Tagged: Coronavirus
Coronavirus COVID-19 has mutated into 33 different strains, per new study by Professor Li Lanjuan and colleagues from Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China
A new study paper on Cornavirus (COVID-19) has been published on the medrXiv preprint journal, titled: “Patient-derived mutations impact pathogenicity of SARS-CoV-2”. The research was done at the Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China. The researchers involved in the study were: Hangping Yao, Xiangyun Lu, Qiong Chen, Kaijin Xu, Yu Chen, Linfang Cheng, Fumin Liu, Zhigang Wu, Haibo Wu, Changzhong Jin, Min Zheng, Nanping Wu, Chao Jiang, Lanjuan Li
Click on this link to visit the medrXiv preprint journal’s website post about this article titled: “Patient-derived mutations impact pathogenicity of SARS-CoV-2”.
From the study: “In total, 33 mutations were identified (including 10 mutations observed in
120 mixed-populations), and 19 of these mutations were novel, according to the comparison
121 with 1111 genomic sequences available at GISAID on 3/24/2020.”
Since there are many mutations, creating a COVID-19 Vaccine will be that much more difficult. I suspect that there are many more mutations, say in Europe. As such, I am of the opinion that a viable Vaccine will not be developed.
One can Download a PDF of the research study paper on the website via the above mentioned link to the medrXiv website.
Click on this link to The Jerusalem Post website to read their article titled: “Coronavirus has mutated into at least 30 different strains new study finds”.
Posted by Vincent Banial
New Research Study done at the University of Ottawa suggests that Coronavirus was spread to Humans by Dogs and not by Bats.
A newly published research study by Xuhua Xai, a full Professor and researcher at the University of Ottawa (in Canada), points to Dogs and not Bats as causing the spread of Coronavirus COVID-19 to Humans.
The following is the Abstract from the study published in the Journal of Molecular Biology and Evolution:
Abstract
Click on this link to visit the Journal of Molecular Biology and Evolution website to download a PDF of the Research Study titled:”Extreme genomic CpG deficiency in SARS-CoV-2 and evasion of host antiviral defense”.
Click on this link to visit the Journal of Molecular Biology and Evolution website.
Click on this link to visit the University of Ottawa page for Xuhua Xai.
Posted by Vincent Banial with permission from the Journal of Molecular Biology and Evolution and the author Xuhua Xai.
Dr. Knut Wittkowski views on social distancing and lockdown on COVID-19
Professor Knut Wittkowski, for twenty years was the head of The Rockefeller University’s Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design, discusses his professional views on social distancing and lockdown. He firmly believes that Schools should be opened to allow kids to become infected with COVID-19. This will allow Herd Immunity to develop, as Kids usually get mild if any symptoms.
One issue that Dr. Wittkowski does not touch on is the immense burden Coronavirus has placed on Hospitals. If you don’t have beds or ventilators for all patients then “SOCIAL DISTANCING” could reduce the burden on Hospitals. If the Healthcare system could handle the case load then this Doctor’s premise about leaving the situation alone, so as to reach “Herd Immunity” could apply. But the Healthcare system cannot even provide N95 facemasks to Frontline Doctors and Nurses. The other important factor is the lack of a SpecificTreatment for COVID-19. Infected people go to the Hospitals as their infections get worse. Without a specific treatment those infections grow worse and people end up dying.
Dr. Wittkowski discussed data which indicated that in China and South Korea, Herd Immunity may have already been reached before Social Distancing was started.
Video is courtesy of the Journeyman Pictures YouTube channel
Interview highlights:
00:36-Dr. Wittkowski explains his recommendations for how to best deal with COVID-19
01:36-Is self-isolation prolonging the duration of COVID-19?
02:33-Are policies of self-isolation or shelter-in-place a good idea?
03:46-The pandemic is over
04:27-Did China lie about its COVID-19 statistics?
05:03-The truth behind the statistics given by the government of the United States
07:52-Are we even reporting flu deaths anymore?
08:16-Why are hospitals being overwhelmed?
09:16-Shortage of medial supplies
10:19-Has social distancing prevented deaths from COVID-19?
11:55-Staying indoors can make the virus worse
16:02-Why social distancing won’t work for an airborne contagion
17:41-Do we need a vaccine for COVID-19?
