Pandemic Report: Safe return to work | Pandemic Prevention Institute | Duel therapies

Safe return to work

PITTSBURGH, PA—As business leaders preparing a safe return to work for employees, data modeling company Epistemix is offering advice. The company makes a platform that simulates different work habit patterns and risks based on vaccination levels.

The Pandemic Prevention Institute

MADISON, WI—With the hope of improving future pandemic response, professors at the University Wisconsin in Madison will be part of the Pandemic Prevention Institute. The goal is to foster better connections between academic scientists and public health experts. The project is privately funded by the Rockefeller Foundation.

Duel therapies

ST. LOUIS, MO—COVID-19 patients that are at high risk of severe illness and hospitalization are often given therapies made from antibodies. But as new variants of the virus appear, there is a question around the effectiveness of the existing therapies. Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have found that dual therapy seems to prevent the emergence of resistant viruses.

COVID-19 and nanobodies

COLUMBUS, OH– Scientists at The Ohio State University are pursuing a new strategy in the protracted fight against the SARS-CoV-2 virus by engineering nanobodies that can neutralize virus variants in two different ways. There is much more research ahead, but the findings suggest nanobodies could be promising tools to prevent COVID-19 mortality when vaccines are compromised.