CoV-2 mutation leads to resistance to remdesivir in 2 patients

CIDRAP – A report published yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases describes a new SARS-CoV-2 mutation that confers resistance to the COVID-19 antiviral drug remdesivir in two persistently infected kidney transplant recipients treated with immunosuppressive drugs. NYU researchers identified the V792I RNA-dependent 25 RNA polymerase mutation in the transplant patients, who were hospitalized and experienced life-threatening COVID-19 complications […]

Sep 28, 2022

Japan’s COVID herd immunity near 90% after Omicron wave, study says

Reuters – Japan’s population level immunity to COVID-19 has reached about 90% in major population areas after a recent Omicron wave, though that level of protection is likely to diminish in a matter of months, according to a study published on Tuesday.

Sep 28, 2022

Further humoral immunity evasion of emerging SARS-CoV-2 BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants

The Lancet – SARS-CoV-2 BA.4 and BA.5 lineages have been the dominant strains in most regions worldwide and are continuously gaining mutations in the receptor-binding domain. Multiple BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants with Arg346 mutations in the spike glycoprotein have been identified in various countries, such as BA.4.6, BF.7, BA.5.2.6, BA.4.1.9, and BE.1.2 harbouring Arg346Thr; BA.4.7 […]

Sep 28, 2022

Host and viral proteins involved in SARS-CoV-2 infection differentially bind heme

PubMed – In most severe cases, SARS-CoV-2-induced autoimmune reactions have been associated with hemolytic complications. Hemolysis-derived heme from ruptured red blood cells has been shown to trigger a variety of fatal proinflammatory and procoagulant effects, which might deteriorate the progression of COVID-19. In addition, the virus itself can induce proinflammatory signals via the accessory protein […]

Sep 28, 2022