Category: Corona Virus

China 'cloned' COVID-like virus to test on mice, acknowledges 'spillover' risk to humans

by JACKSON WALKER | The National Desk

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Yang Hongke checks on test samples at a testing lab of KingMed Diagnostics Group Co., Ltd. in Shijiazhuang in northern China's Hebei Province on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2021. (Mu Yu/Xinhua via AP) /{ }Closeup of Coronavirus COVID-19 computer generated image. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (TND)

Chinese researchers claim to have cloned a COVID-like virus mutation that showed a 100% mortality rate in mice.

In a report by researchers under a collaborative project between China and Mongolia, scientists explained the virus is a strain of coronavirus found in pangolins. They then cloned the virus and tested it on mice.

Each mouse tested on displayed symptoms of piloerection, hunched posture, and sluggish movements along with their eyes turning white and weight loss. They each died within eight days with late brain infection being the supposed cause.

Researchers continued, noting the infection could spillover to humans.

Infectious disease expert and University College London Professor Francois Balloux said via X that the study appears totally pointless.

I had a look at the preprint. It's a terrible study, scientifically totally pointless, Balloux wrote. I can see nothing of vague interest that could be learned from force-infecting a weird breed of humanised mice with a random virus. Conversely, I could see how such stuff might go wrong ...

Biologist Alex Washburne also noted the studys format as a letter to the editor raises further questions.

We also can't verify anything about the pre-print. The structure Dear Editor, ... raises questions about the provenance of the document (was it really written by the listed authors?) and the intentions of its release, Washburne said.

The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency offered hush money to analysts to cover up their findings that COVID-19 likely originated in a Wuhan, China laboratory, a whistleblower alleged in September. In February 2023, The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Department of Energy concluded that COVID-19 originated in a Wuhan lab.

Other reports show that the Biden administration pressured Meta to suppress posts about the virus, including ones that theorized a lab leak theory.

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China 'cloned' COVID-like virus to test on mice, acknowledges 'spillover' risk to humans - Alabama's News Leader

Covid symptoms may change, but the appearance of a pink line on a rapid test means one thing for sure: five days of isolation.

The guidance, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has been in place since late 2021. At the moment, the agency doesnt appear to be making any changes to the policy.

But in some cases, telling people to isolate after a positive test may have an unintended effect.

Dr. Victoria Valencia, interim director for the Health Center for Student Care at Tulane University in New Orleans, said that she and her staff saw an uptick in Covid when students returned to campus in August. But that is no longer the case, as students now tend to decline Covid testing.

Students are afraid of being diagnosed with Covid because they dont want to isolate, Valencia said.

So is five days of isolation really best? Heres what experts say.

The current recommendation to isolate for five days is a hangover from when the CDC moved from a 10-day isolation recommendation to five days in late 2021, just as the first wave of omicron was taking hold in the U.S., said Harvard University epidemiologist Bill Hanage.

It was not a reflection of evidence-based science, he said. It was there to stop everything from falling apart.

At that time, a large chunk of the population was testing positive all at once because of the highly contagious variant. Recommending that everyone stay home and out of work for 10 days would have brought the country to a halt once again, so the five-day plan was put in place.

If you look at the safety of the public, and the need to have society not disrupted, this was a good choice, Dr. Anthony Fauci, former scientific adviser to the Biden administration, said at the time about the isolation recommendation.

There was also evidence that people are most contagious during those first five days of infection. That remains the most reliable scientific data, experts say.

We know that most people with Covid-19 shed enough virus that they are likely still contagious for at least five days, Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University School of Public Health, wrote in an email.

When the Covid public health emergency expired in May 2023, health officials in Oregon decided it was also time to pull back on the five-day isolation recommendation. Instead, the Oregon Health Authority suggested that people with Covid stay home only until theyve gone without spiking a fever for 24 hours and are generally feeling better.

In January of this year, California health officials issued the same guidance.

