livescience--2020-09-25--Here are the most promising coronavirus vaccine candidates out there

Editor 's Note : This story was updated on Sept. 25 to to include : — The University of Oxford/AstraZeneca began phase 3 trials in the U.S. and briefly paused/resumed their trials to investigate an unexplained illness .
— a section on Novavax .
The company began phase 3 trials in the U.K .
Using materials from weakened cold viruses to snippets of genetic code , scientists around the world are creating dozens of unique vaccine candidates to fight the novel coronavirus — and they 're doing it at unprecedented speeds .
Over seven months after the World Health Organization @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a in Wuhan , China , 187 candidate vaccines are in development to prevent the coronavirus that caused the disease ( called COVID-19 ) , according to WHO .
Most of the candidate vaccines are in preclinical stages , meaning they are still being tested on animals or in the lab , but 38 of them have reached human trials .
Such clinical trials are broken up into three to four stages , with earlier stages ( phase 1/phase 2 ) examining the safety , dosage , and possible side effects and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fighting the pathogen ) of the candidate vaccine in a small group of people , according to the Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) .
The key to getting a candidate vaccine approved , however , is showing promising results in the more advanced phase 3 trial .
In phase 3 trials , researchers test the efficacy of the vaccine , while monitoring for adverse reactions in hundreds to thousands of volunteers .
The FDA then approves the vaccine if trials show it is safe and effective , and the vaccine 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the .
Five coronavirus vaccine candidates have started recruiting for , or are undergoing , phase 3 trials , according to WHO .
Here are the most promising of those candidates : The vaccine currently called ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 , popularly known as the Oxford vaccine , is being developed by the British university in collaboration with pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca .
A phase 3 clinical trial that 's expected to enroll around 30,000 adults began in the U.S. on Aug. 31 , according to a statement from the National Institutes of Health .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nCoV-19 underway in the U.K. and other countries .
On Sept. 6 , AstraZeneca paused its trials after a participant — a woman in the U.K. — showed neurological symptoms often associated with transverse myelitis , a condition in which the spinal cord becomes inflamed , .
But it was n't clear if the unexplained illness was due to the vaccine or occured in the participant by chance .
The trials resumed a couple of days later , after the UK 's Medicines Health Regulatory Authority said it was safe to continue , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made from a weakened version of a common cold virus , called an adenovirus , that infects chimpanzees .
Researchers genetically altered the virus so that it could n't replicate in humans and added genes to code for the so-called that the coronavirus uses to infect human cells .
In theory , the vaccine will teach the body to recognize these spikes , so that when a person is exposed , the can destroy it , according to a previous .
Researchers previously tested this vaccine in rhesus macaque monkeys and found that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ becoming infected when deliberately exposed to the coronavirus , but did prevent them from developing , suggesting that it was partially protective , according to a study published May 13 to the preprint database .
In April , researchers began testing the vaccine on people and published early results from their phase 1 and still-ongoing phase 2 trials on July 20 in the journal .
The vaccine did n't cause any serious adverse effects in participants but did prompt some mild side effects , such as muscle ache and chills .
The vaccine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ T-cells — a group of white blood cells important in the fight against pathogens — and neutralizing , or molecules that can latch onto the virus and block it from infecting cells , according to the report .
Phase 3 trials have already begun in Brazil and will enroll up to 5,000 volunteers .
Another phase 3 trial is expected to enroll an additional 10,500 people in the U.K. and 30,000 in the U.S. , according to the and .
The team at Oxford has also expressed interest in conducting challenge studies on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ low-risk volunteers with the virus , either alongside phase 3 trials or after they are complete , according to The Guardian .
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ( HHS ) announced that it would give up to $ 1.2 billion to AstraZeneca to accelerate the vaccine development process and to help the company manufacture at least 300 million doses of the vaccine — if it proves safe and effective — as early as October 2020 , .
This is part of the Trump administration 's Operation Warp Speed , an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doses of a safe and effective vaccine by January of 2021 , .
Another candidate vaccine , called CoronaVac , being developed by Beijing-based Sinovac Biotech , protected rhesus macaque monkeys from infection with the novel coronavirus , according to a study published July 3 in the journal .
The company , having already shown the vaccine to be safe and effective in early clinical trials , is recruiting for a phase 3 clinical trial with 8,870 participants in Brazil , according to .
This vaccine is made up of an inactivated version @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are the dead version of the pathogen that causes the disease ( as opposed to weakened viruses which are live vaccines ) , according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ( HHS ) .
Inactivated viruses such as the or the hepatitis A vaccine , are typically not as protective as live vaccines and might require booster shots over time , according to the HHS .
In contrast , the Oxford vaccine is a weakened form of a live vaccine , which can create long-lasting immune responses but tends to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ systems or other health problems , according to the HHS .
Sinovac began phase 1/phase 2 trials ( involving 743 healthy adults ) in April in the Jiangsu province of China .
They gave participants two doses of the vaccine , two weeks apart , and reported that the vaccine did n't cause any serious adverse events , .
Study authors also said more than 90 % of participants had developed neutralizing antibodies to the vaccine two weeks after receiving the second dose .
However , their results have only been reported in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been published in a peer-reviewed journal .
The company is now conducting a phase 2 trial on elderly adults and will later conduct one on children and adolescents , according to another statement .
Sinovac previously used the same technology to create approved vaccines for hepatitis A , hepatitis B and swine flu , avian flu and the virus that causes hand , foot and mouth disease , .
On Sept. 9 , Sinovac reported promising early results from their phase 1/phase 2 clinical trial on older volunteers , .
The trial involved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 60 and 89 .
The vaccine did n't cause any serious adverse reactions and it was well tolerated , the company said in the statement .
These participants developed antibody levels comparable to the adult group ages 18 to 59 , according to the statement ; the findings have not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal .
China has approved this vaccine for emergency use ( along with two other vaccines developed by Sinopharm ) .
About 90 % of Sinovac 's employees and their families have taken the experimental vaccine under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sept. 6 .
This candidate vaccine ( mRNA-1273 ) , developed by U.S. biotech company Moderna and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ( NIAID ) , was the first to be tested on humans in the U.S. , according to a .
Moderna 's vaccine relies on a technology that has n't been used in any approved vaccines to date : a piece of genetic material called messenger RNA ( mRNA ) .
Traditional vaccines are made up of weakened or inactive viruses , or proteins of those viruses , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccines , on the other hand , are made up of genetic material that teaches cells to build these viral proteins themselves ( in this case , the coronavirus ' spike protein ) .
Both traditional and mRNA vaccines trigger an immune response in the body such that if a person is naturally exposed to the virus , the body can quickly recognize and fight it .
These mRNA vaccines have several advantages , including being quicker and easier to manufacture than traditional vaccines , which can take time to develop because scientists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or their proteins , .
mRNA vaccines might also be more durable against pathogens that tend to mutate , such as and flu viruses .
However , mRNA vaccines can cause adverse reactions in the body ; these types of vaccines also have problems with stability , breaking down quite quickly , which might limit the strength of immunity , according to National Geographic .
mRNA vaccines have shown to be `` a promising alternative '' to traditional vaccines , but `` their application has until recently been restricted by the instability and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a group of researchers reported in a 2018 review published in the journal .
`` Recent technological advances have now largely overcome these issues , and multiple mRNA vaccine platforms against infectious diseases and several types of cancer have demonstrated encouraging results in both animal models and humans . ''
On July 14 , Moderna published promising early results from a phase 1 trial consisting of 45 participants in The New England Journal of Medicine .
Participants were divided into three groups and given a low , medium or high dose of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the vaccine , all participants developed neutralizing antibodies at levels above the average of those found in recovered COVID-19 patients , .
The vaccine appeared safe and generally well-tolerated , but more than half of the participants had some side effects ( similar to side effects that can happen from the annual flu shot ) including fatigue , chills , headache , muscle aches and pain at the injection site .
Some participants in the middle- and high-dose groups experienced a fever after the second injection .
One person who received the highest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , nausea , lightheadedness and an episode of fainting , according to the report .
But this participant felt better after a day and a half .
Such high doses wo n't be given to participants in upcoming trials .
Moderna 's phase 2 trial is still ongoing and on July 27 , the company started its phase 3 trial in the U.S. , according to a Live Science report .
The trial is expected to enroll about 30,000 participants by the end of the summer — and the first results from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to the report .
In April , the HHS , under Operation Warp Speed , committed to spending up to $ 483 million for the accelerated development of Moderna 's vaccine .
On July 28 , scientists published a new in The New England Journal of Medicin detailing how Moderna 's vaccine induced a strong immune response in rhesus macaque monkeys .
After being given a 10 or 100 μg dose of the vaccine and then a second dose two weeks later ( some were not given a vaccine and served as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were `` challenged '' or exposed to the coronavirus at week 8 .
The researchers found that the monkeys developed a strong immune response to the virus , as their immune systems produced both neutralizing antibodies and T cells .
Two days after the monkeys were exposed to the coronavirus , the researchers could not detect any viral replication in the nose or lungs , suggesting that the vaccine protected against early infection .
( This is in contrast to the University of Oxford study conducted in monkeys , which seemed to prevent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did n't prevent them from getting infected with the novel coronavirus . )
CanSino Biologics , in collaboration with the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology , developed a candidate vaccine using a weakened adenovirus .
Unlike the Oxford vaccine , which relies on an adenovirus that infects chimpanzees , CanSino Biologics is using an adenovirus that infects humans .
Along with Moderna , this group also published results from their phase 2 trial on July 20 in the journal .
The trial , which was conducted in Wuhan ( where the first coronavirus cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were randomly assigned to receive either one of two different doses of the vaccine or a placebo .
This study also did n't find serious adverse events , though some reported mild or moderate reactions including fever , fatigue and injection site pain .
Around 90 % of the participants developed T-cell responses and about 85 % developed neutralizing antibodies , according to the study .
`` The results of both studies augur well for phase 3 trials , where the vaccines must be tested on much larger populations of participants to assess @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bar-Zeev and William J Moss , both part of John Hopkins ' International Vaccine Access Center , wrote in an in The Lancet referring to this study and the Oxford vaccine study published in the same journal .
`` Overall , the results of both trials are broadly similar and promising . ''
They are now looking to conduct a phase 3 trial outside of China , .
In June , CanSino 's coronavirus vaccine was given approval to be used in China 's military , .
The state-owned China National Pharmaceutical Group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an inactivated form of SARS-CoV-2 .
On Aug. 13 , the company published data from its phase 1 and phase 2 clinical trials in the journal .
In the phase 1 trial , 96 healthy adults were randomly assigned to receive either a low , medium or high dose of the vaccine or to receive aluminum hydroxide as a placebo .
They were given second and third doses of the vaccine ( or the placebo ) after 28 days and 56 days , respectively .
The researchers found that the vaccine triggered their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the participants who received the placebo , 12.5 % had adverse reactions .
In those who received low , medium and high dose vaccines , 20.8 % , 16.7 % and 25 % had mild adverse reactions , respectively , according to the study .
In the phase 2 trial , 224 adults were given a medium dose or a placebo and then a second shot either 14 days or 21 days after the first .
Again , the participants developed neutralizing antibodies and reported some mild adverse reactions .
The most common @ @ @ @ @ @ @ site , and then mild fever .
`` No serious adverse reactions were noted , '' the authors wrote .
The company has already begun its in Abu Dhabi , which will recruit up to 15,000 people , .
The participants will receive one of two vaccine strains or a placebo , according to Reuters .
The company also launched phase 3 trials in Peru and Morocco , .
Sinopharm is testing a second vaccine developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products in a phase 3 trial in the United Arab Emirates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Chinese citizens have already been vaccinated by one of two of Sinopharm 's vaccines under an emergency use program , .
The United Arab Emirates granted emergency approval on Sept. 14 for Sinopharm 's coronavirus vaccine for frontline healthcare workers ( it 's not clear if they approved both or one of them ) , .
Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech are , like Moderna , developing a vaccine that uses messenger RNA to prompt the immune system to recognize the coronavirus .
On July 27 , Pfizer and BioNTech the start @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will enroll up to 30,000 participants and be conducted in around 120 sites around the world , including in the U.S .
If the vaccine is shown safe and effective in these trials , the companies say they will `` seek regulatory review '' as early as October ; if the vaccine is approved or authorized , they will supply up to 100 million doses by the end of 2020 and around 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021 , according to the statement .
On Sept. 12 , they submitted an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Food and Drug Administration to expand their phase 3 trial to up to 44,000 people .
The vaccine did n't cause any serious adverse events and could spur an immune response , according to early phase 1/phase 2 data released to the preprint database on July 1 and that has n't yet been peer-reviewed .
The study involved 45 patients who were given one of three doses of either the candidate vaccine or a placebo .
None of the patients had serious side effects , but some developed side effects such as fevers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ group ) , fatigue , headaches , chills , muscle pains and joint pain .
The researchers found that the vaccine prompted the immune system to make neutralizing antibodies at levels 1.8 to 2.8 times higher than those found in recovered patients , according to the study .
Later , Pfizer announced new results ( in a , so the findings are n't peer-reviewed ) that the vaccine also prompted the production of T-cells specific to the novel coronavirus .
This week , the Trump administration announced a $ 1.95 billion contract with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 100 million doses of their vaccine by the end of the year if it proves to be safe and effective ( with up to 500 million doses more as required ) .
Americans would receive the vaccine for free , according to The New York Times .
Previously , the two companies announced an agreement with the U.K. for 30 million doses of the vaccine candidate if it works and is approved , .
Pfizer is planning for a large-scale phase 3 trial to start this month and regulatory review for as early @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Johnson & Johnson began phase 3 trials in the U.S. on Sept. 23. , according to a statement from the company .
The trial will enroll up to 60,000 volunteers across the U.S. , Brazil , Chile , Columbia , Mexico , Peru , Philippines , South Africa and the Ukraine , .
The initiation of this trial follows `` positive interim results , '' regarding safety and efficacy from the phase 1/phase 2 clinical trial , which has been submitted to medRxiv and `` are due to be published online imminently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ statement .
If the vaccine proves to be safe and effective , the company `` anticipates the first batches of a COVID-19 vaccine to be available for emergency use authorization in early 2021 , '' according to the statement .
Johnson & Johnson 's Janssen experimental COVID-19 vaccine , called Ad26 , is developed from a weakened adenovirus and is given to volunteers as a single dose .
The company is planning to conduct another phase 3 trial , in collaboration with the U.K. government , to test two doses , .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine because it uses a weakened virus ( a vector ) to deliver information about the pathogen to the body to spur the immune response .
In this case , the weakened adenovirus expresses the SARS-CoV-2 `` spike '' protein .
Janssen is using the same technology it used to develop its .
Researchers reported on July 30 in the journal that a single shot of the Ad26 vaccine protected rhesus macaques from infection with SARS-CoV-2 .
In this study , the scientists tested seven slightly varying types of Ad26 vaccine prototypes and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of neutralizing antibodies .
After receiving the chosen variant , the monkeys were then exposed to the coronavirus .
Six out of seven monkeys that were given this prototype vaccine , calledAd26.COV2.S , and then exposed to the coronavirus showed no detectable virus in the lower respiratory tract and one showed very low levels in its nose , according to the statement .
Johnson & Johnson 's of Ad26.COV2.S enrolled around 1,045 healthy participants between the ages of 18 and 55 and those over 65 .
Johnson & Johnson recently announced a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government to deliver 100 million doses of the vaccine in the U.S. if it receives approval or emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , .
U.S.-based vaccine development company Novavax is developing a candidate coronavirus vaccine called NVX-CoV2373 .
Called a `` recombinant nanoparticle vaccine , '' it 's made up of several SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins that are combined in a nanoparticle along with an immune-boosting compound called an adjuvant , according to The New York Times .
The company , which has not brought a vaccine to market @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a $ 1.6 billion deal with the U.S. government under Operation Warp Speed , according to the Times .
On Sept. 2 , early , promising results from Novavax 's phase 1/phase 2 trials were published in The New England Journal of Medicine .
The trials involved 131 healthy adults : eighty-three of the participants received the vaccine with the adjuvant ; 25 received the vaccine without the adjuvant ; and 23 received the placebo .
The participants were given two doses of the vaccine 21 days apart .
`` No serious adverse @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wrote .
One participant had a mild fever that lasted for a day , according to the paper .
Thirty-five days after the initial dose , participants who received the vaccine had immune responses that exceeded those in patients who recovered from COVID-19 .
All of the participants developed neutralizing antibodies at levels of four to six times greater than the average developed by recovered patients , .
In 16 participants , who were randomly tested , the vaccine seemed to generate T-cell responses ( T cells are a group of white blood @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) .
`` The addition of adjuvant resulted in enhanced immune responses , '' the authors wrote .
Based on these safety results from phase 1 , the company has begun the phase 2 trial of the .
The company has also begun a separate in South Africa , testing their candidate COVID-19 vaccine on both HIV-negative and HIV-positive volunteers .
On Sept. 24 , that it started its phase 3 testing of the vaccine in the United Kingdom and will enroll up to 10,000 volunteers .

