Biology is fascinating.
SARS CoV-2 coronavirus / Covid-19 (No tin foil hat silliness please)
- Thread starter Don't Kill Bill
- Start date
Sure is. And Immunology is the most voodoo of all biology.
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https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/denmark-coronavirus-minsk-covid-b1637064.html?amp
214 infected with mutated strain from minks since June, looking good that it does not seem to be more virulent than other strains and we can get on top of it before it takes hold.
214 infected with mutated strain from minks since June, looking good that it does not seem to be more virulent than other strains and we can get on top of it before it takes hold.
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I am reading about this in a Norwegian newspaper and I see that some danish politicians is afraid of re-starting the Pandemic due to the strain being so different from the others that the vaccines being developed vould be non-efficient for this particular strain. Also danish politicians being afraid of Denmark becoming a new Wuhan.
The new strain can transmit from minks to humans (and the other way around) so I can see the possible problems here. I also heard they found it in mink in Sweden now.
I really hope your politicians is just fearful and that these scenarios is not for real. I would hate for this situation to start all over again blergh..
this is the Norwegian article on this :
https://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/dansk-frykt---kan-bli-det-nye-wuhan/73038131
You will have to google translate though.
Edit: WHO is looking into the new strain vs. vaccines being developed. Also looking into other elements of the mink strain problem like the security of mink farms in the world etc.
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They are not sure how different this new strain is, they are just afraid of the possibility of it being vastly different to any vaccine that is being prepared against it. However, until research is done they can't be sure so it is best to be as safe as possible. Close the borders and supervise isolation and learn from the mistakes of Wuhan.
It's a small chance it could start a new pandemic, but it's still a chance.
Yes, but they have found that this particular strain is more resistant to anti-bodies. So it may be plausible I guess. Time will show. Lets hope it is nothing to be afraid of.
Fcuk this is still a thing isn’t it.
December is at the end of this month bud.
UK reports another 355 COVID-19 deaths
It’s a bit more than a possibility of it being different. They have in vitro proof of it being resistant to neutralising antibodies for the non-mutated version.
In vitro differences won’t necessarily translate to in vivo models and some resistance doesn’t mean you don’t get any immunity at all. But still.... Good decision to cull all the mink anyway. Hopefully that’s the end of it.
I meant the end of November,
That’s when December starts. Literally the next day.
The end of November could indicate the 20th onwards for meThat’s when December starts. Literally the next day.
And December could be anytime in December
The vaccine is done ffs. It has been for some time in many places. Problem has been the stage 3 that usually takes hundreds of millions to do( and thus many years), but now it's done with government money.
I’m not entirely sure what your point is but literally everything you’ve written there is wrong. Especially the last sentence. First two sentences are also wrong, mind you.
Full scale footy night match going on in the community pitches beside us. So much for level 5
Aye, it's a cracking post is that.
I haven't noticed much change tbh, everywhere still appears open, apart from bars and restaurants. Every shop in the country pretending they're essential.
Traffic on first lock down was awesome, barely anyone about, last couple days still been a shitshow on the roads.
Getting interesting again in Italy. I have two big hospitals within a few miles of me and one of them has said they now have to triage ambulances into their A&E because they've run out of space. They keep a handful of beds for critical emergencies but otherwise they have to go elsewhere, and are asking for the closed hotels to be used as makeshift quarantine wards because the Covid patients are taking so long to discharge even if not particularly serious.
The atmosphere is markedly different this time round though. People are not scared anymore, just tired of it.
The atmosphere is markedly different this time round though. People are not scared anymore, just tired of it.
It sounds bad, and the numbers are going up by leaps and bounds. We feel a bit cushioned from it here in Marche, we're a yellow region so nothing's changed in terms of the restrictions. There are cases in the village though, which is worrying as it's a very small place.
i think one narrative that can easily be sustained through all this is about the human relationship with animals, but it will not get the attention it deserves. in china it did for a while, since they are the cruel communist dictatorial "other" eating bats, civilisd enlightened social-democratic denmark is less easy to scold.
There’s been a few posts in this thread along the line of “feck mink farms” tbf
Mind you, I had to get down of my high horse when someone reminded me that most of that mink fur will end up being worn in China.
fair. the fact that it happened with minks is a particuar accident; concentrated animal farms, which are all over the world now, are perfect for this. add to that habitat loss, contact with wild animals, and animal antibiotic overuse (thinking beyond Sars-cov-2 and about new bugs in general)
It's still a long way from April when beds were being put in the parking garage but it is getting worse. Lots more ambulances around. Lombardy will always be hit because of the population density, but we are not the only ones this time. Like I say people here are not scared now, just weary and annoyed that after 6+ months to learn and prepare we are back where we started.