The ending of the public health emergency declaration doesnt change biology, Nuzzo said when Oregon changed its isolation recommendations. I dont see a biological reason to end the five-day isolation period.

People with the flu are most contagious the first three or four days after the illness begins, according to the CDC. People who test positive for influenza are advised to stay home until at least 24 hours after their fever is gone without the use of fever-reducing drugs, such as Tylenol.

A common cold virus is most contagious within the first few days but can continue to spread for up to two weeks, according to Johns Hopkins All Childrens Hospital research.

Like other viruses, people with Covid have varying degrees of sickness.

A set number of days to isolate is dumb if you think about it from a medical perspective, said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of California, San Francisco.

If youre feeling fine the entire five days and have absolutely no symptoms, staying at home by yourself is not the same as somebody whos had symptoms and then after five days, theyre going out and coughing on everyone, Chin-Hong said. The symptoms approach makes more sense, not just for Covid, but for lots of other infectious diseases that people dont normally isolate for.

Saskia Popescu, an assistant professor of epidemiology and public health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said that while a persons risk of spreading Covid is in the first five days of infection, we know increasingly, that even without symptoms, or upon their resolution, people can still shed infectious virus.

Popescu said that means that while the risk is lower after Day 5, it doesnt mean theres zero risk. You should still try and stay home, she said. And if you absolutely need to, you can wear a mask.

Covid is a very unique infectious disease, Popescu added. Forty to 50% of cases are asymptomatic, or have such mild symptoms that people dont even realize they have symptoms.

In a study published in JAMA Pediatrics in October, researchers found that children ages 7 to 18 were infectious for a median of three days after a positive Covid test. By Day 5, the majority of the kids were no longer infectious.

My personal view is that five days is more than sufficient for isolation, said senior study author Neeraj Sood, a professor of health policy, medicine and business at University of Southern California. Based on the findings, maybe you could go with something a little shorter for kids.

An earlier study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in July 2022, found that adults were infectious for a median of five or six days.

Popescu, who wasnt involved with either study, said the findings on children will probably be used moving forward for a lot of school-based decisions.

Its helpful to see the three days, Popescu said.

On an individual level, common sense should rule, Hanage said. If youre sick, stay away from people most at risk for severe complications, such as older relatives.

You wouldnt want to give them something that would make them badly ill whether its Covid, flu or even food poisoning, he said.

Popescu agreed.

From an infectious disease perspective, we want people to stay home if they have symptoms, she said. And just because you dont have Covid doesnt mean that you dont have another infectious disease that could pose a risk to those around you.

Dr. Michael Mina, an immunologist and former assistant professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, urged people to do the best they can and take precautions where possible.

"Nobody's perfect," Mina said. "If you can decrease your chances of spreading to others, that's really good. That alone is very, very good. So if you can't isolate for five days, or it's been five days, but you recognize that you might still be infectious, wear a mask as much as you can, don't attend really densely packed events, and stay away from vulnerable people."

CORRECTION (June 12, 2023, 11:15 a.m. ET): A previous version of this article misstated Jennifer Nuzzos title and employer. She is director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University School of Public Health; she is not senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

FollowNBC HEALTHonTwitter&Facebook.

Erika Edwards is a health and medical news writer and reporter for NBC News and "TODAY."

Akshay Syal, M.D.,is a medical fellow with the NBC News Health and Medical Unit.

Sara G. Miller is the health editor for NBC News, Health & Medical Unit.

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When to come out of Covid isolation in 2023, according to experts - NBC News

Viruses are having a moment. Outbreaks around the world are on the rise, thanks to such factors as climate change, war and instability, and increased animal-to-human contact.

Covid-19 is still here. Even though fewer people are winding up in the hospital compared with last year, some health facilities are requiring masks again as a new variant appears better at infecting people, even those who are vaccinated. Meanwhile, across the globe, a deadlier strain of mpox is threatening the Democratic Republic of Congo, where lifesaving vaccines are difficult to obtain. In Nebraska, a kitten with rabies triggered an all-hands-on-deck public health response.

