Wellington, New Zealand | Xinhua | A team of international researchers has developed a high-tech method to explore the possibilities of how the COVID-19 virus could evolve to prepare for future coronavirus variants using Artificial Intelligence (AI). University of Waikato researcher William Kelton has been working with international partners from Switzerland’s …
Read More »WHO gives new names to variants of monkeypox virus
WHO officially declared monkeypox outbreak had turned into a public health emergency of international concern Geneva, Switzerland | Xinhua | The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced new names for variants of the monkeypox virus that are currently in circulation. This is to avoid causing any cultural or social offense, the …
Read More »UVRI to investigate low Covid-19 cases
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda Virus Research Institute has started a study to investigate why the country and some of its neighbors are reporting low COVID-19 cases. The study is expected to last four years and will look at what contribution the different COVID-19 variants have played in the …
Read More »Experts warn Africans to brace for more COVID-19 variants
Johannesburg, South Africa | THE INDEPENDENT | Experts have warned that Africa will continue seeing a cycle of new COVID-19 variants if more people are not vaccinated. Speaking at a transnational science café on Friday attended by journalists from East and Southern Africa, Dr. Lul Riek a Public Health …
Read More »UK on high alert over new Delta variant
London, UK | Xinhua | The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed Friday that the Delta variant sub-lineage (Delta AY.4.2) was designated a Variant Under Investigation (VUI) on Oct. 20, 2021, and has been given the official name VUI-21OCT-01. The UKHSA said the designation was made on the basis that …
Read More »More countries, territories report COVID-19 variants: WHO
Geneva, Switzerland | Xinhua | The number of countries, areas or territories reporting various variants of COVID-19 continues to increase after the global number of coronavirus cases surpassed 200 million last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday. In its latest weekly update on the pandemic issued on Wednesday …
Read More »‘No sign of hope after Uganda’s worst COVID month of June’
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | June has so far been the worst month for Uganda in as far as the coronavirus pandemic concerned. It has been characterized by surging cases, a new total lockdown, skyrocketing deaths, oxygen shortages, lack of beds for critical patients as well as an upsurge in …
Read More »Moderna COVID-19 vaccine shows promise in lab setting against variants
Washington, U.S. | Xinhua | American biotechnology company Moderna said Tuesday its COVID-19 vaccine showed promise in a lab setting against coronavirus variants, including the highly contagious Delta variant first identified in India. The results came from vitro neutralization studies of sera from eight participants one week after they received the …
Read More »COVID-19 variants now make up majority of Canada’s new cases
Ottawa, Canada | XINHUA | Canada reported 7,145 new cases of COVID-19 Sunday, bringing the cumulative total to 1,234,181 cases, including 24,300 deaths, according to CTV. Coronavirus variants now make up the majority of Canada’s new COVID-19 cases, Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said on Sunday. As of …
Read More »Will the Covid-19 vaccine work on the new variants?
Scientists are working to understand what mutations of the virus mean for inoculation strategies COVID-19 SPECIAL FEATURE | KATHERINE ELLEN FOLEY | As researchers become more aware of strains of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, public health officials have one question: Will vaccines offer protection against them? At the moment, …
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