News (1) / Commentary : Barry Cooper, Marco Navarro-Génie / Translation, editing : John Goh, Gao Jing / / https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/21/4/15/n12882192.htm / Direst re-translation : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
SARS-CoV-2 originated from the CCP
Image : CCP's Wuhan CDC workers removing objects containing suspected traces of SARS-CoV-2 from Wuhan Huanan Seafood Market in early 2020. Source : China News Network
The timeline related to the spread of COVID-19 has changed in the past few months, and with the release of new information, it may change again in the future. The public information seems to generally believe that as early as August 2019, patients with strange flu-like illnesses were observed in China. However, nothing has been confirmed until a 70-year-old man with Alzheimer's disease in Wuhan was diagnosed at the end of December 2019.
Although the report of The Lancet, an authoritative English medical journal, has been somewhat inconsistent recently, it also pointed out that the first patient with symptoms was about December 1, 2019. Appears around. As of the end of 2019, everyone seems to agree that this "new" coronavirus will spread from animals to humans, which is called a zoonotic disease. Under this argument, a variety of statements began to express themselves.
Some observers say that it is not certain what kind of animal has spread to humans, and that this happened at the Wuhan Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market. It is called a “wet market” (a “live poultry” market, a market that sells unprocessed meat, fish, and poultry), not only because it sells live aquatic seafood; it is also a live pangolin and wolf market with places for cubs, hares, snakes, civet cats, porcupines, badgers, pigs, chickens and peacocks.
The second argument is that the wife of a patient with Alzheimer's disease is the source of the infection. She developed pneumonia symptoms in the first weekend of December (2019), and then was admitted to the isolation ward of the hospital, but she has no history of going to the Wuhan seafood market.
Subsequently, some observers turned their attention to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which is about 12 kilometres away from the market; and even some other observers, focused on the Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Prevention (which is affiliated to the Chinese Communist Party), which is closer (about 280 metres from the market and co-managed by the People's Liberation Army Academy of Military Medical Sciences).
The Wuhan virus laboratory happens to have a close relationship with the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Canada. It was built by a contractor of the People's Liberation Army and has connections with the (Chinese Communist Party) Academy of Military Medical Sciences. Its purpose is to become a safe laboratory of the highest level (also a top secret laboratory), capable of safely handling the deadliest human pathogens.
The CCP certified it as reaching the fourth level of biosafety level, which is the highest level of safety. However, many overseas scientists have doubts about this. For example, an article in the British scientific journal Nature in 2017 questioned the safety standards of Chinese microbiology laboratories, which further proved that the novel coronavirus is probably from virus research and is leaked to the market frequented by the public.
In January 2018, the United States appointed scientists with diplomatic status to visit the Wuhan Institute of Viology's virus laboratory. They found that bat-like SARS-like coronaviruses can interact with SARS-like coronaviruses that use humans as receptors. This "strongly indicates that the SARS-like coronavirus in bats can be transmitted to humans and cause SARS-like diseases." These scientists in the United States also found that the laboratories in the laboratory did not follow or implement the fourth-level safety standards, when the research and judgment laboratories were as high as the second-level standards.
The Wuhan Institute of Virology also caused controversy for another reason. Shi Zhengli, a Chinese virologist, led a team to go deep into the bat caves in southern China in order to collect a large number of coronaviruses, so she was nicknamed "Bat Girl". She conducted experiments on bat viruses, "hoping to find out how the virus mutates to become more infectious to humans." These experiments are called "gain-of-function" experiments (hereinafter referred to as GoF experiments). As the name suggests, the purpose of the experiment is to produce viruses that are more pathogenic and/or infectious than the original virus, and even to create viruses that do not exist in nature. To describe the experiment as controversial is actually an understatement. Therefore, the United States will ban GoF experiments from time to time, and the Winnipeg laboratory itself has not yet conducted such experiments. However, after the (GoF experiment) was suspended in October 2014, the experiment resumed in the United States on December 19, 2017.
Shi Zhengli gave a different argument. In terms of the overall context, we should pay attention to two things.
First, the Wuhan Institute of Virology has been studying bats and bat-related diseases for the past 25 years. Once, they tried to find out the origin of SARS-1. But unexpectedly, cross-species infections from bats to humans were detected relatively early. Chinese scientists eventually traced the origin of the SARS-1 virus to a cave in Yunnan Province, more than 1,200 kilometers south of Wuhan.
Moreover, the closest relative to SARS-CoV-2 (the current global pandemic virus) is the coronavirus. It is the hoofed-nosed bat (Rhinolophidae, known as the “Rhinolophidae”) discovered in Yunnan by the Wuhan laboratory in 2013. ”). This virus, called RaTG13 at the time, shares 96.4% of the genes with SARS-CoV-2. But you must know that if 3.8% of genetic mutations are to occur, it will only be possible after 20 to 50 years of natural evolution.
However, what we are about to see is not the full story. In any case, there is still no clear explanation for how Yunnan bats caused Wuhan infection. The second background factor is the hostile geopolitical relationship between China and the United States. Therefore, Shi Zhengli specifically stated that President Donald Trump “owes us an apology” because he implied that SARS-CoV-2 had leaked from the Wuhan virus laboratory.
On July 15, 2020, Shi responded to a series of questions from Science magazine via email. When asked whether bats "in or near Wuhan" might infect someone, she said that she agreed with the theory that the virus spreads through an intermediate host, but she did not speculate what the host might be. Many others mentioned pangolins. These pangolins were found in southern China, and some were smuggled into China from Southeast Asia and became food and traditional Chinese medicine sold at the Wuhan Huanan Seafood Market. Shi also did not point out whether the spread of zoonotic diseases occurred in Wuhan or other places. However, she did agree with the observation of an Australian virus evolution expert mentioned earlier, that is, for the genome arrangement between SARS-CoV-2 and RaTG13 to mutate, it will take up to 20 to 50 years of natural evolution.
However, as just said, this is not the whole story. Shi and the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) said at the same time that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was not genetically engineered. The Americans also said that "there is no reliable evidence" that the virus was deliberately released as a biological weapon. However, the Wuhan Virus Laboratory can indeed perform cut-and-paste genetic engineering experiments.
Evidence shows that in 2015, it exchanged a small part of the SARS-1 coronavirus with another small part of the SARS-like bat coronavirus to create a coronavirus that can be transmitted to humans. In fact, such a change is easy to detect, "It's like an old Victorian house, trying to add a modern version of decorative elements." The Americans said that the virus was not released deliberately. This is obviously also speculation, because no evidence of the release of the virus has been found, and it does not mean that the virus has not been released. Of course, the CCP denies that the release of the virus is expected.
There is one more question that has not yet been answered: About one-third of the initial cluster of cases in Wuhan has not been in contact with the Huanan Seafood Market in Wuhan, which means that COVID-19 is already a human-to-human infection (no need to go through the middle Animal host). So, this has become an indirect evidence that the virus may originate from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
First, as part of the international program, Wuhan Institute of Virology continues to receive funding from the US government for GoF experiments. As mentioned earlier, this kind of research is controversial, especially in laboratories with poor safety records (including the United States itself).
The technique used in the GoF experiment is usually called "animal passage". In 2010, the Dutch virologist Ron Fouchier is working on a flu virus called H5N1. It is mainly spread by people who come into contact with infected poultry and birds, and it is very fatal. Fitch wanted to know how to turn H5N1 into a virus that is easier to spread between humans, so he used ferrets instead of cell culture to conduct GoF experiments to mutate H5N1.
As far as viruses are concerned, the genes of ferrets are relatively close to humans. Therefore, if the mutated H5N1 virus can be transmitted between infected and uninfected ferrets, then human-to-human transmission is also likely to occur. This mutation occurs naturally in ferrets: infect the first animal with H5N1, wait until it becomes sick, and then collect the nasal mucosa to infect the second animal, and then infect the third, and so on. After each iteration, the genetic makeup of the virus changes slightly. After the 10th animal passage, Fitch discovered that the infected animal could spread the virus to another animal in an adjacent cage without the need to pass through the nasal cavity specimen. Then it proves once again that the animal passaging technology of the GoF experiment can eventually produce a new virus, even a deadly virus.
Fitch claimed that the GoF experiment is crucial to understanding the causal relationship between genes, mutations and diseases. Therefore, it is necessary for the production of antiviral drugs in the future. For whatever reason, by 2020, GoF experiments for animal passages will become more common and routine. Although Fitch’s laboratory biosafety level is rated as 2 (BSL-2), most of the (GoF experiments) must be performed in a biosafety level 4 (BSL-4) laboratory.
According to Colin Carlson, an emerging infectious disease expert at Georgetown University, this GoF experiment can help virologists isolate and classify SARS-CoV-2 shortly after it appeared.
But others, especially Richard Ebright of Rutgers University, hold a different view. He believes that the use of other techniques can also achieve the above two purposes like the GoF experiment using animal passage. Importantly, in demonstrating the indirect evidence that the virus originated from the GoF experiment of the Wuhan Virus Laboratory, he believes that compared to genetic engineering transplantation, the use of animal passage experiments will make it more difficult to distinguish the difference between the virus before and after the mutation. For example, in order to restore the photos of "Newsweek" in the past, it would be as difficult to distinguish the true from the false by adding new copy elements of the Victorian era to the original Victorian house.
The conclusion confirms that the mutation produced by the virus through the animal passage technology experiment and the mutation of the original virus after a long period of natural evolution are almost indistinguishable. In other words, to say the least, the mutation of the coronavirus from bats after ten ferrets is difficult to distinguish from the natural evolution of the virus. Of course, it is possible that the Wuhan Virus Laboratory has never carried out an animal passaging GoF experiment, but it is extremely unlikely to say so. It should be said that such experiments are not only routine work, but also in secret.
Another more interesting observation example is that Kristian Andersen, a researcher at Scripps Research, published a widely cited report in the journal Nature Medicine. It was pointed out that "SARS-CoV-2 was not deliberately constructed and manipulated by the virus laboratory." The author went on to discuss "two situations that can reasonably explain SARS-CoV-2." The second one is that after zoonotic viruses are transferred to humans, nature's elimination of humans is more serious than the elimination of animal hosts before the virus is transferred.
The author actually admitted that “in theory, SARS-CoV-2 may be mutated in the process of adapting to cell culture”, and the SARS-CoV-2-like virus found in pangolins also “provides more powerful and direct evidence” , That is to prove that SARS-CoV-2 has gained new transmission ability and can directly cause the phenomenon of human-to-human transmission. But the author did not mention the possibility of animal passaging in the laboratory. However, as Ebright pointed out in response to Newsweek’s e-mail, in addition to different locations and human intervention, the mutations made in the GoF laboratory using animal passaging technology are not the same as the genes of “pangolin passaging” that have naturally evolved in the wild. The variation results are all "same".