Yeah, good points. In pharma land one of the big existential threats people have been talking about for years is multi drug resistant bacteria. Which has a lot to do with the intensive farming and overuse of antibiotics in animals. Not quite as dramatic as a novel viral pandemic but could easily match the death toll.
i have been a TA for a couple of lab courses
1. there's a paper from about 10 years ago that the US has 2% of the population already carrying methicillin-resistant staph aureus. Now, it does nothing if you're fine, but it's deadly and very difficult to treat if you're immuno-compromised.
we anonymously test our students for MRSA (ironcially, it's cotton swabs up the nose, so they were vry faimilar with how to do it this time). the number carrying it has never been less than 40%.
2. one of the labs did a field trip to a university-run pig farm (presumably, one that follows laws) in a neighbouring city, and took soil samples. the bacteria grew on antibiotic plates with no problem.
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I’m firmly in the "feck mink farms" boat, but according to this article the mink-corona could already be gone. No proven human cases of this strain since september.
One of capitalism’s biggest failings could be in this area. Free market economics means we don’t have the right incentives for pharma companies to make big investments in developing drugs which are taken very infrequently and only for 7-10 days at a time. I wonder if the pandemic might focus minds on addressing this elephant in the room.
I've just had an invite to join the Novavax vaccine phase three trial. Anyone know anything about this vaccine and it's story so far?
Also, I've managed to confuse myself over whether I want to be in a trial - or just sit and wait for whatever the NHS starts dishing out next year. Oddly, it's not the trial bit that bothers me - the trial vaccine might be better than the approved one (whichever one that is) - it's the other what ifs.
In this case it's the what if I get a placebo instead, that would be really annoying (and how long before they tell me that I'd better go and have the real thing!). And what if taking the approved vaccine let me travel more freely, or do things (like go to football matches) and the trial one didn't. Realistic worries?
Also, I've managed to confuse myself over whether I want to be in a trial - or just sit and wait for whatever the NHS starts dishing out next year. Oddly, it's not the trial bit that bothers me - the trial vaccine might be better than the approved one (whichever one that is) - it's the other what ifs.
In this case it's the what if I get a placebo instead, that would be really annoying (and how long before they tell me that I'd better go and have the real thing!). And what if taking the approved vaccine let me travel more freely, or do things (like go to football matches) and the trial one didn't. Realistic worries?
If it's still in trial I doubt anyone would know much as all will be secret ?
Any trial vaccine would come with higher risks of side effects, possibly serious or even mortal ones. Hence the trial, everyone is built slightly differently and you can never predict exactly how their body will react.
Don't see any reason why you wouldn't be able to get an approved vaccine just because you did a trial of a different one ?
I do know done things about it. Its manufacturer has never managed to get a vaccine to market. It's a different type of vaccine to the Oxford/Astra version - using a more traditional vaccine methodology in some respects. It showed strong antibody reactions in phase 1/2. Sometimes people on here know/understand more though.
I guess it's your last paragraph that I'm most curious/concerned about. Once in a trial, it would seem to defeat the trial objective if I could then get another vaccine - how could they know if it was vaccine A or vaccine B protecting me (or indeed causing an adverse reaction).
I guess the answer is unknowable, the trial ends when the statistical data on its efficacy comes in, which could be three months or twelve, or never if the trial runs out of covid cases (wishful thinking there I guess). I'm just curious about the what ifs for the placebo group, and the idea that a de-facto vaccine "passport" might appear next year.
Results are in and I have it. It's bizarre as I'm fine.
Going to be on redcafe a lot during isolation!
I'm not going to lie. I have only myself to blame. I have to admit I let my guard down. Stopped being anal with the hand sanitiser. I have no idea where I got it but I am exposed in a few different places. Gym, my son going to nursery. Went to a restaurant on Tuesday night. The post man even? So could be anything.
I wouldn’t take one. The Oxford one is coming along decently by all accounts and so is Pfizer. An approved vaccine is around the corner for high risk individuals and healthy adults maybe 6-7 months away.
It’s possible Novavax fails, and you end up In unknown territory on whether you can take multiple vaccines.
Honestly don’t get the incentive to participate in a phase 3 now.
Dont beat yourself up over it chap, we are all here if you need us fella
Cheers mate. It’s already been a difficult 2 nights. I’ve left my home away from my son and wife as I know my son wouldn’t be able to distance from me. Locked myself in my parent house in my old bedroom, obviously taking care I’m safe with my parents. Everyone else has booked for a test now. Will see how contagious this is. I’d be surprised if my son and wife don’t have it.
8 nights to go!
You probably got it by stopping using sanitizer on your anus!
Use it as an excuse to binge watch netflix and order takeaway and it will fly by mate
That's funny