2,109 Matching Annotations
  1. Mar 2022
    1. Domestic COVID certificates: What does the evidence say? (n.d.). AlgorithmWatch. Retrieved 31 March 2022, from https://algorithmwatch.org/en/domestic-covid-certificates/

    2. 2021-11-17

    3. Born to help reopen international travel routes, digital COVID certificates are now required in several countries to enter premises such as bars, restaurants, gyms, pools, and museums, and to attend large public events. But do they work — and what for, precisely? More fundamentally, is it even possible to have an evidence-based debate about them at all? Tracing The Tracers looked at the lessons we should learn from the available literature, with the help of a stellar group of researchers.
    4. Domestic COVID certificates: what does the evidence say?
    1. ReconfigBehSci. (2021, November 20). Thanks to everyone who took part in our Workshop on #SciComm as Collective Intelligence It was amazing! Materials will be uploaded to http://SciBeh.org website 1/2 @kakape @DrTomori @SpiekermannKai @GeoffreySupran @ArendJK @STWorg @dgurdasani1 @suneman @philipplenz6 [Tweet]. @SciBeh. https://twitter.com/SciBeh/status/1461978072924762117

    2. 2021-11-20

    3. 2/2 so a chance for anyone to watch who couldn't make some or all of it. Now on to collectively writing that manifesto!
    4. Thanks to everyone who took part in our Workshop on #SciComm as Collective Intelligence It was amazing! materials will be uploaded to http://SciBeh.org website 1/2 @kakape @DrTomori @SpiekermannKai @GeoffreySupran @ArendJK @STWorg @dgurdasani1 @suneman @philipplenz6
    1. Eric Topol. (2021, November 21). That over 3 million children age 5-11 in the US have been vaccinated without a reported case of myocarditis so far is encouraging [Tweet]. @EricTopol. https://twitter.com/EricTopol/status/1462480325154467842

    2. 2021-11-21

    3. That over 3 million children age 5-11 in the US have been vaccinated without a reported case of myocarditis so far is encouraging
    1. Mia Malan. (2021, November 25). [Thread] What is the potential impact of the new B.1.1.529 #COVID19 variant? @rjlessells: 1. It’s relatively simple to detect some B.1.1.529 cases, as it’s possible to use PCR tests to do this in some cases 2. B.1.1.529 = has many mutations across different parts of the virus https://t.co/ytktqLzJUi [Tweet]. @miamalan. https://twitter.com/miamalan/status/1463846528578109444

    2. 2021-11-25

    3. 10. Summary: 1. We're starting to see generalised community transmission (as opposed to just cluster outbreaks) 2. Tomorrow @who will assign a Greek name to B.1.1.529 3. We don't yet know for sure, but it looks like B.1.1.529 might be more transmissible and escape immunity.
    4. 9. ON Tuesday scientists started with lab work to determine what exactly B.1.1.529 can and can't do (e.g. make it easier to contract #SARSCoV2, escape immunity or cause milder or more severe disease)
    5. 8. Scientists = trying to figure out the impact of B.1.1.529's mutations. What could it potentially do (we don't know yet)? * Be more transmissible * Reduce the protection that vaccines and natural immunity offer * Cause milder or more severe disease
    6. 7. The rapid increase in B.1.1.529 cases is not just seen in GP, but also in other provinces, although the increases in other provinces are lower (those increases are based on smaller samples than in GP).
    7. 6. Because of one of the mutations on B.1.1.529, the variant can be detected by PCR tests (so even before the genomes are sequenced). Cases are increasing fast.
    8. 5. Currently B.1.1.529 is most prominent in GP, but it's been detected in other provinces, particularly NW and LP.
    9. 4. Here's how variants have spread in SA: 1. Light gray: lots of different types of virus (1st wave) 2. Green: 2nd wave (Beta) 3. Red: Delta, 3rd wave 4. Yellow: C.1.2 (still detected at low levels, but not increasing) 5. Blue: B.1.1.529 (increasing fast)
    10. 3. Some of the mutations of B.1.1.529 look similar to mutations that have been found on other variants of concern that enhance those variants' transmissibility.
    11. 2. Some of the mutations of the B.1.1.529 variant are situated around the spike protein that might affect how well our antibodies neutralise the #SARSCoV2 virus (so it might escape immunity to some extent).
    12. [Thread] What is the potential impact of the new B.1.1.529 #COVID19 variant? @rjlessells: 1. It's relatively simple to detect some B.1.1.529 cases, as it's possible to use PCR tests to do this in some cases 2. B.1.1.529 = has many mutations across different parts of the virus
    1. The Ferrari Lab. (2021, July 19). He had me from the start … but then the AI clip rocketed this one to the top of my list of best COVID vaccine explainers … sorry fork hands, it was a good run. [Tweet]. @TheFerrariLab. https://twitter.com/TheFerrariLab/status/1417113413403164673

