Research, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA
News on disease control, CCP, UAE, Japan, U.S.
News (1)
Covid may slow baby development
Report by : Xin Yu, China Science Journal / https://news.sciencenet.cn/htmlpaper/2022/1/2022169431842569176.shtm
Image : A doctor examines a baby. Photo credit: Reuters/Lucas Jackson
Compared with babies born before the pandemic, babies born in 2020 had lower scores on developmental tests at 6 months on motor and social skills, but there were no significant differences between the groups on communication and problem-solving skills. The findings were published on 4 January in JAMA-Pediatrics.
The researchers said there were no big differences between the two groups, only small changes in the mean scores. But these small changes deserve careful attention because at the population level, they could have major public health impacts.
Corresponding author of the paper, Dani Dumitriu, a pediatrician at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, believes that parental pressure may be one of the reasons for this disparity. For individual infants, a slight slowdown in neurodevelopment does not necessarily predict long-term outcomes, she added. "Babies at 6 months are extremely plastic, and their brains are ready to get back on track with neurodevelopment."
Some previous studies have looked at infant development during the covid pandemic. In a preprint paper published in August 2021, researchers at Brown University found that infants born after July 2020 had significant declines in language, motor and overall cognitive performance compared with infants born before 2019. A study published in October 2021 in Frontiers in Pediatrics by researchers at the Women's and Children's Medical Center of Guangzhou Medical University found that 1-year-old infants born in the spring of 2019 had slightly less slowness of movement.
For the study, researchers looked at the developmental scores of 227 babies born during the coronavirus pandemic at two hospitals in northern Manhattan and compared them with 62 babies born at one of the hospitals in the two years before the pandemic. The neurodevelopmental test covers 30 questions including motor, communication, problem-solving and personal social skills, such as whether babies turn their heads when they hear noises, reach for oatmeal rings, and roll from back to belly.
At the same time, the researchers adjusted for differences in infant gender, gestational age at birth, and mother's age, race, ethnicity, education level and pregnancy history.
It found that infants born between March and December 2020 had significantly lower fine and gross motor skills, as well as their personal social scores, than infants born before the pandemic.
The mothers with the lowest scores were in the first trimester during the first peak of the covid pandemic in New York City, USA (7 March to 6 April 2020). This may indicate that maternal stress in early pregnancy has a greater impact on infant socioemotional functioning than stress in late pregnancy, the researchers said.
Suzanne King, a developmental psychologist at McGill University in Canada, is skeptical of the findings, arguing that the study's sample size based on group comparisons is very small. Mollie Wood, a perinatal epidemiologist at the University of North Carolina, added that the statistical work the team did to control for influencing factors may not have been enough to eliminate differences.
Encouragingly, Dumitriu's team also found that contracting covid during pregnancy did not affect the child born. There were no differences in neurodevelopment between 114 infants born to mothers with Covid-19 and 141 infants born to mothers without Covid-19.
However other scientists are also skeptical of the finding. Tom O'connor, a psychologist at the University of Rochester in the United States, said the study does not prove that covi is not harmful to children's later development.
News (2) to (7) / Reporter : Hu Dingkun / Publisher : Science & Technology Daily / https://news.sciencenet.cn/htmlnews/2022/1/472004.shtm
News (2)
Coviflu has already appeared! Will it bring "super virus"?
A few days ago, it was reported that Israel had discovered the world's first co-infection of covi and influenza virus. Some experts said with concern that this co-infection may lead to more serious illnesses, and some even worry that a new superinfection virus may be produced.. How serious is co-infection? Still have to look at the analysis from a scientific point of view.
First of all, it is not rigorous to say that Israel discovered the world's first case of co-infection with the new coronavirus and influenza virus.
On 2 January, The Times of Israel reported that a pregnant woman in the country was found to be infected with both the covid virus (covi) and the flu virus, the first case of "co-infection" in Israel. The media specifically pointed out that "some reports say this is the first such case of dual infection in the world, but as early as the spring of 2020, there were reports of co-patients with influenza and covid in the United States."
In fact, co-infection cases of the covid virus and influenza virus are not uncommon, and have appeared many times before.
News (3)
Coviflu in New York in February 2020
In late February 2020, the whole family of a patient in Queens, New York, USA tested positive for influenza and covid;
News (4)
Coviflu in April 2020
In April of the same year, researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine in the United States also found a co-infected person with influenza and covid in the test of samples from patients with respiratory diseases in northern California;
News (5)
Coviflu in Spain in May 2020
In May, researchers at the Barcelona Hospital in Spain wrote in the journal The Lancet that the hospital found four co-infection cases at the same time, and called on the medical community to strengthen research on this phenomenon.
