For 40 years, Cuba has been using a molecule named Interferon Alpha 2B, which has successfully been used to combat the new Coronavirus in China and elsewhere.
For 40 years, Cuba has been using a molecule named Interferon Alpha 2B, which has successfully been used to combat the new Coronavirus in China and elsewhere.
"The world has an opportunity to understand that health is not a commercial asset but a basic right," Cuban doctor Luis Herrera, the creator of the Interferon Alfa 2-B medication, one of the most successful medications in the fight against COVID-19
One of the ways the virus can multiply inside the cells is by decreasing the levels of Interferon naturally produced in human cells. The molecule thus, through a different metabolic way, it is able to create conditions in order to limit the replication of the virus.
Interferons (IFNs) comprise a family of secretory proteins induced in response to specific extracellular stimuli through stimulation of toll-like receptors (TLRs; ). Acting in paracrine or autocrine modes, IFNs stimulate intra- and intercellular networks for regulating innate and acquired immunity, resistance to viral infections, and normal and tumour cell survival and death. Through high-affinity cell surface receptors IFNs stimulate genes, using signalling molecules used by other cytokines, but first identified through studies of IFNs. Perturbations in these pathways can lead to overstimulation of cellular functions or can make cells resistant to a given ligand, facilitating either progression or resistance of malignancy. IFNs act on almost every cell type and through their cellular actions can be effective in inhibition of tumour emergence, progression, and for inducing regression
"The world has an opportunity to understand that health is not a commercial asset but a basic right," Cuban doctor Luis Herrera, the creator of the Interferon Alfa 2-B medication, one of the most successful medications in the fight against COVID-19
One of the ways the virus can multiply inside the cells is by decreasing the levels of Interferon naturally produced in human cells. The molecule thus, through a different metabolic way, it is able to create conditions in order to limit the replication of the virus.
Interferons (IFNs) comprise a family of secretory proteins induced in response to specific extracellular stimuli through stimulation of toll-like receptors (TLRs; ). Acting in paracrine or autocrine modes, IFNs stimulate intra- and intercellular networks for regulating innate and acquired immunity, resistance to viral infections, and normal and tumour cell survival and death. Through high-affinity cell surface receptors IFNs stimulate genes, using signalling molecules used by other cytokines, but first identified through studies of IFNs. Perturbations in these pathways can lead to overstimulation of cellular functions or can make cells resistant to a given ligand, facilitating either progression or resistance of malignancy. IFNs act on almost every cell type and through their cellular actions can be effective in inhibition of tumour emergence, progression, and for inducing regressionFavipiravir
Favipiravir (T-705; 6-fluoro-3-hydroxy-2-pyrazinecarboxamid,) is an antiviral drug that selectively inhibited the RdRP of influenza virus. It showed specific activity against all three influenza A, B, and C. also inhibited the RV replication in HeLa cells, with an EC50 of 29 µg/mL.
The analysis showed that the primary mechanism of action of favipiravir against the influenza virus was a specific inhibition of vRNA polymerase. It is predicted that a similar mechanism might occur with other viruses, such as PV and RV, inhibited by favipiravir, which may account for its broad-spectrum inhibition. Mechanistic studies show that the favipiravir and its form favipiravir-RMP (favipiravir-ribofuranosyl-50-monophosphate) do not inhibit influenza RNA polymerase activity, but it is the phosphoribosylated form, favipiravir-ribofuranosyl-50-triphosphate (RTP) that inhibits the enzyme. Metabolism of favipiravir to its triphosphate form occurs in an extracellular environment in a concentration-dependent manner. The vRNA polymerase mistakenly recognizes favipiravir-RTP as a purine nucleotide. This favipiravir-RTP is misincorporated in nascent vRNA, or it may act by binding to conserved polymerase domains, preventing incorporation of nucleotides for vRNA replication and transcription.
China has
completed the clinical research of Favipiravir, an antiviral drug that has
shown good clinical efficacy against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19),
according to an official Tuesday.
Favipiravir,
the influenza drug which was approved for clinical use in Japan in 2014, has
shown no obvious adverse reactions in the clinical trial, said Zhang Xinmin,
director of the China National Center for Biotechnology Development under the
Ministry of Science and Technology, at a press conference.
More than
80 patients have participated in the clinical trial in The Third People's
Hospital of Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, including 35 patients
taking Favipiravir and 45 patients on a control group. Results showed that
patients receiving Favipiravir treatment turned negative for the virus in a
shorter time compared with patients in the control group.
a multi-centred randomized clinical study led by the Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan
University also suggested that the therapeutic effect of Favipiravir is much
better than that of the control group.
Favipiravir
has been recommended to medical treatment teams and should be included in the
diagnosis and treatment plan for COVID-19 as soon as possible, Zhang said.
Other Good News
A new
academic study reveals over-the-counter anti-malaria pill Chloroquine maybe
highly effective at treating coronavirus. According to a new academic study
presented by Thomas R. Broker, (Stanford PhD), James M. Todaro (Columbia MD),
and Gregory J. Rigano, Esq., in consultation with Stanford University School of
Medicine, UAB School of Medicine, and National Academy of Sciences researchers,
shows that over the counter anti-malaria pills Chloroquine may be highly
effective at treating coronavirus COVID-19.
On Monday,
we reported that NIH has begun a clinical trial of an investigational vaccine for
COVID-19. A Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating an investigational vaccine
designed to protect against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has begun at
Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) in Seattle. The
vaccine is called mRNA-1273 and was developed by NIAID scientists and their
collaborators at the biotechnology company Moderna, Inc., based in Cambridge,
Massachusetts. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)
supported the manufacturing of the vaccine candidate for the Phase 1 clinical
trial.
A new
preliminary study shows that the coronavirus epidemic may be slowed by warm
weather. A new study conducted by Chinese researchers shows that high temperature
and high humidity reduced the transmission of COVID-19. If true, the warm the weather would bring the much-needed relief while we are waiting for the
coronavirus vaccine, which is still about 12 months away. In a paper published
in Social Science Research Network (SSRN), a repository and international a journal devoted to the rapid dissemination of scholarly research in the social
sciences and humanities, Chinese researchers investigate how air temperature
and humidity influence the transmission of COVID-19 and analyzed how the
epidemic evolved in various Chinese cities taking into account the weather in
each.
In
February, we published a story when Israel scientists announced a breakthrough in
coronavirus treatment. “After 4 years of research funded by Israel’s Ministry
of Science & Technology, MIGAL’s researchers have developed an effective vaccine against avian coronavirus Infectious Bronchitis Virus (IBV), to be
adapted soon and create a human vaccine against COVID-19,” the group said in a
press release.
Just two
weeks ago, as we reported on this site, German researchers have identified
existing drug with the potential to treat coronavirus Covid-19. A team of
scientists led by infection biologists from five German research institutions
made a startling discovery about a potential drug that could treat coronavirus
Covid-19. They found that an existing
drug camostat mesylate might protect against COVID-19. They identified a
cellular enzyme that is essential for viral entry into lung cells: the protease
TMPRSS2. A clinically proven drug known to be active against TMPRSS2 was found
to block SARS-CoV-2 infection and might constitute a novel treatment option
(Cell).
A team of
scientists from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha has to develop
a drug to treat the virus and now ready to conduct a clinical trial.
Participants are asked to come to 11 in-person study visits and four phone
visits over a 14-month period, including one initial screening visit, two
vaccination visits, and eight follow-ups. Patients will receive two injections
of the vaccine in the upper arm with doses given 28 days apart.
Kaiser
Permanente Washington Health Research Institute announced today it has received
a green light from the government to begin its vaccine trials, the first of its
kind. Its research team is enrolling 45 healthy people, ages 18 to 55, from the
Seattle-area over the course of 14 months.
Chinese
scientists say coronavirus vaccine may be available and ready next month. As we
reported last week, Zheng Zhongwei, China director of the Science and
Technology Development Centre of the National Health Commission (NHC) announced
that the country is making progress and that a new coronavirus vaccine maybe
ready for emergency use next month. Zheng said that a new synthetic messenger
RNA (or mRNA) nucleic acid vaccine is the leading candidate for a vaccine to
combat COVID-19.
Doctors in
India has been successful in treating Coronavirus. Combination of drugs used:
Lopinavir, Retonovir, Oseltamivir along with Chlorphenamine. They are going to
suggest same medicine, globally. Italian
elderly Italian couple currently undergoing treatment for coronavirus
(COVID-19) at a hospital in Jaipur have been administered a combination of two
drugs, commonly used controlling HIV infection. This is the first time that
this combination has been used to treat the deadly virus amid mounting cases in
India. Following the success, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) had
approved the ‘restricted’ use of the combination of medications-lopinavir and
ritonavir, which are second-line HIV drugs, before they were administered to
the elderly couple
Researchers
of the Erasmus Medical Center claim to have found an antibody against
coronavirus. A team of ten scientific researchers from the Erasmus Medical Center
in Rotterdam and Utrecht University say they are the first in the world to
discover an antibody capable of fending off infection by the Covid-19 the variant of coronavirus. The discovery could lead to antiviral medication and the ability for people to test themselves at home for the presence of the
virus. “I am too old to jump on a table,” said cellular biology professor Frank
Grosveld to Erasmus Magazine. Their article is undergoing a peer review by
other researchers on the online platform BioRxiv, and they believe it well then
be published by the top science journal Nature.
A German biotech company has developed coronavirus test kits with 4 million tests since
the outbreak began. TIB Molbiol Syntheselabor GmbH is a technology company you
probably never heard of. Since 1990, Tib Molbiol, a Berlin, Germany-based
biotech company that has developed tests for ailments ranging from swine flu to
SARS. Dr Landt and his team have produced 40,000 coronavirus diagnostic kits,
enough for about 4 million individual tests.
Gates
Foundation Wellcome Trust and Mastercard joined forces to launch a $125 million
Therapeutics Accelerator to combat the coronavirus (COVID19) epidemic. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced
that it is joining forces with Wellcome Trust and Mastercard to create the
COVID19 Therapeutics Accelerator to identify, assess, develop, and scale-up
treatments to the epidemic. The goal of
the new initiative is to speed the development and access to therapies for
COVID-19.
A network
of Canadian scientists are making excellent progress in Covid19 research.
A San
Diego biotech company is developing a Covid19 vaccine in collaboration with
Duke University and the National University of Singapore.
Plasma
from newly recovered patients from Covid 19 can treat others infected by
Covid19.
1) US Researchers Deliver First COVID-19 Vaccine to
Volunteers in Experimental Test Program
Scientists at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Research
Institute in Seattle delivered the first rounds of a potential coronavirus a vaccine to several dozen optimistic volunteers earlier this week.
One 43-year-old vaccine recipient is Jennifer Haller, who is
a mother to two teenagers.
She was all smiles afterwards, telling AP reporters she was
“feeling great” as she was leaving the clinic.
“This is an amazing opportunity for me to do something,” she
added.
2) Distilleries Across the United States Are Making Their
Own Hand Sanitizers to Give Away for Free
Amidst national shortages of hand sanitizers, alcohol
distilleries in Atlanta, Portland, rural Georgia, and North Carolina have begun
using their facilities to make their own sanitation products.
Since the World Health Organization (WHO) says that cleaning
your hands with an alcohol-based rub can help to kill viruses on your hands,
many of the distilleries say they hope to continue producing their bootleg
sanitizers until the virus has been properly contained.
3) Air Pollution Plummets in Cities With High Rates of
Quarantine
Satellite readings of air pollution levels over China and
Italy show that the regions hit hardest by the COVID-19 have also caused air
pollution levels to decline dramatically.
Some reports estimate that China’s quarantine has saved more
than 100 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions from entering the
atmosphere—which is about the equivalent of what Chile produces in a year.
Not only have similar effects been reported across Italy,
the canals and waterways of Venice are reportedly cleaner than ever with the
waters shining crystal clear in the absence of diesel-powered boats and
gondoliers.
4) Johns Hopkins Researcher Says That Antibodies From
Recovered COVID Patients Could Help Protect People At Risk
The vaccine being tested in Seattle isn’t the only potential
treatment for the disease—an immunologist from Johns Hopkins University is
reviving a century-old blood-derived treatment for use in the United States in
hopes of slowing the spread of the disease.
The technique uses antibodies from the blood plasma or serum
of people who have recovered from COVID-19 infection to boost the immunity of
newly-infected patients and those at risk of contracting the disease.
5) South Korean Outbreak Finally Abating as Recoveries
Outnumber New Infections for Three Days in a Row
According to Reuters, South Korea recorded more COVID-19
recovery cases on March 6th than new infections for the first time since the nation experienced the largest Asian outbreak outside of China.
Since the novel coronavirus outbreak was first reported in
South Korea back in January, the nation reached a peak of 909 new infections on
February 29th. Now, however, Reuters reports that the declining rate of infection has continued to fall with less than 100 new cases reported for
several days in a row.
6) China Celebrates Several Milestones of Recovery After
Temporary Hospitals Close and Parks Reopen
Crowds of medical staffers and discharged patients were
filmed celebrating the closure of all 14 temporary hospitals that opened in
Wuhan to treat COVID-19 patients during the worst of the outbreak.
Authorities told the South China Morning Post this week that
the virus had finally passed its peak as the nation’s mainland experienced only
11 new cases on March 13th, most of which were from international travellers.
As the outbreak is finally brought under control, parks and
tourist attractions are slowly beginning to reopen to the public under careful
moderation.
7) Australian Researchers Testing Two Drugs as Potential
‘Cures’ for the Virus
Professor David Paterson, director of the University of
Queensland Centre for Clinical Research and infectious disease physician at the
RBWH.
At the University of Queensland Centre for Clinical
Research, scientists have found that two different medications—both of which
are registered and available in Australia—have completely wiped out traces of
the disease in test tubes.
Not only that, but the drugs were also given to some of the nation’s
first COVID-19 patients, which resulted in “disappearance of the virus and
complete recovery from the infection,” researchers told
The university is now looking to conduct a nationwide trial
with the drugs to evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of each drug administered
separately and together.
8) Uber Eats is Supporting the North American Restaurant
Industry By Waiving Delivery Fees for 100,000 Restaurants
As restaurants across Canada and the United States are
forced to temporarily shut down amidst COVID-19 outbreaks, Uber Eats has
announced that they will be waiving delivery fees for independent restaurants.
“We know the success of every restaurant depends on customer
demand,” the company said in a statement. “That’s why we’re working urgently to
drive orders towards independent restaurants on Eats, to help make up for the
significant slowdown of in-restaurant dining.
NEW Podcast: Daily Inspiring Covid-19 Updates from Good News
Gurus Under Quarantine
“As more customers are choosing to stay indoors, we’ve
waived the Delivery Fee for the more than 100,000 independent restaurants
across the US and Canada on Uber Eats. We will also launch daily dedicated,
targeted marketing campaigns—both in-app and via email—to promote delivery from
local restaurants, especially those that are new to the app.”
9) Dutch and Canadian Researchers Are Reporting Additional
Breakthrough Research on Treating the Virus
Scientists from Canada and the Netherlands have also made
medical breakthroughs of their own. In Toronto, a team of researchers managed
to isolate the agent responsible for the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19, which
will help researchers around the world develop better diagnostic testing,
treatments, and vaccines.
“Researchers from these world-class institutions came
together in a grassroots way to successfully isolate the virus in just a few
short weeks,” said Dr. Rob Kozak, a clinical microbiologist at Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre. “It demonstrates the amazing things that can happen when we
collaborate.”
Meanwhile, Dutch researchers have submitted a scientific
paper for publishing on how they have identified an anti-body for the virus—and
it could be a world-first.
10) Here Are a Bunch of Other Ways That People and
Businesses Are Supporting Each Other Throughout the US Outbreak
Dollar General has announced that they will be devoting
their opening hour of shopping time to elderly customers. Athletes and sports
teams are pledging to pay the wages of arena employees during the shutdown.
Utility companies, landlords, automakers, and internet providers are waiving a number of late fees and payments to ease the financial burden of the shutdown.
School districts across the country are still opening their doors to serve
meals to kids and families.
All in all, the pandemic situation may seem grim, but these
are just a few examples of how businesses and individuals are still looking out
for each other during times of trouble.
Favipiravir (T-705; 6-fluoro-3-hydroxy-2-pyrazinecarboxamid,) is an antiviral drug that selectively inhibited the RdRP of influenza virus. It showed specific activity against all three influenza A, B, and C. also inhibited the RV replication in HeLa cells, with an EC50 of 29 µg/mL.
