Monday, December 13, 2021
Tuesday, December 7, 2021
Los casos de omicron estan aumentando, es el momento de cuidarse y ser responsable
Se ha detectado 1 caso de omicron en Argentina, es clave que todos seamos responsables y no repitamos los errores: usen barbijo/tapaboca, testeanse antes de salir, traten de mantener distancia social, completen la vacunacion, lavense las manos!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9E00Oor5TU&t=462s
Thursday, March 18, 2021
New SARS-COVID-2 variants, brief update
Viruses mutate. Period!
Fortunately, the mutation rate of the coronavirus is lower than other types, such as flu. However, due to the high transmissibility and fast-spreading of SARS-COVID-2, new "variants of interest" that might be more dangerous are appearing around the world.
I can stress enough the fact that the virus CAN NOT reproduce by itself, it needs an animal cell, it needs to hijack the cell's mechanisms to be able to copy its genetic material and to produce the viral proteins, it even takes a part of the cell membrane with when "leaves" the cell.
So, the first variant of interest was reported back in September in Kent (UK), as a chronic case (long extended infection), and its transmissibility was higher than the "original" variant, approximately 63%. it took some time to process all the data of the genome sequences and analyze the results, but now we know that the new variant is more contagious. The main change is an amino acid (like a building block/brick) in the spike/membrane protein. This protein is responsible to bind to a protein located on the surface of the animal cell, which starts the infection process. Apparently, this change (mutation) of just one part of the spike protein gives the virus an advantage that translates to a higher infection rate.
Other variants, for example, the one reported in Brazil or the one reported in Sudafrica have additional changes in the spike protein. One of these changes has shown, in the lab, to lower the immune response competence, due to a lack of recognition of the viral proteins.
The good news is that some vaccines are already being tested and are still effective against some of the variants, and in case that a new variant appears, the vaccine's mechanisms and technology can be adapted in a relatively short period of time.
The best that you can do and avoid being used by SARS-COVID-2 as a "reproduction" hub: Stay home, limit interactions with people from other households, keep 2 meters apart (physical distance), use a mask, wash your hands, and if you get offered a vaccine, don't miss the shot!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5RZMhxfVhg
References:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(21)00005-9/fulltext
https://www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n579
Monday, December 28, 2020
Hay que parar la transmision lo antes posible para evitar que aprezcan mas mutaciones
Hay que parar la transmision lo antes posible para evitar que aprezcan mas mutaciones
Los virus mutan, hay mas de 4000 variantes detectadas, la mejor forma de parar esto es evitar el contagio! Sean responsables y cuídense (usen tapaboca, mantengan distancia, respeten, coman sano, mediten, bailen, sonrían, ayuden, aprendan cosas nuevas, hagan ejercicio...) somos una gota en el océano, pero se necesita solo una gota para rebalsar un vaso lleno!
Thursday, September 10, 2020
What happened to the AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID vaccine?
In the middle of the pandemic turmoil and a lot of pressure from the government and financial lobbies, AstraZeneca followed the clinical trial guidelines and paused their COVID vaccine AZD1222 trial. This phase III trial aimed to enroll up to 50,000 participants globally.
They had reported numerous low to mild adverse events during the first phases of the study, such as headaches and fever, however in this case a severe adverse event was a red flag that put the enterprise on hold. The latest information indicates that one female UK volunteer in the phase III trial suffered from transverse myelitis. Transverse myelitis is an inflammation of the spinal cord that damages the insulating material covering nerves (called myelin), interrupting the communication within the body. Some symptoms include pain, muscle weakness, paralysis, sensory problems, bladder and bowel dysfunction. Infections and immune system disorders that attack the body's tissues can cause myelitis. The woman who suffered transverse myelitis seems to be recovering and was reported that will be leaving the hospital.
However, this unexplained illness triggered a standard review process, leading to the voluntary pause of vaccination across all trials to allow an independent committee to review the safety data of this event in the UK Phase III trial.
The important thing to remember is that clinical trials take years to complete as they need to be done int the right way in order to produce safe and effective treatments, and that is not the end of it, because the treatment/therapy also has to be approved by each regional regulatory entity and this process is long and exhaustive.
In fact, there is at least a 50% failure rate for every phase of a trial, and only 13.8% of phase I clinical trials get approved.
Constant monitoring of clinical trials is a routine activity and it is a good signal that only one adverse event was picked up fast and the reaction was proper.
One of the reasons is that pharma companies know that vaccines that people can't trust are not worthy as you need people to actually get the vaccine, so having the public trust is essential.
Even if this vaccine doesn't prove to be safe and/or effective, almost 200 other candidates, with diverse modes of action are eager to jump to the leading candidate role that AZD1222 was holding so far.
Multiple pharma companies signed an agreement to honor the clinical trial process and don't "rush the science" to ensure the development of safe and effective vaccines.