Post national health reporter Lena Sun has spent a lot of time trying to better understand pathogens and how they spread. She joins Post Reports to examine what lessons we have and havent learned from these three recent outbreaks, and what that means for preventing future ones.

Read more:

Another covid wave hits U.S. as JN.1 becomes dominant variant

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Mpox surge in Congo raises concerns world will ignore warnings again

How one rabid kitten triggered intensive effort to contain deadly virus

Todays show was produced by Elana Gordon and hosted by Elahe Izadi and guest host Arjun Singh. It was mixed by Sean Carter and edited by Lucy Perkins. Thanks to Tracy Jan and Fenit Nirappil.

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Coronavirus, mpox and rabies: A tale of three viruses - The Washington Post

Representational Image

Monday, January 15: After five consecutive weeks of rising COVID-19 cases and anxieties, India finally witnessed a 25% dip in the viral infection during the week ending on January 13. And this encouraging trend was accompanied by a decline in deaths, with 22 reported compared to 31 the previous week.

As of Sunday, India logged 375 new cases of COVID-19, while the number of active infections has dropped to 3,075, the Health Ministry said. Although a new variant and colder weather conditions initially drove the surge, the situation now seems to be stabilising. The good news is widespread too, with most major states registering a drop in reported infections.

Kerala led the pack with a nearly 60% reduction, from 1,109 cases last week to 452 this week. Even Karnataka and Maharashtra, which were previously witnessing a surge, saw a gratifying decline. Karnataka, still with the highest case count at 1,583, had dropped from 1,856 previously, while Maharashtra reported a dip from 915 to 709.

Bengal remains a concern as it continues to see a rise in infections. But experts are closely monitoring the situation and urging strict adherence to safety protocols to prevent further spread.

While the recent developments offer a glimmer of hope amidst concerns about the new JN.1 sub-variant, a new INSACOG report indicates that we cannot let our guards down just yet.

According to INSACOG data, the JN.1 sub-variant has crossed the 1,000 mark nationwide. Karnataka has been revealed to be the leading hotspot with 214 cases, followed by Andhra Pradesh (189) and Maharashtra (170). Even as concerns remain about JN.1, official sources assure there's no evidence of it triggering an exponential increase in cases or a surge in hospitalisations and deaths.

Given the decrease in active COVID-19 cases, we do have reason for some cautious optimism. However, the JN.1 variant requires close monitoring, and continued vaccination efforts remain essential to bolster population immunity. Continued vigilance, coupled with responsible social distancing and adherence to safety protocols, can help solidify this downward trend and prevent future surges.

(With inputs from TOI)

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India Registers 25% Decline In COVID-19 Cases Even As JN.1 Infections Cross the 1,000 Mark | Weather.com - The Weather Channel

The curves on some Covid graphs are looking quite steep, again.

Reported levels of the virus in U.S. wastewater are higher than they have been since the first Omicron wave, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, though severe outcomes still remain rarer than in earlier pandemic winters.

We are seeing rates are going up across the country, said Amy Kirby, program lead for the C.D.C.s National Wastewater Surveillance System. The program now categorizes every state with available data at high or very high viral activity.

The surge might reach its peak this week or soon after, modelers predict, with high levels of transmission expected for at least another month beyond that.

Hospitalizations and deaths have remained far lower than in previous years. There were around 35,000 hospitalizations reported in the last week of December down from 44,000 a year earlier and 1,600 weekly deaths as of early December, down from 3,000. (At the same time in 2020, there were around 100,000 hospitalizations and 20,000 deaths each week.)

Many of the metrics used early in the pandemic have become much less useful indicators of how widely the virus is spreading, especially since federal officials stopped more comprehensive data tracking efforts when they declared an end to the public health emergency last spring. Higher population-wide immunity has meant fewer hospitalizations even with high virus spread, and the sharp decline of Covid test results reported to authorities has made case counts far less relevant.

