July 25 2022: News, Updates & Info From Biolink

Covid Waves, New Viruses. Famous Covid, Everyday Covid.

There is no shortage of Covid-related news in the media at the moment, with record number of cases around the country.

We posted earlier a few weeks back that the current Covid wave looks more like the January 2022 spike than anything felt from the earlier parts of the pandemic. We also took a look last week at how the current vaccine rates are changing based on the current wave. You can find that chart here.

As for what is being published around the web, the ABC has written about Covid re-infections, and answers some of the questions about what happens on the second and third, or possibly even fourth go-round of a Covid infection.

 If you catch COVID again, will your symptoms be worse? Here's how likely you are to get it more than once

Across the globe, a tale of two presidents from the Grid, about how President Biden's case is different to former President Trump's, based on access to different antivirals, vaccines, boosters and general health. This is an interesting read looking at the context of two 'famous' cases at two different states of the pandemic.

  President Biden’s covid diagnosis is a case study in what it means to be vaccinated, boosted and have access to Paxlovid 

Following on from that, this article from NBC News runs down how Covid BA.5 is different to proviso strains (including other Omicron ones) and how it has an effect on transmission and re-infection. It also talks about how other interaction with common upper respiratory viruses, such as influenza and RSV, may impact Covid.

 Scientists are narrowing in on why some people keep avoiding Covid. BA.5 could end that luck.

 

For the parents and guardians out there, here are some tips from Insider about recognising Covid BA.4 and BA.5 symptoms in kids.

 Vomiting is a tell-tale sign of BA.5 COVID infection in kids, a pediatrician says. Here are the other signs to look out for.

 

In Australia, the ABC writes about the vaccine rollout news for under-fives, released last week.

 As COVID-19 hospitalisations rise, CMO warns Australia is 'at the start of this wave, not the end'

 

Moving away from Covid momentarily (and remembering that Covid is not the only worrying virus affecting us today), the Guardian reports that the WHO is declaring monkeypox a global emergency.

 Monkeypox declared global health emergency by WHO as cases surge.

 

And news about Covid and viruses aside, we’d like to end this week with something that we think is just pretty cool. Here's a quick read from BigThink about microevolution that might lead to another artery in our (human, that is) hand.

 Humans are evolving a new artery

 

Thanks for reading!
Team Biolink