    2. 2021-07-19

    3. He had me from the start … but then the AI clip rocketed this one to the top of my list of best COVID vaccine explainers … sorry fork hands, it was a good run.
    1. Shematologist, MD. (2021, August 7). Listen to @Schwarzenegger https://t.co/CpYJ5wwjFc [Tweet]. @acweyand. https://twitter.com/acweyand/status/1424080234241040387

    2. 2021-08-07

    3. Listen to @Schwarzenegger
    4. Eran Segal. (2021, August 17). Israel data showing the decay of vaccine efficacy over time. Y-axis is cases per 1000 from July 7 to Aug 10, for unvaccinated, and for people vaccinated at different times Cases are higher in those vaxed earlier Despite world-data caveats, this seems quite compelling https://t.co/5aNz48AC8F [Tweet]. @segal_eran. https://twitter.com/segal_eran/status/1427696623988117505

    5. 2021-08-17

    6. Israel data showing the decay of vaccine efficacy over time. Y-axis is cases per 1000 from July 7 to Aug 10, for unvaccinated, and for people vaccinated at different times Cases are higher in those vaxed earlier Despite world-data caveats, this seems quite compelling
    7. Natalie E. Dean, PhD. (2021, August 17). Real-world data from Israel show a growing gap between the earliest vaccinated (blue arrow) and the recently vaccinated (green arrow) within age groups. Confounding is always a concern (are these groups fundamentally different?) but the magnitude of the difference is notable. Https://t.co/s8pevRbax8 [Tweet]. @nataliexdean. https://twitter.com/nataliexdean/status/1427703094062706691

    8. 2021-08-17

    9. Yes. One benefit is that this is looking within age bands (e.g. 50-59). So there can be confounding within the age bands, in terms of who is prioritized (e.g. occupational risk, comorbidities, prior infection), but less so than if we looked across the whole population.
    10. Things I think when I see this: - This shows rates for all reported cases regardless of disease severity. What does the pattern look like for just severe cases? - Will we see the same pattern for other dosing schedules (e.g. longer spacing in the UK) or vaccines (Moderna)?
    11. Real-world data from Israel show a growing gap between the earliest vaccinated (blue arrow) and the recently vaccinated (green arrow) within age groups. Confounding is always a concern (are these groups fundamentally different?) but the magnitude of the difference is notable.
    1. Introduction The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has previously advised: 2 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in children and young people aged 16 to 17 years with an underlying health condition that places them at higher risk from serious COVID-19 (‘at-risk group’) a first dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for those not in an at-risk group On 19 October 2021 JCVI considered options for offering a second dose to persons aged 16 to 17 years who are not in an at-risk group.
    2. 2021-11-15

    3. Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advice on COVID-19 vaccination in people aged 16 to 17 years: 15 November 2021
    1. Contents | Science 375, 6586. (n.d.). Science. Retrieved 23 March 2022, from https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.2022.375.issue-6586

    2. White clover (Trifolium repens L.) populations in Los Angeles, such as the one shown here, evolve to have less hydrogen cyanide, a defensive chemical that also affects tolerance to abiotic stressors. A new study reveals that these plants repeatedly adapt to urban environments throughout the world, indicating that cities are drivers of evolutionary change across the planet. See page 1275.
    3. Science
    4. 2022-03-18

    1. Quinn, E. K., Fenton, S., Ford-Sahibzada, C. A., Harper, A., Marcon, A. R., Caulfield, T., Fazel, S. S., & Peters, C. E. (2022). COVID-19 and Vitamin D Misinformation on YouTube: Content Analysis. JMIR Infodemiology, 2(1), e32452. https://doi.org/10.2196/32452

