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The race is on to find effective treatments against the new COVID-19 coronavirus spreading through China, and two new therapies show real promise, researchers say.
One is an experimental antiviral medicine that already being used by Chinese doctors on a “compassionate” basis in coronavirus patients and has shown effectiveness in monkey trials.
The other involves transfusing the plasma of people who’ve survived COVID-19 into patients still battling the illness, in hopes of boosting the recipient’s immune defences.
The antiviral is a drug called remdesivir. It’s so new that it’s not yet approved for use by any drug regulator in the world. However, earlier this week the drug’s maker Gilead announced that remdesivir is being given to Chinese patients infected with the new coronavirus because there are no approved treatments.
And in a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science, researchers found that remdesivir prevented disease in monkeys infected with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV).
An outbreak of MERS first arose in Saudi Arabia in 2012 and caused worldwide concern before it was brought under control.
Importantly, the MERS virus is closely related to COVID-19, so scientists believe that any agent that works against MERS should prove effective against the new coronavirus.
The new study was led by Emmie de Wit at the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Her team found that remdesivir prevented disease when given to rhesus macaques before they were infected with MERS-CoV. It also improved the monkeys’ condition when it was given to them after they were infected.
The study’s promising results support further clinical trials in humans of remdesivir for both MERS-CoV and COVID-19, the research team said.
Several clinical trials of remdesivir for COVID-19 are already underway in China, and on 4 February Bloomberg News reported that the drug was being tested in patients with the new coronavirus by a medical team at the Beijing-based China-Japan Friendship Hospital.
One of the Chinese clinical trials will assess the effectiveness of remdesivir in as many as 270 patients with mild and moderate pneumonia caused by COVID-19, according to Chinese news outlet The Paper, Bloomberg News reported.
In prior studies, remdesivir protected lab animals against a variety of viruses and has also been shown to effectively treat monkeys infected with Ebola and Nipah viruses. The drug also has been assessed as a treatment for Ebola in people.
Two experts unconnected to the NIAID study were optimistic that the drug can be a weapon against the COVID-19 outbreak, which so far has sickened more than 64 000 worldwide and killed nearly 1 400.
The new research is “really exciting news”, said Dr Eric Cioe Pena, who directs Global Health at Northwell Health in New Hyde Park, New York.
He pointed out that MERS is a much more deadly coronavirus infection compared to the new virus, so if remdesivir works against MERS, “many of those infected [with COVID-19] would benefit from treatment”.
In fact, the vast majority of patients with the new coronavirus do recover from their illness, so remdesivir might only be stockpiled and used for the more severe cases, Pena believes.
Dr Robert Glatter is an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. He agreed that “the findings of this study in primates with MERS is quite encouraging, and support further investigation into the use of remdesivir in human trials, both for preventative and therapeutic use in those with severe infections with COVID-19.”
He also believes the drug might prove especially useful for “higher-risk individuals with exposure to the virus”, such as health care workers who are in close proximity to infected patients.
Remdesivir was even tried recently in the United States, Glatter pointed out.
“With success seen against other coronavirus infections, Gilead recently provided remdesivir to a patient with COVID-19 [treated] in Seattle. The patient recovered and was released from the hospital,” Glatter said.
“The drug also appears to be safe,” he added, “but the issue of emerging resistance [to remdesivir] will also need to be evaluated in upcoming trials.”
On Thursday, Chinese doctors announced they were trying a second strategy against COVID-19: transfusing the blood plasma of people who’d survived the illness in others already battling the disease.
As reported by The New York Times, Dr. Zhang Dingyu, who directs the Jinyintan Hospital in Wuhan, the centre of the outbreak, called on residents who’ve recovered from COVID-19 to donate plasma to help others infected.
China National Biotec Group, a state-owned company, said that its testing found that giving critically ill patients immune antibodies from plasma donated by survivors led to a big drop in inflammation within one day of administration.
It’s “a really good idea”, Benjamin Cowling, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Hong Kong, told the Times. “It’s basically transferring immunity from a patient who has recovered to a patient still fighting the infection, and then helping them to recover.”
The technique has been used in influenza epidemics, Cowling pointed out, but when it comes to COVID-19, the approach still needs to be tested in clinical trials.
