Researchers from King’s College London and Public Health England studied how people engage with the NHSTT, in particular, how people recognize symptoms and get tested. They reported their results in a paper published on the medRxiv preprint server.
How can nanomaterials help in the fight against COVID-19?
Researchers have reviewed different types of nanomaterials and how they can be used for the detection, prevention, and treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
A variety of different strategies have been tested or are under development for combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Several types of nanomaterials have also been tested for treatment and diagnosis. Many vaccines currently deployed also use nanomaterials in their composition. In a recent review paper, published in the
Sustainable Cities and Society, authors reviewed the different types of nanomaterials and their uses in combating the pandemic.
Many materials have been made into nanometer size. They include carbon materials, metals, inorganic, and polymeric materials. Carbon nanomaterials include graphene, graphene oxide, carbon nanotubes, and fullerenes. These materials have good sensing and antimicrobial properties, which can be used for COVID-19 application
Researchers analyzed data on three variants of concern and found that viral loads were higher and infection lasted longer for the B.1.1.7 variant. They all were more infectious than the original strain, and transmissibility also depended on population demographics.
Researchers identify a novel SARS-CoV-2 variant (with the V1230L mutation) in West Bengal, India
Researchers analyzed 2,000 viral genomes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – sequences obtained from India and found a new variant that could be more infectious and transmissible.
The continued transmission of SARS-CoV-2 has led to its mutating several times. Many of the new mutations are on the virus spike protein, which has helped viral fitness and survivability by making it more infectious and giving it the ability to evade the immune system and neutralizing antibodies.
Several variants of concern have emerged in different parts of the globe, like the B.1.1.7 in the United Kingdom, the B.1.351 in South Africa, and the P.1 strain in Brazil. Two new variants have recently been reported from India, the B.1.617 and B.1.618 strains, characterized by several mutations in the spike protein.