It will be interesting if this really does develop into a game changing vaccine what will happen to the mRNA vaccines. Pfizer revenues are up 90% Q1-Q3 FY21 over same period FY20... 90%.
OT: US Army Creates Single Vaccine Effective Against All COVID, SARS Variants
- Thread starter EricStratton-RushChairman
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And they are available in a pill.This thread will probably degrade into madness quickly but I think this is really newsworthy…
US Army Creates Single Vaccine Against All COVID & SARS Variants, Researchers Say
Within weeks, Walter Reed researchers expect to announce that human trials show success against Omicron—and even future strains.www.defenseone.com
I’ve been to Naples
Well, I've been to Hollywood; I've been to Redwood.
I'd cross the ocean for a heart of gold!
Pfizer pill becomes 1st US-authorized home COVID treatment
MATTHEW PERRONE
December 22, 2021, 12:31 PM
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WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health regulators on Wednesday authorized the first pill against COVID-19, a Pfizer drug that Americans will be able to take at home to head off the worst effects of the virus.
The long-awaited milestone comes as U.S. cases, hospitalizations and deaths are all rising and health officials warn of a tsunami of new infections from the omicron variant that could overwhelm hospitals.
The drug, Paxlovid, is a faster, cheaper way to treat early COVID-19 infections, though initial supplies will be extremely limited. All of the previously authorized drugs against the disease require an IV or an injection.
An antiviral pill from Merck also is expected to soon win authorization. But Pfizer's drug is all but certain to be the preferred option because of its mild side effects and superior effectiveness, including a nearly 90% reduction in hospitalizations and deaths among patients most likely to get severe disease.
“The efficacy is high, the side effects are low and it’s oral. It checks all the boxes,” said Dr. Gregory Poland of the Mayo Clinic. “You’re looking at a 90% decreased risk of hospitalization and death in a high-risk group — that’s stunning.”
The Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer's drug for adults and children ages 12 and older with a positive COVID-19 test and early symptoms who face the highest risks of hospitalization. That includes older people and those with conditions like obesity and heart disease. Children eligible for the drug must weigh at least 88 pounds (40 kilograms).
The pills from both Pfizer and Merck are expected to be effective against omicron because they don’t target the spike protein where most of the variant’s worrisome mutations reside.
Pfizer currently has 180,000 treatment courses available worldwide, with roughly 60,000 to 70,000 allocated to the U.S. Federal health officials are expected to ration early shipments to the hardest hit parts of the country. Pfizer said the small supply is due to the manufacturing time — currently about nine months. The company says it can halve production time next year.
The U.S. government has agreed to purchase enough Paxlovid to treat 10 million people. Pfizer says it's on track to produce 80 million courses globally next year, under contracts with the U.K., Australia and other nations.
Health experts agree that vaccination remains the best way to protect against COVID-19. But with roughly 40 million American adults still unvaccinated, effective drugs will be critical to blunting the current and future waves of infection.
The U.S. is now reporting more than 140,000 new infections daily and federal officials warn that the omicron variant could send case counts soaring. Omicron has already whipped across the country to become the dominant strain, federal officials confirmed earlier this week.
Against that backdrop, experts warn that Paxlovid's initial impact could be limited.
For more than a year, biotech-engineered antibody drugs have been the go-to treatments for COVID-19. But they are expensive, hard to produce and require an injection or infusion, typically given at a hospital or clinic. Also, laboratory testing suggests the two leading antibody drugs used in the U.S. aren't effective against omicron.
Pfizer’s pill comes with its own challenges.
Patients will need a positive COVID-19 test to get a prescription. And Paxlovid has only proven effective if given within five days of symptoms appearing. With testing supplies stretched, experts worry it may be unrealistic for patients to self-diagnose, get tested, see a physician and pick up a prescription within that narrow window.
“If you go outside that window of time I fully expect the effectiveness of this drug is going to fall,” said Andrew Pekosz, a Johns Hopkins University virologist.
The FDA based its decision on company results from a 2,250-patient trial that showed the pill cut hospitalizations and deaths by 89% when given to people with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 within three days of symptoms. Less than 1% of patients taking the drug were hospitalized and none died at the end of the 30-day study period, compared with 6.5% of patients hospitalized in the group getting a dummy pill, which included nine deaths.
Pfizer’s drug is part of a decades-old family of antiviral drugs known as protease inhibitors, which revolutionized the treatment of HIV and hepatitis C. The drugs block a key enzyme which viruses need to multiply in the human body.
The U.S. will pay about $500 for each course of Pfizer's treatment, which consists of three pills taken twice a day for five days. Two of the pills are Paxlovid and the third is a different antiviral that helps boost levels of the main drug in the body.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
US Army Creates Single Vaccine Against All COVID & SARS Variants, Researchers Say
Within weeks, Walter Reed researchers expect to announce that human trials show success against Omicron—and even future strains.
My notes of caution on this.
1. I think the Defense One article is mostly a puff piece
2. the researchers just wrapped up (per the article) Phase 1 testing. Lots of drug candidates, and vaccine candidates, make it through Phase 1 testing but fail in Phase 2 or Phase 3 testing.