Accordingly, Ebright concluded that Anderson's reasoning is "illogical", because there is really no reason to emphasize that mutations must come from the evolution of wild nature, even more so than from laboratory experiments on animal generations.
The conclusion so far can be: The RaTG13 virus owned by the Wuhan Institute of Virology has 96.4% of the same genetic material as SARS-CoV-2 (the novel coronavirus pandemic in the world). Animal passaging experiments can cause 3.8% of genes to mutate, which is much more likely than natural evolution to cause mutations. Secondly, as Ebright said, Shi Zhengli’s denials in response to questions raised by the American geneticist Stanley Norman Cohen in the journal Science were only “to the Chinese authorities and the Chinese Communist Party’s official media as previously stated, make a formulaic and mechanical declaration again.” That’s all.
Therefore, the credibility of Shi Zhengli's statement is actually the same as that of the CCP authorities and the CCP's official media.
Indeed, any reports about the origin of SARS-CoV-2, politically and scientifically, almost rarely question the official version of China!
The copyright is licensed by the writers and belongs to the Frontier Centre for Public Policy in Canada. Excerpted from "COVID-19: The Politics of a Pandemic Moral Panic".
The original ‘It All Began in China’—Book Excerpt From ‘COVID-19: The Politics of a Pandemic Moral Panic’ was published in the English "Epoch Times".
About the Writers:
Dr. Barry Cooper is a professor of political science at the University of Calgary. Dr. Marco Navarro-Génie is a senior researcher at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and the director of the Haultain Research Institute in Canada.
This article only represents the commentators' personal views and does not necessarily reflect the position of The Epoch Times and StayGate.
News (2) to (3) / Reporter : Li Yan / Editor : Lin Yan / https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/21/4/15/n12882671.htm / Translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
News (2)
U.S. intelligence director talks about the origin of the virus, Pompeo calls on the CCP to take responsibility
Leaders of US intelligence agencies testified at a public hearing on "Global Threats" held in Congress on Wednesday (April 14). During the period, the Director of National Intelligence responded to the issue of the origin of SARS-CoV-2 (CCP virus, covi, novel coronavirus) and did not rule out the possibility of leakage from the Wuhan laboratory. She said that she "is continuing to study this issue" in order to "provide a more convincing explanation." On the same day, former Secretary of State Pompeo called on the Biden-Harris administration to let the CCP take responsibility for its actions.
At the hearing on Wednesday, Marco Rubio, deputy chairman of the Senate Intelligence Special Committee, questioned Avril Haines, the director of national intelligence on the origin of COVID-19 (covid, disease caused by the CCP virus).
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Hines said that the US intelligence community is still unclear where, when and how covi nitially spread. She said that there are currently two "theories" regarding the origin of the CCP virus, contact between people and infected animals or laboratory leaks.
"We are continuing to study this issue, collect information, and do our best to provide a more convincing explanation." While making a statement to the Senate Intelligence Special Committee, Hines asked her colleagues present to help supplement.
William J. Burns, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (Central Intelligence Agency), went on to say, “For us and our analysts, one thing is very clear, and that is China (the Chinese Communist Party). The leadership did not fully proactively or fully transparently cooperate with the World Health Organization (WHO), nor did it provide the kind of original and complete data that would help answer these questions. So, we are doing everything we can to use through all the channels of our group, we are working hard to find out the truth."
Senator Rubio, who questioned them, said that it is feasible to explain the escape of the novel coronavirusrus caused by an "accident in the laboratory".
"We have reason to believe that this makes sense. First, the researchers of the Wuhan Institute of Virology have proven from their published records that they are proficient in the genetic modification of bat coronaviruses."
"Secondly, several recorded laboratory leaks occurred in China, including a laboratory involving the original SARS virus." He continued, "Third, the American diplomat who visited the Wuhan Institute of Virology in 2019, warned that they saw the risks of substandard safety (there)."
News (3)
Pompeo: The world is seeing the actions of the CCP in the pandemic
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated on Fox News’ America Reports program on Wednesday that the Chinese government’s handling of the epidemic in the early stages of the epidemic was irresponsible and caused “so many lives” around the world. He said that the world is seeing this (the CCP's inferiority), which is gratifying.
Pompeo said, "We have a lot of evidence" that the Wuhan Institute of Virology "is likely to be the source of the virus."
The former secretary of state said that he hopes to see the Biden administration do more to find the source of the virus while continuing to deal with the epidemic. He hopes that the Biden-Harris administration will "take seriously" the issue of determining the origin of the virus and hold the CCP accountable for its actions.
"I hope they (the Biden administration) can unite the world," he said. "Now the world can see what the CCP has done to them. Europe, India and Brazil are still fighting the Wuhan virus. They (the CCP) laboratory The biosafety (standard) is not enough to assure us that this will not happen again."
The current Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday (11th) that the CCP did not provide global health experts with an opportunity to understand the truth, making the pandemic worse.
He also told the National Broadcasting Corporation's political program "Meet the Press" that the source of the virus must be "investigated". The CCP has neither provided opportunities for contact with international experts, nor has it shared information in real time, and has no transparency at all.
"(The CCP virus) is getting out of control more and more. I think this is much worse than the situation it (original) might have." Brinken said.
Pompeo also talked about the World Health Organization on Wednesday’s program, reminding the US government to continue to be separated from the organization instead of rejoining it as President Biden hoped.
"Don't go back to the World Health Organization (WHO) without any changes," he said.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on March 30 that WHO investigators went to China to study the origin of the pandemic, and China did not provide relevant data.
News (4) to (24) / Reporters : Chen Ting, Xu Jian, Da Fu Ruo, Li Yan / Editor : Ye Ziwei / https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/21/4/15/n12881601.htm / Extract translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
News (4)
5,800 people in the U.S. were vaccinated with 74 dead after being vaccinated
US federal officials said on Thursday (April 15) that about 5,800 Americans are still infected with COVID-19 (a disease caused by the Chinese Communist virus) after full vaccination.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told the media that these Americans have either completed two doses of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or received one dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Among the 5,800 people who were still infected after vaccination, nearly 400 needed to be hospitalized for treatment, and 74 died.
The CDC told CNN in an email: "So far, no unexpected patterns have been found in the demographics of cases or vaccine characteristics."
The Epoch Times asked the agency for case data classified by state and demographics, but did not receive a response.
Last month, states began reporting the number of people still infected after full vaccination. Epidemiologists in Washington State confirmed 217 cases, 5 of which were fatal; in Michigan, 246 such cases were recorded between January 1 and March 31, of which 3 patients died.
More than 100 cases have been reported in other states such as Texas, South Carolina and Oregon.
News (5)
Covid tally on 15 April 2021
According to statistics from Johns Hopkins University, as of Eastern Daylight Time Thursday (April) At 7:00 p.m. on the 15th, the total number of covid cases worldwide exceeded 138 million (138,685,238), and the death toll exceeded 2.97 million (2,979,170).
Newly-added confirmed cases and deaths in a single day on April 14 (Wednesday): (some data adjusted according to worldometer)
75,375 confirmed cases and 956 deaths in the United States;
2,529 confirmed cases and 38 deaths in the UK;
32,546 confirmed cases and 405 deaths in Germany;
43,507 confirmed cases in France and 297 deaths;
200,739 confirmed cases and 1,038 deaths in India;
Brazil has 73,513 confirmed cases and 3,459 deaths;
8,202 confirmed cases and 393 deaths in Russia;
Japan has 5,482 confirmed cases and 49 deaths;
South Korea has 698 confirmed cases and 6 deaths.
News (6)
CBP intercepts counterfeit N95 masks worth US$350,000 from China
The US Customs and Border Protection revealed on 15 April 2021 that a batch of counterfeit N95 masks destined for White Plains, New York, was intercepted at Houston Seaport last week.
The agency said that the estimated retail price of the goods was close to 350,000 US dollars and was produced in China.
CBP officials said the cargo arrived at Houston Seaport on April 7. When officials inspected the shipment, they found that the boxes containing approximately 171,460 masks had the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health logo on them. CBP officials called the trademark holder, but were told that the goods were not licensed, which indicated that the masks were counterfeit.
These fake masks were then handed over to CBP's Office of Fines and Seizure for disposal.
Roderick Hudson, Director of the CBP Port of Houston, said in a statement: "Counterfeit goods not only harm the competitiveness of American manufacturers, but they also pose serious health and safety risks to American consumers. "In this case, these counterfeit N95 respirators may not be able to effectively filter the particulate matter in the air."
The seizure of counterfeit masks is a moment when personal protective equipment is still in high demand in the context of the ongoing COVID pandemic. CBP said that approximately 18 million counterfeit masks were seized in the first three months of 2021, which is much higher than the 12 million masks seized by the agency in fiscal 2020, and only 1,300 were seized in fiscal 2019.
In the Houston area alone, CBP seized more than 2 million counterfeit PPE masks from January to March this year, a significant increase from the 365,000 seizures in 2020.
News (7)
Pfizer: A third dose of vaccine may be needed within 6 to 12 months
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said that people who have been fully vaccinated with Pfizer may need a third dose within 6 to 12 months.
During the CVS Health Live event posted to Facebook on Thursday, Paula said that Real-world data showed that Pfizer vaccine is effective against the South African variant. "The (vaccine) protection will diminish over time, but it's still very, very high within six months," he said.
"If you ask me, I think we need to get vaccinated again based on these data," Paula added.
Paula said it remains to be seen how long it will take to re-vaccinate, but “it’s possible that a third dose may be needed between 6 and 12 months, and then from there, it will need to be re-vaccinated every year. But it all needs to be received and confirmed."
News (8)
21% of Americans refuse to get vaccinated
A recent poll found that 21% of Americans refused to receive any vaccines.
The Monmouth University poll found that 21% of Americans said they would never get any Covid-19 vaccine if it could be avoided, which is equivalent to at least one in every five Americans. The investigation was conducted before the suspension of Johnson & Johnson vaccination in the United States.
The FDA and CDC said they are investigating potentially dangerous thrombosis problems. Six women in the United States experienced thrombosis after being vaccinated. One of them died and one was at risk.
Although the FDA, CDC and mainstream media have repeatedly emphasized that this seems to be a very rare risk, the suspension of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine may lead to Americans' trust in the vaccine. The same problem occurred in the AstraZeneca vaccination in Europe last month. Several countries suspended the vaccination for several weeks. Although most countries resumed the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, it was only restricted to people over a certain age. As a result, people’s trust in vaccines plummeted.
According to Yougov Tracking Poll, the suspension of the AstraZeneca vaccine developed at Oxford University has led to vaccine confidence in Italy, Spain, Germany, France and other EU countries.
On Wednesday (April 14) Denmark announced that it would no longer use the AstraZeneca vaccine. This is the first country in Europe to make this decision.
