Health News

Study offers new protocols for high-quality SARS-CoV-2 genomic sequencing

In late-December 2019, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first detected in Wuhan City, China, causing an easily transmissible respiratory illness. By March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared its outbreak a global pandemic. Caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), COVID-19 has infected over 107.48 million people globally. To date, […]

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Israel begins exit from third virus lockdown

Israeli barbershops and some other businesses reopened Sunday as the country began easing its third coronavirus lockdown amid an aggressive vaccination campaign. The government had announced Friday it was lifting some restrictions imposed since December, when the country saw a rise in COVID-19 infections. Jerusalem barber Eli Aroas was among those re-opening on Sunday morning, […]

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Researchers make discoveries to better understand SARS-CoV-2 virus

An effort led by Lin Li, Ph.D., assistant professor of physics at The University of Texas at El Paso, in collaboration with students and faculty from Howard University, has identified key variants that help explain the differences between the viruses that cause COVID-19 and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). A team comprised of researchers from […]

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Argentina detects first case of British virus variant

Argentina has detected its first case of a British-identified coronavirus variant that appears to be more infectious, authorities said Saturday. The infection was discovered in a man who arrived from Britain in Argentina in late December without symptoms of the disease. Authorities “detected the variant of SARS-CoV-2 from the United Kingdom in a traveler,” science […]

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German agency slams too many ‘exceptions’ to virus rules

Germany’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI) health agency on Thursday called for stronger measures to bring down coronavirus infections, noting many people not doing enough to reduce social contacts. “The measures that we are taking now—for me they are not a complete lockdown, there are still too many exceptions,” RKI head Lothar Wieler told a press […]

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Saint Petersburg eyes virus lockdown amid record deaths

Russia’s second city Saint Petersburg registered a record number of virus deaths on Tuesday as authorities warned of an imminent lockdown and shuttered restaurants for the New Year’s holidays. Saint Petersburg—one of Russia’s most popular tourist destinations—is struggling with a major health crisis, with hospitals overwhelmed with coronavirus patients but residents flouting social distancing and […]

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As virus slams rural California, many still pan restrictions

Brenda Luntey is openly violating California’s order to close her restaurant to indoor dining. But she wants her customers and critics to know she isn’t typically a rule-breaker. It’s a matter of survival. “This is my first episode of civil disobedience in my entire life. My whole family is in law enforcement. I’m a follow-the-rules […]

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Thailand urges calm after four test positive for virus

Thai authorities urged calm on Tuesday as they scramble to trace a potential coronavirus outbreak after at least four women tested positive on returning from neighbouring Myanmar. Since detecting the first case outside of China back in January, Thailand has managed to keep COVID-19 infections low, at just over 4,000 cases, in part by imposing […]