Coronavirus Pandemic Leads To Shortage Of Materials Needed For Kidney Dialysis

reported physicians say there is a shortage of materials needed for kidney dialysis as a significant number of patients with COVID-19 experience kidney failure. The Times said the “surge in Covid-19 patients with kidney failure...is leading to shortages of machines, supplies and staff required for emergency dialysis.” ProPublica (4/19, Pearson, Kaplan, Campbell) reports research suggests that 14 percent to 30 percent of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs experience acute kidney injury, which “has taxed the supply of materials like fluids, cartridges and other machine components that are used to facilitate dialysis treatments that filter toxins out of sick patients’ bloodstreams continuously for 24 hours, called continuous renal replacement therapy, or CRRT.”

Remdesivir Prevents Disease Progression in Monkeys With COVID-19

Early treatment with the experimental antiviral drug remdesivir significantly reduced clinical disease and damage to the lungs of rhesus macaques infected with SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, according to National Institutes of Health scientists. The study was designed to follow dosing and treatment procedures used for hospitalized COVID-19 patients being administered remdesivir in a large, multi-center, clinical trial led by NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). The scientists posted the work on the preprint server bioRxiv. The findings are not yet peer-reviewed and should not be considered clinical advice, but are being shared to assist the public health response to COVID-19. A study detailing the development of the rhesus macaque model of mild- to-moderate human disease, conducted by the same team of NIAID scientists, was posted to bioRxiv(link is external) on March 21. The current study of remdesivir, a drug developed by Gilead Sciences Inc. and NIAID-supported investigators, involved two groups of six rhesus macaques. One group of monkeys received remdesivir and the other animals served as an untreated comparison group. Scientists infected both groups with SARS-CoV-2. Twelve hours later the treatment group received a dose of remdesivir intravenously, and then received a daily intravenous booster dose thereafter for the next six days. The scientists timed the initial treatment to occur shortly before the virus reached its highest level in the animals’ lungs.

Private Insurers Required To Provide Free COVID-19 Antibody Tests

reported that the Administration said “it will require health insurers to provide free antibody tests that could provide better insight into the scale of the U.S. coronavirus outbreak.” Congress has “required that all Americans, including people without health insurance, receive free diagnostic tests to determine whether they are sick with coronavirus.” The Administration “said it had authority from recent emergency rescue packages to mandate private insurers also provide antibody testing without out-of-pocket costs.” CMS Administrator Seema Verma said, “It is critical that Americans have peace of mind knowing that cost won’t be a barrier to testing during this national public health emergency.” However, “the new guidance did not make clear whether the free antibody tests would be extended to uninsured Americans.” https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/11/trump-administration-requires-insurers-to-provide-free-antibody-tests-180009

Researchers Find Obesity Appears To Raise COVID-19 Risk

reported that a new letter published in Clinical Infectious Diseases “from researchers at New York University shows that obesity is a risk factor for COVID-19 hospitalization in patients under the age of 60.” For the study, “researchers looked at 3,615 patients admitted to their hospital from Mar 4 to Apr 4.” They found “patients aged less than 60 years with a BMI from 30 to 34 were 2.0 times...and 1.8 times...more likely to be admitted to acute and critical care, respectively...compared with individuals with a BMI under 30.” Meanwhile, “for patients in the same age-group with a BMI over 35, the risk was 2.2 and 3.6 times higher, respectively” https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/04/new-york-obesity-appears-raise-covid-19-risk

Experts Say Death Toll From Coronavirus In The US Is Higher Than Official Count

reports “the fast-spreading novel coronavirus is almost certainly killing Americans who are not included in the nation’s growing death toll, according to public health experts and government officials involved in the tally.” CDC spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund said that the official count only includes people who have tested positive for coronavirus, remarking, “We know that it is an underestimation.” According to epidemiologists, there was “a widespread lack of access to testing in the early weeks of the U.S. outbreak,” so “people with respiratory illnesses died without being counted.” The New York Times (4/5, Kliff, Bosman) offers several specific examples of deaths that may have been caused by coronavirus, but they have not been added to the official count for different reasons, including denied requests for tests. According to the New York Times, across the US, “even as coronavirus deaths are being recorded in terrifying numbers – many hundreds each day – the true death toll is likely much higher.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/coronavirus-death-toll-americans-are-almost-certainly-dying-of-covid-19-but-being-left-out-of-the-official-count/2020/04/05/71d67982-747e-11ea-87da-77a8136c1a6d_story.html

How Important Is Speech in Transmitting Coronavirus?