Editor's Note: This story was updated on Nov. 25.
Using materials from weakened cold viruses to snippets of genetic code, scientists around the world are creating dozens of unique vaccine candidates to fight the novel coronavirus — and they're doing it at unprecedented speeds.
It's not known exactly when the virus hopped from animals to humans and when it started spreading across borders. But in less than a year since the World Health Organization (WHO) first alerted the world to a mysterious cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan, China, researchers across the globe have already developed more than 200 different candidate vaccines to fight the coronavirus.
Most are in preclinical stages, meaning they are still being tested on animals or in the lab, but 48 of them are being tested on humans. A handful of those 48 have reached late-stage clinical trials and three have already revealed promising results in late-stage trials and have applied for emergency use among high-risk populations. The first doses of a COVID-19 vaccine could be given to people in the U.S. starting in December.
Related: Coronavirus live updates
Clinical trials are broken up into three to four stages, with earlier stages (phase 1/phase 2) examining the safety, dosage, and possible side effects and efficacy (how well it works at fighting the pathogen) of the candidate vaccine in a small group of people, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) . The key to getting a candidate vaccine approved, however, is showing promising results in the more advanced phase 3 trial. In phase 3 trials, researchers test the efficacy of the vaccine, while also monitoring for adverse reactions in thousands of volunteers.
Here are the most promising of those candidates:
University of Oxford/AstraZeneca
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
The vaccine ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, popularly known as the Oxford vaccine, was developed by researchers at the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca. The vaccine candidate is 70% effective in preventing COVID-19 and can be 90% effective when given in the right dose, the University of Oxford announced on Nov. 23 . The vaccine is given in two doses, 28 days apart and is still being tested in phase 3 clinical trials across the globe, including in the U.S., U.K. and Brazil. The first analysis from these late-stage trials was based on 131 participants who developed COVID-19 after receiving either the vaccine or the placebo. In those who received two full doses, the vaccine was around 62% effective in preventing COVID-19, but in those who first received a half dose and then a full dose (this dosing wasn't deliberate, but the result of dosing mistake in early trials), the vaccine was 90% effective, Live Science reported . However, the data is not yet released or peer-reviewed and so it's not clear how many people received the placebo and how many received the vaccine.No serious safety concerns were found, and none of the participants who developed an infection after receiving the vaccine were hospitalized or had serious disease, according to the statement. The trials were paused twice before (this is common in clinical trials) after two different participants developed neurological symptoms, but they were resumed again when investigators didn't find a link between the vaccine and the symptoms, according to Vox . Another participant in the trial, a 28-year-old doctor in Brazil, died from COVID-19 complications, but the University of Oxford didn't cite any safety concerns nor was the trial stopped, so it's likely he was given a placebo and not the vaccine itself, according to the BBC .
The vaccine is made from a weakened version of a common cold virus, called an adenovirus, that infects chimpanzees. Researchers genetically altered the virus so that it couldn't replicate in humans and added genes to code for the so-called spike proteins that the coronavirus uses to infect human cells. In theory, the vaccine will teach the body to recognize these spikes, so that when a person is exposed, the immune system can destroy it, according to a previous Live Science report .
Researchers previously tested this vaccine in rhesus macaque monkeys and found that it did not prevent the monkeys from becoming infected when deliberately exposed to the coronavirus, but did prevent them from developing pneumonia , suggesting that it was partially protective, according to a study published May 13 to the preprint database BioRxiv .
In April, researchers began testing the vaccine on people and published early results from their phase 1 and still-ongoing phase 2 trials on July 20 in the journal The Lancet . The vaccine didn't cause any serious adverse effects in participants but did prompt some mild side effects, such as muscle ache and chills. The vaccine spurred the immune system to produce SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cells — a group of white blood cells important in the fight against pathogens — and neutralizing antibodies , or molecules that can latch onto the virus and block it from infecting cells, according to the report.
The Oxford vaccine showed similar immune responses in those over the age of 56 and those between the ages of 18 and 55, and it was "better tolerated" in older adults than younger adults, according to phase 2 results published on Nov. 18 in the journal The Lancet . This analysis was based on 560 participants, 240 of them 70 years of age and older.
The team at Oxford has also expressed interest in conducting challenge studies on humans, meaning they would deliberately infect low-risk volunteers with the virus, either alongside phase 3 trials or after they are complete, according to The Guardian .
The coronavirus uses spike proteins (seen on its surface here) to invade human cells. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
Sinovac Biotech
A Chinese company, Sinovac Biotech, developed and is testing a candidate vaccine called CoronaVac, which is made up of an inactivated version of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Inactivated vaccines use killed versions of a pathogen (as opposed to weakened viruses, which are called live vaccines), according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Inactivated viruses such as the flu vaccine or the hepatitis A vaccine, are typically not as protective as live vaccines and might require booster shots over time, according to the HHS. In contrast, the Oxford vaccine is a weakened form of a live virus, which can create long-lasting immune responses. Weakened virus vaccines tend to be riskier for people with weakened immune systems or other health problems, according to the HHS. Sinovac previously used the same technology to develop approved vaccines for hepatitis A, hepatitis B, swine flu, avian flu and the virus that causes hand, foot and mouth disease, according to STAT News .
Sinovac's vaccine, given in two doses 14 days apart, was well-tolerated and induced an immune response in participants, according to results from their phase 1/phase 2 trials published in November in The Lancet Infectious Diseases . But the number of antibodies produced in response to the vaccine was lower than the level found in patients who have recovered from COVID-19. The vaccine is being tested in phase 3 trials in Brazil, Indonesia and Turkey; the company has not yet announced results from these trials. But enough participants in the Brazil trial have now been infected with the virus to conduct the first analysis of it, Reuters reported . Results could come in early December, according to the trial organizers.
In September, Sinovac announced that their vaccine was well-tolerated among older adults and didn't cause serious adverse reactions. The phase 1/phase 2 trial involved 421 healthy volunteers between the ages of 60 and 89; these participants developed antibody levels comparable to the adult group ages 18 to 59, according to the statement. The vaccine protected rhesus macaque monkeys from infection with the novel coronavirus, according to a study published July 3 in the journal Science .
China has approved this vaccine for emergency use (along with two other vaccines developed by Sinopharm). About 90% of Sinovac's employees and their families have taken the experimental vaccine under China's emergency use program, Reuters reported on Sept. 6.
Moderna/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
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This candidate vaccine (mRNA-1273), developed by U.S. biotech company Moderna and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), was the first to be tested on humans in the U.S., according to a previous Live Science report . It's also one of the first to release early results from its phase 3 trial.
An analysis of the early data suggested that Moderna's vaccine is 94.5% effective in protecting against COVID-19, the company announced on Nov. 16. The analysis was based on 95 participants in Moderna's phase 3 trial who developed COVID-19; 90 of them received a placebo and five received the vaccine. What's more, 15 of those who developed COVID-19 were people who were at least 65 years old and 20 were from diverse communities. Among the participants, 11 had severe cases of COVID-19, but none of these severe cases were among those given the actual vaccine, Live Science reported .
Moderna's vaccine relies on a technology that hasn't been used in any approved vaccines to date: a piece of genetic material called messenger RNA (mRNA). Traditional vaccines are made up of weakened or inactive viruses, or proteins of those viruses, to trigger an immune response; mRNA vaccines, on the other hand, are made up of genetic material that teaches cells to build these viral proteins themselves (in this case, the coronavirus' spike protein). Both traditional and mRNA vaccines trigger an immune response in the body such that if a person is naturally exposed to the virus, the body can quickly recognize and fight it.
These mRNA vaccines have several advantages, including being quicker and easier to manufacture than traditional vaccines, which can take time to develop because scientists have to grow and inactivate entire pathogens or their proteins, according to National Geographic . mRNA vaccines might also be more durable against pathogens that tend to mutate, such as coronaviruses and flu viruses. However, mRNA vaccines can cause adverse reactions in the body; these types of vaccines also have problems with stability, breaking down quite quickly, which might limit the strength of immunity, according to National Geographic.
mRNA vaccines have shown to be "a promising alternative" to traditional vaccines, but "their application has until recently been restricted by the instability and inefficient" delivery into the body, a group of researchers reported in a 2018 review published in the journal Nature Reviews Drug Discovery . "Recent technological advances have now largely overcome these issues, and multiple mRNA vaccine platforms against infectious diseases and several types of cancer have demonstrated encouraging results in both animal models and humans."
On July 14, Moderna published promising early results from a phase 1 trial consisting of 45 participants in The New England Journal of Medicine . Participants were divided into three groups and given a low, medium or high dose of the vaccine. After receiving two doses of the vaccine, all participants developed neutralizing antibodies at levels above the average of those found in recovered COVID-19 patients, Live Science reported .
The vaccine appeared safe and generally well-tolerated, but more than half of the participants had some side effects (similar to side effects that can happen from the annual flu shot) including fatigue, chills, headache, muscle aches and pain at the injection site. Some participants in the middle- and high-dose groups experienced a fever after the second injection. One person who received the highest dose experienced a "severe" fever, nausea, lightheadedness and an episode of fainting, according to the report. But this participant felt better after a day and a half. Such high doses won't be given to participants in upcoming trials.
On July 28, scientists published a new study in The New England Journal of Medicin e detailing how Moderna's vaccine induced a strong immune response in rhesus macaque monkeys. After being given a 10 or 100 μg dose of the vaccine and then a second dose two weeks later (some were not given a vaccine and served as a comparison point), the monkeys were "challenged" or exposed to the coronavirus at week 8. The researchers found that the monkeys developed a strong immune response to the virus, as their immune systems produced both neutralizing antibodies and T cells. Two days after the monkeys were exposed to the coronavirus, the researchers could not detect any viral replication in the nose or lungs, suggesting that the vaccine protected against early infection. (This is in contrast to the University of Oxford study conducted in monkeys, which seemed to prevent the monkeys from developing pneumonia, but didn't prevent them from getting infected with the novel coronavirus.)
The government's Operation Warp Speed gave Moderna $955 million for research and development of its vaccine. Moderna's phase 3 trial is still ongoing, and the company expects to produce 500 million to 1 billion doses globally in 2021. The company expects to submit for an emergency use authorization (EUA) soon.
mRNA vaccines teach cells how to make the spike protein (the mRNA is translated to amino acids, the building block of proteins inside what's called the cell's ribosome). (Image credit: Shutterstock)
Pfizer/BioNTech
Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech have, like Moderna, developed a vaccine that uses messenger RNA to prompt the immune system to recognize the coronavirus. A final analysis of their phase 3 data suggested that their vaccine is 95% effective at preventing COVID-19, the companies announced on Nov. 18. The companies became the first to submit a request for emergency use authorization on Nov. 20. The first doses of this vaccine will likely be given in December.
Pfizer and BioNTech plan to produce up to 50 million doses of its vaccine globally in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion doses of its vaccine by the end of 2021, according to the statement. The phase 3 trial, that began in late July, will continue for another two years and safety and efficacy data will continue to be collected, Live Science reported .
Moderna's and Pfizer's vaccines are made using the same technology, are both given in two doses and have shown to be similar in efficacy and safety. The U.S. government has promised to buy millions of doses of both vaccines if they are approved. But Pfizer's vaccine has an added difficulty: it must be stored in ultra-cold temperatures of minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 70 degrees Celsius), whereas Moderna's needs to be stored at minus 4 F (minus 20 C). Pfizer didn't take any money from the government for research and development for its vaccine, whereas Moderna did. The Pfizer vaccine didn't cause any serious adverse events and led to an immune response, according to phase 1/phase 2 data published in the journal Nature in August.. The study involved 45 patients who were given one of three doses of either the candidate vaccine or a placebo. None of the patients had serious side effects, but some developed side effects such as fevers (75% in the highest dose group), fatigue, headaches, chills, muscle pains and joint pain.
The researchers found that the vaccine prompted the immune system to make neutralizing antibodies at levels 1.8 to 2.8 times higher than those found in recovered patients, according to the study. This vaccine also prompted the body to produce T cells and other molecules to help fight the virus, according to results from another phase 1/phase 2 trial that were published in the journal Nature at the end of September. In October, Pfizer and BioNTech received FDA approval to start enrolling children 12 years old and older in its trials, according to NPR .
CanSino Biologics/Beijing Institute of Biotechnology
CanSino Biologics, in collaboration with the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, developed a candidate vaccine (Ad5-nCoV or Convidecia) using a weakened adenovirus. Unlike the Oxford vaccine, which relies on an adenovirus that infects chimpanzees, CanSino Biologics is using an adenovirus that infects humans.
Along with Moderna, this group also published results from their phase 2 trial on July 20 in the journal The Lancet . The trial, which was conducted in Wuhan (where the first coronavirus cases emerged), involved 508 participants who were randomly assigned to receive either one of two different doses of the vaccine or a placebo. This study also didn't find serious adverse events, though some reported mild or moderate reactions including fever, fatigue and injection site pain. Around 90% of the participants developed T-cell responses and about 85% developed neutralizing antibodies, according to the study.
"The results of both studies augur well for phase 3 trials, where the vaccines must be tested on much larger populations of participants to assess their efficacy and safety," Naor Bar-Zeev and William J Moss, both part of John Hopkins' International Vaccine Access Center, wrote in an accompanying commentary in The Lancet referring to this study and the Oxford vaccine study published in the same journal. "Overall, the results of both trials are broadly similar and promising."
In June, CanSino's coronavirus vaccine was given approval to be used in China's military, according to Reuters . CanSino announced on Nov. 21 that they will start phase 3 trials of its vaccine in Argentina and Chile, Reuters reported. They are already conducting phase 3 trials in Pakistan, Russia and Mexico.
Gamaleya Research Center (Sputnik V)
The Russia Ministry of Health's Gamaleya Research Institute has developed a coronavirus vaccine candidate, now known as "Sputnik V," based on two different adenoviruses, or common cold viruses that infect humans. These viruses are genetically altered to not replicate in humans and to code for the coronavirus's spike protein.
Russia announced on Nov. 24 that its vaccine was more than 91.4% effective in preventing COVID-19, according to results from a second analysis of its phase 3 trial. The analysis was based on 39 participants who either received a placebo or the Sputnik V vaccine and later went on to develop COVID-19 (Their results agreed with their first analysis of their phase 3 data based on 20 participants). But the vaccine makers also said that an early analysis of an unspecified, smaller subset of the participants suggested that their vaccine was actually 95% effective in preventing COVID-19 three weeks after participants received the second dose. The researchers said they will do another analysis once 78 of the trial participants become infected with COVID-19. But some experts were skeptical about the 95% figure because it was based on incomplete data, according to The New York Times .
In August, President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia approved the vaccine for use in tens of thousands of people, before it was thoroughly tested in late-stage clinical trials, drawing international criticism, Live Science previously reported . But the registration certificate issued by Russia's Ministry of Health showed that the vaccine was only approved for use in a small group of people, including health care workers, according to Science Magazine .
In September, the researchers published results from their phase 1/phase 2 trials in the journal The Lancet . The analysis, based on 76 participants (none of whom were given a placebo), suggested their vaccine was "safe and well tolerated." Most adverse events were mild, none of the participants had serious adverse events and the participants developed higher antibody levels against the coronavirus than people who have recovered from COVID-19.
Adenoviruses have been used to make vaccines for decades, and an adenovirus is also the base of the coronavirus vaccines developed by Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceutical companies, China's CanSino Biologics and the University of Oxford.
"The uniqueness of the Russian vaccine lies in the use of two different human adenoviral vectors which allows for a stronger and longer-term immune response as compared to the vaccines using one and the same vector for two doses," according to the statement. After the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca announced that two full doses of the same adenovirus led to a 62% efficacy, the Sputnik V researchers tweeted : "Sputnik V is happy to share one of its two human adenoviral vectors with @AstraZeneca to increase the efficacy of AstraZeneca vaccine. Using two different vectors for two vaccine shots will result in higher efficacy than using the same vector for two shots."
Sinopharm
The state-owned China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm)'s candidate vaccine is an inactivated form of SARS-CoV-2. On Aug. 13, the company published data from its phase 1 and phase 2 clinical trials in the journal JAMA . In the phase 1 trial, 96 healthy adults were randomly assigned to receive either a low, medium or high dose of the vaccine or to receive aluminum hydroxide as a placebo. They were given second and third doses of the vaccine (or the placebo) after 28 days and 56 days, respectively.
The researchers found that the vaccine triggered their bodies to produce neutralizing antibodies. In the participants who received the placebo, 12.5% had adverse reactions. In those who received low, medium and high dose vaccines, 20.8%, 16.7% and 25% had mild adverse reactions, respectively, according to the study. In the phase 2 trial, 224 adults were given a medium dose or a placebo and then a second shot either 14 days or 21 days after the first. Again, the participants developed neutralizing antibodies and reported some mild adverse reactions. The most common adverse reaction was pain at the injection site, and then mild fever. "No serious adverse reactions were noted," the authors wrote.
The company has already begun its phase 3 trial in Abu Dhabi, which will recruit up to 15,000 people, according to Reuters . The participants will receive one of two vaccine strains or a placebo, according to Reuters. The company also launched phase 3 trials in Peru and Morocco, according to Reuters . Sinopharm is testing a second vaccine developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products in a phase 3 trial in the United Arab Emirates and Argentina.
Almost 1 million people have already been given Sinopharm's vaccine in China under an emergency use program, according to CNN . The vaccine was given to construction workers, diplomats and students who have since traveled to 150 countries across the globe without reporting an infection, Sinopharm Chairman Liu Jingzhen said in an article on social media platform WeChat, according to CNN. No serious adverse effects have been reported, according to the article.
The United Arab Emirates granted emergency approval on Sept. 14 for Sinopharm's coronavirus vaccine for frontline health care workers, according to Reuters .
Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies
Johnson & Johnson's Janssen experimental COVID-19 vaccine, is also based on a weakened adenovirus (ad26) and is given to volunteers as a single dose (most of the other candidate vaccines are given in two doses). Again, this type of vaccine, called a vector-based vaccine, uses a weakened virus (a vector) to deliver "information" about the pathogen to the body to spur the immune response. Just as with other adenovirus-based COVID-19 vaccines, the weakened adenovirus expresses the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Janssen is using the same technology it used to develop its Ebola vaccine .
The U.S. government's Operation Warp Speed has funded $456 million for the development of this vaccine. Johnson & Johnson also announced a $1 billion agreement with the U.S. government to deliver 100 million doses of the vaccine in the U.S. if it receives approval or emergency use authorization from the FDA.
Johnson & Johnson began phase 3 trials in the U.S. on Sept. 23. The company has not yet released data from these trials. In October, the company paused its trials (this is common in clinical trials) after a participant developed an unexplained illness, but then resumed in the U.S. after a "thorough evaluation" didn't find a clear cause for the illness, according to a statement. "There are many possible factors that could have caused the event. Based on the information gathered to date and the input of independent experts, the Company has found no evidence that the vaccine candidate caused the event," the company wrote in the statement. But discussions with global regulatory agencies to resume trials in other countries are still continuing. On Nov. 15, Johnson & Johnson announced the start of a new global phase 3 trial that will study the safety and efficacy of two doses of the vaccine (rather than one).
Both phase 3 trials follow "positive interim results," regarding safety and efficacy from the phase 1/phase 2 clinical trial, which has been posted to the preprint site medRxiv and hasn't yet been peer-reviewed. Almost all of the participants developed a strong T cell response and antibodies to the virus, including neutralizing antibodies, after a single dose. The trials are ongoing and they are also testing the effect of a vaccine when given as two doses. The majority of adverse events were "mild and moderate," according to a statement . However, two adverse events were reported in the trials, the first event was found not to be related to the vaccine and the second was in a participant who developed a fever and was hospitalized with "suspicion" that they had COVID-19 but recovered in 12 hours, according to the statement.
Researchers reported on July 30 in the journal Nature that a single shot of the Ad26 vaccine protected rhesus macaques from infection with SARS-CoV-2. In this study, the scientists tested seven slightly varying types of Ad26 vaccine prototypes and identified the one that produced the highest number of neutralizing antibodies. After receiving the chosen variant, the monkeys were then exposed to the coronavirus. Six out of seven monkeys that were given this prototype vaccine, calledAd26.COV2.S, and then exposed to the coronavirus showed no detectable virus in the lower respiratory tract and one showed very low levels in the nose, according to a statement.
Novavax
U.S.-based vaccine development company Novavax has developed and is testing a candidate coronavirus vaccine called NVX-CoV2373. Called a "recombinant nanoparticle vaccine," it's made up of several SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins that are combined in a nanoparticle along with an immune-boosting compound called an adjuvant, according to The New York Times .
The company, which has not brought a vaccine to market in it's 33-year-history, has made a $1.6 billion deal with the U.S. government under Operation Warp Speed, according to the Times. On Sept. 2, early, promising results from Novavax's phase 1/phase 2 trials were published in The New England Journal of Medicine . The trials involved 131 healthy adults: eighty-three of the participants received the vaccine with the adjuvant; 25 received the vaccine without the adjuvant; and 23 received the placebo. The participants were given two doses of the vaccine 21 days apart. "No serious adverse events were noted," the researchers wrote. One participant had a mild fever that lasted for a day, according to the paper.
Thirty-five days after the initial dose, participants who received the vaccine had immune responses that exceeded those in patients who recovered from COVID-19. All of the participants developed neutralizing antibodies at levels of four to six times greater than the average developed by recovered patients, according to CNN . In 16 participants, who were randomly tested, the vaccine seemed to generate T-cell responses (T cells are a group of white blood cells important in the fight against pathogens). "The addition of adjuvant resulted in enhanced immune responses," the authors wrote.
Based on these safety results from phase 1, the company has begun the phase 2 trial of the study . The company has also begun a separate phase 2 study in South Africa, testing their candidate COVID-19 vaccine on both HIV-negative and HIV-positive volunteers. On Sept. 24, Novavax announced that it started its phase 3 testing of the vaccine in the United Kingdom and will enroll up to 10,000 volunteers.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-25--Mold that led to penicillin discovery revived to fight superbugs

