This treatment could save your life – COVID-19 and Convalescent Plasma Therapy
Ajay Kohli
Vinay Kohli
Chitra Chhabra Kohli
By CHITRA CHHABRA KOHLI MD, AJAY KOHLI MD, and VINAY KOHLI MD, MBA
With a doubling time of cases estimated between 3 days within the U.S. and about 6 days globally (at the time of this writing) COVID-19 is demonstrating its terrifying virulence as it spreads across the world.
What’s perhaps equally terrifying, if not more, is the absence of a known cure or treatment plan for COVID-19. While there has been a lot of attention focused on Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin, there has been debate on the scientific validity of these treatment options, either as thera...
Source: The Health Care Blog - March 30, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Christina Liu Tags: COVID-19 Patients Physicians Ajay Kohli Azithromycin convalescent plasma therapy coronavirus COVID-19 treatment hydroxychloroquine Pandemic Vinay Kohli Source Type: blogs
Azithromycin and COVID-19
ConclusionA small, preliminary COVID-19 clinical study reported complete clearance of virus after combined administration of azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine as measured by realtime PCR of nasopharyngeal swabs. No study of azithromycin alone was conducted. Despite azithromycin's reputation as an antibacterial agent, scattered reports of in vivo and in vitro antiviral activity for this drug have been reported. (Source: Depth-First)
Source: Depth-First - March 24, 2020 Category: Chemistry Authors: Richard L. Apodaca Source Type: blogs
Improved PCR Flu Diagnostic for Pandemic Response: Interview with Chris Hole of TTP
TTP, a technology company based in Melbourn, UK, is developing a handheld PCR (polymerase chain reaction) diagnostic device that can rapidly detect influenza viruses, and one day other viruses, in samples of nasal mucus. The company claims that the system, which uses a high speed version of traditional RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction), incorporates several breakthroughs that translate to improved speed, cost, and size when compared with existing molecular diagnostics systems. Such technology could be crucial in providing diagnostic and surveillance capability for infectious disease outbreaks such as...
Source: Medgadget - February 20, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Diagnostics Exclusive Public Health Source Type: blogs
The real cost, and longer term implications, of the Wuhan coronavirus
It ' s too soon to know for sure how the tale of the novel coronavirus will play out,but at this point we have a pretty good idea. A stipulation in both of the scenarios at the linked essay is that yeah, it gets loose into the wild and eventually can show up anywhere in the world. I think that ' s pretty much definitely going to happen if it hasn ' t already.Scenario number 1, and most likely, in my view, it will just be one more virus that causes what amounts to a common cold and in a few people who are otherwise debilitated goes on to be complicated by pneumonia. In that case, for a year or two it will circulate as a nov...
Source: Stayin' Alive - February 5, 2020 Category: American Health Source Type: blogs
Oh no! Are we all going to die?
Yes. However, very probably not because of the novel coronavirus that has appeared in China. This seems to be front page headlines in every media outlet on the planet, and the World Health Organization has convened a meeting to decide whether to declare an official Global Health Emergency.This sort of flapdoodle happens every time a novel pathogen appears. Back when I lived in the Hub of the Universe a mosquito-borne disease called West Nile virus appeared (having formerly been large confined to, yes, west of the Nile). For weeks, every time a new case was identified it would be on the front page of the Boston Globe....
Source: Stayin' Alive - January 22, 2020 Category: American Health Source Type: blogs
Handheld Device to Capture and Identify Viruses in Minutes
Researchers at Penn State have developed a handheld device called VIRRION that can capture and identify viral particles in samples within minutes. The device contains a “forest” of carbon nanotubes that capture and sort viral particles depending on their size, and then users can identify the viruses using Raman spectroscopy. The technique could help to increase the speed and convenience of identifying viral infections, and could be very useful when viral outbreaks strike.
During events such as recent outbreaks of Ebola and Zika, rapidly detecting a virus in patient and environmental samples could help health organiz...
Source: Medgadget - January 6, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Pathology Public Health Source Type: blogs
TWiV 577: Virologie structurale with F élix Rey
Vincent speaks with Félix Rey about his career and his work on solving structures of a variety of viruses and the insights learned about viral membrane fusion and antibody-mediated neutralization. Click arrow to play Download TWiV 577 (46 MB .mp3, 75 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Show notes at microbe.tv/twiv (Source: virology blog)
Source: virology blog - December 8, 2019 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: This Week in Virology antibody neutralization cryo-EM dengue virus flavivirus fusion loop glycoprotein Semliki Forest virus tick borne encephalitis virus viral viral membrane fusion viruses X-ray crystallography zika virus Source Type: blogs
Block an Enzyme, Save a Life
Vern Schramm, professor of biochemistry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York. Credit: Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
Enzymes drive life. Without them, we couldn’t properly digest food, make brain chemicals, move—or complete myriad other vital tasks. Unfortunately, in certain cases, enzymes also can trigger a host of health problems, including cancer, bacterial infections, and hypertension (high blood pressure).