News (6)
79 cases of coviflu in several countries as of September 2020
According to the statistics of researchers at the Alberts Medical University in Iran, as of September 2020, researchers in Iran, Spain, Italy, France, the United States, Switzerland, Japan and other countries have reported at least 79 cases of co-patients with the new crown and influenza. In June of this year, researchers at King Fahd Hospital in Saudi Arabia published a paper that tested 48 patients with new coronary pneumonia and found that 17 of them were infected with the H1N1 influenza at the same time.
In addition, whether co-infection of the covid and influenza virus will aggravate the disease is still a question worthy of attention.
News (7)
Saudi Arabia: Co-infection with covid and H1N1 influenza leads to higher death rate
Many studies suggest that co-infection of multiple viruses may exacerbate the disease. Saudi researchers have observed that patients co-infected with covid and influenza A H1N1 flu are more seriously ill, admitted to the ICU and have a higher case fatality rate. The reason may be that the influenza virus infection exacerbates the immune storm. In October 2020, researchers at Wuhan University published a preprint paper saying that experiments showed that influenza virus can promote the entry ofcovi into cells, resulting in greater viral load and more severe lung damage in mice.
But some experts have a different view. In October 2020, researchers at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx, New York City, USA compared the medical data of 18 patients co-infected with the new crown and influenza virus with patients who were only infected with covi. There is no significant difference between the two.
News (8)
Coviflu increases difficulty of treatment
In addition to potentially affecting the severity of the disease, experts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have warned that infection with the covid and influenza virus will increase the difficulty of treatment. For example, corticosteroids can be used in the treatment of severe cases of covid, but may increase the risk of death in flu patients.
So, will the covi and influenza virus recombine in the human body to produce a "super virus"?
At present, there is no research to support the claim that the covi and influenza virus will recombine. Covi and influenza virus are two completely different viruses, and viral recombination usually occurs between similar viruses. However, this possibility cannot be completely ruled out. In 1988, Dutch scientists published a paper saying that they found traces of the recombination of coronavirus and influenza C virus on the mouse hepatitis virus MHV-A59.
In short, the raging covid epidemic around the world has made us nervous, but under the guidance of science, please do not panic too much. "
News (9)
New international study reveals genetic risk factors for loss of smell or taste in covid
Reporter : Sun Zifa / https://news.sciencenet.cn/htmlnews/2022/1/472820.shtm
A newly published genetics research paper in the professional academic journal "Nature-Genetics" under Springer Nature reveals that after infection with covid there are genetic risk factors for an individual's susceptibility to symptoms of loss of taste or smell: This locus, located near two genes, UGT2A1 and UGT2A2, is associated with an 11% increased chance of developing either symptom after infection with SARS-CoV-2 related.
Loss of smell or taste is a unique symptom of covid but not every infected person develops these symptoms, and the mechanism is unclear, the paper said.
To this end, corresponding author Adam Auton of 23andMe, an American personal genetic testing company, and colleagues conducted a genome-wide association study using online survey data from 69,841 individuals over the age of 18 living in the United Kingdom. or US study participants (63% women, 37% men). They found that a series of variants located near the UGT2A1 and UGT2A2 genes made individuals 11 percent more likely to lose their sense of smell or taste after contracting covi. Both genes encode enzymes that are expressed in cells inside the nose that are involved in eliminating odorant molecules that bind to receptors involved in olfactory detection.
According to the authors of the paper, this finding provides clues to the biological mechanisms behind the loss of smell or taste associated with covid. However, they cautioned that, despite the large sample size, the study may be biased towards individuals with European ancestry and requires a distinction between anosmia and anosmia, where the two symptoms are combined in a single survey question. Possible clinical duplication (rather than relying on individuals reporting symptoms) would also be helpful, they concluded.
News (10)
Mail carried Omicron into Beijing? Canada's Health Minister laughs: Bizarre View
A confirmed case of Omicron variant virus appeared in Beijing, China on the 15th. The source of infection is unknown, which caused concern. The Beijing authorities said on the 17th that the patient had sent and received international emails from Canada, and the Omicron virus was also detected on the email. It could be spread by international mail, which Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said was rather bizarre.
According to Canadian media reports, Health Minister Duclos held a press conference on the 17th local time. When asked by the Beijing authorities that the local Omicron variant virus patient was diagnosed by sending and receiving international mails from Canada, Duclos laughed after hearing it. His response: "I find this to be, let's say, an extraordinary view."
Duclos said that he is not an expert, doctor or biologist, and will let professionals provide correct advice and opinions.
Many Canadian medical experts have also refuted China's claims. Professor Gerald Evans, an infectious disease expert at Queen's University, said Beijing's statement is unbelievable. He emphasized that covi loses 90% of its infectivity after 20 minutes in the respiratory tract of an infected person. Colin Furness, an epidemiologist and assistant professor at the University of Toronto, also said this argument is not persuasive. The virus cannot survive on paper for more than 1 or 2 days.
