The fact that COVID-19 patients have lost their sense of smell or taste is interesting because, if the virus infects the nose, it would use the exact same neurons as in the mouse studies to enter the brain. SARS‐CoV2 causes epidemic pneumonia characterized by acute respiratory distress. This novel coronavirus is similar to SARS‐CoV in […]
Several studies were conducted to evaluate the presence of COVID-19 in the GI track and eliminated with stools. The first case report in the USA of COVID-19 was published in The New England journal of medicine (https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2001191). The report showed, as early as day seven of clinical symptoms, elimination of COVID-19 in the stools of […]
The first participant in a clinical safety trial for a COVID-19 vaccine conducted by the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle was given an experimental dose on March 16, reports the Associated Press. Testing will begin with 45 young, healthy volunteers with different doses of shots co-developed by NIH and Moderna INC. Inovio […]
How do viral genomes’ sequences from swabs taken from infected patients help you build a family tree of the virus? Random mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen’s genome help researchers track the spread and transmission of COVID-19, the disease it causes. Source: News & Opinion Articles | The Scientist Magazine®
The gut microbiome serves many useful functions in the body, but it can also rev up the immune system in harmful ways. Zit has been pustulated that Diet can influence the microbiome and the mucosal immune response. In the paper: “Diet modulates colonic T cell responses by regulating the expression of a Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron antigen,” Sci Immunol, 4:eaau9079, […]
Today, it is widely accepted that NETs have both a protective and a pathological impact on the host. When neutrophils encounter pathogens, not only engage in phagocytosis and degranulation, they also release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) In CANCER, NET-associated proteins lead to reawakening of dormant cancer cells and convert them to proliferating metastatic cells. In […]
Neutrophils use an enzyme called neutrophil elastase (NE) to cleave bacteria. Human neutrophils release NE which looks like a fibrous structure like webs. These webs, able to trap bacteria, are called neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). These webs are constituted of NE, other proteins, and copious amounts of DNA. It is important to keep in mind […]
We’ve had a few events where they’ve jumped from animals into people. There’s a lot being done on how coronaviruses infect people from animals. We know the real key is to know what the host cell receptor is—that’s the protein on the surface of cells that viruses bind to and invade. For SARS coronavirus, the […]
Gene therapies for disorders such as X-linked Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID, sometimes known as “bubble boy disease”), and Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) have, for the first time, shown remarkable safety and efficacy results in clinical trials. FDA approved Trikafta, a gene-based therapy creating hope for children with cystic fibrosis and Zolgensma, a gene therapy drug, […]
Worldwide, over 4,000 patients with Gaucher disease have received enzyme replacement treatment (ERT), which is safe and well tolerated. Gaucher disease is a rare disease caused by mutations in GBA1. GBA1 mutations drive extensive accumulation of glucosylceramide (GC) in immune cells in the spleen, liver, lung and bone marrow. Extensive GC storage induces complement-activating IgG […]