{"id":316645,"date":"2025-11-24T22:58:35","date_gmt":"2025-11-24T22:58:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/coronavirus-files-covid-19-long-haulers-may-have-rogue-antibodies\/"},"modified":"2025-11-24T22:58:35","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T22:58:35","slug":"coronavirus-files-covid-19-long-haulers-may-have-rogue-antibodies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=316645","title":{"rendered":"Coronavirus Files: COVID-19 long haulers may have rogue antibodies"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Since April, The Center for Health Journalism has been publishing a special newsletter geared to journalists as they report on one of the biggest and most complex stories of our times. Each Monday, while the pandemic runs its course, The Coronavirus Files will provide tips and resources\u00a0and highlight exemplary work to help you with your coverage. This week, The Center for Health Journalism\u2019s Coronavirus Files Monday newsletter is curated and reported by CHJ content editor Ryan White and community editor Chinyere Amobi. Have a suggestion or a request? Write us at\u00a0editor@centerforhealthjournalism.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/div>\n

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The Health Divide:\u00a0Food workers go hungry during pandemic<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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Big farms received the majority of aid the\u00a0<\/span>Trump<\/span>\u00a0administration has funneled into the agricultural sector, while many small-scale farmers and food workers\u00a0<\/span>struggle to make ends meet<\/a>. \u201cThe Trump administration has paid farmers nearly $18 billion in direct payments since June through its Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), but nearly 92% of farmers in Wisconsin received less aid than it costs to run an average dairy in the state for a month, according to a Reuters analysis of federal USDA data,\u201d write\u00a0<\/span>Gabriela Bhaskar<\/span>\u00a0and former CHJ Fellow\u00a0<\/span>Christopher Walljasper<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0<\/span>Reuters<\/span>. Food banks around the country are seeing a rise in needed assistance from people who harvest food, work in food processing and even own their own farms.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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Black Americans most hesitant to receive COVID-19 vaccine<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Black Americans are\u00a0<\/span>the most hesitant<\/a>\u00a0to receive a COVID-19 vaccine once one becomes available among U.S. ethnic and racial groups, according to a September survey by the\u00a0<\/span>Pew Research Center<\/span>. Distrust of medical research and the government is well documented in this community and other communities of color, largely stemming from present and historical racism in the country\u2019s health care system. Experts say Black participation in clinical trials is key. \u201cWithout adequate Black and Hispanic participation in clinical trials, it won’t be clear whether the vaccine will be safe and effective for them,\u201d writes reporter\u00a0<\/span>Karen Weintraub<\/span>\u00a0for\u00a0<\/span>USA Today<\/span>. \u201cAlthough there are no significant genetic distinctions by race or ethnicity, people of color may react differently to a vaccine because of their different lived experiences, experts say.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

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Election as referendum on Trump\u2019s pandemic response<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Science writer\u00a0<\/span>Ed Yong<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0<\/span>The Atlantic<\/span>\u00a0says we shouldn\u2019t have been surprised about how the\u00a0<\/span>Trump<\/span>\u00a0administration has handled the pandemic. \u201cHis record suggested that come a pandemic, he would lie, spread misinformation, opt for travel bans in lieu of more effective measures, and heed his own counsel over that of experts,\u201d writes\u00a0<\/span>Yong<\/span>. In\u00a0<\/span>a searing piece<\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Yong<\/span>\u00a0lays out how the election offers Americans a chance to change the course of the pandemic, and what\u2019s at stake in the event of a\u00a0<\/span>Trump<\/span>\u00a0reelection.\u00a0<\/span>Yong<\/span>\u00a0also highlights three small mercies: COVID-19 is not as lethal or contagious as other pathogens, this pandemic occurred towards the end of\u00a0<\/span>Trump\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0first term, and \u201cAmericans have an opportunity to avert further incompetence.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