Canada Post said the World Health Organization and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) have publicly assured that the risk of handling mail, including international mail, is extremely low, stating that there is no known risk of covi entering Canada through parcels or packages, and there is no evidence to indicate that imported goods or packages can spread COVID-19.
On the 15th of this month, Beijing reported a confirmed case of local Omicron. There was no history of travel and residence in other provinces or cities within 14 days before the onset of the case. During work, he occasionally sent and received international mail. The international mail was sent from Canada on 7 January and arrived in Beijing via the United States and Hong Kong. The patient received it on 11 January. On the mail, China said that the international mail detected Omicron variant strain-specific mutation sites.
Authorities in Beijing have called on people to "refrain from buying overseas products" for now, and if necessary, to clean packages with alcohol outside and wash their hands.
News (11)
The boneless fish is expected to become a reality! Huazhong Agricultural University team finds genes that control fishbone
Reporter : Xu Wei, CCTV, https://news.sciencenet.cn/htmlnews/2021/12/471434.shtm
The boneless fish is expected to come to the table, and the team of Professor Gao Zexia from the School of Fisheries of Huazhong Agricultural University found the gene that controls the fishbone.
Since 2012, Professor Gao Zexia has devoted himself to the research of spineless fish. At the end of 2019, the team discovered a major gene in zebrafish that plays a major role in regulating the growth of fishbone. At present, Gao Zexia's team and Gui Jianfang's team from the Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences have tested the knockout of major genes regulating fishbone growth in bream, grass carp and silver carp, respectively. The obtained first-generation hybrids (F0 generation) had good growth and normal shape, and the habit was no different from that of ordinary barbed fish. At present, the research is still in-depth. As research progresses, the spineless fish is expected to be on the table in the future.
News (12) to (23) / Host : Li Muyang / Publisher : News Insight / https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2022/01/18/a103323836.html
News (12)
Terrorist strikes in Abu Dhabi
Two suspected drone strikes occurred in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, on the 17th, killing three people, injuring six others and causing a fire. Yemen's Houthi rebels claim to have attacked a key oil facility in Abu Dhabi and sparked a fire at Abu Dhabi's international airport.
News (13)
Milley diagnosed covi-positive
A spokesman for Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed on the 17th that Milley tested positive for the CCP virus (Wuhan virus, covi) on the 16th, and his symptoms were very mild. Milley is currently isolated and working from a distance.
News (14)
Kishida and Biden to meet via video conferencing
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Biden are scheduled to hold a video meeting on the evening of the 21st. Japanese government spokesman Hiroichi Matsuno said on the 17th that this meeting will show the world the firm ties of the Japan-US alliance. Japanese media reported that under repeated threats from the CCP, the two sides will exchange views on how to deal with the risk of "things in the Taiwan Strait".
News (15)
Chinese human rights activist arrested
Yang Maoping, the sister of Chinese human rights activist Guo Feixiong, told The Epoch Times on the 17th that the Guangzhou State Security Bureau verbally notified Guo Feixiong at noon on the 15th that Guo Feixiong had been arrested. Authorities charged him with "inciting subversion of state power" and is currently being held at the Guangzhou No. 1 Detention Center.
News (16)
International covid data on 17 January 2022
As of 17 January at 2 pm EST, 2,095,060 people were newly diagnosed covi-positive, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 328,905,329; 4,447 people died in a single day, and the cumulative total number of deaths was 5,558,191 people.
News (17)
Dagang Oilfield closed, some people jumped from the building in Jinnan
The National Health Commission of the Communist Party of China announced on 17 January 2022 that 163 new local confirmed cases were added on 16 January. Among them, there are 80 cases in Tianjin and 68 cases in Henan. Judging from the figures, Tianjin is still the most severely affected place in the country.
80 new cases, the highest single-day increase since the outbreak in Tianjin. Up to now, Tianjin has reported 294 cases and nearly 28,000 people have been quarantined. Free Asia quoted Ms. Yang, a resident of Tianbinhai New Area, as saying that a case was discovered in the Binhai New Area, and "the (Dagang) oil field is currently closed."
On 17 January netizens sent me a photo, but I can't show it to everyone. Because this photo is quite sensitive, it is easy to expose the personal information of netizens who broke the news, and there is a great security risk. So I can only tell you.
The photo shows that at 10.06 am yesterday (16th), someone called 110 and someone jumped off the building in Fengda Park, Xianshuigu Town, Jinnan District. The South Ring Road Fire and Rescue Station in Jinnan District immediately dispatched rescue vehicles and firefighters within 5 minutes to carry out "first-level" rescue.
Photos only reflect this information. As for whether the people who jumped off the building were rescued, there is no clue in the photos.
