Category: viruses
A new FDA-authorized COVID-19 test doesn’t need a lab and can produce results in just 5 minutes
There’s a new COVID-19 test from healthcare technology maker Abbott that looks to be the fastest yet in terms of producing results, and that can do so on the spot right at point-of-care, without requiring a round trip to a lab. This test for the novel coronavirus causing the current…
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The FDA just okayed multiple 15-minute blood tests to screen for coronavirus, but there are caveats
On Thursday, the FDA amended their emergency policy around diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Following on a change made March 16, the agency opened the door for a number of specific private entities and labs to develop and distribute tests that can provide results on…
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New crowdsourced COVID-19 symptom map could build a more complete pandemic picture
A new initiative by the Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School could provide a new kind of signal for those studying the spread of the coronavirus pandemic across the U.S. The ‘Covid Near You’ map developed by researchers at both organizations, asks individuals to self-report any potential COVID-19 symptoms,…
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New coronavirus research suggests vaccines developed to treat it could be long-lasting
A new study from Italian researchers suggests that the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which is the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic currently causing a global health crisis, is relatively slow to mutate – meaning that any effective vaccine that is developed to prevent people from getting infected should be broadly effective across…
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Amazon Care to provide delivery and pick-up of at-home COVID-19 test sample kits in Seattle trial
Amazon is going to be working with a new research initiative backed in part by the Gates Foundation that will distribute at-home coronavirus assessment kits, and then deliver the collected samples to FDA-approved test facilities. Amazon Care, the health arm formed by Amazon initially for internal employee care, will be…
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Nvidia makes its GPU-powered genome sequencing tool available free to those studying COVID-19
Nvidia is making its Parabricks tool available for free for 90 days (with the possibility of extension, depending on needs) to any researcher currently working on any effort to combat the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic and spread of COVID-19. The tool is a GPU-accelerated genome analysis toolkit, which leveraged graphics…
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