coronavirus, disease & medicine, cell & molecular biology

Sam Wilson discusses a user-friendly set of resources that he and his collaborators developed to aid labs pivoting to study COVID-19.

Males and females show differences in gene expression, cell activation, and antibody production in response to some viral infections, but whether these influence COVID-19 outcomes is still unclear.

An abundance of immunoglobulin antibodies, and a paucity of viral RNA, in breastmilk offer evidence that women can safely continue breastfeeding during the pandemic.

Outcomes in COVID-19 patients may be better in those recently infected with endemic coronaviruses. 

Researchers detail how viral proteins interact with host RNA to disrupt the cell’s ability to fight back against infection.

Genetically engineered cells that overproduce ACE2, the receptor the novel coronavirus uses to enter cells, neutralize infection in vitro and mop up inflammatory cytokines in mice.

While sick with COVID-19, President Trump is taking an antacid. Doctors have been exploring whether these medicines can treat SARS-CoV-2 infections, and the results are mixed.

So far, there are three patients known to have been infected with SARS-CoV-2 twice, and in at least one case the second time around was asymptomatic.

Studies on SARS-CoV-2’s milder cousins hint that our immune systems are quick to forget the viruses, but it’s unclear whether the same is true for the agent that causes COVID-19.

Meet some of the people featured in the July/August 2020 issue of The Scientist.

The cholesterol-lowering drugs quell inflammation and reverse endothelial tissue damage, hints that they might curb the body’s excessive immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Eight amino acids are identical to part of the human epithelial sodium channel, leading researchers to suspect the virus might interfere with the channel’s function.

There is little evidence that antihypertensive drugs worsen COVID-19, and scientists are instead exploring the idea that such medications—or their downstream effects—may actually alleviate symptoms.

The symptoms suggest SARS-CoV-2 might infect neurons, raising questions about whether there could be effects on the brain that play a role in patients’ deaths, but the data are preliminary.