COVID-19 vaccine trials starting in UK

A COVID-19 vaccine being developed in the United Kingdom may be available by September.
If successful, and with fast-tracked approval from the regulator, the first few million doses of the vaccine could be available by September. Aljazeera 

AstraZeneca vaults ahead in COVID-19 vaccine race with 'landmark' Oxford deal

Despite running a pair of its older drugs through coronavirus trials, British drugmaker AstraZeneca has been noticeably absent in the pursuit for a vaccine. Not anymore. The company has inked a new deal with the University of Oxford that could help it hopscotch right into the lead.AstraZeneca snared global manufacturing and distribution rights to Oxford's adenovirus-based COVID-19 shot, which leapfrogged into front-runner status when it began human trials last week. FiercePharma

Johns Hopkins launches COVID-19 testing hub to provide public access to testing data

The COVID-19 testing picture in the U.S. is far from easy to understand, given the disparate agencies and public and private health organizations involved. Johns Hopkins, building on its excellent work developing COVID-19 case tracking and basic information resources, has developed a new hub called the COVID-19 Testing Insights Initiative that breaks down what kinds of tests are available, as well as where they’re being administered in the U.S., and in what volume.TechCrunch 

Diagnostics firm says new Covid-19 test could be used 1 million times a week

Hologic, a maker of diagnostic tests, said Wednesday that it is launching a new test for Covid-19 and that it could produce 1 million of them a week, a pace that would significantly expand testing capacity in the United States. STAT 

UH to assist with clinical trial of promising COVID-19 drug

A potential breakthrough was reported on Wednesday, as an experimental drug may prove to be an effective treatment for Covid-19.It’s called Remdesivir, and preliminary trials show it cuts the recovery time from 15 to 11 days. After an initial test of 1,000 patients with severe Covid-19 from across the globe, some were treated with the drug by IV and recovered more quickly and fewer died, than those who were given a placebo. 19News 

BerGenBio shares soar on COVID-19 drug trial news

BerGenBio hopes to get an early indication of its drug bemcentinib’s effectiveness in treating the most vulnerable COVID-19 patients, the company said. The drug was originally designed to interfere with a tumour’s ability to suppress the body’s immune response against it. The company said the trial is part of its participation in the UK’s ACCORD initiative, short for Accelerating COVID-19 Research & Development. Reuters 

HOME Device/ICTSiemens to expand capacity sharply for Covid-19 antibody test

Covid-19 patients form antibodies as a response to the virus in their body, and the antibody test checks for immune reaction in the blood. The test gives a clear view of the progress of the disease as it identifies those who developed immunity against Covid-19 after being infected. It also can confirm infection of people who have not been diagnosed or show no symptoms. Korea Biomedical Review 

Genetic Engineering Could Make a COVID-19 Vaccine in Months Rather Than Years

By early April almost 80 companies and institutes in 19 countries were working on vaccines, most gene-based instead of using traditional approaches, such as those that have been employed in influenza vaccines for more than 70 years. The labs predicted that a commercial vaccine could be available for emergency or compassionate use by early 2021—incredibly fast, given that vaccines to brand-new pathogens have taken a decade to be perfected and deployed. Even the Ebola vaccine, which was fast-tracked, took five years to reach widespread trials.Scientific American

Potential coronavirus vaccine being tested in Germany could 'supply millions' by end of year

A German company working with US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has begun human trials of a potential Covid-19 vaccine that could supply millions by the end of the year, according to the two firms. Pfizer says it will begin testing the experimental vaccine in the United States as early as next week, and says a vaccine could be ready for emergency use in the fall, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. CNN 

Drug shows promise against COVID-19, says RedHill, which has US HQ in Raleigh

RedHill Biopharma, an Israeli specialty company with U.S. commercial headquarters in Raleigh, reports that all six COVID-19 patients who recently received its investigative drug, opaganib, got better. TeachWire 

In coronavirus battle, scientists have teamed up with billionaires for COVID-19 'Manhattan Project': report

