Friday, May 20, 2022
No Result
View All Result
Medical Finance
  • Home
  • News
  • Interviews
  • Mediknowledge
  • Insights From Industry
  • Thought Leaders
  • Coronavirus
  • Whitepapers
  • Home
  • News
  • Interviews
  • Mediknowledge
  • Insights From Industry
  • Thought Leaders
  • Coronavirus
  • Whitepapers
No Result
View All Result
Medical Finance
No Result
View All Result
Home Coronavirus

Study suggests vaccinated Omicron cases are unlikely to shed infectious virus 10 days after diagnosis or symptom onset

by Medical Finance
in Coronavirus
Study: Active epidemiological investigation on SARS-CoV-2 infection caused by Omicron variant (Pango lineage B.1.1.529) in Japan: preliminary report on infectious period. Image Credit: judyjump/Shutterstock
9
SHARES
101
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) initially emerged in Wuhan, China, and rapidly spread to nearly every country in the world, causing over five million deaths and widespread economic crises. Initially, many governments relied on extensive restrictions to help curb the rapid transmission of the disease, including mandatory face masks, the closing of public spaces, and even full lockdowns/stay-at-home orders.


Study: Active epidemiological investigation on SARS-CoV-2 infection caused by Omicron variant (Pango lineage B.1.1.529) in Japan: preliminary report on infectious period. Image Credit: judyjump/ShutterstockStudy: Active epidemiological investigation on SARS-CoV-2 infection caused by Omicron variant (Pango lineage B.1.1.529) in Japan: preliminary report on infectious period. Image Credit: judyjump/Shutterstock


When a series of vaccines were created and mass administration programs allowed developed countries to immunize the vast majority of their population, most of these restrictions were dismantled. Unfortunately, a series of variants emerged in the latter half of 2020 through 2021, displaying increasingly worrying traits. Mutations altered the shape and structure of certain proteins, reducing vaccine efficiency or increasing transmission rates. The most recent of these is named Omicron, of Pango lineage B.1.1.529, which has gained extensive media attention due to a rapid rise in cases and the number of significant mutations it carries.


Researchers from the National Institute of Infectious Diseases have been investigating the Omicron epidemic in Japan and have recently released an early report on the infectious period of the disease.


Background


Most variants of concern (VOCs) carry mutations in the spike protein. This transmembrane, homotrimeric protein is key to the pathogenicity of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It contains two subunits that must be split by a host cleavage protein, S1, and S2. S1 contains a receptor-binding domain (RBD) that binds to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2(ACE2) to permit viral cell entry, while S2 is responsible for mediating membrane fusion.


Most vaccines target the spike protein, so any mutations that significantly change the structure can allow for at least some immune evasion. Many variants show different proportions of conformations of the spike protein: each one of the three monomers can take one of three positions, ‘up,’ ‘down,’ or a rare intermediate position. Facing down makes it more difficult for antibodies to bind to the spike protein and reduces ACE2 binding.


Several important effects of the mutations in Omicron have already been discovered – a mutation near S2 makes it more difficult for the host cleavage protein to split the subunits, reducing membrane fusion, and another changes the proportion of conformations of the proteins, with some showing a monomer in the rare intermediate position.


The study


The researchers attempted to investigate Omicron cases with the cooperation and mutual assistance of several different medical facilities in Japan. They were primarily investigating viral shedding – one of the main transmission causes. Eighty-three respiratory specimens were examined from 19 vaccinated individuals and two unvaccinated individuals. All of these cases were confirmed by SARS-CoV-2 RNA quantifications using quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (rtPCR) and virus isolation tests, with the date of specimen collection or the beginning of symptoms set as day zero.


 The highest amount of viral RNA was collected between days three and six and then generally tended to decrease over time, with the greatest decrease seen after ten days. This is supported by similar findings exploring infectivity regarding isolation, which found that most individuals who isolate are virus-free by day 10. Positive virus isolation results also confirmed this finding, and the researchers conclude that vaccinated individuals who contract Omicron are unlikely to shed infectious virus after ten days.


Conclusion


The information these researchers have gathered could be very useful for epidemiologists and public health policymakers. As cases continue to rise and the Omicron variant spreads through highly vaccinated populations, this report could be used to guide future isolation and quarantine procedures, especially as healthcare services struggle with labor shortages due to isolation. While the sample size was relatively small, it is supported by multiple similar studies with equivalent findings.

