Tag: COVID-19

HIV: Moderna launches clinical trial for breakthrough vaccine

American pharmaceutical and biotechnology company, Moderna has announced launching early-stage clinical trials of a vaccine for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Moderna made this known via a statement published on it’s official website on Thursday.

According to the statement, the first doses of the HIV vaccine that uses mRNA technology were administered at George Washington University (GWU) School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, D.C.

Moderna teamed up with International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) to develop the shot, which uses the same technology as Moderna’s successful COVID-19 vaccine.

Nearly 38 million people worldwide are living with HIV, which can lead to the potentially fatal disease, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Being diagnosed with HIV in the past was considered a death sentence. However, today, HIV is much more manageable with medications that can reduce viral loads to undetectable so the virus can’t be transmitted, as well as pills that can be taken to prevent infecting those who are HIV-negative.

Despite decades of research, no vaccine has ever been developed. Several candidates have entered clinical trials but failed in later stages.

Meanwhile, researchers hope that this breakthrough HIV vaccine can induce specific white blood cells, called B cells, which can then turn into what are known as broadly neutralizing antibodies that can neutralize the virus.

“We are tremendously excited to be advancing this new direction in HIV vaccine design with Moderna’s mRNA platform. The search for an HIV vaccine has been long and challenging, and having new tools in terms of immunogens and platforms could be the key to making rapid progress toward an urgently needed, effective HIV vaccine. We are grateful to all of our partners and especially to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for funding this trial,” says Mark Feinberg, M.D., Ph.D., president and CEO of IAVI.

On his part, Stephen Hoge, M.D., President of Moderna, said: “We are very pleased to be partnering with IAVI and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to apply our mRNA technology in the setting of HIV. At Moderna, we believe that mRNA offers a unique opportunity to address critical unmet public health needs around the world.

We believe advancing this HIV vaccine program in partnership with IAVI and Scripps Research is an important step in our mission to deliver on the potential for mRNA to improve human health”.

According to the statement, Phase I of the trial will enroll 56 healthy, HIV-negative adult participants at GWU and three additional sites: Hope Clinic of Emory Vaccine Center in Atlanta; Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle; and the University of Texas-Health Science Center at San Antonio.

Of the volunteers, 48 will receive one or two doses of the mRNA vaccine, and 32 also will receive the booster. The remaining eight will receive just the booster.

Researchers will then monitor for safety and efficacy of the new vaccine for up to six months after participants receive their final dose.

“We’ve seen promising proof of concept for germline targeting in IAVI G001, and this trial lets us take that approach to the next stage. What’s more, we’ve been able to expedite production of clinical trial material at a remarkably rapid pace because of Moderna’s technology,” said William Schief, Ph.D., professor at Scripps Research and executive director of vaccine design at IAVI’s Neutralizing Antibody Center (NAC).

January 30, 2022
COVID-19: NCDC announces 89 new infections

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reported 89 additional cases of COVID-19 in eight states and the Federal Capital Territory on Saturday.

The NCDC, via its verified website on Sunday morning, said with the additional figures, the caseload in the country had reached 253,020, and the death toll remained 3,135 since the outbreak of the pandemic.

It noted that one death reported on Saturday was backlog from Imo State on Jan. 24, 2022, adding that the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths have continued to decline in the country.

On Saturday the country registered 89 new COVID-19 cases as the infections continued to decline below the 100 mark for the fourth consecutive day since the country was hit by the Omicron variant of coronavirus.

Saturday’s case numbers were an increase from the 72 cases recorded on Friday.

The NCDC said of the new cases, 26 infections were detected from Lagos, the nation’s epicentre, 19 cases in Ondo and 16 cases in Imo State.

While Edo, Kaduna and Rivers reported seven cases each, FCT and Ogun reported three cases each and Kano reported one case.

It added that zero cases were reported from Abia, Ekiti, Bauchi, Osun, Oyo, Plateau and Sokoto.

According to NCDC, the country has now successfully treated and discharged 228,702 COVID-19 patients since the beginning of the pandemic, as the country’s recoveries increased by 70 on Saturday.

The NCDC stated that there were 21,183 active cases across the country as at Saturday.

January 30, 2022
AHBN urges FG to implement RMNCAEH+N COVID-19 Response Plan

Africa Health Budget Network (AHBN) has urged Federal Government to implement the Reproductive,
Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent and Elderly Health Plus Nutrition (RMNCAEH+N) COVID-19 Response Continuity Plan.

