Coronavirus Breaking News

Major League Baseball (MLB) in the USA announced on August 18, 2020, 'Out of an abundance of caution and to allow for additional testing within the Cincinnati Reds’ organization, tonight’s game between the Reds and the Kansas City Royals has been rescheduled.' Furthermore, the rescheduled MLB game will be just 7-innings.

The University of Notre Dame announced 58 confirmed coronavirus cases since students returned to South Bend, Indiana. At least 2 recent off-campus parties have been identified as sources, school officials said on August 16, 2020. To reduce new coronavirus cases, starting next week, students will receive a GREEN, YELLOW, or RED pass.

Notre Dame students with a RED pass are exhibiting one of 3 symptoms (fever >100.4, shortness of breath, or loss of sense of taste or smell). RED pass students will receive a rapid antigen test. If that is positive, they will go directly into isolation. If it is negative, they will receive a follow-up PCR test during the same visit to the stadium testing center and go directly into quarantine, until that test result is received.

'We realize that the daily health check has not been operating as effectively as we had hoped, and we thank you for your good feedback.'

According to local media reports in India, preliminary Phase I trial results showed that the Bharat Biotech Covaxin SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate is safe, and the participants are receiving the 2nd dose. The trial’s principal investigator Dr. Savita Verma, at Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, said on August 14, 2020, 'that no adverse events were reported in subjects vaccinated at the site.'

Andrew Bradley, M.D., Chair of the Mayo Clinic COVID Research Task Force commented to the DenverChannel on August 17, 2020, 'researchers have come up with theories as to why one vaccine would also protect against an entirely unrelated virus. This theory is called immune training – that is your body, in preparing to defend itself from one disease, unintentionally protects it from another.'

"We did an analysis here with our Mayo Clinic data. What we did is we compared the rates of test positivity for COVID between those who've had vaccines and those who haven't had vaccines and stratified that according to vaccine type," explained Dr. Bradley. What they found was that specifically, the measles mumps and rubella, as well as the flu vaccine, and several others--had a protective effect against getting COVID-19.

As for further implications for what this research could mean when it comes to COVID-19, Dr. Bradley said, "certainly there will be numerous studies looking at all of the things we've talked about in the future, including the immune response."

Dr. Roy Benaroch, a pediatrician in Atlanta, Georgia, added 'the key takeaway from this research is that children and adults should be up to date on all recommended vaccinations.'

'If you have fully recovered from COVID-19 disease, you may be able to help patients currently fighting the infection by donating your plasma. Because you fought the infection, your plasma now contains COVID-19 antibodies,' said Dr. Stephen Hahn, in a U.S. FDA video announcement on August 17, 2020. 'These antibodies provided one way for your immune system to fight the virus when you were sick, so your plasma may be able to be used to help others fight off the disease.'

'You can help ensure that blood continues to be available for patients by finding a blood donor center near you to schedule your donation.'

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced today it is shifting all undergraduate instruction to remote learning as of August 19, 2020. Courses in the graduate, professional, and health affairs schools will continue to be taught as they are or as directed by the schools.

This action is related to Campus Health Services reporting a significant increase in positive COVID-19 disease tests between Aug. 10-16. Currently, 177 students are in isolation and 349 are in quarantine, both on and off-campus.

The leading vaccine manufacturers in India briefed the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration about the ongoing development of COVID-19 disease preventive vaccines, reported The Hindu on August 17, 2020. At present, there are 3 vaccine candidates in the country. Covaxin by Bharat Biotech, ZyCoVD by Zydus Cadilla, and Serum Institute of India has partnered with AstraZeneca to manufacture the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford.