

This Week in Virology
Vincent Racaniello
TWiV is a weekly netcast about viruses - the kind that make you sick. Brought to you by four university professors and a science writer.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 3, 2022 • 48min
TWiV 959: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
In his weekly clinical update Dr. Griffin discusses effectiveness of influenza vaccination of pregnant women for prevention of maternal and early infant Influenza-associated hospitalizations in South Africa, a multivalent nucleoside-modified mRNA vaccine against all known influenza virus subtypes, single and 2-dose vaccinations with modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic induce durable B cell memory responses comparable to replicating smallpox vaccines, whether the risk of still and preterm birth is affected by the timing of symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy, medical masks versus N95 respirators for preventing COVID-19 among health care workers, alarming antibody evasion properties of rising SARS-CoV-2 BQ and XBB subvariants, real-world evidence of novel treatments for COVID-19 on mortality: a nationwide comparative cohort study of hospitalized patients in the 1st, 2nd, 3rdand 4th wave in the Netherlands, and effectiveness and safety of extended thromboprophylaxis in post-discharge patients with COVID-19. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Effectiveness of Influenza vaccination in pregnant women (OFID) Multivalent nucleoside-modified mRNA vaccine against Influenza subtypes (Science) Single and 2-dose vaccinations with modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic (JID) Is the risk of still and preterm birth affected by the timing of symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection? (AJOG) Medical masks versus N95 respirators for preventing COVID-19 among health care workers (ACP) Bebtelovimab fact sheet for providers (FDA) Alarming antibody evasion properties of rising SARS-CoV-2 BQ and XBB subvariants (bioRxiV) Paxlovid patient eligbiliity screening checklist (FDA) Real-world evidence of novel treatments for COVID-19 on mortality (OFID) Effectiveness and safety of extended thromboprophylaxis in post-discharge patients with COVID-19 (Thrombosis Research) Contribute to our MicrobeTV fundraiser at PWB Dr. Griffin's treatment guide (pdf) Letters read on TWiV 959 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

Nov 27, 2022 • 1h 49min
TWiV 958: Pass the RNA and have some venison pi
The TWiV team reveals a variant SARS-CoV-2 that emerged in deer with deer-to-human transmission, and hybrid virus particles produced by co-infection with influenza virus and respiratory syncytial virus particles. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Alan Dove, Kathy Spindler, and Brianne Barker Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support MicrobeTV with a Spike t-shirt (Vaccinated.us) with promo code MicrobeTV Testing and evaluation specialist (Harris County Public Health) Oveta Fuller tribute (YouTube) Divergent SARS-CoV-2 in deer (Nat Micro) Hybrid influenza virus and respiratory syncytial virus particles (Nat Micro) Letters read on TWiV 958 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Dickson – Jazz Project: Vocals Best female vocalists: Ella Fitzgerald/Billie Holiday, Betty Carter Best Male Vocalists: Mel Tormé/Joe Williams/Tony Bennett Brianne – ASV Curriculum Guidelines for Virology Courses Kathy – The Snow Cruiser Alan – Rescuing bats in Ukraine Vincent – Woodpeckers: The Hole Story PBS Listener Picks Florencia – World of Viruses Miguel – Foldscope Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

Nov 26, 2022 • 43min
TWiV 957: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
In his weekly clinical update Dr. Griffin discusses human monkeypox virus infection in women and non-binary individuals during the 2022 outbreaks, changes in population immunity against infection and severe disease from SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants in the United States, updates on COVID-19–related mortality, impact of community masking on COVID-19, effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines against hospitalization with Omicron sub-lineages BA.4 and BA.5 in England, cardiovascular outcomes after Tixagevimab and Cilgavimab use for pre-exposure prophylaxis against COVID-19, how Paxlovid is associated with decreased hospitalization rate among adults with COVID-19, inside the mind of an anti-paxxer, and angiotensin receptor blockers for the treatment of COVID-19. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Human monkeypox virus infection in women and non-binary individuals (The Lancet) Changes in population immunity against infection and severe disease from variants (Medrxiv) Updates on COVID-19 related mortality (CDC) Impact of community masking on COVID-19 (Science) Effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines against hospitalization (The Lancet) Cardiovascular outcomes after tixagevimab and cilgavimab use for pre-exposure prophylaxis (CID) Bebtelovimab fact sheet for providers (FDA) Paxlovid associated with decreased hospitalization among adults (CDC) Inside the mind of an Anti-Paxxer (The Atlantic) Paxlovid patient eligbiliity screening checklist (FDA) Angiotensin receptor blockers for the treatment of COVID-19 (BMJ) Long COVID treatment research study (Stanford) HHS long COVID study (pdf) Biden administration requests long COVID fu Contribute to our MicrobeTV fundraiser at PWB Dr. Griffin's treatment guide (pdf) Letters read on TWiV 957 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