18:31-Humans can grow immune to this virus
18:55-The data doesn’t say that COVID-19 is more contagious than the flu
22:43-Changes in reporting COVID-19 cases
25:33-What makes COVID-19 different than the Swine Flu
27:05-What are the possible health risks of sheltering in place?
27:43-The “Second Wave” of COVID-19
30:10-The truth about #FlattentheCurve
31:10-What should we do about sheltering in place?
32:24-Why we need to achieve natural herd immunity
34:17-Should we be testing everyone for COVID-19?
35:35-The real effects of COVID-19
38:53-The percentage of people who won’t have any symptoms
39:34-What should we do about COVID-19 at this point?
40:40-Is this really a pandemic?
40:50-What you should know
Click on this link to visit the medRXIV site to read a Research paper published by Dr. Wittkowski titled “The first three months of the COVID-19 epidemic: Epidemiological evidence for two separate strains of SARS-CoV-2 viruses spreading and implications for prevention strategies”
Dark skinned Americans face alarming rates of Coronavirus (COVID-19) infection and Death, in some US States
Authorities like the CDC are not tracking Coronavirus Infections and Death rates based on whether the patient was Dark Skinned or White. In certain US States where such data is available, there seems to show alarming rates of Coronavirus Infection among Dark Skinned citizens.
Click on this link to view the New York Times article titled: “Black Americans face alarming rates of Coronavirus Infections in some states.”.
Click on this link to view the Chicago Tribune article titled: “Chicago’s coronavirus disparity: Black Chicagoans are dying at nearly six times the rate of white residents, data show“.
I suspect that part of the problem is the ability of US Citizens to get tested. Secretary Alex Azar, who leads the Department of Health and Human Services,had stated that a Doctor or Public-Health Official would need to approve and prescribe a Coronavirus Test. The CDC and the Food and Drug Administration initially had stringent rules that allowed only Americans who had traveled abroad to get tested. I suspect that many could not be tested until it was too late. There are unfortunately many US Citizens who cannot afford to see a Doctor to get a note asking that the patient be tested for Coronavirus.
I had read about a young male who was rejected at a testing center because allegedly he did not qualify. He later died. After his death, they tested him and he in fact was infected by Coronavirus. Sadly his Death, somehow qualified him to be tested.
Click on this link to visit the Independant News site to read their article titled: “Coronavirus: Teenage boy whose death was linked to COVID-19 turned away from urgent care for not having insurance“.
Click on this link to the Poynter.org article titled: “‘We have it totally under control.’ A timeline of President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic“.
Sadly the Coronavirus COVID-19 is not under control and citizens are dying.
Queen Elizabeth tried to comfort her Nation
Queen Elizabeth tried to comfort the United Kingdom, during this time of Coronavirus sweeping across Britain.
Click on the following link to view the Queens address and comments about it from Piers Morgan:
Can early and high intravenous dose of vitamin C prevent and treat Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19)?
Vitamin C is not a patented drug and so is low cost. The use of Vitamin C as a treatment protocol for Coronavirus infections is rarely mentioned in the main news media. When one gets sick, Vitamin C in your body is depleted.
There were initial reports out of China that Coronavirus patients were being given intravenous Vitamin C. Vitamin C is also know to help patients who get Sepsis, which can also be the result of acquiring Coronavirus.
Some New York Hospitals have also treated Coronavirus patients with intravenous Vitamin C.
A new report has been published by Medicine in Drug Discovery, a peer reviewed journal by Elsevier, which details treating Coronavirus Patients using intravenous Vitamin C.
Click on the report title link below to visit the Elsevier’s Medicine in Drug Discovery site to read the report:
The report is as follows courtesy of Elsevier and Medicine in Drug Discovery:
Author links open overlay panel Richard Z.Cheng
The COVID-19 (SARS-2-Cov) pandemic, first reported in Wuhan, China, is now spreading to many continents and countries, causing a severe public health burden. Currently, there is no vaccine or specific antiviral drug for this deadly disease. A quick, deployable and accessible, effective and safe treatment is urgently needed to save lives and curtail the spreading. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a key factor of fatality. Significantly increased oxidative stress due to rapid release of free radicals and cytokines is the hallmark of ARDS which leads to cellular injury, organ failure and death. Early use of large dose antioxidants, such as vitamin C (VC) may become an effective treatment for these patients. Clinical studies also show that high-dose oral VC provides certain protection against viral infection. Neither intravenous nor oral administration of high-dose VC is associated with significant side effects. Therefore, this regimen should be included in the treatment of COVID-19 and used as a preventative measure for susceptible populations such as healthcare workers with higher exposure risks.
