A Chinese team of virologists has discovered a new bat coronavirus that can infect human cells, raising concerns about potential animal-to-human transmission. The virus, a new lineage of the HKU5 coronavirus, uses the same human receptor as the virus that causes COVID-19. The study, led by Shi Zhengli, a prominent virologist at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, was published in the journal Cell. The discovery comes amid ongoing scrutiny of the Wuhan lab, which was previously accused of being the source of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chinese government has denied any involvement in the virus's origin and insists that the Wuhan lab never engaged in gain-of-function studies on coronaviruses.
The Russian vaccine has been registered in more than 55 countries and is gaining recognition in the virtual world -- being the only to have its own Facebook page, YouTube channel and a Twitter handle, reports Aneesh Phadnis
Instead of killing bat cells as the virus does with human cells, the MERS coronavirus enters a long-term relationship with the host, maintained by the bat's unique 'super' immune system
'Unless some serious steps like complete closedown are taken, it will have disastrous consequences.'
For the first seven days, India's trajectory was close to that of the US and the UK, but the implementation of the lockdown from Day 8 seems to have helped us control the spread significantly despite our larger population.
Common symptoms of the novel coronavirus (nCoV) strain, which has infected more than 300 people since the outbreak in Wuhan in December, include respiratory symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties, the WHO said
The researchers, working in an 'unprecedented' vaccine development effort to prevent COVID-19, said they have started screening healthy volunteers (aged 18-55) from Friday for their upcoming trial in the Thames Valley Region of England.
The Indian nationals, mostly students, research scholars and professionals are working in Indian and international companies in the Chinese province.
The trial began at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle as the first participant received the investigational vaccine.
Elders must think twice about having friends and family members visit them, especially if anyone in the family might be sick, says Prashanth Reddy.
The arrival of summer in India may have raised hopes that hot and humid weather could slow the COVID-19 progression but virologist Naga Suresh Veerapu believes that outbreak and pandemic occurrences often do not follow seasonality.
'At the current time, we should be vaccinating all those who are potentially going to get more severe illness, before we start vaccinating very young individuals.'
The affected nurse is being treated and is recovering well, junior foreign minister V Muraleedharan said. Meanwhile, China has locked down five cities, including Wuhan, suspending all public transport in an unprecedented move to contain the coronavirus that has infected over 630 people and left 17 others dead.
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'The immune protection may well wane somewhat, and that's what we have to monitor.' 'Should it wane to the point where vaccinated individuals are getting severe disease, then we really will need to give them booster shots and that'll apply regardless of what vaccine they've got the first time.'
'Infectious disease is a given of humankind. There will always be another around the corner.'
'65 per cent were males.' 'Age group of deaths: More were seen from age 51 to 70.' 'Saw some deaths from age 21 to the 40s.' 'About 76 to 77 per cent of patient deaths had some kind of a comorbidity.' 'The main comorbidities were the presence of diabetes, hypertension, some kind of heart diseases.'
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