Moderna vaccine results 'stunningly impressive,' Fauci tells AFP

WASHINGTON - The United States' top infectious disease official on Monday hailed early results from Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine as "stunningly impressive," calling the result a validation for experimental mRNA technology that some had doubted.

"I had said, and I must admit, that I would have been satisfied with 70, or at the most 75 percent efficacy," Anthony Fauci told AFP.

"The idea that we have a 94.5 percent effective vaccine is stunningly impressive. It is really a spectacular result that I don't think anybody had anticipated would be this good."

The physician-scientist leads the National Institutes of Health's National Institutes of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which began co-developing the vaccine in January, shortly after Chinese authorities disclosed the genetic sequence of the new coronavirus.

The vaccine is based on a new technology that uses a synthetic version of a molecule called "messenger RNA" to hack into human cells, and effectively turn them into vaccine-making factories.

"There were many people who had reservations about using something that had not been tried and true over the years, in fact some people even criticized us for that."

On Monday, Moderna and the NIH announced their preliminary results based on 95 of the 30,000 volunteers they have recruited who fell ill with COVID-19.

Of the 95, 90 had been in the trial's placebo group, and 5 in the group that received the drug, called mRNA-1273, translating to an efficacy rate of 94.5 percent.

Asked whether it was too early to say if the mRNA platform had now been proven, Fauci, who is usually known for his cautious statements, said the jury was in.

"Oh no! I think when you have 2 vaccines, like this, that have proven to be greater than 90 percent effective, I think that mRNA is here, it's established itself, it doesn't need to prove anything anymore.

"The data speak for themself, it isn't me, it isn't my opinion, look at the data."

While Moderna has basked in the spotlight, Fauci was keen to highlight the critical work of the NIH, which he said was responsible for developing the correct "conformation" or spatial arrangement of the virus' spike protein, which the vaccine makes inside the body to elicit an immune response.

Looking forward, he said he was worried about anti-vaccine sentiment in the United States, the hardest-hit country in the world. 

"There's a long way to go -- don't forget, you've got to get this distributed, you've got to get most of the people to get vaccinated.

"There's a lot of anti-vaccine sentiment in this country. You've got to overcome that and convince people to get vaccinated because a vaccine with a high degree of efficacy is of no use if nobody gets vaccinated." 

Agence France-Presse

Moderna vaccine induced antibodies in all trial participants: paper

WASHINGTON - An experimental COVID-19 vaccine that is being developed by US biotech firm Moderna induced antibody responses against the coronavirus in all 45 participants of a human trial, a paper published Tuesday showed.

Moderna had previously published "interim results" from its Phase 1 in the form of a press release on its website in May, which revealed the vaccine had generated immune responses in eight patients.

Though these were called "encouraging" by Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious diseases official, the full study had been eagerly awaited by the scientific community.

The company has since moved to the next stage of its trial, involving 600 people.

The new paper was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The 45 participants were split into three groups of 15 each to test doses of 25 micrograms, 100 micrograms and 250 micrograms.

They were given a second dose 28-days-later.

After the first round, antibody levels were found to be higher with higher level doses, and after the second round, participants had higher levels of antibodies than most patients who have COVID-19 and gone on to generate their own antibodies.

More than half the participants experienced mild or moderate side-effects, though these did not rise to the level where the trial would be called off. 


The side effects included fatigue, chills, headache, body ache, and pain at the injection site.

Three participants did not receive their second dose, including one in the 25 microgram group who developed a skin rash on both legs, and two (one in the 25 microgram group, one in 250 groups) who missed their window because they had COVID-19 symptoms, but their tests later returned negative.

Andrew Freedman, an infectious disease expert at the University of Cardiff who was not involved in the study, said the paper suggested the vaccine "is able to stimulate antibody production in a dose-dependent fashion."

"Importantly, the antibodies generated were able to neutralize the virus" in lab conditions, he added.

"The side effects experienced by more than half the participants are quite common after other vaccinations, although the 'more severe adverse events' experienced by three of the subjects given the highest dose may mean that dose is too high to take forward," he said.

The Moderna vaccine belongs to a new class of vaccine that uses genetic material, in the form of RNA, to encode the information needed to grow the virus' spike protein inside the human body, in order to trigger an immune response. 

The spike protein is a part of the virus it uses to invade human cells, but by itself is relatively harmless.

Agence France-Presse

US facing 'critical' coronavirus surge

WASHINGTON, United States - Coronavirus infections are surging across large parts of the United States, the top US infectious disease expert has warned, as the death toll in Latin America passed 100,000.

The developments highlighted how far away the world remains from ending the pandemic, six months into a crisis that has claimed nearly 500,000 lives and devastated the global economy.

Even in Europe, which has been loosening travel restrictions following a brutal few months when it was the epicenter of the pandemic, there have been major setbacks.

Germany on Tuesday reimposed lockdowns on more than 600,000 people following a cluster of infections at a slaughterhouse, while world men's tennis number one Novak Djokovic tested positive after hosting an exhibition tournament in the Balkans.

In the United States, White House advisor Anthony Fauci warned the next two weeks would be "critical to our ability to address... surgings" in Florida, Texas and other states.

