Monthly Archives: April 2020

Space Physicists Find Plasmoid in Magnetosphere of Uranus | Planetary Science, Space Exploration – Sci-News.com

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Uranus possesses an intrinsic magnetic field that encircles the ice giant and influences the local space environment. The solar wind plasma, made up of charged particles, flows away from the Sun and interacts with Uranus magnetic field to form what is called a planetary magnetosphere. In a new study, a duo of space physicists at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center analyzed high-resolution magnetic field data collected by Voyager 2 during the Uranus flyby in 1986 and found that the spacecraft flew through a plasmoid a giant bubble filled with planetary plasma in the tail of Uranus magnetosphere.

Uranus in natural colors. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble Team / Erich Karkoschka, University of Arizona.

Little known at the time of Voyager 2s flyby, plasmoids have since become recognized as an important way planets lose mass.

These giant bubbles of plasma pinch off from the end of a planets magnetotail, the part of its magnetic field blown back by the Sun like a windsock.

With enough time, escaping plasmoids can drain the ions from a planets atmosphere, fundamentally changing its composition.

They had been observed at Earth and other planets, but no one had detected plasmoids at Uranus yet.

Dr. Gina DiBraccio, a space physicist at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center and project scientist for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission, and her colleague, Dr. Dan Gershman, analyzed data from Voyager 2s magnetometer.

With no idea what theyd find, they zoomed in closer than previous studies, plotting a new datapoint every 1.92 seconds.

Smooth lines gave way to jagged spikes and dips. And thats when they saw it: a tiny zigzag with a big story.

Do you think that could be a plasmoid? Dr. Gershman asked Dr. DiBraccio, catching sight of the squiggle.

The plasmoid they found occupied a mere 60 seconds of Voyager 2s 45-hour-long flight by Uranus. It appeared as a quick up-down blip in the magnetometer data.

But if you plotted it in 3D, it would look like a cylinder, Dr. Gershman said.

Comparing their results to plasmoids observed at Jupiter, Saturn and Mercury, they estimated a cylindrical shape at least 204,000 km (127,000 miles) long, and up to roughly 400,000 km (250,000 miles) across.

Like all planetary plasmoids, it was full of charged particles mostly ionized hydrogen, the researchers believe.

Readings from inside the plasmoid as Voyager 2 flew through it hinted at its origins.

Whereas some plasmoids have a twisted internal magnetic field, Dr. DiBraccio and Dr. Gershman observed smooth, closed magnetic loops. Such loop-like plasmoids are typically formed as a spinning planet flings bits of its atmosphere to space.

Centrifugal forces take over, and the plasmoid pinches off, Dr. Gershman said.

According to their estimates, plasmoids like that one could account for between 15 and 55% of atmospheric mass loss at Uranus, a greater proportion than either Jupiter or Saturn. It may well be the dominant way Uranus sheds its atmosphere to space.

How has plasmoid escape changed Uranus over time? With only one set of observations, its hard to say.

Imagine if one spacecraft just flew through this room and tried to characterize the entire Earth. Obviously its not going to show you anything about what the Sahara or Antarctica is like, Dr. DiBraccio said.

But the findings help focus new questions about the planet. The remaining mystery is part of the draw.

Its why I love planetary science. Youre always going somewhere you dont really know, Dr. DiBraccio said.

The findings were published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

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Gina A. DiBraccio & Daniel J. Gershman. Voyager 2 constraints on plasmoid-based transport at Uranus. Geophysical Research Letters, published online August 9, 2019; doi: 10.1029/2019GL083909

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Space Physicists Find Plasmoid in Magnetosphere of Uranus | Planetary Science, Space Exploration - Sci-News.com

Astronauts Can Use Their Own Urine to Build Bases on the Moon – News18

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Image for representation.

European researchers have found that astronauts urine could be used as a plasticizer in the concrete of the structures to build bases on moon in the coming decades for deep space exploration.

The modules that the major space agencies plan to erect on the Moon could incorporate an element contributed by the human colonizers themselves: the urea in their pee.

NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA) and its Chinese counterpart plan to build moon bases that will help humans reach more distant destinations, such as Mars.

However, the colonization of the Moon poses problems such as high levels of radiation, extreme temperatures, meteorite bombardment and a logistical issue: how to get construction materials there, although it may not be necessary.

Scientists from Norway, Spain, the Netherlands and Italy, in cooperation with ESA, have conducted several experiments to verify the potential of urine urea as a plasticizer -- an additive that can be incorporated into concrete to soften the initial mixture and make it more pliable before it hardens.

"To make the geopolymer concrete that will be used on the moon, the idea is to use what is there: regolith (loose material from the moon's surface) and the water from the ice present in some areas," explained Ramon Pamies, a professor at the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (Murcia).

Transporting about 0.45 kg from the Earth to space costs about $10,000, that means that building a complete module on our satellite in this way would be very expensive.

This is the reason why space agencies are thinking of using raw materials from the moon's surface, or even those that astronauts themselves can provide, such as their urine.

"With this study, we have seen that a waste product, such as the urine of the personnel who occupy the moon bases, could also be used," said Pamies in a paper detailed in the Journal of Cleaner Production.

The two main components of this body fluid are water and urea, a molecule that allows the hydrogen bonds to be broken and, therefore, reduces the viscosities of many aqueous mixtures.

Using a material developed by ESA, which is similar to moon regolith, together with urea and various plasticizers, the researchers, using a 3D printer, have manufactured various 'mud' cylinders and compared the results.

The experiments, carried out at Ostfold University College (Norway), revealed that the samples carrying urea supported heavy weights and remained almost stable in shape.

Once heated to 80 degree Celsius, their resistance was also tested and even increased after eight freeze-thaw cycles like those on the Moon.

"We have not yet investigated how the urea would be extracted from the urine, as we are assessing whether this would really be necessary, because perhaps its other components could also be used to form the geopolymer concrete," said Anna-Lena Kjoniksen from the Norwegian University.

The actual water in the urine could be used for the mixture, together with that which can be obtained on the Moon, or a combination of both.

The scientists stress the need for further testing to find the best building material for the moon bases, where it can be mass-produced using 3D printers.

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Southern Indiana women seek strong leadership in the White House – Newsandtribune

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EDITORS NOTE: Part of an ongoing series, Pulse of the Voters, highlighting whats on the minds of voters leading up to the 2020 presidential election. To read prior stories, go online to http://www.newsandtribune.com. To participate or comment, email newsroom@newsandtribune.com.

SOUTHERN INDIANA On Jan. 16, 2020, Indiana voted to ratify the 19th Amendment which allowed women the right to vote. In August of that year, the state became one of 36 to do so.

As the state celebrates this important centennial anniversary and as the nation gears up for a pivotal presidential election in November, many Southern Indiana women plan to exercise the right afforded to them long ago. Here are four of their stories.

As a Republican who works in a field assisting children and families, 52-year-old Ann Carruthers said she often tries to marry conservatism with social work when looking at the issues. The New Albany resident said she tends support things that look to help empower people and strengthen the community.

Nationally, I think leadership is something we really have to focus on in this upcoming election, she said. To be able to elect a leader who can actually navigate challenges as well as empower communities and utilize others ...I think that is when you [see] true leadership.

Sellersburg resident Missy Smith, 39, said social justice issues are very much at the forefront with her.

Smith works as assistant manager for healthy families, a child abuse neglect and prevention program through New Hope Services. She spends much of her free time in activism, for the LGBT community with the Floyd and Clark Stonewall Democrats (FLARK) and through anti-racism efforts at her church, Highland Baptist. She also does social media work and writes for The Resistance Prays, a group which embodies the idea that the left also has a voice when it comes to faith.

The right has done a very good job for a long time of monopolizing the idea that if you are a Christian and you are a good American, you are a Republican, she said. So we push that is not the case.

Smith said she doesnt see that most of the national Republican platforms line up with her spirituality, while Democratic ideals do.

Caring for the least of us, caring for the poor, caring for those often robbed of voice, she said. On the left we see people who fight to give voice to the voiceless.

Republican voter Fanny Grubbs, 64, said she looks this year to support right-to-life efforts as well as immigration and healthcare reform. Shes a Jeffersonville resident and vice president of the Clark County Republican Women.

Grubbs said when it comes to immigration, she wants to see tighter controls, not just at the Southern border, but also along the Northern border and at shipping ports in other areas.

I think it would help with the drug issue if we had more control over the borders, she said, adding she believes an influx of undocumented immigrants can also put a financial strain on the system.

And we need to make sure the immigration laws are the same for everyone maybe make it a little bit easier to come into the country, but come in legally.

Grubbs said she feels health care in America has taken a hit since the Affordable Care Act was first introduced during Barack Obamas administration, although she said there are parts she agrees with such as that a person should be able to switch insurance companies and not be denied due to a pre-existing condition.

We need to have more free market for health care, she said. Our costs for insurance was much less when we had free market.

Patty Singh, a 69-year-old retired database manager living in Jeffersonville and a Libertarian, said shes interested in seeing drug and prison reform, as well as changes in U.S. foreign policy.

She believes that marijuana legalization should have happened long ago, and if it had, would keep many nonviolent people charged with victimless crimes out of prison.

With foreign policy, she believes the nation should adopt more of an isolationist policy as existed in the 1950s and 1960s, and not get so involved in other nations wars and conflicts.

There are places where we just dont belong, she said. We shouldnt be policing the world. We should be offering help and aid where we can, but our troops and military is in places it shouldnt be, these Middle Eastern wars, it just doesnt make any sense to me.

Early on, Smith supported Democratic Primary candidate Pete Buttigieg for president; she liked his financial plans and online presence, and as an Indiana resident and gay man, he had checked the boxes for her.

Then, as we realized he wasnt speaking to issues and shortcomings within the black community, I got very nervous, she said. Smith then moved her support to Elizabeth Warren, and said she was heartbroken when Warren dropped out of the race.

I was super impressed with her understanding, her plans, her grasp on the issues, her intelligence, Smith said. She was a woman who stood her ground and had been doing this for a really, really long time, and giving voice to the voiceless.

Now, Smith is supporting Bernie Sanders, and most of the people she knows are, too. She said although shes disappointed to see the Democratic race again come down to two older white men which has historically been the case with presidential candidates she will support the one who gets the Democratic nomination.

Grubbs, a Republican, said even before Donald Trump was first elected, she had believed the U.S. needed a president like him. She said hes lived up to what she hoped to see, and she intends to support him for re-election.

Before he was elected, I always said we needed somebody who was a businessman and we needed a strong leader that once he makes a decision, hes made it, she said. I have completely backed him on how his administration handles our country. I think hes doing a great job; I really dont think theres anything I wish hed done a different way.

As for the Democratic presidential candidates, Grubbs said she would be terrified if Sanders were to be elected, as hes too far left. She said she also worries about Bidens physical and mental health.

To me, whenever you vote for him, you better look at who his running mate is because that may be who youre actually voting for, she said. He was a good vice president as long as someone else was leading; I dont think hes a leader.

Carruthers said she also intends to support Trump if things continue as they have.

If he, as a leader, continues to surround himself with the right people and look at those who can help move his agenda in a positive way, most definitely I would be supporting him, Carruthers said.

But she also feels that Biden has a likely shot at the Democratic nomination and could give Trump competition, especially if Biden chooses a woman as his running mate.

I just really think the role of a woman is going to be important, Carruthers said. There is no question that our country needs strong women today and tomorrow.

And although Singh said she typically supports the Libertarian candidate, she may vote for Biden if it means it could help him beat Trump.

[Trump has] kind of talked a good game, but every time I see him on television, its just garbage coming out of his mouth, Singh said. Hes arrogant, I think he feels like he can do anything he wants to do.

To me, he hasnt done anything and I think hes hindering more than hes helped anything.

When it comes to how the Trump administration has addressed COVID-19, Carruthers and Grubbs say he has done a good job. The disease caused by the novel coronavirus had as of press time Monday infected more than 140,000 people in the U.S. with more than 2,400 deaths.

I think this has been somewhat challenging for everyone being that this was not something that you could necessarily prepare for, Carruthers said. Having to navigate a task force with the proper strength probably was challenging in knowing who would bring the right skills to the table to help us get through this...

But Smith and Singh say a late response time and lack of tests has put the country behind where it needed to be to handle the virus.

I am completely appalled by Trumps response to a global crisis, though I am not surprised, Smith said. This man has put ego and greed ahead of the people his entire tenure; I dont know why I expected more at the moment.

Regardless of their candidate, the four expressed hope that whoever is elected in November can help heal some of the rifts in the nation.

I think its probably going to be a very tough election and I just hope that it doesnt divide the country even more, Grubbs said. I hope that whoever is running, both of them try to bring everyone together so that more people will be satisfied with whoever is elected.

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Over Ten People Exercise Right to Assemble at NH State House in Violation of Governor’s Order – Free Keene

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by Ian | Apr 1, 2020 | Civil Disobedience, Concord, Cool, Corruption, Free Concord, Haters, Hypocrisy, Issues, Living Free, National, New Hampshire, News, Noncooperation, Outreach, Personal Freedom, Photos, Police, Politics, Republicans, Response, Social, Update, Victimless Crimes |

Over a Dozen Heroically Attended the Right to Assemble Event Today, April 1st in Concord

Donning masks from V for Vendetta, more than a dozen activists gathered at the New Hampshire state house in Concord today in violation of HIS EXCELLENCY governor Chris Sununus order banning assembly of over ten people. Not only did the police who passed by the event today use their discretion and ignore the event, one Concord police officer even waved to the group, suggesting that he also supported the human right to assemble. While responses from passing motorists varied, the majority were positive, including thumbs-ups, honks, and waves. Negative responses included middle fingers, shaking heads, a thumbs-down, and verbal quarantine shaming. Of course, any protest for any topic always elicits negative responses and this one was not unusual.

