The TWiV team returns this week to SARS-CoV-2019 coverage to review the latest epi curves, the fatality rate, furin cleavage site and receptor binding domain in the spike glycoprotein, related CoV recovered from pangolins, evidence that the virus did not escape from a laboratory, and many more questions sent in by listeners.
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Rich Condit, and Kathy Spindler
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Download TWiV 588 (91 MB .mp3, 151 min)
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Links for this episode
- WHO CoV sitreps 16:34
- Epidemiology of COVID-19 (China CDC) 20:06
- COVID-19 incubation period (J Med Virol) 36:22
- China clinical trials for COVID-19 (Nature) 38:58
- Furin cleavage site in SARS-CoV-2 spike (virology blog) 46:43
- Proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2 (Virological) 41:47
- Pangolin photos (Nat Geo) 56:00
- Letters read on TWiV 588 1:00:32
- Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!
Weekly Science Picks 1:52:40, 2:20:32
Kathy – The deep sea
Rich – World’s oldest message in a bottle
Dickson – Coronavirus: A visual guide
Vincent – Recent NSABB meeting Videocasts Day 1 Day 2
Listener Picks
Stephen – This podcast will kill you
Neva – China’s surveillance
Sophia – WHO online courses
Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees.
Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv
Please could you change the web page such that it is possible to click on the “Links for this Episode” while listening to the podcast without it interrupting the podcast – currently, if you click on a link it goes to that page and interrupts the podcast. Thanks, Mark
The participants asked about harvesting bt guano in China Actually bat guano is highly prized by gardeners worldwide as a phosphate fertilizer which helps produce bigger blooms.
deaest Twivians!
first, I must apologise for previous whining comment… (shame®ret-sulking around the neighbourhood)
sooo relieved to be listening to this week’s twiv (i thought they quarantined you )
♥️♥️♥️
As news about the Coronavirus dominates the headlines, it is easy to get emotional and react to every latest development. However, we believe it is helpful to examine the facts and take a broader view on this outbreak. Here is what we know about the new virus so far, and how the scientific community is working to counter it:
https://www.collaborativedrug.com/coronavirus-2019-ncov-facts/
Feel free to read on TWiV letters.
Comments from dozens of scientists are on linkedin too: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/coronavirus-2019-ncov-facts-barry-bunin/
Great show, checking out your Lecture notes Vincent! So thanks
I have a 70 min per day commute so listening regularly now.
Also found TWiM, TWiP, TWiEVO
🙂
Mol, bio Scientist in Antibody Development!
Northern Ireland
Crann BEag is my side project for an extra artistic outlet
A bit disappointed that the always interesting and insightful Dickson stated the picture of the family that died, that has been circulating thanks to Epoch Times, as fact. It doesn’t match the pattern of Covid-19 illness at all, and was later suspected to be an unrelated pesticide or carbon monoxide poisoning incident.
I realize we don’t want to trust everything published by Chinese government sources, but even less so, some of politically motivated groups that have a history of published fake news.
AFP fact check does a good job checking some of the biggest stories, but lately they can’t keep up with the firehose of things being spread on social media. In an educational session, AFP said a good rule of thumb is to think about who’s publishing the information and any reason they may have to alter the narrative:
https://factcheck.afp.com/
The notion that the Chinese government is more trustworthy than the Epoch times in absurd. Not claiming that Epoch is perfect but they should be close to the bottom of the fake news list because they’ll report on stories that other news organizations are afraid to touch.
Also, most “fact check” sites are dubious at best. Lies of omission are represented as truth, and truth is claimed to be lies by using omission. They’ll get the low handing fruit correct but anything that is complicated and controversial is just represented as true or false based on the political leanings of the so-called “fact check” site.
Thank you very much for your highly educational podcasts. They are utterly invaluable. My 12-year-old daughter, Melanie, who listens to your programs regularly, has a question for you: Greetings, I would like to know if there are any projections as to the probability rate of mutation of the SARS-CoV-2. Will most infected humans, who recovered, develop immunity to this virus for the near future? Or is it predicted that the virus mutates so rapidly, that immunity, even for the near future, is not likely? In such a scenario, could a previously SARS-CoV-2-infected person get re-infected in the near future? Thank you very much in advance for reviewing my question.
Hi, so in this episode a dashboard website was mentioned, besides the Johns Hopkins that would mention closed airports and business, can you post the link in here or in the episode links?
Thanks,
Gabriel Guimarães