Tag: COVID-19 pandemic

Explained | What is genome sequencing and why does the Genome India Project matter?

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Explained | What is genome sequencing and why does the Genome India Project matter?

The story so far: The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) recently said that the exercise to sequence 10,000 Indian human genomes and create a database under the Centre-backed Genome India Project is about two-thirds complete. About 7,000 Indian genomes have already been sequenced of which, 3,000 are available for public access by researchers.  The proponents of…

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Science

A critical story that a chunk of the media missed

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A critical story that a chunk of the media missed

‘The concern that the IMF has expressed, and which underlies the lowly ‘C’ grade, is not going to be hastily resolved’ | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto The release of the national accounts data for Quarter 2 recently was also one that coincided with serious concerns being expressed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) about the…

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Business

Notebook: The social character of scientific knowledge

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Notebook: The social character of scientific knowledge

“It’s still difficult to conclusively say what really happened with many things, scientifically” | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto Many of us want to know how the SARS-CoV-2 virus originated. To do that, right now we need to unravel its evolution from its bat coronavirus ancestor by sequencing the genomes of animals and viruses near the…

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Science

The bacteria that write new genes to cope with infections

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The bacteria that write new genes to cope with infections

A researcher holds up a plate showing a growth of Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteria from a positive blood culture, December 14, 2019. | Photo Credit: Chiara Marraccini Amid the unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, a once obscure enzyme found itself in the spotlight: reverse transcriptase. As laboratories worldwide rushed to develop reliable diagnostic tests,…

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Science

Talks On Landmark Global Agreement On Future Pandemics End Without Deal

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Talks On Landmark Global Agreement On Future Pandemics End Without Deal

Representational Image Geneva: Negotiations on a landmark global agreement on handling future pandemics ended Friday without a deal — though countries said they wanted to keep pushing for an accord. Scarred by the devastation caused by Covid-19 — which killed millions of people, shredded economies and crippled health systems — countries have spent two years…

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World

Global Life Expectancy Dropped By 2 Years Due To Covid: WHO

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Global Life Expectancy Dropped By 2 Years Due To Covid: WHO

The report said that the Western Pacific was the least hit, with life expectancy falling just 0.1 year. Geneva: Covid-19 cut global life expectancy by almost two years when it raged from 2019 to 2021, wiping out a decade of progress, the World Health Organization said Friday. “The Covid-19 pandemic reversed the trend of steady…

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World

Does frequently updating COVID-19 vaccines have any benefits? | Explained

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Does frequently updating COVID-19 vaccines have any benefits? | Explained

Researchers update the composition of influenza vaccines every six months to match the strains of the virus that are circulating in the wild, so that the shots may provide protective immunity against the flu. But despite their best efforts, researchers rarely perfectly match the strains loaded in the vaccine with the strains circulating by the time…

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Science

The trouble with a Nobel for mRNA COVID vaccines

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The trouble with a Nobel for mRNA COVID vaccines

At the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm | Photo Credit: AFP The 2023 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman for developing the mRNA vaccine technology that became the foundation for history’s fastest vaccine development programme during the COVID-19 pandemic. The prizes acknowledge work that has created benefits…

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Science

COVID-infected Indian-origin Singaporean jailed for coughing at colleagues

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COVID-infected Indian-origin Singaporean jailed for coughing at colleagues

A man wearing a face mask passes a sign put up to encourage social distancing during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at Marina Bay in Singapore. File photo | Photo Credit: REUTERS A 64-year-old Singaporean of Indian origin was sentenced to two weeks’ jail on Monday, September 15, 2023, on pleading guilty to one count…

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World