The Coordinator of the network, Dr Aminu Magashi, made the call while responding to questions from newsmen in Abuja on Friday.

The AHBN boss, which is a regional group that uses budget advocacy to influence adequate health spending and improve transparency, said
that the plan, which had the capacity to turn around the health status of Nigerians needed more government attention.

He explained that “the RMNCAEH+N COVID-19 Response Continuity Plan is to ensure uninterrupted health services, including family planning,
adolescents and youth health and other essential health services to all Nigerians to avert negative impacts of COVID-19 pandemic.

“The plan is well articulated and has the capacity to touch many lives.

“Even though we have less than 12 months left for full implementation of the plan, we are optimistic that if all hands are on deck, a lot of progress can be achieved.

“Notwithstanding, we must remember that this is a pre-election year and there is need for urgency in its implementation. Stakeholders have a huge role to play to ensure that the plan is implemented to the latter.”

He noted that the plan, developed in 2020 with an estimated cost of N12 billion, has less than 12 months to expire.

He said, “a cursory look at the various items in the plan shows that health promotion and public awareness will gulp over N4.5 billion; health
workforce/capacity-building will consume over N1.5 billion, while over N3 billion will be spent on procurement, logistics and supply chain management.”

He recalled that during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the then Presidential Task Force (PTF), currently the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19,
developed the National Multi-sectoral COVID-19 Response Plan.

He said the response had responsibilities assigned to relevant line ministries and parastatals in which the Federal Ministry of Health led the health sector component of the plan.

“The Federal Ministry of Health further developed an Integrated Federal Health Sector COVID-19 Response Plan.

“The comprehensive health sector response plan prioritised some health service packages which the RMNCAEH-N plan is formed to operationalise and address the challenges.

“The services include routine immunisation; reproductive health services; care during pregnancy and childbirth; essential care for newborn children, young infants and under-five children, adolescents; older adults and the elderly,” he explained.

Magashi, who said he was concerned that such laudable initiative would provide care and essential services to vulnerable segments of Nigerians, solicited for full implementation.

He, therefore, called on the Federal Government and relevant stakeholders to make every effort to ensure adequate provision of RMNCAEH+N services in all parts of the country to reduce illnesses and deaths.

He also called on Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), the media and other critical stakeholders to support the government to implement the RMNCAEH+N COVID-19 response plan.

January 28, 2022
COVID-19 Recovery: 1,628 poor, vulnerable households to benefit in Delta

No fewer than 1,628 poor and vulnerable households have been targeted to benefit from the COVID-19 action recovery social transfer in Delta.

Mrs Kevwe Agas, Permanent Secretary, Delta State Ministry of Women Affairs, Community and Social Development, said that the social transfer was a World Banks sponsored programme

Agas explained that the scheme aimed at alleviating the impact of COVID-19 on the vulnerable households in the country.

She stated this Monday, at a 3-day Orientation and Community Mobilisation and Sensitization Training for Local Government Social Transfer Facilitators in Kwale, Ndokwa West Local Government Area of the state.

According to her, it is a World Bank-sponsored programme that has been domesticated in Delta in partnership with the Federal Government COVID -19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) to enable it impact the poor and vulnerable in the state.

“A lot of people were impoverished as a result of COVID-19 pandemic, so the programme is to help the beneficiaries recover from the impact of the pandemic and to alleviate poverty in many households across the state.

“The programme is divided into three results areas and what we are doing here today is one of the results areas being anchored by the Cash Transfer Office and they are training the social facilitators from the pilot LGAs in the state,” she said.

She said that the programme was a rare privilege and that the beneficiaries should be grateful, adding that Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa and his team did all they could to ensure that Delta benefited from the social transfer programme.

Agas also charged the trainees (facilitators) to be steadfast and committed to achieving results as they go about the selected local government areas to validate the list of beneficiaries in the state.

On her part, Mrs Patience Osharode, Technical Head, Delta State COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (D-CARES) Social Transfer disclosed that 1,628 poor and vulnerable households from six LGAs would benefit from the programme.

She said that 24 facilitators are being trained to carry out validation exercises in the six selected pilot LGAs namely; Oshimili North, Ndokwa East, Isoko South, Ughelli North, Bomadi and Ethiope West LGAs.

