Featured Headlines
COVID-19-related multisystem inflammatory syndrome not exclusive to children – MedNewsToday
New information continues to materialize on the aftereffects of COVID-19. Reported complications from the COVID-19 disease include blood clots, cardiovascular disease, kidney or liver injury, and post-COVID-19 syndrome. [more information here]
Chinese Covid-19 Gene Data That Could Have Aided Pandemic Research Removed From NIH Database – WSJ
Chinese researchers directed the U.S. National Institutes of Health to delete gene sequences of early Covid-19 cases from a key scientific database, raising concerns that scientists studying the origin of the pandemic may lack access to key pieces of information. The NIH confirmed that it deleted the sequences after receiving a request from a Chinese researcher who had submitted them three months earlier.
The Delta and Gamma Covid-19 Variants Are Taking Over the US – Wired
The two variants are threatening Alpha’s reign—and the country’s path out of the pandemic. Two variants are swiftly overthrowing the previously most-dreaded variant in the US. Their ascendance is making experts worry that the country could see continued outbreaks and resurgences of Covid-19 unless the current sluggish pace of vaccination quickens.
Sydney city centre and beach suburbs to enter lockdown – BBC
Sydney’s central and eastern suburbs, including Bondi Beach, will be locked down after a jump in Covid cases.
‘Breakthrough’ COVID Infections Less Transmissible, English Data Indicate – MedPageToday
People who develop so-called breakthrough infections after receiving either the Pfizer-BioNTech or AstraZeneca vaccines were about half as likely to transmit the virus to household members, compared with households in which unvaccinated people brought the virus home, British researchers reported.
Covid cases growing among unvaccinated Americans in rural areas – NBC News Video
As the Delta variant sweeps across the country, unvaccinated Americans in rural areas are fueling the latest coronavirus cases and hospitalizations.
Europe Watches With Worry As The Delta Variant Spreads Fast In The U.K. And Lisbon – NPR
A worrying spike of coronavirus infections in Europe is being driven by the delta variant, according to global health leaders, even as immunization rates in some countries are on the way up.
Delta variant triggers new phase in the pandemic – Science
A SARS-CoV-2 variant called Delta is slowly taking over the pandemic. Denoted a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization, Delta appears to be more transmissible than previous variants and better able to infect people that have only had one vaccine dose. The surge has set off a frenzy of research to understand why the variant appears to spread so much faster than the three other variants of concern, whether it is more dangerous in other ways, and how its unique pattern of mutations, which cause subtle changes in its proteins, can wreak havoc. Delta’s arrival has also brought fresh attention to the potential of SARS-CoV-2 to evolve and adapt in the months and years ahead.
A Coronavirus Epidemic Hit 20,000 Years Ago, New Study Finds – NYT
A few dozen human genes rapidly evolved in ancient East Asia to thwart coronavirus infections, scientists say. Those genes could be crucial to today’s pandemic.
Vaccine Headlines
Heart Problems After Vaccination Are Very Rare, Federal Researchers Say – NYT
More than 1,200 cases have been reported, mostly mild and more often in young men and boys. The benefits of vaccination still far outweigh the risks, experts said.
SARS-CoV-2 Variants and Vaccines – NEJM
Viral variants of concern may emerge with dangerous resistance to the immunity generated by the current vaccines to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Moreover, if some variants of concern have increased transmissibility or virulence, the importance of efficient public health measures and vaccination programs will increase. The global response must be both timely and science based.
During clinical trials of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 vaccines, no one who had survived infection with the virus was tested. A year after the pandemic was declared, vaccination of previously infected persons is a reality. Reynolds et al. address the knowledge gap in a cohort of UK health care workers given the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in which half of the participants had experienced natural virus infections early in the pandemic.
What went wrong with CureVac’s mRNA vaccine? – Science
The startlingly poor performance revealed last week for a COVID-19 vaccine made by the German company CureVac isn’t just a disappointment, it’s a scientific puzzle. The company blames the rapidly changing pandemic virus. But several outside researchers suspect the vaccine’s design is at fault. Many scientists and investors alike had expected CureVac’s candidate, which uses messenger RNA (mRNA) to code for the spike surface protein of SARS-CoV-2, had a good chance of becoming one of the most powerful new weapons against the pandemic. It relies on essentially the same novel mRNA technology as vaccines from the Pfizer-BioNTech collaboration and Moderna, which demonstrated more than 90% efficacy in their trials, and it holds some practical transportation and storage advantages over those rival shots. But interim results from a large clinical trial found it only offered 47% efficacy.