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We Are in a Big Covid Wave. But Just How Big? - The New York Times

Dr. Eric Topol:

Well, a lot more than it's doing.

In the first year of the pandemic, we saw that Operation Warp Speed, and we took this virus as an existential threat and pulled out all the stops.

But, right now, John, we need oral or nasal vaccines to stop infections, to stop spread, to be variant-proof, whatever this virus mutates to in the times ahead. And we have a small amount of funding towards that end, but not enough.

And the messaging has been poor. That is, even the people at highest risk, about 35 percent of them have had the updated booster that's been available since September. That's the highest-risk people of advanced age. We had 90, 95 percent of those same high-risk people getting the initial primary series of the vaccine.

So we're not doing enough. We have known this was coming. We have seen countries in Europe that had wastewater levels of the virus that were unprecedented, even exceeding Omicron. And it isn't like they stay the virus is going to stay there. We knew it was coming since September, October, and only in recent weeks have health systems started to get masking back as a policy.

We're just not doing enough to prepare or manage this big surge.

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New COVID variant responsible for latest wave of infections - PBS NewsHour

The JN.1 version of the omicron covid-19 variant was first detected in Luxembourg in August and spread to numerous countries over the following months

JUN LI/Getty Images

Some of the recent news stories about covid-19 have felt reminiscent of the first two years of the pandemic. Due to a variant called JN.1 sometimes called Juno infection rates have been rising in many countries, with some initial claims that it could cause more serious illness.

But in fact, the latest figures show that in Englands current wave, people who get infected are substantially less likely

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Covid-19 variant JN.1 may be the mildest form of the virus yet - New Scientist

WTOP anchors Shawn Anderson and Kyle Cooper spoke with CBS News medical contributor Dr. Celine Gounder on what to know about JN.1, the latest COVID-19 variant.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said health departments across the country are seeing an increase in respiratory illnesses, including the flu, RSV and a fast-growing new COVID-19 variant called JN.1.

WTOP anchors Shawn Anderson and Kyle Cooper spoke with CBS News medical contributor Dr. Celine Gounder on the trend and what to know about the latest variant.

CBS News medical contributor Dr. Celine Gounder speaks with WTOP's Shawn Anderson and Kyle Cooper

Read the interview transcript below, which has been lightly edited for clarity.

Shawn Anderson: So lets first talk about this latest COVID variant. Is it showing the same symptoms as other variants for those who get infected?

Dr. Celine Gounder: The kind of COVID you get with JN.1, this current variant, the symptoms are the same. So its going to be that typical fever, cough, perhaps in some people shortness of breath, sore throat, but the symptoms are the same. And its really important for people to understand that youre going to hear about variant after variant after variant emerging. And its not necessarily really big news, unless that variant is seen to be escaping your immunity, if its transmitting from person-to-person a lot more efficiently. And if its leading to more people ending up in the hospital than with prior variants, and were just not seeing that with this current one. Its behaving like other recent COVID variants.

Kyle Cooper: Of course, weve been reporting that flu and RSV cases are also up. But theres also some anecdotal reporting out there that some urgent care doctors are seeing lots and lots of people with some type of virus that doesnt necessarily test positive for COVID or anything else. Is that just a run-of-the mill kind of winter virus that so many people are getting these days?

Celine Gounder: There are hundreds of respiratory viruses; we dont test for all of them. Currently, the ones we test for most frequently are the flu, COVID and RSV, because those are the three that get people the sickest, that are most likely to land you in the hospital and to kill you. But there are many, many others. And we just dont always test for them. So sometimes its a little bit hard to know which of those others it might be.

Shawn Anderson: Curious about this, did anything happen with the average immune system during the pandemic that now makes it maybe harder to fight off a cold or some other virus?

