Disease

COVID-19

Hopes that the coronavirus would be contained to China have vanished as the first case in sub-Saharan Africa was announced in Nigeria and stock markets took a pounding amid fears of a global recession.

China – The National Health Commission reported on Friday at least 44 new coronavirus deaths, bringing to 2,788 the number of fatalities nationwide. Coronavirus has killed more than 2,800 people and infected about 83,000 worldwide.

South Korea – South Korea reported 256 new coronavirus cases on Friday, bringing the total number of infected in the country to 2,022, the Korea Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention said..

Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia on Thursday suspended visas for visits to Islam’s holiest sites for the “umrah” pilgrimage, an unprecedented move triggered by coronavirus fears that raises questions over the annual hajj. The kingdom, which hosts millions of pilgrims every year in the cities of Mecca and Medina, also suspended visas for tourists from countries with reported infections as fears of a pandemic deepen.

AI Discovers New Antibiotic

Scientists at MIT say they have found one of the most powerful antibiotics ever discovered by using machine learning for the first time in such a quest.

The researchers say the new drug is able to wipe out a range of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria in a different way than existing treatments.

Found thanks to artificial intelligence and named after the HAL 9000 computer in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, the antibiotic compound halicin works by altering a bacteria’s electrochemical characteristics.

While tested successfully in mice, there is no word on when human trials of halicin will begin.

Ebola – DR Congo

From 19 to 25 February, no new confirmed cases of Ebola virus disease (EVD) were reported. This was the first time since the beginning of the response that no new confirmed cases were reported over a seven-day period.

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