We are living in the middle of the emergency over coronavirus all over the world. The reactions to the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on societies and economies around the world cannot be understated. Because an estimated 15% of COVID-19 patients require hospitalization and 5% require intensive care (Z. Wu and McGoogan 2020), the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has the potential of posing a substantial challenge to medical systems around the world (Remuzzi and Remuzzi 2020; Grasselli, Pesenti, and Cecconi 2020).
Necessity is the mother of invention. A need or problem encourages creative efforts to meet the need or solve the problem. This saying appears in the dialogue Republic, by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato.
“Necessity is the mother of invention” is an English-language proverb. It means, roughly, that the primary driving force for most new inventions is a need. When the need for something becomes imperative, you are forced to find ways of getting or achieving it.
Here are some examples of sort of ingenuity we need now in the middle of pandemia. Already many people contributed those efforts. Check out on those links what is already done if you can find any useful information or can contribute to those efforts you see as good idea. Start your reserach with 7 open hardware projects working to solve COVID-19 article.
I have collected here a list of interesting open hardware project and instructions that can be useful or educational. Hopefully this list I have contributed here will be useful for someone. Keep in mind that many of those ideas are potentially dangerous if the instructions are not entirely correct, implemented exactly right and used by people that know what they are doing. You have been warned: Do not try those at home yourself! We are dealing here with things that can easily injure or kill someone if improperly implemented or used – but at right place the best ideas from those could potentially save lives.
Repairing hospital equipment
The right thing to do in his situation is that medical companies to release service manuals for ALL medical equipment so they can be repaired and maintained where they are most needed.
In the face of ventilator shortages for COVID-19 victims, iFixit is looking to make maintaining and repairing equipment as easy as possible. iFixit Launches Central Repository for Hospital Equipment Repair and Maintenance Manuals
https://www.ifixit.com/News/36354/help-us-crowdsource-repair-information-for-hospital-equipment
Site http://www.frankshospitalworkshop.com offers links many service manuals
Robotics
COVID-19 pandemic prompts more robot usage worldwide article tells that the coronavirus has increased interest in robots, drones, and artificial intelligence, even as some testing of autonomous vehicles pauses on public roads. It is believed that these technologies can help deal with massive staffing shortages in healthcare, manufacturing, and supply chains; the need for “social distancing;” and diagnosis and treatment.
Here are some robotics related links that could be useful:
Medical robotics expert Guang-Zhong Yang calls for a global effort to develop new types of robots for fighting infectious diseases.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/medical-robots/coronavirus-pandemic-call-to-action-robotics-community
Elements of Robotics Open Access Textbook
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-62533-1
Ventilators
A ventilator is a machine designed to provide mechanical ventilation by moving breathable air into and out of the lungs, to deliver breaths to a patient who is physically unable to breathe, or breathing insufficiently. Ventilators are sometimes colloquially called “respirators”.
A ventilator, also called a respirator, is designed to provide mechanical ventilation by oxygen into and out of the lungs, to deliver breaths to a patient who is physically unable to breathe, or breathing insufficiently. The machines can be used to help a person breath if they have conditions making it difficult to breathe, such as lung diseases, during and post-surgery. For patients critically ill with coronavirus access to a ventilator could be a matter of life or death.
In its simplest form, a modern positive pressure ventilator consists of a compressible air reservoir or turbine, air and oxygen supplies, a set of valves and tubes, and a disposable or reusable “patient circuit”. Modern ventilators are electronically controlled by a small embedded system to allow exact adaptation of pressure and flow characteristics to an individual patient’s needs.
They work by placing a tube in a person’s mouth, nose or small cut in the throat and connect it to a ventilator machine. The air reservoir is pneumatically compressed several times a minute to deliver room-air, or in most cases, an air/oxygen mixture to the patient.
Because failure may result in death, mechanical ventilation systems are classified as a life-critical system, and precautions must be taken to ensure that they are highly reliable. Modern commercial ventilator is a relatively complex piece of equipment with lots of components and a dedicated supply chain.
Because there is a lack of ventilators on many hospitals in several countries, there has been a lot of creative work done to help this problem.
There has been projects going on to repair old and non-working ventilators to a working conditions. For repairing some older devices, there has been problem to get spare parts from the manufacturer and that those spare parts can be very expensive. Also getting the service information for repairing those equipment seems to be hard to get from manufacturer, Ifixit has started a project Help commit industrial espionage for the greater good! to get the service information on-line at https://www.ifixit.com/News/36354/help-us-crowdsource-repair-information-for-hospital-equipment
In middle of the emergency some people have worked on to make their own spare parts when official parts are not available, thus making more devices available. For example a startup 3D-printed emergency breathing valves for COVID-19 patients at an Italian hospital in less than 6 hours. An Italian hospital that ran out of life-saving equipment for coronavirus patients was saved by a ‘hero’ engineer who used cutting-edge technology to design oxygen valves within a matter of hours. At least 10 lives were saved in this way.
So great thinking for 3d printing of valves. Are they sterilized and suitable? 3D printing has been used in numerous cases for medical parts already. Most 3D printing operates at relatively high temperatures and printed objects are actually naturally sterilized when they are made. Anyway the right kind of plastic needs to be selected and the part needs to be built in exactly right way that is works reliably as designed. If they are used and the individual gets worse, does the fact that equipment not medical certified (environment, storage, shipping, etc) put the hospital in additional jeopardy for a lawsuit? All valid questions each medical liability officer will have to address. But if people are going to literally die if you do nothing, then taking a risk with a part that you 3D print seems like an idea that is worth to try.
Links:
A startup 3D-printed emergency breathing valves for COVID-19 patients at an Italian hospital in less than 6 hours
https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-italian-hospital-3d-printed-breathing-valves-covid-19-patients-2020-3?r=US&IR=T
https://it.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-manca-la-valvola-per-uno-strumento-di-rianimazione-e-noi-la-stampiamo-in-3d-accade-nellospedale-di-chiari-brescia/
Firm ‘refuses to give blueprint’ for coronavirus equipment that could save lives
https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/16/firm-refuses-give-blueprint-coronavirus-equipment-save-lives-12403815/
3D printed life-saving valves: already a dozen in operation
https://www.embodi3d.com/blogs/entry/436-3d-printed-life-saving-valves-already-a-dozen-in-operation/
Volunteers produce 3D-printed valves for life-saving coronavirus treatments
Volunteers made the valves for about $1
https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/17/21184308/coronavirus-italy-medical-3d-print-valves-treatments
Another tried trick is try to use one ventilator with more than one patient. Daily Mail writes that ventilators can be modified to help FOUR coronavirus patients breathe at the same time if the NHS is still critically short of the machines when the outbreak peaks, scientists say. Here are some links to material on using one ventilator to more than one patient:
https://emcrit.org/pulmcrit/split-ventilators/
SAVING 4 PATIENTS WITH JUST 1 VENTILATOR
https://hackaday.com/2020/03/19/saving-4-patients-with-just-1-ventilator/
Here has been work going on in creating an open source ventilator design project. Here are some links to this project and some other DIY ventilator designs.