Coronaviruses and influenza are among the pandemic viruses that can cause lethal lung injuries and death from ARDS [[1], [2], [3]]. Viral infections could evoke “cytokine storm” that leads to lung capillary endothelial cell activation, neutrophil infiltration and increased oxidative stress (reactive oxygen and nitrogen species). ARDS, characteristic of severe hypoxemia, is usually accompanied by uncontrolled inflammation, oxidative injury and damage to the alveolar-capillary barrier [4]. Increased oxidative stress is a major insult in pulmonary injury including acute lung injury (ALI) and ARDS, two clinical manifestations of acute respiratory failure with substantially high morbidity and mortality [5,6].
In a report of 29 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, 27 (93%) showed increased hsCRP, a marker of inflammation and oxidative stress [7]. Transcription factor, nuclear factor erythroid 2 (nfe2)-related factor 2 (nrf2), is a major regulator of antioxidant response element (ARE)-driven cytoprotective protein expression. Activation of Nrf2 signaling plays an essential role in preventing cells and tissues from injury induced by oxidative stress. VC, an important component of the cellular antioxidant system [8], is beneficial to critical care management [9]. Cytokine storm is observed in both viral and bacterial infections [3] and results in increased oxidative stress via a common and non-specific pathway. Since the prevention and management of oxidative stress could be realized by large dose of antioxidants, this approach may be applicable to COVID-19 with intravenous high-dose VC based on the outcome of three previous clinical studies involving a total of 146 patients with sepsis [10].
Hemila and colleagues reported that various high-dose intravenous VC infusions (e.g., 200 mg/kg body weight/day, divided into 4 doses) shortened the intensive care unit (ICU) stay by 97.8% [11], accompanied by a significant reduction in the mortality rate [12]. Such an experience was reproduced among patients ill with severe influenza [13,14]. Indeed, dietary antioxidants (VC and sulforaphane) were shown to decrease oxidative stress induced acute inflammatory lung injury in patients receiving mechanical ventilation [15]. In addition, oral VC (e.g., 6 g daily) was able to reduce viral infection risk [16] or to improve symptoms [17].
High-dose intravenous VC has also been successfully used in the treatment of 50 moderate to severe COVID-19 patients in China. The doses used varied between 2 g and 10 g per day, given over a period of 8–10 h. Additional VC bolus may be required among patients in critical conditions. The oxygenation index was improving in real time and all the patients eventually cured and were discharged [18]. In fact, high-dose VC has been clinically used for several decades and a recent NIH expert panel document states clearly that this regimen (1.5 g/kg body weight) is safe and without major adverse events [19].
Because the development of efficacious vaccines and antiviral drugs takes time, VC and other antioxidants are among currently available agents to mitigate COVID-19 associated ARDS. Given the fact that high-dose VC is safe, healthcare professionals should take a close look at this opportunity. Obviously, well-designed clinical studies are absolutely needed to develop standard protocols for bedside use.
