This Week in Virology

Team TWiV explains how alphaviruses like Western equine encephalitis virus cross into the brain from capillaries by caveolin-mediated transcytosis, and reveal scientists' incentives and attitudes towards public communication. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Kathy Spindler, and Brianne Barker Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Viral brain entry by transcytosis across endothelial cells (mBio) Scientists attitudes towards public communication (PNAS) Letters read on TWiV 746 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Dickson – NASA ingenuity helicopter ride Brianne – Vaccine Efficacy Animation Kathy – Airglow over the Azores Vincent – Gisaid Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

Nadine Lamberski joins TWiV to discuss an outbreak of COVID-19 among gorillas at the San Diego Zoo, and the use of a spike protein-based vaccine to immunize the animals. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, Kathy Spindler, and Brianne Barker Guest: Nadine Lamberski Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Gorillas receive COVID-19 vaccine (Nat Geo) COVID-19 vaccine for great apes and mink (Zoetis) Letters read on TWiV 745 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Brianne – The Dream Vaccine Alan – Taking vaccines to Smith Island Kathy – Daily Overviews Subscribe Tulips Vincent – Nextstrain Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

In COVID-19 clinical update #58, Daniel Griffin provides the latest update on the J&J vaccine pause, healthcare worker deaths, children and COVID, physical inactivity associated with higher risk, using monoclonal antibodies for prophylaxis, and shows us how to properly wear a face mask. Hosts: Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Healthcare worker deaths (Guardian) Children and adolescent disease severity (JAMA) Physical inactivity and increased disease risk (BMJ) Expansion of Pfizer/BioNTech EUA (pdf) Thrombosis after ChAdOX1 vaccine (NEJM) Your guide to masks (CDC) Phase 3 mAb prevention trial (Regeneron) Letters read on TWiV 744 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

The TWiVsters explain how the shape of pleomorphic virus particles – spherical or filamentous – determines the probability of virus attachment and fusion, and resistance to selective pressure such as antibodies that block cell entry. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Rich Condit, and Amy Rosenfeld Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Pleomorphic virus particles and cell entry (Nat Micro) Letters read on TWiV 743 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Dickson – A tiny particle's wobble could upend the laws of physics Rich – COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2: Viruses, Vaccines & Variants Made Easy Amy – Vaccine Anthems Vincent – DarkNet Diaries Ep. 86 Listener Picks Steve – Cover Your Freakin' Face Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

TWiV reviews a drug screen for inhibitors of syncytium formation, the fusing of cells caused by SARS-CoV-2, which reveals that the process is regulated by a calcium-activated ion channel and scramblase that is inhibited by the anti-parasite drug Niclosamide. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, Rich Condit, and Brianne Barker Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode TMEM16 inhibitors block SARS-CoV-2 driven syncytium formation (Nature) Letters read on TWiV 742 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Brianne – COVID-19: a disaster five years in the making Alan – The Tyranny of Merit Rich – Racism Makes Me Question Everything. I Got the Vaccine Anyway Kathy – The Transcontinental Burrito Tunnel Vincent – Trudy Rey's YouTube Channel Listener Picks Jeff – Rebecca Lee Smith on Left Right and Center Ryan – Perfect Strangers (clip) Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

In COVID-19 clinical update #57, Daniel Griffin covers children and MIS-C, school opening plans, transmission event with masks, fomite transmission, diagnostic test performance, AZ vaccine and blood clots, and long COVID and the effect of vaccines. Hosts: Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Children with MIS-C (JAMA) Transmission with masks (Op For Inf Dis) Accuracy of diagnostic tests (J Clin Micro) Long COVID in hospitalized patients (BMJ) Neurological and psychiatric outcomes of COVID-19 (medRxiv) Letters read on TWiV 741 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

The Guardians of the TWiV-o-verse discuss the process of codon deoptimization for the production of experimental infectious attenuated viral vaccines, and how a respiratory syncytial virus with 619 base changes was rescued by genomes with very large internal deletions. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Rich Condit, Kathy Spindler, and Brianne Barker Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode NIDO 2021 Symposium ASV hosts free COVID-19 Vaccine Education Town Halls (register here) Research position in Spindler laboratory Attenuation of poliovirus by codon deoptimization (Science) Rescue of codon-deoptimized RSV by large deletions (PNAS) Letters read on TWiV 740 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Dickson – Let us now praise tiny ants Brianne – Small-school science Rich – Smallpox 'virus squads' and the mandatory vaccinations upheld by the Supreme Court Kathy – The Transcontinental Burrito Tunnel Vincent – Glass music by Robert Tiso Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

Arturo Casadevall joins TWiV to discuss the use of convalescent plasma to treat COVID-19, including a history of the process, how plasma is prepared and tested, why it is difficult to conduct randomized clinical trials, how this treatment has fared and his hopes for the future. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Alan Dove, Rich Condit, and Brianne Barker Guest: Arturo Casadevall Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Victory for Scientific Pragmatism (New Atlantis) Convalescent plasma levels and risk of COVID-19 death (NEJM) COVID-19 convalescent plasma safety indicators (JCI) COVID-19 convalescent plasma reduces mortality (medRxiv) Pfizer mRNA vaccine in 12-15 year olds (Pfizer) NIDO 2021 Symposium ASV hosts free COVID-19 Vaccine Education Town Halls (register here) Letters read on TWiV 739 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Brianne – The Ocean's Youngest Monsters Are Ready for Glamour Shots Alan – 7 Billion Humans Rich – 15 Fascinating Animal X-Rays From the Oregon Zoo Vincent – Respiratory pathogen trends Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv

In COVID-19 clinical update #56, Daniel Griffin note increasing hospitalization in children and young adults, Pfizer vaccine efficacy results in 12-15 year olds, rapid self administered nucleic acid and antigen tests, mRNA vaccine efficacy in real world conditions, and improvement of long COVID after vaccination. Hosts: Daniel Griffin and Vincent Racaniello Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Pfizer mRNA vaccine is 100% effective in 12-15 year olds (Pfizer) Cue at-home PCR test receives FDA EUA (Cue) DxTerity COVID-19 saliva nucleic acid at-home test (Amazon) T-Detect T cell test (T-Detect) GSK submits EUA for VIR-7831 (GSK) Letters read on TWiV 738 Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your questions for Dr. Griffin to daniel@microbe.tv

John, Monica, and Davida join TWiV to discuss development of a method to detect SARS-CoV-2 in raw sewage from all 14 of New York City's treatment plants, and its use to determine the presence of the genome throughout the pandemic and detection of genome mutations from variants of concern. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Dickson Despommier, Rich Condit, and Kathy Spindler Guest: John Dennehy, Davida Smyth, and Monica Trujillo Subscribe (free): iTunes, Google Podcasts, RSS, email Become a patron of TWiV! Links for this episode Protocol for detecting SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater (medRxiv) Mutations from VOC in NYC wastewater (medRxiv) WHO report on COVID-19 origins (pdf) Effectiveness of mRNA vaccines at preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection (MMWR) Prothrombic thrombocytopenic disorder after AZ vaccine (Res Square) NIDO 2021 Symposium 1:12:02 Postdoctoral position at Towson University 1:15:08 ASV hosts free COVID-19 Vaccine Education Town Halls (register here) Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks! Weekly Picks Dickson – 250,000 Dominoes Brianne – Using RT-PCR in COVID-19 Testing Rich – Beaded Lacewings Can Take Down Six Termites With A Single Fart Kathy – Tracking the COVID code Vincent – Administering vaccines to adults Intro music is by Ronald Jenkees Send your virology questions and comments to twiv@microbe.tv