There’s A Shortage Of Ventilators For Coronavirus Patients, So This International Group Invented An Open Source Alternative That’s Being Tested Next Week
https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexandrasternlicht/2020/03/18/theres-a-shortage-of-ventilators-for-coronavirus-patients-so-this-international-group-invented-an-open-source-alternative-thats-being-tested-next-week/
Open-source Oxygen Concentrator
https://reprapltd.com/open-source-oxygen-concentrator/
https://blog.arduino.cc/2020/03/17/designing-a-low-cost-open-source-ventilator-with-arduino/
https://www.instructables.com/id/The-Pandemic-Ventilator/
Macgyvilator Mk 1 (3-19-2020) – “ventilator” for disasters and/or low resource environments
Macgyvilator Mk 1 is a disaster “ventilator”, a simple apparatus to compress a bag-valve-mask with some control over tidal volume and rate. Constructed quickly and simply using wood, PVC, velcro, common fasteners, and easily sourced and assembled electronic components.
An Arduino based Open Source Ventilator to Fight against COVID-19?
https://www.cnx-software.com/2020/03/21/an-arduino-based-open-source-ventilator-to-fight-against-covid-19/
Low-Cost Open Source Ventilator or PAPR
https://github.com/jcl5m1/ventilator
Low-cost Ventilators
https://procrastineering.blogspot.com/2020/03/low-cost-ventilators.html
Arduino Respirator Prototype (pen source solution from Reesistencia Team, which is undergoing testing)
https://www.facebook.com/official.arduino/videos/2557115014604392/
OxyGEN project
https://oxygen.protofy.xyz
“OxyGEN is an open hardware project to build an emergency mechanism that automates an AMBU type manual ventilator in extreme shortage situations such as the one caused by coronavirus (COVID-19) in some parts of the world.”
NOTE: Take a look at the expression VILI before thinking about trying one of these. It is hard making a ventilator that doesn’t harm the lungs. It is easy to get Ventilator-associated lung injury or die if the ventilator does not work exactly correctly all the time.
Testing for infection
There are many approaches thought to be helpful to finding out if someone is infected or something is contaminated.
Thermal scanners are effective in detecting people who have developed a fever (i.e. have a higher than normal body temperature) because of infection with the new coronavirus. However, they cannot detect people who are infected but are not yet sick with fever (it can take 2-10 days before infected people get the fewer).
Open-Source Collaboration Tackles COVID-19 Testing
https://hackaday.com/2020/03/10/open-source-collaboration-tackles-covid-19-testing/
Low-cost & Open-Source Covid19 Detection kits
https://app.jogl.io/project/118?
This Open Source Device Can Detect Coronavirus on Surfaces
The Chai team has developed a detection test that works with their Open qPCR tool.
https://www.hackster.io/news/this-open-source-device-can-detect-coronavirus-on-surfaces-3da1d7b1c73a
Prevent touching face
It is recommended to stop touching your face to minimize spread of coronavirus and other germs. People touch their faces frequently. They wipe their eyes, scratch their noses, bite their nails and twirl their mustaches.
Not touching your face is a simple way to protect yourself from COVID-19, but it’s not easy. If you can reduce face-touching, you can lower people’s chances of catching COVID-19. Why is it so hard to stop? Face-touching rewards us by relieving momentary discomforts like itches and muscle tension.
If you you want to change, you can try to replace it with a competing response that opposes the muscle movements needed to touch your face. When you feel the urge to touch your face, you can clench your fists, sit on your hands, press your palms onto the tops of your thighs or stretch your arms straight down at your sides. Some sources recommend object manipulation, in which you occupy your hands with something else. You can rub your fingertips, fiddle with a pen or squeeze a stress ball.
Related links:
This pair of Arduino glasses stops you from touching your face
https://blog.arduino.cc/2020/03/10/this-pair-of-arduino-glasses-stops-you-from-touching-your-face/
Don’t Touch Your Face
Don’t touch your face — easy to say, hard to do. This device, worn like a watch, will buzz whenever your hand aims for trouble.
https://www.hackster.io/mike-rigsby/don-t-touch-your-face-e8eac3
Hand sanitizer
Hand sanitizer is a liquid or gel generally used to decrease infectious agents on the hands. It depends on the case if hand washing with soap and water or alcohol-based hand sanitizer is preferred. For Covid-19 WHO recommends to wash your hands with soap and water, and dry them thoroughly. Use alcohol-based handrub if you don’t have immediate access to soap and water.
It seems that there are many places where there is shortage of hand sanitizers. This has lead to situation where people have resorted to making their own. Recipes for DIY hand sanitizer are popping all over the internet. A quick search reveals news articles, YouTube how-to’s and step-by-step visual guides. But think twice about joining them — experts are wary and even caution against the idea. The World Health Organization even has an official guide to making hand sanitizer. But it’s intended for populations that do not have clean water or other medical-grade products in place. Don’t try to make your own hand sanitizer just because there’s a shortage from coronavirus.
Can’t get your hands on hand sanitizer? Make your own
https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/hand-sanitizer-coronavirus-make-your-own/
Photos show why hand sanitizer doesn’t work as well as soap and water to remove germs
https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-photos-why-you-should-wash-hands-with-soap-water-2020-3?amp
Emergency DIY hand sanitizers (read the description)
“Every time a new health incident occurs there’s a rush on hand sanitizers, often causing shops to sell out.
Here’s how to make some simple emergency sanitizers at home, noting that they are not as effective as just washing your hands, and only some viruses can be damaged by simple sanitizers. These options are offered as a last resort when commercial versions are not available.”
“For the alcohol one the higher the percentage of alcohol the better, up to around 70-80%.”
Make Your Own Hand Sanitizer At Home When It’s Sold Out Everywhere
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tjmccue/2020/03/03/make-your-own-hand-sanitizer-at-home-when-its-sold-out-everywhere/
Sanitizing things
With deadly coronavirus spreading worldwide at an alarming speed, personal hygiene has become paramount importance to contain the infection spread further. Mobile phones are known to house several germ, and if you thing they are contaminated, you should maybe disinfect them. The CDC recommends that everyone “clean all “high-touch” surfaces every day” to protect against the spread of COVID-19.
How to Disinfect Your Smartphone article says CDC recommends that for your smartphone you should use 70% rubbing alcohol or alcohol-based disinfectant spray to wipe down the back and sides of your device. For example Apple recently updated its official cleaning advice, so ccording to Apple, it’s now safe to clean your iPhone with disinfecting wipes if you do it correctly. You should not try to spray any liquid to your phone.
The other option is to use a smartphone sanitizer device that cleans using UV rays. Sanitizers that use ultraviolet (UV) rays to kill bacteria and viruses have been around for a while now and they can kill 99% of bacteria in as little as five minutes. However its efficacy hasn’t been tested against nasties like SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19. Coronavirus effect: Samsung offers UV-C sanitizing service for Galaxy devices. Samsung is using Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) disinfection technology, which uses of uses short-wavelength ultraviolet (UV-C) light to kill or inactivate bacteria, virus, molds and other pathogenic microorganisms on smartphones.
The UV-C light is capable of destroying nucleic acids and DNA. It will kill many things, but you don’t want that hitting your eye or skin. World Health Organization only states: “UV lamps should not be used to sterilize hands, or other areas of skin as UV radiation can cause skin irritation.”
Here are some UV C related links:
https://www.light-sources.com/blog/killing-bacteria-with-uv-light/
https://russellsrandomthoughts.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-gtl3-bulb-simple-and-inexpensive.html?m=1
Good UV versus bad UV. All available on eBay.