Johnson & Johnson said that while reviewing vaccines in Europe, it also suspended the launch of vaccines in Europe.
The suspension of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine may not help persuading 21% of Americans who refuse to get any vaccines.
News (9)
Many evangelicals in the United States will not be vaccinated
In this week’s Sunday sermon by Pastor Tony Spell, a message was delivered: Don’t trust the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.
"I want to tell you today, if the anti-mask and anti-vaccine are anti-government, then I am proud of the anti-government." Speyer said to the church members of Life Tabernacle. Speyer is known for protesting the Covid-19 rules in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
He continued, "If your survival rate is 99.6%, why let others contaminate your blood? And this may hurt you."
Although 95% of evangelical leaders surveyed by the National Evangelical Association in January said they were open to vaccination, Speyer firmly opposed it. He is one of many evangelical Christians who oppose the covi vaccine.
News (10)
142 people in Houston were fully vaccinated and contracted the virus
Health experts in Texas confirmed that there are more than 140 people in Houston who tested positive for the Chinese virus more than two weeks after they were fully vaccinated with the CCP virus vaccine. According to the Houston Chronicle, data provided by the Houston Department of Health shows that 142 people in Houston were infected with the CCP virus after they were fully vaccinated, accounting for 0.02% of the total number of residents who were fully vaccinated.
The data of so-called vaccine breakthrough cases can be traced back to January, when the first batch of vaccinators received complete vaccination. Vaccine breakthrough cases refer to cases of covid infection that occur two weeks after people are fully vaccinated.
The city’s chief medical officer, Dr. David Persse, said that it was “not surprising” that residents were infected again after they were fully vaccinated, because vaccination does not make the vaccinated 100% immune. "This vaccine is no different from other vaccines. It can provide you with a certain degree of protection, but no vaccine is 100% effective." He said.
Pells also said that none of Houston residents who tested positive after vaccination required hospitalization. He said that compared with unvaccinated people, vaccinated people usually have very mild symptoms.
News (11)
Norway delays introduction of Johnson & Johnson vaccine, pending investigation
The Norwegian Institute of Public Health announced on Thursday (April 15) that Norway will postpone the launch of Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 (disease caused by the Chinese Communist virus) vaccine, pending "an ongoing investigation."
"In Norway, the use of the Janssen vaccine is delayed until more information is obtained from the ongoing investigation," Geir Bukholm, director of infection control at the Institute of Public Health, said on Thursday. "Jensen" is the name of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine division.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday that they recommend a moratorium on the use of the Johnson & Johnson virus vaccine. The reason is that 6 women between the ages of 18 and 48 developed a rare severe cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) after vaccination with thrombocytopenia.
On Tuesday, Johnson & Johnson unilaterally announced that it would suspend the single-dose vaccine delivery to the EU from Monday. The company originally planned to deliver 200 million doses to the EU in the second quarter of this year (2021).
In a press release on Wednesday, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) stated that it “still believes that the (J&J) vaccine’s benefits in terms of epidemic prevention” outweigh the risks of side effects. "
The agency responsible for verifying the safety of EU vaccines also stated that they are still evaluating "very rare cases of abnormal thrombosis with low platelets" that are alleged to be linked to the vaccine, and "EMA is accelerating the evaluation and is currently expecting to release it next week. Suggest."
News (12)
Norway will stop using AstraZeneca vaccine
The Norwegian Institute of Public Health announced on Thursday that Norway will stop using the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in its vaccine rollout plan based on the risk of side effects to young people.
The institute stated in a statement on its website that Norway now has "risks related to the AstraZeneca vaccine, not the Covid-19 disease".
“Since there are very few deaths from Covid-19 in Norway, the risk of getting the AstraZeneca vaccine will be greater than the risk of dying from the disease, especially young people,” said Gail Buhor, Director of Infection Control at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health Geir Bukholm said in the statement.
The institute explained that Norway "has come a long way" in vaccinating its elderly, and that the main target of the main vaccination is now 65 years and younger.
"Now we know a lot about the AstraZeneca vaccine and the rare and serious events of low platelets, thrombosis and bleeding, instead of March when Norway chose to continue using AstraZeneca after the suspension," Buholm said. "Based on our current understanding, we have made a recommendation to remove the AstraZeneca vaccine from Norway's coronavirus (Chinese Communist virus) vaccination plan."
Buholm continued to point out in the statement that making this decision is not easy because it will directly affect the launch of vaccination and infection control measures.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) stated on April 7 that hypotension, low platelets and thrombosis should be listed as side effects of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
News (13)
AZ vaccine may lead to thrombosis, the cause and treatment found in Germany
Why does AstraZeneca vaccine (AZ vaccine for short) cause rare thrombotic side effects, and is there any solution? German researchers have successfully solved some of the mysteries.
Professor Andreas Greinacher, MD, of Greifswald University, Germany, studied blood samples of affected persons and found that “in rare cases, antibodies formed after vaccination with AZ” activate platelets, and then platelets are like healing wounds, triggering blood clots in the brain.
Subsequently, Professor Grenache developed a therapy together with other European scientists and the Paul Ehrlich Institute in charge of vaccines. Professor Grenache said, "If cerebral venous thrombosis occurs in the future, we will be able to successfully treat it."
"What triggers the formation of special antibodies is still unclear. We are still continuing to study." Professor Grenache explained that usually after vaccination, antibodies are initially formed in the body. In rare cases, this can lead to the formation of antibodies. Special antibodies bind to and activate platelets.