Curiously, the only media who bothered to attend was an independent videographer who interviewed me and NH republican primary challenger to the incumbent governor Sununu, Nobody. After standing by Main Street for over an hour holding signs like, Social Distancing is Fear, Not Love and Assembly is a Human Right, we took a group photo by the statue of General John Stark. Stark is known for creating the saying from which New Hampshire selected its state motto:

Live Free Or Die; Death Is Not The Worst Of Evils.

Stark is likely rolling in his grave now with Sununu following obediently along with other tyrannical state governors and issuing approximately two dozen emergency orders in the last few weeks, destroying the freedom to do business and the freedom to assemble. While Sununu has not gone as far as some of his counterparts, he is nonetheless presiding over a tremendous increase in authoritarianism as well as economic destruction.

Protestors hold signs and socialize next to Concords Main Street.

Thankfully, Sununu wont be unchallenged in this years election. Nobody of Keene has thrown his hat into the ring as Sununus thus-far lone republican primary challenger for governor. Heres a recent Boston Globe story that features Nobody and mentioned todays event at the state house.

Activists joined Nobody from across New Hampshire and even as far away as Western Massachusetts to hold signs and violate social distancing rules that are driving people nationwide to suicide from lack of human contact and job losses. Recent news has shown suicide hotline calls are well above normal levels in many places across the United States.

There may indeed be a nasty virus out there. How much worse it is than the flu, which kills tens of thousands in the United States each year, remains to be seen. Fearmongering media and politicians benefit when they ramp up fear in the population. However, the decision on how to handle possible risks in life should be up to the individual, not lying, power-seeking politicians and bureaucrats. Freedom is better than safety or the illusion of safety, especially when the cost is your liberty. Once the government goons take more freedom, dont expect to ever get it back.

That said, many motorists in Concord seem to be on the side of freedom, and there were a surprising amount of people on the roads, getting life done. Kudos to the police for ignoring the peaceful event. The next Nobody-led assembly event in Concord is the annual 4:20 cannabis smoke out on 4/20, and for the only time in 2020. Hope to see you there! Nobodys campaign website is ElectNobody.com.

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Over Ten People Exercise Right to Assemble at NH State House in Violation of Governor's Order - Free Keene

Off-road motorbike seized by cops just minutes after upset resident reported it to police – The Northern Echo

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POLICE officers seized an off-road motorbike claimed to have been tearing around an estate just minutes after an upset resident had reported it to police.

Officers were on patrol in the Grindon area of Sunderland when they were approached by an elderly man who appeared distressed.

He told officers that he was increasingly frustrated by motorcycle-related anti-social behaviour in the area and said his wife, who has a long-term health condition, could not cope with the noise in the street.

After reassuring the pensioner, officers took down details of a blue-and-white motorcycle that had reportedly been tearing around the estate and bringing misery to many residents.

Minutes later while carrying out inquiries, the officers spotted a motorbike matching the description provided by the man and decided to follow its movements. They later saw the rider stop, get off and push the vehicle into an address nearby.

After carrying out checks, it was established the vehicle was not insured. The bike was subsequently seized by police and a 31-year-old man is due to be summonsed to court for driving offences.

Neighbourhood Inspector Marie Pollock, of Northumbria Police, said: This was a case of good old-fashioned policing with officers acting on their instinct after they were made aware of concerns from a member of the public.

After taking down the details, they then followed their nose and spotted a motorbike matching the description given by the concerned resident. It was soon ascertained the rider had been travelling without insurance and the bike was subsequently seized.

We understand the distressing and detrimental effect that anti-social behaviour can have on the communities we serve, and thats why through Operation Brimstone, officers are actively targeting motorbike-related disorder and taking these vehicles off our streets.

We have dedicated patrols in place in hotspot areas to tackle this type of criminality, and I would like to reiterate that this is far from a victimless crime the actions of a minority who tear around on these bikes can make the most vulnerable in our society feel intimidated and frightened.

As a result, we will continue to carry out a range of enquiries to keep our communities safe from motorbike-related crime and ensure anyone found responsible is dealt with swiftly.

If you see any off-road riders or vehicle-related crimes happening in your area, please get in touch with us. We also want to hear from anyone who believes they know where these bikes are being stored overnight.

Anyone with information, or who is concerned about this type of criminality in their area, is asked to get in touch with via Northumbria Police's Tell Us Something or Report an Incident page on our website.

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Off-road motorbike seized by cops just minutes after upset resident reported it to police - The Northern Echo

Watch now: These people’s lives are ruined – The Outline

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Back in 2016 another lifetime ago when Donald Trump was somehow the Republican presidential nominee and his campaign was regularly manifesting hitherto unimaginable incidents of bravura stupidity, I acquired the regrettable habit of comparing every new thing in the news cycle to a rejected George Saunders draft. I regret this comparison not because it was inaccurate, but because making it more than once suggested disbelief at how dumb and contemptuous the world seemed to have gotten, long after the state of affairs had morphed into a new normal demanding different paths of contemplation beyond I cant believe how dumb and contemptuous this is.

Because while Trump may have acted as an accelerant for this cultural buffoonishness, he was also an accurate reflection of his times, too. No subject of recent cultural fascination has seemed to me as nakedly Trumpian as Tiger King, a new Netflix documentary about Joe Exotic, a gun-toting, gay, polygamist tiger enthusiast jailed for allegedly ordering a hit against a rival in the big-cat world. Exotic was a well-known oddball in Oklahoma for years, but he accrued new showmanship and boldness just as Trump was running for president. Like the once-future president, Exotic is a narcissist skilled in the practice of stirring up shit in order to collect power, and when his financial empire is threatened by his rival, a self-described animal rights activist named Carole Baskin, he heads down a very dark road that culminates in his own poorly disguised incrimination.

Tiger King is, frankly, out of control. The first unspoilable show, The Ringers Jason Concepion wrote breathlessly last week. You actually cant describe it enough to spoil it. Because it only takes a little bit of time to see for yourself there are just seven episodes, and each is around 40 minutes I will not try. The short of it is this: Exotic and Baskin, along with another dodgy big-cat zoo owner named Doc Antle, are locked in a death embrace, fated to war with each other over which is the proper way to promote ones love for tigers through any means possible. The first three episodes are stacked with so many narrative twists, fascinating visual details, and jaw-dropping interviews that to look away for any 10 seconds risks missing something unmissable.

Its not that the main characters, who come off as endlessly duplicitous and outlandish, are skilled at lying marvel at how Baskin not-so-effortlessly parries the ongoing accusations that she had a former husband killed and fed to tigers, which is not even the craziest thing that happens here. But they cant stop lying, and so the only way to counterpoint their claims is to layer their testimony with those of more clear-headed outside sources (co-workers, investigators, victims) in order to gesture at its falseness. It turns out theres no law against low-grade deceit, and certainly nothing mandating the deceivers to feel any shame or remorse. The show cant help but pathologize a bit again, this is a documentary about a gun-toting, gay, polygamist tiger enthusiast but its primary method is to heap bullshit on top of bullshit until you cant help but go, My God, look at these assholes, a reaction thats helped make Tiger King a viral hit.

More and more these days we see TV and movie producers drawing inspiration from intellectual property that already exists, whether its a comic book or New Yorker story. In the way that certain lucky novelists could depend on their books being optioned to deliver a payday their publishers could not, the same is now true for magazine writers, podcast hosts, personal essayists, memoirists, et al who may find their projects rewarded with not only a meaty screenplay option agreement, and orders for more iterations as well. Joe Exotic was the subject of a 2019 New York story, a 2019 podcast, and now this Netflix documentary. But we are not done with him: Last fall, a deal was signed to make a fictionalized version spawned from the podcast, with Kate McKinnon signed on to play Baskin. A territory battle over who gets to play Exotic between Hollywoods most plausibly scummy actors is ongoing.

Tiger-mania is poised to run off the rails. For one, Tiger King already watches like a mockumentary. But the dramatic arc is less compelling than its details, and the series settles somewhat when it begins to focus exclusively on Exotics transgressions. The story, while still wild, slowly winnows down until it becomes a fairly standard crime drama, albeit one in which a man rhapsodizes about his dead lovers balls at their funeral. Reducing all of this to a conventional narrative in different forms isnt impossible, but it just cant be as vivid or as absorbing as the sprawling version, which explains Hollywoods interest.

Documentarians dont always sidestep the predictable inclination to leave us chewing on some thematically poignant conclusion, and thankfully Tiger King withholds the heavy hand. Partly because there isnt much there: Though it avoids voyeurism when talking to the people whose lives were permanently altered by the main characters (often for the worst), Tiger Kings thesis doesnt go much further than My God, look at these assholes. The fundamental point, hammered over and over again, is how unbelievable it is that any of this happened, which should not be a surprise to anyone paying attention to the world. That it is a surprise suggests that too many people, including myself, are still adjusting to the state of new American nonsense, which has been with us long before Trump.

One recent highlight of Vices documentary-style programming is Dark Side of the Ring, a limited series exploring the seedy truth behind several of pro wrestlings most notorious and tragic sagas. Perhaps the most horrendous story in pro wrestlings century-plus history is recounted in the two-part premiere of Dark Side of the Rings second season, which debuted last week to instant buzz. The premiere tells the story of Chris Benoit who, from the mid-80s to the mid-00s, was regarded as one of the best technical wrestlers in the world. Benoits seamless and dynamic mastery of the brutal choreography that constitutes a dramatic wrestling match was peerless. While he wasnt a brilliant personality like Hulk Hogan or the Rock, which is typically how wrestlers become famous, Benoits performance in the ring both looked and felt real, which is no easy accomplishment in an art form where that looks phony is an evergreen putdown.

In 2007, when his career was presumed to be on the downswing, Benoit murdered his wife Nancy, who was also his manager, and his seven-year-old son Daniel before hanging himself. A medical autopsy revealed his brain displayed a severe case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), likely brought on by the dozens of concussions (and hundreds of subconcussive impacts) he suffered over his career. He was also taking an unhealthy amount of steroids, and the combination of bodily traumas and personal depressions his best friend, the wrestler Eddie Guerrero, had recently died led him to a place where he researched how to effectively brutalize his wife, son, and himself. The resulting scrutiny of industry practices that led to his diminished health, as well as the diminished health of many other wrestlers who died prematurely, pushed World Wrestling Entertainment to adopt a stringent steroid policy. Whether out of good taste or self-preservation, they simultaneously erased Benoits name and record from its archives youll never hear him mentioned on WWEs official programming despite his definitional role in wrestling history.

Benoits many wrestling accomplishments of course pale in comparison to the fact that he brutally murdered his family and subsequently died by suicide.As his surviving friends and relatives (including David Benoit, his son from his first marriage) attest, it was completely inconceivable that the elder Benoit could commit such an act of pure evil, which is why theyve spent the 13 years since the incident trying to grapple with it. To watch this bear out in the documentary reveals the events are still raw: Nearly all the interview subjects admit theyre still trying to work out exactly what happened, if not literally then emotionally.

Professional wrestling is an art form and business built on lying, so it isnt very surprising to recognize wrestling personalities, even when sober and emotional, occasionally exaggerate and dramatize things. For the most part, its essentially harmless: One example in the show is wrestler Chris Jerichos assertion, during a monologue about how Nancy Benoits achievements should be lauded, that as a pro-wrestling manager, she created the role, she perfected the role, and then when she stopped doing it, the role basically disappeared. This is just not true there were many pro-wrestling managers before her, and many after but its a victimless lie meant to make everyone feel better and the type of statement that goes unchallenged throughout the documentary, as the producers consistently allow the wrestlers to declare themselves moral and factual authorities.

On the one hand, this bullshitting mildly undercuts the documentarys gravitas, as once you pick out one lie you cant help but wonder what else is storytelling. But this conscious narrative-shaping contrasts explicitly with the unvarnished emotions of the non-wrestlers, such as David Benoit and Nancys sister Sandra Toffoloni, who speak with traumatized honesty. Sandra, more than most, had a firsthand view of her sisters relationship with her murderer, and she reflects on what she couldve done to stave off disaster with the quiet sadness of someone whos gradually learned to forgive herself for not doing enough. Its impossible to conceive the pain of learning your father murdered your brother and surrogate mother, and the most affecting moment is when David, upon recounting the last trip he took with his family before their death, breaks down and is unable to keep going. Their candor is such that despite the credulousness of the producers, the documentary achieves a few brief moments of realness, all of the crimes titillations aside. Thats no easy thing to do when dealing with professional wrestling.

By default, Dark Side of the Ring comes off more amateurishly than Tiger King many of its events do not exist in recorded form and are instead re-enacted by actors with accompanying voiceover. One of the most amazing things about Netflixs documentary is how much actual footage it incorporates; there were apparently no fewer than three camera crews from various projects rolling on Joe Exotics property at all times over several years, along with expansive surveillance footage and plenty of homemade footage created by the documentarys more paranoid characters, yielding a rich and detailed narrative full of things to tweet about.

Yet I found the Benoit documentary ultimately more compelling. His crimes were far more shocking and devastating than anything that happens in Tiger King, and the attempt to process the banality of what he did rather than sensationalize it yields a believable conclusion. In Tiger King, we dont hear enough from the people whose lives were ruined by Exotic, Antle, and Baskin, and how they have managed to survive; instead were left with the unavoidable American truth that behaving ridiculously is the easiest way to make people keep their eyes on you.