Nov 20, 2022 • 1h 41min
TWiV 956: A domesticated viral envelope with Cedric Feschotte and John Anthony Frank
Cedric and John join TWiV to discuss their research showing that a human protein derived from an ancient retrovirus infection can protect against infection by other retroviruses. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Rich Condit, and Kathy Spindler Guest: Cedric Feschotte and John Anthony Frank Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support MicrobeTV with a Spike t-shirt (Vaccinated.us) with promo code MicrobeTV Cedric on TWiV 935 Antiviral retroviral protein (Science) Stealing genes, facing consequences (Science) Letters read on TWiV 956 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Kathy – Wastewater Dashboard Rich – Artemis I Mission; Artemis I launch; Artemis I Map Vincent – Pasta Grammar Listener Picks Rich – Watch a virus in the moments before it attacks Justin – Respiratory syncytial virus Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

Nov 19, 2022 • 47min
TWiV 955: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
In his weekly clinical update Dr. Griffin discusses the four things to know about RSV, the burden of respiratory syncytial virus in healthy term-born infants in Europe, the diagnostic accuracy of rapid diagnostic tests for Ebola virus disease, evaluating the accuracy of self-collected swabs for the diagnosis of monkeypox, tecovirimat is effective against human monkeypox virus in vitro at nanomolar concentrations, acute and postacute sequelae associated with SARS-CoV-2 reinfection, clinical course of SARS-CoV-2 infection and recovery in lung transplant recipients, effectiveness of a third BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy, maternal antibody response and transplacental transfer following SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination in pregnancy, impact of community masking on COVID-19, Lifting Universal Masking in Schools – Covid-19 Incidence among Students and Staff, systematic review of the clinical effectiveness of Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab for prophylaxis of COVID-19 in immunocompromised patients, comparative effectiveness of sotrovimab and molnupiravir for prevention of severe COVID-19 outcomes in patients in the community, early adoption of anti–SARS-CoV-2 pharmacotherapies among us veterans with mild to moderate COVID-19, evaluation of viral and symptom rebound differences between Paxlovid and untreated COVID-19 participants, monoclonal antibodies for treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy, twice daily oral zinc in the treatment of patients with COVID-19, cognitive deficits in long Covid-19, severe Neuro-COVID is associated with peripheral immune signatures, autoimmunity and neurodegeneration, and long-lasting symptoms after an acute COVID-19 infection and factors associated with their resolution. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Four things to know about RSV (Gates Foundation) The burden of RSV in healthy term-born infants in Europe (The Lancet) Diagnostic accuracy of rapid tests for Ebola (CMI) Accuracy of self-collected swabs for diagnosis of Monkeypox (CID) Tecovirimat is effective against human monkeypox virus in vitro (Nature) Acute and postacute sequelae associated with SARS-CoV-2 reinfection (NatureMedicine) SARS-CoV-2 infection and recovery in lung transplant recipients (Transplant Infectious Diseases) Effectiveness of third COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy (Nature Communications) Maternal antibody response and transplacental transfer following infection or vaccination (CID) Impact of community masking on COVID-19 (Science) Lifting universal masking in schools (NEJM) Bebtelovimab fact sheet for providers (FDA) Effectiveness of Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab for prophylaxis of COVID-19 (medRxiv) Effectiveness of Sotrovimab and Molnupiravir for prevention of severe COVID-19 outcomes (BMJ) Early adoption of Anti–SARS-CoV-2 pharmacotherapies among US veterans (JAMA) PAXLOVID patient eligibility screening checklist (FDA) Viral and symptom rebound differences between Paxlovid and untreated COVID-19 participants (medRxiv) Monoclonal antibodies for treatment of SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy (Annals of Internal Medicine) Remdesivir fact sheet for providers (Veklury) Twice daily oral zinc in the treatment of patients with COVID-19 (CID) Cognitive deficits in long COVID-19 (NEJM) Severe Neuro-COVID associated with peripheral immune signatures, autoimmunity and neurodegeneration (Nature Communications) Long-lasting symptoms after an acute COVID-19 Infection (JAMA) Contribute to our MicrobeTV fundraiser at PWB Dr. Griffin's treatment guide (pdf) Letters read on TWiV 955 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

Nov 13, 2022 • 1h 50min
TWiV 954: Speculating sarbecovirus spillovers with Michael Letko
Michael Letko joins TWiV to discuss his research on understanding cell receptors required for sarbecovirus entry, including an ACE2-dependent isolate from Russian bats that is resistant to vaccine-induced antibodies. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Rich Condit, Kathy Spindler, and Brianne Barker Guest: Michael Letko Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support MicrobeTV with a Spike t-shirt (Vaccinated.us) with promo code MicrobeTV Cell entry of SARS-CoV-2 and other sarbecoviruses (Nat Micro) ACE2-dependent sarbecovirus in Russian bats (PLoS Path) Letters read on TWiV 954 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Brianne – Sometimes This Octopus is So Mad it Just Wants to Throw Something or The Cosmic Bat Nebula Kathy – APODs Jupiter, Lunar Eclipse Blood Moon, Ice Giant Rich – Mirror-image T7 transcription of chirally inverted ribosomal and functional RNAs (Wiki: Mirror Life) Vincent – The 2022-2023 Respiratory Virus Season Hits Early and Hard: Part 1 Listener Pick Debby – Celebrate Bob McDonald's 30 years as host of Quirks & Quarks Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

