Since the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the attempts to rapidly develop a vaccine that was effective against current strains, researchers have been looking for a vaccine that could protect more broadly against multiple coronaviruses. 

Since the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the attempts to rapidly develop a vaccine that was effective against current strains, researchers have been looking for a vaccine that could protect more broadly against multiple coronaviruses. That has prompted attempts to harness the potential of the more conserved S2 subunit of the spike protein via which SARS-CoV-2 enters human host cells.

The controversy about the origins of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the accusations that it escaped from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, or even that it was deliberately engineered there, could – possibly – be brought to a close by two papers published July 26, 2022.

Since the isolation of SARS-CoV-2 and the study of its infection mechanisms, scientists have been trying to understand how this virus accesses the brain and produces neurological symptoms. The receptor necessary for the virus to enter the cell by endocytosis (the receptor for angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, ACE2) is only expressed by some neurons and is hardly detected in the brain.

Since the isolation of SARS-CoV-2 and the study of its infection mechanisms, scientists have been trying to understand how this virus accesses the brain and produces neurological symptoms.

Oxford University has opened the doors to its new Pandemic Sciences Institute, a £100 million (US$119.5 million) initiative to build on the research and experience of COVID-19, to counter future pandemic threats.

SARS-CoV-2 infection caused damage to brain blood vessels via a cascade of immune system reactions that was most likely initiated by antibody-dependent cytotoxicity, researchers from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke reported in the July 5, 2022, online issue of Brain.

With vaccines now authorized for children as young as six months, omicron boosters in development for the fall, and the nation’s first protein subunit vaccine for COVID-19 pending authorization, the U.S. appears to be well on its way to exiting the turmoil caused by the deadly SARS-CoV-2 virus. Globally, there is reason for optimism as well.

Although the death toll in the U.S. is nearing 1 million lives lost, signs continue to suggest that an end is in sight for the COVID-19 pandemic, the most disruptive global health crisis in a century.