Fengda Park was the first community in Tianjin to discover the epidemic, and it was also the first to be locked down. It has been 10 days since the 8th. You can imagine how difficult it was for the people who were blocked. After a while we will talk about Xi'an, where the people are also very difficult. Then talk about Tianjin.
In another video sent by netizens, it was shown that in the dark night, people in a certain community shouted "Come on" in the building. But will this kind of shouting move the Li Hongzhong authorities?
News (18)
Tianjin "cleared" on 20 January? A new isolation point is set up in Jinghai, Jixian County
At today's epidemic prevention and control meeting, Li Hongzhong, secretary of the Tianjin Municipal Party Committee, said that it is necessary to "comprehensively promote social clearing." The official, known as "absolutely", called for "more frequent testing" to stop the spread of the virus.
On 16 January, Zhang Boli, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that the goal now is to strive for "social clearing" in a short period of time, and "in a few days", "no new patients will be found in the closed and controlled areas, and no new patients will be found outside the controlled areas." New infections were discovered."
If you are familiar with the language of the CCP officialdom, you should know the meaning behind Li Hongzhong's request to "comprehensively promote social clean-up," and understand what Zhang Boli is implying by these words.
This means that Tianjin may, like Xi'an, bring all the "risk" people considered by the authorities to separate places for isolation, so that there will be no new cases in the urban area of Tianjin. This basically confirms the exclusive news that netizens told us.
On 16 January evening, that is, this morning (17th) local time, a netizen in Tianjin said that according to "reliable" news from a high-level system in Tianjin, the authorities asked Tianjin to "clear" the city on the 20th.
Netizens said in the email that it is said that the Tianjin authorities will conduct 6 nucleic acid tests for all staff, and the third has been done now. In addition, whether it is a red code or a yellow code, all will be taken away for centralized isolation.
Netizens also introduced that the centralized isolation point in Ninghe District is full. Authorities also vacated a large number of hotels and hotels in Jizhou District and Tuanbo New City to receive quarantined people.
Jizhou District is the original Jixian County, Tianjin, in the northernmost part of Tianjin City. In 2016, it was changed to Jizhou District. The terrain of this area is the transition zone between the Yanshan Mountains and the North China Plain, and the mountainous area accounts for most of it. I don't know if the authorities sent people into the ravine. Tuanbo New City is located in Jinghai District, Tianjin, 14 kilometers away from the center of Tianjin. It is a new development site.
These situations that netizens broke the news can be corroborated from the breaking news sent by many netizens.
News (19)
Large-scale transfer and quarantine, people are angry
According to netizens, from 7 am on 16 January, the Jinnan District of Tianjin, where the epidemic was the most severely affected, has concentrated on pulling people out. Among them, more than 8,000 people in Linjin Garden in Jinnan District and the residents of the 2 gates of Building 11 of Peninsula Haoting were all taken away.
[Original sound video] Start to set off, the whole Lin Jin, Da Lin Jin and Xiao Lin Jin, the whole set out. No one left, all left. All started off.
A certain place in Jinnan District informed in an announcement that all residents of Linjin Garden and villages such as Baitangkou, Shangguo, Shangwang, Zhangjiazui, Chaixin, Qinghe, and Jitai would be taken away.
The photos sent by netizens showed that the epidemic prevention personnel were on standby early. At the west gate of "Xinwangli North District", the sky has not yet dawned, and there are still stars and lights in the nearby high-rise buildings. Under the light of the street lights, countless epidemic prevention personnel in white isolation suits gathered together, as if waiting for an order.
[Original sound video] Live here, we don't know who is provoking who, oh my God! I can't sleep well, xx, the lights are flashing crazily outside. Oops! Omg!
A number of netizens took videos and photos showing that the authorities dispatched many buses, which almost filled the six lanes of the up and down lanes.
【Original sound video】Everyone have a look. See, we are downstairs, and all the roads are full of cars, buses. There is no normal lane at all for picking up and dropping off quarantined personnel.
A number of netizens who went to quarantine together took pictures of people queuing up to get on the bus. One of the photographers said while taking pictures, "After the line is two miles away."
[Original sound video] The number is going to be quarantined, and it will be my turn soon, where is this sent? How many cars?
However, judging from the situation in the car photographed by netizens, the authorities only sat in a curved shape for the people who were taken away and isolated, and there were no other protective measures. The people waiting in line were also very dissatisfied with the arrangement of the authorities.
【Original sound video】Look, is there such a thing as the fuck? (Are you making a noise?) Out of the gate, this place was photographed, and there were thousands of people who were sick and sick. Is there such a fucking isolation?
People waiting to be quarantined are dissatisfied with the "gang coax" arrangement of the authorities. Too many people are crowded together, and cross-infection is easy to occur. But at the isolation point, many residents were reluctant to move in because the environment was too bad.
