Lifeboat Foundation

A study published in Aging and Disease shows the effectiveness of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy against a deadly immune reaction caused by COVID-19.

While scientists all over the world are working on a vaccine that would be effective against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of researchers from China and other countries has been exploring a therapeutic approach. Capitalizing on previous research, this group has conducted a successful trial of MSC therapy, resulting in the recovery of all seven patients [1]. These important results inspire hope, considering that a vaccine may still be more than a year away.

STAT1-deficient mice are more susceptible to infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) than type I interferon (IFN) receptor-deficient mice. We used mice lacking functional receptors for both type I and type III IFN (double knockout, dKO) to evaluate the possibility that type III IFN plays a decisive role in SARS-CoV protection. We found that viral peak titres in lungs of dKO and STAT1-deficient mice were similar, but significantly higher than in wild-type mice. The kinetics of viral clearance from the lung were also comparable in dKO and STAT1-deficient mice. Surprisingly, however, infected dKO mice remained healthy, whereas infected STAT1-deficient mice developed liver pathology and eventually succumbed to neurological disease. Our data suggest that the failure of STAT1-deficient mice to control initial SARS-CoV replication efficiently in the lung is due to impaired type I and type III IFN signalling, whereas the failure to control subsequent systemic viral spread is due to unrelated defects in STAT1-deficient mice.

As of 29 February 2020 there were 79,394 confirmed cases and 2,838 deaths from COVID-19 in mainland China. Of these, 48,557 cases and 2,169 deaths occurred in the epicenter, Wuhan. A key public health priority during the emergence of a novel pathogen is estimating clinical severity, which requires properly adjusting for the case ascertainment rate and the delay between symptoms onset and death. Using public and published information, we estimate that the overall symptomatic case fatality risk (the probability of dying after developing symptoms) of COVID-19 in Wuhan was 1.4% (0.9–2.1%), which is substantially lower than both the corresponding crude or naïve confirmed case fatality risk (2,169/48,557 = 4.5%) and the approximator¹ of deaths/deaths + recoveries (2,169/2,169 + 17,572 = 11%) as of 29 February 2020. Compared to those aged 30–59 years, those aged below 30 and above 59 years were 0.6 (0.3–1.1) and 5.1 (4.2–6.1) times more likely to die after developing symptoms. The risk of symptomatic infection increased with age (for example, at ~4% per year among adults aged 30–60 years).

Discuss:

— Preprint manuscript suggests COVID-19 virus has already mutated into multiple strains.

Vitamin D may be effective in helping to prevent Covid-19:

PubMed comprises more than 30 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to full-text content from Central and publisher web sites.

I know some have speculated that the Coronavirus was engineered:

An analysis of public genome sequence data from SARS-CoV-2 and related viruses found no evidence that the virus was made in a laboratory or otherwise engineered.

The novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that emerged in the city of Wuhan, China, last year and has since caused a large scale COVID-19 epidemic and spread to more than 70 other countries is the product of natural evolution, according to findings published today in the journal Nature Medicine.

Continue reading “COVID-19 coronavirus epidemic has a natural origin” »

Hmm… are people with reduced lung capacity after recovering from the coronavirus more susceptible to getting the flu? Or does taking antibiotics increase one’s risk getting the coronavirus since it attacks the respiratory system?

Antibiotics can leave the lung vulnerable to flu viruses, leading to significantly worse infections and symptoms, finds a new study in mice led by the Francis Crick Institute.

The research, published in Cell Reports, discovered that signals from gut bacteria help to maintain a first line of defence in the lining of the lung. When mice with healthy gut bacteria were infected with the flu, around 80% of them survived. However, only a third survived if they were given antibiotics before being infected.

“We found that antibiotics can wipe out early flu resistance, adding further evidence that they should not be taken or prescribed lightly,” explains Dr Andreas Wack, who led the research at the Francis Crick Institute. “Inappropriate use not only promotes antibiotic resistance and kills helpful gut bacteria, but may also leave us more vulnerable to viruses. This could be relevant not only in humans but also livestock animals, as many farms around the world use antibiotics prophylactically. Further research in these environments is urgently needed to see whether this makes them more susceptible to viral infections.”

Sam Harris discusses the coronavirus withAmesh Adalja.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Amesh Adalja about the spreading coronavirus pandemic. They discuss the contagiousness of the virus and the severity of the resultant illness, the mortality rate and risk factors, vectors of transmission, how long coronavirus can live on surfaces, the importance of social distancing, possible anti-viral treatments, the timeline for a vaccine, the importance of pandemic preparedness, and other topics.

Continue reading “Making Sense with Sam Harris #191 — Early Thoughts On a Pandemic (with Amesh Adalja)” »

Brian tumors and the coronavirus.

We hope this information will help address some of our community’s concerns about the coronavirus (COVID-19).