How Covid-19 Might Spread to You

[S Landreth]

• Mutation Helps Coronavirus Infect More Human Cells, Study Shows

A particular mutation in one strain of the new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus may have helped it infect more human cells and turn it into the dominant strain worldwide, new laboratory research shows.

Researchers at Scripps Research in Jupiter, Fla., stressed that their finding doesn't mean the virus is any more lethal. And because this was research conducted in a lab, it doesn't yet confirm that the mutation makes the strain more likely to spread among people, they added.

Still, "viruses with this mutation were much more infectious than those without the mutation in the cell culture system we used," study senior author and virologist Hyeryun Choe, said in a Scripps news release.

Since the beginning of the global pandemic of COVID-19, experts have wondered why the virus spread relatively easily in certain areas -- New York City and Italy, for example -- and yet was more easily contained in other places, such as San Francisco and Washington state.

The difference may have lain in the actual structure of particular strains. The strain that's now come to dominate underwent a mutation, dubbed D614G, that greatly increased the number of "functional spikes" on the virus' surface.

These spikes give the virus its appearance of a "crown" (hence the name corona), and are essential in allowing the virus to latch onto human cells, causing infection, the team explained.

"The number -- or density -- of functional spikes on the virus is four or five times greater due to this [D614G] mutation," Choe said.

The mutation also allowed more flexibility to the spikes' "backbone," Michael Farzan, co-chairman of the Scripps Research Department of Immunology and Microbiology, added in the news release. This increased flexibility helps keep the virus viable in its cell-to-cell journeys, he explained.

"Our data are very clear," Choe said. "The virus becomes much more stable with the mutation."

Strains of SARS-CoV-2 with the D614G mutation have grown to dominate over time. Data from GenBank, a repository for the genetic study of viral samples worldwide, found no SARS-CoV-2 sequences containing D614G in February. But by March, the mutation had appeared in one-quarter of all sequences, and by May it appeared in 70%, the team noted.

"Over time, it has figured out how to hold on better and not fall apart until it needs to," Farzan said. "The virus has, under selection pressure, made itself more stable."

It remains unclear whether strains carrying the D614G mutation make people any sicker or more likely to die, the researchers said. Studies conducted in hospital intensive care units show the strain to be the predominant type, but more and better data are needed, Choe and Farzan said.

The research is early: It is still undergoing peer review, but is being published in pre-print form online in bioRxiv, after news reports surfaced of the findings.

Choe and Farzan stressed that because their research was conducted using harmless viruses engineered to produce certain coronavirus proteins, it's unclear right now whether the mutation confers increased infectivity among broad populations. Only additional studies conducted across populations can confirm that, they said.

But there was a bit of hopeful news: Immune factors derived from people infected with coronavirus did appear to battle viruses engineered with or without the D614G mutation, the team said. That bodes well for efforts to find a vaccine that can prevent SARS-CoV-2 illness, Choe and Farzan said.

One outside expert agreed that while the findings are significant, more research is needed.

Speaking with The New York Times, Michael Letko, an assistant professor in the Laboratory of Functional Viromics at Washington State University, said multiple factors can impact the spread of any virus.

"We focus on the part of the virus we know the best, the spike, but we don't know as much about how other parts work," he noted. The next step may be to use lab animals to test out theories regarding viral transmission.

"That's the incredible thing about viruses," Letko said. "They're called Darwinian machines, and these small changes can amplify quite dramatically. These small gains can be just enough to allow a virus to outcompete another virus that doesn't have these things."

The work was funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health.: https://www.usnews.com/news/health-n...ls-study-shows

• Today’s update.

Coronavirus Cases: 7,976,317

Deaths: 434,973

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 425,357,893 deaths

Underreported US death count: 117,840

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Thailand - Household debt could soar beyond 80% of GDP due to Covid-19 crisis: NESDC

The Covid-19 crisis has had a massive impact on household debt and it is expected to rise to more than 80 per cent of GDP, the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), a state think-tank, has warned.

Thai household debt stood at 79.8 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of this year.

The pandemic resulted in businesses shutting down in addition to the drought already having hit households hard, leading to increased borrowing of money as incomes declined, NESDC secretary-general Thosaporn Sirisumphand said.

The economic impact will be severe in the second quarter, he predicted, as many businesses have laid off workers, or cut their employees' salaries.

“The income shock led to continued expansion of consumers loans, growing 7.1 per cent, while the NESDC had predicted it should be lesser,” he said. Consumer loans expanded 7.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year.