A small group of scientists and billionaires have teamed up in an ambitious effort to battle the coronavirus pandemic, The Wall Street Journal is reporting. The group’s work has been described as a COVID-19 "Manhattan Project," in a nod to the famous effort to develop the atomic bomb. It is led by 33-year-old physician-turned venture capitalist Thomas Cahill, according to the Journal. FoxNews

Jury still out on IL-6 drugs in COVID-19 following preliminary trial results

There is a growing body of evidence that already-approved IL-6 could be used as treatments for COVID-19 following newly published clinical trial data – but the jury is out on whether they could be licensed in the new use until larger trial results are published in the coming weeks.PharmaForum 

Biopharma Update on the Novel Coronavirus: April 27

With the number of high false-positives from some antibody tests,  the FDA is bearing the brunt of criticism for allowing so many tests onto the market without properly vetting them. At the beginning of April, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first antibody test for COVID-19. Since then, the regulatory agency has allowed more than 100 antibody tests onto the market without full review and that has proven to become a problem as some tests are not as accurate as hoped. BioSpace 

WHO Warns You May Catch Coronavirus More Than Once

While there’s a consensus that the key to ending the coronavirus pandemic is establishing co-called herd immunity, there are many unknowns. One is whether researchers can develop a safe and effective vaccine. Another is how long people who’ve recovered have immunity; reinfection after months or years is common with other human coronaviruses. Finally, it’s not clear what percentage of people must be immune to protect the “herd.” That depends on the contagiousness of the virus. Bloomberg 

The success of a Covid-19 vaccine will hinge on its delivery

Even if we get the vaccine we need, we mustn’t fail to get it to the people who need it. We are facing a potential shortage of health care workers to manage mass vaccination efforts, and risk increasing disease transmission by asking people to come for Covid-19 vaccination. If there are not enough doses for everyone, deciding who should get vaccinated within and across countries will need to be prioritized; although this may be a function of whether the vaccine works well enough in particular populations, such as older adults.  STAT

Coronavirus symptoms checker: 9 signs to watch for, including 6 new CDC additions

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has expanded its list of possible symptoms for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. Its updated page now includes six additional items in addition to the original three (fever, cough, shortness of breath) that have long been seen as crucial warning signs. FastCompany 

New York clinical trial quietly tests heartburn remedy against coronavirus

The fast-growing list of possible treatments for the novel coronavirus includes an unlikely candidate: famotidine, the active compound in the over-the-counter heartburn drug Pepcid. On 7 April, the first COVID-19 patients at Northwell Health in the New York City area began to receive famotidine intravenously, at nine times the heartburn dose. Science 

World leaders launch WHO COVID-19 plan, but US not involved

World leaders pledged on Friday to accelerate work on tests, drugs and vaccines against COVID-19 and to share them around the globe, but the United States did not take part in the launch of the World Health Organization (WHO) initiative. French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa were among those who joined a video conference to launch what the WHO had billed as a “landmark collaboration” to fight the pandemic.NewYorkPost

COVID-19 vaccine protects monkeys from new coronavirus, Chinese biotech reports

For the first time, one of the many COVID-19 vaccines in development has protected an animal, rhesus macaques, from infection by the new coronavirus, scientists report. The vaccine, an old-fashioned formulation consisting of a chemically inactivated version of the virus, produced no obvious side effects in the monkeys, and human trials began on 16 April. Science 

The race to 3D-print 4 million COVID-19 test swabs a week

The country needs tens of millions of nasal swabs if it’s going to test enough people for COVID-19 to safely reopen the economy, but swabs are in short supply. A consortium of academics, medical workers, and manufacturers have joined forces to relieve the bottleneck through 3D printing.FastCompany

ntigen testing could be a faster, cheaper way to diagnose covid-19

An antigen test, on the other hand, can deliver results on the spot. That means it’s suitable for frequent follow-up testing. You could use it in cases where you need a quick yes-or-no result, like in an overwhelmed hospital, at a nursing home where patients are not mobile enough to go to a testing site, or to determine whether health-care workers have been infected.  MITTechnologyReview 

