A new study reveals how targeted electromagnetic waves can disrupt the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, potentially opening doors to innovative disinfection and infection control strategies. ​​​​​​​Study: Electromagnetic waves destabilize the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein and reduce SARS-CoV-2 Virus-Like particle (SC2-VLP) infectivity. ​​​​​​​Image Credit: Design_Cells / Shutterstock Electromagnetic waves appear to alter the conformation of…

People with lower fitness before COVID are more likely to develop long COVID, but the infection itself does not cause a significant or lasting drop in fitness, even for those with persistent symptoms. Study: Association of Pre‐COVID Fitness With Post‐COVID Fitness and Long COVID in the Cooper Center Longitudinal Cohort Study. Image Credit: p.ill.i / Shutterstock …

Even after the COVID-19 pandemic, various new infectious diseases continue to emerge, posing ongoing viral threats that demand robust and sustained immune defenses. However, excessive immune reactions can also harm body tissues, causing significant health issues. KAIST and an international research team have discovered a critical protein that acts as a 'switch' regulating immune responses…

New data from Canadian healthcare workers show that while reinfections are less likely to cause long COVID, the risk stacks up, especially for those hit hard the first time or infected early in the pandemic. Study: Long COVID risk and severity after COVID-19 infections and reinfections in Quebec healthcare workers. Image…

Most vaccines — and boosters — are injected directly into muscle tissue, usually in the upper arm, to kickstart the body's immune system in the fight against disease. But for respiratory diseases like COVID-19, it can be important to have protection right where the virus enters: the respiratory tract. In a new study, Yale researchers…

Problematic smartphone use (PSU) has substantially increased in the last seven years, negatively impacting children's overall quality of life, although the proportion of children with clinical-level PSU remains low. Study: Smartphone use, wellbeing, and their association in children. Image Credit: Javier Bermudez Zayas / Shutterstock A recent study in the journal Pediatric…

Early in the covid-19 pandemic, the failure of UK government advisers to follow World Health Organization (WHO) advice and emerging evidence from East Asia that suppression could bring the virus under control quickly led to avoidable UK deaths, argues an expert in The BMJ today. Suppression aims to avoid national lockdowns and maintain economic activity for most…

Researchers have developed EVE-Vax, a computational design tool that creates synthetic SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins mimicking future immune-evading variants. These designed proteins enable early assessment of vaccine efficacy before such variants naturally emerge. Study: Computationally designed proteins mimic antibody immune evasion in viral evolution. Image Credit: TimeStopper69 / Shutterstock A recent study in…

New genetic clues reveal why some people may be predisposed to myocarditis or pericarditis after COVID-19 vaccination, offering fresh insight into immune responses and vaccine safety. Study: Genome-wide association study of myocarditis and pericarditis following COVID-19 vaccination. Image Credit: Kateryna Kon / Shutterstock Could your genes affect how your body reacts to…

The host Julie Rovner KFF Health News @jrovner Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News' weekly health policy news podcast, "What the Health?" A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book "Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z," now…