(Reuters) – Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:
China disease expert says COVID-19 origins probe should shift to U.S., Global Times says
A senior Chinese epidemiologist said the United States should be the priority in the next phase of investigations into the origin of the novel coronavirus after a study showed the disease could have been circulating there as early as December 2019, state media said on Thursday.
The study, published this week by the U.S. National Institutes for Health (NIH), showed that at least seven people in five U.S. states were infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, weeks before the United States reported its first official cases.
Japan to ease state of emergency, focus on Games spectators
Japanese Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on Thursday that a panel of government-appointed experts had approved a plan to downgrade a state of emergency in seven prefectures including Tokyo, which will host the Olympics from July 23.
Media said the government was considering allowing up to 10,000 spectators into stadiums during the Games, in line with a plan endorsed by health experts on Wednesday. A decision on the maximum number of spectators for the Olympics is due by the end of the month.
Regeneron COVID-19 drug helps hardly sick and hospitalized patients
An antibody cocktail from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Roche showed benefits for a wide range of COVID-19 patients, two research teams reported on medRxiv ahead of peer review. The cocktail, REGEN-COV, is already being used intravenously in the United States to keep symptomatic COVID-19 patients out of the hospital.
In a large new trial in the United States, results released on Monday showed the treatment cut patients’ risk of developing symptoms by 32%. It also reduced the amount of virus patients carry, said study leader Meagan O’Brien of Regeneron. No one who got the drug required an emergency room visit or hospitalization, compared with six people in the placebo group.
New Zealand lays out vaccine plan
New Zealand will take up to the end of the year to inoculate all those eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday, as she announced details of a vaccine campaign.
Ardern said the country would only get the bulk of its vaccine supply in October. About 560,000 people in the country of 5 million have received their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine while about 325,000 have been given a second dose.
CureVac fails in pivotal COVID-19 vaccine trial with 47% efficacy
German biotech CureVac NV said on Wednesday its COVID-19 vaccine was only 47% effective in a late-stage trial, missing the study’s main goal and throwing in doubt the potential delivery of hundreds of millions of doses to the European Union.
The disappointing efficacy of the shot known as CVnCoV emerged from an interim analysis based on 134 COVID-19 cases in the study with about 40,000 volunteers in Europe and Latin America.
(Compiled by Karishma Singh; Editing by Robert Birsel)
