This Week in Virology

Latest Episodes:

TWiV 634: 1000 hours of the sunlight of TWiV Jul 02, 2020

Show notes

TWiV reviews a new H1N1 swine influenza virus from China with pandemic potential, Ad5 vectored SARS-CoV-2 oral vaccine candidate, Operation Warp Speed vaccine candidates, FDA guidance on vaccine approval, and answer listener email.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, Kathy Spindler and Brianne Barker

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New swine flu with pandemic potential (BBC, PNAS)
Oral SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate (ClinicalOmics)
Operation Warp Speed (HHS)
ACTIV (NIH)
Development and licensure of COVID-19 vaccines (FDA)
Letters read on TWiV 634
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 633: Singapore viral Jun 30, 2020

Show notes

From DukeNUS Medical School, Vincent speaks with Ashley, Sheemei, Eng Eong and Dahai about their careers and their research on flaviviruses and sensing of viral RNA.

Host: Vincent Racaniello

Guests: Sheemei Lok, Dahai Luo, Eng Eong Ooi, and Ashley St. John

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Links for this episode

Dengue virus and endothelial permeability (J Clin Invest)
Dengue virus morphological switch (PLoS Path)
Symptomatic yellow fever vaccine infections (Nat Med)
RNA recognition by RIG-I and MDA5 (Nucl Acids Res)
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 632: Countering a miasma of anti-think Jun 28, 2020

Show notes

Daniel Griffin provides a clinical update on COVID-19, then we review SARS-CoV-2 infections in non-humans, vesicular stomatitis in Kansas horses, and answer listener questions.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Alan Dove, Kathy Spindler and Brianne Barker

Guests: Daniel Griffin and Chuck Knirsch

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Links for this episode

Dexamethasone for COVID-19 (medRxiv)
Proning trial for COVID-19 (Lancet)
Tocilizumab for COVID-19 cytokine storm (Chest)
Global causes of death
Vesicular stomatitis in horses (ProMedMail)
Daily tests needed (Atlantic)
SARS-CoV-2 infection risks
Letters read on TWiV 632
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 631: Lots of eggs in the spike basket Jun 25, 2020

Show notes

Vincent, Rich, and Brianne discuss a study estimating the fraction of symptoms and severe disease after SARS- CoV-2 infection, cellular immune responses without seroconversion during interfamilial infections, and answer listener email.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, and Brianne Barker

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Links for this episode

Probability of symptoms and severe COVID-19 (aRxiv)
Cellular immune response without seroconversion (medRxiv)
Image credit
Letters read on TWiV 631
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 630: Singapore Environmental Health Institute Jun 24, 2020

Show notes

From the Environmental Health Institute in Singapore, Vincent speaks with Director Lee Ching Ng about their work to control viral infectious diseases, including the controlled release of mosquitoes containing Wolbachia endosymbionts to inhibit viral transmission.

Host: Vincent Racaniello

Guest: Lee Ching Ng

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TWiV 629: Coronavirus update, pandemic sitrep Jun 21, 2020

Show notes

Daniel Griffin provides a clinical update on COVID-19, including analysis of the dexamethasone trial, and then we discuss two Ebolavirus outbreaks in DRC, clinical and virological aspects of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections, age-dependent effects on transmission, and answer listener email.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, and Alan Dove

Guests: Daniel Griffin and Chuck Knirsch

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Links for this episode

Dexamethasone reduces COVID-19 deaths (U Oxford)
Assessment of asymptomatic COVID-19 (Nature Med)
Age-dependent effects on SARS-CoV-2 transmission (Nature Med)
Image credit
Letters read on TWiV 629
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 628: Physical distance for COVID-19 Jun 18, 2020

Show notes

Vincent and Rich discuss the SARS-CoV-2 D614G amino acid change in the spike glyprotein, duration of infectious virus shedding from patients, virus transmission among hamsters infected in the laboratory, and tackle listener email.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Rich Condit

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Links for this episode

Austin TX key indicators for staging
D614 amino acid change (Scripps)
Virus shedding in hospitalized patients (medRxiv)
Hamster SARS-CoV-2 model (Nature)
COVID-19 host genetic initiative
Image credit
Letters read on TWiV 628
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 627: Singapore National Centre for Infectious Diseases Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

Vincent visits the National Centre for Infectious Diseases and speaks with Executive Director Leo Yee-Sin and Consultant Nancy Tee about the main hub for both clinical treatment of infectious diseases and outbreak management in Singapore.

Host: Vincent Racaniello

Guests: Leo Yee-Sin and Nancy Tee

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Links for this episode

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 626: Ralph Baric and fancy ferrets Jun 14, 2020

Show notes

Daniel Griffin provides a clinical update on COVID-19, then Ralph Baric joins TWiV to discuss SARS-CoV-2 transmission, vaccines, diagnostic tests, and a new animal model from his laboratory that does not use transgenic mice.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Alan Dove, Rich Condit, and Brianne Barker

Guests: Daniel Griffin, Chuck Knirsch, and Ralph Baric

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Links for this episode

Mouse-adapted SARS-CoV-2 model (bioRxiv)
SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine (bioRxiv)
ASM resources for #shutdownstem
President Obama on sustaining momentum for change (Facebook)
America After the Civil War (PBS)
Image credit
Letters read on TWiV 626
Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees

Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV 625: Fred Murphy, virologist for all seasons Jun 11, 2020

Show notes

Vincent and Rich visit Fred Murphy to hear about his wide-ranging career in virology, spanning many institutions, involving dangerous viruses like rabies virus, Ebolavirus (he took that famous iconic image), Marburg virus, Lassa virus, coronaviruses, and later writing a history of the field.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Rich Condit

Guest: Frederick A. Murphy

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Link for this episode