I wanted to know more about Saff, an employee of Exotics who lost his arm in a tiger attack, and seemingly performed more emotional work to work through exactly what the hell happened here than all of Tiger Kings main characters combined. Its certainly the ridiculousness thats made Tiger King such a viral hit, while one refrain I heard around the Benoit documentary is that its simply too depressing to consider right now. But if reality resists all our grand theorizing, which all the evidence indicates it does, I personally find hope in the people forced to work it out nonetheless.

Jeremy Gordon is deputy editor of The Outline.

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Watch now: These people's lives are ruined - The Outline

Movie review: Doc Human Nature strikes a nerve in the age of coronavirus – Milford Daily News

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Documentary "Human Nature" examines how gene editing can help - and hurt - humanity.

If youre familiar with the Replicates from Blade Runner, the velociraptors from Jurassic Park or the genetic engineering so chillingly laid out in Aldous Huxleys novel Brave New World, youll be fascinated by how much science fiction has become science fact in Adam Bolts Human Nature. And its all due to CRISPR (pronounced crisper), a gene-altering technology that not only could facilitate designer babies, but possibly play a central role in putting the clamps on another acronym, COVID-19.

That timeliness is obviously on the side of Human Nature, a snazzy-looking documentary using sparkling graphics and top geneticists, journalists and one very adorable sickle-cell anemic to spell out a complicated subject in compelling, easy-to-grasp terms. But that same timeliness also works against it, given how now is not an advantageous moment for the films commercial aspects amid a landscape of shuttered theaters and a frightened populace whod like to avoid anything to do with medicine and science as sources of entertainment.

Yet, that double-edged sword fits snuggly in the wheelhouse of CRISPR (short for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats), a microorganism able to locate and repair defective DNA, as well as fend off invading viruses like COVID-19 by acting as a defense shield mimicking the offenders own DNA. But like the Internet, a revolutionary breakthrough for which CRISPR is often compared, theres a serious downside involving the morality of whether humans should have the right to, as the film calls it, play God. Namely, should parents be allowed to treat an embryo the same way theyd approach ordering a pizza? Well have the regular with blue eyes, blonde hair and an IQ of Einstein. Oh, and could you throw in some immense athletic ability, too?

Clearly, CRISPR has the potential to put us at the mercy of the type of mad scientists weve become accustomed to in just about every Bond film ever made. One geneticist, whose very name, Jennifer Doudna, includes DNA, admits having had a nightmare in which she comes face-to-face with Adolf Hitler! Are we willing to toy with the very real prospect of creating a master race?

Thats just one of the troubling questions Bolt confronts you with while weighing the pros and cons of a new frontier brimming in possibilities and danger. Personally, I come down on the side of CRISPRs benefits, particularly after meeting David Sanchez, a teen with sickle cell thats spent about half of his young life in hospitals receiving precious blood transfusions. Hes smart, personable and amazingly brave, so much so, you cant help but be all in when CRISPR offers him a chance at a more normal life. Yet, hes just as quick to recall to how hes learned to embrace -- even appreciate -- his illness because its made him a better, more resourceful kid, insights he would not have acquired had CRISPR been available when he was in utero. See? Hes torn, too.

Do we embrace a discovery wielding the promise of curing and preventing cancers and birth defects, or shun it for its ability to rob us of our unique individuality? Its a compelling argument I frankly wish Bolt had expanded more upon in his movies all-too-brief 90 minutes. But whats here is more than enough to spark a multitude of kitchen-table conversations about where we should set the limits on science, and more importantly, who should be making those decisions.

Given the disarray COVID-19 has put the world in, now probably isnt the time for us to evaluate, especially when CRISPR could well determine our fate by ridding our planet of a crippling plague. But what about after? Will, as Trump is fond to say, the cure be worse than the disease? Its a question for which Human Nature holds no answers, only utopian and despotic possibilities well be forced to uneasily choose between when and if the time comes.

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Movie review: Doc Human Nature strikes a nerve in the age of coronavirus - Milford Daily News

Coronavirus Business Tracker: How The Private Sector Is Fighting The COVID-19 Pandemic – Forbes

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Alain Mrieux, founder of BioMrieux.

Latest update: April 1, 2020, at 4:47 pm ET.

Businesses around the world are shifting into overdrive to help battle the coronavirus, providing everything from rubber gloves and ventilators to diagnostic tools and, hopefully soon, vaccines. While the pandemic continues to wreak havoc, large corporations and small businesses are developing creative solutions to halt the spread of the virus.

Just as automakers famously shifted to make tanks and planes during World War II, todays global giants LVMH, Ford and GE to name a few are retooling their production lines to help make everything from hand sanitizers to respirators. On the medical front, there are more than three dozen COVID-19 vaccines under development, a smart move considering that two out of every three vaccines for infectious diseases fail, according to a study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Forbes will continue to update this list of private companies and how they are stepping up to fight the COVID-19 pandemic:

Testing:

Abbott Laboratories: Abbott Park, Illinois healthcare firm obtained emergency FDA authorization for its 5-minute coronavirus testing kit on March 27, with plans to start manufacturing 50,000 kits a day.

Alphabet: Through its healthcare arm Verily, Googles parent company launched a website where users can find nearby testing sites in four California counties.

Jeff Bezos.

Amazon: Jeff Bezos retail behemoth invested $20 million in the Amazon Web Services Diagnostic Initiative, which aims to speed up delivery of COVID-19 tests to the market.

BioMrieux: French biotech company, founded by billionaire Alain Mrieux,received emergency FDA approval for its subsidiarys new testing kit, which cuts testing times for the virus down to 45 minutes.

Carbon: California-based 3D printing unicorn backed by Russian tech investor Yuri Milner will soon be distributing testing swabs and face shields to hospitals in the Bay Area.

Cepheid: Sunnyvale, California molecular diagnostics company gained emergency FDA authorization for its new 45-minute COVID-19 testing kit.

Copan Diagnostics: Family-owned company located at the heart of Italys hard-hit Lombardy region makes diagnostic swabs for testing, airlifting 500,000 swabs to the U.S.

DiaSorin: Italian biotech company owned by billionaire Gustavo Denegri obtained emergency authorization from the FDA for its new 60-minute testing kit for COVID-19.

Mammoth Biosciences: South San Francisco-based biotech startup, founded by three 30 Under 30 alums, prototyped a rapid test by using the gene-editing tool Crispr to detect the disease.

Mesa Biotech: San Diego biotech business obtained FDA approval for its new 30-minute testing kit for COVID-19.

Puritan Medical Products: Maine-based diagnostic maker, one of the worlds largest makers of diagnostic swabs along with Italys Copan Diagnostics, is reportedly increasing production to make one million COVID-19 testing swabs a week.

Treatments:

AbbVie: North Chicago-based, publicly traded pharma firm is collaborating with authorities in the EU, the U.S. and China on experimental use of its HIV drug lopinavir/ritonavir to treat COVID-19.

AIM Immunotech: Florida-based pharmaceutical company announced on March 9 it would begin experimental testing of its chronic fatigue syndrome drug rintatolimod as a treatment for COVID-19 in Japan, at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases and the University of Tokyo.

Algernon Pharmaceuticals: Vancouver-based pharmaceutical firm is requesting FDA approval to begin trials of its chronic cough medication ifenprodil as a treatment for COVID-19.

AlloVir: Houston-based cell and gene therapy company is collaborating with Baylor College of Medicine to discover and develop T-cell therapies to fight COVID-19.

Apeiron Biologics: Vienna-based biotech firm started small-scale trials of its immunotherapy treatment on COVID-19 in China in February.

Ascletis: Hangzhou, China pharmaceutical company announced results of clinical trials of its antiviral drug danoprevir on COVID-19 patients in China; the small-scale study found that danoprevir combined with ritonavir is safe and well tolerated in all patients.

Bioxytran: Boston-based biotech outfit is developing a viral inhibitor to treat COVID-19.

Celltrion: South Korean healthcare firm is developing an antiviral treatment for COVID-19 as well as rapid self-testing kits that would provide results within fifteen to twenty minutes.

Cocrystal Pharma: Bothell, Washington pharma outfit is developing antivirals to treat COVID-19 using patents it recently acquired from the Kansas State University Research Foundation.

CytoDyn: Vancouver, Washington biotech firm announced preliminary results from three days of testing its antiviral drug leronlimab on COVID-19 patients in New York; the company stated in a press release that test results from the first four patients suggests immunological benefit within three days following treatment with leronlimab.

Eli Lilly: Indianapolis pharma company is partnering with Vancouver-based biotech outfit AbCellera to develop antibody-based treatments for COVID-19.

Emergent BioSolutions: Maryland drugmaker is developing treatments derived from the antibodies found in the blood of people who tested positive for the disease.

EUSA Pharma: British pharmaceutical firm initiated trials of its siltuximab antibody treatment on COVID-19 patients at the Papa Giovanni XXIII hospital in Bergamo, Italy; the company released initial data on April 1 showing that one third of patients experienced clinical improvement with reduced need for oxygen support and a further 43% saw their disease stabilise.

Fujifilm Toyama Chemical: Tokyo-based conglomerates flu drug favipiravir has shown promising results in early clinical trials on COVID-19 patients in China, and the company is investing $83 million in its biological manufacturing capabilities.

Gilead: The Californian biotech giant initiated clinical trials in March for its antiviral drug remdesivir on patients in the U.S.

Harbour BioMed: Cambridge, Massachusetts biomedical firm announced a collaboration with New Yorks Mount Sinai Health System to develop new human antibodies to treat COVID-19.

I-Mab Biopharma: Shanghai-based biopharma outfit announced it would begin clinical trials of its TJM2 antibody treatment on COVID-19 patients in the United States, with plans to expand to other countries affected by the pandemic.

ImmunoPrecise: Canadian life sciences company is teaming up with New York-based AI startup EVQLV Inc on researching antibody-based therapies and a vaccine for COVID-19.

Innovation Pharmaceuticals: Wakefield, Massachusetts biopharma firm is researching the use of its drug brilacidin part of a category of investigational new drugs called defensin mimetics, which could have antimicrobial effects as both a treatment and a vaccine for COVID-19, in separate efforts with a major U.S. university and with the Department of Health and Human Services.

ISR Immune System Regulation: Swedish immunotherapy firms subsidiary, ISR HBV, is conducting toxicological studies to determine whether its Immunolid ISR50 treatment could be used against COVID-19.

Kamada: Israeli pharmaceutical company is working on an antibody-based treatment for COVID-19 using the blood plasma of patients who recovered from the disease.

Mateon Therapeutics: Californian biopharma firm is testing a number of antiviral drugs as potential treatments for COVID-19 and is preparing to submit an application to the FDA in order to begin clinical trials on patients.

Merck KGaA: Darmstadt, Germany-based pharma multinational donated a supply of its multiple sclerosis drug interferon beta-1a to the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research in Paris for clinical trials on COVID-19 patients. The companys North American life sciences arm, MilliporeSigma, is supplying several vaccine efforts with reagents and other essential raw products for vaccine development.

Mesoblast: Australian medical firm is working with authorities in the U.S., Australia, China and Europe to evaluate the use of its remestemcel-L drug to treat COVID-19.

Mylan: Pennsylvania-based pharmaceutical firm restarted production of hydroxychloroquine, a drug used to fight lupus, malaria and arthritis, at its West Virginia factory; the drug is being tested as a treatment for COVID-19 in human trials in New York.

Pluristem Therapeutics: Haifa, Israel-based medical company is developing a cell-based therapy to treat COVID-19, announcing on March 30 it had dosed three Israeli patients under a compassionate use program, with plans to enroll more.

Leonard Schleifer.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals: Westchester, New York biotech outfit, run by billionaires Leonard Schleifer and George Yancopoulos, is conducting clinical trials of its rheumatoid arthritis drug sarilumab, developed with French firm Sanofi, on patients in New York.

Roche: Swiss pharma titan, part-owned by billionaire Maja Oeri, is testing its arthritis drug tocilizumab to treat patients in China and received FDA approval to begin U.S. trials.

Roivant Sciences: Swiss pharma company is working with U.S. authorities to begin trials of its antibody treatment, gimsilumab, on COVID-19 patients.

Takeda: Japanese medical firm is working on hyperimmune therapy using blood plasma from previously infected patients.

Vir Biotechnology: The San Francisco-based firm is collaborating with Biogen and Chinese medical firm WuXi Biologics to manufacture antibodies that could treat the virus.

Vaccines:

AJ Vaccines: Danish vaccine developer is working on a COVID-19 vaccine that could hit the market in 2021.

Altimmune: The company is developing a novel intranasal vaccine for the coronavirus, making it one of three firms based in Gaithersburg, Maryland along with Emergent Biosolutions and Novavax thats working on treatments and vaccines for COVID-19.

Arcturus Therapeutics: San Diego-based vaccine maker is developing a COVID-19 vaccine with researchers at the Duke-National University of Singapore medical school in Singapore.

Biocad: Russian drug developer is researching a COVID-19 vaccine, with animal trials scheduled for late April.

Thomas and Andreas Struengmann.

BioNTech: German biotech firm backed by billionaire twins Thomas and Andreas Struengmann is working to develop a coronavirus vaccine in partnership with Pfizer and Fosun Pharma, chaired by billionaire Guo Guangchang.

CanSino Biologics: Tianjin, China-based pharma company isstarting clinical trials for its COVID-19 vaccine, using the vaccine technology deployed to develop the Ebola vaccine.

Codagenix: Melville, New York biotech firm is teaming up with the Serum Institute of India to develop a live-attenuated COVID-19 vaccine, which uses a live but weakened form of the virus.

Dietmar Hopp.

