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Coronavirus


Bjornebye

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10 minutes ago, Rico1304 said:

Weird that the number of suicides actually went down during lockdown. People must fucking hate work.  

Actually no. It’s recognised that in times of national crisis, suicide rates tend to fall as people feel a greater sense of being in the same boat as everyone else around them. Thinking about it, I’m not sure if I know what happens to rates as ‘normality’ returns. 
There has/was, though, been an increase in the numbers reporting mental health difficulties 

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7 hours ago, Elite said:

Horrific when people lose their quality of life almost instantaneously. Hope he still can get some enjoyment from watching the match on TV etc.

 

My uncle had a stroke last year and his wife reports that he just wants to sit on the sofa all day as his speech is slurred and he also has weakness down one side.

 

 

My mate takes comfort from the large screen tv they've put in the living room in front of his bed and watches all sports each day,but its no real substitute for what he had. All at 54 years of age too. It just seems so unfair.

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14 hours ago, Champ said:

Here’s my question, does hand washing and sanitising have any role in preventing coronavirus? I’ve decided it has none but am ready to be corrected.

Its transmitted by aerosol, hence the face covering and distancing measures, yeah?

 

13 hours ago, CapeRed said:

You can pick up the virus from touching a surface where the airborn virus has lande so yeah it helps to wash and sanitise

This 

 

The virus (like other viruses, such as those that cause colds and flu) can survive on skin and be transmitted from hand to hand, then from hand to face. Soap or sanitiser break down the goo that holds each virus together.

 

"The science of soap – here’s how it kills the coronavirus | Coronavirus | The Guardian" https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/12/science-soap-kills-coronavirus-alcohol-based-disinfectants

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8 hours ago, AngryOfTuebrook said:

 

This 

 

The virus (like other viruses, such as those that cause colds and flu) can survive on skin and be transmitted from hand to hand, then from hand to face. Soap or sanitiser break down the goo that holds each virus together.

 

"The science of soap – here’s how it kills the coronavirus | Coronavirus | The Guardian" https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/12/science-soap-kills-coronavirus-alcohol-based-disinfectants

I’m happy to accept that soap kills the virus but as understanding of the virus has developed it has become clear that the overwhelming route of transmission is through airborne particles, hence the distancing and face covering measures rather than through contact on hard surfaces

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Interesting, just a post on the daily Guardian blog, I don't think there's a full article (yet)-

 



Covid jab tech will help fight cancer

Scientists have been talking this morning about the news that the technology behind the Covid vaccine could help fight Cancer.

Researchers have designed a two-dose vaccine they hope can target tumours in humans. In order to create the treatment, scientists designed their vaccine to target proteins that are present on the surface of many types of cancer cells.

When tested in mice, the vaccine increased the numbers of anti-tumour T cells that attack cancerous growths, helping to increase survival rates.

The team at Oxford University now have the go-ahead to do human trials.

Prof Benoit Van den Eynde told Sky News: “The vaccine technology based on viral vector is extremely powerful. In recent years we have had a new approach to treat cancer … immunotherapy … it has had remarkable results. But some patients immune system doesn’t respond. So … the idea here is to use a vaccine based on the Oxford technology to really to teach the immune system how to recognise cancer cells.”

 

If it becomes a viable treatment, I look forward to fat Karens and Chads from Asshole Creek, Arkansas refusing this because their mate on Facebook says drugs for cow diarrhoea work better.

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Apologies if posted already, but this could be a game changer. Vaccines won’t be giving us proper immunity, and more tools will be necessary. Good luck Brazil!

 

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2021/09/coronavirus-scientists-discover-venom-can-help-fight-covid-19-urge-people-not-to-hunt-snakes.html

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2 minutes ago, Red Shift said:

Apologies if posted already, but this could be a game changer. Vaccines won’t be giving us proper immunity, and more tools will be necessary. Good luck Brazil!

 

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2021/09/coronavirus-scientists-discover-venom-can-help-fight-covid-19-urge-people-not-to-hunt-snakes.html

I’m getting a ‘not available’ message when I try to open the link

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5 minutes ago, Champ said:

I’m getting a ‘not available’ message when I try to open the link

I’ll copy and paste for you:

 

Coronavirus: Scientists discover venom can help fight COVID-19, urge people not to hunt snakes

 

- Reuters

Brazilian researchers have found that a molecule in the venom of a type of snake inhibited coronavirus reproduction in monkey cells, a possible first step toward a drug to combat the virus causing COVID-19.

A study published in the scientific journal Molecules in August found that the molecule produced by the jararacussu pit viper inhibited the virus's ability to multiply in monkey cells by 75 percent.

"We were able to show this component of snake venom was able to inhibit a very important protein from the virus," said Rafael Guido, a University of Sao Paulo professor and an author of the study.

 

The molecule is a peptide, or chain of amino acids, that can connect to an enzyme of the coronavirus called PLPro, which is vital to reproduction of the virus, without hurting other cells.

 

Already known for its antibacterial qualities, the peptide can be synthesised in the laboratory, Guido said in an interview, making the capture or raising of the snakes unnecessary.

"We're wary about people going out to hunt the jararacussu around Brazil, thinking they're going to save the world ... That's not it!" said Giuseppe Puorto, a herpetologist running the Butantan Institute's biological collection in Sao Paulo. "It's not the venom itself that will cure the coronavirus."