A netizen forwarded me a video on Douyin, which was uploaded by someone who was quarantined. However, netizens said that they can no longer be found on Douyin and may have been deleted.
[Original sound video] I've had blood and mold for eight lifetimes. This is, look at this isolated place, is this a place where people live, you say? (Daughter: This is not where people live, this is where pigs live).
A netizen who lives in Dasi Town, Xiqing District, Tianjin, said that he is a new viewer of "News Watch". "Deeply touched" after watching the latest episode of the show, so he told us what he knew.
This friend is in the epidemic control area, and the community diagonally opposite to his home is the centralized isolation point for the epidemic.
According to netizens, "the night temperature in Dasi Town, Tianjin is as low as -10°C". However, the houses in this community are simply decorated, with floor tiles and walls painted, but there is basically no furniture, and it is not clear whether the central heating is connected.
Netizens saw through binoculars that many residents who were brought to the centralized isolation point were wandering downstairs in the community and at the crossroads outside the community in the cold winter, unwilling to move in. The Justice Bureau has dispatched staff to "persuasion" residents with flashing police cars. Netizens said that it was a pity that they did not take pictures because they were too far away.
News (20)
"Volunteers" spit bitter water, grab food and quilts to sleep on the ground
In fact, judging from the complaints of netizens on Weibo, the situation of the volunteers is not much better. A netizen said, "What negative news? Your organization is not in place! You can't let volunteers freeze and starve."
Then someone posted a thread below, reflecting more unknown circumstances. The netizen said that he had endured for a day, and the friends of his neighborhood committee were "forced to support Jinnan as volunteers. After the notification, they were taken away directly, and they didn't bring anything."
The netizen wrote, "Of course, it's useless if you bring it with you. It's no different from sleeping on the street. You just throw it to the school when you get there. Auntie's first day, she slept in a leaky classroom for three or nine days. The cement floor and quilt had to be grabbed. It is said that there are no cushions in some areas, and meals need to be robbed. It may take a month, after all, it has to be isolated after the end, there is no water, no electricity, no place to wash, is this true?"
The post wrote, "The photos are all saved, there are pictures and the truth, and now I'm trembling with anger. But the leader said that it is not allowed to speak out, and no negative news is allowed. I want to ask who is this for? Even if you are quarantined There are still four steamed buns for the people who are still in 2019? It's too good for Nima." "I'm really afraid that the lesbians will freeze and not have children, and the country will condemn them again."
This is what this "volunteer" posted on Weibo. I went to the Weibo of both bloggers to read it, but I couldn't find the post. I don't know if it was deleted.
It can be seen from the content of the post that "volunteers" are not "voluntary", but "forced". After arriving in Jinnan District, their food and accommodation conditions were not even as good as those of the quarantined people who had four steamed buns a day. But the leader told me "Don't speak out, don't have negative news".
Everyone should know by now that there was not much news from Tianjin, where Omicron was first reported, because the authorities demanded that no negative news be allowed. In other words, the authorities are asking people not to send negative messages on the one hand, and on the other hand, they are likely to implement stricter network controls.
That's part of the truth in Tianjin, and the situation in Beijing is equally bizarre.
News (21)
Beijing said that there was no local new increase and admitted coexistence with the virus?
The Beijing Municipal Health Commission said today (17th) that more than 13,000 people in Beijing have been screened for nucleic acid. From the test results, only the case and its residence and office environment were tested positive, and the rest were negative. Except for the first case of Omicron variant infection detected on the 15th, there have been no new local cases so far.
I was almost overjoyed by this announcement from Beijing. It seems that this Omicron is really a member of the party. He is very contagious abroad. As long as there are infected people around him, the people around him will basically not run away. Millions of people are infected a day, and the spread is very fast.
After Omicron entered China, the contagion became very low. Only the case's home and office environment tested positive, and none of her close contacts were infected. This "party spirit" is higher than that of ordinary party members. According to the level, this Omicron must at least be above the "department level", right? How ridiculous is this?
As I mentioned in the program on the 15th, the trajectory of the first confirmed patient in Beijing is quite complicated. From the 1st to the 14th, I have been to 17 indoor public places in Beijing, and I have also taken the subway and bus and so on.
The authorities are simply insulting people's IQ. The girl acts every day, but only 15 close contacts are reported. Based on the population density of Beijing, it is estimated that there are at least hundreds of thousands of "time and space attendants" and close contacts. If we use geometric algorithms to estimate, how many people will be infected in Beijing in these ten days?
Let's not say "space-time accomplices", that is, direct close contacts. How can there be only 15 people? Could it be that the subways and buses she takes are her special cars and trains? Could it be that the restaurants, cafes and large supermarkets she went to only received her alone? Could it be that the talk show at the theater was reserved for her?