The United States has already recorded more deaths than any other nation, with nearly 800 more fatalities on Tuesday taking its toll past 121,000.

However President Donald Trump, whose handling of the crisis has been widely criticized as erratic, is determined to fast-track efforts to restore normality.

He continued to stoke controversy on Tuesday, doubling down on weekend comments he wanted to slow testing because so many confirmed infections made the United States look bad.

"I don't kid," Trump said, after a White House official described his initial comments as just a joke. 

With the parts of the United States unable to contain the pandemic, the European Union was considering blocking US travelers as it reopens its borders to tourism, the New York Times reported.

Reflecting the sentiments of many around the world, New York food shop manager Ian Joskowitz said he was determined not to think about the dangers of the virus as he tried to continue running his business. 

"If I thought about it too much, I probably may have a problem doing this. So I put it out of my mind," Joskowitz told AFP.

"With my employees, I have an agreement with them. They keep coming in. I'll continue to do everything humanly possible to keep them safe."

'LITTLE FLU'

Latin America has been one of the world's worst hotspots for weeks, and the number of deaths there and the Caribbean surpassed 100,000 on Tuesday, according to an AFP tally.

Brazil, where President Jair Bolsonaro has flouted containment measures and described the virus as a "little flu", is officially the worst-hit country after the United States.

More than 1,300 people were confirmed to have died of the virus in Brazil on Tuesday, after a federal judge ordered Bolsonaro to wear a face mask in public.

"The president has a constitutional obligation to follow the laws in force in the country, as well as to promote the general welfare of the people," the judge wrote.

GERMAN SETBACK 

Germany was the first major EU nation to begin easing lockdown measures about seven weeks ago, but two districts in the west of the country were forced to apply the brakes once again.

An outbreak at a slaughterhouse that has infected more than 1,500 workers prompted authorities to impose fresh restrictions on nearly 640,000 people.

Portugal also imposed new restrictions in and around its capital Lisbon on Tuesday. 

And the future of sporting events suffered a major blow when Djokovic, who had organized a series of exhibition events in the Balkans at which social distancing was minimal, tested positive for the virus.

Tennis was hoping to follow team sports like football back into arenas and stadiums, but the positive tests of Djokovic and three others have dampened its prospects. 

"I am so deeply sorry our tournament has caused harm," the 17-time Grand Slam champion wrote on Twitter, adding, "It was too soon."

Agence France-Presse

US sees nearly 700 more virus deaths in 24 hours

WASHINGTON - The United States lost another 687 people to the new coronavirus in the 24 hours leading up to 8:30 pm (0030 GMT) Thursday, according a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

It marks the eighth day in which the daily toll from the virus has been fewer than 1,000, even as the US remains the country hardest-hit by the pandemic with a total of 118,381 deaths out of a total of 2,187,876 official cases. 

Some 20 states have seen a rebound in infections as the epicenter of the country's outbreak has moved from New York and the country's Northeast to the South and West. 

But the White House's chief infectious disease expert said Thursday he does not think new widespread containment measures will be necessary.

"I don't think we're going to be talking about going back to lockdown," said Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health, when asked if some states should re-issue stay-at-home orders. 

"I think we're going to be talking about trying to better control those areas of the country that seem to be having a surge of cases."

Agence France-Presse

Scientist warns of infections through breathing as US coronavirus toll mounts

A top US scientist warned Friday that the new coronavirus can be spread through normal breathing, fueling recommendations that everyone wear masks as several nations posted record death tolls.

With half of humanity under lockdown orders, governments have been racing to find ways to flatten the rise of the virus, which has infected more than one million people around the world.

Anthony Fauci, the veteran US expert who is leading the government's scientific response, backed recent scholarship that found SARS-CoV-2 can be suspended in the ultrafine mist let out when people exhale.

Fauci, head of infectious diseases at the National Institutes of Health, told Fox News that the guidance on masks would be changed "because of some recent information that the virus can actually be spread even when people just speak, as opposed to coughing and sneezing."

The World Health Organization has been more cautious, saying the airborne threat was only known to occur during certain medical treatments, and the United States until now has only advised sick people and their caretakers to cover their faces.

But Vice President Mike Pence said authorities will issue new nationwide advice in the coming days and several local leaders have already gone ahead.

Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York, the coronavirus epicenter of the United States, has recommended that everyone in the nation's largest city wear masks when going outside -- advice backed Friday by the governor of Pennsylvania. 

"The only way we can cut the growth of this virus is to act as if we all have it," Governor Tom Wolf told reporters.

But with the United States and Europe facing severe shortfalls in protective gear, Fauci and local leaders urged people to save clinical masks for health professionals and patients.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a national address ordered all people to wear masks when going to markets and banned anyone under 20 from going outside.

- Rising tolls but hope in Europe -

More than 53,000 people have died from COVID-19 since it was first detected late last year in China, and the United States, Spain and Britain all reported their highest daily death tolls.

The United States on Thursday recorded 1,169 COVID-19 fatalities, the highest in one day in any country, according to a tracker at Johns Hopkins University. 

Worse may be coming as a quarter of global infections are in the United States, where President Donald Trump has warned of a "very, very painful" first two weeks of April.