Want a New Covid-19 Drug Fast? Bring on the Battle Royale

The gold standard for testing medical therapies today is the double-blinded, randomized controlled trial, which pits a treatment against a placebo given to a control group. But other options exist; Landray recalled that in the 1980s, people tested a bunch of different options for treating heart attacks against each other in a sort of randomized multiplayer death match. Landray’s team realized they could try the same thing here, testing a half-dozen contenders to treat Covid-19. WIRED 

Gilead says draft of coronavirus treatment results contains ‘inappropriate characterization’ and are ‘inconclusive’

Gilead Sciences said that a draft document showing disappointing results from a closely watched clinical trial of the company’s treatment for the coronavirus contained “inappropriate characterizations” and that the study’s findings were “inconclusive.” CNBC 

Early antibody tests find 21% of New Yorkers have had COVID-19

More than 21% of the New York City residents randomly given coronavirus antibody tests earlier this week tested positive, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a news conference on Thursday.  The test, also known as a serologic test, looks for the presence of antibodies, which are specific proteins made in response to infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Their presence in the blood indicates that a person has had the virus, though their accuracy has been under scrutiny. MarketWatch

Covid-19 latest: Up to half of deaths in Europe were in care homes

Up to half of those who have died from covid-19 in Europe were in care homes, according to Hans Kluge, the World Health Organization (WHO) regional director for Europe. Describing the finding as “deeply concerning”, Kluge said that many care homes may be “providing pathways for the virus to spread” and the problem has been made worse because care home workers are “overstretched, underpaid and unprotected.”NewsCienttist

Doctors start giving second round of shots to volunteers in Seattle COVID-19 vaccine trial

While the doctors at Kaiser Permanente's Vaccine Treatment and Evaluation Unit in Seattle don’t know the results of the first round of tests, the fact that it has continued and that the second round of injections are now being given is good news, said Lisa Jackson, who is leading the study.USAToday 

UofL believes it's made breakthrough in COVID-19 treatment, works to fast-track approval

They explained it this way: The technology is based on a piece of synthetic DNA, or an “aptamer,” which targets and binds with a human protein called nucleolin. Researchers said early tests show this aptamer may stop viruses, including novel coronavirus, from “hijacking” nucleolin to replicate inside the body.WLKYNews

Three Ways to Make Coronavirus Drugs in a Hurry

 three main strategies for impeding the virus have emerged as the labs have turned to the current threat. One strategy is to find compounds like remdesivir and EIDD-2801 that gum up the virus’s reproductive machinery when it enters a target cell. A second is to block the virus, like a bouncer outside a bar, from entering and infecting those cells in the first place. The third approach is to muffle the immune system’s dangerously overactive response, a “cytokine storm” that can drown a victim in a mass of congestion and dying airway cells. ScientificAmerica

'A race against time': Results expected soon on experimental coronavirus drug

If remdesivir proves to be safe and effective against the coronavirus, Kalil said the trial will pivot to studying other drugs. The investigators would use remdesivir as the control, and see how well other drugs compare. One treatment on deck is called baricitinib, an anti-inflammatory medication used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.nbcNews 

Coronavirus: what have scientists learned about Covid-19 so far?

Instead, most virologists believe that immunity against Covid-19 will last only a year or two. “That is in line with other coronaviruses that infect humans,” says Skinner. “That means that even if most people do eventually become exposed to the virus, it is still likely to become endemic – which means we would see seasonal peaks of infection of this disease. We will have reached a steady state with regard to Covid-19.” The Guardian

Oxford University coronavirus vaccine to begin human trials on Thursday as U.K. ‘throws everything’ at vital breakthrough

The Oxford University project, a collaboration between the university’s Jenner Institute and Oxford Vaccine Group, opened recruitment for the clinical trial — for healthy adults between 18 and 55 — at the end of March, having begun research on a vaccine against the coronavirus-borne disease COVID-19 in February. Trials will now begin as soon as this Thursday, the health secretary revealed in the government’s daily briefing on Tuesday. Praising the team, Hancock said reaching this stage in normal times would “take years.” MarketWatch 

Can you catch Covid-19 twice?

