Vaccine for Valley Fever Could Soon be Available for Pets July 6, 2021 Lisa Shubitz, DVM, a research scientist at the University of Arizona Valley Fever Center for Excellence, and her research team found a mutated gene of valley fever in a pathogen of corn. That became the first component of a potential canine vaccine for valley fever. KFOX-TV (El Paso, TX)
UA Expert Recommends Parents Get Students COVID-19 Vaccine Before School Starts July 5, 2021 Shad Marvasti, MD, director of public health, prevention and health promotion at the College of Medicine – Phoenix, recommends parents get their children who are 12 or older vaccinated to protect them from COVID-19. “They can get sick and I think that not being able to have kids wear masks regardless of vaccination status, I think is ethically questionable and puts our children and teachers at unnecessary risk," Marvasti said. KJZZ-FM (NPR) Phoenix, AZ
Spreading Delta Variant Moving Toward Dominance in Arizona July 3, 2021 Over the last 10 days in Arizona, COVID-19 cases have slowly started to increase after plateauing for a while. “Cases may continue to inch up just a little bit, but I don’t expect hospitalizations to change much,” said Joe Gerald, MD, PhD, an associate professor and director of the public health policy and management program at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. Arizona Daily Star
Dr Ivo Abraham on the Pandemic's Effect on Biosimilar Utilization July 2, 2021 Ivo Abraham, PhD, RN, a professor at the College of Pharmacy, discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to impact oncology biosimilar utilization. American Journal of Managed Care
Lack of Side Effects Doesn't Mean mRNA Vaccine Not Working; mRNA Shots Limit Breakthrough Infection Severity July 2, 2021 People who contract COVID-19 even after vaccination are likely to have a lower viral load, experience a shorter infection time and have milder symptoms than unvaccinated individuals, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. "If you get vaccinated, about 90% of the time you're not going to get COVID-19," said Jeff Burgess, MD, an associate professor at the University of Arizona Health Sciences. "Even if you do get it, there will be less of the virus in you and your illness is likely to be much milder." Reuters
Tech Launch Arizona Funds Five App Projects to Benefit Society July 2, 2021 Tech Launch Arizona has awarded funding to five teams of students, faculty and community members to develop software or mobile apps and bring them to the public as impactful solutions to benefit society. The winners include College of Medicine – Phoenix students Jahnavi Shriram and Benjamin Conner, and faculty member M. Sriram Iyengar, PhD. BizTUCSON
A Simple Blood Test to Speed Pulmonary Hypertension Diagnosis July 1, 2021 Health Sciences researchers are using artificial intelligence to quickly identify the chemical fingerprints of pulmonary hypertension before it’s too late. Read more Image
UArizona Center for Rural Health Receives $4.4M Federal Grant to Continue Health Services to Rural Arizona July 1, 2021 The support of the Arizona Center for Rural Health assures Arizona’s rural populations will continue to benefit from health programs and services. Read more Image
COVID-19 Vaccines Reduce Viral Load, Severity in Breakthrough Cases, Studies Find July 1, 2021 People who contract COVID-19 even after vaccination are likely to have a lower viral load, experience a shorter infection time and have milder symptoms than unvaccinated individuals, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. "If you get vaccinated, about 90% of the time you're not going to get COVID-19," said Jeff Burgess, an associate professor at the University of Arizona Health Sciences. "Even if you do get it, there will be less of the virus in you and your illness is likely to be much milder." Fox News
How Does the Delta Variant Differ from Original Strain? July 1, 2021 The highly transmissible Delta variant rapidly spreading in the U.S. and spurring calls for masks regardless of vaccination status harbors over a dozen mutations, some of which are linked to vaccine escape and heightened spread from person to person. "The mutations allow the Delta variant virus to spread more quickly and make infected people sicker," said Janko Nikolich-Žugich, MD, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Immunobiology at College of Medicine – Tucson. "Importantly, those individuals receiving all the recommended doses of the approved vaccines seem well protected even against Delta.” Fox News