Protective masks
The protective mask ratings used by hospitals are typically N95, FFP2 or FFP3. FFP2 protection level is 94%. FFP3 protection level is 99%. N95 protection level is 95%. An N95 FFR is a type of respirator which removes particles from the air that are breathed through it. These respirators filter out at least 95% of very small (0.3 micron) particles. N95 FFRs are capable of filtering out all types of particles, including bacteria and viruses. The N95 mask is mainly for use if you already have the virus to keep it from spreading and many have argued that coronavirus is smaller than the 0.3 micron filter rating of the mask and thus, not that helpful, for people outside of healthcare. In fact, the U.S. Surgeon General wants consumers to stop buying masks.
Due to the worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, there has been a huge shortage of N95 masks. Promoting simple do-it-yourself masks: an urgent intervention for COVID-19 mitigation claims that widespread use of masks by the general population could be an effective strategy for slowing down the spread of COVID-19: “Since surgical masks might not become available in sufficient numbers quickly enough for general use and sufficient compliance with wearing surgical masks might not be possible everywhere, we argue that simple do-it-yourself designs or commercially available cloth masks could reduce the spread of infection at minimal costs to society”.
With masks sold out during the coronavirus outbreak, many people will have to make do with what some scientists have called “the last resort”: the DIY mask. Many people have been working on designs for a DIY mask that may be able to protect those who haven’t been able to secure their own masks. It seems that cotton homemade masks may be quite effective as alternatives and there are also other ideas. For any DIY ideas, be warned that there is no guarantee that those designs are effective. So I don’t recommend to use them as alternative to proper mask when they are available. Bit of proper marks are not available, they can be better than nothing.
Keep in mind the right filter type to use: Hepa filters do have the ability to filter particles and viruses, but they wont protect you 100% of the time. The real secret is layers. The problem is, more layers, more restriction. Keep in mind that charcoal filters will make your air fresher, but have almost no effect on cleaning the air of viruses. Coronavirus virions (or ‘particles’) are spherical particles with diameters of approximately 125 nm (0.125 microns). The smallest particles are 0.06 microns, and the largest are 0.14 microns. This means coronavirus particles are smaller than PM2.5 particles, but bigger than some dust particles and gases.
General information:
Guide to Dust Mask Ratings
https://www.seton.co.uk/your-guide-to-dust-masks-ratings
Can Masks Protect People from The Coronavirus?
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/coronavirus-pollution-masks-n95-surgical-mask/
Hengityksensuojaimet
https://www.tays.fi/fi-FI/Ohjeet/Infektioiden_torjunta/Mikrobikohtaiset_ohjeet/Hengityksensuojaimet(51207)
DIY project links:
Homemade N95 Masks In A Time Of Shortage
https://hackaday.com/2020/03/18/homemade-n95-masks-in-a-time-of-shortage/
“According to a studied performed at Cambridge University during the 2009 H1N1 flu pandemic, while surgical masks perform the best at capturing Bacillus atrophaeus bacteria (0.93-1.25 microns) and Bacteriophage MS virus (0.023 microns), vacuum cleaner bags, tea towels, and cotton T-shirts were not too far behind. The coronavirus is 0.1-0.2 microns, well within the range for the results of the tests.”
What Are The Best Materials for Making DIY Masks?
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/best-materials-make-diy-face-mask-virus/
“Data shows that DIY and homemade masks are effective at capturing viruses. But if forced to make our own mask, what material is best suited to make a mask? As the coronavirus spread around China, netizens reported making masks with tissue paper, kitchen towels, cotton clothing, and even oranges!”
Can DIY Masks Protect Us from Coronavirus?
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/diy-homemade-mask-protect-virus-coronavirus/
“DIY masks to protect against from viruses sounds like a crazy idea. Data shows masks work incredibly well, and they’re also really cheap. Surgical masks cost a few pennies, and they’re capable of filtering out 80% of particles down to 0.007 microns (14 times smaller than the coronavirus).”
“The homemade cotton masks captured 50% of 0.02-1 micron particles, compared with 80% for the surgical mask. Although the surgical masks captured 30% more particles, the cotton masks did surprisingly well. The researchers concluded that homemade masks would be better than nothing.”
“The Cambridge data shows that homemade masks made using cotton t-shirts can filter out some particles that are 0.02–1 microns in size. That’s pretty good, however its only one test.”
Professional and Home-Made Face Masks Reduce Exposure to Respiratory Infections among the General Population
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2440799/
Can Masks Protect People from The Coronavirus?
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/coronavirus-pollution-masks-n95-surgical-mask/
This old hack doesn’t require any cutting or sewing:
http://how2dostuff.blogspot.com/2005/11/how-to-make-ninja-mask-out-of-t-shirt.html
Copper 3D makes the free N95 mask design to fight COVID-19 pandemic spread
https://3dprintingcenter.net/2020/03/18/copper-3d-makes-the-free-n95-mask-design-to-fight-covid-19-pandemic-spread/?fbclid=IwAR2iXJD5ybU8ReADakvCyDKsfzuRDOBEWxZ3ACCjZoz2dKNwvy07htUhon4
“Copper 3D – A Chilean manufacturer of innovative antibacterial filaments designed the own version of the popular N95 protective mask and prepared it perfectly optimized for 3D printing on desktop 3D printers of the FDM / FFF type. The project is released under an open-source license and has been simultaneously patent pending to prevent other entities from commercializing it.”
“Copper 3D team quickly got to work on developing the patent for a model similar to a standard N95 mask but with some peculiarities (Antiviral, Reusable, Modular, Washable, Recyclable, Low-Cost), which were completely designed in a digital environment so that it could be downloaded anywhere in the world and 3D printed with any FDM/FFF equipment, even a low cost one. The mask was called “NanoHack”.”
#HackThePandemic site offers the technical details of the N95 mask and download set of STL files for printing on own 3D printer
https://copper3d.com/HACKTHEPANDEMIC/
SaltMask
https://robots-everywhere.com/re_wiki/pub/web/Cookbook.SaltMask.html
https://www.nature.com/articles/srep39956
“This is NOT a straight replacement for a N95 mask. In a real emergency it is recommended to combine a full face shield with a filter mask.”
Prusa Protective Face Shield – RC2
https://www.prusaprinters.org/prints/25857-prusa-protective-face-shield-rc1
“In a real emergency it is recommended to combine a full face shield with a filter mask.”
Promoting simple do-it-yourself masks: an urgent intervention for COVID-19 mitigation
https://medium.com/@matthiassamwald/promoting-simple-do-it-yourself-masks-an-urgent-intervention-for-covid-19-mitigation-14da4100f429
“Since surgical masks might not become available in sufficient numbers quickly enough for general use and sufficient compliance with wearing surgical masks might not be possible everywhere, we argue that simple do-it-yourself designs or commercially available cloth masks could reduce the spread of infection at minimal costs to society”
“Potentially, simply wrapping a suitable, large cloth around the face is easy to implement (Fig. 2), would arguably be more socially acceptable than surgical masks, and would be superior to a complete lack of face mask use.”
1,350 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why is the reported number of COVID-19 cases rising rapidly across Europe now?
Does Coronavirus Spread More Easily In Cold Temperatures? Here’s What We Know
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/does-coronavirus-spread-more-easily-in-cold-temperature-heres-what-we-know/
We know that more people get colds and flu in the winter (the colds can be caused by types of coronavirus), but there are several potential reasons for this. It’s often attributed to the fact that people spend more time indoors when it’s colder, coughing, sneezing and breathing on each other.
