Only time and data will tell whether the CDC-recommended reformulated shots can stand their ground against the ever-changing SARS-CoV-2 variants.
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Articles on COVID-19 variants
Displaying 1 - 20 of 132 articles
Many questions remain about next steps for US vaccine policy. But the FDA advisory panel’s hearty endorsement of a single-composition COVID-19 vaccine represents a pivotal step.
The new bivalent boosters against COVID-19 have failed to halt omicron infections. However, new technologies are being developed that pave a way forward.
After a year of omicron variants, will we ever see a new variant of concern?
New Zealand has done better than most countries by taking decisive action at the start of the COVID pandemic. Now is the time to build on this with a science-based strategy to manage the next stages.
Early on, public health messaging focused on the need for vaccines to combat COVID-19. But far less attention has been given to the role of boosters in preventing deaths and reducing inequities.
On the horizon: A new omicron-focused version of the Moderna vaccine that may offer longer protection and a stronger immune response.
The FDA’s authorization of COVID-19 shots for children ages 6 months to 4 years will bring relief for millions of parents. Pending CDC endorsement, shots for this group will be available within days.
An inhaled COVID-19 vaccine would go directly to where the body would use it: the mucosal surface of the airways. This could mean less waste and more benefit, lower costs and reduced side-effects.
What’s the difference between a variant and a subvariant? It’s all in the behaviour.
It’s hard to keep up. But new Omicron sub-variants are emerging that may lead to reinfections and another spike in cases.
Instead of minimizing current or future waves of COVID-19, we need strategies to deal with new variants efficiently. Only then can we live with the virus in a healthy way.
More than 1,000 cases of omicron XE have been detected in the UK so far. But we shouldn’t be seriously concerned at this stage.
Our best chance of limiting the emergence of new recombinant COVID variants is to limit the spread of infections, using public health measures to slow and suppress the virus.
The latest addition to the omicron lineage has been making waves in Europe. Whether it will do the same in the U.S. depends on rates of vaccination and prior infection.
Hybrid viruses that are part delta and part omicron have been found in Europe and North America.
COVID cases are predicted to rise as we face another variant. So a 4th shot to top up our immunity is looking more likely as we head into winter.
Scientists have been testing captive and wild animals for the coronavirus since the pandemic began. Only a few wild species are known to carry the virus, but many more have been shown to be susceptible.
COVID-19 variants are the products of the evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. They arise via mutations, but other forces also have roles to play in the generation and transmission of variants.
From vaccines to treatments and even medical equipment, intellectual property rights have hampered the world’s efforts to fight the pandemic.
Top contributors
-
Professor of Microbial Evolution at The Milner Centre for Evolution, University of Bath
-
Professor, Biochemistry, Trinity College Dublin
-
Professor in Applied Mathematics, University of Canterbury
-
Professor of Physics, University of Auckland
-
Dean Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand; and Director of the SAMRC Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand
-
Instructor of Human Immunology, Emory University
-
Research Leader in Virology and Infectious Disease, Griffith University
-
Professor of Public Health, University of Otago
-
Professor of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Carolina
-
Senior Lecturer, The University of Queensland
-
Professor of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Carolina
-
Professor of Public Health, University of Otago
-
Early Career Research Leader, Emerging Viruses, Inflammation and Therapeutics Group, Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Griffith University
-
Professor, Biology, York University, Canada
-
Senior Lecturer, University of Auckland
