Antibody blocks infection by the SARS-CoV-2 in cells, scientists discover
Reading Time: 2 minutesRESEARCHERS at Utrecht University, Erasmus Medical Center and Harbour BioMed (HBM) today reported that they have identified a fully human monoclonal antibody that prevents the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) virus from infecting cultured cells. The discovery, published online today in Nature Communications, is an initial step towards developing a fully human antibody to treat or prevent the respiratory […]
A grim scenario as ‘cousins’ of SARS-CoV2 stealthily circle the globe
Reading Time: 2 minutesSARS-CoV-2 is known to have mutated and different strains are going around the globe. In a recent preliminary study that has not been peer-reviewed, scientists have identified 14 mutations in Spike protein and counting. Spikes on a virus are responsible for binding and entry into host cells and is a major target of neutralising antibodies. The scientists […]
Experts debunk Trump’s take on Chinese produced coronavirus in lab
Reading Time: 3 minutesDr Jennifer Cole, Associate Fellow, Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, said: “Whenever there is a new disease outbreak, be it AIDS, Ebola, Zika or now SARS-Cov2, there are always conspiracy theories about deliberate bioengineering or laboratory escapes, and a jump to apportion ‘blame’ for the disease. There is often particularly a […]
FAO, UN fight locust plague amid Covid-19 pandemic
Reading Time: 3 minutesROME: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN is continuing its efforts to contain the Desert Locust upsurge in East Africa despite restrictions on the movement of personnel and equipment resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. [ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type=”show” ihc_mb_who=”2,3,5″ ihc_mb_template=”1″ ] The Desert Locust upsurge continues to remain alarming, particularly in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, […]
Key nose cells identified as likely COVID-19 virus entry points
Reading Time: 4 minutesTWO specific cell types in the nose have been identified as likely initial infection points for COVID-19 coronavirus. Scientists discovered that goblet and ciliated cells in the nose have high levels of the entry proteins that the COVID-19 virus uses to get into our cells. [ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type=”show” ihc_mb_who=”2,3,5″ ihc_mb_template=”1″ ] The identification of these cells […]
COVID-19 could not have come at a worse time for vulnerable communities across West Africa
Reading Time: 6 minutesWest Africa and the Sahel region in particular have long been prone to droughts and food shortages, and over the past decade, rising insecurity. How is the situation now? This is a complex region – hit by chronic hunger, insecurity, climate change, the threats of a Desert Locust outbreak, and now the pandemic. Year after […]
Back from the COVID dead in Ecuador, after hospital mixup
Reading Time: 2 minutesQUITO: An Ecuadoran woman who was pronounced dead of COVID-19 suddenly woke up in the hospital, to the delight and relief of relatives who had identified someone else’s body as hers and had it cremated. Alba Maruri, 74, was hospitalised in March in Guayaquil, the Ecuadoran city hardest hit by the pandemic, with fever and […]
World Bank: Pandemic can disrupt food supply chain
Reading Time: 2 minutesWASHINGTON: The coronavirus outbreak and government policies to limit the disease could disrupt food supply chains, potentially threatening food availability, even as prices remain stable in 2020, the World Bank cautioned Thursday. Prices of agricultural commodities are likely to hold up better than oil, metals and other industrial materials that have seen demand plummet amid […]
WHO warns over virus immunity as global toll nears 200,000
Reading Time: 4 minutesBY GAËL BRANCHEREAU THE World Health Organization warned on Saturday recovering from coronavirus may not protect people from reinfection as the death toll from the pandemic approached 200,000 around the globe. Governments across the world are struggling to limit the economic devastation unleashed by the virus, which has infected nearly 2.8 million people and left half […]
UN: Flatten the curve for climate crisis as well
Reading Time: 2 minutesTHE world should fight climate change with the same determination it is showing in the battle against the Covid-19, the United Nations said on today. The UN’s World Meteorological Organization said it was time to flatten the curve on climate change as well, with its impact on the planet “reaching a crescendo” in the past […]