Researchers in Australia have devised a test that can determine novel coronavirus infection in about 20 minutes using blood samples in what they say is a world-first breakthrough.

The researchers at Monash University said their test can determine if someone is currently infected and if they have been infected in the past.

“Short-term applications include rapid case identification and contact tracing to limit viral spread, while population screening to determine the extent of viral infection across communities is a longer-term need,” the researchers said in a paper published in the journal ACS Sensors on Friday.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-research/australian-researchers-invent-20-minute-coronavirus-blood-test-idUSKCN24I0OR?il=0

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A COVID-19 vaccine developed by the University of Queensland is now ready to be tested on humans, giving hope of a breakthrough in combating the virus which has caused a worldwide pandemic.

The human testing of the "molecular clamp" vaccine candidate, to start on Monday, follows encouraging results from animal testing trials conducted in the Netherlands, the Sunday Mail in Brisbane reports.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk praised UQ for their search for a COVID-19 vaccine and said she expected the university to reveal more on Monday.

The premier said she has been encouraged by the work of the UQ scientists and their advancements so far.

"We know UQ is at the forefront of some of the work they're doing and they'll be making further announcements tomorrow," she told reporters on Sunday.

"We are very encouraged by the news from UQ.

"It's the early stages...and we have great scientists here in Queensland and they are doing a remarkable job."

https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6829217/qld-covid-19-human-vaccine-trials-to-start/?cs=14264#gsc.tab=0

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Australian and British researchers are collaborating on a trial to see whether a common asthma inhaler could drastically prevent people being hospitalised with severe COVID-19 symptoms.

Associate Professor Dan Nicolau from Queensland University of Technology is working with colleagues from the University of Oxford in Britain to run a clinical trial investigating whether there is any benefit to giving people a steroid inhaler in the early stages of the disease.

Professor Nicolau said his interest in the idea was raised when he and his colleagues looked at the data on COVID-19 patients and realised there were very few asthmatics and people with chronic lung disease among those who have to be hospitalised with COVID-19.

"That was really interesting, because you would expect those people to be at higher risk of suffering bad effects, but the data suggests the opposite," he said.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/queensland/trial-to-look-at-whether-a-common-inhaler-could-stop-the-worst-of-covid-19-20200707-p559w1.html

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The first human trials of a potential coronavirus vaccine developed in Australia and based on a protein found in insect cells are about to begin in Adelaide.

Two doses of COVAX-19, or a placebo, will be injected into 40 healthy people between the ages of 18 and 65 at the Royal Adelaide Hospital's clinical trial unit.

The vaccine candidate was developed by Adelaide-based company Vaxine, which has laboratories at Flinders University.

Another potential vaccine, developed in the US, made it to the human trials stage in Melbourne in late May.

But Vaxine research director Professor Nikolai Petrovsky said the human trials beginning in Adelaide today were the first for a vaccine developed in the southern hemisphere.

"I am very confident there will be successful vaccines against COVID-19," he said.

"Hopefully ours will be one of those [but] ultimately the data will determine that.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-02/coronavirus-vaccine-trials-to-begin-at-royal-adelaide-hospital/12414384

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Australian researchers have reportedly made a global breakthrough on a new antiviral drug they believe can protect against COVID-19 infection.

Monash University researchers have conducted modelling of the drug to show it has significant blocking ability against the virus that causes COVID-19, The Australian reported.

Researchers hope the drug, which could be administered by an inhaler, might be available as early as the end of the year.

Monash University senior research fellow Tom Karagiannis said he and his team had tested the way a designer molecule called a-ketoamide blocks one of the proteins needed to replicate the virus that causes COVID-19. Last month German researchers published new data on an improved version of a-ketoamides they said work more effectively in humans.

Dr Karagiannis and his colleagues used a supercomputer to study the way the improved version blocks the triggering of the replication of the virus that causes COVID-19 and found it acts as a handbrake on the virus’s ability to replicate.

“This molecule stops the virus from replicating, which can then stop the release of new virus particles and infection of other cells in the body,” Dr Karagiannis told The Australian.

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/health-problems/coronavirus-aussie-researchers-say-covid19-drug-could-arrive-by-end-of-the-year/news-story/3d2c9f131bdace217e1295cae8200f38

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​https://covidlive.com.au/report/active-cases

At the height of the outbreak towards the end of March, Australia was diagnosing several hundred new infections across the country every day. However, on June 10, the nation hit a significant milestone in its efforts to suppress the disease, with no cases of locally acquired infection detected anywhere in the country within the 24-hour reporting period. This is the first time that this has been seen since the outbreak arrived in Australia in January. While there were a handful of new cases found within the 24-hour period, they were all either linked to established clusters or in returning overseas travellers.

NSW also racked up a major milestone, logging 14 consecutive days without recording any instances of community transmission. A single case logged on Monday, June 8, that was believed to be locally acquired was later found to be linked to an existing cluster following a contact tracing investigation. NSW still leads the country for the state with the highest number of recorded cases, with a total of 3,117. However, more than 87 per cent of those who contracted the disease have now fully recovered, and there are currently no patients in intensive care due to the virus in NSW. 

https://www.timeout.com/sydney/news/australia-has-logged-24-hours-with-no-community-transmission-detected-for-the-first-time-061020

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Australia's first human trials of a potential COVID-19 vaccine have begun in Melbourne, with about 130 people involved in the program.

Clinical research organisation Nucleus Network will be in charge of the early stages of testing the vaccine NVX-CoV2373, before the trial expands to Brisbane within a week.

The participants are healthy people between 18 and 59 years old.

Infectious diseases physician and microbiologist Paul Griffin said the trial was "the first critical step" to creating a potential safe vaccine against COVID-19.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-26/coronavirus-vaccine-trial-begins-in-melbourne-brisbane/12286028

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Qatar Airways will offer 100,000 free return tickets to frontline healthcare professionals to thank them for their efforts in battling the coronavirus crisis.

The giveaway marks National Nurses Day, and registrations for the offer will run from today until Monday 18 May. Each healthcare professional will receive two complimentary economy class return tickets - one for them and one for a companion.

Each country will receive a daily allocation of tickets depending on its population size, and the release of tickets will be staggered over the coming seven days. The daily allocation will be released at 00:01 AM Doha time (07:01 AM AEST) throughout the campaign period.

Healthcare professionals - that is, doctors medical practitioners, nurses, paramedics, pharmacists, lab technicians and clinical researchers - who register and receive a promotion code must use that code to book flights before 26 November, with travel valid until 10 December 2020.

https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/qatar-airways-offers-100000-free-flights-052207012.html

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Australia’s road out of the coronavirus pandemic will be broken down into a three-stage process with the final stage due to be complete by July.

Restaurants and cafes will be among the first to reopen on the roadmap with social distancing measures in place, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said following a National Cabinet meeting on Friday.

“Step one will enable greater connection with friends and family,” he said.

Gatherings of up to ten people would also be permitted outdoors, and five visitors within homes.

The move will also see restrictions around weddings and funerals eased.

https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/health-wellbeing/australias-coronavirus-restrictions-eased-c-1025214.amp

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