Researchers will next evaluate the efficiency of different doses of the molecule and whether it is able to prevent the virus from entering cells in the first place, according to a statement from the State University of Sao Paulo, which was also involved in the research.

They hope to test the substance in human cells but gave no timeline.

 

The jararacussu is one of the largest snakes in Brazil, measuring up to two metres long. It lives in the coastal Atlantic Forest and is also found in Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina.

- Reuters

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5 minutes ago, Red Shift said:

I’ll copy and paste for you:

 

Coronavirus: Scientists discover venom can help fight COVID-19, urge people not to hunt snakes

 

- Reuters

Brazilian researchers have found that a molecule in the venom of a type of snake inhibited coronavirus reproduction in monkey cells, a possible first step toward a drug to combat the virus causing COVID-19.

A study published in the scientific journal Molecules in August found that the molecule produced by the jararacussu pit viper inhibited the virus's ability to multiply in monkey cells by 75 percent.

"We were able to show this component of snake venom was able to inhibit a very important protein from the virus," said Rafael Guido, a University of Sao Paulo professor and an author of the study.

 

The molecule is a peptide, or chain of amino acids, that can connect to an enzyme of the coronavirus called PLPro, which is vital to reproduction of the virus, without hurting other cells.

 

Already known for its antibacterial qualities, the peptide can be synthesised in the laboratory, Guido said in an interview, making the capture or raising of the snakes unnecessary.

"We're wary about people going out to hunt the jararacussu around Brazil, thinking they're going to save the world ... That's not it!" said Giuseppe Puorto, a herpetologist running the Butantan Institute's biological collection in Sao Paulo. "It's not the venom itself that will cure the coronavirus."

Researchers will next evaluate the efficiency of different doses of the molecule and whether it is able to prevent the virus from entering cells in the first place, according to a statement from the State University of Sao Paulo, which was also involved in the research.

They hope to test the substance in human cells but gave no timeline.

 

The jararacussu is one of the largest snakes in Brazil, measuring up to two metres long. It lives in the coastal Atlantic Forest and is also found in Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina.

- Reuters

SNAKE OIL!!

 

Sounds promising, potentially a good treatment for anyone hospitalised with Covid I guess?

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My mind just explodes with questions about how many venoms they had access to, what else did they investigate besides from venoms but then maybe they already have masses of data about the composition of masses of different compounds…

 

Does everyone else’s mind work like this?

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12 minutes ago, Champ said:

My mind just explodes with questions about how many venoms they had access to, what else did they investigate besides from venoms but then maybe they already have masses of data about the composition of masses of different compounds…

 

Does everyone else’s mind work like this?

If you start explaining how the female mind works, there are going to be more pressing health concerns on here than coronavirus.

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33 minutes ago, Champ said:

My mind just explodes with questions about how many venoms they had access to, what else did they investigate besides from venoms but then maybe they already have masses of data about the composition of masses of different compounds…

 

Does everyone else’s mind work like this?

I think a lot of this can be automated now, so you can quickly synthesise dozens of different compounds and screen them, then redirect your research towards the more promising ones.

 

I did my placement year working for a pharmaceutical company in the late '80s, and we'd make compounds one by one on a few tens of milligram scale, scale them up to a gram or so, purify them and then submit them for testing, which was a pretty lengthy process. I think I made about 20 or so candidate compounds over the 12 months, that could likely be done within a few days now.

 

https://www.nature.com/articles/nrd.2017.232

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9 minutes ago, Mudface said:

I think a lot of this can be automated now, so you can quickly synthesise dozens of different compounds and screen them, then redirect your research towards the more promising ones.

 

I did my placement year working for a pharmaceutical company in the late '80s, and we'd make compounds one by one on a few tens of milligram scale, scale them up to a gram or so, purify them and then submit them for testing, which was a pretty lengthy process. I think I made about 20 or so candidate compounds over the 12 months, that could likely be done within a few days now.

 

https://www.nature.com/articles/nrd.2017.232

I kinda guessed that as I was writing 

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Quote

Based on scientific trials from around the world, experts say that COVID-19 vaccines that have reported results have shown to be close to 100% effective at preventing hospitalizations and deaths. This includes vaccines with lower efficacy rates, which reflects how well the vaccine works in a controlled setting, and does not account for a vaccine's ability to prevent serious illness.

 

jean-clause-claude-van-damme.gif

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1 hour ago, Champ said:

My mind just explodes with questions about how many venoms they had access to, what else did they investigate besides from venoms but then maybe they already have masses of data about the composition of masses of different compounds…

 

Does everyone else’s mind work like this?

Considering the massive amount of work being done using snake venom I guess it's not such a big leap to it's basic ingredients being used in medical research of all descriptions? And as Stringy said,those components are almost all down on computerised medical registers and lists. 

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On 01/07/2021 at 01:08, Strontium Dog™ said:

I think there's a long way to go before we think about vaccinating children. The risk to children from covid is extremely low. It's entirely possible they may be better protected by natural immunity generated through infection than by asking them to take the possible risk of a vaccine.

 

The experts: yeah, what Strontium Dog said two months ago

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