Member Info for Blownitalready

Abstract
Having varied approaches to the design and manufacture of vaccines is critical in being able to respond to worldwide needs and to newly emerging pathogens. Virus-like particle (VLP) vaccines form the basis of two of the most successful licensed vaccines (against hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human papillomavirus). They are produced by recombinant expression of viral structural proteins, which self-assemble into immunogenic nanoparticles. VLPs can also be modified to present unrelated antigens, and here we describe a universal bolt-on vaccine platform (termed VelcroVax) where the capturing VLP and the target antigen (hapten) are produced separately. We utilise a modified HBV core (HBcAg) VLP, with surface expression of a high-affinity binding sequence (Affimer) directed against a SUMO tag and use this to capture SUMO-tagged gp1 glycoprotein from the arenavirus, Junin virus (JUNV). Using this model system, we have solved high-resolution structures of VelcroVax VLPs, and shown that the VelcroVax-JUNV gp1 complex induces superior humoral immune responses compared to the non-complexed viral protein. We propose that this system could be modified to present a range of haptens and therefore form the foundation of future rapid-response vaccination strategies.

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.04.22.489148v1

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10570485/Free-anti-viral-pills-tests-producing-ONE-BILLION-shots-year-Bidens-new-Covid-19-plan.html

One in ten people may still be infectious for Covid after ten days, study finds

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10399167/One-ten-people-infectious-Covid-ten-days-study-finds.html

The whole world (apart from China) need lateral flow Tests....when we finally get the needed authorisation they will sell all they can make.
That's alot of people !

Sound familiar ???

Scott Morrison has defended the government's supply of Covid-19 rapid antigen tests, saying the whole world has been under pressure from the Omicron variant and scrapping for test supplies.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10373625/Scott-Morrison-defends-nationwide-shortage-rapid-antigen-tests-amid-Omicron-chaos.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10373207/Therapeutic-Goods-Administration-approves-18-rapid-antigen-tests-sold-out.html

SAGE member John Edmunds, a modeller at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: 'This change makes a lot of sense.

'When the prevalence is high — and it is incredibly high at the moment — almost everyone who tests positive with a lateral flow test will be a true positive.

'There is really no need to confirm this with a PCR, a step that not only wastes time but costs a lot of money and uses up laboratory resources that could be better used elsewhere. There are down sides to this change.

'We would have slightly less information on the relative prevalence of the different variants circulating in the community, as PCR swabs undergo genotyping and sequencing, and the daily number of confirmed cases may need more careful interpretation.

'Overall, though, I think that these downsides are worth it.'

Sir David Spiegelhalter, chair of the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication at the University of Cambridge, said: 'This seems a sensible move.

'We argued back in October that it seemed fairly pointless to do a confirmatory PCR after a positive lateral flow test.

'This is even more true now: with current infection rates, a positive LFD followed by a negative PCR would still mean it was very likely that you were carrying the virus.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10371411/Asymptomatic-people-England-wont-need-confirmatory-PCR-January-11-health-chiefs-confirm.html

Mustang74 - USA don't think it's over. ..

Biden signs $137 million deal with German pharmaceutical company for COVID test strip factory that will take THREE YEARS to build and will start producing 83.3 million tests a month in late 2024 at the earliest

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10355941/Biden-signs-137M-deal-COVID-test-factory-start-producing-83-3M-tests-month-late-2024.html

https://avacta.com/update-on-uk-availability-of-affidx-sars-cov-2-lateral-flow-rapid-antigen-test-following-implementation-of-ctda-regulations/

Muck165 - this is from RNS in November.(suspended further sales)

1 November 2021, the UK Health Security Agency’s Medical Devices (Coronavirus Test Device Approvals) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 (“CTDA regulations”) have come into force. Consistent with these new regulations the Company has suspended, as of 1 November 2021, further sales of its AffiDX® SARS-CoV-2 Lateral Flow Rapid Antigen Test in the UK until the ongoing desktop evaluation of the test has been successfully completed by the Agency and the test subsequently is put on the CTDA register for approved products.

Wife picked up a box of tests today as she is NHS staff....Healgen (Chinese )

Lateral flow tests are set to be in short supply for another two weeks as officials grapple with 'huge demand', Sajid Javid has admitted

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10356341/Sajid-Javid-warns-kits-rationed-contractors-spotted-outside-NANDOS-handing-boxes.html

In a letter to MPs, he said: "In light of the huge demand for LFDs seen over the last three weeks, we expect to need to constrain the system at certain points over the next two weeks to manage supply over the course of each day, with new tranches of supply released regularly throughout each day."

He went on to promise that capacity would be ramped up in the New Year, with the government buying millions more lateral flow tests, bringing in new products and accelerating deployment to the public.

"We are also doubling our total delivery capacity with Royal Mail to 900,000 test packs and PCR tests a day. We are tripling the supply of LFDs in January and February from our pre-Omicron plan of 100 million to 300 million per month," he added.

https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-great-concern-amid-shortage-of-coronavirus-tests-before-new-years-eve-parties-as-system-may-need-to-be-constrained-further-12506244

https://avacta.com/update-on-uk-availability-of-affidx-sars-cov-2-lateral-flow-rapid-antigen-test-following-implementation-of-ctda-regulations/

It's mind blowing that the so called expert's are only just coming to the conclusion that LFTs are the way to keeping the world's health and economy moving forward.

Sir John Bell, an immunologist who has advised the Government on Covid, said Britain could go even further and replicate the US by relying on lateral flow tests.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10349551/UK-faces-calls-slash-Covid-isolation-just-FIVE-days.html

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1540163/Covid-live-updates-UK-omicron-cases-vaccine-booster-lockdown-restrictions-christmas-latest

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10338703/Bidens-promise-500-million-free-COVID-test-come-late-help-curb-Omicron-spread.html