You are more likely to choose the option of travelling on a crowded bus or train than walking or cycling to work when the weather is cold and wet. Another theory is that people produce less vitamin D when there is less sunlight and so have weaker immune systems.
However, studies have shown that the annual increase in colds and flu particularly coincides with when the temperature outside and relative humidity indoors are lower. Flu viruses survive and are transmitted more easily in cold, dry air. So it’s reasonable to think that the same may be true for the COVID-19 coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, which has a similar size and structure.
Laboratory experiments with coronaviruses and similar viruses have shown that they do not survive well on surfaces when the temperature and relative humidity are high, but comfortable room temperature could be an ideal environment for them to last for several days. And at refrigeration temperatures (4℃) and low relative humidity, they could last a month or more.
As it happens, there have been repeated reports of outbreaks of COVID among workers in meat-packing factories, which operate under these kind of conditions. However, such factories also contain large numbers of people working close together and shouting
The lessons from the other coronaviruses that have appeared during the 21st century (SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV) also tell a slightly different story. A study tracking the weather during the 2003 Sars epidemic in China suggested that the peak of the infections occurred during spring-like weather conditions. (There was no way of confirming this through follow-up studies since the virus later died out.)
Early data from Australia suggested that low humidity would be a factor to look out for and was a better guide to risk of increases in COVID-19 than temperature. However, in Melbourne, there was a large outbreak in July coinciding with a spell of cold weather. This led to a strict lockdown, although it was only fully eased in October.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Scientists have made an important discovery that could explain why SARS-CoV-2 is so infectious.
Researchers Identify Human Protein That May Explain Why SARS-CoV-2 Is Highly Infectious
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/protein-identified-that-may-explain-why-sarscov2-is-so-infectious/
It’s all to do with the spike protein of the virus and its interactions with a protein on the surface of human cells called neuropilin-1. Spike proteins studded on the outside surface of the virus target and fuse with the host cell in the first phase of infection. Once attached, the virus hacks into the cell and releases its genetic material, hijacking the host cell’s machinery to create multiple copies of itself. Most viral infections work in this way, however, it appears that SARS-CoV-2 is exceptionally skilled at this invasion process.
It’s already known that SARS-CoV-2 gets access to the human cells via a receptor called ACE2. Now, researchers have found a secondary receptor that the SARS-CoV-2 uses to infect cells – neuropilin-1 – which contains a number of features that help to explain why the virus is so infectious and able to spread quickly between human cells.
“In looking at the sequence of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein, we were struck by the presence of a small sequence of amino acids that appeared to mimic a protein sequence found in human proteins which interact with neuropilin-1,” they explained in a statement. “This led us to propose a simple hypothesis: could the Spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 associate with neuropilin-1 to aid viral infection of human cells?”
“Excitingly, in applying a range of structural and biochemical approaches we have been able to establish that the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 does indeed bind to neuropilin-1,” the authors said.
Based on this observation, they suggest that SARS-CoV-2 effectively “tricks” the neuropilin-1 protein. Since the sequence of amino acids on SARS-CoV-2 looks a lot like other normal human proteins, neuropilin-1 is more likely to let the intruder into the cell.
The findings echo research from scientists at the Technical University of Munich in Germany and the University of Helsinki in Finland, which also found that neuropilin-1 plays an important role in the cell entry of SARS-CoV-2, though it is yet to be peer-reviewed.
The discovery could be used to develop promising anti-viral therapeutics against Covid-19. Armed with the new knowledge, the researchers have developed a potential anti-viral treatment that could, in theory, dramatically reduce the viral infectivity of SARS-Cov-2.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Covid-19 doesn’t seem to act like most other viruses.
Brain Scans Show Covid-19 Patients Experience Wide Variety Of Brain Abnormalities
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/brain-scans-show-covid19-patients-experience-wide-variety-of-brain-abnormalities/
Covid-19 doesn’t seem to act like most other viruses. Since the pandemic began, an increasing number of strange neurological symptoms have appeared in Covid-19 patients alongside the typical flu-like symptoms, and doctors are striving to understand exactly what the virus does to the brain.
In a systematic review study published in the Seizure: European Journal of Epilepsy, researchers compiled 84 Covid-19 studies that contained electroencephalograms (EEG) to get a better understanding of the ways in which the brain changes as a result of virus infection. They found one-third of patients given an EEG showed abnormal imaging in the frontal lobe of the brain.
Neurological abnormalities can have serious and lasting effects, and understanding them is paramount to effective Covid-19 treatment.
“As we know, the brain is an organ that cannot regenerate, so if you have any damage it will more than likely be permanent or you will not fully recover,” co-author Dr Zulfi Haneef said in a statement.
Nearly 69 percent of the entire cohort tested showed diffuse slowing within their EEG results. This could be related to inflammation as the body mounts an immune response, or if blood flow to the brain is reduced because the heart or lungs are weakened
Beyond this, approximately one-third of all patients exhibited changes within their frontal lobe, the area of the brain responsible for voluntary movement, high-level cognitive function, and language, whilst also controlling how we regulate emotion.
“We know that the most likely entry point for the virus is the nose, so there seems to be a connection between the part of the brain that is located directly next to that entry point,”
“Another interesting observation was that the average age of those affected was 61, one-third were female and two-thirds were males. This suggests that brain involvement in Covid-19 could be more common in older males. More research is needed but these findings show us these are areas to focus on as we move forward.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
THE SCIENCE OF
SUPERSPREADING
Why preventing hot spots of transmission is key to stopping the COVID-19 pandemic
https://vis.sciencemag.org/covid-clusters/
Tomi Engdahl says:
MIT’s Crab-Inspired Robot HERMITS Can Dock with “Mechanical Shells” for a Variety of Tasks
https://www.hackster.io/news/mit-s-crab-inspired-robot-hermits-can-dock-with-mechanical-shells-for-a-variety-of-tasks-a46dac57efb5
A Raspberry Pi-powered swarm control system and a selection of 3D-printed “shells” let these toio robots customize themselves to a task.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/face-mask-fogging-up-your-glasses-here-s-what-you-can-do-about-it/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Face Mask Fogging Up Your Glasses? Here’s What You Can Do About It
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/face-mask-fogging-up-your-glasses-here-s-what-you-can-do-about-it/
One technique comes from two surgeons in the UK who wrote a paper in the Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2011 explaining how doctors keep their glasses from fogging up while performing surgery in the operating theater. Best of all, it just requires soap and water.
“Immediately before wearing a face mask, wash the spectacles with soapy water and shake off the excess. Then, let the spectacles air dry or gently dry off the lenses with a soft tissue before putting them back on,” Sheraz Shafi Malik and Shahbaz Shafi Malik write in their paper.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Far-UVC light (222 nm) efficiently and safely inactivates airborne human coronaviruses
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-67211-2#:~:text=Germicidal%20ultraviolet%20light%2C%20typically%20at,harm%20to%20exposed%20human%20tissues.