3. per the article, they just wrapped up Phase 1 earlier this month (December). The Omicron variant was first detected in specimens collected on Nov. 11 in Botswana, and on Nov. 14 in specimens collected in South Africa. The Omicron variant was not reported until Nov. 24. The article indicates that the vaccine candidate "is effective against COVID-19 and all its variants, even Omicron." Without the detailed paper on the Phase 1 testing, it's impossible to know how much the candidate was even tested against the Omicron variant. My suspicion is that in the timeframe given, there was very little testing performed to show the candidate's effectiveness against Omicron.
Some general thoughts
1 the article does contain a link to another article, and that article provides links to a number of scientific articles about the animal testing. I scanned through them quickly, and the candidate does appear to have some promise
2. I previously saw it proposed in several scientific forums that there was a likelihood that a vaccine could be developed that would provide protection against a variety of SARS vaccines. I know a few groups announced they were studying that. I'm not sure if the researches at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research are in the lead on such research; the Defense One article doesn't address that. Long-term, such an approach would be better for humans than just a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.
3. As with most things in scientific labs, only time will tell if this candidate is successful. The second article I mentioned above talks about a second candidate that the researchers at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research have developed, which also shows some promise.
Being that we most likely are (covertly) involved with Bio/Chemical warfare agents. It makes sense that the Armed Services would have top notch research and design capabilities. There are numerous ( talented) people who simply pivoted to this project from other assignments etc.This thread will probably degrade into madness quickly but I think this is really newsworthy…
US Army Creates Single Vaccine Against All COVID & SARS Variants, Researchers Say
Within weeks, Walter Reed researchers expect to announce that human trials show success against Omicron—and even future strains.
Phase 1 testing is only for safety, not efficacy.
USAMRIID, I just learned of them, I recently watched The Hot Zone: Anthrax, a mini-series about the nutcase who worked for them and was mailing anthrax and creating panic just after 9/11.
Yes. But he had his thumb in one too many conspiracy pies for it to be believable, was my estimation. Whatever. You do read some outlandish stuff, no question.
Enjoy the day. Days are getting longer now. I dig that concept.
Something that probably concerns you:
COVID may affect fertility by reducing men's sperm counts, study finds
December 22, 2021, 9:13 AM
Couples hoping to become pregnant have another reason to take precautions against COVID-19 – the virus might reduce sperm counts, making it harder to conceive a baby, according to a new study.
The peer-reviewed study, published on Monday in the Fertility and Sterility journal, took samples from 120 men in Belgium averaging about 35-years-old. Research found that sperm count was reduced in 37% of men tested less than one month after COVID-19 infection.
One to two months after infection, sperm counts were reduced in 29% of men tested, and 6% of men showed reduced sperm counts two months past infection.
Falling sperm counts: Add falling sperm counts to the list of threats to human survival, epidemiologist warns
Does COVID-19 vaccine cause infertility: Study shows mRNA vaccines do not decrease sperm count
"The estimated recovery time is three months, but further follow-up studies are under way to confirm this and to determine if permanent damage occurred in a minority of men," researchers said.
The severity of the COVID-19 infection didn't effect the patients' sperm count as researchers added that they "found no differences" in the sperm quality of those who were hospitalized with the virus and those who had milder symptoms.
As to why COVID-19 can affect sperm counts, the study showed that higher amounts of COVID-19 antibodies in a patients' blood serum correlated to a reduced sperm function.
"Couples with a desire for pregnancy should be warned that sperm quality after COVID-19 infection can be suboptimal," the researchers concluded.
Something that probably concerns you:
COVID may affect fertility by reducing men's sperm counts, study finds
December 22, 2021, 9:13 AM
Couples hoping to become pregnant have another reason to take precautions against COVID-19 – the virus might reduce sperm counts, making it harder to conceive a baby, according to a new study.
The peer-reviewed study, published on Monday in the Fertility and Sterility journal, took samples from 120 men in Belgium averaging about 35-years-old. Research found that sperm count was reduced in 37% of men tested less than one month after COVID-19 infection.
One to two months after infection, sperm counts were reduced in 29% of men tested, and 6% of men showed reduced sperm counts two months past infection.
Falling sperm counts: Add falling sperm counts to the list of threats to human survival, epidemiologist warns
Does COVID-19 vaccine cause infertility: Study shows mRNA vaccines do not decrease sperm count
"The estimated recovery time is three months, but further follow-up studies are under way to confirm this and to determine if permanent damage occurred in a minority of men," researchers said.
The severity of the COVID-19 infection didn't effect the patients' sperm count as researchers added that they "found no differences" in the sperm quality of those who were hospitalized with the virus and those who had milder symptoms.
As to why COVID-19 can affect sperm counts, the study showed that higher amounts of COVID-19 antibodies in a patients' blood serum correlated to a reduced sperm function.
"Couples with a desire for pregnancy should be warned that sperm quality after COVID-19 infection can be suboptimal," the researchers concluded.
I have a quick and easy test. 
Does it involve the 'Palm' sisters??
Without knowing any details is this specific study, it wouldn’t surprise me AT ALL that the DoD has been researching this. You’d be SHOCKED at how much of your every day life has been made easier by DoD research (DARPA). Anyone ever heard of a little thing called ARPANET?
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