    2. Background: The “infodemic” accompanying the SARS-CoV-2 virus pandemic has the potential to increase avoidable spread as well as engagement in risky health behaviors. Although social media platforms, such as YouTube, can be an inexpensive and effective method of sharing accurate health information, inaccurate and misleading information shared on YouTube can be dangerous for viewers. The confusing nature of data and claims surrounding the benefits of vitamin D, particularly in the prevention or cure of COVID-19, influences both viewers and the general “immune boosting” commercial interest.Objective: The aim of this study was to ascertain how information on vitamin D and COVID-19 was presented on YouTube in 2020.Methods: YouTube video results for the search terms “COVID,” “coronavirus,” and “vitamin D” were collected and analyzed for content themes and deemed useful or misleading based on the accuracy or inaccuracy of the content. Qualitative content analysis and simple statistical analysis were used to determine the prevalence and frequency of concerning content, such as confusing correlation with causation regarding vitamin D benefits.Results: In total, 77 videos with a combined 10,225,763 views (at the time of data collection) were included in the analysis, with over three-quarters of them containing misleading content about COVID-19 and vitamin D. In addition, 45 (58%) of the 77 videos confused the relationship between vitamin D and COVID-19, with 46 (85%) of 54 videos stating that vitamin D has preventative or curative abilities. The major contributors to these videos were medical professionals with YouTube accounts. Vitamin D recommendations that do not align with the current literature were frequently suggested, including taking supplementation higher than the recommended safe dosage or seeking intentional solar UV radiation exposure.Conclusions: The spread of misinformation is particularly alarming when spread by medical professionals, and existing data suggesting vitamin D has immune-boosting abilities can add to viewer confusion or mistrust in health information. Further, the suggestions made in the videos may increase the risks of other poor health outcomes, such as skin cancer from solar UV radiation.
    3. 10.2196/32452
    4. 2022-03-14

    5. COVID-19 and Vitamin D Misinformation on YouTube: Content Analysis
    1. Pottegård, A., & Klungel, O. H. (2022). The neurological safety of covid-19 vaccines. BMJ, 376, o522. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.o522

    2. eal world evidence is broadly reassuringLeveraging data on 8.3 million people from two large electronic health record databases in the UK and Spain, Li and colleagues (doi:10.1136/bmj-2021-068373) studied the association between covid-19 vaccines, either vector based or mRNA, and immune mediated neurological outcomes.1 Neither the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca) nor the BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) vaccine was associated with an increased risk of neurological adverse events. Conversely, increased risks of all studied neurological outcomes were seen after SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, the power to detect small or even moderate increases in rare neurological outcomes—such as Bell’s palsy, encephalomyelitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and transverse myelitis—after vaccination was limited, despite the relatively large study population. Another key limitation acknowledged by the authors was lack of adjustment for patient characteristics other than age in the majority of the analyses. This might have led to overestimation of risks associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, as patients with the infection had more comorbidity than the background population.
    3. The neurological safety of covid-19 vaccines
    4. 2022-03-16

    5. 10.1136/bmj.o522
    1. Agrawal, M., Peterson, J., Cohen, J. D., & Griffiths, T. (2022). Stress, Intertemporal Choice, and Mitigation Behavior During the COVID-19 Pandemic. PsyArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/ureqg

    2. 2022-02-04

    3. Delayed gratification refers to the willingness to sacrifice smaller, short-term reward for greater, long-term reward. There are suggestions that this proclivity may be impacted by stress and can be predictive of other real-world behaviors. In this article, we outline four large-scale online experiments (total $N = 12,906$) we conducted over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, in which we asked individuals to perform Money Earlier or Later (MEL) decisions (e.g. $5 today versus $10 tomorrow), and to also report stress measures and pandemic mitigation behaviors. We found that behavior in the MEL paradigm correlates with self-reported stress, and that these measures predict the extent of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic despite having opposite effects.N=12,906N=12,906N = 12,906) we conducted over the
    4. 10.31234/osf.io/ureqg
    5. Stress, Intertemporal Choice, and Mitigation Behavior During the COVID-19 Pandemic
    1. Study shows continued face mask use offers economic benefits. (n.d.). Baylor College of Medicine. Retrieved 14 March 2022, from https://www.bcm.edu/news/study-shows-continued-face-mask-use-offers-economic-benefits