Celine Gounder: Well, we were social distancing, we were wearing masks. And so for people who were doing that they were less exposed to other viruses. Its not that your immune system was made weaker per se, but just that it wasnt seeing those typical seasonal viruses during the period of the pandemic as much as it might have. And so now youre getting exposed to things that you hadnt been exposed to before. And you are perhaps getting sick all at once. Kind of like when you send a kid to preschool. They come home with cold after cold after cold. Its kind of like that what youre seeing now and in adults.

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What to know about JN.1, the latest COVID-19 variant - WTOP

The U.S. is currently in the midst of a Covid wave, fueled by the JN.1 variant thats driving up hospitalizations and deaths across the country. For most people, however, the new variant doesnt seem to be causing worse symptoms.

Thats left many wondering whether we need to keep swabbing our nasal passages with Covid tests at the first sign of congestion or achiness? How well do at-home rapid tests work against the new variant?

Heres what to know:

Influenza and some cold viruses are circulating along with Covid. So there are good reasons to know which virus youve got, particularly if you are at higher risk of getting really sick.

Its important to know if you have Covid versus the flu versus something thats not viral at all like strep throat because they have different treatments, said Dr. Abraar Karan, an infectious disease physician at Stanford Medicine. They have different treatments, and the sooner you get treated the better outcome youll have.

For a healthy 25-year-old, there is still some utility in getting tested. If somebody in the home has a weak immune system or is fighting cancer, for example, its important to isolate if its Covid.

Remember for all these viruses or bacterial infections, contagiousness is different and how sick you may get is different. Karan said.

Joseph Petrosino, a chair of molecular biology and microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine, acknowledged that while it may not be as necessaryfor young, healthy people to take an at-home test, it can be helpful to know if its Covid in case someone ends up with lingering symptoms.

There are healthy people, runners or people who work out, who do get long Covid as well, he said. You just really never know its hard to predict just based on comorbidity factors alone.

Otherwise, for someone who is low-risk, getting a positive Covid test wont change much about treatment. Whether its Covid, a cold or flu, get plenty of rest, hydration and stay away from others.

There is no data that the JN.1 variant should have any effect on the results of an at-home rapid test, experts say.

I have not seen anything to suggest that the newer variants have evaded detection on tests, said Karan. Certainly this has happened in the past with other diagnostics earlier in the pandemic, but at this point the tests should pick up these variants.

Susan Butler-Wu, a clinical pathologist at Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, said that while she hasnt seen data for this specific variant, if its anything like other variants, it wont be an issue.Rapid tests actually look for a part of the virus that is less likely to mutate and dodge the tests.

Theres always this fear that were going to have some mutation thats now going to make the tests not work, but so far thats not really the case, said Butler-Wu.

In the early days of the pandemic, before most people had some kind of immunity either after infection or from the vaccines, an individuals viral load would be highest when symptoms first appeared.

Now, the levels of virus may actually be highest a few days into the illness, according to a study published last fall in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases from researchers at Harvard Medical School. They found that in those with pre-existing immunity, the level of virus peaks around the fourth day of symptoms.

This means that if someone tests too early in the illness, it may show up negative.

Their symptoms could be caused by their immune response, Karan said. So youre getting some inflammation and thats causing symptoms, and thats also preventing the virus from building up quite as fast, and so your initial test could be negative.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends testing immediately if you believe youve been exposed to Covid and are showing symptoms such as congestion, cough or body aches.

If youve been exposed but dont have any symptoms, the CDC says to wait five days.

There is a misconception that rapid tests are one and done, says Butler-Wu.

If youre symptomatic and the first one is negative, you need to repeat it, she said.

The official guidance from the CDC is that if you have symptoms, take a rapid test, and if its negative repeat it 48 hours later.

At-home rapid tests are a good way to know if someone is contagious.

Simply put, rapid tests require a higher level of virus to turn positive, and higher levels of virus typically mean somebody is more contagious.