A direct approach to limit airborne viral transmissions is to inactivate them within a short time of their production. Germicidal ultraviolet light, typically at 254 nm, is effective in this context but, used directly, can be a health hazard to skin and eyes. By contrast, far-UVC light (207–222 nm) efficiently kills pathogens potentially without harm to exposed human tissues. We previously demonstrated that 222-nm far-UVC light efficiently kills airborne influenza virus and we extend those studies to explore far-UVC efficacy against airborne human coronaviruses alpha HCoV-229E and beta HCoV-OC43. Low doses of 1.7 and 1.2 mJ/cm2 inactivated 99.9% of aerosolized coronavirus 229E and OC43, respectively.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Germicidal Efficacy and Mammalian Skin Safety of 222-nm UV Light
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5552051/
We have previously shown that 207-nm ultraviolet (UV) light has similar antimicrobial properties as typical germicidal UV light (254 nm), but without inducing mammalian skin damage. The biophysical rationale is based on the limited penetration distance of 207-nm light in biological samples (e.g. stratum corneum) compared with that of 254-nm light. Here we extended our previous studies to 222-nm light and tested the hypothesis that there exists a narrow wavelength window in the far-UVC region, from around 200–222 nm, which is significantly harmful to bacteria, but without damaging cells in tissues.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2020/10/22/fda-approves-remdesivir-for-covid-19-treatment/
Tomi Engdahl says:
9 Out Of 10 People With Covid-19 May Suffer Lingering After-Effects, Says Preliminary Study
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/9-out-of-10-people-with-covid19-may-suffer-lingering-aftereffects-says-preliminary-study/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Five things you need to know about: mRNA vaccines
https://horizon-magazine.eu/article/five-things-you-need-know-about-mrna-vaccines.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Australialainen tutkimustulos: Covid-19-tautia aiheuttava virus voi säilyä seteleissä ja näytöissä jopa 28 päivän ajan
Lämpötilan nostaminen tuhosi viruksen nopeasti.
https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-11590051
Tomi Engdahl says:
A Quarter Of Americans Are Hesitant About Taking A Covid-19 Vaccine That Doesn’t Yet Exist
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/a-quarter-of-americans-are-hesitant-about-taking-a-covid19-vaccine-that-doesnt-yet-exist/
Covid-19 has wreaked havoc on the world, causing 5 million recorded infections and 333,000 deaths so far, with a third of the world under lockdown.
In order for life to return to “normal”, there are only really two routes out of this: Enough people get infected that we develop herd immunity, or we develop a vaccine and enough people take it that we get herd immunity through that. One of these will involve millions of deaths, the other – given that vaccines go through rigorous safety checks – does not. New data, however, suggests a quarter of Americans have no interest in taking a Covid-19 vaccine if it was available.
The signs indicate that achieving herd immunity without a vaccine would be a long and painful haul.
Sweden has opted for less stringent rules since the outbreak.
Data suggests it has one of the highest death rates per capita in Europe, and it doesn’t look like this plan of action has translated into high levels of potential immunity in the population. A study published this week found that just 7.3 percent of the 1,104 analyzed samples collected from people in Stockholm contained Covid-19 antibodies.
This leaves us with the second (and much more preferable) option: Developing a vaccine. We’ve never developed a vaccine for a coronavirus before, but multiple teams around the world are working on it, and initial trials are beginning to look positive.
Which may lead us to our next hurdle: Convincing a vaccine-skeptical population to take it.
Unfortunately, over the last few decades skepticism about vaccines has risen, largely stemming from a now-retracted study linking autism to the MMR vaccine in the 1980s. The results of Andrew Wakefield’s study have never been replicated, and it later transpired he had falsified data, for which his medical license was revoked.
However you’d hope that with a disease killing hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, folks might be keener on vaccines than they have been in the past. Unfortunately, a new poll by Reuters and Ipsos has found that a quarter of Americans have little to no interest in taking a Covid-19 vaccine.
The poll found skepticism went along partisan lines, with one in five Republicans saying they had no interest in taking a vaccine, more than twice the number of Democrats. Overall, 36 percent of respondents said they would be less inclined to want to take a vaccine if the President said it was safe, compared to 14 percent who would be more interested.
Tomi Engdahl says:
This may offer an explanation for the neurological manifestations experienced by some Covid-19 patients.
Spike Proteins On SARS-CoV-2 Disrupt The Blood-Brain Barrier, Suggests New Study
https://www.iflscience.com/brain/spike-proteins-on-sarscov2-disrupt-the-bloodbrain-barrier-suggests-new-study/
While Covid-19 is typically associated with respiratory symptoms, a significant number of patients also present with neurological complications, ranging from headaches and dizziness to fatal microclots in the brain. According to a new study in the journal Neurobiology of Disease, these effects arise due to the ability of spike proteins on the SARS-CoV-2 virus to disrupt the blood-brain barrier.
Since the early days of the pandemic, scientists have known that the virus uses spike proteins to attach to certain receptors on the surface of host cells. These proteins have a particularly strong affinity for an enzyme called ACE2, which the virus uses as a gateway into the cells it invades. The fact that ACE2 is widely expressed in the endothelial cells that line the lungs therefore makes the respiratory system highly susceptible to the virus.
Closer analysis revealed that the presence of SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins triggered an inflammatory immune response in brain tissue, much like it does in the lungs, therefore illuminating the pathway by which the virus produces neurological symptoms. Further tests using microfluidics that are designed to mimic human brain capillaries showed that these too became more permeable in the presence of SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins.
“Our findings support the implication that SARS-CoV-2, or its shed spike proteins circulating in the blood stream, could cause destabilization of the blood-brain barrier in key brain regions,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
There Is No Silver Bullet Coronavirus Test, But Here’s How Diagnostics Can Help
https://www.forbes.com/sites/katiejennings/2020/11/02/there-is-no-silver-bullet-coronavirus-test-but-heres-how-diagnostics-can-help/?sh=799e59c27bd0&utm_source=FBPAGE&utm_medium=social&utm_content=4054669097&utm_campaign=sprinklrForbesMainFB
it’s possible someone might be infectious before it shows up on a test, but the truth is, we just don’t know yet when exactly a person starts to be contagious.
But that doesn’t make tests a useless tool in containing the pandemic. Far from it. Experts say what’s more important is the overall strategy and combining different tests. Plus, the rapid development of new technologies means the testing landscape—and resulting public health strategies—could look very different in a few short months.
“There is no perfect test that can be routinely used,”
Why are there different types of Covid-19 tests?
Different types of tests are better for different settings. The most time intensive, but accurate, test relies on a technique called polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In order to detect the presence of the Sars-CoV-2 virus in a nasal swab or saliva sample, PCR makes millions of copies of the viral RNA, akin to a tiny Xerox machine. This complicated process must be performed in a laboratory setting with licensed personnel. The big benefit of these tests is they can detect very, very tiny amounts of virus in a sample, but the cost is around $100 per test.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Although this study cannot tell us whether people are fully protected from reinfection, it does suggest a significant cellular immune response remains for a prolonged amount of time, which is welcome news.
Cellular Immunity To Covid-19 Lasts Up To Six Months, New Research Suggests
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/cellular-immunity-to-covid19-lasts-up-to-six-months-new-research-suggests/
Robust cellular immunity to SARS-CoV-2 — the coronavirus that causes Covid-19 — appears to last for at least six months after infection, and white blood cell levels are higher in people who experienced symptoms, a small new study has found.
Researchers from the UK Coronavirus Immunology Consortium and Public Health England studied 100 non-hospitalized people who had been infected with Covid-19, but experienced mild symptoms or remained asymptomatic, and found robust T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 even six months after their infection. The study has not yet been peer-reviewed and is available as a preprint paper on bioRxiv.