    2. Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, face masks have been required in most public locations. A study led by teams at Baylor College of Medicine and the Public Health Informatics, Computational and Operations Research (PHICOR) at the City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy (CUNY SPH) shows how maintaining face mask use could bring multiple benefits, including saving healthcare costs. The results were published in The Lancet Public Health.
    3. 2022-03-11

    4. Study shows continued face mask use offers economic benefits
    1. ReconfigBehSci. (2022, March 12). @rwjdingwall @mugecevik @RobFreudenthal it makes little sense to numerically compare this pandemic with all of the intervention that occurred directly with past ones where medicine and epidemiology where of a completely different standard to conclude that this one ‘wasn’t bad’. 1/2 [Tweet]. @SciBeh. https://twitter.com/SciBeh/status/1502681086819721223

    2. 2022-03-12

    3. 2/2 it's like comparing how wet you got in a down pour with and without umbrella... the biggest surprise to me in this pandemic hasn't been the 'overreaction' it's been the constant failure with respect to basic counter-factual reasoning
    4. it makes little sense to numerically compare this pandemic *with all of the intervention that occurred* directly with past ones where medicine and epidemiology where of a completely different standard to conclude that *this one* "wasn't bad".
    1. Shen, X.-R., Geng, R., Li, Q., Chen, Y., Li, S.-F., Wang, Q., Min, J., Yang, Y., Li, B., Jiang, R.-D., Wang, X., Zheng, X.-S., Zhu, Y., Jia, J.-K., Yang, X.-L., Liu, M.-Q., Gong, Q.-C., Zhang, Y.-L., Guan, Z.-Q., … Zhou, P. (2022). ACE2-independent infection of T lymphocytes by SARS-CoV-2. Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy, 7(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41392-022-00919-x

    2. 10.1038/s41392-022-00919-x
    3. SARS-CoV-2 induced marked lymphopenia in severe patients with COVID-19. However, whether lymphocytes are targets of viral infection is yet to be determined, although SARS-CoV-2 RNA or antigen has been identified in T cells from patients. Here, we confirmed that SARS-CoV-2 viral antigen could be detected in patient peripheral blood cells (PBCs) or postmortem lung T cells, and the infectious virus could also be detected from viral antigen-positive PBCs. We next prove that SARS-CoV-2 infects T lymphocytes, preferably activated CD4 + T cells in vitro. Upon infection, viral RNA, subgenomic RNA, viral protein or viral particle can be detected in the T cells. Furthermore, we show that the infection is spike-ACE2/TMPRSS2-independent through using ACE2 knockdown or receptor blocking experiments. Next, we demonstrate that viral antigen-positive T cells from patient undergone pronounced apoptosis. In vitro infection of T cells induced cell death that is likely in mitochondria ROS-HIF-1a-dependent pathways. Finally, we demonstrated that LFA-1, the protein exclusively expresses in multiple leukocytes, is more likely the entry molecule that mediated SARS-CoV-2 infection in T cells, compared to a list of other known receptors. Collectively, this work confirmed a SARS-CoV-2 infection of T cells, in a spike-ACE2-independent manner, which shed novel insights into the underlying mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2-induced lymphopenia in COVID-19 patients.
    4. 2022-03-11

    5. ACE2-independent infection of T lymphocytes by SARS-CoV-2
    1. Lopez-Leon, S., Wegman-Ostrosky, T., Valle, N. C. A. del, Perelman, C., Sepulveda, R., Rebolledo, P. A., Cuapio, A., & Villapol, S. (2022). Long COVID in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analyses. (p. 2022.03.10.22272237). medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.03.10.22272237