The hope is that a recovered patient has developed enough Covid-19-specific antibodies to fight off a secondary infection. However, in one study on convalescent patients in China, 30% of those studied had very little or no detectable antibodies in their blood plasma. It would seem that those people were able to neutralise the infection without the need to develop antibodies, either because their innate immune response or the T cells in their adaptive immune response, or a combination of both, were sufficient. Those with the lowest counts of antibodies were most likely to be the youngest patients.BBC 

Maccabi to deploy AI that identifies patients at risk of developing COVID-19 complications

A startup developing a platform for the discovery of clinical insights from medial information, Israel’s Maccabi Healthcare Services, plans to deploy an AI system that can identify people at risk of developing COVID-19 complications.VentureBeat 

COVID-19 antibody testing 'a disaster,' says Roche CEO, as diagnostics sales rise

Many countries are seeking serology tests to better understand whether people are developing a possible immunity to the novel coronavirus. But reports detailing high rates of false-positive and false-negative results are delaying widespread screening. “These tests are not worth anything, or have very little use,” Schwan said during an early Wednesday conference call regarding the company’s first-quarter earnings, according to Reuters.FierceBiotech

Not all coronavirus tests are the same. These are the two main types

One is a diagnostic test to see if you have an active infection with the coronavirus, whether you have symptoms of COVID-19 or not. The other checks to see if you were previously exposed at some point and fought off an infection. Los Angeles Times 

P-BEST: Fast efficient COVID-19 virus testing before symptoms appear

A highly promising new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in April 2020 reports an efficient new method to conduct high-throughput testing of blood samples for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which is causing the rapidly spreading pandemic of COVID-19 disease throughout the world. The method could revolutionize the diagnosis of new cases before they become symptomatic.NewsMedical 

Anti-viral drug can stop coronavirus from reproducing, studies suggest

The anti-viral drug remdesivir outsmarts the coronavirus. Posing as the one of the building blocks the virus needs to make copies of itself, it’s incorporated into the virus’s genome — stopping it from reproducing and essentially shutting it down in its tracks, research has found. The OCRegister 

'At home' study will test if common drug can prevent serious COVID-19 complications

The study, which would involve 6,000 participants in the U.S., Canada and Europe, is designed to be "contactless" — participants will receive the drug, called colchicine, by mail, and will be monitored by phone or video visits. Participants will receive the drug within 48 hours of a COVID-19 diagnosis. LiveScience

Experimental Coronavirus Treatment Colchicine to Be Sent to Patients'Homes hours after COVID-19 Diagnosis

Teams at UC San Francisco (UCSF) and New York University School of Medicine will send the anti-inflammatory drug colchicine to people's homes within 48 hours of them testing positive for coronavirus, according to a statement.Newsweek 

COVID-19 VACCINE– PIPELINE REVIEW, 2020

As of April 13th, more than 160 COVID-19 vaccine and treatment candidates are under research and development. Although experts believe that it will take at least 12-18 months to develop a vaccine against the novel coronavirus, it has become critical to make one available sooner due to the rapid spread of the outbreak, rising death toll, significant impact on the economy due to the lockdown, and other measures that are being taken to control the infection. FortuneBusinessInsights

Coronavirus vaccine: First trials to start in the UK

Trials of a vaccine that could protect against Covid-19 are to begin in the UK. Work on the vaccine, developed by clinical teams at the University of Oxford's Jenner Institute and Oxford Vaccine Group, began in January. Now a study involving up to 510 healthy volunteers between 18 and 55 is to get underway. The UK now joins only the US - with two studies - and China in beginning human trials. Bromsgrove The Adviser 