She added that no fewer than 271 individuals and households would benefit from each selected LGA.

She said that the social transfer programme would last for two years and that it would be operated in two phases to enable more LGAs benefit from the scheme in the state.

According to Osharode beneficiaries would receive a sum of N20, 000 bi-monthly; the social transfer will take the form of categorical transfers to individuals and households selected from the State Social Register.

“These groups are categorised under the aged, persons with disability, chronically ill and rural and urban poor individuals and households.

“The selected beneficiaries will be enrolled into D-CARES Social Transfer Register of poor and vulnerable by LGA facilitators and staff of the social transfer delivery platforms, which is the State Cash Transfer Unit.

” This training is therefore aimed at giving the newly engaged LG social transfer facilitators from selected LGAs for the first phase of the D-CARES social transfers the required knowledge and understanding of the programme”.

She lauded the World Bank, Federal and State Governments for the life lifting programme for the poor and vulnerable while charging the participants to give the exercise the seriousness it deserves.

In an interview, Mr Denis Akpuri and Mrs Jennifer Utude, on behalf of the participants, pledged their commitment to deliver on the demands of the training, adding that the programme would be a great relief to the beneficiaries in the state.

January 24, 2022
COVID-19: Lagos announces end of 4th wave

The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, says consistent decrease in COVID-19 case positivity indicated the end of the fourth wave in the state.

Abayomi disclosed this through his verified Twitter account @ProfAkinolaAbayomi on Saturday, while giving the state’s COVID-19 update for Jan. 20.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the state had on Dec.7 announced the beginning of the fourth wave as the daily infection figure from the virus spiked.

Abayomi said that there was a reduction in positivity rates of COVID-19 infection from 29.3 per cent recorded on Dec. 21, to 1.9 per cent as of Jan 20.

According to him, bed capacity utilisation now stands at two per cent, and fatality rate stands at 0.71 per cent.

The commissioner said that 46 new infections were confirmed on the reported date increasing the number of COVID-19 infections in the state to 98,284.

He noted that 1,023, 203 sample tests had been conducted since the inception of the pandemic in the state.

Abayomi advised residents to get vaccinated and continue to adhere to non-pharmaceutical interventions to further reduce the spread of the virus.

January 23, 2022
Jos cold bites harder amid COVID-19 fears

The cold weather in Plateau has become more intense, causing discomfort and fears among residents amid COVID-19 and other related illnesses, reports the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Such cold weather has compelled residents to improvise measures to keep warm and evade cold causing illnesses.

NAN checks indicated that the climate in the state capital, Jos, has been hovering between 26 degree Celsius by day and as cold as 10 degrees Celsius at night.

Meanwhile, some residents in the state were worried because the cold was coming at a time the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 is spreading across the world.

According to the residents, the cold has caused worries over infections from the disease and making night social life almost non-existent in the state.

A resident, Mr Yemi Jimoh, a retired teacher, said, “I actually thought that the cold in Jos was going to be mild because the cold in December lasted a few days, only for it to resurface fiercely in January.

“I am an old man, so, it is coming back amidst the COVID-19 Omicron variant, is worrisome.

“I now have to remain indoors as much as possible and protect myself when I have to go out”.

Mrs Rifkatu Dung, a trader at the Farin Gada Market, said that the cold had affected her business as she resumed sales later than before.

“This cold is too much for someone to bear. I used to come to the market as early as 9 a.m., but I now come at almost 11 a.m. because of the cold weather.

“It is now hard to wake up and start the day because I just want to stay in bed until it gets warmer. I am still nursing the cold I contracted a few days ago.

“It is not easy on us that stay in the open to sell,” she stated.

A relaxation spot owner, Mr Kingsley Ozomenam, described the weather as too cold and unexpected after the short one experienced during the Christmas.

“This cold is too much; we were happy that the cold disappeared some days after Christmas and felt relieved that our customers would want to stay out a bit more.

“Suddenly it has returned, and we now have a few customers patronising us because they don’t want to sit out in the cold for too long.

“I have just returned from the eastern part of the country which is very warm. The climate here can only be compared to what we hear about Europe and other parts of the world,” he said.

A Teacher, Mrs Mary Itse, said: “Jos is usually cold this season especially December through January. It is expected, but one can never get used to the cold.

“It was mild in December but it has significantly worsened a few days ago, leading to several pupils missing school because of it.