The analysis showed that the primary mechanism of action of favipiravir against the influenza virus was a specific inhibition of vRNA polymerase. It is predicted that a similar mechanism might occur with other viruses, such as PV and RV, inhibited by favipiravir, which may account for its broad-spectrum inhibition. Mechanistic studies show that the favipiravir and its form favipiravir-RMP (favipiravir-ribofuranosyl-50-monophosphate) do not inhibit influenza RNA polymerase activity, but it is the phosphoribosylated form, favipiravir-ribofuranosyl-50-triphosphate (RTP) that inhibits the enzyme. Metabolism of favipiravir to its triphosphate form occurs in an extracellular environment in a concentration-dependent manner. The vRNA polymerase mistakenly recognizes favipiravir-RTP as a purine nucleotide. This favipiravir-RTP is misincorporated in nascent vRNA, or it may act by binding to conserved polymerase domains, preventing incorporation of nucleotides for vRNA replication and transcription.
Favipiravir
has been recommended to medical treatment teams and should be included in the
diagnosis and treatment plan for COVID-19 as soon as possible, Zhang said.
Other Good News
A new
academic study reveals over-the-counter anti-malaria pill Chloroquine maybe
highly effective at treating coronavirus. According to a new academic study
presented by Thomas R. Broker, (Stanford PhD), James M. Todaro (Columbia MD),
and Gregory J. Rigano, Esq., in consultation with Stanford University School of
Medicine, UAB School of Medicine, and National Academy of Sciences researchers,
shows that over the counter anti-malaria pills Chloroquine may be highly
effective at treating coronavirus COVID-19.
On Monday,
we reported that NIH has begun a clinical trial of an investigational vaccine for
COVID-19. A Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating an investigational vaccine
designed to protect against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has begun at
Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) in Seattle. The
vaccine is called mRNA-1273 and was developed by NIAID scientists and their
collaborators at the biotechnology company Moderna, Inc., based in Cambridge,
Massachusetts. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI)
supported the manufacturing of the vaccine candidate for the Phase 1 clinical
trial.
A new
preliminary study shows that the coronavirus epidemic may be slowed by warm
weather. A new study conducted by Chinese researchers shows that high temperature
and high humidity reduced the transmission of COVID-19. If true, the warm the weather would bring the much-needed relief while we are waiting for the
coronavirus vaccine, which is still about 12 months away. In a paper published
in Social Science Research Network (SSRN), a repository and international a journal devoted to the rapid dissemination of scholarly research in the social
sciences and humanities, Chinese researchers investigate how air temperature
and humidity influence the transmission of COVID-19 and analyzed how the
epidemic evolved in various Chinese cities taking into account the weather in
each.
In
February, we published a story when Israel scientists announced a breakthrough in
coronavirus treatment. “After 4 years of research funded by Israel’s Ministry
of Science & Technology, MIGAL’s researchers have developed an effective vaccine against avian coronavirus Infectious Bronchitis Virus (IBV), to be
adapted soon and create a human vaccine against COVID-19,” the group said in a
press release.
Just two
weeks ago, as we reported on this site, German researchers have identified
existing drug with the potential to treat coronavirus Covid-19. A team of
scientists led by infection biologists from five German research institutions
made a startling discovery about a potential drug that could treat coronavirus
Covid-19. They found that an existing
drug camostat mesylate might protect against COVID-19. They identified a
cellular enzyme that is essential for viral entry into lung cells: the protease
TMPRSS2. A clinically proven drug known to be active against TMPRSS2 was found
to block SARS-CoV-2 infection and might constitute a novel treatment option
(Cell).
A team of
scientists from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha has to develop
a drug to treat the virus and now ready to conduct a clinical trial.
Participants are asked to come to 11 in-person study visits and four phone
visits over a 14-month period, including one initial screening visit, two
vaccination visits, and eight follow-ups. Patients will receive two injections
of the vaccine in the upper arm with doses given 28 days apart.
Kaiser
Permanente Washington Health Research Institute announced today it has received
a green light from the government to begin its vaccine trials, the first of its
kind. Its research team is enrolling 45 healthy people, ages 18 to 55, from the
Seattle-area over the course of 14 months.
Chinese
scientists say coronavirus vaccine may be available and ready next month. As we
reported last week, Zheng Zhongwei, China director of the Science and
Technology Development Centre of the National Health Commission (NHC) announced
that the country is making progress and that a new coronavirus vaccine maybe
ready for emergency use next month. Zheng said that a new synthetic messenger
RNA (or mRNA) nucleic acid vaccine is the leading candidate for a vaccine to
combat COVID-19.
Doctors in
India has been successful in treating Coronavirus. Combination of drugs used:
Lopinavir, Retonovir, Oseltamivir along with Chlorphenamine. They are going to
suggest same medicine, globally. Italian
elderly Italian couple currently undergoing treatment for coronavirus
(COVID-19) at a hospital in Jaipur have been administered a combination of two
drugs, commonly used controlling HIV infection. This is the first time that
this combination has been used to treat the deadly virus amid mounting cases in
India. Following the success, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) had
approved the ‘restricted’ use of the combination of medications-lopinavir and
ritonavir, which are second-line HIV drugs, before they were administered to
the elderly couple
Researchers
of the Erasmus Medical Center claim to have found an antibody against
coronavirus. A team of ten scientific researchers from the Erasmus Medical Center
in Rotterdam and Utrecht University say they are the first in the world to
discover an antibody capable of fending off infection by the Covid-19 the variant of coronavirus. The discovery could lead to antiviral medication and the ability for people to test themselves at home for the presence of the
virus. “I am too old to jump on a table,” said cellular biology professor Frank
Grosveld to Erasmus Magazine. Their article is undergoing a peer review by
other researchers on the online platform BioRxiv, and they believe it well then
be published by the top science journal Nature.
A German biotech company has developed coronavirus test kits with 4 million tests since
the outbreak began. TIB Molbiol Syntheselabor GmbH is a technology company you
probably never heard of. Since 1990, Tib Molbiol, a Berlin, Germany-based
biotech company that has developed tests for ailments ranging from swine flu to
SARS. Dr Landt and his team have produced 40,000 coronavirus diagnostic kits,
enough for about 4 million individual tests.
Gates
Foundation Wellcome Trust and Mastercard joined forces to launch a $125 million
Therapeutics Accelerator to combat the coronavirus (COVID19) epidemic. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced
that it is joining forces with Wellcome Trust and Mastercard to create the
COVID19 Therapeutics Accelerator to identify, assess, develop, and scale-up
treatments to the epidemic. The goal of
the new initiative is to speed the development and access to therapies for
COVID-19.
A network
of Canadian scientists are making excellent progress in Covid19 research.
A San
Diego biotech company is developing a Covid19 vaccine in collaboration with
Duke University and the National University of Singapore.
Plasma
from newly recovered patients from Covid 19 can treat others infected by
Covid19.
1) US Researchers Deliver First COVID-19 Vaccine to
Volunteers in Experimental Test Program
Scientists at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Research
Institute in Seattle delivered the first rounds of a potential coronavirus a vaccine to several dozen optimistic volunteers earlier this week.
One 43-year-old vaccine recipient is Jennifer Haller, who is
a mother to two teenagers.
She was all smiles afterwards, telling AP reporters she was
“feeling great” as she was leaving the clinic.
“This is an amazing opportunity for me to do something,” she
added.
2) Distilleries Across the United States Are Making Their
Own Hand Sanitizers to Give Away for Free
Amidst national shortages of hand sanitizers, alcohol
distilleries in Atlanta, Portland, rural Georgia, and North Carolina have begun
using their facilities to make their own sanitation products.
Since the World Health Organization (WHO) says that cleaning
your hands with an alcohol-based rub can help to kill viruses on your hands,
many of the distilleries say they hope to continue producing their bootleg
sanitizers until the virus has been properly contained.
3) Air Pollution Plummets in Cities With High Rates of
Quarantine
Satellite readings of air pollution levels over China and
Italy show that the regions hit hardest by the COVID-19 have also caused air
pollution levels to decline dramatically.
Some reports estimate that China’s quarantine has saved more
than 100 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions from entering the
atmosphere—which is about the equivalent of what Chile produces in a year.
Not only have similar effects been reported across Italy,
the canals and waterways of Venice are reportedly cleaner than ever with the
waters shining crystal clear in the absence of diesel-powered boats and
gondoliers.
4) Johns Hopkins Researcher Says That Antibodies From
Recovered COVID Patients Could Help Protect People At Risk
The vaccine being tested in Seattle isn’t the only potential
treatment for the disease—an immunologist from Johns Hopkins University is
reviving a century-old blood-derived treatment for use in the United States in
hopes of slowing the spread of the disease.
