COVID-19: All Coverage
Startups Deliver Economic Boost to Pandemic Recovery
A new analysis by Innovate Carolina shows that in 2021 UNC-affiliated startups have generated more than $14 billion in revenue and created more than 12,000 jobs across North Carolina.
STEM Learning and Education During COVID-19
UNC School of Education researchers have won more than $3.5 million in NSF awards to pursue projects on STEM learning and learning in the COVID-19 pandemic. They hope their findings will inform instructional practices and policies, including ones that can better extend educational opportunity to underserved students
Searching for a Universal COVID Vaccine
David Martinez, a postdoctoral fellow at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, began designing a vaccine against SARS-like viruses in April 2020 as the pandemic took hold in the U.S. “I thought, we need to start thinking about preventing SARS 3,” he says.
Vaccinations Help Avoid Reinfection
UNC School of Medicine professor David Wohl analyzed reinfection data and discovered people who were vaccinated were much less likely to get COVID-19 a second time. Of the 10,000 people who were re-infected, 1% of people who contracted the virus, only 200 were vaccinated.
UNC Connection to Antiviral Pill
UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health professor Myron Cohen told WRAL UNC helped develop Merck’s antiviral pill before the most recent trial. Cohen said the goals of COVID-19 treatments are preventing virus progression, stopping transmission, and preventing long COVID.
A Pill to Treat COVID-19
While it isn’t a vaccine replacement, ongoing clinical trials of molnupiravir show that when given early after COVID-19 diagnosis, the new antiviral pill rapidly reduced the levels of infectious virus and could prevent symptoms from developing. UNC virologist Timothy Sheahan spoke with CNN about the new pill and his role in its development.
How COVID-19 Spreads in Households
UNC School of Medicine assistant professor Jessica Lin oversaw a recent study that found that once one member of a household tests positive for COVID-19, the other members have a 32% chance of also contracting the disease.
Vaccination Reduces Household Transmission
By testing family of COVID-positive patients regularly, UNC School of Medicine and UNC Gillings School of Public Health faculty explored how the virus is transmitted in homes. They found vaccinations lower the likelihood of others in the home getting infected after the primary patient.