A sample of mold that first led to the discovery of penicillin in the 1920s has been revived .
The newly awakened fungus could provide hints about how to conquer drug-resistant superbugs , .
Dr. Alexander Fleming , a professor of bacteriology in London , accidentally discovered the penicillin in 1928 , when some of his petri dishes became contaminated with a mold , Penicillium notatum , .
He extracted the active ingredient `` penicillin '' from the mold and found that it killed many kinds of harmful ; scientists later purified penicillin for use as a treatment for bacterial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ penicillin , its mother mold was frozen and kept in storage for future study .
Scientists have occasionally defrosted and , according to CNN , but never before have researchers analyzed all the DNA contained within the fungus .
Related : 6 superbugs to watch out for '' We realized , to our surprise , that no one had sequenced the genome of this original Penicillium , despite its historical significance to the field , '' Tim Barraclough , a professor at the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial College London and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told CNN .
The team reexamined the DNA inside the mold , and published their findings Sep. 24 in the journal .
The team compared Fleming 's original mold to two modern strains of Penicillium used to produce antibiotics in the U.S. , CNN reported .
They zoomed in on genes that enable the to produce penicillin ; some of these genes contain instructions to build the enzymes that make penicillin , while others control the function and total amount of these enzymes .
Differences between the historic and modern mold strains could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and whether the drug made from it could be improved , the researchers say .
Since the release of penicillin , bacterial resistance to the drug has flourished , and the number of drug-resistant bugs can grow as long as the drug is used , according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
By identifying subtle differences in the mold strains used to make penicillin , Barraclough told CNN that his team hopes to come up with new ways to `` improve our use or the design of antibiotics for @ @ @ @