Understanding how enzymes work has been the research focus of Vern Schramm for more than 4 decades.
“When we started our work, we were driven not by the desire to find...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - November 26, 2019 Category: Research Authors: Chrissa Chverchko Tags: Being a Scientist Cellular Processes Diseases Precision Medicine Source Type: blogs
TWiV 563: BLT on mice
The TWiVologists consider whether to receive an influenza vaccine in August (in the northern hemisphere), and mice implanted with human lung fragments for studying microbial pathogens. Click arrow to play Download TWiV 563 (55 MB .mp3, 91 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! (Source: virology blog)
Source: virology blog - September 1, 2019 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: This Week in Virology BLT mouse coronavirus flu vaccine human cytomegalovirus humanized mouse immunodeficient mice influenza lung implant mouse model vaccine effectiveness viral viruses zika virus Source Type: blogs
TWiV 556: Glycolyl ’ s not for the birds
TWiV minus one reveals delayed neurological deficits in children without microcephaly born to Zika virus infected mothers, and N-glycolyl-neuraminic acid as a receptor for influenza A viruses. Click arrow to play Download TWiV 556 (62 MB .mp3, 103 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Show notes at microbe.tv/twiv (Source: virology blog)
Source: virology blog - July 14, 2019 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: This Week in Virology Virus Watch congenital birth defect host range influenza virus microcephaly n-acetylneuraminic acid n-glycolylneuraminic acid neurodevelopmental defects placenta silica acid TORCH pathogen viral viruses zi Source Type: blogs
Zika virus infection causes neurological deficits without microcephaly
Children who are exposed to Zika virus in utero may develop structural defects of the cranium such as microcephaly. Now we understand that even children born to Zika virus infected mothers may develop neurodevelopmental and neurosensory deficiencies in the second year of life – in the absence of microcephaly. During the 2015-16 Zika virus epidemic […] (Source: virology blog)
Source: virology blog - July 11, 2019 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: Basic virology Information Bayley scales congenital infection gestation microcephaly neurological deficit placenta pregnancy viral virus viruses zika virus Source Type: blogs
How Could Digital Health Fight Against The Climate Catastrophe?
Climate change is the
greatest health challenge of the 21st century, and threatens all aspects of society,
says
the WHO in its COP24 Special Report. What could digital health technologies
do to support the fight against the climate crisis? How could healthcare
processes, facilities, medical devices become more sustainable? As it is
humanity’s priority to mitigate the worsening as well as the impact of rising
temperatures and extreme weather events, we tried to figure out what role
digital health could assume here. We found many options – and even more
possibilities for future development.
The climate crisis is our ...
Source: The Medical Futurist - July 11, 2019 Category: Information Technology Authors: nora Tags: Future of Medicine air asthma climate climate catastrophe climate change climate crisis digital digital health efficient Healthcare mosquito optimize resilience solar sustainability technology Source Type: blogs
The view from Hammond ’s limo
When it comes to poverty in the UK - what do you see? Related items fromOnMedica ‘Safest’ BMI has risen by 3.3 over past three decades UK child health near bottom in Europe Low birthweight linked to higher mortality right up to adolescence Pregnant women advised not to travel to Zika virus areas Experts reject BMA stance on vaping (Source: OnMedica Blogs)
Source: OnMedica Blogs - June 10, 2019 Category: General Medicine Source Type: blogs
The view from Hammond ’s limo
When it comes to poverty in the UK - what do you see? Related items fromOnMedica ‘Safest’ BMI has risen by 3.3 over past three decades UK child health near bottom in Europe MPs call for cross-government approach to public health Experts reject BMA stance on vaping Pregnant women advised not to travel to Zika virus areas (Source: OnMedica Blogs)
Source: OnMedica Blogs - June 10, 2019 Category: General Medicine Source Type: blogs
TWiV 547: Upstate virology
Vincent travels to the University at Albany to speak with Cara, Rachel, and Alex about their careers and their work on stress granules, epitranscriptomics, and arboviruses. Click arrow to play Download TWiV 547 (58 MB .mp3, 96 min) Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Show notes at microbe.tv/twiv (Source: virology blog)
Source: virology blog - May 14, 2019 Category: Virology Authors: Vincent Racaniello Tags: This Week in Virology arbovirus DDX68 epitranscriptome flavivirus hepatitis C virus mosquito vector viral viruses West Nile virus zika virus Source Type: blogs