Notably, the size of the T cell response was considerably higher (around 50 percent higher) in people who had experienced symptoms rather than those who didn’t have any symptoms.
“Cellular immunity is a complex but potentially very significant piece of the Covid-19 puzzle, and it’s important that more research be done in this area,”
“However, early results show that T-cell responses may outlast the initial antibody response, which could have a significant impact on Covid vaccine development and immunity research.”
There’s been a lot of attention on how quickly antibodies to Covid-19 last after infection, with a bunch of recent studies suggesting that antibodies may fade away within a matter of months. However, immunity is hugely complex and not just about antibodies. Along with immunity mediated by antibodies, the body’s immune response to pathogens also involves cellular immunity through the activation of phagocytes, cytokines, T cells, and other immune cells.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Artificial intelligence model detects asymptomatic Covid-19 infections through cellphone-recorded coughs
Results might provide a convenient screening tool for people who may not suspect they are infected.
https://news.mit.edu/2020/covid-19-cough-cellphone-detection-1029
Tomi Engdahl says:
A room, a bar and a classroom: how the coronavirus is spread through the air
https://english.elpais.com/society/2020-10-28/a-room-a-bar-and-a-class-how-the-coronavirus-is-spread-through-the-air.html?ssm=TW_CC
The risk of contagion is highest in indoor spaces but can be reduced by applying all available measures to combat infection via aerosols. Here is an overview of the likelihood of infection in three everyday scenarios, based on the safety measures used and the length of exposure.
Irrespective of whether safe distances are maintained, if the six people spend four hours together talking loudly, without wearing a face mask in a room with no ventilation, five will become infected, according to the scientific model explained in the methodology.
If face masks are worn, four people are at risk of infection. Masks alone will not prevent infection if the exposure is prolonged.
The risk of infection drops to below one when the group uses face masks, shortens the length of the gathering by half and ventilates the space used.
The coronavirus is spread through the air, especially in indoor spaces. While it is not as infectious as measles, scientists now openly acknowledge the role played by the transmission of aerosols – tiny contagious particles exhaled by an infected person that remain suspended in the air of an indoor environment.
At present, health authorities recognize three vehicles of coronavirus transmission: the small droplets from speaking or coughing, which can end up in the eyes, mouth or nose of people standing nearby; contaminated surfaces (fomites), although the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that this is the least likely way to catch the virus, a conclusion backed by the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (ECDC) observation that not a single case of fomite-caused Covid-19 has been observed; then finally, there is transmission by aerosols – the inhalation of invisible infectious particles exhaled by an infected person that, once leaving the mouth, behave in a similar way to smoke. Without ventilation, aerosols remain suspended in the air and become increasingly dense as time passes.
Breathing, speaking and shouting
At the beginning of the pandemic, it was believed that the large droplets we expel when we cough or sneeze were the main vehicle of transmission. But we now know that shouting and singing in indoor, poorly ventilated spaces over a prolonged period of time also increases the risk of contagion. This is because speaking in a loud voice releases 50 times more virus-laden particles than when we don’t speak at all. These aerosols, if not diffused through ventilation, become increasingly concentrated, which increases the risk of infection.
In the spring, health authorities failed to focus on aerosol transmission, but recent scientific publications have forced the World Health Organization (WHO) and the CDC to acknowledge it. An article in the prestigious Science magazine found that there is “overwhelming evidence” that airborne transmission is a “major transmission route” for the coronavirus, and the CDC now notes that, “under certain conditions, they seem to have infected others who were more than six feet [two meters] away. These transmissions occurred within enclosed spaces that had inadequate ventilation. Sometimes the infected person was breathing heavily, for example, while singing or exercising.”
A bar or restaurant
Coronavirus outbreaks at events, and in establishments such as bars and restaurants, account for an important number of contagions in social settings. What’s more, they are the most explosive: each outbreak in a nightclub infects an average of 27 people, compared to only six during family gatherings
School
Schools only account for 6% of coronavirus outbreaks recorded by Spanish health authorities. The dynamics of transmission via aerosols in the classroom change completely depending on whether the infected person – or patient zero – is a student or a teacher. Teachers talk far more than students and raise their voices to be heard, which multiplies the expulsion of potentially contagious particles. In comparison, an infected student will only speak occasionally.
During the simulations, the subjects maintain the recommended safe distance, eliminating the risk of transmission via droplets. But they can still become infected if all possible preventive measures are not simultaneously applied: correct ventilation, shortening the encounters, reducing the number of participants and wearing face masks. The ideal scenario, whatever the context, would be outdoors, where infectious particles are rapidly diffused. If a safe distance from the infected person is not maintained, the probability of transmission is multiplied because there would also be the risk of contagion from droplets – not just aerosols.
Tomi Engdahl says:
AI Think That Cough Sounds Bad
AI can rapidly detect COVID-19 infections with your smartphone for essentially no cost.
https://www.hackster.io/news/ai-think-that-cough-sounds-bad-f1b0be28ed94
One of the biggest challenges in controlling COVID-19 is in rapid detection of infected individuals. By detecting cases early, infected individuals can self-quarantine and help to reduce spread of the disease. However, viral and serologic testing is expensive on a large scale — it would cost roughly $8.6 billion to test the entire population of the United States. With that price tag, frequent large-scale testing is not reasonable.
A collaboration between MIT and Harvard University took a different approach to testing that has the potential to drive the cost to near zero and also nearly eliminate the time and effort one needs to invest to get a test.
To test this hypothesis, they gathered audio recordings of coughs from individuals that tested both positive and negative for COVID-19.
The resulting dataset, composed of recordings from over 5,300 individuals, was used to train an artificial neural network to distinguish between COVID-19-positive and healthy individuals. Testing showed the model to accurately classify 98.5% of COVID-19 positives overall, and very impressively classified 100% of asymptomatic coughs (asymptomatic carriers, by definition, do not have a cough, so they were asked to force a cough). These results are considerably more accurate than traditional testing methods.
The research team sees this model being built into a smartphone app for widespread daily use. The cost of each test is essentially zero, and the burden on an individual to complete the test (i.e. force a cough into their phone) is minimal. Lowering the barriers substantially, this tool makes testing large populations on a daily basis realistic. Such rapid, widespread testing has the potential to prevent outbreaks before they happen.
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9208795
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/how-covid19-avoids-detection-in-the-human-cell/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Factories that used to make perfume, T-shirts, and cars are now making supplies to fight the coronavirus
Manufacturers, fashion designers, and 3D printing companies are making face masks, ventilators, and hand sanitizer.
https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2020/4/6/21207135/factories-face-masks-ventilators-hand-sanitizer-coronavirus-manufacturing
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mask factory
https://youtu.be/nCudSkIeqdM
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why does coronavirus make people lose their sense of smell?
https://horizon-magazine.eu/article/why-does-coronavirus-make-people-lose-their-sense-smell.html
To begin with, it was just anecdotal reports. Ear, nose and throat specialists from around the world were sharing their experiences on online message boards – they were all seeing a spike in patients experiencing anosmia, a loss of smell.
