Authorities in Brazil, hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic, will roll out a nationwide vaccination campaign Monday, two days earlier than announced. The accelerated push comes amid a surge in COVID-19 cases and mounting impatience in states including Sao Paulo, which has already launched its own inoculation drive. Brazil’s Anvisa regulatory agency on Sunday approved the […]
Early research shows promise for therapeutics that delay type 2 diabetes
Vanderbilt researchers have discovered a unique pathway that initiates islet β cell inflammation—a hallmark of type 2 diabetes—putting them a step closer to developing targeted therapeutics for the disease that affects one in 10 Americans. The article, “RIPK3-mediated inflammation is a conserved β-cell response to ER stress” was published in the journal Science Advances on […]
South Australia to end lockdown early after pizza parlour blunder
South Australia’s six-day “circuit-breaker” lockdown will be cut short, officials said Friday, blaming a pizza parlour worker who misled contact tracers about how he contracted the virus. Premier Steven Marshall indicated a tough lockdown for the state’s almost two million people would end late on Saturday, at least two days earlier than planned. Marshall said […]
Pandemic dangers drive some doctors to switch jobs, retire early
(HealthDay)—Dr. Brad Cotton enjoyed working on the front lines as an emergency room doctor. Yet in March, as the coronavirus pandemic burst through the doors at hospitals across the world, Cotton left that more dangerous work behind. “I left emergency medicine because that was much higher risk. I’m actually still working full time for urgent […]
Second Russian virus vaccine passes early trials: report
Early clinical trials of a second Russian coronavirus vaccine have proved successful, its developer said Thursday after Russia boasted of approving the world’s first vaccine. Russia’s Vektor—a top-secret state virology research centre in Siberia—said that early-stage trials were successful for its own experimental vaccine, named EpiVacCorona. “The first two phases of clinical trials demonstrated the […]
Early detection of COVID-19: How your smartwatch could help
News of the first U.S. coronavirus case hit the American public on Tuesday, Jan. 21. For Jessilyn Dunn, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Biostatistics and Bioinformatics at Duke University and director of the Duke BIG IDEAs Lab, the infection in Washington State was a cue to launch a new study—COVIDentify. […]
RNA scientists advance early detection of Duchene muscular dystrophy
The devastating effects of Duchene muscular dystrophy (DMD) can be mitigated if detection takes place in early childhood. Sadly, early diagnosis is rare. Now, University RNA researchers have discovered a novel method that could solve this long-standing problem. The research team, from the UAlbany laboratories Professor Igor Lednev of Chemistry and Bijan Dey —a principal […]
Experimental drug shows early promise against inherited form of ALS, trial indicates
An experimental drug for a rare, inherited form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has shown promise in a phase 1/phase 2 clinical trial conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and other sites around the world and sponsored by the pharmaceutical company Biogen Inc. The trial indicated […]
Experimental drug shows early promise against inherited form of ALS, trial indicates
An experimental drug for a rare, inherited form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has shown promise in a phase 1/phase 2 clinical trial conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and other sites around the world and sponsored by the pharmaceutical company Biogen Inc. The trial indicated […]
Virtual reality shows promise for early detection of multiple sclerosis balance problems
People with multiple sclerosis (MS) often have a greatly increased risk of falling and injuring themselves even when they feel they’re able to walk normally. Now a team led by scientists from the UNC School of Medicine has demonstrated what could be a relatively easy method for the early detection of such problems. The researchers, […]