Kate Madden Yee[email protected]Kidney InjuryBiopsies show COVID-19 kidney injury not caused by virus in tissueTwo teams, one led by Dr. Vanesa Bijol of Northwell Health in Manhattan and another by Dr. Purva Sharma of the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in Manhasset, NY, found that existing kidney disease can be triggered or worsened by COVID-19. But the biopsies did not show viral presence in kidney tissue.July 20, 2020CollaborationResearchers outline neurological signs of COVID-19The neurological complications of COVID-19 are becoming more obvious as the pandemic wears on, and they consist of a startling range of conditions, according to a team led by Ross Paterson, PhD, of University College London.July 8, 2020PCRNegative COVID-19 lab results clarified on CTThe results confirm that chest CT plays a key role in thorough COVID-19 screening in patients who have negative RT-PCR tests but who still have symptoms of the disease, wrote a team led by Dr. Dandan Chen of Guangzhou First People's Hospital in Guangzhou, China. In fact, after the China National Health Commission released guidance in February on treatment of the novel coronavirus that described chest CT as a key tool for diagnosing COVID-19, use of the modality increased and more cases were identified.June 21, 2020Diagnostic TechnologiesD-dimer, imaging studies gauge pulmonary embolism risk in coronavirus patientsThe findings suggest a way clinicians can better evaluate the embolism risk in patients, since disease severity isn't necessarily a significant measure, wrote a team led by Dr. Alban Gervaise of Military Hospital Begin in Saint-Mandé, France.June 15, 2020HomeAI boosts CT's COVID-19 diagnostic performanceChest CT has been shown to be a sensitive and specific modality for diagnosing COVID-19, wrote a team led by Yang Yang, PhD, of Icahn School of Medicine in New York City. Yet CT results can come back negative in patients with early-stage disease. That's why AI could make CT an even more effective tool in the COVID-19 diagnostic arsenal.May 19, 2020Alzheimer'sTau protein biomarker proves itself in Alzheimer's blood testThe new test could make screening and diagnosis of the disease easier, wrote a team led by Dr. Kaj Blennow, PhD, of the University of Gothenburg. This protein is typically identified via cerebrospinal fluid testing or PET scans, both of which have their drawbacks.April 28, 2020Pathology, histologyFDA issues COVID-19 digital pathology device guidanceThe guidance is intended to help industry, clinical laboratories, healthcare facilities, pathologists, and FDA staff boost availability of devices for remote reviewing and reporting of scanned digital pathology slides during the pandemic, the agency said.April 26, 2020PCRBeyond RT-PCR: New methods emerge for coronavirus diagnosticsThe findings of the two studies -- one published on April 13 in ACS Nano and the other on April 20 in Nature Biomedical Engineering -- could offer clinicians more ways to quickly diagnose the presence of the virus, which is key to controlling its spread.April 20, 2020Molecular DiagnosticsHow regular COVID-19 testing could ease civil liberty violationsThere's already resistance across the U.S. to disease control measures, and some consider testing for COVID-19 an intrusion as well, wrote David Studdert, ScD, of Stanford University and attorney Mark Hall of Wake Forest Schools of Law and Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC. But a broad testing program could actually prevent the need for greater intrusions during the pandemic, the authors argued.April 13, 2020CollaborationCRISPR urine test helps assess kidney transplant patientsThe research shows that CRISPR's promise in medical applications may be broader than initially thought, study lead author Dr. Michael Kaminski of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) and Charité - Universitätsmedizin, both in Berlin, said in a statement released jointly by the center and the university.April 13, 2020Previous PagePage 2 of 4Next PageTop StoriesFDA ClearanceFDA approves CRISPR-based gene therapy, cell-based gene therapy for SCDThe FDA has approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ and CRISPR Therapeutics’ CRISPR-based gene-editing therapy for the treatment of VOCs in patients with sickle cell disease (SCD). It is the first CRISPR-based gene therapy to receive FDA approval.Mergers & AcquisitionsPerkinElmer acquires CovarisBusiness InsightsFDA clears BD’s new fingerstick blood collection deviceKickbackTexas lab owner pleads guilty in $1.7M Medicare fraudHepatitisCDC awards contract to Quest Diagnostics to assess hepatitis C burden