The link with coronavirus was brought to public attention by specialists in the UK in late March, and since then health organisations have gradually added anosmia to the list of symptoms for Covid-19. According to a recent study, about two-thirds of people with Covid-19 experience a sudden loss in smell or taste.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Woman sheds coronavirus for 70 days without symptoms
https://www.livescience.com/woman-sheds-infectious-coronavirus-70-days.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/raspberry-pi-face-mask-detector
Tomi Engdahl says:
AI Recognizes COVID-19 in the Sound of a Cough
https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/artificial-intelligence/medical-ai/ai-recognizes-covid-19-in-the-sound-of-a-cough
Again and again, experts have pleaded that we need more and faster testing to control the coronavirus pandemic—and many have suggested that artificial intelligence (AI) can help. Numerous COVID-19 diagnostics in development use AI to quickly analyze X-ray or CT scans, but these techniques require a chest scan at a medical facility.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/why-so-many-epidemics-originate-in-asia-and-africa-and-why-we-can-expect-more/
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Mobile Health Tech That Could Combat COVID-19
https://spectrum.ieee.org/news-from-around-ieee/the-institute/ieee-member-news/the-mobile-health-tech-that-could-combat-covid19
“What’s unique about this project is that it involved a large number of individuals from around the world who contributed their thoughts on how we could use these technologies for medical effect,” Bonato says. “I thought IEEE EMBS should [publish the report] because it is the largest society that deals with these types of issues, so it’s something that we are uniquely positioned to do, and we have a professional obligation to do.”
Here are some key takeaways from the report.
CONTACTLESS MONITORING
TRACING CONTACTS
SELF-REPORTING SYSTEMS
Tomi Engdahl says:
As reported in the Journal of Hospital Infection, the study set out to examine how hand drying methods affect bacterial spread in hospital bathrooms.
Hand Dryers Spread Bacteria So Dramatically That Scientists Think They’re A Public Health Threat
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/hand-dryers-spread-bacteria-so-dramatically-that-scientists-think-theyre-a-public-health-threat/
In lab-based experiments recreating a public washroom, jet-air dryers introduced 27 times more bacteria into the air than good-old-fashioned paper towels, and these microbes circulated for 15 minutes afterward.
Now, the authors are back with even more evidence against hand dryers, this time from real-world experiments.
“Consequently, we believe that electric hand dryers are not suited to clinical settings, and, as such, existing (e.g. NHS) infection control building guidance needs to be amended and strengthened,” Wilcox’s team wrote, adding that there is little justification for their use in any public setting given the risks they present.
Based on the earlier research, French health officials recently updated their guidelines to discourage use of hand dryers in clinical wards. UK hospitals currently discourage their use in such areas as well, but the reasoning is based on noise concerns. There are no provisions against using them in public-facing reception areas in either country, and no restrictions at all in the US.
“The problem starts because some people do not wash their hands properly,” Wilcox explained. “In effect, the dryer creates an aerosol that contaminates the toilet room, including the dryer itself and potentially the sinks, floor and other surfaces, depending on the dryer design and where it is sited.
“However, paper towels absorb the water and microbes left on the hands and if they are disposed of properly, there is less potential for cross-contamination.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tutkijoiden yllättävä havainto: Melatoniini voisi toimia lääkkeenä koronatautiin
https://tekniikanmaailma.fi/tutkijoiden-yllattava-havainto-melatoniini-voisi-toimia-laakkeena-koronatautiin/
Uuden yhdysvaltalaistutkimuksen mukaan melatoniini saattaisi toimia koronaviruksen ehkäisykeinona. Melatoniini on elimistössä luontaisesti esiintyvä ”yöhormoni”, jota erittyy ihmisen elimistössä aivojen ympäröimästä käpyrauhasesta. Melatoniinia käytetään lääkehoidossa muun muassa tilapäisen unettomuuden hoitoon.
Tutkimustulosten mukaan melatoniinin käyttö laski todennäköisyyttä sairastua koronaan lähes 30 prosentilla, kun huomioon otettiin riskitekijät kuten ikä, tupakointi tai joukko perussairauksia.
Cleveland Clinicin tutkimus on julkaistu PLOS Biology-tiedeportaalissa.
”On erittäin tärkeä todeta, että näistä tuloksista huolimatta ihmisten ei tule aloittaa melatoniinin käyttöä keskustelematta asiasta ensin lääkärin kanssa”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Suomi on pärjännyt koronan keskellä muuta Eurooppaa paremmin – miksi? Onnistumista ei selitä mikään yksittäinen tekijä, mutta tässä 7 mahdollista syytä
https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-11643963
Tomi Engdahl says:
Could Snorting Chicken Antibodies Be The Next Weapon Against Covid-19?
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/could-snorting-chicken-antibodies-be-the-next-weapon-against-covid19/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Could snorting chicken antibodies be the next weapon against Covid-19? It sounds unlikely, but a new clinical trial is hoping to find out.
Investigations into the use of an antibody nasal spray to temporarily protect people from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, in high-risk situations have begun. The idea is that people could have a quick spray up the nose before they enter a hospital, for example, and line their nasal cavity with protective antibodies. While they remain in this risky environment, they will briefly be protected from Covid-19.
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/could-snorting-chicken-antibodies-be-the-next-weapon-against-covid19/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Käsidesikone
https://youtu.be/qbQHQq7cx3Y
Tomi Engdahl says:
Onko koronarokotetta testattu tarpeeksi? Voiko rokotettu tartuttaa yhä muita? – Kysyitte koronarokotteista, asiantuntijat vastaavat
Lue tästä jutusta vastaukset moniin lukijoita pohdituttaneisiin kysymyksiin
https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-11641276
Tomi Engdahl says:
U.S Will Have Enough Covid Vaccine Doses By Mid-2021, Plus 5 More Big Predictions From Goldman Sachs
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2020/11/11/us-will-have-enough-covid-vaccine-doses-by-mid-2021-plus-5-more-big-predictions-from-goldman-sachs/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mitä mieltä olet maskeista? Käytätkö kasvomaskia THL:n ohjeistusten mukaan? Valtioneuvosto toteaa:
“Järjestelmällisen kirjallisuuskatsauksen mukaan väestön kasvosuojusten vaikuttavuudesta COVID-19-viruksen leviämisen ehkäisystä yhteiskunnassa on hyvin vähän tutkimustietoa. Tutkimusnäytön perusteella kasvosuojusten käytön vaikutus hengitystieinfektioiden leviämiseen väestössä on vähäinen tai olematon.”
https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/handle/10024/162266
Lääkärilehti:
“Valitettavasti THL:n kasvomaskien käyttöohjeet ovat sellaiset, että kriittisen kansalaisen epäusko syvenee niitä lukiessa. Yhteenvetona voisi todeta, että jotta maskia voisi käyttää suositusten mukaisesti, niitä pitäisi olla mukana aina yli 10 kappaletta. Lisäksi tarvitaan muovipusseja, pullo desinfiointiainetta ja kertakäyttöhanskoja, jotta vaikka kaupungilla liikkuessa pystyisi reagoimaan kaikkiin mahdollisiin tilanteisiin sillä tavalla, että maskin käyttö pysyisi suositusten raameissa. Näin siis niiden kohdalla, joilla ei ole silmälaseja. Silmälaseja käyttävien on turha yrittääkään.”
https://www.laakarilehti.fi/ajassa/verkkokommentti/keisarilla-on-maski-mutta-ei-vaatteita/
Tomi Engdahl says:
GERMAN NEUROLOGIST MARGARETA GRIESZ BRISSON: MASKS ARE DANGEROUS!!!
https://www.bitchute.com/video/Blzj0nJFEnpZ/
Peripheral Oxygen Saturation in Older Persons Wearing Nonmedical Face Masks in Community Settings
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2772655
Based on the evidence that nonmedical face masks prevent the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2,1,2 many governments are mandating the wearing of masks in the community. However, fueled partly by claims on social media that masks can cause hypoxia and are therefore dangerous,3 concerns have emerged about the safety of wearing face masks. We examined whether wearing nonmedical face masks was associated with a change in oxygen saturation.