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COVID-19 long haulers may have rogue antibodies<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cSome survivors of Covid-19 carry worrying signs that their immune system has\u00a0<\/span>turned on the body<\/a>, reminiscent of potentially debilitating diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, a new study has found,\u201d writes reporter\u00a0<\/span>Apoorva Mandavilli<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0<\/span>The New York Times<\/span>. The\u00a0<\/span>preprint study<\/a>\u00a0from researchers at\u00a0<\/span>Emory University<\/span>\u00a0found that a misguided immune response causes B cells \u2014 which normally make antibodies that attack viruses \u2014 to make \u201cautoantibodies\u201d that attack the body instead. This may explain why long-hauler patients continue to experience symptoms long after infection. The study found that half of its 52 participants with severe or critical COVID-19 had these autoantibodies. While the similarities to autoimmune diseases could have positive implications for treatment, it could also point to \u201cpersistent, even lifelong, problems\u201d for some COVID-19 survivors.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

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The Vaccine Race Keeps Slowing Its Roll<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Widespread fears that the\u00a0<\/span>Trump<\/span>\u00a0administration would rush through a COVID-19 vaccine for the sake of a pre-election boost didn\u2019t come to pass. The leading vaccine candidates in phase III trials all needed more time to evaluate safety and effectiveness. Now, there are more indications that a broader vaccine rollout is still a ways off.\u00a0<\/span>STAT\u2019s Helen Branswell<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>recently cited<\/a>\u00a0signs that the\u00a0<\/span>FDA<\/span>\u00a0\u201cis getting cold feet over the notion of issuing emergency use authorizations to allow for the widespread early deployment of Covid-19 vaccines.\u201d She writes that \u201cthe agency may be exploring the idea of using expanded access \u2014 a more limited program that is typically used for investigational drugs.\u201d Such a move could keep vaccine makers from ending their trials early by giving the placebo wing of the trial the actual vaccine, as Pfizer has said it wants to do.<\/span><\/div>\n

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There are\u00a0<\/span>other headwinds<\/a>\u00a0as well. In a call with investors last week,\u00a0<\/span>Pfizer\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0chief executive,\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Albert Bourla<\/span>, said his company\u2019s trial had not yet arrived at 32 cases of COVID-19 in either the placebo or vaccine groups, a key benchmark in determining whether the vaccine is effective.\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Bourla<\/span>\u00a0had\u00a0<\/span>earlier predicted<\/a>\u00a0a \u201cconclusive readout\u201d from the trial by the end of October. Moderna has said its aiming to seek\u00a0<\/span>FDA<\/span>\u00a0review in late November, while Johnson & Johnson is aiming for review late this year or early next.\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Anthony Fauci<\/span>\u00a0further dampened expectations in a\u00a0<\/span>JAMA<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>interview<\/a>\u00a0last week. \u201cExactly when the (emergency use authorization) will be granted \u2014 could be January, could be later \u2014 we don\u2019t know,\u201d\u00a0<\/span>Fauci<\/span>\u00a0said.<\/span><\/div>\n

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The\u00a0<\/span>FDA<\/span>\u00a0review isn\u2019t the only hurdle a vaccine would have to clear. Oregon, Washington and Nevada\u00a0<\/span>announced<\/a>\u00a0last week that they would join California\u2019s vaccine safety review group, and New York announced<\/span>\u00a0<\/a>plans<\/a>\u00a0last month for its own group of leading experts to review coming vaccines. \u201cFrankly, I\u2019m not going to trust the federal government\u2019s opinion,\u201d New York\u00a0<\/span>Gov. Andrew Cuomo<\/span>\u00a0said at the time.<\/span><\/div>\n

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How Friendly Are Those Skies?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Last week, a United Airlines passenger flew\u00a0<\/span>from Chicago to Honolulu<\/a>, while a COVID-19 test result was pending. On landing, the passenger got the results: Positive. The passenger was taken into isolation, but that presumably didn\u2019t benefit fellow passengers who had just shared the more than nine-hour flight. The incident raises a number of questions such as: Can flying be safe?<\/span><\/div>\n