Normal speech by individuals who are asymptomatic but infected with coronavirus may produce enough aerosolized particles to transmit the infection, according to aerosol scientists at the University of California, Davis. Although it’s not yet known how important this is to the spread of COVID-19, it underscores the need for strict social distancing measures — and for virologists, epidemiologists and engineers who study aerosols and droplets to work together on this and other respiratory diseases. Aerosols are particles small enough to travel through the air. Ordinary speech creates significant quantities of aerosols from respiratory particles, said William Ristenpart, professor of chemical engineering at UC Davis. Ristenpart is co-author on an editorial about the problem published this week in the journal Aerosol Science and Technology. These respiratory particles are about one micron, or one micrometer, in diameter. That’s too small to see with the naked eye, but large enough to carry viruses such as influenza or SARS-CoV-2. https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/how-important-is-speech-in-transmitting-coronavirus-333038?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=85803599&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_KfV83VOGCkZKmz8rWTij5RHrw6CVIyxCGyKRk6bP-QjmoKAjKohvMSSB4563jwUqxKILtmHLOxUMxy_DetWHlbuo9NA&_hsmi=85803599

Some Scientists Say Coronavirus Can Be Spread By Talking Or Maybe Just Breathing

reports a panel of scientists “told the White House Wednesday night that research shows coronavirus can be spread not just by sneezes or coughs, but also just by talking, or possibly even just breathing.” Dr. Harvey Fineberg, chair of the National Academy of Sciences’ Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats, wrote in a letter, “While the current [coronavirus] specific research is limited, the results of available studies are consistent with aerosolization of virus from normal breathing.” Dr. Fineberg said he would start wearing a mask when he goes out in public, but clarified, “I’m not going to wear a surgical mask, because clinicians need those. But I have a nice western-style bandana I might wear. Or I have a balaclava. I have some pretty nice options.” https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/02/health/aerosol-coronavirus-spread-white-house-letter/index.html

Number Of Confirmed Coronavirus Cases Around The World Passes One Million

reports that as of Thursday, there are more than 1 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the world. However, the number was probably reached earlier, because of untested cases including “asymptomatic individuals; people who may have died of complications of the virus without anyone knowing it; and those whose symptoms were not serious enough to qualify for testing.” The Hill (4/2, Klar) reports that the US “has more than 235,000 cases and 5,600 deaths,” while “Italy and Spain follow with more than 115,000 and 110,000 cases, respectively, and over 24,000 deaths between them.” Meanwhile, China has “reported more than 82,000 cases and 3,300 deaths from the virus, though U.S. intelligence agencies have reportedly concluded that Beijing has underreported both the total number of cases and confirmed deaths.” Newsweek (4/2, Kim) reports that in the US, “New York continues to report the country’s highest number of cases, with more than 83,700 confirmed infections to date, including 47,439 cases in New York City, the office of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo confirmed as of Wednesday.” CIDRAP (4/2, Schnirring) also covers the story. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/04/02/coronavirus-cases-1-million-update-pandemic/5110643002/

COVID-19 Vaccine Development: An Interview With GeoVax

The biotechnology company GeoVax Labs Inc. develops human immunotherapies and vaccines against infectious diseases and cancer. The company recently announced that it is developing vaccine candidates for the prevention/ control of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing the COVID-19 outbreak, using its GV-MVA-VLPTM vaccine platform. Three vaccines have been designed and are in final steps of purification and characterization. Technology Networks spoke with David Dodd, President and CEO of GeoVax, to learn more about the vaccine candidates, what progress has been made in clinical testing and how the company is working to accelerate vaccine development timeframes. MC: For our readers that may be unfamiliar with GeoVax, please can you tell us about the company and its technology? David Dodd (DD): GeoVax Labs, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing vaccines and immunotherapies against infectious diseases and cancer using a novel and safe viral vector platform (GV-MVA-VLPTM). Important attributes of GeoVax vaccines include single dose, no adjuvant, durable immunity, extensive safety and cost-effective manufacturing. GeoVax’s recombinant Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) vector expresses target proteins on highly immunogenic Virus-Like Particles (VLPs) in the person being vaccinated, resulting in induction of durable immune responses while providing the safety characteristics of the https://www.technologynetworks.com/biopharma/blog/covid-19-vaccine-development-an-interview-with-geovax-332972?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=85706843&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8RJSabzu9z3XQNq4NNnDM8zIuf_WHogFGR_HR4RAQOlUA-G0AGew8W7c7hJS83z9_pD9i-7dZqN6PyR8EBSpnxLebEhA&_hsmi=85706843