None of the participants’ Spo2 fell below 92% while wearing masks. The paired mean differences in Spo2 while wearing the mask were minimal when compared with the value before they wore the mask (0.46% [95% CI, 0.06% to 0.87%]) and the value after wearing the mask (0.21% [95% CI, −0.07% to 0.50%]), with both 95% CIs excluding a 2% or more decline in Spo2.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wearable Fitness Trackers Could Help Detect Covid-19 Cases
https://www.forbes.com/sites/helenalbert/2020/11/17/wearable-fitness-trackers-could-help-detect-covid-19-cases/
Results from a large U.S. study suggest that information collected from fitness trackers could help identify who has Covid-19 more accurately than tracking symptoms alone, something the researchers hope will help control the spread of the virus.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Less Than A Year To Develop A COVID Vaccine – Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Be Alarmed
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/less-than-a-year-to-develop-a-covid-vaccine-heres-why-you-shouldnt-be-alarmed/
I’m a clinical trials geek. I keep hearing people talk about the seven to ten years it takes to make a vaccine and how dangerous speeding this up might be. The word that keeps popping up is “rushed”, and it is making the average person nervous about vaccine safety. So, as a clinical trials doctor, I am going to tell you what I do for most of those ten years – and it is not very much.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The study also showed the impact of temperature on how long live SARS-CoV2 lasted on common surfaces such as glass, stainless steel, and money.
Study: Covid-19 Coronavirus May Survive For 28 Days On These Surfaces
http://on.forbes.com/6184Hye9q
On the surface, this doesn’t look good. A study just published in the Virology Journal found that the Covid-19 coronavirus can survive on common surfaces such as glass, stainless steel, and money for up to 28 days. That’s almost three Scaramuccis and enough time for the Kate Hudson character to lose three guys. And the survival of the virus may increase with colder temperatures, which sounds like great news heading into the Fall and Winter. But before you resolve to touch absolutely nothing during the rest of the pandemic, except for perhaps your BTS shrine, there are caveats to the study.
The experiments at 20 °C (which corresponds roughly to room temperature or 68 °F) found infectious SARS-CoV-2 to be still detectable after 28 days post on all non-porous surfaces used, that is glass, stainless steel, vinyl, and both paper and polymer bank notes. The researchers couldn’t detect the virus on porous material, the cotton cloth, beyond 14 days, though. The majority of virus reduction on cotton occurred very soon after application of virus, suggesting an immediate adsorption effect. The amount of time it took for detectable live virus levels to drop by 90% ranged from a low of about 5.5 days for cotton to 9.1 days for paper bank notes. In other words, after 5.5 days, only 10 percent of the original live virus amounts remained in the cotton sample.
The hottest experiments ratcheted temperatures up to 40 °C, which corresponds to 104 °F, which would be room temperature if you lived in a hot yoga studio. When it was this hot, no infectious SARS-CoV-2 seemed to remain beyond 24 hours on cotton cloth and beyond 48 h for all other surfaces tested. The heat also brought the time it took for live levels to drop by 90% down to a range of 5 hours for polymer notes to 10.5 hours for vinyl.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Angry photons just work(tm). Physics vs Biology 101
Far-UVC light (222 nm) efficiently and safely inactivates airborne human coronaviruses
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-67211-2
A direct approach to limit airborne viral transmissions is to inactivate them within a short time of their production. Germicidal ultraviolet light, typically at 254 nm, is effective in this context but, used directly, can be a health hazard to skin and eyes. By contrast, far-UVC light (207–222 nm) efficiently kills pathogens potentially without harm to exposed human tissues.
We previously demonstrated that 222-nm far-UVC light efficiently kills airborne influenza virus and we extend those studies to explore far-UVC efficacy against airborne human coronaviruses alpha HCoV-229E and beta HCoV-OC43. Low doses of 1.7 and 1.2 mJ/cm2 inactivated 99.9% of aerosolized coronavirus 229E and OC43, respectively. As all human coronaviruses have similar genomic sizes, far-UVC light would be expected to show similar inactivation efficiency against other human coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2.
Based on the beta-HCoV-OC43 results, continuous far-UVC exposure in occupied public locations at the current regulatory exposure limit (~3 mJ/cm2/hour) would result in ~90% viral inactivation in ~8 minutes, 95% in ~11 minutes, 99% in ~16 minutes and 99.9% inactivation in ~25 minutes. Thus while staying within current regulatory dose limits, low-dose-rate far-UVC exposure can potentially safely provide a major reduction in the ambient level of airborne coronaviruses in occupied public locations.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.nitor.com/en/news-and-blogs/nitors-live-office-tracker-safety-tool-during-covid-19-pandemic?fbclid=IwAR0AnHhjnnQ57Cy6qkmDNNM7A3lHzSsvH7d6yzzBN86pj08cgeoEHgvebLc
Tomi Engdahl says:
Inventors design high-tech helmets for Covid protection
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-54916159
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/take-a-look-at-the-most-accurate-and-uptodate-3d-model-of-coronavirus-yet/
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Honest but possibly stupid question: if ultraviolet is effective at killing the virus, shouldn’t we have UV lights in public spaces?”
Ultraviolet there is UV that is effective for killing virus, but most of those wavelengths that kill viruses are also dangerous to human skin and eyes.
https://youtu.be/1m0TQjBRcFo
There are certain UV wavelenghts at around 220 nm range that seem to be now effective in killing viruses, not too dangerous to humans at the needed exposure levels and can be somewhat reasonably generated. Starting to use those for this purpose is quite recent development.
Tomi Engdahl says:
As a young tech enthusiast, Instructables member Parth Bhatnagar decided to make an animated RGB mask that promotes safety and style.
Animated RGB Mask
https://www.instructables.com/Animated-RGB-Mask/
Today Mask has become an essential part to protect ourselves and also has become a lifestyle statement.
As a tech-savvy enthusiast, I have made a mask that protects and makes you look good.
The mask is made with the help of :
1) WS2812b led strip
2) Arduino Nano
And a bit of programming.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Five things you need to know about: mRNA vaccine safety
https://horizon-magazine.eu/article/five-things-you-need-know-about-mrna-vaccine-safety.html#utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=mrna
The world’s first mRNA vaccine has begun its rollout after being produced at unprecedented speed as part of the global effort to end the Covid-19 pandemic. A second one is hot on its heels. The two – one made by Pfizer/BioNTech and the other by Moderna – mark the first time this vaccine technology has been approved for use.
In trials these vaccines have shown to be at least 94% effective at preventing people from falling ill with Covid-19. But how safe is this new technology? We spoke to Michel Goldman, a professor of immunology and founder of the I3h Institute for Interdisciplinary Innovation in healthcare at the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium. Here are five things to know.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Thermal cameras are being used to screen for fevers during the pandemic but, IEEE Senior Member Erik Beall says they aren’t as accurate as you think
Fever is an unreliable indicator of COVID-19 infection.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/news-from-around-ieee/the-institute/ieee-member-news/infrared-fever-detectors-used-for-covid19-arent-as-accurate-as-you-think?referrer=/