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Last week, researchers at the\u00a0<\/span>Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health<\/span>\u00a0released an\u00a0<\/span>industry-funded study<\/a>\u00a0that led to a wave of headlines such as: \u201cFlying can be safer than grocery shopping,\u00a0<\/span>Harvard<\/span>\u00a0study asserts\u201d (<\/span>CNN<\/a>) and \u201cWith proper measures flying can be safer than eating at a restaurant during the pandemic, study says\u201d (<\/span>The Washington Post<\/a>). Those measures include things like cleaning and sanitizing planes, wearing face masks, and ensuring steady air flow through the cabin at all times.\u00a0<\/span>Los Angeles Times<\/span>\u00a0reporter\u00a0<\/span>Hugo Martin<\/span>, who points out such studies come at a time when airlines are hemorrhaging cash and desperate for more travelers, ran this and related studies by a number of experts. \u201cInfectious-disease and health care experts say the study correctly concludes that the infection risk is lower on a plane than in places such as stores and restaurants. The study gave much of the credit to the air circulation system in airplane cabins that pushes air through high-efficiency particulate air filters, known as HEPA filters,\u201d\u00a0<\/span>Martin<\/span>\u00a0writes. \u201cBut the experts note that the test was limited to certain scenarios.\u201d In real life, people move about planes, don\u2019t always keep their masks on and don\u2019t just face forward, the way a test mannequin might. And all this also overlooks the infection risks of getting to and through the airport itself. Read\u00a0<\/span>Martin\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0caveat-rich take\u00a0<\/span>here<\/a>\u00a0before making your holiday booking.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Mandate Masks, or Just Normalize Them?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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As the U.S. endured its worst week yet for COVID-19 cases, more top health experts are voicing support for a national mask mandate, as\u00a0<\/span>Sheryl Gay Stolberg<\/span>\u00a0reported in\u00a0<\/span>The New York Times<\/span>. That includes former\u00a0<\/span>FDA<\/span>\u00a0commissioner\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Scott Gottlieb<\/span>\u00a0and top infectious disease expert\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Anthony Fauci<\/span>, who recently told\u00a0<\/span>CNN<\/span>, \u201cIf people are not wearing masks, then maybe we should be mandating.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>Gottlieb<\/span>\u00a0suggested a mandate limited to two months in his\u00a0<\/span>Wall Street Journal\u00a0<\/span>op-ed<\/a>. The idea presumes a win for\u00a0<\/span>Joe Biden<\/span>, who has previously voiced support for a mandate for masks on federal property. A broader mandate would be tough, given how politicized masks have become. But it wouldn\u2019t be without precedent on the world stage: Russian\u00a0<\/span>President Vladimir Putin<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>ordered<\/a>\u00a0a national mask mandate for the country last week, as cases surge there.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Meanwhile, modelers at the\u00a0<\/span>University of Washington\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation<\/span>\u00a0published\u00a0<\/span>fresh projections<\/a>\u00a0on how mask use could change the trajectory of the pandemic. If 95% of people wear masks in public, the country would save nearly 130,000 lives by the end of February 2021. If 85% of people wears masks, nearly 96,000 lives would be spared during that same period, the team predicts. But some public health experts argue that\u00a0<\/span>Biden<\/span>, if elected, should turn to the powers of the pulpit rather than mandate masks. As\u00a0<\/span>Yale<\/span>\u00a0law professor\u00a0<\/span>Harold Hongju Koh<\/span>\u00a0told\u00a0<\/span>The Times\u2019 Stolberg<\/span>, \u201c\u2018Instead of making it about the president\u2019s coercive authority under law it should be about whether the president can support a norm that supports public health, which is in people\u2019s self-interest.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

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Join our team!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The USC Center for Health Journalism is looking for a freelance journalist to curate and produce our Coronavirus Files weekly newsletter on COVID-19 science & medicine news.\u00a0<\/span>Apply now<\/a>\u00a0if that’s you, or spread the word to your colleagues!<\/span><\/div>\n

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And Don’t Miss…<\/strong><\/p>\n

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