A sample of mold that first led to the discovery of penicillin in the 1920s has been revived. The newly awakened fungus could provide hints about how to conquer drug-resistant superbugs, CNN reported .
Dr. Alexander Fleming, a professor of bacteriology in London, accidentally discovered the antibiotic penicillin in 1928, when some of his petri dishes became contaminated with a mold, Penicillium notatum, Live Science previously reported . He extracted the active ingredient "penicillin" from the mold and found that it killed many kinds of harmful bacteria ; scientists later purified penicillin for use as a treatment for bacterial infections.
After the serendipitous discovery of penicillin, its mother mold was frozen and kept in storage for future study. Scientists have occasionally defrosted and regrown mold from the original strain , according to CNN, but never before have researchers analyzed all the DNA contained within the fungus.
Until now.
Related: 6 superbugs to watch out for
"We realized, to our surprise, that no one had sequenced the genome of this original Penicillium, despite its historical significance to the field," Tim Barraclough, a professor at the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial College London and the Department of Zoology at Oxford University, told CNN. The team reexamined the DNA inside the mold, and published their findings Sep. 24 in the journal Scientific Reports .
The team compared Fleming's original mold to two modern strains of Penicillium used to produce antibiotics in the U.S., CNN reported. They zoomed in on genes that enable the fungus to produce penicillin; some of these genes contain instructions to build the enzymes that make penicillin, while others control the function and total amount of these enzymes. Differences between the historic and modern mold strains could reveal how Penicillium has evolved through time, and whether the drug made from it could be improved, the researchers say.
Since the release of penicillin, bacterial resistance to the drug has flourished, and the number of drug-resistant bugs can grow as long as the drug is used, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By identifying subtle differences in the mold strains used to make penicillin, Barraclough told CNN that his team hopes to come up with new ways to "improve our use or the design of antibiotics for combating bacteria."
Read the full story at CNN.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-25--Divers discover lost WWII submarine wreck off Southeast Asia

