The ACTIV-3 clinical trial, which is evaluating the safety and efficacy of investigational therapeutics for COVID-19 in hospitalized patients, has closed enrollment in two sub-studies: one examining the investigational monoclonal antibody therapy VIR-7831, and another evaluating the investigational combination monoclonal antibody therapy containing BRII-196 and BRII-198.… Read full story
Category: Health
NIH Scientists Discover How DNA Fragments Can Trigger Inflammation in Sickle Cell Disease
Researchers have discovered that DNA from the mitochondria – the cell’s “powerhouses” – acts as a danger signal in the body and triggers inflammation in people with sickle cell disease. A better understanding of mitochondrial DNA, long known to circulate in human blood, may provide vital insight into how to stop the underlying chronic inflammation that marks this inherited red blood cell disorder.… Read full story
Bravo Packing, Inc. Recalls All Performance Dog and Ground Beef Raw Pet Food Because of Possible Salmonella and Listeria Monocytogenes Health Risk to Humans and Animals
Bravo Packing, Inc. of Carneys Point, NJ is recalling all Ground Beef and Performance Dog, a frozen raw pet food because it has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. Salmonella can cause illness in animals eating the products, as well as people who handle contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products, infected animals or any surfaces exposed to these products. … Read full story
NIH Invests in Next Iteration of Public-Private Partnership to Advance Precision Medicine Research for Alzheimer’s Disease
The National Institutes of Health has launched the next version of the Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) Alzheimer’s disease program (AMP AD 2.0) to expand the open science, big data approach for identifying biological targets for therapeutic intervention. AMP AD 2.0 is supporting new technologies, including cutting-edge, single-cell profiling and computational modeling, to enable a precision medicine approach to therapy development.… Read full story
Law Enforcement Seizures of Methamphetamine and Marijuana Rose During Pandemic
An analysis of law enforcement seizures of illegal drugs in five key regions of the United States revealed a rise in methamphetamine and marijuana (cannabis) confiscations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Seizures of the two drugs were higher at their peak in August 2020 than at any time in the year prior to the pandemic.… Read full story
NIH Effort Seeks to Understand MIS-C, Range of SARS-CoV-2 Effects on Children
The National Institutes of Health has launched a new research effort to understand how SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, affects children, who account for roughly 13%(link is external) of the total cases of COVID-19 in the United States. The effort is called the Collaboration to Assess Risk and Identify Long-term Outcomes for Children with COVID (CARING for Children with COVID).… Read full story
Statement from NIH and BARDA on the FDA Emergency Use Authorization of the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine
February 27, 2021 – Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to the Janssen Pharmaceuticals Companies of Johnson & Johnson for its single-shot COVID-19 vaccine, called Ad.26.COV2S or JNJ-78436725. The Janssen vaccine is a recombinant vector vaccine that uses a human adenovirus to express the spike protein found on the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.… Read full story
Study Identifies Cardiovascular Risk Factors That May Lead to Pregnancy Problems for First-Time Moms
A new study of first-time pregnant women found risk factors for heart disease, such as obesity and elevated blood sugar, can put expectant moms at higher risk for pregnancy complications and gestational diabetes and also lead to increased chances of high blood pressure, or hypertension, two to seven years after giving birth.… Read full story
NIH Study Finds That People With SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies May Have a Low Risk of Future Infection
People who have had evidence of a prior infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, appear to be well protected against being reinfected with the virus, at least for a few months, according to a newly published study from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).… Read full story
New Experiences Enhance Learning by Resetting Key Brain Circuit
A study of spatial learning in mice shows that exposure to new experiences dampens established representations in the brain’s hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, allowing the mice to learn new navigation strategies. The study, published in Nature, was supported by the National Institutes of Health.… Read full story