Most countries around the world have implemented widespread vaccination campaigns to protect their citizens against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although these vaccines are mostly well tolerated, they cause mild to moderate side effects in some patients. Recently, there have been anti-vaccine movements throughout the world, many of which are referring to […]

A recent review paper published in the MDPI's journal Viruses highlights how available vaccines may be effective in protecting individuals against severe forms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but the protection against infection with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its transmission to others may be reduced – with consequences for community […]

The causative agent of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), is an extremely virulent single-stranded RNA virus. Several COVID-19 vaccines have received emergency use authorization (EUA) from several global regulatory bodies, and subsequently, vaccination programs have been initiated in many countries. Study: No Significant Difference in Viral Load Between […]

Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines have been available, healthcare workers have been prioritized to receive them and are set to be prioritized to receive boosters. Several studies have noted a disparity in vaccine uptake between healthcare workers based on demographic differences. In a recent paper, the phenomenon of vaccine hesitancy is further explored […]

Studies show that in transplant recipients, the humoral response to two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine is inferior to that in immunocompetent individuals. However, there is not much data on the real-world efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination in kidney transplant recipients. Study: Real-world Effectiveness of 2-dose SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination in Kidney Transplant Recipients. Image Credit: Hospital man […]

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients may receive various treatments that are thought to interfere with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease progression and the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines. Early reports have suggested that patients receiving specific monoclonal antibody and receptor modulator treatments for MS are at greater risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19. Study: Impact […]

Computational modeling of therapeutic targets is an important part of modern drug design and discovery. Since the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the protein structure of the components of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and other relevant molecules such as the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor have been freely […]

In a report currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server, scientists from the USA have demonstrated that immunity induced by mRNA-based coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines in previously severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-infected people has the highest robustness and durability with cross-reactivity against different viral variants. Study: Differential antibody dynamics to SARS-CoV-2 infection […]

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). This pandemic has indicated the effectiveness of real-time analysis of sequencing data linked to a wide range of databases. Study: Real-time monitoring and analysis of SARS-CoV-2 nanopore sequencing with minoTour. Image Credit: Design_Cells/ Shutterstock Scientists have proposed that real-time […]

Scientists from the National Institutes of Health, USA, have recently demonstrated the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of two vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-based coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines in hamsters. Their study, which is currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server, has described that the intranasal administration of single-dose vaccine provides rapid protection against symptomatic COVID-19 […]