So far, the coronavirus outbreak has been largely confined to China. As of Friday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recorded only 15 cases in the United States, with no deaths and transmission within the broader community.
Image credit: iStock
Managing staff
Recruiting, training, supervising and appraising staff
Handling store budget
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Overseeing pricing and stock control
Maximising profitability
Setting and meeting sales targets
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May the souls of Captain Thabiso Tolo, First Officer Tebogo Lekalakala and flight inspector Gugu Comfort Mnguni, the South African Civil Aviation Authority officials who perished in a plane crash on January 23 rest in eternal peace.
I can only imagine the anguish that you, the friends and families of Captain Tolo, Lekalakala and Mnguni are going through.
Your wounds are raw, fresh and suppurating.
You are enraged, bewildered and desperate for answers.
You want to know: was it an accident?
Could it have been prevented? Was there negligence from the pilot or the CAA?
Was the aircraft properly maintained? What was going on in the minds of the three officials when they realised that they are going down?
Some of these questions will be answered by the investigation into what led to the crash. Or so I hope.
Read: Aviation authority ‘can’t investigate itself’
Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula and the CAA’s chief executive Poppy Khoza have probably attempted to assure you that they will get to the bottom of what happened.
It is all little comfort though, as whatever the outcome of the probe, Captain Tolo, Lekalakala and Mnguni are dead.
But as you seek answers, I want to tell you things that Mbalula and Khoza will probably not have the courage to tell you.
I want to tell you that the calibration aircraft that killed Captain Tolo, Lekalakala and Mnguni should have been replaced in 2018 sometime.
I hope Mbalula and Khoza have told you this.
I hope Mbalula and Khoza have told you that in 2018 the CAA advertised a tender to have the crashed aircraft replaced.
By they way, that aircraft had been flying since 1986.
Three companies submitted bids but the CAA withdrew the tender on the last minute.
I asked the CAA for the reasons why that tender was withdrawn.
The organisation’s spokesperson Pappie Maja told me the tender was withdrawn because “the bidders’ submissions did not meet the minimum tender specifications”.
Sometime last year the CAA advertised another tender for the replacement of the calibration aircraft.
The organisation withdrew the tender for the second time.
I asked Maja why the tender was withdrawn for the second time and again he told me that “the bidders for the first two tenders did not meet the minimum requirements of the specifications”.
In November last year the CAA advertised a third tender, whose validity expires this week.
Officials will probably extend the tender’s validity. Whether or not the tender will be awarded this time around is anyone’s guess.
A source close to the CAA told me that the organisation’s Flight Inspection Unit (FIU) had declared the aircraft unfit to fly, at least twice in recent years.
But a bright spark in the CAA vetoed the decision and gave it a clean bill of health.
Your departed loved ones may have told you that in November last year the 12-seater Cessna had to abort a takeoff from Lanseria after smoke started billowing from the cockpit.
Another source with knowledge of the aviation industry told me that there was actually fire in one of the engines.
But Maja disputed this, saying it was just a “smoke incident”.
“The smoke incident was reported to the Aircraft Accident and Investigation Division (AIID) during the month of November 2019. That investigation is still ongoing, however, a preliminary report was issued in December 2019. The SACAA (South African Civil Aviation Authority) aircraft was maintained by an accredited Aircraft Maintenance Organisation (AMO). The AMO conducted its own assessment relating to the cause of the smoke and discovered that there was an oil leakage in one of the engines. The engine was replaced before the aircraft was released to service.”
There are also allegations that the tender was withdrawn twice because the bidder that officials wanted had not made the cut.
These are just untested allegations that will be close to impossible to prove.
But the allegations should be investigated. This is because the likelihood that all bidders failed to meet the specifications twice are quite remote.
In the event that bidders simply didn’t meet critical specifications, Khoza could have requested Treasury to procure the calibration aircraft through a deviation.
But on balance, it appears that the CAA, Africa’s premier civil aviation authority, dropped the ball.
Had the CAA replaced the crashed aircraft in 2018, Captain Tolo, Lekalakala and Mnguni may not have died.
If there was gross negligence on the part of the CAA, Khoza and her executive should be charged with manslaughter.
