TimeMagazine

It’s the news that the HIV community has been waiting four long decades for: the hint that maybe, just maybe, HIV can be cured. Dr. Xu Yu, a principal investigator at the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, MIT and Harvard, as well as an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, had to … Read more

There are still more questions about the Omicron variant than answers. While the mutations identified suggest it has the potential to be more resistant to vaccines, invade cells more efficiently and be more transmissible than other variants, it may also turn out to cause less severe disease or it could just simply fizzle out. However, … Read more

On Nov. 26, the World Health Organization declared Omicron the latest COVID-19 variant of concern, and vaccine makers jumped on the news. Moderna quickly announced that it was developing an Omicron-specific vaccine, while continuing to study both a higher dose of its currently authorized shot, and a combination vaccine that protects against one of the … Read more

The World Health Organization warned that the new coronavirus variant could fuel surges with “severe consequences” amid signs that it makes Covid-19 more transmissible. Scientists in South Africa, where omicron was first detected, said it appears to spread more easily but existing vaccines are still likely to protect against severe illness. The Geneva-based WHO assessed … Read more

Harnessing the immune system to target cancer has long resided on doctors’ wish lists, with very little promise of becoming reality. Because cancer cells are normal cells that mutate to grow out of control, directing the body to destroy these cells is a risky endeavor with potentially dangerous outcomes. Advances in immunotherapy, however, have led … Read more

A new variant of SARS-CoV-2 first reported in South Africa is raising alarms for health officials around the world, leading to fresh travel restrictions amid fears it could be resistant to existing vaccines. Researchers in South Africa conducting genetic analysis of COVID-19 virus cases determined that a new variant, B.1.1.529, had been found in cases … Read more

(JOHANNESBURG) — A new coronavirus variant has been detected in South Africa that scientists say is a concern because of its high number of mutations and rapid spread among young people in Gauteng, the country’s most populous province, Health Minister Joe Phaahla announced Thursday. The coronavirus evolves as it spreads and many new variants, including … Read more

As you tuck into your Thanksgiving dinner, the kick-off event (at least for Americans) of the holiday season, spare a thought for the planet’s carbon waistline. Food production is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for more than a third of emissions worldwide — and a new study has given fresh insight into … Read more

Grappling with Europe’s punishing fourth wave of COVID-19, Austria’s government took bold steps to combat the spread of the disease on Friday — not merely sending the country back into lockdown for three weeks, but also announcing the first national COVID-19 vaccine mandate in the western world. Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg says the mandate, due to … Read more

On Nov. 19, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), supported an advisory committee’s advice and expanded the group of people who can now get COVID-19 booster doses to include all adults over age 18. But just because you’re now eligible for a booster shot, do you need to … Read more