Europe reached the dark milestone of 40,000 dead, with Spain on Friday reporting more than 900 deaths in the past 24 hours. 

Spaniard Javier Lara survived after being put on oxygen in an overcrowded intensive care unit -- a shock to a 29-year-old who was athletic and doesn't smoke.

"I was panicking that my daughter would get infected. When I started showing symptoms, I said I wouldn't hold her or go near her," he said, describing facing death with an eight-week-old as the "worst moment" in his life.

But even while Europe has recorded the most deaths, there were signs the peak there may be passing.

Worst-hit Italy recorded 766 new deaths but its infections rose by just four percent, the lowest yet, according to the civil protection service.

Guarded hope also came from Germany, which is credited with containing the virus through especially strict rules such as banning gatherings of more than two people.

"It's true that the latest figures, as high as they are, give us a little bit of hope, as the growth in new infections is slower than it was a few days ago," Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

"But it is definitely much too early to see a clear trend in that, and it is certainly too early to think in any way about relaxing the strict rules we have given ourselves," she added.

Prosperous countries have borne the brunt of the disease, but there are fears of an explosion among the world's most vulnerable living in conflict zones or refugee camps.

"The worst is yet to come," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, referring to countries such as Syria, Libya and Yemen. "The COVID-19 storm is now coming to all these theaters of conflict." 

- Grim economic news -

The world economy has been pummelled by the virus and the associated lockdowns, with the US economy shedding 701,000 jobs in March -- its worst showing since March 2009 in the wake of the subprime banking crisis. Even more dire figures are expected for April.

The situation is no better in Europe, where the Irish central bank said the country's economic output could be slashed by 8.3 percent this year.

Financial ratings agency Fitch predicted the US and eurozone economies would shrink this quarter by up to 30 percent and the Asian Development Bank warned the global economy could take a $4.1 trillion hit -- equivalent to five percent of worldwide output.

Latin America is heading into a "deep recession" with an expected drop of 1.8 to 4.0 percent in GDP, according to the UN economic commission for the region.

- New measures taken -

China's central bank became the latest to announce special stimulus measures when it cut reserve requirements for smaller banks in order to release around 400 billion yuan ($56 billion) in liquidity.

In signs that the world wants to avoid a repeat of the crisis, the African country of Gabon said it was banning the sale and consumption of bats and pangolins, the critically endangered, scaly mammals.

Pangolins are heavily trafficked from Gabon to China, where their meat is considered a delicacy.

The novel coronavirus is believed to have come from bats, but researchers think it might have spread to humans via another mammal such as pangolins through an unsanitary meat market in Wuhan.

The virus has chiefly killed the elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions, but recent deaths among teenagers and babies have highlighted the dangers for people of all ages.

In Kenya, the health ministry said a six-year-old boy had died and in Spain, mothers like 34-year-old Vanesa Muro who gave birth with COVID-19 are warned not to touch their newborns without wearing gloves and masks. 

"It's hard," she told AFP at her home in Madrid. "He grabs your finger, the poor little thing, and holds on to the plastic, not on to you."

Agence France-Presse

Trump accuses hospitals of hoarding ventilators

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump accused hospitals on Sunday of hoarding ventilators that are in scarce supply across the United States as the coronavirus spreads, adding any hospitals not using the devices must release them.

Trump, whose critics have accused him of trying to deflect blame over his handling of the crisis, did not cite any evidence to back his accusation that hospitals were hoarding the devices. It was also unclear which medical facilities he was referring to.

"We have some healthcare workers, some hospitals ... hoarding equipment including ventilators," Trump said at the White House following a meeting with corporate executives, including from U.S. Medical Group.

"We have to release those ventilators -- especially hospitals that are never going to use them."

His remarks came just two days after Trump invoked emergency powers to require General Motors Co to build much-needed ventilators for coronavirus patients after he accused the largest U.S. automaker of "wasting time" during negotiations.

Trump was more upbeat about GM on Sunday, saying the auto giant was "working very hard."

The Trump administration has been under pressure to ramp up the production of ventilators, which are essential to saving the lives of patients who develop complications with COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, estimated in an interview with CNN on Sunday that the pandemic could cause between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths in the United States.

Speaking earlier on Sunday, Dr. Deborah Birx, a member of Trump's coronavirus task force, told NBC television's "Meet the Press" program that the administration was asking U.S. governors and mayors to know "where your anesthesia ventilators are."

On March 25, Trump issued an executive order to prevent hoarding of essential medical equipment to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, including ventilators and masks.

The executive order authorized the U.S. government to directly target hoarders, who can be criminally prosecuted.

But with the infection rate rising rapidly, Reuters has documented shortages of vital protective equipment in hospitals in hard-hit New York, where healthcare workers are hiding supplies such as facemasks from colleagues in other departments.

As supply chains break down or delay delivery of vital equipment, nurses say they are locking away or hiding N95 respirator masks, surgical masks and other supplies that are prone to going missing if left unattended for long. (Additional reporting by Jan Wolfe and David Shepardson; Editing by Daniel Wallis)

source: news.abs-cbn.com