CureVac: German firm, funded by billionaire Dietmar Hopp and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, received $87 million from the European Commission to scale up development of its coronavirus vaccine.

Dyadic: Jupiter, Florida company is collaborating with the Israel Institute for Biological Research on both treatment and a vaccine against COVID-19, using the firms gene expression platform.

Dynavax: Emeryville, California vaccine maker is working with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the University of Queensland to develop a COVID-19 vaccine.

EpiVax: Providence-based immunology firm is working with the University of Georgia and Miramar, Florida biotech outfit Generex on separate COVID-19 vaccine efforts.

ExpreS2ion: Danish biotech company received a grant of nearly $1 million from the European Union to develop a vaccine for COVID-19.

GeoVax: Atlanta-based medical company is collaborating with Wuhan-based BioVax to jointly produce a COVID-19 vaccine.

GlaxoSmithKline: British pharma titan is partnering with CEPI and Chengdu, China-based Clover Pharmaceuticals to use its pandemic vaccine adjuvant platform which boosts the immune response in patients receiving a shot to speed up development of COVID-19 vaccines.

Greffex: Houston-based genetic engineering firm is preparing to begin animal trials for its COVID-19 vaccine.

Heat Biologics: North Carolina biopharma company is developing a COVID-19 vaccine with the University of Miami.

iBio: Newark, Delaware biotech upstart is collaborating with Beijing-based CC-Pharming on the rapid development of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Inovio: Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania biotech business received $11.9 million in funding from the Department of Defense to rapidly produce a DNA vaccine for COVID-19 with drugmaker Ology Bioservices.

Johnson & Johnson: The companys pharma unit, Janssen, will start manufacturing its vaccine developed with the Department of Health and Human Services this month, with human trials set to begin by September and a public rollout hoped for early 2021. The company and the federal government are investing more than $1 billion in the vaccine effort.

Medicago: Quebec City-based biotech company received more than $7 million from the Canadian and Quebec governments to fund development of its COVID-19 vaccine.

Moderna: Massachusetts biotech company was the first tobegin human trials of its vaccine on March 16 in Seattle and could deploy it to health workers for emergency use by the fall.

Novavax: Maryland-based vaccine maker received $4 million in funding from CEPI to accelerate development of its vaccine candidates, with clinical trials expected in the late spring.

Sanofi: French medical firm is working with the federal government and Massachusetts-based Translate Bio to expedite its coronavirus vaccine, using technology previously used to develop one for SARS.

Sorrento Therapeutics: San Diego-based biotech firm is teaming up with Cambridge, MA gene therapy company SmartPharm Therapeutics to develop a gene-encoded COVID-19 vaccine; its also working with Chinese drugmaker Mabpharm on a fusion protein treatment for the disease.

Takis Biotech: Italian startup with just 25 employees is developing a vaccine with Stony Brook-based Applied DNA Sciences, with plans to begin human trials before the end of the year.

Themis Bioscience: Austrian biotech firm is part of a group, with the Institut Pasteur and the University of Pittsburgh, which received $4.9 million in initial funding from CEPI to build a COVID-19 vaccine modeled on the vaccine for measles.

Tonix Pharmaceuticals: New York-based pharma outfit is researching a potential COVID-19 vaccine based on the virus that causes horsepox.

Vaxart: San Francisco vaccine manufacturer Vaxart is working with Emergent Biosolutions to develop and manufacture an oral vaccine that can be taken as a tablet.

Vaxil: Israeli biotech startup began preclinical trials for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

Zydus Cadila: Indian pharma company announced it would fast-track development of a COVID-19 vaccine in February.

Protective Equipment And Sanitizer:

Anheuser-Busch InBev: The worlds largest beer company is making more than one million bottles of hand sanitizer from surplus alcohol at its breweries around the world.

Giorgio Armani.

Armani: Billionaire Giorgio Armanis luxury fashion brand converted all production at its Italian factories to manufacture single-use medical overalls on March 26.

Bacardi: The Bermuda-based spirits giant converted production at nine production facilities in Mexico, France, England, Italy, Scotland, Puerto Rico and the continental U.S. to make hand sanitizer.

BrewDog: Independent beermaker is making hand sanitizer at its distillery in Scotland.

Bulgari: The Italian luxury jeweler is manufacturing hand sanitizer with its fragrances partner, ICR, with plans to make hundreds of thousands of bottles by May.

Sandro Veronesi.

Calzedonia Group: Italian retail clothing group, owned by billionaire Sandro Veronesi, converted production at several plants in Italy and Croatia to manufacture masks and medical gowns, with initial production of 10,000 masks a day.

Cantabria Labs: Spanish health products and cosmetics firm converted production at one of its factories to make hand sanitizer.

Consomed: Tunisian mask and medical equipment maker put all of its workers, more than 70% of which are reportedly women, on quarantine inside the companys Kairouan factory to maximize production of protective gear.

Decathlon: Sporting goods empire founded by French billionaire Michel Leclercq partnered with Isinnova, a small engineering and design firm based in Italy, to convert snorkeling masks into respirators.

Diageo: The maker of Johnnie Walker whisky and Smirnoff vodka donated two million liters of ethyl alcohol, a byproduct of the distillation process, to hand sanitizer manufacturers.

Fanatics: Billionaire Michael Rubins online sportswear retailer converted its baseball jersey factory in Pennsylvania to make masks and gowns for medical workers.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: The multinational automaker announced on March 23 it would begin installing capacity to produce masks, which will be initially distributed in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Fippi: Italian diapers producer worked with the Lombardy region and the Polytechnic University of Milan to convert its factory to make up to 900,000 masks a day, which will go to frontline health workers facing a devastating outbreak in the region.

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Coronavirus Business Tracker: How The Private Sector Is Fighting The COVID-19 Pandemic - Forbes

10 Biotech Winners And Losers In Q1 – Benzinga

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The quarter was brutal to say the least for most asset classes amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The S&P 500 Index was down about 20% for the quarter.

Amid the market mayhem, some health care stocks defied the downturn, thanks to announcements concerning development of drug/vaccine/diagnostic tests for new coronavirus.

Focusing on biotechs (leaving out diagnostics stocks), here the top five winners and losers for the quarter.

Benzinga is covering every angle of how the coronavirus affects the financial world.For daily updates,sign up for our coronavirus newsletter.

Genprex Inc (NASDAQ: GNPX): (+656.25%)

After ending 2019 in penny stock territory, shares of this gene therapy company began to gain ground after the company announced Fast Track Designation for its immunogene therapy in combination with AstraZeneca's(NYSE: AZN) Tagrisso for treating lung cancer. The momentum accelerated after it signed an exclusive agreement to license a diabetes gene therapy from the University of Pittsburgh.

After topping $7 in late February, the stock came off the highs amid the COVID-19 sell-off and managed to end the quarter with huge gains.

Vaxart Inc (NASDAQ: VXRT): (+405.71%)

Vaxart is a COVID-19 play and much of the quarter's gains were achieved on the back of the experimental oral vaccine candidate it's developing in partnership with Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE: EBS).

Ibio Inc (NYSE: IBIO): (+324%)

Ibio, which develops human therapeutic proteins using advanced genetic engineering, joined the fray for a COVID-19 vaccine, which explains the surge in the stock.

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX) (+241.2%)

Novavax was the beneficiary of dual catalysts: a COVID-19 vaccine in development and positive late-stage readout for its flu vaccine.

Trillium Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: TRIL): (+192.23%)

Thisimmuno-oncology company did not have much developments to justify its gain for the quarter.

Following a jump of about 63% in a single session in late February, the company issued a statement thatsaid "it is not aware of any material, undisclosed information related to the company that would account for the recent increase in the market price and level of trading volume of its common shares."

Related Link: Attention Biotech Investors: Mark Your Calendar For These April PDUFA Dates

Milestone Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: MIST): (-88.51%)

This cardiovascular-diseases-focused biopharma was cruising along fine until COVID-19 sell-off started in March. The real punch came from an adverse clinical readout.

Novan Inc (NASDAQ: NOVN): (-84.97%)

Novan, which leverages on nitric oxide's naturally occurring anti-microbial and immunomodulatory mechanisms of action to treat various diseases, fell steeply at the start of the year. The trigger was a late-stage readout of its SB206 in molluscum contagiosum, which showed that the pipeline asset did not achieve statistically significant results for the primary endpoint.

The stock did not recover from this onslaught.

Acasti Pharma Inc (NASDAQ: ACST): (-84.49%)

Acasti also succumbed to a negative clinical readout for its lead prescription drug candidate CaPre, which did not achieve statistical significance for the primary endpoint of a late-stage study that evaluated it for treating elevated levels of triglycerides.

The company is now seeking FDA guidance for unblinding data from another Phase 3 study, and therefore expects a delay in reporting of topline results until the third quarter.

Salarius Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: SLRX): (-81.98%)

This oncology-focused biotech gradually declined through the quarter, with some steep sell-off materializing amid its presentation at the BIO CEO & Investor conference in mid-February.

Amarin Corporation plc (NASDAQ: AMRN): (-81.34%)

Amarin shares, which ran up ahead and after the late-December FDA verdict on its application seeking label expansion for its fish oil pill, pulled back in January. The weakness intensified through the market meltdown. A negative court ruling sent the stock reeling this week.

2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

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10 Biotech Winners And Losers In Q1 - Benzinga

The PEN Pod: Reimagining the Future with Jamie Metzl – PEN America

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How prepared do you think we were for this moment of social distancing and for this global moment of hunkering down amidst uncertainty?In terms of social distancing, weve been social distancing; weve been virtualizing our lives since at least the advent of the telegraph in the 19th century. We have this idea of distance even now, where were communicating from away and communicating to others. But we also, as humans, have this deep need for physical connectivity. We are not virtual beings. And so, emotionally, were not ready for it. All of these structures for physical connectivity are gone, at least temporarily. Were almost in this Battlestar Galactica remake moment where were having to reconceptualize space and community. Its not that we will become un-physical beings, but were gonna have to figure out different ways of virtually sharing emotion and connectivity, at least until this danger passes.

Thats why organizations like PEN that are so focused on values are so critical, because these are the conversations that we have to have. Were going to have this incredible technology, but its up for grabs whether these technologies will be used to help or harm us.

You wrote at CNN.com about the human need for intimate physical connectivity. Can technology be a substitute for that? It seems like probably not.It cant be a substitute, but it can be a complement. And again, in our best possible world, I, for one, would love to live in some kind of hippie commune with real people there, and I also live, like many people, this global life where my friends and contacts are distributed around the world. I think we need to find that balance. But at times like this, our lives are becoming and feeling more virtual. And yes, theres a loss, and I think many of us are mourning that loss. But this is the world that we have now, and we have to make the most of it. Theres a lot of simple things that people can do. Make a list of all the people who you love and care about in your life, all the people who you think may be feeling isolated or alone, and just create a schedule of reaching out to them. My girlfriend and I are doing a virtual tea party with friends on Sunday where were gonna make tea, theyre gonna make tea, were gonna connect on FaceTime. We have to think of how we might do things differently. But its also not the case that when this crisis ends, society is just going to snap back to where it was, and were going to say, Wow, that was a crazy experience. Theres something happening now that is going to last beyond this.

What are some things that could be irrevocably different about our culture and the way we work and live, as a result of this moment?Were for sure not going fully back on virtualization. Were going to do things differently. Our sense of space is going to be different. A lot of people who are now working from home arent going to go back to physical offices because once companies figure out how they can work in this way, itll just be cheaper to have people stay at home. Were certainly going to change the way we think about global public health. If you asked a regular person, Wouldnt it make sense to have a super empowered World Health Organization with a global surveillance system that whenever any trip wire was hit, youd have an emergency response team that would fly to wherever that was and they would set up a command center and do what needed to be done? They would say, Yeah, dont we have that? And the answer is we dont. Because we have starved organizations like the WHO, because we have states that are demanding a level of control that doesnt make sense in our world of global challenges. One of the things that Im working on very, very actively now is imagining a third leg of the global political stool in addition to states and international institutions, and that is the democratic expression of the needs of our common humanity. It seems like its this big, crazy idea. But in these negotiations, no one is saying, Hey, climate change affects all of us; destroying our oceans affects all of us; global pandemics affect all of us. Who is standing up to help humanity? And thats what I think we need now.

I feel like Im at war from the battlestation of my office here on 81st Street in New York, so Im pretty focused on reading what I need to read now.

In Hacking Darwin, you wrote about genetics, you wrote about changing our genetic identity, perhaps to yield cures for diseases. Are you more or less optimistic about the potential for genetic science and cures than you were before?Im extremely optimistic. We are facing an enormous challenge today, but we now have almost godlike capacities to read, write, and hack the code of life. And those tools, Im firmly convinced, are going to save us, and were going to figure out treatments and were gonna have a vaccine not just for this, but for all kinds of challenges in the future. But these technologies dont come with a built-in value system. All technologies are value-neutral. Its up to us to determine what are the values that will guide the application of our most powerful technologies, and thats the issue. Thats why organizations like PEN that are so focused on values are so critical, because these are the conversations that we have to have. Were going to have this incredible technology, but its up for grabs whether these technologies will be used to help or harm us.

Finally, what are you reading, watching, or listening to right now?I would advise people at times of crisis like this to read poetry and literature. Im trying to do a little bit of that, but Im just all in and obsessed. Just last night I finished this incredible book, Spillover, by the amazing journalist David Quammen. And thats about zoonotic viruses like this, and our experiences in the past. Im now reading Betrayal of Trust by Laurie Garrett, which is about the destruction of our public health infrastructure. So when this is done, Im just going to beand I myself am a novelistback to reading the novels that I love so much. Maybe Ill read Proust and start thinking about Maman and her madeleine. But for now, I feel like Im at war from the battlestation of my office here on 81st Street in New York, so Im pretty focused on reading what I need to read now.

Wed like to know what books youre reading and how youre staying connected in the literary community. Click here to leave a voicemail for us. Your message could end up on a future episode of this podcast!

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The PEN Pod: Reimagining the Future with Jamie Metzl - PEN America

Making the Most of a CDMO Relationship – Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

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Pharma and biopharma companies dont want to work on their relationships. These companies want their relationships to work for them. Fair enough. Still, when it comes to relationships with contract manufacturing and drug development organizations (CDMOs), pharma and biopharma companies cant avoid intimacy. These relationships are rewarding to the extent pharma and biopharma companies are clear about their needs and the kinds of associations consistent with those needs.

Typically, the most pressing need is keeping costs down. But other needs are important, too. These include expertise with specialized technologies, challenging drugs, and complex formulations. Identifying needs will help pharma and biopharma companies decide whether their CDMOs should help with discrete activities or provide complete, end-to-end services. Pharma and biopharma companies may also want their CDMOs to help with business strategy and regulatory compliance.

Besides identifying potentially compatible CDMO partners, pharma and biopharma companies need to build CDMO relationships characterized by mutual trust. Here again, clear communication is essential. It can help both parties in a CDMO relationship resolve misunderstandings and overcome unanticipated challenges together. For a fuller discussion of the ways CDMO relationships can benefit from clear communication, see the rest of this article, which presents various pointers and perspectives from CDMO experts.

Thierry Cournez is head of end-to-end solutions at MilliporeSigma, which offers a comprehensive portfolio of high-quality products and services, including testing services, for biopharmaceutical development. According to Cournez, most emerging biotech companies that have very early data and need to take their molecule to commercialization dont have all the expertise in-house that they need to navigate the entire process. One major trend is complete services, as opposed to la carte offerings.

MilliporeSigmas Plug & Play Upstream Development Service eliminates the need to work with multiple vendors for upstream development, relieving bottlenecks and reducing time to clinic. The service covers cell line development from DNA transfection to cell banking. Process development activities, which run in parallel, start when the company receives material from the first clones.

Cournez says that two services that will continue to be important in pharmaceutical development are process development and analytical services. A robust process is critical for manufacturing success, he explains, and analytical services are the foundation that supports the entire life cycle of biologics.

A trend toward all-in-one CDMO services has also been observed by Richard Shook, director of drug product technical services and business integration at Cambrex. Any time a client has to go to multiple vendors, it creates a lot of seams and communication problems, he points out. A lot of dots are not connected. Critical items can be lost, especially internal knowledge. When a client works with a single vendor, he stresses, the partners create a knowledge base that can be carried forward with the project. Cambrex provides drug substance, drug product, and analytical services across the entire drug lifecycle.

Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies (FDB) is a division of Fujifilm that focuses on biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing, especially drug substances for biologics. That includes cell culture and fermentation, development and manufacturing, and advanced therapies like gene therapy. Fujifilms director of strategic business development, Daniel DeVido, PhD, says there is growing interest in gene therapy products and gene modified cell therapies.

In the area of viral vectors, new products on the market such as Luxturna (from Spark Therapeutics) and Zolgensma (from Novartis) have moved that sector of the industry forward. Newly approved chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies, such as Kymriah (from Novartis) and Yescarta (from Kite Pharma) are also injecting energy into the field. And monoclonal antibodies have been going strong for the last 10 to 15 years, with approximately 80 therapies approved and on the market.

The industry is well funded right now, DeVido points out. A lot of companies are pushing candidates forward.

That increased demand for cell culture services brings new technical challenges. Everybodys looking for increased titers, DeVido emphasizes. For gene therapy, yields and titers are much less than they are for cell culture, so everybodys looking for the next thing that will get gene therapy to produce on the scale that monoclonal antibodies are on now.

Lonza offers a range of CDMO services. Karen Fallen, the companys head of mammalian and microbial development and manufacturing, says that Lonza works with companies from several different segments, including small and virtual companies that have limited in-house resources and capabilities. A lot of them are really focusing on the science, she notes. Theyre looking for preclinical and clinical services.

In Lonzas view, some of the trends among the smaller companies are due to larger Series A financings. In past years, Series A deals would have been $10 or $15 million, but now they are running higher, up to $70 or $80 million. They have different ambitions now, Fallen points out. They want and are able to take the molecule further along the supply chain, even to launch. They want to stay with Lonza longer before they partner up with large pharma and/or out-license these molecules. She adds that Lonzas customers also have more complex molecules in their pipelines.

Lonzas other big segment consists of large pharma companies. They have assets, and they have experience, she says. What theyre looking for now is newer technologies, with newer modalitiesbioconjugation, highly potent small molecules, or cell and gene therapies, for example.

Almac Group provides an extensive range of contract development and manufacturing services across the drug development life cycle. The increased interest in pediatric formulations is driving a demand for mini-tablets, especially those in stick-pack dosage form. The rapidly expanding oncology space, by its nature, creates a need for CDMOs that have extensive capabilities in processing highly potent active pharmaceutical ingredients at the small-to-medium scale.

Were seeing an industry trend toward higher value, lower volume products, says Jonas Mortensen, vice president of business development at Almac. Our clients are asking us to take on commercial supply of their product, often at, or close to, the same scale we had previously provided for their clinical studies.

To meet these new needs, Almac has installed multiple stick-pack machines across its sites in the United Kingdom and the United States. Almac is also finalizing the qualification of a dedicated suite of eight processing rooms and equipment solely designed for, and dedicated to, processing of highly potent active pharmaceutical ingredients.

Mortensen anticipates that some near-term trends in CDMO services will include supply chain risk mitigation, end-to-end services, and GMP floor space. CDMOs, he points out, are increasingly being asked to demonstrate their ability to support multisite supply strategies through global facilities or act as a secondary site of manufacture.

Communication is a common theme when it comes to recommendations for working with a CDMO. MilliporeSigmas Cournez says that biotech companies should choose a CDMO that has the most experienced people in-house. Doing so can help biotech companies avoid having to deal with multiple vendors. He also recommends having a dedicated project manager who can provide transparent communication with the vendor and connect with subject matter experts in case of unexpected changes.

Good communication also contributes to transparency in a project. Project transparency is really important, insists Cambrex Shook. That can be limited due to the competitive landscape of the project.

If problems arise during project execution, ownership and communication is really important. If its not there, losses occur and there are timeline setbacks. This could impact the scope, and once you get off scope, [it takes] money and resources to get back on track.

An illustration of the importance of communication comes from Catalent, a company that offers a range of CDMO services, including its recently introduced GPEx Boost technology for cell line development. Michael Riley, vice president and general manager of biologics at Catalent, says that in a program the company is currently working on, a customer was on a highly accelerated path to a product filing for a fast-track product. Catalent was working with regulatory authorities to characterize the companys manufacturing process and move toward validation of that process. To do that, Riley explains, we had to have very robust conversations between multiple functions within our organization and their organization from a quality and development standpoint.

Trust can be a delicate issue in relations between a CDMO and a customer. To illustrate this point FDBs DeVido describes a face-to-face discussion that the company had with one of its customers. This discussion, which took place in FDBs office in Cambridge, MA, resolved some contractual disagreements. We were able to sit around the table and go through the legal issues, DeVido recalls. We cleared up a lot very quickly.

When you sit down face to face and have good discussions, he says, everyones a little more comfortable. Even though people may feel theyre not completely safeguarded from a one-in-a-million occurrence, they may feel comfortable the two parties are going to work together through whatever the issue is.

DeVido said that once youve selected a CDMO, its important to be transparent and trust the company. Youve done your due diligence, he proposes. Now trust your selection and the system theyre operating in.

Benefits of working with an experienced vendor can go beyond development and manufacturing. Cournez says that in one instance, an emerging biotech customer had the opportunity to engage in licensing discussions with a large pharmaceutical company. Because the emerging biotech was small, we hosted the large pharma company at one of our sites and ran the due diligence, which was a great success, he relates. This former emerging biotech now funds many different programs because of the success of their first molecule.

Some vendors warn that business strategies can backfire. Focusing too much on price and speed to market can be risky when researching or working with CDMO/CMO partners, according to Cournez. The service provider must simplify the process and reduce touchpoints throughout the process.

Mortensen says that due to the significant investment required in resource and training, many smaller biopharma companies often do not have a regulatory affairs department of their own. Therefore, its critical for sponsors to recognize the consultative benefit CDMOs bring to the table as an extension of their company to help fill in any regulatory knowledge gaps. This timely advice, integrated with early- and late-stage development, can enable a sponsor to adequately prepare, ensuring little or no delay when bringing its products to market.

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China, America, COVID-19 and the Mindless Conspiracy Theories, By Simbo Olorunfemi – Premium Times

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there little or nothing in form of evidence in support of the claim that COVID-19 was genetically engineered in the laboratory. Dr. Trevor Bedford, a leading expert in the field, dismissed the claim of genetic engineering, telling Financial Times that the mutations in the virus are completely consistent with natural revolution.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, a raft of conspiracy theories has been floating around. That is not unexpected. One, it is a pastime for some. Two, China is largely misunderstood by even the informed, not to talk of Western conspiracists with a worldview constrained by provincialism. But I seriously did not think that these wild conjectures would make it into the mainstream of public discourse, especially in our part of the world, with all sorts of elaborate, albeit misleading, narratives being woven around these theories. It is strange.

However, in putting what is playing out in the proper context, the first thing to recognise is that this pandemic, as overwhelming as it is, was not unforeseen as many assume. A September 2019 Report by the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB) co-convened by the World Bank and the World Health Organisation (WHO) had warned about the growing possibility of a global pandemic, while highlighting the lack of preparedness by the world for it.

It says, The chances of a global pandemic are growing. While scientific and technological developments provide new tools that advance public health (including safely assessing medical countermeasures), they also allow for disease-causing microorganisms to be engineered or recreated in laboratories. A deliberate release would complicate outbreak response; in addition to the need to decide how to counter the pathogen, security measures would come into play limiting information-sharing and fomenting social divisions. Taken together, naturally occurring, accidental, or deliberate events caused by high-impact respiratory pathogens pose global catastrophic biological risks.

The report was categorical in its position that the world is not prepared for a fast-moving, virulent respiratory pathogen pandemic. The 1918 global influenza pandemic sickened one third of the world population and killed as many as 50 million people 2.8% of the total population. If a similar contagion occurred today with a population four times larger and travel times anywhere in the world less than 36 hours, 50 80 million people could perish. In addition to tragic levels of mortality, such a pandemic could cause panic, destabilize national security and seriously impact the global economy and trade.

A lot of the accusations being peddled centre around a supposed secrecy by the Chinese and a mismanagement of the outbreak, especially at the initial stage. But these allegations fuelled by the Western media do not find space in the report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on Coronavirus disease, consisting of 25 national and international experts from Nigeria, China, Germany

There is little doubt that what has played out mirrors what is in the report. So, if a report presented by the GPMB, of which Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, United States of America, is one of the three Americans on the 15-man Board, what excuse has the United States of America for his lack of preparedness, no matter what might have been the source of the pathogen? How is it that with such advanced notification, America would be where it is now, looking at the loss of 100,000 to 240,000 lives in a best-case scenario and the death of one million Americans in a worst-case scenario? What has that got to do with China?

A lot of the accusations being peddled centre around a supposed secrecy by the Chinese and a mismanagement of the outbreak, especially at the initial stage. But these allegations fuelled by the Western media do not find space in the report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on Coronavirus disease, consisting of 25 national and international experts from Nigeria, China, Germany, Japan, Korea, Russia, Singapore, the United States of America and the World Health Organisation (WHO), which was in China for nine days in February to inform nation and international planning on next steps in the response to the ongoing outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-191) and on next steps in readiness and preparedness for geographic areas not yet affected. It did not allege secrecy or lack of cooperation on the part of the Chinese. Rather, the effort by the Chinese was applauded, just as the director-general of the World Health Organisation has cited China as deserving of gratitude and respect.

A review of the timeline of the outbreak leaves one wondering about the basis of much of the allegations against China. What started as a cluster of pneumonia cases of unknown cause towards the middle of December was declared a public health emergency by the end of the month, with the world Health Organisation having been notified. A novel coronavirus was isolated by the China Centre for Disease Control (CDC) on January 7 and with the pathogen identified, full genome sequences of the new virus were immediately shared with the WHO and the international community. The first case of COVID-19 was detected on January 13 and a set of nucleic acid primers and probes for PCR detection for COVID-19 were released on January 21, which makes much of what is being passed around as deliberate secrecy on the part of China difficult to understand.

Indeed, some of the theories which blame China situate their arguments on the origin and the mode of transmission of the virus. While COVID-19 has been established as a zoonotic virus, with phylogenetics analyses undertaken alongside available full genome sequences suggesting bats as the reservoir of the COVID-19 virus, yet reports have it that the intermediate host(s) has not yet been identified. While the focus of the world through the lens of the media has been on the Seafood Market in Wuhan, however, according to reports, there is no evidence so far that the origin of SARS-CoV-2 was from the seafood market. But also is there little or nothing in form of evidence in support of the claim that COVID-19 was genetically engineered in the laboratory. Dr. Trevor Bedford, a leading expert in the field, dismissed the claim of genetic engineering, telling Financial Times that the mutations in the virus are completely consistent with natural revolution. The argument that the China stands to economically benefit from the outbreak is rather tenuous. It flies in the face of logic.

The warning was there, alarm bells rang and the opportunity to make a quick readjustment in terms of preparedness and strategy offered itself with availability of the strategy and template deployed in China, which could be appropriated tinkered with for local adaptation. That did not appear to have appealed as a course of action to take for those who are apparently now in much need of it.

If anything, what should be of interest is the level of planning and preparedness by other parts of the world, following the outbreak in China. If the 2019 Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB) Report was not enough warning, that by the WHO-China Joint Mission on COVID-19 should have been taken seriously. But developments in many parts of the world, subsequent to the outbreak in China and what she did in terms of containment do not suggest that. While the report acknowledges that in the face of a previously unknown virus, China has rolled out perhaps the most ambitious, agile and aggressive disease containment effort in history with a treatment plan founded around the principle of Four Concentrations, which meant the concentration of patients, medical experts, resources and treatment into special centres, with a science and risk-based approach adopted to tailoring implementation of the containment strategy. Some of the advanced countries that experienced outbreaks thereafter came across as largely unprepared, failing to take on-board lessons from China, given that there has been a significant increase in knowledge, approaches and even tools through the rapid scientific work done in China within the seven weeks since this virus was discovered, but not much heed was paid to this.

The Joint Mission had warned, even as at the end of February, that much of the global community is not yet ready, in mindset and materially, to implement the measures that have been employed to contain COVID-19 in China (and that)achieving the high quality of implementation needed to be successful with such measures requires an unusual and unprecedented speed of decision-making by top leaders, operational thoroughness by public health systems, and engagement of society. Given the damage that can be caused by uncontrolled, community-level transmission of this virus, such an approach is warranted to save lives and to gain the weeks and months needed for the testing of therapeutics and vaccine development.

While warning that COVID-19 is spreading with astonishing speed and that outbreaks in any setting have very serious consequences for others, the mission advised that there is now strong evidence that non-pharmaceutical interventions can reduce and even interrupt transmission. But the concern was that global and national preparedness planning is often ambivalent about interventions of this nature. But it was emphatic that the time that can be gained through the full application of these measures even if just days or weeks can be invaluable in ultimately reducing COVID-19 illness and deaths.

The warning was there, alarm bells rang and the opportunity to make a quick readjustment in terms of preparedness and strategy offered itself with availability of the strategy and template deployed in China, which could be appropriated tinkered with for local adaptation. That did not appear to have appealed as a course of action to take for those who are apparently now in much need of it. The argument on the part of the experts had been for the high and middle-income countries to be rigorous with the recommended non-pharmaceutical measures to roll back transmission as that is vital to achieving a second line of defense to protect low income countries that have weaker health systems and coping capacities, it is an irony that some of the advanced economies have failed in this regard and it is now a case of ensuring that the setback in the countries with stronger health systems do not negatively set aback the progress that has been achieved by many of the low income countries, which simply opted to pay attention to the little things, falling back on their relative hands-on experience and consistency with catering to the base of the healthcare structure, due to the challenge of underdevelopment. These conspiracy theories only remind us of the danger of an infodemic that the world is presently faced with. They do not go far in covering the king who, unfortunately, has left himself uncovered.

Simbo Olorunfemi works for Hoofbeatdotcom, a Nigerian Communications Consultancy and publisher of Africa Enterprise. Twitter: @simboolorunfemi

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Timeline Shows 3 Paths To COVID-19 Treatment And Prevention (INFOGRAPHIC) – SynBioBeta

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In uncertain times, we are witnessing one of the greatest moments in the history of science.

Scientists are breaking speed records in their race to develop treatments for the new coronavirus. Some are panning through old molecules hoping to find effective drugs. Others are applying the latest breakthroughs in synthetic biology to engineer sophisticated treatments and vaccines.

Ive previously talked about somesynthetic biology companies that are racing to create treatments. Others like Mammoth Biosciences are developingmuch-needed testing. Every day brings additional reports of the latest breakthroughs from around the world. But how can we make sense of all this information?

To provide a big-picture perspective,SynBioBetaandLeaps by Bayerhave partnered to help visualize the overall progress of the research community. At the heart of the project isan infographic showing the timeline to the various treatments and preventions (click here to download it).Its based on data from The Milken Institute, which recently releaseda detailed trackerto monitor the progress of each of the more than 60 known COVID-19 treatments and preventions currently in development.

One takeaway: the progress to develop coronavirus treatments and preventions is moving at an unprecedented pace, with historic records being broken nearly every week.

The crisis response from the global biotech community has been truly inspiring, says Juergen Eckhardt, SVP and Head of Leaps by Bayer, a unit of Bayer AG that leads impact investments into solutions to some of todays biggest challenges in health and agriculture. We are excited to partner on this visual timeline to help a broader audience understand how and when scientific innovation may bring us through this deeply challenging time.

There are standard stages to getting a drug approved. In Phase 1 trials, a drugs safety is assessed in a small group of healthy subjects. In later stages (Phase II & III), efficacy is measured in a larger number of people, often versus a placebo. The situation with COVID-19 is predicted to become so dire so quickly, however, that many are looking to fast-track testing. This could include granting experimental drugs expanded access, for compassionate use, which would allow physicians to give them to patients who are critically ill before testing is complete.

The fastest way to safely stop COVID-19 would be to discover that an already-approved medication works against it. Repurposed drugs do not require the same extensive testing as novel medicines and may already be available in large quantities. The Milken Institutes tracker identifies 7 candidate drugs in this category.

One is the malarial medicine chloroquine, which in recent days has beentouted by someas a possible miracle drug against the coronavirus. German pharmaceutical company Bayer last week donated three million tablets of chloroquine to the U.S. The FDA and academics are togetherinvestigating whether it can provide reliefto COVID-19 patients.

There are hundreds if not thousands of other FDA-approved drugs on the market that are already proven safe in humans and that may have treatment potential against COVID-19, so many scientists are rapidly screening the known drug arsenal in hopes of discovering an effective compound.

Antibodies are proteins that are a natural part of the human immune system. They work around the clock in blood to block viruses and more. The problem at the moment is that because the novel coronavirus (known as SARS-CoV-2) is new, no one has had time to develop antibodies against it. No one, that is, except those who have recovered from COVID-19.

Antibodies taken from those people could help patients who are still infected. Such patient-to-patient transfers can be performed without extensive testing or lengthy approval processes so long as standard protocols are followed. It is yet unknown whether this treatment option will work for COVID-19, nor whether there will be enough recovered donors to deal with the infection at scale.

To improve this process, companies like Vancouver, Canada-basedAbCelleraare applying new biotechnologies.

AbCellera is using proprietary tools and machine learning to rapidly screen through millions of B cells from patients who recovered from COVID-19. B cells are responsible for producing antibodies. The company hasannounced a partnershipwith Eli Lilly on this project and aims to bring its hottest antibodies those that neutralize the virus to the clinic.

AbCelleras platform has delivered, with unprecedented speed, by far the worlds largest panel of anti-SAR-CoV-2 antibodies, said Carl Hansen, Ph.D., CEO of AbCellera, in a statement. In 11 days, weve discovered hundreds of antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for the current outbreak, moved into functional testing with global experts in virology, and signed a co-development agreement with one of the worlds leading biopharmaceutical companies. Were deeply impressed with the speed and agility of Lillys response to this global challenge. Together, our teams are committed to delivering a countermeasure to stop the outbreak.

James Crowe at Vanderbilt University is also sifting through the blood of recovered patients. Using a new instrument called Beacon from a company calledBerkeley Lights.Crowes teamhas been scouring through B cells to find antibodies that neutralize SARS-CoV-2. The technology behind this project was developed in recent years with funds from the Department of Defense.

Normally this would be a five year program, Crowe told me. But in the rapid process his team is following, animal studies could be done in as fast as two months.

This morning,Berkeley Lightsannounceda Global Emerging Pathogen Antibody Discovery Consortium (GEPAD) to attack COVID-19and other viruses. It is partnering with Vanderbilt University, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, and Emory University to accelerate the work above to the broader research community.

This collaboration also included commercial partners, includingTwist Bioscience, who synthesized DNA for the project.

Our mission is to provide the raw material needed for biologists to make breakthroughs, said Twists CEO Emily Leproust. If DNA is needed, we want to make it, quickly and perfectly

Another company that specializes in DNA synthesis,SGI-DNA, is offering its tools at much reduced cost to researchers developing COVID-19 treatments. The company said that people from around the world are coming to them for help.

There is zero time to waste,saidTodd R. Nelson, Ph.D., CEO of SGI-DNA. He said that researchers need synthetic DNA and RNA, which its Bio-XP machine can provide in as little as eight hours.

Nelson continued, In a matter of a day or two, we have built the genes thought to be critical to the development of successful vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. SGI-DNA has made them available in the form of different genetic libraries, which researchers can use to find druggable targets in a matter of hours, dramatically accelerating the time to market for therapeutics and vaccines.

Beyond searching for antibodies in recovered patients, biotechnologists have other tricks up their sleeves.

One approach involves genetically engineering laboratory mice to mimic the human immune system. These animals can then be presented with the virus or parts of the virus and allowed to recover. The hope is that their B cells would then produce effective antibodies. Because this happens in a controlled setting, biologists can better understand and engineer the process.

A company calledGenScriptwaspursuing this strategyas early as February 4, when police escorted 8 transgenic mice immunized with the 2019 nCoV antigen to research labs in China. In 12 hours, its researchers successfully found specific antibodies in the mice that could recognize the novel virus and potentially block it from binding to cells. In less than 24 hoursagain using Berkeley Lights new Beacon instrument for working with thousands of individual, live cellsGenScript completed a series of steps that would have taken three months using previous technology.

Yet another approach involves computational approaches and artificial intelligence. Firms likeDistributed Bioare using computers to reengineer antibodies to better target SARS-CoV-2. The company is optimizing antibodies that are known to target SARS-CoV-1, the virus behind the 2003 outbreak of SARS.

We believe broadly neutralizing antibodies with engineered biophysical properties will become key weapons to win the war against all coronaviruses said Jake Glanville, CEO of Distributed Bio.

Vaccines work by simulating infection, which allows the body to mount its own defense against a virus. Effective vaccines take time to develop, and they can take even longer to test. But recent progress in biotechnology is again accelerating these efforts.

Notably,Modernahas launched a Phase 1 vaccine trial against COVID-19 in record time. Patients in Seattle have already begun receiving injections of an experimental mRNA vaccine. Moderna cranked out doses of this and won approval from the FDA for testing in just 44 days an all-time record.

These programs show a massive focus on a common enemy, and a coming together of disparate firms.

Ginkgo Bioworks, a giant in the emerging field of synthetic biology,has announced a $25 million fund to help spur even more collaboration.The company is offering its laboratory equipment and know-how to anyone with a good idea of how to stop COVID-19. We dont want any scientists to have to wait. The pandemic has already arrived, so the time for rapid prototyping and scale-up is right now, said Jason Kelly, CEO of Ginkgo.

These effortsand the infographic aboveshould give you hope. Although we are all now living in uncertain times, we are also witnessing one of the greatest moments in the history of science.

Its a terrible time, and simultaneously a fantastic time to see the global science community working together to conquer this very hard and challenging disease, said Berkeley Lights CEO Eric Hobbs. We are also learning and developing the tools and technologies to ensure that we can react faster to the next threat, so that we dont get to this point again in the future.

Follow me on twitter at@johncumbersand@synbiobeta. Subscribe to my weekly newsletters insynthetic biology.

Thank you toIan HaydonandKevin Costafor additional research and reporting in this article. Im the founder ofSynBioBeta, and some of the companies that I write aboutincludingLeaps by Bayer,Mammoth Biosciences, Distributed Bio, Twist Bioscience, SGI-DNA, Genscript, Berkeley Lights, and Ginkgo Bioworksare sponsors of theSynBioBeta conferenceandweekly digestheres the full list of SynBioBeta sponsors.

Originally published on Forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/johncumbers/2020/03/25/timeline-shows-3-paths-to-covid-19-treatment-and-prevention-infographic/

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Timeline Shows 3 Paths To COVID-19 Treatment And Prevention (INFOGRAPHIC) - SynBioBeta

Podcast: Science writer Michael Specter on what you should know about the coronavirus, food security and GMOs – Genetic Literacy Project

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Science writer, New Yorker contributor and author of the book Denialism Michael Specter joins Felix Salmon on the Slate Money podcast to break down the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

Specter explains how the virus spreads, potential food and medicine shortages it could cause and the possibility of developing immunity to infection. While the pandemic has shocked most of the world, Specter argues the only thing that should surprise anyone is the inept response of policy makers to the outbreak, particularly in the United States.

Specter also challenges some common misconceptions surrounding biotechnology, including the idea that GMOs are unnatural. Concerns about monoculture, the practice of growing a single crop like corn, on the other hand, are valid, Specter says. But that issue has nothing to do with genetic engineering. Its a problem that could be solved by a change in government policies: ending subsidies to corn and soybean growers. However, there are trade offs involved, and eliminating monoculture farms isnt the simple decision it seems.

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Podcast: Science writer Michael Specter on what you should know about the coronavirus, food security and GMOs - Genetic Literacy Project

Scientist says anti-epilepsy drug can be repurposed for Covid-19, writes to ICMR to test it – ThePrint

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New Delhi:A leading scientist at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) in New Delhi has found that valproic acid, an anti-epilepsy drug, can be repurposed and used for acute cases of Covid-19.

The scientist, Neel Sarovar Bhavesh, has written to the director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the apex body in the field, to test valproic acid at the National Institute of Virology in Pune or any ICMR lab to find a quick solution to the coronavirus crisis.

