Be careful what you wish for! What? Oh no, nothing bad will happen, I don’t think. It’s just important to have healthy expectations.
In today’s news: a long COVID-19 update!
COVID-19 Update
Recent FDA Emergency-Use-Authorizations & Test Types
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has as of last week given emergency-use approval for a CRISPR test for COVID-19, making it the first emergency-use approval for the technology for an infectious disease test. The test involves using CRISPR, a popular gene-editing and detection tool, to identify sequences of the SARS-CoV-2 virus’s genome from a sample nose/mouth/throat swab or from samples taken from fluid in the lungs. The use of CRISPR to provide testing for COVID-19 was developed with the help of Feng Zhang at the Broad Institute of MIT, one of the pioneers of the technology, and according to Sherlock Biosciences, the biotech company that develops and produces the technology, the test can return results in as quickly as an hour. Though the United States has been ramping up its testing efforts and spending in recent weeks, many states are still struggling with test shortages, and experts hope the availability of a CRISPR test with relatively quick returns may help to alleviate backlogs.
The biotech company Roche’s antibody test (a test that identifies patients that have developed an immune response to the SARS-CoV-2 virus) for COVID-19 has also been given emergency-use authorization by the FDA. According to Roche, the test has a sensitivity (a measurement of how well a test can correctly identify those who have or have had the disease based on their immune response) of 100% and specificity (a measurement of how well a test identifies patients with a given disease or virus versus other viruses) greater than 99.8%. The test, also according to Roche, does not have any cross-reactivity for the four other coronaviruses they tested it against, and in their test showed no chance of false positives. The test has already been shipped to laboratories globally.
Though you may be sick of EUA (emergency use authorization) news by now, this one’s important, especially in the context of previous tests covered here. As of Friday the FDA also announced the first EUA for the use of an antigen test for COVID-19. As opposed to antibody tests, which are approved for use to identify which patients have developed an immune response to a SARS-CoV-2 infection, which can signify either an active or past infection, antigen tests identify surface proteins on the virus itself and are designed to test for rapid detection, returning results in some cases in minutes (according to Quidel, the test’s developer, their test can return results in as short a time as 15 minutes). While tests that identify unique genetic material from the virus, such as the CRISPR test covered above, are more sensitive (better at detecting the virus and thus, better at preventing false negatives), they also take more time to perform and for results to be analyzed. Given this and the fact that antigen tests are still highly specific (i.e. positive results can be relied upon beyond a reasonable doubt), COVID-19 antigen tests will likely be used to provide rapid detection of positive results that clinicians can make quick decisions and act quickly on, and negative results will likely need to be confirmed with genetic material tests.
In other COVID news
Despite the positive results from recent remdesivir trials, a lack of information about the drug and its uses for treating COVID-19 is affecting doctors’ ability to use it in clinical settings. Although remdesivir has recently been shown to improve COVID-19 patients’ recovery time vs those given a placebo, the limited availability of the drug is making it hard for doctors to decide which of their patients would benefit most from receiving the drug as a treatment when it’s in short supply.
A study following over 7000 patients from Cell Metabolism has shown that COVID-19 patients with pre-existing type 2 diabetes showed significantly higher rates (7.8% versus 2.7%) of mortality and that better blood-glucose control during hospitalization significantly lowered these mortality rates. Type 2 diabetes has already been known to be the second most common comorbidity for COVID-19, however, most of the studies done previously to assess the risk for patients with this comorbidity have been in smaller sample sets and thus harder to draw conclusive results from. Patients with type 2 diabetes already face a struggle with poorer outcomes for viral infections in general, as poorly-controlled glucose can lead to either hyper- or hypoglycemia, both of which can make viral infections harder to treat and lead to an increased likelihood of mortality.
And that’s it bbs! Heavy stuff today, but at least most of it’s hopeful. In personal news, I got a new desk! It’s gorgeous and perfect and it’s also the first brand new desk I’ve ever bought so hello, let’s celebrate that. Also, my cat got neutered last week so he’s in a cone. My poor bb, my wittwe angel. Surprisingly though he’s been a total champ through recovery, which is shocking because he’s usually a total nightmare. I’m so proud of him. I’m so proud of you bubbie! You’re beautiful and strong and perfect and kind and I’m so sorry you can’t itch your now non-existent balls. He has been doing this thing where he’ll wave whatever part of him is itchy in front of me and I’ll scratch it for him, which has been crazy cute.
Anyways that’s it love ya nerds ttys xoxo