Blogs on the topic of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19

Coronastream

A special blog series, about medical microbiologists led by Dr Tim Inglis summarising some of the research that will be essential to inform COVID-19 countermeasures.

A promising drug could prevent cardiovascular damage in Covid-19 patients

At the Microbiology Society's Annual Conference Online 2021, Danielle Nader, PhD Student at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RSCI), presented her findings that a new drug target could protect against vascular damage in Covid-19 patients. Find out more about Danielle's research in this blog.

Has the increased use of hand sanitizers during the pandemic impacted antimicrobial resistance?

During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the importance of hand hygiene has been heavily promoted as vital in controlling the spread of the virus. In this blog, Sunil Pandey, PhD student in microbiology and infectious disease at George Mason University, USA, discusses the indirect effect antimicrobial cleaning products have on other infectious diseases.

Ask a Microbiologist: Vaccines

There is probably more misinformation about vaccines on the internet than any other topic. As we are the largest learned microbiological society in the UK, we decided to do something about it. In the first of our ‘Ask a Microbiologist’ series, we asked three experts some of the most commonly googled questions about vaccines.

JMM Editor’s Choice: validating a rapid test for SARS-CoV-2

Professor Arunaloke Chakrabarti discusses Validation of a single-step, single-tube reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA’ which was chosen as Editor’s Choice for the September issue of Journal of Medical Microbiology.

How will the COVID-19 pandemic impact a sustainable future?

COVID-19 has had huge, potentially lasting impacts on all aspects of our daily lives. Yet what long-term effects the pandemic will have not only on our day-to-day living, but also on the environment, is still unclear.

Life after a pandemic: What we can learn from the Spanish flu?

As much as SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19), and the Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918 are very different, the societal reactions during both pandemics are similar, as we explore in this blog.

Covid-19 testing in the UK Lighthouse Labs

In this blog, having just finished 7 weeks at the Milton Keynes Lighthouse Lab, PhD student Ellie Boardman reflects on what it was like.

Discrimination as a virus

Professor Iyiola Solanke outlines how there are currently two viruses causing death and destroying lives around the world: one is coronavirus, the other is discrimination

Answering questions about COVID-19

Dr Lucy Thorne, Research Fellow at University College London (UCL) has produced a helpful FAQ’s list to support those who want to better understand some of the terms used by politicians and in the media, what SARS-CoV-2 is, and the measures being developed to control the pandemic.

COVID-19 testing in the Milton Keynes Lighthouse Laboratory

Connor Hayward, PhD student at the University of Leeds, signed up to assist with testing efforts for COVID-19 in one of three Lighthouse Laboratories. In this blog he tells us more about his experience.

Working with government during a public health crisis

During the COVID-19 pandemic, politicians are looking to experts from the scientific community to inform the government’s response to control the spread of the virus. In this blog, past President of the Microbiology Society Professor Sir T. Hugh Pennington discusses his experience as Chairman of a number of Public Enquiries into outbreaks of Escherichia coli O157 in the UK.

In pictures: The first images of a coronavirus

Today, the word ‘coronavirus’ has become a part of everyone’s daily vocabulary. It’s difficult to believe that 60 years ago the very existence of these viruses was disputed by experts, with the first images of coronavirus written off as badly imaged influenza. Now, as the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 continues to change the world as we know it, the history of coronaviruses is being revisited.

Developing a COVID-19 educational app

In June 2020, Glasgow-based serious game studio Game Doctor was awarded a £50,000 grant from Innovate UK to develop a casual mobile game to educate young people on coronavirus. Here, Game Doctor founder and CEO Dr Carla Brown discusses the project and invites the microbiology community to test the game.

Blogs on the topic of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19

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