“Some parents called in to say their wards either had a cough or catarrh and some didn’t call at all”.

Dr Nyam Azi of the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) advised residents to keep warm and observe protocols that mitigates the COVID-19 infection and other related illnesses.

According to the medical doctor, the weather could pose respiratory tract infections, as the cold serves as an optimal temperature for replication of respiratory tract viruses.

He said that people with osteo athritis may also experience the exacerbation of symptoms.

The medical practitioner said that these were times where the outbreak of Lassa Fever and COVID-19 outbreak were common.

He urged residents to avoid stored food from contamination of rat faeces and eating leftover food that were not properly covered.

Azi advised residents to protect themselves by keeping their environment warm, wear protective or full body clothing, wear face masks and maintain social distancing to protect themselves against the cold and infections.

January 21, 2022
Cases drop for 1st time as Africa’s fourth COVID-19 wave drops — WHO

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday said for the first time in Africa since the peak of the Omicron wave, weekly COVID-19 cases dropped significantly and deaths dipped.

Newly reported cases fell by 20 per cent in the week that ended on January 16, while deaths dropped by eight per cent.

South Africa, where the Omicron variant was first sequenced, and which has accounted for the bulk of cases and deaths, has now recorded a downward trend for the past four weeks.

Cases also fell across the rest of the continent, with only North Africa reporting an increase in cases, with a 55 per cent spike.

The Omicron variant has now been reported in 36 African countries, and 169 nations all over the world.

According to WHO’s Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the acceleration, peak and decline of this last wave has been “unmatched”, but its impact has been moderate, with fewer deaths and lower hospitalisations.

Despite those numbers, Moeti believes that Africa “has yet to turn the tables on this pandemic.”

“So long as the virus continues to circulate, further pandemic waves are inevitable.

“Africa must not only broaden vaccinations, but also gain increased and equitable access to critical COVID-19 therapeutics to save lives and effectively combat this pandemic.’’

The current case fatality ratio (the death toll per infections) in the continent remains the highest in the world, although it dropped during the last two waves of variants.

In terms of medication, patients with severe forms of the virus are being treated with corticosteroids and medical oxygen. Corticosteroids are largely available and relatively affordable, but availability of medical oxygen remains a challenge.

In addition, African countries face major impediments in accessing other treatments due to limited availability and high cost.

Last week, WHO recommended two new drugs, raising the number of WHO approved therapeutics to 11, and the agency is now reviewing the data on two oral medications that promise to reduce risk of hospitalisation.

Following negotiations with the Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche, the agency is supporting the shipment of a limited number of vials of Tocilizumab, a drug used to treat patients with severe cases.

Cape Verde and Uganda have already received vials. Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania are due to receive some in the next few weeks.

Further larger-scale deliveries are expected, with negotiations underway through the ACT-Accelerator partnership.

For Moeti, the deep inequity that left Africa behind on vaccines must not be repeated with life-saving treatments.

“Universal access to diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics will pave the shortest path to the end of this pandemic and no region of the world should be left on the fringes of this endeavour,” she said.

Even though vaccine supplies have been on the rise, the rate of vaccination remains low, with just 10 per cent of the continent’s population fully vaccinated.

Africa has so far received about 500 million vaccine doses and administered 327 million.

According to Moeti, significant efforts are needed to ramp up the vaccination to reach a broad swathe of the population.

By mid-2022, the UN-backed COVAX Facility expects to have enough supply for all participant countries to fully vaccinate 45 per cent of their populations.

January 21, 2022
Covid-19: Africa calls for donated vaccines with shelf life of 3 to 6 months

Africa’s top public health bodies on Thursday called for donated Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines to come with a shelf life of three to six months so countries could plan their rollouts and avoid a situation where doses expire.

John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said 2.8 million doses of vaccine had expired on the continent, roughly 0.5 per cent of the 572 million doses delivered to date.

He said 10.4 per cent of Africans were fully vaccinated.

“In terms of the 0.5 per cent, let me be very clear, any dose of vaccine that expired pains me because that is a life that can be potentially saved,” Nkengasong told a news briefing.

In a separate briefing, the World Health Organisation Regional Director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, echoed Nkengasong’s call.

“Many countries indicate that they would like vaccines to be donated with at least three months of shelf life, if not more,” Moeti said.

Nkengasong said the expired doses were mostly among those donated by individual countries or via the global vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX, and that they had arrived with “very short notice”.