The ICGEB is part of the research consortium working to find a cure and vaccine for Covid-19.

Valproic acid is an approved drug, whose patent expired recently. It is sold under brand names such as Depacon and Stavzor to treat epilepsy. The University of California has also validated the ICGEBs research findings it lists valproic acid as one of the molecules for repurposing and testing for use against the Covid-19 virus.

Also read: AI identifies potential drugs and a DNA vaccine in the works latest on Covid-19

Bhavesh, the head of transcriptional regulation at ICGEB, told ThePrint: We have performed high-throughput virtual screening (HTVS) of 1.2 million small molecules from the four databases, and later performed Energy calculation and molecular binding simulation. We found that valproic acid CoA may be repurposed to inhibit the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase of the virus.

We have written to the DG ICMR to test this molecule on cell culture and animal testing facilities, in combination with potent binding blocking molecules. Currently no one in India outside the NIV and ICMR has access to the Covid-19 virus, Bhavesh said.

About 1,100 strains of the novel coronavirus have been sequenced from around the world. We (in India) have around 700 confirmed positive cases, but only two virus sequences are available at the NIV. These sequences are different from each other, he explained.

Bhavesh revealed that after the publication of the ICGEB research, multinational pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline contacted them.

However, Bhavesh said theres an urgent need for cooperation from government bodies like the ICMR and the NIV in terms of giving researchers access to the virus strains in India to test on.

There should be synchronisation in testing and developing. If NIV or any another research institution finds success, lots of patients can be cured and saved. The need of the hour is to find the solution. The NIV must cooperate with other institutions more generously, he said.

A day before, Union Biotechnology Secretary Renu Swarup also said in an interview that early solutions for the novel coronavirus can be found from repurposed drugs, and that developing new drugs would take time.

Also read: Old drugs, new trials hopes pinned on HIV, malaria, ebola, TB vaccines to fight Covid-19

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Scientist says anti-epilepsy drug can be repurposed for Covid-19, writes to ICMR to test it - ThePrint

How the novel coronavirus is mutating, and if you should be concerned – ThePrint

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Bengaluru/New Delhi: As the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread across the world, the cyberspace has been abuzz with claims that the Covid-19 strain in India is a less virulent mutation than the one travelling abroad. BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy and gastroenterologist D. Nageshwar Reddy are among those who have made such claims.

While Swamy quoted an American friend in a tweet last week to say the Covid-19 strain in India can be defeated more effectively by our bodys natural defense mechanism than the strains abroad, Reddy in an interview floated similar claims without quoting any research.

Some users responded to Swamys tweet posting a link to a study that they claimed supported his notion. But this study, which is yet to be peer reviewed, has faults of its own, including use of limited data.

A number of experts in the field have termed such assertions baseless. Dr Gagandeep Kang, executive director at the Translational Health Science & Technology Institute in Faridabad, called Reddys comments appalling & misleading.

As such claims circulate online, ThePrint highlights the science of virus mutation and whether you should be worried.

Also read:WHO says coronavirus outbreak in Europe could be approaching peak

The overarching problem is the use of the term Indian SARS-CoV-2 strain that is in itself misleading.

A strain is a sub-type of a virus, characterised by different cell surface proteins, eliciting a different immune response from other strains. A mutation, however, is very minor genetic errors in genome sequences made during replication that doesnt fundamentally change the nature or behaviour of the virus.

So far, only two isolates from India have been genetically sequenced. Both are from coronavirus patients in Kerala who had arrived from Chinas Wuhan in late January. The strains are nearly identical to the ones sequenced in Wuhan and cannot be identified as a separate Indian strain.

Anu Raghunathan, a scientist at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Researchs (CSIR) National Chemical Laboratory in Pune, told ThePrint that the researchers of the aforementioned study used computational biology to analyse the genomic data from different strains around the world.

Theinitial attempt of the team from the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biology, New Delhi, at analysing the virus strain is not sufficient to conclude that all Indian strains would have only one unique mutation, said Raghunathan.

The mutations themselves are composed of changes in base pairs.

The novel coronaviruss genome is made up of 30,000 base pairs, while a human genome contains over 3 billion. The small numbers make it easy for scientists to track changes and new lineages as they evolve.

To understand what these mutations mean for India, the country will have to sequence a much larger set of the viral isolates from the patients here.

Rakesh K. Mishra, director of CSIRs Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad, told ThePrint that his institute has the capacity to run the genome sequencing of the isolates from at least 500 people within a couple of weeks. This can help scientists decide the correct course of action for treating the disease.

For example, if a virus mutates too fast, vaccines being developed now will potentially become useless, and pharmaceuticals will have to constantly keep up with the mutations by developing new vaccines all the time, a financially unviable prospect.

Also read:China now wants people to shop, eat out while rest of the world locks down

Regularly switching up the genetic code is an essential part of how a virus evolves. Some viruses, such as the coronaviruses that cause flu, change their genetic code extremely rapidly. This is the main reason why its so difficult to find a vaccine for coronaviruses. They evolve quickly, making vaccines defunct.

The flu vaccine, now available and recommended especially for older people, needs to be taken annually for this reason. By the time the next season comes along, the vaccine is no longer effective on the circulating form of the virus.

Coronaviruses are ribonucleic acid (RNA) viruses, containing just RNA strands (single or double) as its genetic material. They have about 26,000 to 32,000 bases or RNA letters in their length.

RNA viruses mutate continuously. Such a mutation is what made SARS-CoV-2s jump from animals to humans possible.

The virus multiplies inside living organisms cells by creating copies for the RNA. However, the process it uses to make these copies is not perfect, and often introduces tiny errors in the sequence of letters much like a game of Chinese whispers.

The errors that do not help the survival of the virus eventually get eliminated, while other mutations get embedded. It is these mistakes that help scientists track how the virus travelled around different geographic locations.

For example, by genetically sequencing over 2,000 isolates of samples from different countries, scientists tracked how the novel coronavirusspread to different countries, and how the virus evolved and geographically mutated in different areas.

The word mutations often conjures images of humans with superpowers thanks to Hollywood movies but it doesnt mean the virus acquires superpowers. The genetic changes are normal in the evolution of the virus. In some cases, the changes are extremely rapid because the replication is not rigorous or thorough.

The only problem with mutations is the problem of development of vaccines, which would require constant upgrade.

Also read:Why asymptomatic coronavirus carriers arent as contagious but still a big danger

The novel coronavirus, unlike its cousins, mutates slowly. It seems to have a proofreading mechanism in place that reduces the error rate and slows down the speed of mutation. But the mutations are completely random.

One mutation that supports the virus replication and transmission from human to human or any other host sustains whereas the virus that cannot infect many eventually dies out, explained Shweta Chelluboina, clinical virologist at the Interactive Research School for Health Affairs in Pune.

These are random events and such a phenomenon has caused the outbreak in the first place.The newcoronavirushad mutated successfully enoughthat it jumped from animal tohuman, allowingit to infect manywith still no containment in sight, said Chelluboina.

There were reports earlier about how the novel coronavirus has mutated into two strains so far the original S-type which originated in Wuhan, and the subsequent L-type that evolved from the S-type and is more prevalent in countries like the US. Scientists at the Peking Universitys School of Life Sciences and the Institut Pasteur of Shanghai announced these findings.

The L-type is the more aggressive one, and spreads rapidly but is no more or less virulent than the S-type. The researchers urged everyone to take preventive measures because the mutation indicates that more could be coming.

But these arent really two strains as such. A strain is a genetic variant characterised by different forms of surface proteins. But the L-type and the S-type are not quite different enough to call them strains just yet. They are just mutations, referred to as types, according to the study.

To explain the lower population of S-type, the authors of the study suggested that human-adopted measures of curbing contact contained the S-type to the Wuhan region, and allowed the L-type to spread elsewhere uncontained. While the S-type emerged around the time the virus jumped from animals to humans, the L-type emerged soon after that within humans, the team suggested.

Experts think there is also a definite sampling bias for the L-type, which was just sampled more, and uniformly, resulting in higher representation. The mutations were discovered in a preliminary study, as cautioned by the authors as well, and was performed on a limited population of 103 samples.

The study is not peer-reviewed yet, and as most Covid-related studies are under the open community, is a pre-print for now. It was uploaded on 4 March.

These findings strongly support an urgent need for further immediate, comprehensive studies that combine genomic data, epidemiological data, and chart records of the clinical symptoms of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), said the study.

The science is evolving rapidly, as more and more genome data is collected from around the world.

Newer research data gathered from genetic sequences uploaded to open source website NextStrain.org indicate that anywhere from eight to 18 different sequences of the coronavirus are making their way around the globe, according to researchers who have genetically sequenced over 1,400 isolates from around the world. These are extremely tiny differences within the viruses in their nucleotide sequences, and none of the sequenced groups seem to be growing any more or less lethal than others.

Most importantly, none of them are new strains despite their coverage as such in the mediaand subsequent clarifications by Nextstrain, who have the data for 2,243 SARS-CoV-2 genomes, of which 1,150 have minor mutations.

On Nextstrain, nearly every virus reveals a slightly different genome. But there are very few mutations and none are strong or vital enough to affect the way the virus spreads, attacks, or lives. The sequences are all named by location where they were first sequenced.

It is very common that during an outbreak, especially during a global pandemic, the genome sequence of earlier isolates from one particular geographical location will differ from that of the later isolates collected elsewhere, said Sreejith Rajasekharan, virologist and post doc at the International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) in Trieste, Italy, over an email.

This is what is observed in the current pandemic as well. The first sequence collected from positive patients in Rome, Italy was from a Chinese tourist. This and the one collected after, from an Italian citizen returning from China resemble those that were isolated in China, said Rajasekharan.

However, the ones isolated later in Lombardia and Friuli Venezia Giulia regions (in Italy) match the European clad and not the one from China.

The mutations in the virus are like moving targets, which cant be hit because they keep changing their genetic sequence.

Genome sequencing on a large scale can tell us whether viral isolates are different in different countries from what we saw from China. So this will help us decide whether the treatments being contemplated in those places will be applicable for our strains or not, Rakesh Mishra said.

It will also help decide if the different strains vary so much that developing vaccines may not be viable, Mishra said.

Some behaviours are unique in different strains like how we know that aged people are at high risk but we saw in India young people have also died, said Chelluboina. Some variations in the virus cause the virus to behave in a certain way.

The sequencing will provide a fundamental understanding of how to address the problem without it, the treatments are based on what is known of other viruses which may or may not work for the novel coronavirus, and also likely take up a long time.

That is why it is important to understand the sequence of the virus in local infections to know which countries have a similar virus, so that we can attempt to better predict the outcome, added Chelluboina.

However, Rajasekharan added, The general public needs not be concerned in this regard as the genome of SARS-CoV-2 is quite stable, and therefore the rate of mutation is low.

The novel coronavirus will continue to mutate and pose a challenge to researchers developing a vaccine. Nonetheless, the idea of viruses mutating is not something that needs to worry people in terms of their health when it comes to Covid-19.

Also read:Seasonal flu far more common than coronavirus, but its vaccine is not popular in India

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Mapfre to donate 5 million to Spanish National Research Council – Times of Malta

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Mapfre will donate 5 million to the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) to accelerate research in Spain and, especially, investigations related to COVID-19.

The contribution will allow a comprehensive study of this pandemic, deepen the knowledge of the virus and its transmission mechanisms, and promote not only a vaccine against it, but also a scientific basis to better protect the population against future pandemics.

This action is announced within the framework of a Mapfres strategy against COVID-19 based on three lines of action: protect people, safeguard economic activity, especially employment, and help society to overcome the impact in the medium and longer term.

The National Center for Biotechnology (CNB) of CSIC was already a pioneer, and decisive with its genetic engineering techniques, for the achievement of the SARS vaccine in 2002.

Companies, as corporate citizens, must also have a relevant role participating in public-private alliances such as this that allow the fight against the pandemic to be accelerated, said Antonio Huertas, Mapfre president.

It is at these times when we have to take firm steps that help society to overcome this extraordinary situation, and contribute to the way out of this crisis with the least possible impact. We are all called to coordinated action, we are very proud to contribute to the research that CSIC is leading, and we hope that more entities will join this effort to achieve the vaccine that the world population needs.

Mapfre also wants to vindicate the work of scientists and researchers not only at specific times like those present, but in general as an essential activity for the progress of individuals and societies.

Rosa Menndez CSIC president, said: This donation represents a considerable boost for the CSIC teams. We are already working to unravel the keys to the new coronavirus, but we are also launching more than 50 coordinated projects to jointly address the challenge posed by the pandemic. These are projects that range from biotechnology and diagnostic nanosensors to mathematical models to understand the spread of the disease. Mapfres support will allow us to accelerate these projects.

The donation will be made through Fundacin Mapfre, with immediate effect. Fundacin Mapfre is a non-profit entity that has been working for the benefit of society for more than 45 years, executing social actions aimed at the most vulnerable groups.

The Mapfre Group continues to deploy a broad action plan against the coronavirus in all the countries where it is present. In addition to the widespread implementation of teleworking, it is guaranteeing the service in essential coverage with the maximum protection measures for employees, collaborators and clients.

Likewise, the company has just announced a set of measures in Spain, worth 30 million, to protect the activity of self-employed and SMEs through the duration of the crisis: Mapfre will discount in its policies the part of the insurance premiums that cover the professional activity corresponding to the confinement period.

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UC San Diego Engineers and Doctors Team Up to Retrofit and Build Ventilators with 3D-Printing – UC San Diego Health

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Students, staff and faculty address one of the key challenges of COVID-19 outbreak

Manual to automatic: A team of engineering students and faculty at Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego have developed a device to convert a manual ventilator into an automatic ventilator. This system uses 3D-printed parts to compress the bag to push air into a patients lungs.