A retiree from a public institution in Beijing told Free Asia that, judging from past experience, the number of infected people this time is definitely not the official number. The retiree believes, "There must be more than one in Beijing. The trajectory of this patient is very complicated, and you can't find some people with mild symptoms."
He said, "Now if you don't bring your mobile phone, you don't even want to enter public places or enter the parking lot, you will be unable to move an inch. Now regular shopping malls will take your temperature and health treasures for you."
Another Beijing resident, Ms. Tang, said that there have been reports of people testing positive for nucleic acid recently, but they could not be verified. "The day before yesterday, they said that there was another positive case in a certain community, but they absolutely dare not report it like this now. Because they are facing the opening of the Winter Olympics, he absolutely dare not report too much recently, only... You understand."
A netizen also expressed doubts in an email to me. The case in Beijing "eats, drinks and has fun every day, and only 15 people are in close contact? Is this the rhythm of taking it lightly and opening up coexistence"?
Netizens' questions are basically the same as our judgments, and we also feel that Beijing has been unable to find out. Because the first reported patient is too large, whether it is the contact surface or the contact person.
If all of them are reported and they are all taken away from quarantine, it is possible that half of Beijing will not be covered, so simply not one of them will be reported. In the words of the common people, "If there are too many lice, it will not itch, and if there are too many accounts, there will be no worries."
The purpose of Beijing's actions is to blame the source of the virus and cover up the loopholes in its own epidemic prevention measures.
News (22)
Toxic international mail, Beijing experts contradict common sense
At today's (17th) epidemic prevention and control meeting, Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that the first confirmed case in Beijing received an international email from Canada on January 11th. This way, mails from the United States and Hong Kong have been tested positive in many places such as the inner and outer surfaces of the packaging, so the possibility of virus transmission from overseas imported items cannot be ruled out.
The Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention said that on 7 January, a total of 54 pieces of mail were sent from Canada to different addresses in China. In 6 of the emails, traces of the virus were found. This email to Beijing arrived at the Capital Airport on the 10th.
The person in charge of the Beijing Postal Bureau also said that during the epidemic, when receiving international mail, you should pay attention to protection and do not give the virus a chance.
Although these statements in Beijing are not directly explained, everyone can understand them. The implication is that the international mail from Canada carried the Omicron strain and infected the Beijing woman.
According to the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, there are two doubts. One is how long the virus survives on the object. The mail was sent from Canada on the 7th, and there were 4 days in between until the woman in Beijing received the mail on the 11th. Has the virus survived?
Responding to the Beijing CDC's statement, Canada Post responded on its official website, pointing out that there is no evidence that the CCP virus can Spread through imported goods or packages. "Because of the poor survivability of the coronavirus on surfaces, there is a low risk of transmission from products or packaging shipped over a period of days or weeks."
Not long ago, the United States Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a joint statement. It stated that based on the understanding of existing scientific information and the support of international consensus, it is basically impossible for the new coronavirus to spread through video or food packaging.
Second, even if the virus is attached to the surface of the email, it cannot be explained that the virus only infects the woman in Beijing. Before the woman, no one who handled the email was infected.
The South China Morning Post reported today (17th) that all employees who handle the mail, especially the eight employees in Zhongguancun who may have come into contact with the mail that the authorities are referring to, have been quarantined. All of them tested negative.
Guo Li, a Beijing resident who understands the entry procedures for international mail, told Free Asia, "I think the possibility of this kind of package spreading (the virus) is very low. I also said that no matter the mail sent overseas or domestically, the postal department said that after a few days. disinfection, so this is unlikely."
News (23)
A community in Xi'an sells vegetables for six taels per pound
Let's take a look at the situation in Xi'an. At noon today (17th), a netizen told me in an email that one of his friends works at Xi'an International Studies University. I learned from the friend that the old campus has been closed for half a month after a confirmed case was found on January 3. The school leaders didn't say anything, always prevaricate and perfunctory.
Netizens said that the "management of the old campus of Xi'an International Studies University is too chaotic", and the school leaders were criticized for this, and the black hat may not be guaranteed. The risk level of many places has been lowered, but the University of Foreign Studies has not made any noise.
I have no way of verifying this information from netizens. However, another friend from Xi'an also mentioned the downgrading of risk levels in some areas of Xi'an. The friend said that the epidemic in Xi'an may be nearing its "end".
The netizen said in the email that some administrative regions are gradually reducing the risk area, and the community where he lives has been reduced to a low-risk area. I haven't done nucleic acid tests for three consecutive days before, and I started doing it today (17th), which may be the last screening for unblocking.
It has been 26 days since Xi'an was closed on 23 December 2021, and I really do not know how they survived these days.
Another netizen broke the news. During the epidemic, the property and sub-district office of Zhongtian Jinting Community in Xi'an organized and arranged to sell vegetables in the community. After five or six days of selling, the owners discovered that they "used six liang scales".
