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PARIS, France (AFP) — A factfile on the Ebola virus that has plunged Guinea into an “epidemic situation” according to a senior health official, and which has killed more than 15,000 people since 1976. – Origins – Ebola was first identified in central Africa in 1976. The tropical virus was named after a river in the Democratic Republic of Congo — then known as Zaire. Five of the virus species are known to cause […]
by Patrick GALEY Agence France Presse Developing new Covid-19 vaccines will fail to end the pandemic unless all countries receive doses in a fast and fair manner, disease experts warned Saturday. As several nations consider implementing vaccine passports when international travel resumes, the authors of an open letter published in the Lancet medical journal said vaccine stockpiling in wealthier countries would only prolong the global health emergency. They warned that “vaccine nationalism” could leave […]
by Marc Preel with Agence France Presse bureaus STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AFP) — The head of the EU’s disease control agency warned Friday that the novel coronavirus could last indefinitely even as global infections slowed by nearly half in the last month and vaccine rollouts gathered pace in parts of the world. In an interview with AFP, ECDC chief Andrea Ammon urged European countries in particular not to drop their guard against a virus that “seems […]
by Thomas URBAIN Agence France Presse Take a guided tour of Elvis Presley’s home from your sofa or marvel at old masters’ paintings in The Met without visiting New York: museums, forced to adapt by the pandemic, are now offering paid virtual tours — but how big a source of income will they become? Interactive walks, video games and podcasts are some of the numerous free innovations museums have launched to try to mitigate the […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British scientists announced on Friday they had developed a test to detect womb cancer using urine samples, explaining the method could replace a painful and invasive procedure currently in use. At present, clinicians diagnose the cancer by taking a biopsy, a process which requires a narrow telescope called a hysteroscope, to examine inside of the uterus and remove cells. Nearly a third of women who undergo the procedure have […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Pet cats and dogs with a fever, cough or breathing difficulties will be offered coronavirus tests if they have been exposed to carriers, the Seoul metropolitan government said Monday. The programme in the sprawling South Korean capital comes weeks after the country reported its first case of Covid-19 infection in an animal, involving a kitten. “Starting today, the Seoul metropolitan government will offer coronavirus tests for pet dogs and […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine fails to prevent mild and moderate cases of the South African coronavirus strain, according to research reported in the Financial Times. But in its study, due to be published Monday, the pharma group said it could still have an effect on severe disease — although there is not yet enough data to make a definitive judgement. None of the 2,000 participants in the trial developed serious […]
by Patrick GALEY Agence France Presse Climate change may have played a “key role” in the transmission of the novel coronavirus to humans by driving several species of pathogen-carrying bats into closer contact, research showed on Friday. The virus, which has killed more than two million people and caused unprecedented global disruption, is thought to have originated in bats in Southeast Asia. Researchers from the University of Cambridge used temperature and rainfall data over […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Pharmaceuticals giant Johnson & Johnson on Thursday submitted an application for emergency authorization of its Covid-19 vaccine with US health authorities, the company said in a statement. The process could take several weeks, but at the end of it the vaccine would be the third authorized in the United States, after those of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. J&J subsidiary Janssen Biotech “has submitted an application to the US Food and […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Oxford University announced on Thursday it will launch a medical trial alternating doses of Covid-19 vaccines created by different manufacturers, the first study of its kind. The trial will show whether different Covid doses — those created by the Astrazeneca and Pfizer/BioNTech pharmaceutical companies — can be used interchangeably to allow greater flexibility in pressured vaccine delivery schedules. The British government’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Jonathan Van-Tam, said the […]
by Robin MILLARD Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The Covax programme for Covid-19 vaccines published its first distribution list Wednesday, planning enough doses for dozens of countries to immunise more than three percent of their populations by mid-year. The list comes with concerns over whether lower-income countries will be left out of the immunisation race dominated by rich nations, a problem Covax was set up to resolve. It broke down for the […]
WUHAN, China (AFP) — World Health Organization inspectors visited a laboratory in China’s Wuhan city on Wednesday that American officials suggested could have been the source of the coronavirus. The inspection of the Wuhan virology institute, which conducts research on the world’s most dangerous diseases, will be one of the most-watched stops on the team’s probe into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic. The sensitive mission, which China had delayed throughout the first year […]