News (14)
India variant virus found in the UK
A variant of the CCP virus was discovered in the United Kingdom. This variant was first detected in India with worrying potential mutations.
According to the latest update of Public Health England (PHE), as of April 14, a total of 77 cases of the virus variant called B.1.617 have been detected in the UK. Of these, 73 cases were recorded in England and 4 cases in Scotland.
This is the first time PHE has reported the discovery of an Indian variant in the UK.
News (15)
New cases burst to record, second wave of virus swept India
India is currently experiencing a second wave of SARS-CoV-2 attacks. On Thursday, the total number of infections exceeded 14 million. According to statistics from the Indian Ministry of Health, more than 200,000 new confirmed covid cases were added on Thursday, the highest single-day increase since the pandemic began.
The Ministry of Health of India also reported 1,038 deaths caused by the Chinese virus on Thursday, bringing the total number of deaths to 173,123.
The last peak of the epidemic in India was in September last year, when the number of single-day cases rose by more than 97,000.
Strict martial law has been imposed in several areas. The Indian capital Delhi imposed martial law and curfew on weekends, and the martial law will last until April 30.
India is the second most populous country in the world (with nearly 1.4 billion people). It has launched a large-scale vaccination campaign, but the surge in cases is still happening. To date, more than 114 million doses of vaccine have been vaccinated. The Ministry of Health of India also announced that it will quickly approve emergency use authorizations for vaccines approved by other countries/regions to expedite the acquisition of more vaccines.
News (16)
India surpasses 200,000 new cases, hospital beds lack oxygen
Image : On 15 April 2021, a doctor is talking to a patient in an isolation center converted into a banquet hall in New Delhi, India. (Anindito Mukherjee/Getty Images)
India notified more than 200,000 new confirmed cases on Thursday, putting the financial center of Mumbai under lockdown. Many hospitals that treat patients with the virus have severely insufficient beds and oxygen.
This huge increase is the seventh record daily increase in the past eight days. The epicenter of this wave of infections was located in Mumbai, the capital of India’s economy. The state’s cases accounted for about a quarter of the country’s total cases.
According to data released by the Ministry of Health on Thursday, India has reported 200,739 confirmed cases and 1,038 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to more than 14.1 million and the total number of deaths to 173,123.
The Indian government stated that in the past two days, the country has been producing oxygen at full capacity every day, and it has increased production, but it still cannot meet the huge demand for oxygen.
News (17)
Turkey reports the highest number of deaths in a single day since the pandemic
According to data released by the Turkish Ministry of Health on Thursday (April 15), Turkey has recorded 297 deaths from Covid-19 (the disease caused by the Chinese Communist virus) in the past 24 hours. This is the highest number of deaths in a single day in the country since the pandemic began.
According to Reuters, the data also showed that the country recorded 61,400 new cases during the same time period, bringing the total number of cases since the beginning of the pandemic to 4,0,86,957.
According to Reuters statistics, as measured by a 7-day average, Turkey currently ranks fourth in the world in single-day increase in cases.
Note: The CCP is accused of concealing the epidemic, and the outside world cannot know its true relevant figures.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan announced several new restrictions on Tuesday, which will be "partially closed" in the first two weeks of Ramadan to curb the surge in cases.
News (18)
The number of new cases and deaths in Iran continues to surge
The Iranian Ministry of Health reported 25,078 new covid cases on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases to 2,168,872.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the country is experiencing a fourth wave of infections.
Sima Sadaat Lari, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, told a press conference on national television that at least 4,601 patients across the country are still hospitalized in intensive care units.
Iran is the region with the most severe outbreaks, the highest number of infections and deaths in the Middle East.
Iran has classified 295 cities and towns with high infection rates as "red areas." These areas are in a semi-lockdown state, and non-essential businesses have been closed.
News (20)
Germany sees 30,000 cases, biggest surge since early January
Germany announced on Thursday that the number of new covid cases reached 29,426, reaching 3.073 million, the largest increase since January 8. The government is trying to implement stricter epidemic prevention measures across the country to curb the third wave of the epidemic.
According to the Robert Koch Institute of Infectious Diseases (Robert Koch Institute), the number of newly notified deaths increased by 293, bringing the total to 79,381, while the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within 7 days rose to 160.1.
In another five months, Germany will face a national election, and Germany is currently struggling to deal with the more contagious variant of SARS-CoV-2. Outsiders estimate that Chancellor Merkel’s conservatives are expected to suffer heavy losses in this general election.
News (21)
Tokyo epidemic heats up rapidly, adding more than 700 new cases in a single day
Tokyo, Japan, added 729 confirmed cases on April 15, a record high since March 21 for two consecutive days, showing that the epidemic is rapidly heating up.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government added 591 confirmed cases yesterday, a record high since the "emergency declaration" was lifted on March 21. According to NHK reports, Tokyo added 729 confirmed cases today. In addition to the fact that more than 700 new cases were added in a single day after February 4, it is also a record high since the "emergency declaration" was lifted on March 21.
In addition, Hyogo Prefecture added 493 confirmed cases today. Although it is slightly lower than yesterday, it is still the second highest record since the local outbreak.
News (22)
Japanese officials: canceling the Olympics is still an option
According to a report by Reuters, a senior official of the Japanese ruling party stated that if the fourth wave of the epidemic continues to expand within less than 100 days from the start of the Olympics, the virus crisis will become too severe, and the cancellation of this year’s Tokyo Olympics will still be a problem. select.
When Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party, was recording a TBS TV program, he frankly confessed to the East Olympics issue that cancellation is indeed an option. He said: "If it is difficult to hold, then we must stop, stop decisively."
In addition, the Minister of Administrative Reform, Taro Kono, said in an interview on another TV program today that the Tokyo Olympics will be held in a way that can be held, and the audience may not be open to the audience, which may be different from the past Olympics.
News (23)
Daily new cases in Thailand set record for fourth time this week
Image : On 14 April 2021, a COVID-19 test station in Bangkok, Thailand was set up on Khaosan Road. (Lauren DeCicca / Getty Images)
Thailand notified 1543 new confirmed cases on Thursday, the sharpest increase since the beginning of the epidemic and the fourth record increase this week.
Although compared with many countries, the number of cases in Thailand so far is not high, but because people travel during the Thai New Year holiday and the vaccination rate is still very low, people are generally worried about the future direction of the epidemic.
Local health officials said that measures are currently being formulated based on the number of cases in each region and will submit approval to the virus working group on Friday.
The authorities have urged people to restrict travel and start working from home.
The mall will also close early at 9pm. The Banking Association stated that the branches outside the mall will close at 3:30pm, and there will be a limit on the number of customers.
The last large-scale blockade in Thailand was at the end of March last year, and a curfew was imposed in April. After that, as the cases were kept under control, the epidemic prevention measures were relatively loose for several months.
Of the new infections on Thursday, 409 were in the capital Bangkok, which is the center of this wave.
The new cases bring the total number of infections to 37,453, and the death toll remains at 97.
The latest epidemic has already put some pressure on Bangkok's medical system. According to Thai regulations, all positive cases must be treated, and 8,973 patients are currently receiving treatment.
According to Reuters estimates, less than 0.4% of Thailand’s population is currently vaccinated, lagging behind Malaysia’s 1.5% and Singapore’s 14.6%.
News (24)
Two pregnant women in Hong Kong miscarried after getting BioNTech vaccine
Two Hong Kong pregnant women miscarried after being vaccinated against covid. The two were hospitalized at Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Queen Mary Hospital respectively. The woman who stayed at Queen Mary Hospital has been pregnant for more than 20 weeks. In addition, as of midnight on the 14th, there were 5 new confirmed cases in Hong Kong, one of which was a local infection, for a total of 11,613 cases.
A spokesperson for the Hong Kong Department of Health said that a 32-year-old woman was vaccinated with BioNTech at the Community Vaccination Center of St. Paul's Hospital on April 8. She tested positive for pregnancy on April 10 and found that on the 11th, her lower body was bleeding. She had lower abdominal pain and discharge of the fetus. The fetus was confirmed dead on the same day.
The other case was another 32-year-old woman who had a positive pregnancy test on March 25 and had a miscarriage on March 31. The woman had been vaccinated with BioNTech vaccination at the community vaccination center of Rainbow Road Badminton Center on March 23.
News (25)
Dealing with thrombosis after J&J and AZ SARS-CoV-2 vaccination
Editor : Li Jia / Source : Health 1+1 / The Epoch Times / https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/21/4/15/n12882660.htm / Direct translation
Recently, Johnson & Johnson vaccine and AZ vaccine (AstraZeneca vaccine) have successively seen thrombosis cases, causing public concern. Thrombosis after vaccination or even fatal, what is the reason? Which symptoms are worthy of vigilance?
What is a blood clot?
When a clot appears in the blood, blocking the blood vessel and blocking blood circulation, it is a thrombus.
Generally speaking, if a blood clot occurs in the brain, it will cause a stroke; if it occurs in the heart, it will cause a myocardial infarction; if it occurs in the legs, it will be a venous thrombosis in the lower extremities.
However, the blood clots in Johnson & Johnson and AZ vaccines are not the same as common ones. Moreover, there are striking similarities between the two. Let's analyze them one by one.
6 Johnson & Johnson vaccine patients with thrombosis, the main initial symptom is headache
On April 13, the US FDA and CDC announced that they recommended to suspend the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and investigate the causal relationship between the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and thrombosis.
Among the people who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, 6 people developed severe thrombotic symptoms, which were cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) accompanied by thrombocytopenia. These 6 people are all women, aged between 18 and 48 years old. Symptoms occur 6 to 13 days after vaccination. Among them, one woman died and the other two were in intensive care.
Among the people who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, 6 people developed severe thrombotic symptoms, which were cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) accompanied by thrombocytopenia.
Dr. Tom Shimabukuro, Head of Vaccine Safety of the Covid-19 Response Team of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, pointed out that these six people have one main symptom-headache.
In addition, there is a seventh "probable case". In Johnson & Johnson's clinical trial, a patient who died of a blood clot was also reported.
AZ vaccine thrombosis side effects What are the details?
Just a week ago, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced the determination of the link between the AZ vaccine and thrombosis, and included "unusual thrombosis and associated platelet reduction" as a rare side effect of the AZ vaccine.
On April 9th, the New England Journal of Medicine (NEMJ) simultaneously published two medical studies from Germany and Norway, reporting rare and abnormal blood clots in 11 and 5 patients after receiving the first dose of AZ vaccine. .
From these two studies on the AZ vaccine, we can see more details. These cases have distinctive features:
The New England Journal of Medicine (NEMJ) published two studies that reported rare and abnormal blood clots in 16 patients after receiving the AZ vaccine.