In the video sent by netizens, it was shown that there were several scales on the ground at night. A resident put 2 small handfuls of green onions and 2 white radishes on one of the scales, and a resident next to them said, "This is not enough." Then a man called out "3.9", and then many people around shouted "3.9". From the reaction of the public, it is clear that it is not enough.
Everyone, please note that Xi'an is still under lockdown, and it is impossible for ordinary people to enter and leave the community casually. But the streets have this power, they can not only come and go freely, but also enter the community to sell vegetables.
In fact, it is a good thing for the people who are locked up and arrested at home that the community property and the street office enter the community to sell vegetables. If the business is normal, even if the price is slightly higher. As long as it is not ridiculously high, I think the people of Xi'an can still accept it, after all, it is an extraordinary period.
But it is a pity that the community property and the street office do not really solve the difficulties of the people, but take advantage of the opportunity. Taking advantage of the opportunity that the people can't get out of the community, use six liang scales to make black money.
It could have solved some of the people's difficulties and eased the problem of running out of cooking. Netizens did not specify the price of their vegetables, even if the price is a little higher, which is a bit inauthentic. This was discovered by the people of Zhongtian Jinting Community, so are there similar situations in other communities in Xi'an? Under the rule of the CCP, is there still a pure land?
In the second half of the video, a chubby white man appeared, claiming to be Wang Xiaogang, secretary of the Party Working Committee of Taihang Road on the street. With a loudspeaker in his hand, he was shouting to the people, asking them to listen to the street. As if to win the public's belief, he published a phone number 13991318605, saying it was his mobile phone number.
I have no interest in making this call because I know that what this person is saying is more about pacifying the incident. He asked the people to listen to the street, but the street and the community property colluded to sell vegetables and listened to the street. How should we deal with this? Even if the criminal is a judge, can it be resolved justly? Is a just solution possible under CCP rule? Everyone knows it.
News (24) to (26) / Reporter : Tom Ozimek, The Epoch Times PREMIUM
News (24)
Pfizer CEO expects covid virus to circulate for years
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told French news outlets in recent interviews that, while he expects COVID-19 to continue to circulate for many years, he thinks future waves won’t be beset by major restrictions while predicting life will return to “normal” around springtime.
News (25)
Pfizer CEO expects a "return to normal life" by spring 2022
Bourla told French news outlet Le Figaro in an interview published Jan. 16 that he expects a “return to normal life” at some point in spring of this year, with the caveat that the dynamics of COVID-19 mutations and spread cloud the accuracy of any predictions.
COVID-19 is the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, also known as SARS-CoV-2.
The Pfizer chief credited developments in COVID-19 testing, vaccines, and therapeutics for his optimistic outlook, telling BFM TV in a separate interview that he expects the current Omicron-driven wave to be the “last with so many restrictions.”
At the same time, Bourla predicted that COVID-19 would continue to circulate for many years to come.
“This is a virus that has spread all over the world so it is very difficult to get rid of,” Bourla told BFM TV.
News (26)
Production of Paxlovid in France, Ireland and Italy over the next five years
Bourla also said Pfizer was planning to invest over half a billion dollars in France over the next five years to boost global production of its COVID-19 pill Paxlovid, which obtained emergency approval in the United States in December.
The investment will pertain to the production of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) for Paxlovid at a plant run by French pharmaceutical group Novasep, which announced on Jan. 17 it had signed a letter of intent with Pfizer to bolster the drugmaker’s global supply chain of the pill.
“We are honored by this renewed proof of confidence, Pfizer being a long-time customer of Novasep and we are of course proud to contribute to the manufacturing of this medicine which has shown in clinical trials to have a positive impact on hospitalization among at-risk COVID-19 patients,” Novasep CEO Dr. Michel Spagnol said in a statement.
Clinical trials have shown Paxlovid to be nearly 90 percent effective in preventing hospitalizations and deaths in patients at high risk of severe illness.
Novasep said it expects its facility in Mourenx, France, will be incorporated into Pfizer’s growing manufacturing network of suppliers by the third quarter of 2022, bringing the total global supply of Paxlovid up to 120 million patient packets by the end of the year.
Other sites in Ireland and Italy are part of Pfizer’s manufacturing network for the pill.
Does the human body have natural immunity to covi? 1 blood type is less susceptible to infection
News (27) to (30) / Narration : Dong Yuhong (European virology expert, chief scientist of a biotechnology company) / Compiled by Li Xingzhi / https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/22/1/12/n13499853.htm
News (27)
How to have natural immune factors? 3 major factors that make it less likely to be infected with covi
In November 2021, an article in the journal "Nature-Immunology" mentioned an interesting phenomenon: in some families with close contact with each other, all members were infected with the new coronavirus, but one person was not infected. This means that even with high exposure to the virus, some people are not susceptible to covi.
