Follow your heart. Seriously follow it it’s getting away and you need it to live. Wow, you’re really bleeding a lot. How are you running without a heart? Well, you better move faster, your heart’s really gunning it.
Anyways, good luck with that, and welcome to The Dose y’all! In recent Uptake news, the first Ask A Science Journalist post dropped last week! In it, I talk about capsaicin, chili burns, and what to do if your undercarriage gets a lil spicy. The Ask A Science Journalist column will drop monthly and is paid-subscriber only, so if you’d like to access these and be able to suggest a topic for me to research and report back on, you can subscribe with the button below for as little as $5 a month!
“Okay, so, you get a chili burn on your dick, you now know why it burns, but what do you do when it burns? Do you stick your dick in milk? Will that even help? Are you now just gonna be sitting there looking stupid with milk on your dick? Yes, yes you are, but luckily it will also help your chili burn. The reason milk helps is…”
In today’s news: a COVID-19 update! Surprise surprise.
COVID-19 Update
A new modeling study from the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Regional Office of Africa has estimated that up to 44 million people could potentially be infected with COVID-19 on the continent (around 26% of Africa’s population of 1 billion) in the first year, resulting in up to 190,000 deaths. The model also highlighted the great strain the disease will likely put on health systems in Africa, and warned of the potential for high amounts of undetected asymptomatic cases due to some countries’ low diagnostic capabilities. You can review the full study as well as country-by-country risk predictions for the region here.
COVID-19 Vaccine Early Data
Early data from Moderna’s SARS-CoV-2 vaccine trial has shown generation of immune response in a small number of patients. Eight patients from the trial—which is led in partnership with the National Institute of Allergic and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)—who received low and mid-range doses of the vaccine have developed antibodies to the virus that are similar to those generated by an immune response in patients who have recovered from COVID-19.
A representative of the study noted that some patients at even the lowest dose of the vaccine, 25 micrograms, showed development of antibodies on-par with that of those who had recovered from natural infection. The study has also shown similar positive results in the limited number of patients with the 100 microgram dose. This range of effectiveness is important, as finding out the effective minimum dosage for the vaccine will be key in helping researchers and public health/healthcare professionals figure out how much of the drug can be given to how many people given limited supply. The trial, which is currently still in Phase 1, has according to the statement been given FDA approval to proceed into Phase 2 later this month and has begun preparations on a protocol for Phase 3, which it expects to begin in early July.
The vaccine Moderna has developed is called mRNA-1273 and is, as you might guess, an mRNA vaccine. This method of vaccination (also called a nucleic-acid vaccine, as the approach can also be done with DNA), involves injecting the genetic instructions for a viral protein (in this case SARS-CoV-2’s Spike protein) into human cells, which then begin to build and output copies of the virus’s protein. This, ideally, allows the immune system to recognize and prepare to fight the virus by recognizing its components, without having to introduce the actual virus to the patient’s body. Key benefits of a nucleic acid vaccine are that they are relatively quick and easy to produce, which is especially important given the scale of our current pandemic, as well as the safety benefit to not introducing any pathogens or pathogenic particles into the patient’s body. However, this approach is not free of risk, as the patient could still be susceptible to an unintended immune response to the viral protein. Because of this, it’s especially important for researchers to find out what possible immune response may be to the vaccine, especially given how we’ve seen immune response may be a major contributing factor in how this virus causes disease and mortality in infected patients.
BONUS: Harold They’re Lesbians
I have decided that Comet moths and Luna moths are lesbians and they’re dating. No, I will not be elaborating on this further. My journalistic career is at least 50% comprised of me taking at any two animals I think would look cute together and screaming “GAY RIGHTS” and this is something you should all know by now.
credit: Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum & Michael Crowley / Moment / Getty Images
And that’s all you beautiful winged cherubs! In personal news: I finally caught up on my TV backlog this past week and it’s felt so good to just BINGEWATCH again. Also I’ve been watching season 2 of the remake of Charmed. I would by no means say it’s a good show, but it’s fun. I’m having fun. Also finally caught up on Drag Race and I am just so proud of my perfect daughter Crystal Methyd. My BABY my SWEET BABY. Also absolutely love Jaida and Gigi and I’m SO happy that my personal top 3 are in the actual top 3 this season has been such a blast. ALSO thank GOD Sherry didn’t make the top 3 because girl….the ghetto…can you image. Honestly I’m just glad he’s gone so I no longer have to feel bad about the moments when he actually did a great job because he’s such a fucking creep. Also I just finished season 2 of Dead 2 Me which was just *chef’s kiss*.
That’s all for me. Love ya nerds, stay safe, be well, text your friends, wear a face mask, you know the deal xoxo byeeee