● Women are obviously more common
● The median age is under 40
● Occurs 1 to 2 weeks after the first injection, which is obviously related to the time of vaccine injection.
● Most patients have headache symptoms.
● Of the 16 reported cases, 9 people died.
They found that AZ vaccine-related thrombosis has two notable features:
Thrombosis associated with AZ vaccine has two other notable features.
Most of the thrombosis occurs in the cerebral veins, and patients have rapid and severe platelet decline.
Platelets are an important component when we do routine blood tests. Although it is small, its function is not small at all. The platelet value of a normal person is 100,000 to 300,000 per microliter (mm3). However, the platelets of these patients fell to less than 1/3 of the lower limit of normal value on average, which is quite low, which is a very dangerous clinical sign. The lower the drop, the greater the possibility of life-threatening.
We have seen that patients with thrombosis after injection of Johnson & Johnson and AZ vaccines have very similar patterns in their conditions.
What is the cause of blood clots caused by the vaccine?
So, why did the side effects of thrombosis and platelet decline occur after injection of AZ vaccine? As the case happened not long ago, there is no clear answer. But the two research teams found that these patients had autoimmune phenomena-their bodies produced antibodies to their own platelets and related components. Antibodies wrap up the platelets and are processed by immune cells, resulting in a decrease in platelet exhaustion, accompanied by abnormal thrombosis.
Researchers call this phenomenon "vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia" (VITT).
So, why does the AZ vaccine cause the body to produce autoimmunity against platelets? There is no answer to the deeper reasons. Personally, there are two possibilities:
Why does the AZ vaccine cause the body to produce autoimmunity against platelets? It is speculated that there are two possibilities.
1. The problem with adenovirus vectors
The AZ vaccine is an adenovirus vector vaccine, using a modified chimpanzee adenovirus as a vector. The medical profession has known before that the combination of adenovirus and platelets can cause platelet activation, which may lead to platelet depletion.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is also an adenovirus vector vaccine. When the thrombotic side effects of the AZ vaccine surfaced, the US FDA and CDC immediately stopped the vaccination of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. This shows that the medical community has concerns about the adenovirus vector vaccine. At present, this possibility cannot be ruled out.
2. The problem of SARS-CoV-2
On the other hand, SARS-CoV-2 (CCP virus) has only appeared for more than a year, and because the epidemic is too serious, people have spent a lot of energy on developing vaccines, and their understanding of the pathological mechanism of the virus itself is still very superficial. Vaccines mimic viruses. The unexpected side effects of vaccines suggest that certain pathological mechanisms of the new coronavirus in the human body may not be fully understood.
For example, it is generally believed that the CCP virus enters cells only through the ACE2 receptor. However, a study published in the top medical journal Cell in November 2020 proposed that a co-receptor, heparan sulfate, is needed for viruses to invade cells. Heparan sulfate is a molecule widely found on the surface of cells. In other words, ACE2 is only part of the story, not the whole story.
This incident reminds us that we may need to calm down, seriously think about the safety of vaccines, and reflect on the pros and cons of vaccine development.
How high is the incidence of thrombosis in Johnson & Johnson and AZ vaccines?
So, what is the rate of rare thrombosis caused by the vaccine? As of April 4th, about 10 cases of thrombosis (mainly cerebral venous sinus thrombosis) have occurred in people receiving AZ vaccine in European countries such as the United Kingdom.
In the general population, the incidence of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis is 3 to 4 cases per 1 million people according to the 2009 study; in 2018, the U.S. study statistics is 15 cases per 1 million people. However, cerebral venous thrombosis is not easily diagnosed, and the true incidence is unclear.
In the United States, there are currently about 7 million people receiving Johnson & Johnson vaccine, of which there have been 6 cases of thrombosis, which is close to 1/100 million.
Incidence rate is on the one hand, on the other hand, the location, severity and consequences of thrombosis must be considered.
In particular, these blood clots did not occur in the elderly, but in the young people, in the deep veins of the brain, causing many deaths. As of March 22, European regulators have conducted a detailed review of 86 cases, of which 18 were fatal and the death rate was as high as 20%.
Although the thrombotic side effect of the vaccine is rare, it can cause fatal harm to young and healthy people, and the risks obviously outweigh the benefits. Therefore, it is reasonable for many countries to suspend AZ vaccination for people under 60.
After vaccination, there are 2 major symptoms to be vigilant
So, how to identify possible rare thrombotic symptoms after injection of Johnson & Johnson and AZ vaccines? European regulatory agencies and the US CDC have separately reminded that within three weeks of receiving the vaccination, if any of the following conditions occur, seek medical attention as soon as possible:
Severe and persistent headaches, persistent abdominal pain, swelling or pain in the legs, blurred vision, shortness of breath, and bruises on the skin outside the injection area.
How to identify possible rare thrombotic symptoms after injection of Johnson & Johnson and AZ vaccines?
Among them, there are two obvious characteristics:
1) Headaches: especially persistent and severe headaches, must not be ignored, this is the main symptom characteristic of all current cases. If there is a cerebral venous thrombosis, it may also be accompanied by symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and blurred vision.
2) Blood ecchymosis spots on the skin: pay attention to monitor whether there may be a rapid and severe drop in the number of platelets. When skin ecchymosis occurs, it may be a platelet problem. If you suspect that you have symptoms of thrombocytopenia after the vaccination, you might as well go to the hospital for a simple blood test to rule out the risk. In addition, the baseline value of platelets before vaccination is also valuable for providing judgment.
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