While overall GDP value decreased to Bt15 trillion this year from Bt16 trillion last year, combined with the income shock household debt is expected to surpass 80 per cent of GDP this year, he warned.

Consumers also used personal loans for doing businesses, estimated to be 17.9 per cent of total personal loans, which include hire purchase, auto loans and mortgage, he said. Taking this behaviour into account, household debts could be lower, he estimated.

Non-performing loans arising from consumption loans is about 3.23 per cent of total consumption loans, up from 2.9 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year. Bad debts amounted to Bt156 billion, he added.

Thai household debt totalled Bt13.47 trillion in the fourth quarter of last year, up 5 per cent but down from 5.5 per cent in the pervious quarter. The debt-to-GDP ratio was 79.8 per cent, the highest in 14 quarters. It is expected to surpass 80 per cent of GDP this year.: https://www.nationthailand.com/busin...ernal_referral

Perhaps a blessing in disguise for the Golden Land.

• Early report.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,013,218

Deaths: 435,971

Underreported US death count: 117,858

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• FDA ends emergency use of hydroxychloroquine for coronavirus

The agency now believes that the suggested dosing regimens "are unlikely to produce an antiviral effect," FDA chief scientist Denise Hinton said in a letter.

The Food and Drug Administration on Monday withdrew emergency use authorizations for two coronavirus treatments that President Donald Trump promoted despite concerns about their safety and effectiveness.

The agency revoked the authorizations for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine after a request from Gary Disbrow, acting director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.

After reviewing new information from large clinical trials the agency now believes that the suggested dosing regimens "are unlikely to produce an antiviral effect," FDA chief scientist Denise Hinton said in a letter announcing the decision.

Critics have accused the agency of caving to political pressure when it authorized use of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine in hospitalized Covid-19 patients in late March despite thin evidence. More recent randomized controlled trials have found the drugs do not benefit coronavirus patients, and doctors have reported that hydroxychloroquine can cause heart problems.

Because hydroxychloroquine is approved for other uses — treating lupus and arthritis — doctors could still use it "off label" to treat coronavirus patients, and clinical trials examining their use against Covid-19 can continue. The FDA noted that the version of chloroquine that had been authorized for emergency use is not approved in the U.S. so all use of that drug, donated by Bayer, will now end.

The administration’s focus on the malaria medicines in the early months of the pandemic deepened a divide between the White House and its health agencies. Several administration officials told POLITICO they felt the drugs got outsized attention while FDA scrambled for solutions in March. Other current and former Health and Human Services officials later said that the emergency authorities and White House demands cast a shadow on FDA as it struggled to remain independent.

Rick Bright, the former BARDA director whom Disbrow replaced, has accused health officials of removing him from his role overseeing millions of dollars to develop treatments and vaccines because he raised health concerns about hydroxychloroquine and resisted its widespread use.

Drugmakers donated millions of the pill to the government’s strategic national stockpile after Bright wrote to the FDA requesting for emergency use, a move he now says he was pressured to make.

In April, roughly a month after the FDA authorized emergency use of the drugs, the agency warned against using hydroxychloroquine outside of hospitals and clinical trials because of potentially fatal cardiac side effects. Trump toned down on mentions of the pills during his White House briefings around the same time, but in May told reporters he was taking a course of hydroxychloroquine after a White House aide was diagnosed with the coronavirus.

This month two randomized controlled trials, considered the gold standard for determining whether a drug is effective, concluded that the drug does not prevent coronavirus infection and did not help hospitalized patients.: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/0...roquine-319872 - https://www.axios.com/hydroxychloroq...b735b4937.html

• Today’s update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,073,468

Deaths: 437,485

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 422,666,318 deaths

Underreported US death count: 118,204

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Beijing coronavirus outbreak: travel restricted to tackle 'extremely severe' situation/Restrictions on travel to and from China capital brought in as neighbourhoods sealed off and venues close

Beijing authorities have described the city’s coronavirus outbreak as “extremely severe” as dozens more cases emerged, sports and entertainment sites were closed and travel was curtailed.

Parts of the Chinese capital were fenced off on Monday night, with security checkpoints set up at residential compounds, and high-risk people – such as close contacts of diagnosed cases – prevented from leaving the city.

Yang Zhanqiu, a deputy director at the pathogen biology department at Wuhan University, told state media he believed the new outbreak involved a more contagious strain of the virus than the one that hit Wuhan at the beginning of the pandemic.

More than 20 Beijing neighbourhoods have now been designated medium risk, Reuters reported, and health authorities said on Tuesday that sealed-off residences and people in quarantine would have food and medicine delivered to them.

“The epidemic situation in the capital is extremely severe,” Beijing city spokesman Xu Hejian warned at a press conference. “Right now we have to take strict measures to stop the spread of Covid-19.”

On Monday, all indoor sport and entertainment venues in the city were closed. Coaches and players from the Beijing Super League football team, Guoan, have been tested and given a week off because their training camp was in the same district as the outbreak source, local media reported.

The outbreak – linked to 106 cases, including 27 reported on Tuesday – has been traced to a wholesale food market in south-west Beijing that sells thousands of tonnes of food a day and which had been visited by more than 200,000 people since 30 May.

Provinces as far away as Yunnan in the south have brought in rules requiring quarantine for people returning from Beijing. Shanghai authorities announced that all arrivals from medium– and high-risk areas have to undergo 14 days of quarantine.

More than 8,000 workers from the market have now been tested and sent to centralised quarantine facilities, and other Beijing wet markets, basement markets and more than 30,000 restaurants are being disinfected.: https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...evere-measures

• Early update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,136,317

Deaths: 439,555

Underreported US death count: 118,283

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• 'Remarkably cheap' steroid called dexamethasone can improve COVID-19 survival, researchers say

Researchers in England said they have the first evidence that a drug can improve COVID-19 survival: A cheap, widely available steroid called dexamethasone reduced deaths by up to one third in severely ill hospitalized patients.

The results were announced Tuesday and the British government immediately authorized the drug's use across the United Kingdom for coronavirus patients like those who did well in the study. Researchers said they would publish results soon, and several independent experts said it's important to see details to know how much of a difference the drug, dexamethasone, might make and for whom.

But “bottom line is, good news,” said the United States’ top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci. “This is a significant improvement in the available therapeutic options that we have.”

The study, led by the University of Oxford, was a large, strict test that randomly assigned 2,104 patients to get the drug and compared them with 4,321 patients getting only usual care.

The drug was given either orally or through an IV for 10 days. After four weeks, it had reduced deaths by 35% in patients who needed treatment with breathing machines and by 20% in those only needing supplemental oxygen. It did not appear to help less ill patients.

Researchers estimated that the drug would prevent one death for every eight patients treated while on breathing machines and one for every 25 patients on extra oxygen alone.

“Those are big effects," said one study leader, Dr. Martin Landray at Oxford. “It’s not a cure, but it’s certainly a long way forward.” It's especially good news that the drug “is remarkably cheap, perhaps $20 or $30 for an entire course of treatment,” he added.

Steroid drugs reduce inflammation, which sometimes develops in COVID-19 patients as the immune system overreacts to fight the infection. This overreaction damages the lungs and can prove fatal. The World Health Organization and others advise against using steroids earlier in the course of illness because they can impede clearing the virus.

“Early on, you’re fighting the virus and you want your immune system to be as intact as possible,” Fauci explained. But in the advanced stage of COVID-19, the battle against the virus causes so much inflammation that it “is hurting you more than helping you,” he said. The results seen in the Oxford study make “perfect sense” with that notion, he said.

'Countless lives will be saved globally'

Many hospitals and doctors have been trying steroids to quell the immune system, but there's been no evidence from high-quality studies that it helps for COVID-19.

Until now, the only drug shown to help is remdesivir, an experimental drug from Gilead Sciences that blocks an enzyme the virus uses to copy its genetic material. Remdesivir shortened the time to recovery for severely ill hospitalized patients by 31% to 11 days on average versus 15 days for those just given usual care, in a study led by the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

“We don’t know yet” if remdesivir could be used with dexamethasone or before or after it to give more benefit, Fauci said.

Even though dexamethasone only helps in severe cases, “countless lives will be saved globally,” said Nick Cammack, a virus expert at the Wellcome Trust, a British charity that supports research.


“This is the dream,” because the drug has been used for decades for other conditions, said Cammack, who had no role in the study. “It’s very straightforward to make so there’s no reason this can’t be rolled out for the entire world.”

No information was given on side effects, but researchers said they used a low dose and for a short time, which is generally safe.: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...hs/3197420001/

• Today’s update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,207,266

Deaths: 443,803

World population: 7,800,000,000 Projection: 421,780,334 deaths

Underreported US death count: 118,950

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Cows Help With COVID-19 Treatment, No Bull

It turns out, cows may play an important role in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

SAB Biotherapeutics is in the business of making what are known as polyclonal antibodies. These are a collection of different antibodies that a body makes to ward off a specific invading organism.

The company has made polyclonal antibodies to treat influenza and MERS. Now it's making them with the aim of treating or even preventing COVID-19. To make them, SAB uses cows.

These aren't just any cows. They are cows that have been given genes from the human immune system that make antibodies.

These special cows are injected with what essentially amounts to a coronavirus vaccine that will then cause them to try to fight off what the body sees as an infection — and they will "produce a specifically targeted high-neutralizing antibody that can be used in patients," says SAB CEO Eddie Sullivan.

These targeted neutralizing antibodies can, in theory, help slow an infection in someone who is sick or prevent an infection in someone who is exposed to the virus.

Why a cow? The antibodies circulate in the animals' plasma, and you can get a lot of plasma from a cow.

"Between 30 and 45 liters of plasma every month from each animal," says Sullivan.

Sullivan says they've already shown that this concept can work for Middle East respiratory syndrome, an illness caused by a virus similar to the one that causes COVID-19.

"So we already have considerable background in producing these antibodies to a coronavirus," he says.

Whether the antibodies will work against the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 still has to be shown. To do that, SAB has partnered with William Klimstra at the University of Pittsburgh. Klimstra says the first step is to show that the COVID-19 antibodies are not causing more health problems than they solve.

"We're doing initial antibody tests for that, and then subsequently we'll be doing efficacy tests," Klimstra says.

Efficacy tests will show whether the antibodies actually prevent disease in animals exposed to the coronavirus.

"We will look at virus production, weight loss, signs of infection to evaluate how sick they get," he says.

Assuming Klimstra's tests show that the antibodies can prevent disease, SAB says it hopes to start testing them in humans later this summer.

Both the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Defense have supported SAB's polyclonal antibody production plans.

The DoD is always looking for ways to protect its war-fighters from infectious diseases.

Traci Pals is with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. As an example, she says her agency was behind the production of an Ebola vaccine.

"Started out in development in our office. So we did the early development," Pals says.

So it's not surprising that the DoD was interested in the work that SAB was doing.

Perhaps more surprising is where SAB is located. Biotech companies tend to crop up adjacent to research universities, frequently on the East and West coasts.

SAB is in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, but for a good reason.

"One of the best reasons I can give you is this is a great environment for cattle to live," says Sullivan. "If you're going to be a cow, you would want to live in one of our facilities in South Dakota.": https://www.npr.org/sections/health-...atment-no-bull

• Coronavirus model once used by White House now predicts 200,000 U.S. deaths by October

A coronavirus model once used by the White House now projects more than 200,000 Americans could die of COVID-19 by October 1. The prediction went up by more than 30,000 since last week.

According to the latest model from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, a research institute once utilized by the White House for coronavirus projections, another 85,000 or so deaths are now projected by October 1.: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronav...eaths-october/ - https://covid19.healthdata.org/united-states-of-america

• Early update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,282,542

Deaths: 446,507

Underreported US death count: 119,132

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Airports of Thailand forecasts 50% fall in revenue, passengers

Airports of Thailand (AoT) said it expects passenger numbers and revenue to fall by 50% in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

AoT, which manages six airports including Bangkok's main Suvarnabhumi, on Wednesday forecast a 50.7% year-on-year drop in revenue for its 2020 fiscal year and a 42.2% fall in 2021.

If a vaccine can be developed and distributed by July next year, the Thai economy can begin to recover after January 2022, then air traffic volumes could return to normal levels by October that year, state-owned AoT said in a statement.

It expects that by 2023, passenger numbers will reach 144.2 million and 902,000 flights, slightly above pre-crisis levels.

"Such forecasts are based on the assumption that a second wave of Covid-19 infections still strike different countries targeted for making bilateral agreements on (a) travel bubble with Thailand," AoT said.

Thailand has not yet signed any agreements for a tourism or travel exchange with other countries.

AoT said it expects travel within Thailand, which on Tuesday approved a domestic tourism package worth 22.4 billion baht, to begin to recover in August and reach normal levels in October 2022.

Thailand's aviation regulator suspended all commercial flights from entering the country since April.

The country has recorded a total 58 deaths among 3,135 confirmed coronavirus cases.

Perhaps a blessing in disguise for the Golden Land.

• Today's update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,352,006

Deaths: 449,066

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 419,386,049 deaths

Underreported US death count: 119,786

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Thailand - Overall increase in people's stress levels, survey shows

The Department of Mental Health has conducted surveys on Thai people’s mental health during the Covid-19 situation six times since the outbreak, Dr Jumphot Promsida, deputy director-general, said on Wednesday (June 17).

“The latest survey, which took place from May 26-30, revealed that the stress level of medical personnel had increased from 4.8 per cent in the fifth survey to 7.9 per cent, while the stress level among the general public had also jumped from 2.7 to 4.2 per cent,” he said.

“The survey also revealed that more people from both groups are suffering from burnout syndrome which can be divided in three aspects,” he said. “The emotional burnout among medical personnel has increased from 5 to 6.5 per cent and among the general public it has increased from 3.3 to 3.6 per cent. The lack of motivation and negative outlook on work proficiency has increased from 3.1 to 4.7 per cent among medical personnel and 2.2 to 3.2 per cent among general public. Lastly, negative or distanced relationship with others has increased from 4.1 to 4.9 per cent among medical personnel and 1.7 to 2.6 per cent among general public.”

The survey also indicates an increase in depression level among both groups (from 1.4 to 3 per cent among medical personnel and from 0.9 to 1.6 per cent among general public), while the tendency to commit self- harm also has increased from 0.6 to 1.3 per cent and 0.7 to 0.9 per cent respectively. “Although the increases are not significant or alarming, it is necessary to keep on monitoring the trend as depression is a major contributor to self-harm tendency,” added Jumphot.

“As for the impact of Covid-19 on the economic and social aspects, the survey revealed that both groups have increased concerns over Covid-19 infection when going out in public and a spike in expenses although the infection rate in Thailand has gone down and the lockdown measures have been lifted,” he added. “However, it is a good sign that around 99 per cent of respondents said they are still confident in the efficiency of local public health agencies and staff in their areas.”

“If you notice that family members or yourself are having an increasing level of stress or experiencing swift changes in emotions or behaviours (such as drinking alcohol or smoking more often), please consult the nearest public health office or contact Mental Health Hotline 1323,” added Jumphot.: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/...ernal_referral

Perhaps a blessing in disguise for the Golden Land.

• Early update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,419,359

Deaths: 451,705

Underreported US death count: 119,941

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• New Mayo Clinic Research Indicates Plasma Transfusions Are Safe Treatment For COVID-19

The Mayo Clinic has reported that, according to the results of their studies, using convalescent plasma to treat patients with COVID-19 appears to be safe for a diverse range of patients.

WCCO’s Kate Raddatz has followed the convalescent plasma program out of the Mayo since it started just over two months ago. Convalescent plasma treatment involves transfusing blood plasma from someone who recovered from COVID-19 and showed antibodies against the virus.

The Mayo Clinic’s new report assessed patients at risk for severe or life-threatening effects from the virus, seven days after their plasma transfusion. They found mortality rates declined to 8.6%, compared to to 12% from a previous safety study.

Serious side effects occurred in less than 1% of patients.

One interesting key in this study is that it encompassed a diverse pool. Of the patients, 40% were women, 20% were African-Americans; nearly 35% were Hispanic and 5% were Asian-American.

“It’s been observed that COVID-19, especially in the big cities back east, has been particularly devastating among ethnic minorities: African-Americans, Hispanics, ethnic communities. So we’re pleased we can recruit participants in those categories. It’s horrible that these groups are disproportionately affected, but we’re gratified that they are participating in the study,” Dr. Michael Joyner said.

The study assessed 20,000 patients that were hospitalized between April 3 and June 11.

The Mayo says the results are a promising step in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.: https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2020/...-appears-safe/ - https://news.wjct.org/post/new-mayo-...tment-covid-19

• Delta CEO: Wearing masks is about ‘respect,’ says flyers who refuse will be barred

Delta Air Lines is joining its peers in threatening to bar any travellers who do not wear a mask onboard its aeroplanes as a precaution from the coronavirus pandemic.

Travellers will not be allowed to board a Delta flight without a mask and, if they refuse to wear one onboard, will be added to a “no-fly list” at the airline, Delta CEO Ed Bastian told staff at a virtual town hall on Wednesday that was viewed by TPG.

Delta joins American Airlines and United Airlines in threatening to bar travellers from flying if they do not wear a mask onboard. Southwest Airlines has said that it will deny boarding to any flyer who tries to board a plane without a mask.: https://thepointsguy.co.uk/news/delt...masks-respect/

• Today’s update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,532,157

Deaths: 454,014

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 415,054,387 deaths

Underreported US death count: 120,488

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• India Reports Record Spike In COVID-19 Cases, But Nixes Another Nationwide Lockdown

India reported a record spike in coronavirus cases Thursday, even as the prime minister ruled out a new nationwide lockdown.

With 12,881 new infections registered, it's the first time India's daily tally has exceeded 12,000. For most of this week, only the United States and Brazil have been adding more new cases daily.

The Health Ministry confirmed a total of 160,384 active cases Thursday, and 12,237 deaths since the pandemic began — in a population of nearly 1.4 billion. But testing rates are very low.

Hospitals in the biggest cities, Mumbai and New Delhi, are overflowing. Social media is flooded with desperate pleas from families searching for COVID-19 tests and hospital beds. Patients, unable to get admitted, have died in parking lots outside clinics and hospitals.

India has about one doctor per 1,500 citizens. In rural areas, where two-thirds of Indians live and rely almost solely on government hospitals, the ratio is one doctor to more than 10,000 people. The World Health Organization's standard is one doctor per 1,000 residents.

While government hospitals are overcrowded, some of India's elite private clinics are charging up to $950 a day for intensive care with a ventilator.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi rejected media reports that his government is considering another nationwide lockdown, and told a gathering of chief ministers that they should be looking to minimize restrictions in their states.

Despite Modi's stance, individual states maintain their own restrictions. The southern state of Tamil Nadu imposed a fresh 12-day lockdown on Monday.

Nationwide, schools remain closed and international air travel is halted. Local restrictions on shopping and traffic remain in containment zones — neighborhoods with high concentrations of COVID-19 cases.

On March 25, India imposed the biggest coronavirus lockdown in the world, a move that left tens of millions of migrant workers unemployed and stranded in urban centers or industrial zones, far from home. Many starved to death as they set out on foot to their villages, often hundreds of miles away.

Last month, the government allocated special interstate trains to ferry migrant workers to safety, but many were already so weak, they died en route. In late May, a video went viral on social media, showing a toddler trying to wake up his dead mother on the floor of a train station.: https://www.npr.org/sections/coronav...ionwide-lockdo

• Early update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,602,020

Deaths: 456,791

Underreported US death count: 120,688

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• South Korean cases rise, Singapore reopening

South Korea has reported 49 cases of COVID-19 as the virus continues to spread in the densely populated capital area where half of the country’s 51 million people live

SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea has reported 49 cases of COVID-19 as the virus continues to spread in the densely populated capital area where half of the country’s 51 million people live.

Figures released by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday brought the national caseload to 12,306 infections, including 280 deaths. It said 26 of the new cases came from capital Seoul and the nearby port city of Incheon. Seventeen of the new cases were linked to international arrivals.

South Korea has been reporting around 30 to 50 new cases per day since late May, inspiring second-guessing on whether officials were too quick to ease social distancing guidelines in April after the country’s first wave of infections waned.

Health authorities have been scrambling to stem transmissions in the greater capital area where hundreds of cases have been linked to leisure and religious activities, e-commerce employees and door-to-door salespeople.

In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:

— India has recorded its highest one-day spike of 13,586 coronavirus cases, raising the total cases to 380,532, with no signs of flattening of the curve. India’s total deaths reached 12,573, a rise of 336, according to a Health Ministry statement on Friday. Three states, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and New Delhi, account for 60% of total cases. The nationwide lockdown imposed in March has been lifted except for high-risk areas. The government has allowed reopening of shops, malls, manufacturing and religious places. However, schools, colleges and movie halls remain shuttered across the country.

— Singaporeans can wine-and-dine at restaurants, workout at the gym and hold social gatherings of not more than five people with the removal of most lockdown restrictions. The tiny city-state has one of the highest infections in Asia with 41,473 cases, mostly linked to foreign workers’ dorms. The government says infections in the dorms have declined, with no new large clusters emerging. Cases outside the dorms were also stable despite a partial economic reopening two weeks ago. Malls, gyms, parks and other public facilities reopened their doors Friday, with strict social distancing and healthy safety rules. Contact sports, trade fairs, mass religious congregations are among group events that remain banned, and entertainment venues such as bars are still shut.

— New confirmed cases of coronavirus remained stable in China’s capital on Friday after a public health official declared Beijing’s latest outbreak under control. Beijing recorded 25 new cases, up by just four from Thursday, out of a total of 32 cases reported nationwide. A city transport spokesman said bus service between Beijing and other provinces would be suspended starting Friday to try to prevent the outbreak’s spread. Classes in the city have also been suspended and reopening plans for sports and other events are on hold. More than 360,000 tests for the virus have been carried out in recent days, according to city health authorities.

