‘The perfect storm’: lax social distancing fuelled a coronavirus variant’s Brazilian surge

The coronavirus variant behind Brazil’s ferocious second wave of COVID-19 emerged, in part, because of relaxed social distancing, according to an analysis of viral sequences from the outbreak’s epicentre

Link to article: nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01480-3?utm_source=Nature+Briefing&utm_campaign=a4b479adc5-briefing-dy-20210604&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c9dfd39373-a4b479adc5-45538878

Genomewide Association Study of Severe Covid-19 with Respiratory Failure

Study shows that people with Type A blood have a higher risk of catching coronavirus and of developing severe symptoms, while people with Type O blood have a lower risk. People with Type A blood had a 45% higher risk of becoming infected than people with other blood types, and people with Type O blood were just 65% as likely to become infected as people with other blood types.

Link to study: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2020283

Coronavirus testing indicates transmission risk increases along wildlife supply chains for human consumption in Viet Nam

Study shows that field rats sold in markets and restaurants of Southeast Asia harbour multiple coronaviruses, a study shows. The proportion of positives increased as live animals were moved from “field to fork”, suggesting they were picking up viruses in the process. The strains detected are different from Covid-19 and are not thought to be dangerous to human health. However, scientists have warned that the wildlife trade is an incubator for disease. The mixing of multiple coronaviruses, and their amplification along the supply chain into restaurants, suggests “maximal risk for end consumers”.

Link to study: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.05.098590v1

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