The technique uses antibodies from the blood plasma or serum
of people who have recovered from COVID-19 infection to boost the immunity of
newly-infected patients and those at risk of contracting the disease.
5) South Korean Outbreak Finally Abating as Recoveries
Outnumber New Infections for Three Days in a Row
According to Reuters, South Korea recorded more COVID-19
recovery cases on March 6th than new infections for the first time since the nation experienced the largest Asian outbreak outside of China.
Since the novel coronavirus outbreak was first reported in
South Korea back in January, the nation reached a peak of 909 new infections on
February 29th. Now, however, Reuters reports that the declining rate of infection has continued to fall with less than 100 new cases reported for
several days in a row.
6) China Celebrates Several Milestones of Recovery After
Temporary Hospitals Close and Parks Reopen
Crowds of medical staffers and discharged patients were
filmed celebrating the closure of all 14 temporary hospitals that opened in
Wuhan to treat COVID-19 patients during the worst of the outbreak.
Authorities told the South China Morning Post this week that
the virus had finally passed its peak as the nation’s mainland experienced only
11 new cases on March 13th, most of which were from international travellers.
As the outbreak is finally brought under control, parks and
tourist attractions are slowly beginning to reopen to the public under careful
moderation.
7) Australian Researchers Testing Two Drugs as Potential
‘Cures’ for the Virus
Professor David Paterson, director of the University of
Queensland Centre for Clinical Research and infectious disease physician at the
RBWH.
At the University of Queensland Centre for Clinical
Research, scientists have found that two different medications—both of which
are registered and available in Australia—have completely wiped out traces of
the disease in test tubes.
Not only that, but the drugs were also given to some of the nation’s
first COVID-19 patients, which resulted in “disappearance of the virus and
complete recovery from the infection,” researchers told
The university is now looking to conduct a nationwide trial
with the drugs to evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of each drug administered
separately and together.
8) Uber Eats is Supporting the North American Restaurant
Industry By Waiving Delivery Fees for 100,000 Restaurants
As restaurants across Canada and the United States are
forced to temporarily shut down amidst COVID-19 outbreaks, Uber Eats has
announced that they will be waiving delivery fees for independent restaurants.
“We know the success of every restaurant depends on customer
demand,” the company said in a statement. “That’s why we’re working urgently to
drive orders towards independent restaurants on Eats, to help make up for the
significant slowdown of in-restaurant dining.
NEW Podcast: Daily Inspiring Covid-19 Updates from Good News
Gurus Under Quarantine
“As more customers are choosing to stay indoors, we’ve
waived the Delivery Fee for the more than 100,000 independent restaurants
across the US and Canada on Uber Eats. We will also launch daily dedicated,
targeted marketing campaigns—both in-app and via email—to promote delivery from
local restaurants, especially those that are new to the app.”
9) Dutch and Canadian Researchers Are Reporting Additional
Breakthrough Research on Treating the Virus
Scientists from Canada and the Netherlands have also made
medical breakthroughs of their own. In Toronto, a team of researchers managed
to isolate the agent responsible for the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19, which
will help researchers around the world develop better diagnostic testing,
treatments, and vaccines.
“Researchers from these world-class institutions came
together in a grassroots way to successfully isolate the virus in just a few
short weeks,” said Dr. Rob Kozak, a clinical microbiologist at Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre. “It demonstrates the amazing things that can happen when we
collaborate.”
Meanwhile, Dutch researchers have submitted a scientific
paper for publishing on how they have identified an anti-body for the virus—and
it could be a world-first.
10) Here Are a Bunch of Other Ways That People and
Businesses Are Supporting Each Other Throughout the US Outbreak
Dollar General has announced that they will be devoting
their opening hour of shopping time to elderly customers. Athletes and sports
teams are pledging to pay the wages of arena employees during the shutdown.
Utility companies, landlords, automakers, and internet providers are waiving a number of late fees and payments to ease the financial burden of the shutdown.
School districts across the country are still opening their doors to serve
meals to kids and families.
All in all, the pandemic situation may seem grim, but these
are just a few examples of how businesses and individuals are still looking out
for each other during times of trouble.