Let us hope that the CAA’s incompetence does not lead to the crash of an airbus.
The last time that South Africa had a fatal air crash was in 1987 when a SAA aircraft crashed, killing all 159 passengers on board.
I hope Mbalula will appoint an independent body to investigate the CAA’s crash.
In the normal course of business, the CAA investigates all aircraft crashes in the country.
But since the CAA is involved in this particular case, it would be inappropriate for the organisation to conduct the investigation.
Mbalula’s spokesperson Ayanda Allie-Paine said the crash was unfortunate.
“As South African law requires, an investigation has to be undertaken by the competent authority. The law adjoins the South African Civil Aviation Authority to investigate all accidents and that a preliminary report be issued within 30 days of the accident having taken place. The minister has impressed upon SACAA to comply with the law. Beyond this, the minister has directed that an independent inquiry be undertaken seeing that the aircraft belonged to SACAA and in order to be compliant with the legal principle of nemo iudex in re sua causa (no person can judge a case in which they have an interest).”
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Cape Union Mart International (Pty) Ltd has been equipping South African adventurers since 1933, and is South Africa’s favourite outdoor adventure store. Stocking everything one needs for outdoor pursuits – including hiking, camping, trail running, mountain biking, snow sports, travel and more – Cape Union Mart is an essential first step in every adventure. Cape Union Mart has stores across South Africa, and in Namibia and Botswana.
| Remuneration: | R7500 – R7500 per month Cost to company |
| Benefits: | Travel Allowance |
| Location: | Nelspruit |
| Education level: | Matric |
| Job level: | Student |
| Own transport required: | Yes |
| Travel requirement: | Often |
| Type: | Three mont |
| Reference: | #Sales Rep |
| Company: | MVC Marketing |
We are seeking vibrant and hardworking individuals to join our dynamic team as sales representatives in Nelspruit to promote and sell fibre products. Applicants must be able to work independently and integrate well into a team.
You will be required to be well-groomed and professional always.
R7,500 – Basic Salary, plus commission
R1000 Travel Allowance
Job type: Contract
Duration: Fixed term contract of 3 months
Sector: Marketing
Reference: Nelspruit
Start date: 2 March 2020
Job description:
Posted on 18 Feb 14:49
Create your CV once, and thereafter you can apply to this ad and future job ads easily.
Cape Union Mart International (Pty) Ltd has been equipping South African adventurers since 1933, and is South Africa’s favourite outdoor adventure store. Stocking everything one needs for outdoor pursuits – including hiking, camping, trail running, mountain biking, snow sports, travel and more – Cape Union Mart is an essential first step in every adventure. Cape Union Mart has stores across South Africa, and in Namibia and Botswana.
| Location: | Durban, La Lucia Ridge |
| Job level: | Mid |
| Type: | Permanent |
Natural-born wordsmith? Covert Grammar Nazi? Eat, sleep and breathe social media?
If so, Heads Up! We are looking for a creative live-wire (who fits this unique profile)! A multi-skilled writer who is able to switch between mind-blowing copywriting and meticulous proofreading.
Responsibilities:
We love to Scroll! From Facebook to Instagram, Linkedin and more, your work hours will revolve around obsessing over content for these platforms, immersing yourself in our brands, as well as tracking emerging trends in the digital sphere.
We live for the detail! Polished perfection – that is what we strive to produce with every element that leaves our agency and you will play a massive role in that as our resident proofreader.
To be successful in this role, you should be a master at writing for social media, with the ability to change your colours, adapting to various copy styles and tones. When it comes to proofreading, a focused and pedantic nature, together with an exceptional grasp of the English language and its usage is imperative.
And your added Advantage… taking initiative, brewing up creative ideas with the team, having an eye for beautiful social media content, and previous experience working in an advertising agency environment will help put you ahead of the pack.
Our successful candidate can look forward to hands-on experience on multiple national and international brands and fun collaboration with a team of energised young misfits that live to create!
To apply, send your CV and portfolio of work to:
moc.nilevajdnaiagessa@einna
Requirements:
Posted on 18 Feb 11:03
Create your CV once, and thereafter you can apply to this ad and future job ads easily.