Divers in Southeast Asia have located the lost wreck of what 's thought to be a U.S. Navy submarine that sank in 1943 after it was attacked by Japanese aircraft .
The submarine wreck — almost certainly that of USS Grenadier — was found in a search of the northern end of the Straits of Malacca , between the Malay peninsula and Sumatra .
The divers cross-referenced military records of three submarines sunk in the area during with the possible locations of wrecks reported by fishermen who had snagged nets on submerged obstacles , said team member Lance Horowitz , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ island of Phuket .
The other members of the team are Ben Reymenants , a Belgian diver based in Phuket who also helped in Thailand in 2018 ; and Frenchmen Jean Luc Rivoire and Benoit Laborie , who are both based in Singapore .
The team spent two boat trips and several days searching the most likely areas with sonar equipment , and located a wreck in October last year at a depth of 280 feet ( 85 meters ) — an extreme depth for diving that required a special mix of , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only let them stay a few minutes .
`` We did n't really have too much time , '' Horowitz told Live Science .
`` We were n't able to swim around the whole wreck … it kind of disappears off in either direction . ''
After five more dives since , Horowitz and his team have established the wreck as that of a military submarine with all its hatches open , sitting on the seafloor ; — the latest measurements of its conning tower , hatches and hull show it must be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ waiting for formal confirmation of their find from the U.S. Navy , Horowitz said .
USS Grenadier , named after a type of fish like many U.S. subs , joined the American submarine fleet in the Pacific Ocean after the in December 1941 .
It helped defend the island of Midway in June 1942 — one of the decisive naval battles of the Pacific during World War II — and later patrolled the coasts of Southeast Asia , according to the .
On April 20 , 1943 , the Grenadier was closing on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ intending to sink them , when it was spotted by a Japanese aircraft .
The submarine crash-dived to a depth of around 120 feet ( 36 m ) , but it was hit by a torpedo dropped from the aircraft , which knocked out its power and started fires onboard .
The stricken submarine fell to the seafloor , while its crew tried to make repairs and put out the fires ; it only surfaced after dark , 13 hours later , but it was too badly damaged to move .
The sub @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fitzgerald , hoped an improvised sail would bring the sub close enough to shore that the crew could escape into the jungle ; but it was soon spotted by Japanese ships and aircraft .
After a fierce battle with the sub 's guns on the surface , Fitzgerald ordered that the Grenadier be scuttled ; the crew opened all its hatches and vents , and the sub quickly sank to the bottom .
Its location was lost until the dive team discovered it last year .
That was n't the end of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , however .
The Japanese ships picked up all 76 crew men and took them to a commandeered Catholic school near Penang where they were questioned , beaten and starved , according to historical accounts .
In the book `` `` ( Casemate Publishers , 2012 ) , one of the Grenadier sailors alleged their Japanese captors tortured the crew , including breaking their fingers and pricking them with bayonets , to get them to talk .
Four of the Grenadier crew died in captivity , and the rest survived until the end @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The last survivor of the Grenadier died last year , Horowitz said , adding that he and his team gathered their information from the families of the crew members .
The wreck has now become a haven for sea life .
`` It 's in an otherwise barren part of the seafloor , '' he said .
`` It is really thriving , covered with coral and giant fish . ''
The team hopes to make further dives on the wreck and eventually search for two other World War II submarines that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ subs HMS Stonehenge , which sank in 1944 , possibly after hitting a mine ; and HMS Porpoise , which sank in 1945 , after it was bombed by a Japanese aircraft .
`` We 'll use similar techniques that we used to find the [ Grenadier ] , '' Horowitz said .
`` We might get lucky enough to find another one . ''