    2. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of long COVID in children and adolescents and identify the full spectrum of signs and symptoms present after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: Two independent investigators searched PubMed and Embase in order to identify observational studies that met the following criteria: 1) a minimum of 30 patients, 2) ages ranged from 0 to 18 years, 3) published in English, 4) published before February 10th, 2022, and 5) meets the National Institute for Healthcare Excellence (NICE) definition of long COVID, which consists of both ongoing (4 to 12 weeks) and post COVID 19 (≥12 weeks) symptoms. For COVID symptoms reported in two or more studies, random-effects meta-analyses were performed using the MetaXL software to estimate the pooled prevalence, and Review Manager (RevMan) software 5.4 was utilized to estimate the Odds Ratios (ORs) with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Heterogeneity was assessed using I2 statistics. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviewers and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) reporting guideline was followed (registration PROSPERO CRD42021275408). Results: The literature search yielded 68 articles for long COVID in children and adolescents. After screening, 21 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the systematic review and meta-analyses. A total of 80,071 children and adolescents with COVID-19 were included. The prevalence of long COVID was 25.24% (95% CI 18.17-33.02), and the most prevalent clinical manifestations were mood symptoms (16.50%; 95% CI 7.37-28.15), fatigue (9.66%; 95% CI 4.45-16.46), and sleep disorders (8.42%; 95% CI 3.41-15.20). When compared to controls, children infected by SARS-CoV-2 had a higher risk of persistent dyspnea (OR 2.69 95%CI 2.30-3.14), anosmia/ageusia (OR 10.68, 95%CI 2.48, 46.03), and/or fever (OR 2.23, 95%CI 1.22-4.07). The main limitation of these meta-analyses is the probability of bias, which includes lack of standardized definitions, recall, selection, misclassification, nonresponse and/or loss of follow-up, and the high level of heterogeneity. Conclusion: These meta-analyses provide an overview of the broad symptomatology of long COVID in minors, which may help improve management, rehabilitation programs, and future development of guidelines and therapeutic research for COVID-19.
    3. 2022-03-13

    4. 10.1101/2022.03.10.22272237
    5. Long COVID in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analyses.
  2. Feb 2022
    1. Marc Stegger. (2022, February 22). New preprint on #COVID19 is out: “Occurrence and significance of Omicron BA.1 infection followed by BA.2 reinfection”. Using the national surveillance system in Denmark, we show that reinfections with #SARSCoV2 VOC #Omicron BA.2 can occur after recent BA.1 infection #SSI_dk https://t.co/Cm0n8vga4P [Tweet]. @MarcStegger. https://twitter.com/MarcStegger/status/1496099303143653379

    2. With these data, we find that reinfection with #Omicron BA.2 can occur in patients previously infected with BA.1, as early as 20 days after initial infection. 85% had symptoms during the Omicron BA.2 reinfection, though mainly mild disease and similar duration of 4 days 5/n
    3. This work was only achievable through a very dedicated effort by many people @SSI_DK including @mobdjek, @tyragovekrause @rskskov @andersfomgaard, @sieber_r, @henrik_ullum, @Alexandersens, @JannikFonager, @TLillebaek, @SteenEtTo, @marcbennedbaek, @anna_c_ingham, @kimleeng 10/n
    4. In conclusion, we provide evidence that #SARSCoV2 #Omicron BA.2 reinfections are rare but can occur relatively shortly after a BA.1 infection, causing mostly mild disease in unvaccinated young individuals 9/n
    5. Viral load and subgenomic RNAs among reinfection cases showed significantly reduced viral load in secondary BA.2 infections compared to initial BA.1 infection together, a lower ratio of subgenomic to genomic RNA indicate a more superficial and transient secondary infection 8/n
    6. Also investigated if #Omicron BA.2 reinfections are caused by a specific subset of BA.2s. No sign of clustering, indicating that the capability of BA.2 to cause reinfections in recently infected Omicron BA.1 cases with low or no vaccination may be an intrinsic BA.2 property 7/n
    7. The median age of the BA.1->BA.2 cases was 15 years, and no cases were older than 38. Majority were under the age of 20 (70%). 89% were not vaccinated, no cases had received the booster. Compared to Denmark in total, 81% are vaccinated twice and 62% have received the booster 6/n
    8. We used a genomic approach to gain insight into the state of infection of the BA.2 reinfected cases within 20 to 60 days.Includes information on vaccination, demographics, and self-reported clinical information on the individuals found to have been infected with both variants 4/n
    9. The #SARSCoV2 variant of concern #Omicron has rapidly spread worldwide. With the surge of the distinct subvariants BA.1 and BA.2, we investigated whether BA.2 specifically can escape the natural immunity acquired shortly after a BA.1 infection 3/n
    10. Key messages 1) Reinfections occurred mainly among younger, unvaccinated individuals 2) Disease severity associated with BA.2 infections was similar to previous BA.1 infections – and only cases with mild disease. 3) Reinfections were not caused by distinct genetic variants 2/n
    11. 2022-02-22