Docs, Scientists Call on FDA to Delay Approval of COVID Vaccines – MedPageToday
Data should be from completed phase III trials, not interim results, group says. A group of clinicians and researchers has petitioned the FDA to delay fully approving any COVID-19 vaccines before clinical trials have been completed, calling the notion of approval to stimulate vaccination rates “backward logic.”
Speeding up clinical trials by making drug production local – MIT News
Professor Tim Jamison’s company Snapdragon Chemistry helps turn the latest innovations in chemistry into impactful drugs.
Third Dose Boosts Post-Transplant COVID Vaccine Immunity – MedPageToday
A third dose of COVID-19 vaccine sparked the desired immune response for a substantial proportion of transplant patients but still left some unprotected, a French series showed.
Clinical Considerations
Bell’s Palsy More Likely After COVID Infection Than After Vaccine – MedPageToday
People with COVID-19 were more likely to develop Bell’s palsy (peripheral facial nerve palsy) than people who were vaccinated against the virus, an analysis of medical records showed.
Official Reporting for June 22, 2021
World Health Organization
Weekly Epi Update June 22, 2021 (latest release)
Confirmed Cases: 179,513,309
Deaths: 3,895,661
Johns Hopkins
Confirmed Cases: 180,037,156
Deaths: 3,901,311
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Total cases: 33,409,895 (+13,376 New Cases)
Total deaths: 600,442 (+354 New Deaths)
Science and Tech
Could interaction with other viruses stop SARS-CoV-2 replication? – MedNewsToday
The coronavirus responsible for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, SARS-CoV-2, is prone to mutations or changes in its genetic sequence. Such mutations have resulted in the emergence of new, more transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants. SARS-CoV-2 is most transmissible during the first 8 days of the virus entering the body. Variants of the virus differ in their transmissibility, and this may be due to differences in the body’s ability to respond to them during this period.
New Metric Identifies Coronavirus Hotspots in Real Time – NIH Director’s Blog
During the pandemic, it’s been critical to track in real time where the coronavirus is spreading at home and abroad. But it’s often hard for public health officials to know whether changes in the reported number of COVID-19 cases over time truly reflect the spread of the virus or whether they are confounded by changes in testing levels or lags in the reporting of results.
FDA Authorizes Drug for Treatment of COVID-19 – FDA
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the drug Actemra (tocilizumab) for the treatment of hospitalized adults and pediatric patients (2 years of age and older) who are receiving systemic corticosteroids and require supplemental oxygen, non-invasive or invasive mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Actemra is not authorized for use in outpatients with COVID-19.
Study confirms the low likelihood that SAR-CoV-2 on hospital surfaces is infectious – U.C. Davis
A new study by UC Davis researchers confirms the low likelihood that SARS-CoV-2 contamination on hospital surfaces is infectious. The study, published June 24 in PLOS ONE, is the original report on recovering near-complete SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences directly from surface swabs.
SARS-CoV-2 can find alternate route to infect cells – Tech Explorist
Until now, it was believed that the SARS-CoV-2- virus that causes COVID-19- uses the SARS-CoV receptor ACE2 for host cell entry. But, a new study contradicts that belief, suggesting that SARS-CoV-2 can enter cells through another route – one that does not require ACE2. [link to pre-pub paper]
Psychological and Sociological Impact
As The Pandemic Recedes, Millions Of Workers Are Saying ‘I Quit’ – NPR
Jonathan Caballero made a startling discovery last year. At 27, his hair was thinning. The software developer realized that life was passing by too quickly as he was hunkered down at home in Hyattsville, Md.
Published Research
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in an adult after SARS-CoV-2 infection – CMAJ Group
Long COVID in a prospective cohort of home-isolated patients – Nature
Effect of Vaccination on Household Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in England – NEJM
Face masks effectively limit the probability of SARS-CoV-2 transmission – Science
SARS-CoV-2 detection and genomic sequencing from hospital surface samples collected at UC Davis – PLoS
Incidence of Bell Palsy in Patients With COVID-19 – JAMA
Misinformation, Disinformation, and Conspiracy Theories
Private messages contribute to the spread of COVID-19 conspiracies – The Conversation
The COVID-19 global pandemic has been accompanied by misinformation about the virus, its origins and how it spreads. One in seven Canadians thinks there is some truth to the claim that Bill Gates is using the coronavirus to push a vaccine with a microchip capable of tracking people. Those who believe this and other COVID-19 conspiracy theories are much more likely to get their news from social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter.
Coping in 2020 (and probably most of 2021)
