Category: Science and Tech
Voluntary Recall of Three Detect Covid-19 Test Lots
(FDA) Detect, Inc. is voluntarily recalling specific lots of the Detect Covid-19 Test™, our molecular, over-the-counter test used to identify SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes Covid-19) in self-collected nasal swabs. The recall affects a total of 11,102 tests shipped to customers from July 26th, 2022 through August 26th, 2022. The test was granted Emergency Use […]
Dec 13, 2022
COVID-19 Viral Rebound Occurs With Molnupiravir, No Antivirals
(US Pharmacist) Viral rebound sometimes occurs after treatment with Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir; ritonavir) for the treatment of COVID-19. Apparently, viral rebound also occurs with molnupiravir but not very commonly, according to a new study. Researchers from the Chinese University of Hong Kong sought to examine the incidence of viral rebound in patients with COVID-19 who were […]
Dec 13, 2022
Scientists Eye Monoclonal Antibodies for Malaria as Drug Resistance Looms
(Bloomberg) Most people are by now familiar with the monoclonal antibody drugs used to prevent and treat severe Covid-19 infections. But antibody drugs have a variety of other uses in medicine from cancer treatment to preventing viral illnesses like RSV. They have even shown promise in slowing disease progression from Alzheimer’s.
Dec 6, 2022
Covid Rebound with Pfizer’s Paxlovid Less Than Expected
(Bloomberg) On the (Paxlovid) rebound, Pfizer Inc.’s antiviral medication caused recurrences or prolonged infections more often in real life than in clinical studies. (A rebound of coronavirus occurred in 2.3% of patients on Paxlovid versus 1.7% receiving placebo in a late-stage trial, Pfizer scientists said in September.)
Dec 6, 2022
Deep Learning Model Predicts 10-Year Cardiovascular Disease Risk from Chest X-Rays
(Diagnostic Imaging) Based on a single existing chest X-ray image, the deep learning model predicts future major adverse cardiovascular events with similar performance to an established risk scoring system and may help identify people for preventive use of statin medication. Researchers have developed a deep learning model that predicts the 10-year risk of major adverse […]
Nov 29, 2022
Clinical Center Doctors Testing 3D-Printed Miniature Ventilator
(NIH) Through strategic partnerships, our Clinical Center doctors learned about and joined an international group of engineers, physicians, respiratory therapists, and patient advocates using their engineering skills to create a ventilator that was functional, affordable, and intuitive. After several iterations and bench testing, they devised a user-friendly ventilator. Then, with the assistance of 3D-printing technology, […]
Nov 29, 2022
What Covid taught scientists and the public about the flu
(NBC News) For nearly three years, the medical and scientific world scrutinized Covid. That research helped experts gain a new understanding of a much older virus: the flu. On March 3, 2020, the head of the World Health Organization began a daily press briefing exhorting countries around the world to do more to stop the spread […]
Nov 22, 2022
Coronavirus variants are dodging antibody treatments. New lab-made options may help.
(Washington Post) In the evolutionary chess match between the coronavirus and humans, scientists’ next move can’t come soon enough for the millions of Americans relying on treatments known as monoclonal antibodies. These lab-made therapies are rapidly losing their healing power, forcing researchers around the world to devise new antibodies that are both more potent and […]
Nov 22, 2022
An elegant way to stop deadly Hendra virus spillovers from bats to horses … to us
(NPR) Not quite 20 years ago, Raina Plowright stood in a forest in Australia’s Northern Territory at dusk. She watched as hundreds of thousands of bats called little red flying foxes launched themselves into the air. “The sky was [dark] with these huge bats taking off in this stream of animals across the landscape looking for nectar,” […]
Nov 22, 2022
Bird flu found in Southeast Alaska bear cub
(Alaska News) A sick bear discovered last month at Bartlett Cove in Glacier Bay National Park was found to be infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza, the Division of Wildlife Conservation said.“The virus that causes HPAI was detected on both nasal and rectal swabs and in brain tissue screening at Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory […]
Nov 21, 2022