Even as university campuses close across the nation in an effort to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, a team of engineers and physicians at the University of California San Diego is rapidly developing simple, ready-to-use ventilators to be deployed if the need arises.

The project kick-started several weeks ago when news started to trickle in that communities in Northern Italy with widespread COVID-19 were in dire straits.

One of the biggest things we heard was that there werent enough ventilators to treat all of the patients coming into the hospitals, said James Friend, a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Department of Surgery at UC San Diego. Its clear that if were not careful, we might end up in the same situation.

Ventilators are medical devices that push air in and out of a patients lungs when they are unable to breathe on their own. One of the primary symptoms of COVID-19 is difficulty in breathing; approximately 1 percent of people who contract the virus require ventilation to support their recoverysometimes for weeks.

The situation in Italy spurred Dr. Lonnie Petersen, an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at UC San Diego and an adjunct with UC San Diego Health, to reach out to her medical and engineering colleagues, proposing a new collaboration to quickly produce simple ventilators that could be easily built and readily used to support patients in a crisis.

We immediately had a lot of support from staff and faculty, all working to get this project off the ground, Petersen said. Our community is taking this threat very seriously and acting accordingly.

The first step was to seek consensus with anesthetists and respiratory therapists about minimum requirements for a ventilator. The next was to determine whether engineers could reasonably produce them, and how quickly.

Within days, a team of researchersfrom the Friend and Petersen labs, including graduate students Aditya Vasan, William Connacher, Jeremy Sieker and Reiley Weekes, began building devices using premade parts and 3D printers. Their first goal was to convert an existing manual ventilator model to automatic, able to provide breathing assistance without human intervention.

Engineering students and faculty are developing a simple device using 3D-printed parts and off-the-shelf components to convert an existing manual ventilator system into an automatic one.

The existing manual design features a mask fitted over a patients face and a bag that can be squeezed by hand to push air into the patients lungs. The team is designing a machine that can do the squeezing instead, freeing doctors and nurses to address other concerns.

Were 3D-printing parts that can be attached to a motor to compress the bag of the manual ventilator, said Ph.D. student Vasan. This allows us to control the speed and volume of the compressions to help patients breathe.

The advantage of 3D printing is that it can be used to quickly produce customized parts. Devices can be made on a small scale much faster than by traditional manufacturing methods.

As long as the correct materials are used, 3D printing can be used to produce a wide variety of tools in the fight against COVID-19, said Shaochen Chen, a professor of nanoengineering at the Jacobs School of Engineering. Its not good for, say, entire N95 masks, but it can be used for producing testing swabs or even face shields for healthcare workers.

Meanwhile, Petersens team is awaiting a few more parts to build a more sophisticated ventilator using an electric pump. Our aim is to have functional devices as soon as possible, she said. Once weve got the bare bones system up and running, we can start adding layers of sophistication and automation. Those additional layers will include advanced regulation of air pressure and flow to allow for a more disease-specific and patient-tailored respiratory support.

The first ventilators will be simple, but the goal is to have something readily at hand when the need arises.

But a simple design isnt the teams only goal.

We are preparing for a shortage of both ventilators and specialized staff to run them, said Petersen. The questions quickly became How can we tweak the ventilators that are available to support multiple patients? How can we create more ventilators that are easier for staff to use?

Other projects include collecting and inventorying oxygen supplies in preparation for increased demand by local hospitals; converting other air pressure machines, such as CPAPs and Bi-PAPs into ventilators; and adapting existing ventilators to serve more patients.

Dr. Sidney Merritt displays an in-house pressure measurement device, currently in testing for use on a system designed to split a single ventilator to serve up to four patients.

The team hopes to have functional prototypes within a few days and are ready to test them in simulators, in collaboration with anesthesiologists, before potentially applying to patients.

Normally, the production timeline on something like this would be months, or even years, said Petersen. By building on existing technology and taking multiple steps at once, we aim to reduce that timeline to weeks.

While grappling with challenges in locating parts that cant be 3D-printed and obtaining them from outside vendors, the biggest roadblock right now is gathering enough people to assemble the devices.

The UC San Diego campus is largely closed and empty, due to efforts to minimize coronavirus exposure and slow the spread of COVID-19. The graduate student team continues work, thanks to a special exception granted by the Dean of the Jacobs School of Engineering.

This is a team effort, said Petersen. And we can use the assistance of other engineers. We would love to hear from students, staff, and faculty with hands-on engineering experience who can help us with this project.

Qualified volunteers should email: UCSDVentilatorEngHelp@gmail.com

Meanwhile, Petersens colleague Dr. Sidney Merritt, an associate clinical professor of anesthesiology at UC San Diego Health, is working with a team that includes U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin personnel to develop a 3D-printable system for splitting a ventilator designed for one patient so that it can be used by up to four patients at a time.

We found a file online that showed us how it could be done, said Merritt. Weve been working with the Navy and others to print them in different materials and test them on a ventilator, and, so far, it works. We were able to get enough pressure on each line that it should be adequate for serving four patients at a time.

The challenge now is finding valves that can regulate the pressure for each patient on the system and monitor individual air pressure for each one, allowing for the fine control needed to support each patients specific needs. As soon as we have the valves worked out, well be just a couple days out from getting them set up and running, said Merritt.

Using 3D-printed parts, Dr. Sidney Merritt and a team at the U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin are developing a system to convert ventilators designed for a single patient to be used by up to four patients at a time.

This situation is going to be very severe, she continued. We need to have every tool available to us, so we are ready to treat patients because we still dont know how many people will get sick.

Despite obstacles, the team said it has been overwhelmed by support and advocacy from colleagues and university leadership. For example, the University of California's Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC) has contributed $10,000 to assist in the development of prototypes.

The UC San Diego family is really pulling together on this one, said Petersen. From the dean, through chairs, faculty and students, regardless of who weve spoken to, everyone has gone above and beyond to help with this project as much as they can. Its really bringing the community together. Everyone is moving in the same direction. While the work may be preparing for something unpleasant, its very good to be working in such a supportive environment.

Dr. Casper Petersen, an assistant project scientist in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, is co-leading this project alongside Lonnie Petersen. Other members of the continuously growing team include Dr. Daniel Lee; Dr. Preetham Suresh; Dr. William Mazzei; Dr. Matthew Follansbee; Dr. Micheal Vanietti; Dr. Hemal Patel; Theodore Vallejos of UC San Diego Health; Mark Stambaugh of the Qualcomm Institute; and Tania Morimoto, a professor in the Department of Aerospace and Engineering at the Jacobs School.

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UC San Diego Engineers and Doctors Team Up to Retrofit and Build Ventilators with 3D-Printing - UC San Diego Health

Bare-Bones Ventilator Circuit Board Moving Toward Production with Radio Amateurs’ Help – ARRL

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04/01/2020

Radio amateurs continue to play key roles in developing the electronic control system for an open-source/architecture, modular, low-cost human patient ventilator. The device itself was designed by researcher Sem Lampotang and his team at University of Florida Health the schools academic health center using such commonly available components as PVC pipe and lawn-sprinkler valves. The idea is to create a bare-bones ventilator that could serve in the event of a ventilator shortage.

The way I looked at it is, if youre going to run out of ventilators, then were not even trying to reproduce the sophisticated ventilators out there, Lampotang said. If we run out, you have to decide who gets one and who doesnt. How do you decide that? The power of our approach is that every well-intentioned volunteer who has access to Home Depot, Ace, Lowes, or their equivalent worldwide can build one.

His team is working on adding safety features to meet regulatory guidelines, then they will run engineering tests to determine safety, accuracy, and endurance of the machine, which can be built for as little as $125 to $250.

Dr. Gordon Gibby, KX4Z a retired associate professor of anesthesiology at the University of Florida and an electrical engineer is among those involved in the project, developing control-system prototypes. He reports that a trial printed circuit board is being created, populated, and tested prior to large-scale fabrication. This should lead to a documented open-source design that can be replicated or improved upon by any interested manufacturer, Gibby said, noting that the board could be built anywhere in the world, based on the Arduino Nano microcontroller.

A huge amount of work has gone on in the design of the circuit boards, Gibby told ARRL. We have at least two, maybe three designs, ready for fabrication. Current design specifications and a video of prototypes have been posted online. The Arduino-based control software will set the respiratory rate and other key parameters in treating critically ill coronavirus victims. Other radio amateurs involved in the control system aspect of the project include Jack Purdum, W8TEE, and uBITX transceiver maker Ashhar Farhan, VU2ESE.

Using a Groups.io forum, up to 140 volunteers have been studying or working to push the project to completion. Software is being created by multiple volunteers, with amateur radio operators involved in that phase as well.

The ventilators valves will precisely time the flow of compressed oxygen into a patient with lungs weakened by viral pneumonia in order to extend life and allow time for the body to clear the infection.

Among the projects assumptions: The Food and Drug Administration will waive clearance for the bare-bones design, if a massive shortage develops; traditional medical components and supplies used in ventilators will be in short supply, and transportation will be impaired or disrupted.

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Bare-Bones Ventilator Circuit Board Moving Toward Production with Radio Amateurs' Help - ARRL

Foundational step towards a quantum internet – News – The University of Sydney

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Dr John Bartholomew in the Quantum Integration Laboratory at the University of Sydney Nano Institute. Photo: Stefanie Zingsheim

Quantum computers promise to revolutionise information technology this century. Based on the rules of quantum mechanics, the very nature of their hardware means they will be able to solve problems beyond the reach of classical computers. And scientists are also working on how best to build a network of these machines in order to create a quantum internet of sorts.

Engineers at Caltech, the California Institute of Technology, have discovered that by embedding atoms of the rare-earth element ytterbium in an optical cavity they are able to control and measure a stable form of quantum information in a solid. The system they have developed has the potential to share that information over thousands of kilometres using photons.

"This ticks most of the boxes, said Caltechs Professor Andrei Faraon, who led the research team. It's a rare-earth ion that absorbs and emits photons in exactly the way we'd need to create a quantum network.

This could form the backbone technology for the quantum internet."

Dr John Bartholomew is a co-author of the Nature paper and worked on the project at Caltech. This year he joined the University of Sydney Nano Institute and School of Physics.

He said: These rare-earth atoms have great appeal for quantum technologies but several challenges had to be overcome to get things working at the single atom level. Ive worked on overcoming these challenges since starting my PhD at the Australian National University 12 years ago.

I saw the nanophotonic cavities pioneered at Caltech as the best shot for making this breakthrough.

Dr Bartholomew now leads the Quantum Integration Laboratory at the University of Sydney. Here he hopes to build on the Universitys demonstrated strengths in photonics and quantum technologies.

The next big steps are to increase the performance and scale of this hardware and I can't wait to tackle these challenges at the University of Sydney by designing new materials and building integrated devices, he said.

As they can with classical computers, engineers would like to be able to connect multiple quantum computers to share data and work together creating a quantum internet. This would open the door to several applications, including solving computations that are too large to be handled by a single machine and establishing provably secure communications using quantum cryptography.

In order to work, a quantum network needs to be able to transmit information between two points without altering the quantum properties of the information being transmitted. The idea is to use one of the fundamental quantum properties of matter, which is entanglement. This is where the information of quantum objects remains dependent on each other, even if separated by an arbitrary distance.

One current model works like this: a single atom or ion acts as a quantum bit (or qubit) storing information via one if its properties, such as the direction of its angular momentum, known as spin. To read that information and transmit it elsewhere, the atom is excited with a pulse of light, causing it to emit a photon whose spin is entangled with the spin of the atom. The photon can then transmit the information entangled with the atom over a long distance via fibre-optic cable.

Doing that is harder than it sounds, however. Finding atoms that you can control and measure that also aren't too sensitive to magnetic or electric field fluctuations that cause errors, or decoherence, is challenging.

"Solid-state emitters that interact well with light often fall victim to decoherence; that is, they stop storing information in a way that's useful from the prospective of quantum engineering," said Caltechs Dr Jon Kindem, lead author of theNaturepaper.

Meanwhile, atoms of rare-earth elements, which have properties that make the elements useful as qubits, tend to interact poorly with light.

To overcome this challenge, researchers led by Professor Faraon constructed a nanophotonic cavity about 10 microns (0.01 millimetres) in length, sculpted from a piece of crystal.

The crystal was made in such a way that light inside it would bounce around in predictable patterns.

They then identified a charged atom, or ion, of the rare-earth element ytterbium was then placed at the centre of the cavity where it could receive a beam of photons. The optical cavity allows for light to bounce back and forth down the beam multiple times until it is finally absorbed by the ion.

In theNaturepaper, the team showed that the cavity modifies the environment of the ion such that whenever it emits a photon, more than 99 percent of the time that photon remains in the cavity, where scientists can efficiently collect and detect that photon to measure the state of the ion. This results in an increase in the rate at which the ion can emit photons, improving the overall effectiveness of the system.

In addition, the ytterbium atoms store information for 30 milliseconds. That doesnt sound long, but its long enough for light to transport that information nearly 6000 kilometres about the distance from Sydney to Jakarta and enough time to cross continental Europe, Asia, Australia or the US.

The team's current focus is on creating the building blocks of a quantum network. Next, they hope to scale up their experiments and connect two quantum bits, Professor Faraon said.

This research was funded by the US National Science Foundation, the US Air Force Office of Scientific Research and theInstitute for Quantum Information and Matterat Caltech and used theKavli Nanoscience Institute Laboratoryat Caltech.

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Foundational step towards a quantum internet - News - The University of Sydney