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Hot Topics of the Day|PHGKB
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11/03/2021

Hot Topics of the Day are picked by experts to capture the latest information and publications on public health genomics and precision health for various diseases and health topics. Sources include published scientific literature, reviews, blogs and popular press articles.

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An oral SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitor clinical candidate for the treatment of COVID-19
DR Owen et al, Science, November 2, 2021

Neutralization of the SARS-CoV-2 Mu Variant by Convalescent and Vaccine Serum
K Uriu et al, NEJM, November 3, 2021

lAthough the beta variant (a variant of concern) was thought to be the most resistant variant to date,3,4 the mu variant was 2.0 as resistant to neutralization by convalescent serum and 1.5 times as resistant to neutralization by vaccine serum as the beta variant. Thus, the mu variant shows a pronounced resistance to antibodies elicited by natural SARS-CoV-2 infection and by the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine.

Phase 3 Trial of mRNA-1273 during the Delta-Variant Surge
LR Baden et al, NEJM, November 3, 2021

Overall, incidence rates of Covid-19 were lower among participants in the mRNA-1273p group (who had been vaccinated more recently) than among those in the mRNA-1273e group during July and August 2021, when the delta variant was dominant. The difference appears to have been driven by disease in younger participants, which indicates the presence of potential confounding behavioral factors in these participants that may have led to a higher exposure to the virus.

Emergence and spread of a sub-lineage of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant B.1.1.7 in Europe, and with further evolution of spike mutation accumulations shared with the Beta and Gamma variants
M Stadmueller et al, MEDRXIV, November 2, 2021

SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility and COVID-19 disease severity are associated with genetic variants affecting gene expression in a wide variety of tiss
M d'Antonio et al, Cell Reports, November 2, 2021

Highlights: Identification of 23 genomic loci with suggestive associations for COVID-19 disease. Colocalized GWAS & eQTL signals associate with expression of 20 genes in 62 tissues. 45% of GWAS signals do not colocalize with eQTLs in blood or lung. Genetic fine mapping identifies putative causal variants at COVID-19 GWAS loci.

CDC Recommends Pediatric COVID-19 Vaccine for Children 5 to 11 Years
CDC, November 2, 2021 Brand

Today, CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, M.D., M.P.H., endorsed the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendation that children 5 to 11 years old be vaccinated against COVID-19 with the Pfizer-BioNTech pediatric vaccine. CDC now expands vaccine recommendations to about 28 million children in the United States in this age group and allows providers to begin vaccinating them as soon as possible. COVID-19 cases in children can result in hospitalizations, deaths, MIS-C (inflammatory syndromes) and long-term complications, such as “long COVID,” in which symptoms can linger for months.

Elimination versus mitigation of SARS-CoV-2 in the presence of effective vaccines
MO Barton, The Lancet Global Health, November 2, 2021

There is increasing evidence that elimination strategies have resulted in better outcomes for public health, the economy, and civil liberties than have mitigation strategies throughout the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. With vaccines that offer high protection against severe forms of COVID-19, and increasing vaccination coverage, policy makers have had to reassess the trade-offs between different options. The desirability and feasibility of eliminating SARS-CoV-2 compared with other strategies should also be re-evaluated from the perspective of different fields, including epidemiology, public health, and economics.

Evaluating the reliability of mobility metrics from aggregated mobile phone data as proxies for SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the USA: a population-based study
N Kishore et al, The Lancet Digital Health, November 2, 2021

In this population-based study, we collected epidemiological data on COVID-19 cases and deaths, as well as human mobility metrics collated by advertisement technology that was derived from global positioning systems, from 1396 counties across the USA that had at least 100 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19.We show that the reproduction number is most strongly associated with mobility proxies for change in the travel into counties (0·757 [95% CI 0·689 to 0·857]), but this relationship primarily holds for counties in the three most urban categories as defined by the NCHS. This relationship weakens considerably after the initial 15 weeks of the epidemic (0·442 [-0·492 to -0·392]), consistent with the emergence of more complex local policies and behaviors, including masking.

BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness against the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant in Qatar
NP Tang et al, Nature Medicine, November 2, 2021

With the global expansion of the highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 Delta (B.1.617.2) variant, we conducted a matched test-negative case–control study to assess the real-world effectiveness of COVID-19 messenger RNA vaccines against infection with Delta in Qatar’s population. Our findings show robust effectiveness for both BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 in preventing Delta hospitalization and death in Qatar’s population, despite lower effectiveness in preventing infection, particularly for the BNT162b2 vaccine.

Viral loads of Delta-variant SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections after vaccination and booster with BNT162b2
ML Tiefenbrun et al, Nature Medicine, November 2, 2021

By analyzing viral loads of over 16,000 infections during the current, Delta-variant-dominated pandemic wave in Israel, we found that BTIs in recently fully vaccinated individuals have lower viral loads than infections in unvaccinated individuals. However, this effect starts to decline 2 months after vaccination and ultimately vanishes 6 months or longer after vaccination. Notably, we found that the effect of BNT162b2 on reducing BTI viral loads is restored after a booster dose. These results suggest that BNT162b2 might decrease the infectiousness of BTIs even with the Delta variant, and that, although this protective effect declines with time, it can be restored, at least temporarily, with a third, booster, vaccine dose.

An Unsolved Mystery: Why Do More Men Die of Covid-19?
EJ Emanuel, NY Times, November 2, 2021

Estimating the relationship between mobility, non-pharmaceutical interventions, and COVID-19 transmission in Ghana
H Gibbs et al, MEDRXIV, November 2,2021


Disclaimer: Articles listed in Hot Topics of the Day are selected by Public Health Genomics Branch to provide current awareness of the scientific literature and news. Inclusion in the update does not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nor does it imply endorsement of the article's methods or findings. CDC and DHHS assume no responsibility for the factual accuracy of the items presented. The selection, omission, or content of items does not imply any endorsement or other position taken by CDC or DHHS. Opinion, findings and conclusions expressed by the original authors of items included in the Clips, or persons quoted therein, are strictly their own and are in no way meant to represent the opinion or views of CDC or DHHS. References to publications, news sources, and non-CDC Websites are provided solely for informational purposes and do not imply endorsement by CDC or DHHS.
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