    12. New preprint on #COVID19 is out: “Occurrence and significance of Omicron BA.1 infection followed by BA.2 reinfection”. Using the national surveillance system in Denmark, we show that reinfections with #SARSCoV2 VOC #Omicron BA.2 can occur after recent BA.1 infection #SSI_dk
    1. Yen, H.-L., Sit, T. H., Brackman, C. J., Chuk, S. S., Cheng, S. M. S., Gu, H., Chang, L. D., Krishnan, P., Ng, D. Y., Liu, G. Y., Hui, M. M., Ho, S. Y., Tam, K. W., Law, P. Y., Su, W., Sia, S. F., Choy, K.-T., Cheuk, S. S., Lau, S. P., … Poon, L. L. (2022). Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (Variant Delta) from Pet Hamsters to Humans and Onward Human Propagation of the Adapted Strain: A Case Study (SSRN Scholarly Paper ID 4017393). Social Science Research Network. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4017393

    2. Background: Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from humans to other mammals, including pet animals, has been reported. However, with the exception of farmed mink, there is no previous documentation that these infected animals can infect humans, nor of further onward spread among humans. Following a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection of a pet store worker, animals in the store and the warehouse supplying it were tested for evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection.Methods: Viral swabs and blood samples from pet animals were collected in a pet shop and the warehouse supplying it and tested by SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR and serological assays, respectively. SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR positive samples were studied by full genome sequencing analysis.Findings: Over 50% of individually tested Syrian hamsters in the pet shop (8/16) and warehouse (7/12) were positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection in RT-PCR or serological tests. None of dwarf hamsters (n=77), rabbits (n=246), Guinea pigs (n=66), chinchilla (n=116) and mice (n=2) were confirmed positive in RT-PCR tests. SARS-CoV-2 viral genomes deduced from human and hamster cases in this incident all belong to Delta variant of concern (AY.127) that had not been circulating locally prior. These sequences are highly similar, but distinct. The viral genomes obtained from hamsters are phylogenetically related with some sequence heterogeneity and phylogenetic dating suggest infection in these hamsters occurred around 21 November 2021. Two separate transmission events to humans are documented, one leading to onward household spread.Interpretation: Pet hamsters can be naturally infected in “real-life” settings. The virus can circulate within hamsters and lead to human infections. Both genetic and epidemiological results strongly suggest that there were two independent hamster-to-human transmission and that such events can lead to onward human transmission. Importation of infected hamsters was the most likely source of virus infection.
    3. 2022-01-28

    4. Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (Variant Delta) from Pet Hamsters to Humans and Onward Human Propagation of the Adapted Strain: A Case Study
    1. 2021-12-11

    2. Kok, K.-H., Wong, S.-C., Chan, W.-M., Lei, W., Chu, A. W.-H., Ip, J. D., Lee, L.-K., Wong, I. T.-F., Lo, H. W.-H., Cheng, V. C.-C., Ho, A. Y.-M., Lam, B. H.-S., Tse, H., Lung, D., Ng, K. H.-L., Au, A. K.-W., Siu, G. K.-H., & Yuen, K.-Y. (2022). Cocirculation of two SARS-CoV-2 variant strains within imported pet hamsters in Hong Kong. Emerging Microbes & Infections, 1–39. https://doi.org/10.1080/22221751.2022.2040922

    3. During the investigation of a pet shop outbreak of severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) with probable hamster-to-human transmission, the environmental and hamster samples in epidemiologically linked pet shops were found positive for SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant AY.127 strains which are phylogenetically closely related to patients and reported European strains. This interspecies' spill-over has triggered transmission in 58 patients epidemiologically linked to three pet shops. Incidentally, three dwarf hamsters imported from the Netherlands and centralized in a warehouse distributing animals to pet shops were positive for SARS-CoV-2 spike variant phylogenetically related to European B.1.258 strains from March 2020. This B.1.258 strain almost disappeared in July 2021. While no hamster-to-human transmission of B.1.258-like strain was found in this outbreak, molecular docking showed that its spike receptor-binding domain (RBD) has a similar binding energy to human ACE2 compared to that of Delta variant AY.127. Therefore, the potential of this B.1.258-related spike variant for interspecies jumping cannot be ignored. The co-circulation of B.1.258-related spike variants with Delta AY.127, which originated in Europe and was not previously found in Hong Kong, suggested that hamsters in our wholesale warehouse and retail pet shops more likely have acquired these viruses in the Netherlands or stopovers during delivery by aviation than locally. The risk of human-to-hamster reverse zoonosis by multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants leading to further adaptive spike mutations with subsequent transmission back to humans cannot be underestimated as an outbreak source of COVID-19. Testing imported pet animals susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 is warranted to prevent future outbreaks.
    4. Co-circulation of two SARS-CoV-2 variant strains within imported pet hamsters in Hong Kong
    5. 10.1080/22221751.2022.2040922.
    1. 2022-02-22

    2. Stegger, M., Edslev, S. M., Sieber, R. N., Ingham, A. C., Ng, K. L., Tang, M.-H. E., Alexandersen, S., Fonager, J., Legarth, R., Utko, M., Wilkowski, B., Gunalan, V., Bennedbæk, M., Byberg-Grauholm, J., Møller, C. H., Christiansen, L. E., Svarrer, C. W., Ellegaard, K., Baig, S., … Rasmussen, M. (2022). Occurrence and significance of Omicron BA.1 infection followed by BA.2 reinfection (p. 2022.02.19.22271112). medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.02.19.22271112

    3. The newly found Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern has rapidly spread worldwide. Omicron carries numerous mutations in key regions and is associated with increased transmissibility and immune escape. The variant has recently been divided into four subvariants with substantial genomic differences, in particular between Omicron BA.1 and BA.2. With the surge of Omicron subvariants BA.1 and BA.2, a large number of reinfections from earlier cases has been observed, raising the question of whether BA.2 specifically can escape the natural immunity acquired shortly after a BA.1 infection.To investigate this, we selected a subset of samples from more than 1,8 million cases of infections in the period from November 22, 2021, until February 11, 2022. Here, individuals with two positive samples, more than 20 and less than 60 days apart, were selected. From a total of 187 reinfection cases, we identified 47 instances of BA.2 reinfections shortly after a BA.1 infection, mostly in young unvaccinated individuals with mild disease not resulting in hospitalization or death.In conclusion, we provide evidence that Omicron BA.2 reinfections do occur shortly after BA.1 infections but are rare.
    4. 10.1101/2022.02.19.22271112
    5. Occurrence and significance of Omicron BA.1 infection followed by BA.2 reinfection
    1. Tseng, H. F., Ackerson, B. K., Luo, Y., Sy, L. S., Talarico, C. A., Tian, Y., Bruxvoort, K. J., Tubert, J. E., Florea, A., Ku, J. H., Lee, G. S., Choi, S. K., Takhar, H. S., Aragones, M., & Qian, L. (2022). Effectiveness of mRNA-1273 against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron and Delta variants. Nature Medicine, 1–1. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-022-01753-y

    2. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-022-01753-y
    3. SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant is highly transmissible with potential immune escape. We conducted a test-negative case-control study to evaluate mRNA-1273 vaccine effectiveness (VE) against infection and hospitalization with Omicron or Delta. The large, diverse study population included 26,683 SARS-CoV-2 test-positive cases with variants determined by S-gene target failure status (16% Delta, 84% Omicron). The 2-dose VE against Omicron infection at 14–90 days was 44.0% (95% CI, 35.1–51.6%) but declined quickly. The 3-dose VE was 93.7% (92.2–94.9%) and 86.0% (78.1–91.1%) against Delta infection and 71.6% (69.7–73.4%) and 47.4% (40.5–53.5%) against Omicron infection at 14–60 days and >60 days, respectively. The 3-dose VE was 29.4% (0.3–50.0%) against Omicron infection in immunocompromised individuals. The 3-dose VE against hospitalization with Delta or Omicron was >99% across the entire study population. Our findings demonstrate high, durable 3-dose VE against Delta infection but lower effectiveness against Omicron infection, particularly among immunocompromised people. However, 3-dose VE of mRNA-1273 was high against hospitalization with Delta and Omicron variants.
    4. Effectiveness of mRNA-1273 against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron and Delta variants
    5. 2022-02-21