Tag Archives: vaccines

Unsplash/CDC Paul Griffin, The University of Queensland Regulators in Australia and the United States last week approved Omicron-specific boosters, following approval in the United Kingdom in mid-August. In Australia, a Moderna Omicron booster has been provisionally approved for use in adults aged 18 and over. Supplies are expected to arrive in the coming weeks, however the Australian Technical Advisory Group …

Shutterstock Lara Herrero, Griffith University and Penny Rudd, Griffith University This week we heard two Australians have died from the mosquito-borne Japanese encephalitis virus. The virus has now been detected in four states. Authorities are concerned we’ll see more cases around the country and have earmarked extra funding to roll out vaccines to those at risk. Who is recommended to …

Nucleic acid vaccines use mRNA to give cells instructions on how to produce a desired protein. Libre de Droit/iStock via Getty Images Deborah Fuller, University of Washington The two most successful coronavirus vaccines developed in the U.S. – the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines – are both mRNA vaccines. The idea of using genetic material to produce an immune response has …

While people in the wealthy West have had preferred access to multiple rounds of vaccines, vast numbers of people, especially in Africa and on the Indian subcontinent, haven’t received a single dose. (Pixabay/Canva) Dawn ME Bowdish, McMaster University and Chandrima Chakraborty, McMaster University Canada’s COVID-19 vaccination rate is 76 per cent — 10 times higher than it is across the …

The HPV vaccine protects against cervical cancer. KT Stock photos/ Shutterstock Carol Dezateux, Queen Mary University of London; Helen Bedford, UCL, and Nicola Firman, Queen Mary University of London A vaccine to protect against human papillomavirus (HPV) has been found to cut cases of cervical cancer by nearly 90%, according to a recent study published in The Lancet. Cervical cancer, …

Understanding how much protection a vaccine offers is not as simple as it sounds. Andriy Onufriyenko/Moment via Getty Images Melissa Hawkins, American University The pandemic has brought many tricky terms and ideas from epidemiology into everyone’s lives. Two particularly complicated concepts are vaccine efficacy and effectiveness. These are not the same thing. And as time goes on and new variants …

Some vaccines use mRNA to make copies of the triangular red spike proteins to induce immunity. Juan Gaertner/Science Photo Library via Getty Images Deborah Fuller, University of Washington If the omicron variant of the coronavirus is different enough from the original variant, it’s possible that existing vaccines won’t be as effective as they have been. If so, it’s likely that …

Rift Valley Fever virus, 3D illustration. Kateryna Kon/Shutterstock George Warimwe, University of Oxford Professor George Warimwe should be a household name in Kenya. He’s a leading scientist who has created a life-saving vaccine against Rift Valley Fever. He is also leading policy-changing work on Yellow Fever vaccines. Warimwe has now been awarded the Royal Society Africa Prize for his work …

One of this and one of that might be a good strategy to coronavirus vaccination. SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Maureen Ferran, Rochester Institute of Technology While it’s now pretty easy to get a COVID-19 shot in most places in the U.S., the vaccine rollout in other parts of the world has been slow or inconsistent due to shortages, uneven …

Daniel Merino, The Conversation and Gemma Ware, The Conversation In this episode of The Conversation Weekly podcast, as India’s COVID-19 crisis continues, we look at what’s holding back the country’s vaccination rollout and how a shift in strategy on distribution and pricing is causing concern. And we speak to a researcher who went hunting for fungi in the world’s largest …