(Reuters) – The following is a summary of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find cures and vaccines for COVID-19, the disease that caused the virus.
The COVID-19 vaccine may be less infectious
People who receive the COVID-19 vaccine can still become infected with the novel coronavirus, although they are more likely to be protected from serious illness, and a new study suggests they may also be as infectious. At a major Israeli health maintenance group where 650,000 members received the two-dose vaccine from Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE, researchers identified 2,897 patients who tested positive for COVID-19. The content of virus on swab samples from the nose and throat was quadrupled for infections occurring at least 12 days after the first dose of the vaccine compared with what is usually seen in patients. Non-vaccinated COVID-19, the research team from Maccabi Health Services and the discovery of Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Viral loads are known to be associated with infection and depth of disease. However, this study was not a randomized trial and did not look at patients’ viral loads over time, or the levels at which their identities were infectious, which would be the most direct evidence of a vaccine. reduces the spread of virus. However, the authors concluded in a paper posted Monday on the medical website medRxiv ahead of a peer review, “These reduced viral loads affect lower infections, which ‘further increase the vaccine effect on virus transmission. ” (bit.ly/2LK5HnE)
A study shows a range of COVID-19 benefits from arthritis drugs
A major study adds evidence that the arthritis drug Roche tocilizumab, sold under the brand name Actemra, cuts the risk of death among hospitalized patients with COVID-19, shortens their hospital stay and reducing the need for mechanical ventilation. In the randomized trial there were more than 4,000 patients with varying degrees of illness. Some required just oxygen therapy but others required mechanical ventilation. Most were also receiving a steroid such as dexamethasone. The 28-day mortality rate was 29% for patients in the tocilizumab group and 33% in the control group, according to a report posted Thursday on the medical website medRxiv ahead of a joint study ages. After taking into account age, sex, and other risk factors, tocilizumab was associated with a 14% reduction in the risk of death. “We now know that the benefits of tocilizumab extend to all COVID patients with low oxygen levels and severe inflammation,” study co-director Peter Horby of Oxford University said in a news release. Used in combination with steroids, Horby said, “the effect is quite significant.” (Bit.ly/3aUZhuy)
Bone marrow cells travel to the brain in some COVID-19 patients
Very large bone marrow cells pop up in the brains of people who have died of COVID-19, which may help explain some of the brain problems associated with the disease, according to researchers. research. The cells, called megakaryocytes, usually live in the bone marrow and make plates for bleeding. “We found that in some patients who died of COVID-19, there were large cells called megakaryocytes in the capillaries – the smallest blood vessels,” said study director David Nauen of Johns Hopkins University to Reuters. “They are so large that they can empty blood flow through the capillaries and restrict the delivery of oxygen to the brain, which can affect brain activity. ”As reported Friday in the journal JAMA Neurology, his team studied brain tension from 15 patients who died of COVID-19 and found megakaryocytes in five of their brains. “It is not known what caused these cells to leave the bone marrow and travel to the brain, but COVID-19 causes disruption of the clotting system, and it is possible that this is related,” Nauen said.
Open tmsnrt.rs/3c7R3Bl in an external browser for Reuters graphics on vaccines in development.
Reciting with Nancy Lapid; Edited by Will Dunham