Nov 12, 2022 • 55min
TWiV 953: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
In his weekly clinical update Dr. Griffin discusses high demand for Amoxicillin causing shortages amid child RSV surge, epidemiologic and clinical features of children and adolescents aged Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode High demand for Amoxicillin causing shortages amid RSV surge (Washington Post) Epidemiologic and clinical features of children & adolescents with monkeypox (CDC) Low risk of SARS-Cov2 transmission by fomites (IDSA) Nucleocapsid Antigenemia Is a marker of acute SARS-CoV-2 Infection (JID) Impact of community masking on COVID-19 (Science) Remdesivir fact sheet for providers (Veklury) Protection against Omicron from vaccination & previous infection in prison system (NEJM) Nirmatrelvir and the risk of post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (medRxiv) Bebtelovimab for high-risk outpatients with COVID-19 (OFID) Imprinted SARS-CoV-2 immunity induces convergent Omicron evolution (bioRxiv) PAXLOVID patient eligibility screening checklist (FDA) Can SARS-CoV-2 trigger new onset of autoimmune disease in adults? (Cell) Bebtelovimab fact sheet for providers (FDA) Modeling the effects of global vaccine sharing on the COVID-19 pandemic (Nature) Contribute to our MicrobeTV fundraiser at PWB Dr. Griffin's treatment guide (pdf) Letters read on TWiV 953 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

Nov 6, 2022 • 1h 45min
TWiV 952: Jake Scott put the ID in COVID-19
Infectious Disease physician Jake Scott joins TWiV to provide a west coast clinical perspective on the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic with respect to the impact of vaccines, antivirals, variants of concern and mortality. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, Rich Condit, and Kathy Spindler Guest: Jake Scott Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Support MicrobeTV with a Spike t-shirt (Vaccinated.us) with promo code MicrobeTV Omicron variant reproduction ex vivo (Nature) Clinical outcomes with Omicron (Nat Med) Low neutralizing antibodies induced by bivalent booster (NEJM) Antibody responses to bivalent booster (bioRxiV) Spike T cell responses not enhanced by bivalent booster (Sci Immunol) Pandemic end will not be televised (BMJ) Conflation of infection and disease (Twitter) Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Kathy – 10 moments for Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra Residency (Item 7) and Alan's pick from TWiV 931 The Kissing Bug by Daisy Hernandez Rich – Wilderness Safaris Photographic Competition 2022 Alan – Massachusetts Science Education Leadership Association, and the talk I gave to them last week Vincent – Andrea Camillieri and his protagonist Inspector Montalbano Listener Pick Frank – Economics for the Future: Beyond the Superorganism Debby – As routine vaccination rates fall, polio survivor hopes her story reverses urgent trend Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

Nov 5, 2022 • 50min
TWiV 951: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin
In his weekly clinical update Dr. Griffin discusses Influenza incidence and vaccine effectiveness during the southern hemisphere influenza season in Chile, Nirsevimab for prevention of RSV infection in healthy late-preterm and term infants, severe Monkeypox in hospitalized patients, reinfections with different SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants, impact of community masking on COVID-19 in Bangladesh, unadjuvanted intranasal spike vaccine elicits protective mucosal immunity against sarbecoviruses, antibody responses to Omicron BA.4/BA.5 bivalent mRNA vaccine booster shot, immunogenicity of bivalent mRNA vaccine boosters, long-term gastrointestinal sequelae following COVID-19, evaluation of an automated text message–based program to reduce use of acute health care resources after hospital discharge, and how in adults with COVID-19, melatonin was assessed for effects on inflammatory markers, clinical signs and symptoms, and mortality. Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Influenza incidence and vaccine effectiveness (CDC) Nirsevimab for prevention of RSV (NEJM) Severe Monkeypox in hospitalized patients (CDC) Reinfections with different SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants (CDC) Impact of community masking on COVID-19 (Science) Vaccine elicits protective immunity against sarbecoviruses (Science) Antibody responses to bivalent mRNA vaccine booster shot (Biorxiv) Immunogenicity of bivalent mRNA vaccine boosters (Biorxiv) Long-term gastrointestinal sequelae following COVID-19 (CGH) Remdesivir fact sheet for providers (Veklury) Bebtelovimab fact sheet for providers (FDA) Evaluation of an automated text message–based program (JAMA) Melatonin assessed for effects on inflammatory markers in COVID patients (Heliyon) PAXLOVID patient eligibility screening checklist (FDA) Contribute to our MicrobeTV fundraiser at PWB Dr. Griffin's treatment guide (pdf) Letters read on TWiV 951 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

Oct 30, 2022 • 43min
TWiV 950: Prion diseases with Richard Knight
From the European Society for Clinical Virology 2022 Conference in Manchester UK, Vincent speaks with Richard Knight about prion diseases and the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalitis that led to cases of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. Host: Vincent Racaniello Guest: Richard Knight Subscribe (free): Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode National CJD Research and Surveillance Unit Clinical diagnosis of human prion disease (Prog Mol Biol Trans Sci) Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (Handbook Clin Viral) Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (Adv Exp Med Biol) Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv


