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There are several new scientific developments regarding COVID-19 that might be useful to you for navigating the pandemic, wrote Katelyn Jetelina, Ph.D., an epidemiologist trying to make sense of this pandemic world.
All stem from different COVID-19 "story threads" I've written before. So, a quick round-up was posted by Jetelina at this substack link.
Separately, the U.S. CDC's Data Tracker publishes various information that is perpetually updated.
And the WHO publishes weekly epidemiological updates (Jan. 4, 2023) on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Columbus, Ohio, reported yesterday new data regarding the measles outbreak in children that was initially identified in June 2022.
As of January 9, 2023, there have been 82 measles confirmations and 33 related hospitalizations.
About 75% of these children were unvaccinated before being infected with the measles virus.
Columbus's Health Commissioner, Dr. Mysheika W. Roberts, recently stated, "The end of an outbreak isn't declared until 42 days after the last infected person develops a rash."
"If you are interested in scheduling your child's MMR vaccine, you can contact your local healthcare provider or reach out to the Ohio Department of Health," reported SpectumNews1.
Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease, says the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Additionally, since many measles cases are travel-related, the CDC suggests being fully immunized before traveling abroad, as several countries, such as India, have reported outbreaks in 2023.
In the U.S., measles vaccines are generally available at clinics and pharmacies.
Genexine Inc. recently announced updated results following the completion of its Phase 2 clinical study using GX-188E, its first-in-class proprietary DNA vaccine, in combination with KEYTRUDA® in 65 patients with HPV 16- and/or HPV 18- positive recurrent or metastatic advanced cervical cancer.
GX-188E is a therapeutic DNA vaccine that encodes the E6/E7 fusion protein of HPV subtypes 16 and 18 and is administered intramuscularly by electroporation.
On January 8, 2023, Genexine disclosed the final efficacy analysis of a phase 1/2 clinical trial showed an Objective Response Rate of 35% (21 of 60 patients), indicating that of the 60 patients with advanced cervical cancer, 21 patients saw either over 30% reduction in tumor size or complete remission.
Furthermore, cancer patients with a CPS<1 showed a response rate of 29.2%, while those with a CPS≥1 showed a response rate of 38.9%.
With a disease control rate of 57.0%, this combination therapy was effective in more than half of the patients.
The overall survival was 16.7 months which compares favorably to other agents that have been granted accelerated approval by U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2nd line cervical cancer treatment.
Neil Warma, President and CEO of Genexine, commented in a press release on January 8, 2023, "... the results ... reinforce our belief that GX-188E could open up new treatment opportunities to all cervical cancer patients, especially PD-L1 negative patients who currently have limited options."
"We also appear to be extending patient survival beyond that of currently marketed drugs which should position us well as we move into larger Phase 3 studies to become a leader in the oncology DNA vaccine market."
Genexine management is presenting these data at the JP Morgan conference on January 9-13, 2023.
'The most important things you can do to help prevent cervical cancer are to get vaccinated against HPV, have regular screening tests, and go back to the doctor if your screening test results are not normal,' says the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Disclosure: This announcement was curated for mobile readership and is not paid content.
SK bioscience today announced that it received a biologics license application approval for the 'SKYZoster™' shingles vaccine from the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency in Malaysia.
SKYZoster is a live vaccine that attenuates the varicella-zoster virus and was initially approved in South Korea in 2017, then in Thailand in May 2020.
A recent Phase III clinical trial showed that SKYZoster is non-inferior compared to the control vaccine (Zostavax).
The cell-mediated immune response was also shown to be at an equal level, proving SKYZoster™ effectively induces immunogenicity against shingles, also known as herpes zoster.
Jaeyong Ahn, CEO of SK bioscience, commented in a press release on January 9, 2023, "It is encouraging that vaccines made by our technology are gradually expanding their influence in the global vaccine market where big pharmaceutical companies mainly dominate."
SKYZoster™ is steadily expanding its market position in South Korea. According to the IMS data, SKYZoster's market share in the third quarter of 2022 reached 56%.
Additionally, SK bioscience plans to submit for SKYZoster Pre-Qualification to the World Health Organization.
Shingles is a vaccine-preventable disease, says the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
About 33% of people in the U.S. will develop shingles in their lifetime.
If you've ever had chickenpox, you can get shingles. Even children can get shingles. And your risk of shingles increases with age says the CDC.
In the U.S., the Shingrix® vaccine is the market leader and is generally available at most clinics and pharmacies.
Other approved shingles vaccines and vaccine candidate news are posted at PrecisionVaccinations.com/Shingles.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed today additional highly pathogenic avian influenza (HAPI) H5N1 detections in mammals.
The updated USDA listing as of January 9, 2023, includes skunks, bears, raccoons, and another red fox.
The USDA previously confirmed the Eurasian H5N1 strain first appeared in North America in January 2022.
On January 5, 2023, the StarHeral reported HAPI infections were the cause of death for four animals at the Riverside Discovery Center in Scottsbluff. The Nebraska zoo confirmed a cougar, bear, and two tigers had died.
The release indicates the animals ate local geese with HPAI in their systems.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says although bird flu (HAPI) viruses mainly infect and spread among wild migratory water birds and domestic poultry, some bird flu viruses can infect other animals as well.
While it’s unlikely people would become infected with bird flu viruses, it is possible, says the CDC.
Globally, six human influenza A H5N1 2.3.4.4b infections were reported last year, including a man working with birds in Colorado
Since April 2022, about 110 H5N1 detections in mammals were confirmed during 2022.
The USDA reported HAPI detections had affected 47 states and led to the loss of over 57.8 million birds as of January 4, 2023.
Additional HAPI (bird-flu) news is posted at PrecisionVaccinations.com/Avain.
The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently reported great news for the domestic travel industry and new solutions for frustrated air travelers.
As of January 8, 2023, TSA checkpoint travel activity this year surpassed volumes last seen in 2019 before the pandemic curtailed most trips.
While this data is great news for the industry, it also means longer wait times at security checkpoints.
However, the TSA is aggressively deploying new digital solutions to empower quicker check-ins and security clearance.
One of those solutions was very effective last year.
In December 2022, 91% of TSA PreCheck® passengers waited less than 5 minutes.
And when traveling with children 12 and under, they can join a parent/guardian at TSA PreCheck® in the dedicated lanes.
In 2023, more than 200 airports and 85+ airlines will provide TSA PreCheck® services.
For TSA PreCheck eligibility requirements and instructions on accessing TSA PreCheck, visit the Help Center.
Note: You do not need to apply for TSA PreCheck® if you already have Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, or hold an active TWIC® or Commercial Driver’s License with an HME and you meet the TSA PreCheck eligibility requirements.
The Government of Canada confirmed on January 7, 2023, Canadians should exercise a high degree of caution in Mexico due to civil unrest.
And to avoid non-essential travel to various areas due to high crime levels.
For example, Canadians visiting Mexico were recently informed to limit their movements in Mexico's northwest area. Canadian tourists in Mexico's Sinaloa state remained in their hotels for several days after civil unrest was reported.
The Canadian government has released a list of travel advisories for countries like Mexico to avoid similar situations, empowering more informed travel decisions.
"The safety of Canadians abroad is a top priority for the Government of Canada," Marilyne Guèvremont, spokesperson at Global Affairs Canada, told Global News on January 8, 2023.
To alert U.S. citizens of these risks, the in-person consular services at the U.S. Consular Agency in Mazatlan remained suspended on January 9, 2023.
This is a continuation of the suspension of services previously announced, stemming from the violence across Sinaloa.
U.S. citizens in need of a passport who plan to fly from Sinaloa to the United States in the next week should email the American Citizen Services unit at the U.S. Consulate General in Hermosillo.
The U.S. Consulates General in Hermosillo and Guadalajara continue to offer in-person consular services.
The U.S. State Department reminds U.S. citizens that Sinaloa is classified as Level 4 – Do Not Travel – in its travel advisory for Mexico.
Please visit travel.state.gov for the entire Mexico Travel Advisory, issued in October 2022, to see state-level summaries and advisory levels for your specific travel destination.
Interesting Engineering (IE) reported today that while attending the Consumer's Electronic Show 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada, it learned the kind of solutions being developed to provide humans food during space flight to Mars.
One solution that stood out was turning plastic into consumable food during the long trip.
NASA says if a spacecraft departs Earth at a speed of about 24,600 mph, the trip to Mars will take about seven months.
To feed inter-galaxy travelers, Columbus, OH-based Beehex is developing deep-space food solutions using various 3D-printed food technologies in microgravity.
"So if you want to create steak out of plastic, the entire mechanism on one side of this container will be able to produce steak out of plastic- or chicken breasts," wrote IE.
Typically, BeeHex's 3D decoration equipment allows bakeries to produce decorated cookies, cakes, cupcakes, and more with high speed and precision.
The full IE article is posted at this link.
As of January 8, 2023, the U.S. CDC has not posted vaccination recommendations for when people visit Mars.