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Medical Finance

Medical Finance

Related Posts

(A) Schematic of the physical changes that take place when an airborne aqueous droplet equilibrates to the surrounding relative humidity. On the left (blue box) the particle is an aqueous homogenous sphere. As the particle equilibrates to a sub-saturated RH, low-solubility solutes can precipitate inclusions within the droplet (yellow box). At a sufficiently low RH, the dominant solute (NaCl) can crystallize causing the particle to effloresce (black box). (B) Schematic of the CELEBS technique. Virus-containing particles are levitated under controlled conditions and then deposited into media which is then plated onto a cell culture. By enumerating the cytopathic effect from that deposition, the amount of virus present can be quantified. (C) Schematic of the CK-EDB technique. Particles generated by the same droplet dispensers used in CELEBS are levitated under controlled conditions in the path of a laser. The physical changes that take place in that particle are studied through analysis of the light scattered by that particle.

Airborne decay of SARS-CoV-2 occurs within minutes

by Medical Finance
May 20, 2022
0

Understanding the factors that influence the airborne survival of viruses such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in...

Study: COVID-19 impact on routine immunisations for vaccine-preventable diseases: Projecting the effect of different routes to recovery. Image Credit: alinabuphoto/Shutterstock

The effect of COVID-19 on routine immunizations for vaccine-preventable diseases

by Medical Finance
May 20, 2022
0

The ongoing coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by a novel coronavirus, namely, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), has...

Study: Persistence of endogenous SARS-CoV-2 and pepper mild mottle virus RNA in wastewater settled solids. Image Credit: NIAID

SARS-CoV-2 and pepper mild mottle virus RNA highly persistent in wastewater solids

by Medical Finance
May 20, 2022
0

A new study from the United States (US) investigates the persistence (lifetime) of viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) under different ambient...

Study: Effectiveness of mRNA-1273 against SARS-CoV-2 omicron and delta variants. Image Credit: Studio Romantic/Shutterstock

Evaluating effectiveness of the COVID-19 mRNA-1273 vaccine against Omicron and Delta variants

by Medical Finance
May 20, 2022
0

In a study recently published on the medRxiv* pre-print server, a team of researchers investigated the effectiveness of one to...

Study: Cross-reactive memory T cells associate with protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection in COVID-19 contacts. Image Credit: Pormezz / Shutterstock

A common cold may boost the immune system against COVID-19

by Medical Finance
May 20, 2022
0

A recent groundbreaking research paper published in the journal Nature Communications reveals the association of circulating SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells at...

Study: Autoantibodies in COVID-19 correlate with anti-viral humoral responses and distinct immune signatures. Image Credit: SciePro / Shutterstock.com

Assessing how autoantibodies in COVID-19 correlate with anti-viral humoral responses

by Medical Finance
May 20, 2022
0

In a recent study published on the medRxiv* preprint server, a team of researchers screened several systemic autoantibodies to assess...

Next Post
​​​​​​​Study: Biochemical Characterization of Emerging SARS-CoV-2 Nsp15 Endoribonuclease Variants. ​​​​​​​Image Credit: NIAID

Characterizing SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein 15 endoribonuclease variants

Study: The Tabula Sapiens: A multiple-organ, single-cell transcriptomic atlas of humans. Image Credit: ktsdesign / Shutterstock

Tabula sapiens, most comprehensive human cell atlas

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Login
Notify of
guest
guest
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Support

  • Contact
  • Disclaimer
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms And Conditions

Categories

  • Coronavirus
  • Insights From Industry
  • Interviews
  • Mediknowledge
  • News
  • Thought Leaders
  • Whitepapers

More News

  • Study: From dogs to bats: Concerns regarding vampire bat-borne rabies in Brazil. Image Credit: Nuwat Phansuwan/Shutterstock
    Rabies transmission via vampire bats identified in Brazil
  • Two cell embryo Mitosis under microscope 3D illustration Illustration Andrii Vodolazhskyi M1 4bb73c51d46c449285a21e8af28684d6 620x480
    RNA-chopping enzyme Dicer stabilizes mammalian chromosomes with the help of BRD4 activator
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Disclaimer
  • Terms And Conditions

© 2022 Medical Finance - Latest Financial and Business News

No Result
View All Result
  • Interviews
  • Mediknowledge
  • News
  • Insights From Industry
  • Coronavirus
  • Thought Leaders
  • Whitepapers
wpDiscuz
0
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x
| Reply