No lives were lost in the sinking of the USS Grenadier, but the crew were taken prisoners of war and suffered brutal tortures by the Japanese military.
Divers in Southeast Asia have located the lost wreck of what's thought to be a U.S. Navy submarine that sank in 1943 after it was attacked by Japanese aircraft.
The submarine wreck — almost certainly that of USS Grenadier — was found in a search of the northern end of the Straits of Malacca, between the Malay peninsula and Sumatra.
The divers cross-referenced military records of three submarines sunk in the area during World War II with the possible locations of wrecks reported by fishermen who had snagged nets on submerged obstacles, said team member Lance Horowitz, an Australian based on Thailand's southern island of Phuket.
Related: Photos: WWII shipwrecks found off NC coast
The other members of the team are Ben Reymenants, a Belgian diver based in Phuket who also helped rescue a youth soccer team from a cave in Thailand in 2018; and Frenchmen Jean Luc Rivoire and Benoit Laborie, who are both based in Singapore.
The team spent two boat trips and several days searching the most likely areas with sonar equipment, and located a wreck in October last year at a depth of 280 feet (85 meters) — an extreme depth for diving that required a special mix of oxygen , nitrogen and helium for them to breathe, and only let them stay a few minutes.
"We didn't really have too much time," Horowitz told Live Science. "We weren't able to swim around the whole wreck … it kind of disappears off in either direction."
After five more dives since, Horowitz and his team have established the wreck as that of a military submarine with all its hatches open, sitting on the seafloor; — the latest measurements of its conning tower, hatches and hull show it must be the Grenadier.
The team is now waiting for formal confirmation of their find from the U.S. Navy, Horowitz said.
Image 1 of 5 Measurements of the wreck have established it is the USS Grenadier, which was scuttled after being badly damaged by a Japanese aircraft attack. (Image credit: J.L. Rivoire) No lives were lost in the sinking of the USS Grenadier, but the crew were taken prisoners of war and suffered brutal tortures by the Japanese military. (Image credit: J.L. Rivoire) Scans with sonar showed the wreck of a submarine sitting upright on the seafloor at a depth of 280 feet, and dives established it was USS Grenadier. (Image credit: J.L. Rivoire) The wreck was found by a team of divers who cross-referenced military records with locations where fishermen reported snagging their nets on the seafloor. (Image credit: B. Reymenants) The submarine wreck was discovered on the seafloor after weeks of searching likely areas in the Straits of Malacca by a boat equipped with sonar. (Image credit: J.L. Rivoire)
Stricken submarine
USS Grenadier, named after a type of fish like many U.S. subs, joined the American submarine fleet in the Pacific Ocean after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
It helped defend the island of Midway in June 1942 — one of the decisive naval battles of the Pacific during World War II — and later patrolled the coasts of Southeast Asia, according to the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command .
On April 20, 1943, the Grenadier was closing on two Japanese cargo ships near Phuket, intending to sink them, when it was spotted by a Japanese aircraft. The submarine crash-dived to a depth of around 120 feet (36 m), but it was hit by a torpedo dropped from the aircraft, which knocked out its power and started fires onboard.
Related: Photos: WWI-era German submarine wreck discovered off Scotland coast
The stricken submarine fell to the seafloor, while its crew tried to make repairs and put out the fires; it only surfaced after dark, 13 hours later, but it was too badly damaged to move.
The sub's captain, Lt. Cmdr. John Fitzgerald, hoped an improvised sail would bring the sub close enough to shore that the crew could escape into the jungle; but it was soon spotted by Japanese ships and aircraft.
After a fierce battle with the sub's guns on the surface, Fitzgerald ordered that the Grenadier be scuttled; the crew opened all its hatches and vents, and the sub quickly sank to the bottom. Its location was lost until the dive team discovered it last year.
Prisoners of war
That wasn't the end of the story for the crew of the Grenadier, however. The Japanese ships picked up all 76 crew men and took them to a commandeered Catholic school near Penang where they were questioned, beaten and starved, according to historical accounts.
In the book " The Silent Service in World War II " (Casemate Publishers, 2012), one of the Grenadier sailors alleged their Japanese captors tortured the crew, including breaking their fingers and pricking them with bayonets, to get them to talk.
Four of the Grenadier crew died in captivity, and the rest survived until the end of the war in Japanese prison camps. The last survivor of the Grenadier died last year, Horowitz said, adding that he and his team gathered their information from the families of the crew members.
The wreck has now become a haven for sea life. "It's in an otherwise barren part of the seafloor," he said. "It is really thriving, covered with coral and giant fish."
The team hopes to make further dives on the wreck and eventually search for two other World War II submarines that sank in the area: the British subs HMS Stonehenge, which sank in 1944, possibly after hitting a mine; and HMS Porpoise, which sank in 1945, after it was bombed by a Japanese aircraft.
"We'll use similar techniques that we used to find the [Grenadier]," Horowitz said. "We might get lucky enough to find another one."
Originally published on Live Science


livescience--2020-09-25--Man dies after eating bags of black licorice every day

A man in Massachusetts died after eating too much , which contains a compound known to be toxic in large doses , according to a new report .
The 54-year-old man was in a fast food restaurant when he suddenly gasped , began shaking and lost consciousness , according to the report , published Wednesday ( Sept. 23 ) in The New England Journal of Medicine .
Emergency medical personnel found that the man was experiencing ventricular fibrillation , a life-threatening .
The man received CPR and briefly regained consciousness before being rushed to the hospital .
A discussion with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had a poor diet , consuming one to two large packages of soft candy every day , and little else .
A few weeks earlier , the man had switched from eating red , fruit-flavored candy to black licorice candy , according to the .
Black licorice often contains a compound called glycyrrhizin , which is derived from licorice root , according to the ( FDA ) .
Consuming too much licorice root or candies flavored with licorice root can be dangerous because glycyrrhizin lowers the body 's potassium levels .
This , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blood pressure and abnormal heart rhythms , .
In the man 's case , very low levels led to his heart problems .
The man received treatment to restore his potassium levels , along with multiple other treatments in the intensive care unit , including being placed on a ventilator .
Despite these efforts , the man died 32 hours after arriving at the hospital .
Although the death is an `` extreme case , '' eating just 2 ounces of black licorice a day for two weeks can cause heart rhythm problems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ older , the AP reported .
In 2019 , researchers reported the case of an 84-year-old man in Canada whose habit of drinking several glasses of homemade licorice tea a day caused his blood pressure to soar to dangerous levels , .
The FDA regulates how much glycyrrhizin is allowed in food , but still recommends that people avoid eating large amounts of licorice at any one time .
Of note , many `` licorice '' or `` licorice flavored '' products manufactured in the U.S. do not actually contain any licorice , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which has the same smell and taste , but does not contain glycyrrhizin , according to the FDA .

A man in Massachusetts died after eating too much black licorice , which contains a compound known to be toxic in large doses, according to a new report.
The 54-year-old man was in a fast food restaurant when he suddenly gasped, began shaking and lost consciousness, according to the report, published Wednesday (Sept. 23) in The New England Journal of Medicine . Emergency medical personnel found that the man was experiencing ventricular fibrillation, a life-threatening heart rhythm problem . The man received CPR and briefly regained consciousness before being rushed to the hospital.
A discussion with the man's family revealed that he had a poor diet, consuming one to two large packages of soft candy every day, and little else. A few weeks earlier, the man had switched from eating red, fruit-flavored candy to black licorice candy, according to the Associated Press .
Related: 27 oddest medical cases
Black licorice often contains a compound called glycyrrhizin, which is derived from licorice root, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Consuming too much licorice root or candies flavored with licorice root can be dangerous because glycyrrhizin lowers the body's potassium levels. This, in turn, can lead to high blood pressure and abnormal heart rhythms, Live Science previously reported .
In the man's case, very low potassium levels led to his heart problems. The man received treatment to restore his potassium levels, along with multiple other treatments in the intensive care unit, including being placed on a ventilator. Despite these efforts, the man died 32 hours after arriving at the hospital.
Although the death is an "extreme case," eating just 2 ounces of black licorice a day for two weeks can cause heart rhythm problems, particularly for people ages 40 and older, the AP reported.
In 2019, researchers reported the case of an 84-year-old man in Canada whose habit of drinking several glasses of homemade licorice tea a day caused his blood pressure to soar to dangerous levels, Live Science previously reported .
The FDA regulates how much glycyrrhizin is allowed in food, but still recommends that people avoid eating large amounts of licorice at any one time. Of note, many "licorice" or "licorice flavored" products manufactured in the U.S. do not actually contain any licorice, but instead are flavored with anise oil, which has the same smell and taste, but does not contain glycyrrhizin, according to the FDA.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-25--How COVID-19 might sabotage the immune system of young, healthy people

Among the million or so lives lost to COVID-19 there are stories that defy understanding .
Healthy bodies , young and in their prime , succumb to the virus as easily as if they were among the most vulnerable .
While for others in their age group , the virus only produces mild symptoms - if any .
Across two new studies , researchers have identified a crucial immune system mechanism that could help explain why the virus is so lethal - but only for some people .
The research also offers the first molecular explanation for why men seem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ severely than women .
Both papers point to type I interferons ( IFNs ) as playing a role in this crucial difference in COVID-19 outcomes .
IFNs are proteins that infected cells produce in order to help stop the spread of whatever 's infecting them .
But , for some people , their job is interrupted .
One of the new studies showed that more than 10 percent of healthy people who ended up with severe COVID-19 symptoms have antibodies that attack the patient 's own IFNs and stop them properly fighting the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at patients who were hospitalised with severe symptoms - some of them still in their 20s - and found that at least another 3.5 percent of carried genetic mutations that stop IFNs working properly .
While this potential mechanisms would only explain a proportion of COVID-19 's most serious cases , it just might be a discovery that could still save tens , if not hundreds of thousands of lives .
`` These findings provide compelling evidence that the disruption of type I interferon is often the cause of life-threatening COVID-19 , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the St. Giles Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases at The Rockefeller University .
`` And at least in theory , such interferon problems could be treated with existing medications and interventions . ''
Collaborating with a large international team of researchers as part of the COVID Human Genetic Effort , Casanova and his colleagues identified an antibody that errantly neutralised one or more of their body 's own IFN proteins in at least 101 of the 987 COVID-19 patients they tested ( 10.2 percent ) .
It 's not the first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sabotage itself and stop interferons from doing their jobs properly .
Some bacterial infections , such as those caused by species of Staphylococcus , often increase in severity when the body 's production of antibodies turn against its own interferon defence .
This self-sabotage has been noted in people treated with interferon for infections such as hepatitis , as well as in women with the autoimmune disease lupus .
Finding it just might explain as many as one in 10 of COVID 's most life-threatening , providing not just a means of treatment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our community is most at risk .
It also goes some way to explaining another perplexing coronavirus mystery .
`` Interestingly , 94 percent of patients with these neutralising auto-antibodies were male , which may explain why men are more susceptible to getting severe COVID-19 , '' says Stuart Tangye , head of the Oceania node of the COVID Human Genomic Effort .
The second study found genes for the interferon proteins themselves could also be working against the body 's interests .
Comparing the genes of 659 patients with life-threatening cases of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ benign infections resulted in the identification of 13 abnormalities in sequences known to be integral to IFN 's anti-influenza activity .
These 'loss of function ' mutations were only spotted in 23 of the patients , or around 3.5 percent of the group , but the research makes a strong case that even in this small fraction of the population , a breakdown in this critical immune pathway could be deadly in an otherwise healthy patient .
`` The way SARS-CoV-2 affects people differently has been puzzling .
The virus can cause a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or it can kill in a few days , '' says medical geneticist John Christodoulo from the Murdoch Children 's Research Institute in Australia .
`` The changes compromised their ability to protect against COVID-19 infection by impairing patients ' ability to make type I interferon . ''
Combined , the two studies fill in critical pieces of the coronavirus puzzle , clarifying how it invades and destroys in a seemingly whimsical manner .
Better treatments and diagnostics aside , they also expose a familiar side to the virus : One though deadly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ significant as the findings are , it 's hard not to think of the vast numbers of dead who only recently were in peak health , confident that they were among the fraction who 'd suffer little , if at all .
Among them , there are still mysteries to be solved .
This research was published in Science , here and here .
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert .
Read the original article here .