Whether there is covi infection or not, there are huge individual differences in the population. Some people are not easy to be infected, some people are infected but asymptomatic, some people recover quickly, and some people will develop severe and life-threatening.
On the surface, this is an accidental probability problem, but in fact, after careful analysis, it will be found that this is the inevitable result after synthesizing many factors.
In order to understand the reasons behind it, scientists launched a global research project - "COVID Human Genome Project", by which 16 researchers from the Rockefeller University, Greece, France and other famous universities or research institutions jointly published the preliminary research results. In the journal Nature Immunology.
After a comprehensive analysis of this study and other studies, we can summarize three major factors that make it difficult to contract covid: Interferon, blood type and genes.
Image : The three major factors for not being infected with covid: Interferon, blood type, and gene. (Health 1+1/Epoch Times)
News (28)
Interferon protects the human body from infection and severe illness
The ability of the human body to produce interferon and the level of interferon in the body are essential and important links in the control of covi infection.
"Nature-Immunology" pointed out that more than 10% of patients with severe covid have self-neutralizing antibodies of type I interferon, which means that the function of some type I interferons is weakened by antibodies. In addition, 20% of severe covid patients over the age of 70 also contain this antibody.
On the other hand, people with high levels of interferon in the body are less likely to get a new crown, and even if they are unfortunately infected, they are less likely to develop severe disease.
Image : People with high levels of interferon in the body are less likely to get covi and less likely to develop severe disease. (Health 1+1/Epoch Times)
News (29)
Does blood type affect immunity? 1 type of blood is not easy to be infected with covid
Blood type has a high correlation with human health. People with different blood types have different degrees of natural immunity.
In 1900, Karl Landsteiner, a biologist at the Institute of Pathology at the University of Vienna in Austria, first discovered that the human body has four congenital blood types A, B, AB, and O.
Blood type refers to the antigenic pattern on the surface of red blood cells. People with type A blood have A antigens on the surface of their red blood cells, people with type B blood have B antigens, and people with type AB blood have both A and B. Type O blood does not carry antigens. (Normally, people with type A blood have A antigens on the surface of red blood cells, but they do not have A antibodies in their bodies, but B antibodies. People with type B blood have A antibodies in their bodies. In addition, people with blood type O have both A and B antibodies in the body.)
The ABO blood group system is not only manifested in red blood cells, but also in human epithelial cells and endothelial cells, and is associated with many human diseases.
For example, some studies have found that people with blood type A have a higher probability of developing gastric cancer, while people with blood types A, B, and AB have a higher prevalence of pancreatic cancer, which may be related to the secretion of pro-inflammatory factors and apoptosis and so on.
Coincidentally, a study from Dutch scholars published in the medical journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology (Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology) in January 2020 pointed out that compared with people with O blood type, non-O blood People with blood type are more likely to suffer from heart disease, thrombosis, high blood lipids, etc.
Image : The human body has four congenital blood types, A, B, AB, and O, which refer to the antigenic patterns on the surface of red blood cells. (Health 1+1/Epoch Times)
In terms of anti-covi infection, according to the research results of "Vox Sanguinis" published by the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT), people with type O blood are less likely to be infected with covi, and the severe rate is also relatively low. Conversely, people with blood type A have a higher rate of covi infection and a tendency to become severely ill.
In this regard, scientists put forward two hypotheses: The A and B antibodies that exist in the human body with type O blood can neutralize the virus and block the combination of the virus and cells, thereby protecting human cells from being invaded by viruses.
However, people with blood type A lack A antibodies and are therefore less able to neutralize the virus. In addition, some substances in type A blood may increase the affinity of covi for human cell receptors, increase the risk of infection, and may also increase the rate of cardiovascular complications, thromboembolic diseases, and severe infection.
Image : People with type O blood have natural antibodies, and substances in type A blood may increase the risk of infection. (Health 1+1/Epoch Times)
News (30)
Key immune genes against covi
In addition, the study of "Nature" also summarizes other genes that affect virus replication and immunity, and the impact on human infectious diseases, and looks forward to further analysis of people with the "natural immunity" of the new crown, and find the key immune genes.
As more immune-related genes are continuously revealed, people will have a more and more comprehensive understanding of the human body's antiviral mechanism and the mysteries of life sciences.
Interferon, blood type, and genes are only some of the factors, and a single factor cannot be absolute.
From an overall point of view, it does not mean that people with type O blood and high interferon levels can sit back and relax, nor does it mean that people with type A blood and high interferon levels need to worry too much.
There are many factors that determine whether a person is infected with covid: Age, smoking, drinking, nutritional balance, body mass index, lifestyle, emotional control and many other factors. Positive factors in all aspects are strengthened to ensure foolproof.
No comments:
Post a Comment