To learn more about the AZD1222 vaccines click here
References
https://www.statnews.com/2020/09/09/astrazeneca-covid19-vaccine-trial-hold-patient-report/
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/astrazeneca-s-covid-19-vaccine-hold-sparks-reassessment-race?mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTkdGbU9EVTRNbUptWVROaiIsInQiOiIrVkc4QlNEdFwvNFl4VFlvamtaXC9WT1JBTzU1ZkU4Y2ZwbWszUEtoZm9SSUh1bnVPQ1wvRWRFZE5mbm5hcVppY21uZ1c0RkpcLzRBenRCNkhzek5taHQ4UktybEdvNkozbkxTUHVxWDFuaUkrU2JZSFk2NjBubXNpTGRLWGlKUUZSMU4ifQ%3D%3D&mrkid=644691
Tuesday, July 21, 2020
What you need to know about the promising Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine
I
would like to share here the positive results from one of the promising
SARS-COVID-2 vaccines labelled AZD1222, and explain more about the clinical
trial process.
Currently, more than 140 vaccines for COVID-19 are
in pre-clinical and clinical development, which means that they are being
tested in non-human subjects (cells, mice, rats, ferrets, rhesus macaques,
etc). 10 vaccines are being tested in humans for safety and dosages (this means
in healthy subjects), 8 vaccines are in phase II, which involves testing the
safety in expanded studies. Only 3 vaccines are starting phase III, meaning
large scale efficacy tests. In this phase, the vaccine is tested in thousands
of people separating the volunteers in 2 groups: one will receive the actual
vaccine and the other - the placebo one to determine if the vaccine protects
against the coronavirus. The last step can be a phase IV trial with an even
bigger and diverse group of volunteers and a review of the results by the local
regulatory entity which will evaluate if the vaccine is approved or not for use
in that region. Notice that each country has its own regulatory organization
and some medicines are approved for use in the USA but not in Europe.
Fortunately, there are a lot of different types of vaccines and you CAN NOT put
them all in the same bag!
These vaccines use a different type of virus that
wouldn’t affect humans in a negative way (called a vector) to deliver
coronavirus genes into cells and trigger an immune response.
The British-Swedish company AstraZeneca and the
University of Oxford are working on a viral vector vaccine using a chimpanzee
adenovirus that will expose the coronavirus’ S protein on its surface in order
to trigger an immune system response in the people that will be vaccinated. The
vaccine is in Phase II/III trial in the UK and Phase III trials in Brazil and
South Africa, and it might be ready by 2021. “AstraZeneca” claimed their total
manufacturing capacity stands at two billion doses. This vaccine uses a
different type of virus that wouldn’t affect humans in a negative way (called a
vector) to deliver coronavirus genes into cells and trigger an immune
response.
They reported last Monday the
"encouraging" results from the trial that included 1,077 participants
from 18 to 55 years old (who had not previously tested positive for the
coronavirus). The participant's gender was fairly well distributed, but they
were mostly white. The study was single-blind, meaning patients did not know
whether they received the coronavirus vaccine or the control (a meningitis
vaccine).
They reported that around 70% of the participants
suffered adverse events such as pain, feeling feverish, chills, muscle ache,
headache, and malaise, which were reduced by the use of paracetamol, and there
were no serious adverse events related to the vaccine. The T-cell immune
responses peaked on day 14 and the antibody response rose by day 28.
Neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 were detected in 91% of
participants. After a second vaccine application, called boost, this number
rose to 100%. After a booster dose, all participants had neutralising activity.
Just a friendly reminder: we should be grateful for
the existence of vaccines that have helped prevent the spread of terrible
diseases, such as tuberculosis and polio. Both brought huge suffering in
multiple countries around the world and were controlled thanks to the
implementation of vaccines!
I encourage you to check on the links below
and learn more about the different vaccines and the research behind them. Be
aware of your own cognitive bias, for example, stop citing the inexistent
connection between autism and vaccines, that research has now been thoroughly
debunked, the Lancet journal issued a retraction on Wakefield’s paper, and he
lost his medical licence.
Let me leave you with this great advice from the WHO
about how to respond to vaccine deniers:
“Vaccine-preventable diseases can be very severe,
and still cause millions of deaths per year around the world. Even with the
best available care in the world, vaccine-preventable diseases can cause
permanent disability and even death. Prevention is by far the best
intervention.”
“There are no equally safe and effective
alternatives to vaccinations.”
“The scientific evidence is clear: vaccination
is the most effective health intervention for prevention of many serious
diseases.”
“We as an institution/agency are aiming to
sustain the health of every individual member of the public. We are sorry that
you have lost trust in our effort, but we hope to regain it.”
“The scientific evidence is clear; vaccination
is a safe way to prevent many serious diseases. Any theoretical risk to the
individual and society is far outweighed by the risks to one and all of not
doing so.“
References:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)31604-4/fulltext
https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/draft-landscape-of-covid-19-candidate-vaccines
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/science/coronavirus-vaccine-tracker.html
https://www.raps.org/news-and-articles/news-articles/2020/3/covid-19-vaccine-tracker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dYWZMx-Lfs
Thursday, July 9, 2020
The good news about WFH: your long commute was killing you slowly...
