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Bivalent boosters provide better protection against severe COVID-19


08 Feb 2023

To date, more than 80% of people in the U.S. have received at least one dose of a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The original mRNA vaccines, developed by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, targeted the initial strain of the virus. Since then, different variants of the virus have evolved. These included Delta in 2020 and Omicron in late 2021. Subvariants of Omicron continue to emerge. Currently, ones called BQ.1, BQ.1.1, and XBB.1.5 predominate in the U.S.


NEWS 02 February 2023 How quickly does COVID immunity fade? What scientists know


03 Feb 2023

Three years into the pandemic, the immune systems of the vast majority of humans have learnt to recognize SARS-CoV-2 through vaccination, infection or, in many cases, both. But just how quickly do these types of immunity fade? New evidence suggests that ‘hybrid’ immunity, the result of both vaccination and a bout of COVID-19, can provide partial protection against reinfection for at least eight months1. It also offers greater than 95% protection against severe disease or hospitalization for between six months and a year after an infection or vaccination, according to estimates from a meta-analysis2. Immunity acquired by booster vaccination alone seems to fade somewhat faster.


Experimental mRNA Vaccine May Protect Against All 20 Influenza Virus Subtypes


06 Dec 2022

Flu season is now upon us, and protecting yourself and your loved ones is still as easy as heading to the nearest pharmacy for your annual flu shot. These vaccines are formulated each year to protect against up to four circulating strains of influenza virus, and they generally do a good job. What they can’t do is prevent future outbreaks of more novel flu viruses that occasionally spill over from other species into humans, thereby avoiding a future influenza pandemic.


Researchers Discover Potential New Antiviral Against COVID-19


30 Nov 2022

What you need to know Antivirals are medications that can help your body fight off viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. They work by preventing the virus from infecting healthy cells, which helps your immune system fight off infection. But viruses like SARS-CoV-2 can mutate, and antivirals may not be effective against viral variants. In a study supported by several NIH Institutes and Centers, researchers used an animal model to identify a drug that can stop SARS-CoV-2 from entering healthy cells in a way that viral variants won’t be able to evade. If it is safe and effective for humans, it may become another powerful tool in the fight against COVID-19, especially as new viral variants arise.


Study Shows Benefits of COVID-19 Vaccines and Boosters


18 Oct 2022

As colder temperatures settle in and people spend more time gathered indoors, cases of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses almost certainly will rise. That’s why, along with scheduling your annual flu shot, it’s now recommended that those age 5 and up should get an updated COVID-19 booster shot [1,2]. Not only will these new boosters guard against the original strain of the coronavirus that started the pandemic, they will heighten your immunity to the Omicron variant and several of the subvariants that continue to circulate in the U.S. with devastating effects.




Articles


SARS-CoV-2 infection triggers pro-atherogenic inflammatory responses in human coronary vessels


28 Sep 2023

Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) present increased risk for ischemic cardiovascular complications up to 1 year after infection. Although the systemic inflammatory response to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection likely contributes to this increased cardiovascular risk, whether SARS-CoV-2 directly infects the coronary vasculature and attendant atherosclerotic plaques remains unknown. Here we report that SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA is detectable and replicates in coronary lesions taken at autopsy from severe COVID-19 cases. SARS-CoV-2 targeted plaque macrophages and exhibited a stronger tropism for arterial lesions than adjacent perivascular fat, correlating with macrophage infiltration levels. SARS-CoV-2 entry was increased in cholesterol-loaded primary macrophages and dependent, in part, on neuropilin-1. SARS-CoV-2 induced a robust inflammatory response in cultured macrophages and human atherosclerotic vascular explants with secretion of cytokines known to trigger cardiovascular events. Our data establish that SARS-CoV-2 infects coronary vessels, inducing plaque inflammation that could trigger acute cardiovascular complications and increase long-term cardiovascular risk.




Long-Term Dysfunction of Taste Papillae in SARS-CoV-2


06 Sep 2023

Abstract BACKGROUND We sought to determine whether ongoing taste disturbance in the post-acute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 is associated with the persistent virus in primary taste tissue. CONCLUSIONS Our data show a temporal association in patients between functional taste, taste papillae morphology, and the presence of SARS-CoV-2 and its associated immunological changes. (Funded by Intramural Research Program/National Institute on Aging/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases/National Institutes of Health; ClinicalTrials.gov numbers NCT03366168 and NCT04565067.)




Uninsured and Not Immune — Closing the Vaccine-Coverage Gap for Adults


20 Jul 2023

The U.S. Covid-19 vaccination strategy was simple: get safe and effective vaccines into arms as quickly as possible by making them free and accessible. This strategy worked: more than 670 million Covid-19 vaccine doses had been administered to more than 270 million Americans by the end of the national public health emergency.




Strategic Masking to Protect Patients from All Respiratory Viral Infections


06 Jul 2023

The end of the public health emergency in the United States is a richly symbolic milestone in the course of the SARSCoV-2 pandemic. During the height of the pandemic, the virus killed millions of people worldwide, upended lives, and radically altered health care. One of the most visible changes in health care was the introduction of universal masking, a measure designed to reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission in health care facilities by applying source control and exposure protection to everyone in the facility. With the end of the public health emergency, however, many health care centers in the United States are now stopping universal masking and reverting to requiring masking in only limited circumstances (e.g., when health care workers are caring for patients with potentially contagious respiratory infections).




Development of a Definition of Postacute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 Infection


25 May 2023

Key Points Question What symptoms are differentially present in SARS-CoV-2–infected individuals 6 months or more after infection compared with uninfected individuals, and what symptom-based criteria can be used to identify postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) cases? Findings In this analysis of data from 9764 participants in the RECOVER adult cohort, a prospective longitudinal cohort study, 37 symptoms across multiple pathophysiological domains were identified as present more often in SARS-CoV-2–infected participants at 6 months or more after infection compared with uninfected participants. A preliminary rule for identifying PASC was derived based on a composite symptom score. Meaning A framework for identifying PASC cases based on symptoms is a first step to defining PASC as a new condition. These findings require iterative refinement that further incorporates clinical features to arrive at actionable definitions of PASC.




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