There are some limitations to the tests, however.

Karan said that while early on in the course of the illness they can be good proxies for contagiousness, they arent as reliable at the end of an illness.

There is data where rapid tests were positive, but when they got peoples samples, the virus couldn't be cultured meaning that those people were unlikely to be contagious, Karan said.

A 2022 study from researchers at Harvard Medical School suggested that only half of people who test positive after five days are actually contagious.

After that time period, if your rapid test is positive its not a guarantee youre still contagious.

Akshay Syal, M.D.,is a medical fellow with the NBC News Health and Medical Unit.

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Covid JN.1 variant surge: What to know about testing and accuracy - NBC News

As Colorado slogs through its fourth winter of the COVID-19 pandemic, a curious trend has emerged.

This season at least so far the state reached its peak for hospitalizations of people with COVID in the second-to-last week of November. Thats almost exactly when a peak happened last year. And the year before that. And the year before that.

Four years, four different predominant variants of the virus, four different levels of vaccination and immunity in the population. And four times that COVID hospitalizations began rising in late summer or early fall and, more notably, began to decline in Colorado right around Thanksgiving.

Fascinating and beguiling, is how Elizabeth Carlton, a professor of epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health, described the phenomenon.

I think, by now, there probably is something happening driving this pattern, she said instead of the trend being a statistical fluke.

What that something is, though, no one knows.

It is an interesting pattern, said Dr. Rachel Herlihy, the state epidemiologist at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. I dont think we can fully explain it.

As it seems like everyone you know is sniffling or coughing or otherwise testing positive for something, here is what we know about Colorados current COVID trends:

Carlton said its important to remember that even if COVID levels are falling or arent as severe as in prior years, we are still in the middle of the high season for all kinds of respiratory illnesses such as flu, RSV and that weird hacky-cough virus going around this year that no one can quite seem to identify.

That means people should continue to take precautions, such as staying home if theyre not feeling well, seeking treatment when sick and considering wearing a mask in crowded places. Its also not too late to get vaccinated with an annual flu shot, an updated COVID booster or, if eligible, an RSV vaccine.

Colorados late-November COVID peaks are unusual because they tend to happen earlier than peaks across the rest of the country. Last year, hospitalizations peaked nationally in January, same as the year before.

They have also sometimes had the effect of blunting the arrival of a new variant. When a new variant called XBB.1.5 swept across the country last year, it had little impact in Colorado, perhaps because our earlier-breaking wave had built up a layer of fresh immunity in the state.

This is not always the case. In early 2022, Colorado saw a significant rebound in infections and hospitalizations in January, driven by the arrival of the original omicron variant. This years trends may prove to be a smaller-scale version of that.

But the November peak has remained a COVID constant in Colorado, sticking to a much tighter turnaround schedule than other respiratory viruses like the flu, which sometimes hits early and sometimes later in winter. It is also intriguing because, with holiday travel in late November and December, one would normally expect to see cases increasing as a result.

Carlton said shes thought of a few theories that might help explain the peaks. One possibility is weather patterns viral transmission changes as temperature and especially humidity levels do, with drier air more favorable to infection.

Were just a drier state and we know this virus seems to spread under dry conditions, she said.

The school calendar may have an impact. Colorados school year tends to start earlier than in some other states. Mobility and travel habits may also play a role say, more people heading to the mountains to go skiing or spending more time indoors.

But none of these quite fits either, she said. Some falls have been wetter than others over the past four years. And, in order for hospitalizations from COVID to start falling in late November, infections would need to begin slowing at least a couple weeks prior, before ski season and school breaks really start.

Four winters in and there is still so much left to learn about this virus.

I think what COVID has taught us is that it evolves incredibly rapidly, Carlton said. So what we think we know today may change by tomorrow.

Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

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Timing of Colorado's COVID peaks is "fascinating and beguiling" - The Colorado Sun