Among the million or so lives lost to COVID-19 there are stories that defy understanding. Healthy bodies, young and in their prime, succumb to the virus as easily as if they were among the most vulnerable. While for others in their age group, the virus only produces mild symptoms - if any.
Across two new studies, researchers have identified a crucial immune system mechanism that could help explain why the virus is so lethal - but only for some people.
The research also offers the first molecular explanation for why men seem to be impacted by the virus more severely than women.
Both papers point to type I interferons (IFNs) as playing a role in this crucial difference in COVID-19 outcomes. IFNs are proteins that infected cells produce in order to help stop the spread of whatever's infecting them.
But, for some people, their job is interrupted.
One of the new studies showed that more than 10 percent of healthy people who ended up with severe COVID-19 symptoms have antibodies that attack the patient's own IFNs and stop them properly fighting the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
The other study looked at patients who were hospitalised with severe symptoms - some of them still in their 20s - and found that at least another 3.5 percent of carried genetic mutations that stop IFNs working properly.
While this potential mechanisms would only explain a proportion of COVID-19's most serious cases, it just might be a discovery that could still save tens, if not hundreds of thousands of lives.
"These findings provide compelling evidence that the disruption of type I interferon is often the cause of life-threatening COVID-19," says physician Jean-Laurent Casanova, head of the St. Giles Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases at The Rockefeller University.
"And at least in theory, such interferon problems could be treated with existing medications and interventions."
Collaborating with a large international team of researchers as part of the COVID Human Genetic Effort, Casanova and his colleagues identified an antibody that errantly neutralised one or more of their body's own IFN proteins in at least 101 of the 987 COVID-19 patients they tested (10.2 percent).
It's not the first time we've seen the immune system sabotage itself and stop interferons from doing their jobs properly. Some bacterial infections, such as those caused by species of Staphylococcus, often increase in severity when the body's production of antibodies turn against its own interferon defence.
This self-sabotage has been noted in people treated with interferon for infections such as hepatitis, as well as in women with the autoimmune disease lupus.
Finding it just might explain as many as one in 10 of COVID's most life-threatening, providing not just a means of treatment, but of better identifying who in our community is most at risk.
It also goes some way to explaining another perplexing coronavirus mystery.
"Interestingly, 94 percent of patients with these neutralising auto-antibodies were male, which may explain why men are more susceptible to getting severe COVID-19," says Stuart Tangye, head of the Oceania node of the COVID Human Genomic Effort.
The second study found genes for the interferon proteins themselves could also be working against the body's interests.
Comparing the genes of 659 patients with life-threatening cases of COVID-19 with 534 individuals with asymptomatic or benign infections resulted in the identification of 13 abnormalities in sequences known to be integral to IFN's anti-influenza activity.
These 'loss of function' mutations were only spotted in 23 of the patients, or around 3.5 percent of the group, but the research makes a strong case that even in this small fraction of the population, a breakdown in this critical immune pathway could be deadly in an otherwise healthy patient.
"The way SARS-CoV-2 affects people differently has been puzzling. The virus can cause a symptom-free infection and go away quietly, or it can kill in a few days," says medical geneticist John Christodoulo from the Murdoch Children's Research Institute in Australia.
"The changes compromised their ability to protect against COVID-19 infection by impairing patients' ability to make type I interferon."
Combined, the two studies fill in critical pieces of the coronavirus puzzle, clarifying how it invades and destroys in a seemingly whimsical manner.
Better treatments and diagnostics aside, they also expose a familiar side to the virus: One though deadly, isn't entire novel.
As significant as the findings are, it's hard not to think of the vast numbers of dead who only recently were in peak health, confident that they were among the fraction who'd suffer little, if at all.
Among them, there are still mysteries to be solved.
This research was published in Science, here and here.
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert. Read the original article here.


livescience--2020-09-26--What makes something fireproof?

What makes something fireproof?

On Dec. 30 , 1903 , a spark from a stage light set Chicago 's Iroquois Theatre ablaze .
`` The stage and the curtain and the rest caught fire , '' said Bill Carroll , grandson of the theatre 's co-owner and adjunct professor of chemistry at Indiana University Bloomington .
`` There were insufficient exits , and it was terrible . ''
Over 600 people died in the disaster — the deadliest single-building fire in U.S. history .
Nowadays , this probably would n't happen , because many modern materials are less combustible than they used to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
The term `` fireproof '' is actually a misnomer , because almost anything containing carbon , if hot enough , can combust and catch fire .
`` Fire resistant '' and `` flame retardant '' are more accurate terms , Carroll told Live Science .
When used properly , these fire protective measures can interrupt the burning process .
For instance , typical plastic is combustible because it has a lot of carbon and hydrogen available to fuel a fire .
Gasoline also has carbon and hydrogen available — and it 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , making it highly combustible .
In contrast , a fire resistant material is one that does n't burn easily .
One example of this is the artificial stone used in kitchen countertops , like the DuPont brand Corian .
The plastic of a Corian countertop is filled with finely ground rocks made of hydrated oxide , a chemical compound that does n't burn .
These rocks lower the fuel value ( the amount of carbon available for combustion ) of the countertop , making it more fire resistant , Carroll said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ it , so when you compounded the two together [ the plastic and hydrated aluminum oxide ] , what you in essence had was rocks that on a microscopic basis were wet , '' he said .
`` And you had them in a plastic matrix , so it was really , really hard to get any heat generated from this . ''
Although the rock attracts and holds water molecules , it does not get wet enough to form a puddle .
Water keeps the countertop cool and helps block heat from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a heat source ( for instance , a lit cigarette resting on a Corian countertop ) , it would need to boil away the water surrounding the aluminum oxide first in order to then heat up the fuel , or the plastic molecules , enough to burn .
Moreover , countertops like Corian do n't have much plastic — there 's just enough to hold the rock together , Carroll said .
Fuel and heat are two sides of the fire tetrahedron , a triangular pyramid in which each side represents the elements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sides are oxygen and a sustainable chemical reaction , Carroll explained .
Most materials — aside from granite and asbestos , which are among the rare materials that are actually , literally fireproof — can be made more or less combustible only by eliminating one or more sides of the fire tetrahedron , he said .
Unlike fire resistance — the properties that make it hard for a fire to either start in the first place or keep going — chemicals known as flame retardants can help to slow or extinguish an already-burning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , bromine , nitrogen , phosphorus , boron or metals .
One way flame retardants work is through the formation of a substance known as char foam .
When a piece of toast burns , for example , a char forms on the outside , which insulates the undamaged bread on the inside .
Once a fire starts on an object treated with a char foam-inducing flame retardant , a chemical reaction within the retardant bubbles up to create a rigid , inflammable foam out of the char from the initial burning .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ from oxygen and , to some extent , heat , Carroll said .
`` [ The char ] kind of builds its own cocoon . ''
Flame retardant use has mushroomed since the 1970s , but it has sparked a over the past few decades because of its potential toxicity .
Brominated fire retardant chemicals , banned in the U.S. since 2004 , worked well at putting out fires , but were n't permanently bound to the material , for example a mattress , Carroll said .
That meant the chemical could potentially @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the dust or air , where it could be inhaled or ingested .
That 's cause for concern , because these chemicals are linked to a slew of health problems ; for instance they might disrupt thyroid function , interrupt the immune system and increase cancer risk , according to the .
`` New strategies for making fire retardants [ are ] to either bind the chemical to the mattress or make it another [ a long , repeating molecule chain ] , another absolutely huge molecule that does n't migrate , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , brominated fire retardants are smaller molecules that can easily leave materials and objects .
Can fire resistant materials and flame retardants be relied upon for fire safety ?
They do work well , but think of them as the second line of defense , Carroll said .
Although it may seem like rather simple advice , keep fire , such as candles , out of bedrooms and carefully tend to stoves and other fire sources in the kitchen .
`` Do n't have a fire where you do n't want a fire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .

On Dec. 30, 1903, a spark from a stage light set Chicago's Iroquois Theatre ablaze. "The stage and the curtain and the rest caught fire," said Bill Carroll, grandson of the theatre's co-owner and adjunct professor of chemistry at Indiana University Bloomington. "There were insufficient exits, and it was terrible." Over 600 people died in the disaster — the deadliest single-building fire in U.S. history.
Nowadays, this probably wouldn't happen, because many modern materials are less combustible than they used to be. But what makes certain materials fireproof?
The term "fireproof" is actually a misnomer, because almost anything containing carbon, if hot enough, can combust and catch fire. "Fire resistant" and "flame retardant" are more accurate terms, Carroll told Live Science. When used properly, these fire protective measures can interrupt the burning process. For instance, typical plastic is combustible because it has a lot of carbon and hydrogen available to fuel a fire. Gasoline also has carbon and hydrogen available — and it's volatile, so gasoline can evaporate easily, making it highly combustible.
Related: How do wildfires start?
In contrast, a fire resistant material is one that doesn't burn easily. One example of this is the artificial stone used in kitchen countertops, like the DuPont brand Corian. The plastic of a Corian countertop is filled with finely ground rocks made of hydrated aluminum oxide, a chemical compound that doesn't burn. These rocks lower the fuel value (the amount of carbon available for combustion) of the countertop, making it more fire resistant, Carroll said.
"The aluminum oxide brought water with it, so when you compounded the two together [the plastic and hydrated aluminum oxide], what you in essence had was rocks that on a microscopic basis were wet," he said. "And you had them in a plastic matrix, so it was really, really hard to get any heat generated from this."
Although the rock attracts and holds water molecules, it does not get wet enough to form a puddle. Water keeps the countertop cool and helps block heat from getting any fuel. If there were a heat source (for instance, a lit cigarette resting on a Corian countertop), it would need to boil away the water surrounding the aluminum oxide first in order to then heat up the fuel, or the plastic molecules, enough to burn. Moreover, countertops like Corian don't have much plastic — there's just enough to hold the rock together, Carroll said.
Fuel and heat are two sides of the fire tetrahedron, a triangular pyramid in which each side represents the elements necessary for fire. The other two sides are oxygen and a sustainable chemical reaction, Carroll explained. Most materials — aside from granite and asbestos, which are among the rare materials that are actually, literally fireproof — can be made more or less combustible only by eliminating one or more sides of the fire tetrahedron, he said.
The fire tetrahedron includes heat, fuel, oxygen and a sustainable chain reaction. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
Unlike fire resistance — the properties that make it hard for a fire to either start in the first place or keep going — chemicals known as flame retardants can help to slow or extinguish an already-burning fire. Chemical flame retardants contain chlorine, bromine, nitrogen, phosphorus, boron or metals.
Related: Can diamonds burn?
One way flame retardants work is through the formation of a substance known as char foam. When a piece of toast burns, for example, a char forms on the outside, which insulates the undamaged bread on the inside. Once a fire starts on an object treated with a char foam-inducing flame retardant, a chemical reaction within the retardant bubbles up to create a rigid, inflammable foam out of the char from the initial burning. This char foam then insulates the fuel from oxygen and, to some extent, heat, Carroll said. "[The char] kind of builds its own cocoon."
Flame retardant use has mushroomed since the 1970s, but it has sparked a controversy over the past few decades because of its potential toxicity. Brominated fire retardant chemicals, banned in the U.S. since 2004, worked well at putting out fires, but weren't permanently bound to the material, for example a mattress, Carroll said. That meant the chemical could potentially leave the mattress and end up in the dust or air, where it could be inhaled or ingested. That's cause for concern, because these chemicals are linked to a slew of health problems; for instance they might disrupt thyroid function, interrupt the immune system and increase cancer risk, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences .
"New strategies for making fire retardants [are] to either bind the chemical to the mattress or make it another polymer [a long, repeating molecule chain], another absolutely huge molecule that doesn't migrate," he told Live Science. In contrast, brominated fire retardants are smaller molecules that can easily leave materials and objects.
Can fire resistant materials and flame retardants be relied upon for fire safety? They do work well, but think of them as the second line of defense, Carroll said. Although it may seem like rather simple advice, keep fire, such as candles, out of bedrooms and carefully tend to stoves and other fire sources in the kitchen. "Don't have a fire where you don't want a fire in the first place," he said.
Editor's Note: This story was updated on Sept. 29 to change the word describing gasoline from "gaseous" to "volatile," or a substance that evaporates easily at room temperature.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-26--There's no speed limit in a superfluid universe. Now we know why.

In the cold , dense medium of a helium-3 superfluid , scientists recently made an unexpected discovery .
A foreign object travelling through the medium could exceed a critical speed limit without breaking the fragile superfluid itself .
As this contradicts our understanding of superfluidity , it presented quite a puzzle - but now , by recreating and studying the phenomenon , physicists have figured out how it happens .
Particles in the superfluid stick to the object , shielding it from interacting with the bulk superfluid , thus preventing the superfluid 's breakdown .
`` Superfluid helium-3 feels like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it , although it is a relatively dense liquid .
There is no resistance , none at all , '' said physicist Samuli Autti of Lancaster University in the UK .
`` I find this very intriguing . ''
Superfluids are a type of fluid that has zero viscosity and zero friction , and therefore flows without losing kinetic energy .
They can be made relatively easily from bosons of the helium-4 isotope , which , when cooled to just above absolute zero , slow down enough to overlap and form a high-density @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 'super-atom ' .
These 'super-atoms ' form just one type of superfluid , though .
Another is based on the boson 's sibling , the fermion .
Fermions are particles that include atomic building blocks like electrons and quarks .
When cooled below a certain temperature , fermions become bound together in what are called Cooper pairs , each made up of two fermions that together form a composite boson .
These Cooper pairs behave exactly like bosons , and can thus form a superfluid .
The team created their fermionic superfluid out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helium missing one neutron .
When cooled to one ten thousandth of a degree above absolute zero ( 0.0001 Kelvin , or -273.15 degrees Celsius/-459.67 degrees Fahrenheit ) , helium-3 forms Cooper pairs .
These superfluids are fairly fragile , and the Cooper pairs can break apart if an object moves through it above a certain velocity , called the critical Landau velocity .
And yet , in a 2016 paper , researchers from Lancaster University found that a wire rod moving through a helium-3 superfluid could exceed this velocity without breaking the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they measured the force required to move the wire rod through the superfluid .
They measured an extremely small force when the wire started moving , but once it was moving , the force required to keep going was zero - just give it a nudge and off it goes .
The team concluded that the initial force comes from the Cooper pairs moving around a little to accommodate the motion , exerting that small starting force on the wire rod .
But , after that , the wire can move freely , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pairs .
`` By making the rod change its direction of motion we were able to conclude that the rod will be hidden from the superfluid by the bound particles covering it , even when its speed is very high , '' said physicist Ash Jennings of Lancaster University .
This new finding could have some interesting implications .
Fermionic superfluids can be used to create superconductors , which in turn are under investigation as a critical component of quantum computers .
Knowing more about how and why superfluids behave the way they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ closer to that goal .
The research has been published in Nature Communications .
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert .
Read the original article here .

Exotic particles stick to all surfaces in the superfluid, shielding it from interacting with the bulk superfluid.
In the cold, dense medium of a helium-3 superfluid, scientists recently made an unexpected discovery. A foreign object travelling through the medium could exceed a critical speed limit without breaking the fragile superfluid itself.
As this contradicts our understanding of superfluidity, it presented quite a puzzle - but now, by recreating and studying the phenomenon, physicists have figured out how it happens. Particles in the superfluid stick to the object, shielding it from interacting with the bulk superfluid, thus preventing the superfluid's breakdown.
"Superfluid helium-3 feels like a vacuum to a rod moving through it, although it is a relatively dense liquid. There is no resistance, none at all," said physicist Samuli Autti of Lancaster University in the UK. "I find this very intriguing."
Superfluids are a type of fluid that has zero viscosity and zero friction, and therefore flows without losing kinetic energy. They can be made relatively easily from bosons of the helium-4 isotope, which, when cooled to just above absolute zero, slow down enough to overlap and form a high-density cluster of atoms that act as one 'super-atom'.
These 'super-atoms' form just one type of superfluid, though. Another is based on the boson's sibling, the fermion. Fermions are particles that include atomic building blocks like electrons and quarks.
When cooled below a certain temperature, fermions become bound together in what are called Cooper pairs, each made up of two fermions that together form a composite boson. These Cooper pairs behave exactly like bosons, and can thus form a superfluid.
The team created their fermionic superfluid out of helium-3, a rare isotope of helium missing one neutron. When cooled to one ten thousandth of a degree above absolute zero (0.0001 Kelvin, or -273.15 degrees Celsius/-459.67 degrees Fahrenheit), helium-3 forms Cooper pairs.
These superfluids are fairly fragile, and the Cooper pairs can break apart if an object moves through it above a certain velocity, called the critical Landau velocity.
And yet, in a 2016 paper, researchers from Lancaster University found that a wire rod moving through a helium-3 superfluid could exceed this velocity without breaking the pairs.
In their follow-up experiments, they measured the force required to move the wire rod through the superfluid. They measured an extremely small force when the wire started moving, but once it was moving, the force required to keep going was zero - just give it a nudge and off it goes.
The team concluded that the initial force comes from the Cooper pairs moving around a little to accommodate the motion, exerting that small starting force on the wire rod. But, after that, the wire can move freely, essentially camouflaged in a coat of Cooper pairs.
"By making the rod change its direction of motion we were able to conclude that the rod will be hidden from the superfluid by the bound particles covering it, even when its speed is very high," said physicist Ash Jennings of Lancaster University.
This new finding could have some interesting implications.
Fermionic superfluids can be used to create superconductors, which in turn are under investigation as a critical component of quantum computers. Knowing more about how and why superfluids behave the way they do is likely to only bring us closer to that goal.
The research has been published in Nature Communications.
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert. Read the original article here.