In contrast, doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine acquired by African countries via a scheme organised by the 55-member African Union and delivered with a longer shelf life had not expired, he said.

He said some countries were now refusing to accept vaccines when they saw that the shelf life was only one or two months.

“They prefer not to receive those vaccines because it will create a narrative that vaccines have expired in their countries,” he said, without naming the countries.

“Most countries are very sensitive to that,”

Nkengasong said a focus on the continent this year should be the logistics of moving vaccines from the airports where they arrive at where they are used.

“We’ve seen remarkable uptake of vaccines in settings where we engage the community,” he said.

“We also have to be innovative and bring vaccines to the population and not only require that the population should go to where the vaccines are,” he added.

Nkengasong said 10.4 per cent of Africans were fully vaccinated, a percentage lagging far behind most other parts of the world.

Africa initially struggled to get doses as rich countries snapped up limited supplies.

Deliveries to the continent later picked up, but rollouts have been patchy.

Scientists have warned that low vaccination rates on the continent posed a risk in terms of new variants emerging, which in turn could prolong the pandemic globally.

The Africa CDC, an agency of the African Union, planned to talk to Merck about obtaining supplies of its molnupiravir treatment pill for COVID-19, although talks with Pfizer about its Paxlovid medication were more advanced, Nkengasong also said.

The agency had announced last week it was negotiating for supplies of Paxlovid, joining a global race for a drug seen as a potential game-changer in fighting the virus.

“We don’t have a preference to talk only to Pfizer and not Merck, it’s just that Pfizer has been more forthcoming with their engagement.

“We plan to engage both companies equally,” he said.

January 20, 2022
WHO recommends lifting COVID-19 travel restrictions

The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged nations to lift or ease COVID-19 travel restrictions, saying they have proven to be of little public health value but detrimental for economic growth.

On Jan. 13, WHO Emergency Committee on International Health Regulations met via video conference to evaluate latest developments in the pandemic situation across the world.

This is amid the spread of Omicron strain as the meeting also sought to revisit the COVID-19 response measures.

A statement released by WHO read“ the committee identified the following actions as critical for all countries; lift or ease international traffic bans.

“They do not provide added value and continue to contribute to the economic and social stress experienced by states parties.’’

The committee also said the failure of travel restrictions to restrain the cross-border spread of Omicron has proven their inefficacy.

“Countries should rely on evidence-informed risk assessment when choosing to introduce travel requirements, namely masking, testing, vaccination, and quarantine, and avoid placing the financial burden on international travellers.’’

“The WHO advised for international traffic to not require proof of vaccination against COVID-19 for international travel as the only pathway or condition permitting international travel given limited global access and inequitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines,” the statement said.

The WHO also urged states to recognise all vaccines that have received WHO authorisation, particularly in the context of international travel.

The Agency further requested states to uphold research “to derive the optimal vaccination strategy for reducing infection, morbidity and mortality.”

As of now, the WHO has approved 10 COVID-19 vaccines, including Covovax, Moderna, Comirnaty, Janssen, Astrazeneca, Covishield, Covaxin, Sinovac and Sinopharm.

Meanwhile, 10 more vaccines are undergoing review process, including Russia’s Sputnik V and EpiVacCorona.

January 20, 2022
Messi missing in Argentina squad for upcoming World Cup qualifiers

Lionel Messi has not been included in Lionel Scaloni’s latest Argentina squad as he continues to recover from coronavirus.

The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) forward has not played a match in almost a month, with the 1-1 Ligue 1 draw at Lorient on Dec. 22 being his most recent outing.

He contracted COVID-19 while back home in Argentina during the mid-season break, forcing him to return to France later than initially planned.

Messi seemed all set to return to action against Lyon on Jan. 9, but PSG said he needed to continue his recovery and then he also missed the 2-0 win over Brest on Saturday.

While he said last week that “I have almost recovered”, Messi did reveal on social media that getting over the illness took “longer than I thought”.

Given his situation, Argentina have seemingly deemed it pointless risking Messi or further disrupting his recovery given they have already secured qualification for this year’s World Cup.

Argentina travel to Chile on Thursday before hosting Colombia five days later, with both opponents still desperately fighting for the right to play at Qatar 2022.

La Albiceleste’s other remaining qualifiers are against Venezuela and surprise-package Ecuador in March.

January 20, 2022