— Japan and Vietnam have agreed to partially lift travel bans and ease restrictions step by step as a way to reopen economic and bilateral exchanges between the two Asian nations where coronavirus infections have largely been taken under control. Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told reporters Friday that Vietnam is one of four countries that Japan has been discussing resuming mutual visits in phases. Japan is also seeking similar bilateral arrangements with Thailand, Australia and New Zealand. Japan and Vietnam are discussing final details such as timing of resumption, Motegi said.

— A livestock ship loaded with 35,000 sheep has left Australia for the Middle East three weeks behind schedule due to half the crew becoming infected with coronavirus. The Al Kuwait had arrived in Fremantle from the United Arab Emirates in May and soon afterward, 20 of its 48 crew members tested positive for the virus. All have recovered and most left with the ship that is bound for Kuwait. The ship was granted an exemption to export sheep during the Northern Hemisphere summer, but the cargo allowance was lowered from the original 56,000 animals.

— Japan has launched a smartphone app that notifies users who have come into close contact with someone infected with the coronavirus. The COVID-19 Contact Confirming Application, or COCOA, was created by the Health Ministry using technology developed by Apple and Google. The free app logs users’ data via phone Bluetooth when they are within a meter (yard) of each other for 15 minutes of longer. If any of them test positive and disclose their results in the app, other users are notified of an anonymous person’s infection.: https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireSt...table-71336167

• Today’s update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,731,969

Deaths: 461,436

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 412,186,621 deaths

Underreported US death count: 121,308

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• WHO warns of virus danger as Brazil cases hit one million

The World Health Organization warned Friday of a "new and dangerous phase" of the coronavirus pandemic, as infections continued to surge in the Americas, with Brazil registering more than one million cases.

Colombia and Mexico also passed bleak milestones, as their death tolls topped 2,000 and 20,000, respectively, showing how the virus continues ravaging the Americas and parts of Asia even as Europe starts to ease out of lockdown.

The measures imposed to halt the spread of the disease have caused crippling economic damage, but the WHO warned against giving in to isolation fatigue.

"The world is in a new and dangerous phase. Many people are understandably fed up with being at home... but the virus is still spreading fast," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual press conference.

The virus has now killed more than 458,000 people and infected 8.6 million worldwide.

A vaccine remains months off at best despite several trials, and scientists are still making daily discoveries about the virus, its symptoms and the extent to which it may have spread before being identified.

- New record in Brazil -

Brazil, which has the second-highest number of infections and deaths after the United States, reported a one-day record of nearly 55,000 new infections, becoming the second country to pass one million cases.

The health ministry said the jump was caused by "instability" in its reporting system, which delayed previous days' figures for some states.

Brazil's death toll now stands at nearly 49,000, and has risen by more than 1,000 each of the past four days -- though its curve finally appears to be starting to flatten.

Authorities in Mexico City meanwhile pushed back a planned reopening of the economy from next week to the following, saying the rate of infection was still too high.

And Argentina, which is reeling from the economic impact of the health crisis, bought more time to negotiate its $66 billion debt restructuring with creditors, who agreed to extend the deadline once again, to July 24.: https://www.bangkokpost.com/world/19...llion#cxrecs_s

• Early update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,780,493

Deaths: 462,955

Underreported US death count: 121,407

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Italy sewage study suggests COVID-19 was there in December 2019

LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists in Italy have found traces of the new coronavirus in wastewater collected from Milan and Turin in December 2019 - suggesting COVID-19 was already circulating in northern Italy before China reported the first cases.

The Italian National Institute of Health looked at 40 sewage samples collected from wastewater treatment plants in northern Italy between October 2019 and February 2020. An analysis released on Thursday said samples taken in Milan and Turin on Dec. 18 showed the presence of the SARS-Cov-2 virus.

“This research may help us understand the beginning of virus circulation in Italy,” said Giuseppina La Rosa, an expert in environmental wastewater at the Italian National Institute of Health who co-led the research.

A spokeswoman for the institute said the full data and study would be published next week.

Research in the Netherlands, France, Australia and elsewhere has found signs that the virus that causes COVID-19 can be detected in sewage, and many countries are beginning to sample wastewater to track the disease.

Scientists said the detection of traces of the virus before the end of 2019 was consistent with evidence in other countries that COVID-19 may have been circulating before China reported the first cases on Dec. 31.

