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QIAGEN N.V. QGEN announces the receipt of the FDA’s approval for its therascreen BRAF V600E RGQ polymerase chain reaction (“PCR”) Kit (therascreen BRAF V600E) as a companion diagnostic to the BRAF inhibitor, BRAFTOVI (encorafenib). The company also announced the subsequent launch of the kit. The FDA approved the use of the PCR kit as a companion diagnostic in combination with cetuximab to treat adult patients, who have metastatic colorectal cancer (“CRC”), with a BRAF V600E mutation after prior therapy. Notably, CRC patients having the mutation will be identified, using an FDA-approved test.

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam on Monday issued an order to residents stay at home until June 10, part of expanded efforts to curtail the coronavirus pandemic that continues to spread across the country.

“I want to be clear: Do not go out unless you need to go out. This is very different than wanting to go out,” the Democratic governor said in announcing the order.

Northam noted that “some of our beaches and other recreational areas were literally packed” over the weekend, and warned that, “everyone who is gathering in a crowd is putting themselves and others at risk.”

ABBOTT PARK, Ill., April 15, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Abbott (NYSE: ABT) announced today the launch of its third COVID-19 test, a lab-based serology blood test for the detection of the antibody, IgG, that identifies if a person has had the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Antibody testing is an important next step to tell if someone has been previously infected. It will provide more understanding of the virus, including how long antibodies stay in the body and if they provide immunity. This type of knowledge could help support the development of treatments and vaccines.

This antibody test adds to Abbott’s existing COVID-19 tests that are already being used, including its m2000™ molecular laboratory system and its ID NOW™ molecular point-of-care device.

GERMANTOWN, Md., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Precigen, Inc. (Nasdaq: PGEN), a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of innovative gene and cell therapies to improve the lives of patients, today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the Investigational New Drug (IND) application to initiate a Phase I/II trial for Precigen’s PRGN-2009, a first-in-class, off-the-shelf (OTS) investigational immunotherapy utilizing the AdenoVerse™ platform designed to activate the immune system to recognize and target HPV+ solid tumors. HPV+ cancers represent a significant health burden in indications such as head and neck, cervical, vaginal and anal cancer.  

It was a year ago this month that Johnson & Johnson Innovation first unveiled plans to launch a healthcare innovation facility in Washington, D.C., in collaboration with BARDA—also known as the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, a component of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

BARDA’s mission: the innovation, advanced research and development, acquisition and manufacturing of medical countermeasures—vaccines, drugs, therapeutics, diagnostic tools and non-pharmaceutical products—needed to protect us from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) health security threats, as well as pandemic influenza and emerging infectious diseases.

Image: Photo courtesy of Children’s National Hospital

The push for convalescent plasma and hyperimmune globulin immunotherapies to use against COVID-19 continues at the federal level, with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) touting collaboration with non-governmental entities to see it done.

GlaxoSmithKline CEO Emma Walmsley on Tuesday told CNBC’s Jim Cramer that her company’s newly announced partnership with industry peer Sanofi is an “unprecedented collaboration” between competitors.

The European pharmaceutical giants are combining their resources to develop a Covid-19 vaccine and aim to produce a batch within the next 20 months.

Image: https://www.cnbc.com

Iceland has 364,000 inhabitants. Currently, roughly 10% of them are aware of whether or not they have COVID-19. This is due to a massive undertaking by Kári Stefánsson, MD, Dr. Med., the co-founder, president, and CEO of deCODE genetics—a population genetics powerhouse that has routinely produced new discoveries in fields such as genomic architecture, cancer genetics, and mental illness. Now, deCODE has combined the most intensive targeted testing and general screening of any population to date for SARS-CoV-2.

Direct Relief today announced a donation from AstraZeneca of 3 million surgical masks for US healthcare workers battling Covid-19.

“For the dedicated and courageous healthcare workers across this country treating Covid-19 and non-Covid19 patients, working without an adequate supply of face masks and other protective equipment is like going into battle without body armor,” said Direct Relief CEO Thomas Tighe. “This generous and timely donation from AstraZeneca will make a substantial difference in keeping these vital workers safe and able to continue providing care for us all.”

Image: Pallets of surgical masks, donated by AstraZeneca, are prepared at Direct Relief’s global distribution facility in California for delivery via FedEx to health workers battling Covid-19 across the United States. (Photo: Direct Relief)

Summary: Droplets from a cough travel at a speed of 1.2 meters per second at peak velocity. Findings reveal that there is no logical reason to suggest 6 foot of physical distance is substantial at reducing coronavirus transmission.

Source: Western University

A recent Western-led study says two meters might not be far enough away if someone lets an uncovered cough loose in your direction – meaning sneeze and cough etiquette is more than a simple social nicety, but a key to stopping the spread of diseases like COVID-19.

Image: Western Engineering’s cough chamber is a two-metre enclosed cube with an opening and chin rest in the front, which is used as an access point for study participants to cough. Within the cube, a camera and a laser are used to determine the velocity of the expelled droplets from the cough. The image is credited to Frank Neufeld.