Pigs Push Forward Quick Solution for Emergency Ventilators

On the call, leaders from the Illinois RapidVent team explained they had built a prototype of an emergency ventilator to address a nationwide shortage amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Laboratory testing looked promising, but the University of Illinois team wanted to understand whether the device worked in animals. Wheeler, who has built and tested lifesaving medical devices in animals, was the obvious choice to join the team.FarmJournalPork

New COVID-19 test is eight times faster, can help locate asymptomatic carriers

A team of Israeli researchers is using AI to develop an algorithm-based test that can speed COVID-19 testing eightfold and help locate asymptomatic carriers, funded by a grant from the Ben-Gurion University Covid-19 Effort. NewsMedical 

Antibody Treatments May Be the Best Hope Against the Virus Until a Vaccine

Regeneron’s drug cocktail could be tested in humans by summer and be saving lives by fall
Antibody treatments won’t eliminate the need for a vaccine. They might not work on critically ill patients. And as a prophylactic, the drug would likely have to be given every couple of months. It wouldn’t be practical to treat all high-risk people with regular antibody infusions. But the treatments might help communities return to a seminormal state until a vaccine is finally available. Bloomberg .

Why are some Covid-19 patients asymptomatic? Scientists have 2 ideas

While there's no clear answer yet why some people show Covid-19 symptoms and others do not, there are theories. Two of these theories are:

• Some people have a stronger innate immune response to the virus. 
• Some people encounter a smaller viral load. 

Warner Greene, an immunologist and microbiologist at the University of California San Francisco, tells Inverse that the most compelling explanation is the idea that some people's innate immune systems respond incredibly well to the virus. Inverse 

Incyte, Novartis Initiate Phase 3 Jakavi Drug Study For Coronavirus Treatment

Global biotech company Incyte (INCY) announced on Friday that it has initiated a Phase 3 clinical trial in collaboration with Novartis (NVS) to test the potential of its Jakavi drug in patients infected with the coronavirus-caused COVID-19. Yahoo 

Roche Launches New COVID-19 Antibody Test System

Roche (Basel, Switzerland) will soon launch its Elecsys® Anti-SARS-CoV-2 serology test to detect antibodies in people who have been exposed to SARS-CoV-2 that causes the COVID-19 disease. HospiMedica 

Israeli scientist: Two-thirds of the way toward COVID-19 vaccine

Gershoni, who was recently granted a patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for his vaccine design for the coronavirus – after studying the family of viruses for 15 years – explained that the vaccine intends to target the virus's Receptor Binding Motif (RBM), a critical weak point which allows the virus to attach itself and infect a target cell. The Jerusalem Post 

Virus Vaccine May Be Ready for Mass Production By Autumn, Oxford Professor Says

A team led by Sarah Gilbert, a professor of vaccinology, has recruited 500 volunteers from the ages of 18 to 55 for the early- and mid-stage randomized controlled trial. It will be extended to older adults and then to a final stage trial of 5,000 people. Gilbert said that the timing is ambitious but achievable. Bloomberg

The problems with COVID-19 testing. (And it’s not what you think).

This article is not about the problems with testing that we all know about: it started too late, there was a problem with accessibility, it took too long to get results, there was a shortage of swabs, a shortage of testing centers, long lines, and many delays – but rather, it’s about another problem you may not be aware of: accuracy. AL 

When will a COVID-19 vaccine be ready?

Experts told Live Science that, for any other vaccine, the timeline would be unrealistic. But given the current pressure to stave off the pandemic, a COVID-19 vaccine could be ready sooner, as long as scientists and regulatory agencies prove willing to take a few shortcuts. LiveScience 

CRISPR And Spit Might Be Keys To Faster, Cheaper, Easier Tests For The Coronavirus

Being able to test for coronavirus infections is a critical component to reopening society — even a little bit — after the initial wave of COVID-19. So there is an urgent need for faster, cheaper tests than the ones available at present. One approach to the next generation of tests is being developed by the University of California, San Francisco Medical School and Mammoth Biosciences. In a paper released Thursday in the journal Nature Biotechnology, researchers describe a test based on a new technology known as CRISPR.npr