Noel McCarthy, an expert in population evidence and technologies at Britain’s Warwick Medical School, said the detection of SARS-Cov-2 genetic material in Italian wastewater in December was “reliable evidence of cases of COVID-19 being present there at that time”.

Rowland Kao, an epidemiology and data professor at Scotland’s Edinburgh University, agreed it was plausible the disease could have circulating then, but added: “(This finding) does not on its own, however, tell us if that early detection was the source of the very large epidemic in Italy, or if that was due to a later introduction into the country.”

A study in May by French scientists found that a man was infected with COVID-19 as early as Dec. 27, nearly a month before France confirmed its first cases.

La Rosa said the presence of the virus in the Italian waste samples did not “automatically imply that the main transmission chains that led to the development of the epidemic in our country originated from these very first cases”.

Samples positive for traces of the virus that causes COVID-19 were also found in sewage from Bologna, Milan and Turin in January and February 2020. Samples taken in October and November 2019 tested negative.

The institute said it plans to launch a pilot study in July to monitor wastewater in tourist resorts.: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-h...-idUSKBN23Q1J9

• Todays update.

Coronavirus Cases: 8,869,010

Deaths: 465,107

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 409,046,173 deaths

US underreported death count: 121,889

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

• Women bear the brunt of virus fallout in workplace

LONDON: The reverberating economic shock of the coronavirus crisis has delivered a massive setback for women because so many work in the badly exposed services sector, experts say.

The nature of the outbreak means women are more likely than men to lose or quit their jobs in vulnerable low-paying workplaces like bars, conference venues, hairdressing salons, hotels, pubs and restaurants, which faced extensive shutdowns.

School closures during lockdown have exacerbated the situation because more women than men tend to care for and teach their children, even while working from home.

The services sector, covering areas like hospitality and leisure, has been ravaged by lockdowns imposed by governments across the world trying to halt the spread of the disease.

- Loss of income -
"In the UK and the US, women more likely to lose their jobs because they are more likely to work in services," said Cambridge University economics lecturer Christopher Rauh.

"When you lose your job you are not just losing income now -- but also later on," he told AFP.

As lockdowns ease and infection rates and deaths fall, the services sector is often the last to reopen because it tends to rely on large numbers of people in close contact.

In Britain, stay-at-home measures began to be relaxed earlier this month but pubs, bars and restaurants are expected to reopen only from July 4.

The phased reopening in England started with outdoor markets and car showrooms, and some younger children also returned to school.

However, not all primary school children will return before the lengthy summer break that starts in mid-July and runs until the start of September.

Within family units, mothers have been 1.5 times more likely than fathers to lose or quit their jobs since the crisis began, according to think-tank the Institute of Fiscal Studies.

Women are also more likely than men to have been furloughed, or temporarily paid by the UK government's jobs retention scheme, it added.

Mothers traditionally assume a larger share of unpaid housework on top of their paid work.

More: https://www.bangkokpost.com/world/19...place#cxrecs_s

• Early update:

Coronavirus Cases: 8,936,522

Deaths: 467,068

Underreported US death count: 121,983

it's been blown way out of proportion.

[S Landreth]

U.S. reports highest number of new coronavirus cases since May 1

The U.S. on Saturday reported more than 33,000 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus, the highest total since May 1, CNBC reports, citing Johns Hopkins data.
Why it matters: It's a sign that the outbreak isn't slowing down nationwide, even as the number of new cases in original hotspots like New York continues to drop. States like California, Texas, Florida and Arizona are reporting a surge of infections as they move to fully reopen parts of the economy and return to normal life.
Between the lines: President Trump claimed at a rally on Saturday that he told officials to slow down testing, blaming an increase in testing capacity for the growth in new cases. While his campaign later said he was joking, Trump also called testing "overrated" in an interview with the Wall Street Journal earlier in the week.

• The significant spike in cases in several states isn't solely attributable to more testing.
• And Arizona, Texas, North Carolina and Alabama have also hit record hospitalizations in the last few days — a metric that isn't skewed by increased testing.

By the numbers: As of Sunday morning, the U.S. had reported 2.25 million total cases of the coronavirus and more than 119,000 deaths.
The bottom line: "I don't like to talk about a second wave right now, because we haven't gotten out of our first wave," Anthony Fauci recently told The Daily Beast.: https://www.axios.com/us-coronavirus...b02e2c68a.html

Today’s update.

Coronavirus Cases: 9,008,014

Deaths: 468,763

World population: 7,800,000,000 projection: 405,899,835 deaths

Underreported US death count: 122,211

it's been blown way out of proportion.