A preprint came out yesterday entitled “Transmission Potential of SARS-CoV-2 in Viral Shedding Observed at the University of Nebraska Medical Center“. They looked at actual virus shed by patients in a healthcare setting (as opposed to artificial virus aerosols). They found widespread contamination of surfaces and objects in the room… but all of the detection …
A short rant, precipitated by a Letter to JAMA that I was reading today. Detection of viral RNA DOES NOT EQUAL detection of infectious virus particles which DOES NOT EQUAL transmission risk. Are all these things related? Of course. Are they the same thing? NO. This was prominent in the news recently with the finding …
This is a super-short preprint… just a letter and a few tables but contains some really useful information. The authors looked at the viability (not just viral RNA!) of SARS-CoV-2 under different conditions including various surfaces, temperatures, and with various disinfectants. Example good news: The virus is disinfected very readily Example bad news: They detected …
Useful Q&A and possibility to submit other questions via Undark Magazine. Undark readers have sent us numerous questions, comments, and observations on the Covid-19 pandemic. Our publisher responds. Source: Dear Readers: Fielding Your Thoughts and Questions on Covid-19
See this STAT article for a discussion of a database of scientists offering to help in fighting COVID19. Database is here: Michael Wells, a postdoctoral fellow at the Broad Institute, created a database of like-minded scientists to connect their skills where they are needed. Source: A call to scientists: Share your bench skills to fight …
A new New York Times article of interest on on the new coronavirus and how long it survives on surfaces and in the air. Article by Apporva Mandavilli with comments from lead author of a new paper on the topic Dr. Vincent Munster and also Dr. Linsey Marr and Dr. Jeffrey Shaman. A new study could have …
(cross posted to the UCD Microbiome SRP blog) What do you get when you combine UC Davis alumni, tomato seeds, and citizen science? That would be Project GASP (“Germ”-ination Alumni Science Project). I didn’t come up with the name, I swear. This project, sponsored and paid for by the College of Biological Sciences at UC …
Interesting preprint worth checking out (note – this is a non peer reviewed preprint). “It reports new medical research that has yet to be evaluated and so should not be used to guide clinical practice.” Abstract: Mobile phone apps implementing algorithmic contact tracing can speed up the process of tracing newly diagnosed individuals, spreading information …
So if you have access to the Wall Street Journal, this article is worth a look. It focuses on the spread of coronavirus and how open / compact work environments (such as those that have been growing in usage in the tech industry and elsewhere) might make the spread of the virus more rapid than …
There is a new preprint of interest to those interested in SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus spreading around the world. Details: Aerosol and surface stability of HCoV-19 (SARS-CoV-2) compared to SARS-CoV-1 Neeltje van Doremalen, Trenton Bushmaker, Dylan Morris, Myndi Holbrook, Amandine Gamble, Brandi Williamson, Azaibi Tamin, Jennifer Harcourt, Natalie Thornburg, Susan Gerber, Jamie Lloyd-Smith, Emmie de …