References
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D. Wang, B. Hu, C. Hu, F. Zhu, X. Liu, J. Zhang, et al.Clinical characteristics of 138 hospitalized patients with 2019 novel coronavirus-infected pneumonia in Wuhan, ChinaJAMA, 323 (2020), pp. 1061-1069
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N. Chen, M. Zhou, X. Dong, J. Qu, F. Gong, Y. Han, et al.Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 99 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a descriptive studyLancet, 395 (2020), pp. 507-513
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A.A. Fowler III, C. Kim, L. Lepler, R. Malhotra, O. Debesa, R. Natarajan, et al.Intravenous vitamin C as adjunctive therapy for enterovirus/rhinovirus induced acute respiratory distress syndromeWorld J Crit Care Med, 6 (2017), pp. 85-90
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L. Meng, X. Zhao, H. ZhangHIPK1 interference attenuates inflammation and oxidative stress of acute lung injury via autophagyMed Sci Monit, 25 (2019), pp. 827-835
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X. Yan, X. Fu, Y. Jia, X. Ma, J. Tao, T. Yang, et al.Nrf2/Keap1/ARE signaling mediated an antioxidative protection of human placental mesenchymal stem cells of fetal origin in alveolar epithelial cellsOxid Med Cell Longev, 2019 (2019), p. 2654910
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L. HeckerMechanisms and consequences of oxidative stress in lung disease: therapeutic implications for an aging populaceAm J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol, 314 (2018), pp. L642-L653
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L. Chen, H.G. Liu, W. Liu, J. Liu, K. Liu, J. Shang, et al.Analysis of clinical features of 29 patients with 2019 novel coronavirus pneumoniaZhonghua Jie He He Hu Xi Za Zhi, 43 (2020), Article E005
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Q. Liu, Y. Gao, X. CiRole of Nrf2 and its activators in respiratory diseasesOxid Med Cell Longev, 2019 (2019), p. 7090534
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C.S. Nabzdyk, E.A. BittnerVitamin C in the critically ill — indications and controversiesWorld J Crit Care Med, 7 (2018), pp. 52-61
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J. LiEvidence is stronger than you think: a meta-analysis of vitamin C use in patients with sepsisCrit Care, 22 (2018), p. 258
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H. Hemilä, E. ChalkerVitamin C can shorten the length of stay in the ICU: a meta-analysisNutrients, 11 (2019), p. 708
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P.E. Marik, V. Khangoora, R. Rivera, M.H. Hooper, J. CatravasHydrocortisone, vitamin C, and thiamine for the treatment of severe sepsis and septic shock: a retrospective before-after studyChest, 151 (2017), pp. 1229-1238
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- High dose vitamin C and influenza: a case report. ISOM, cited on Feb 9 2020 (https://isom.ca/article/high-dose-vitamin-c-influenza-case-report/?from=groupmessage&isappinstalled=0).
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- Levy T. Primal Panacea. MedFox Publishing; 350 p. (Kindle Edition).
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V. Patel, K. Dial, J. Wu, A.G. Gauthier, W. Wu, M. Lin, et al.Dietary antioxidants significantly attenuate hyperoxia-induced acute inflammatory lung injury by enhancing macrophage function via reducing the accumulation of airway HMGB1Int J Mol Sci, 21 (2020), p. 977
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T.K. Kim, H.R. Lim, J.S. ByunVitamin C supplementation reduces the odds of developing a common cold in Republic of Korea Army recruits: randomised controlled trialBMJ Mil Health (2020), 10.1136/bmjmilitary-2019-001384
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H.C. Gorton, K. JarvisThe effectiveness of vitamin C in preventing and relieving the symptoms of virus-induced respiratory infectionsJ Manipulative Physiol Ther, 22 (1999), pp. 530-533
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Shanghai Expert Panel, cited on Mar 23
- [19]
- High-dose vitamin C (PDQ®)–Health professional version. National Cancer Institute, cited on Feb 9 2020 (https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/cam/hp/vitamin-c-pdq).
Vitamin D could be an adjunctive treatment protocol to help patients with Coronavirus.
Severe Coronavirus infections could result in the patient getting an acute respiratory Tract Infection requiring the use of a Ventilator to sustain life. Vitamin D could be an adjunctive treatment protocol to help patients with Coronavirus.
Vitamin D deficiency contributes directly to the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)
Vitamin D supplementation to prevent acute respiratory tract infections: systematic review and meta-analysis of individual participant data
https://www.bmj.com/content/356/bmj.i6583
Low Vitamin D Status Occurs in 90% of Patients with ARDS and Is Associated with Longer Duration of Mechanical Ventilation
https://www.atsjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1164/ajrccm-conference.2016.193.1_MeetingAbstracts.A1846
Please discuss the above with your Medical Doctor to see if the information may be of help. Self Medicating without the advice of your Medical Doctor(s) is not recommended.
Posted by Vincent Banial