15 minutes. Our work at a glance, news, tweets and blogs on bioinformatics, molecular epidemiology and drug resistance

15 minutes: KRISP Work at a Glance

In this new section of the krisp.org.za website, the idea is that anyone with 15 minutes to spare can learn about our work and its application in everyday life.

Some Nations Could Wait Years for Covid Shots. That�s Bad for Everyone

NY Times - 2021-03-23

While richer places, such as the U.S., hope to vaccinate most of their citizens within months, poorer countries, like Kenya, expect to reach just small fractions of their populations in that time.

Rare COVID reactions might hold key to variant-proof vaccines

Nature - 2021-03-19

Some people mount an immune response able to fend off a menagerie of coronavirus variants. Nature news covering four of our recent papers on the variant, neutralisation of plasma and Vaccines (Novavax and Astrazeneca)

What�s unique about the body�s response to the 501Y.V2 variant? Find out

Bhekisisa - 2021-03-12

New research from South Africa�s genomic surveillance network shows that people infected with the 501Y.V2 variant are also immune to other forms of the virus. The team found the protection against the 501Y.V2 variant could also extend to the original virus circulating the country and the variant first identified in Brazil.

We Now Can See a Virus Mutate Like Never Before

The Atlantic - 2021-03-09

Tracking the coronavirus�s evolution, letter by letter, is revolutionizing pandemic science.In the beginning, there was one. The first genome for the virus causing a mysterious illness we had not yet named COVID-19 was shared by scientists on January 10, 2020. That single genome alerted the world to the danger of a novel coronavirus.

Antibodies from S Africa COVID variant may offer cross-protection

Al Jazeera - 2021-03-04

The 501Y.V2 variant reportedly produces a high number of antibodies, providing protection against infection by other variants. The findings in laboratory studies offer hope that COVID-19 vaccines based on the 501Y.V2 variant first identified late last year could protect against multiple variants circulating in different parts of the world

A Virus Variant by Any Other Name - Please

The New York Times - 2021-03-03

B.1.351 may sound sweet to a molecular epidemiologist, but what is the alternative, other than stigmatizing geographical names? News piece at NY Times highlighting our work with WHO on a new nomenclature system for COVID-19 variants

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