How is your long
commute killing you slowly?
Knott and collaborators, from the University of Cambridge,
analyzed the “mental wellbeing” of 5.474 British commuters, aged 40-75, with a
follow-up of 4,65 years. They reported that depression-asymptomatic commuters
who transitioned from inactive to active commuting reported less severe
depression symptoms than those who remained inactive, and a similar
relationship was evident among commuters with pre-existing symptoms. Moreover,
longer commutes were associated with worse depressive symptoms. “Shifting from
exclusive car use towards more active commuting may help prevent and attenuate
depressive symptoms in working adults”. (1)
Another study done in the UK by Flint and collaborators showed
that individuals who transitioned from car commuting to active or public
transportation had a decrease in body mass index (BMI) of -0.30 kg/m2,
contrariwise, individuals who transitioned from active commuting to car had a
BMI increase of 0.32 kg/m2. The take-home message is that increased levels of
physical activity as part of the commute to work could reduce obesity among
middle-aged adults. (2) Already in 2013, Laverty and collaborators reported
that, in the UK, using public transport, walking, or cycling to work was
associated with a lower likelihood of being overweight. Walking or cycling was
associated with a lower likelihood of having diabetes, and walking was
associated with a lower likelihood of having hypertension than private
transport. (3)
In the USA, one out of every six commuters travels more than 45
min each way every weekday, and this long voyage makes people lonelier (4).
Back in 2009, as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index study, 173,581
employed adults were interviewed by the phone, and they reported that one in
three employees with a commute of more than 90 minutes have had a neck or back
condition that has caused recurrent pain; among those with commutes of 10
minutes or less, the figure drops to roughly one in four. Longer commuters are
more likely to say they have been diagnosed with high cholesterol and are more
likely to have a BMI that classifies them as obese. Their results point to a
connection between commuting and emotional well-being. Among employees who take
more than 90 minutes getting from home to work, 40% experienced worry for much
of the previous day, significantly higher than the 28% among those with
negligible commutes of 10 minutes or less. Conversely, workers with extremely
long commutes were less likely to have experienced enjoyment for much of the
previous day or that they felt well rested that day. (5) Behavioral economists
Kahneman and Krueger tracked the emotional states of women in Texas during
their daily activities and they found that respondents' ratio of positive to
negative emotions was particularly low during the time spent commuting.
In Sweden, using longitudinal individual data from 1985 to 2008,
Sandow and collaborators, modeled mortality through propensity score matching
and Kaplan–Meyer estimates of survival among long-distance commuters, more than
50 km (31 miles) one way. The results indicate that women who have experienced
long-distance commuting face a significantly higher mortality risk compared
with women with short commutes to work. This seems to be driven by variations
in income and education: for women with long-distance commuting experience,
substantially lower survival rates are found among those with low education and
low income. Surprisingly, for men mortality risks do not seem to be associated
with long-distance commuting. Sandow findings suggest that men and women are
subject to different mechanisms regarding the nexus between commuting and
mortality. (6) In another study by Dr. Sandow in Sweden they stated the
alarming connection of commuting and divorce rates: if one spouse commutes
longer than 45 minutes that couple is 40% more likely to get divorced (7).
One solution is to work from home, as Tim Ferris, the author of
the four hours work week, showed working from home can improve your
productivity and increase efficiency by, for starters, not wasting time
traveling. I used to work at a company where we were allowed to 20% of remote
work time and this really improved the work life. More companies are adding
this successful work practice because it enhances the employees’ happiness. The
WHO set a minimum of 10.000 steps per day to keep your heart healthy, you can
reach this goal by walking to work some days. If you can’t change the type and
duration of your commute, you can always make it more productive, reading,
playing a game or listening to an audio book or music that will make it “me
time”.
References:
1- Knott CS, Panter J, Foley L, Ogilvie D. Changes in the mode
of travel to work and the severity of depressive symptoms: a longitudinal
analysis of UK Biobank. Prev Med. 2018 Mar 28;112:61-69. doi:
10.1016/j.ypmed.2018.03.018.
2- Flint E, Webb E, Cummins S. Change in commute mode and
body-mass index: prospective, longitudinal evidence from UK Biobank. Lancet
Public Health. 2016 Dec;1(2):e46-e55. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(16)30006-8.
3. Laverty AA, Mindell JS, Webb EA, Millett C. Active travel to
work and cardiovascular risk factors in the United Kingdom. Am J Prev Med.
2013;45:282–288.
4 -https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/04/16/
5-http://news.gallup.com/poll/142142/wellbeing-lower-among-workers-long-commutes.aspx
6- Sandow, Erika; Westerlund, Olle; Lindgren, Urban
Is
your commute killing you?: On the mortality risks of long-distance commuting
Environment and planning A, Pion 2014, Vol. 46, (6) : 1496-1516
7-Erika Sandow. Volume: 51 issue: 3, page(s): 526-543 2014
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