9 ms·

Perhaps some good news from a paper out of Japan: https://twitter.com/SystemsVirology/status/1474759694971727872?s=20 https://twitter.com/SystemsVirology/status

Perhaps some good news from a paper out of Japan: https://twitter.com/SystemsVirology/status/1474759694971727872?s=20 https://twitter.com/SystemsVirology/status/14747596949717278... "The 6th preprint from G2P-Japan - #Omicron is less infectious and pathogenic than #Delta and even an early pandemic SARS-CoV-2 in infected hamster model." Note: less infectious here means intra-cell, it's still more transmissible than Delta. Another thread summarizing what this means: https://twitter.com/sailorrooscout/status/1475097966939721729 https://twitter.com/sailorrooscout/status/147509796693972172...

nradov 5y ago
It's interesting that Japan has had far fewer cases than comparable countries. The difference can't be explained by infection control measures; there seems to be some other factor. So it's not clear how well data from Japan generalizes to the rest of the world. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/12/22/japan-covid-omicron-falling-cases/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/12/22/japan-covid-...
- astonex 5y ago
  As far as I've read, they undertest a lot in Japan. It also probably helps that like other asian countries they wear masks all the time, everywhere and without complaint. Japan also currently doesn't let anyone in to the country.
  - chrischen 5y ago
    Masks and general do-care care attitude with regards to personal air space and sanitary space.
  - Barrin92 5y ago
    Having spent time in several East-Asian countries how masks during a pandemic became some political hot topic in some places still confuses the hell out of me.
    - colechristensen 5y ago
      Japan is a very conformity based society which has plenty of its own problems, just not this one. Countries often have a broad common ethos which are quite variable around the world and each has its strengths and weaknesses. Americans quite like splitting into factions, telling the other factions what the moral imperatives of the day are, and rebelling against what other factions tell them to do. It is a part of a somewhat broken sense of anti authoritarian bent which doesn’t recognize that authoritarian actions by your own group are equally problematic. Just a signal that once quite good ideology is degrading into something a bit strange, mostly just because of how information is distributed and education done.
      - labster 5y ago
        The problem in America is that the other side really doesn’t believe in American values, but instead wants to take away our constitutional freedoms. They preach a hypocritical sense of morality while inflicting violence on those who cannot defend themselves. They use gerrymandering and political tricks to hold on to power, even when most people hate what they’re doing. Because of their incompetence, we’ve become a laughingstock on the world stage. And their response to the coronavirus could not be more misguided or dangerous. And almost all Americans agree with this, because I didn’t actually name a political party. If there’s one thing that brings Americans together, it’s knowing that the other half is pure evil.
        SamoyedFurFluff 5y ago
        I would disagree that there is a side that doesn’t believe in American values. American values are instead being interpreted in disagreeing ways, and are being applied to different circumstances. (For example, the sovereign citizen movement clearly at least attempts to take on aspects of the American constitution, and interprets them very differently to the court system.)
        fivea 5y ago
        > I would disagree that there is a side that doesn’t believe in American values. As an outsider, one of the US's core values is democracy and the democratic process. Given the current push to undermine it, and the recent coup attempt intended to overthrow a democratically elected representative to install an authoritarian despot, and given the current level of support given to this dictatorial push, I have to say that from an outsider's perspective one side of America's political establishment clearly does not believe in American values.
  - forgotmyoldname 5y ago
    Japan under-tested a lot pre-Olympics in a desperate attempt to salvage the event. After that point they had no more reason to hide the data. Tests that have been carried out since show very low positive rates, so there likely aren't too many hidden, untested cases out there.
  - nradov 5y ago
    That is incorrect. Japanese people don't wear masks all the time everywhere. Please stop spreading misinformation.
    - fivea 5y ago
      > That is incorrect. Japanese people don't wear masks all the time everywhere. Please stop spreading misinformation. Can you please point out precisely which OP's point you feel classifies as "misinformation"? https://m.dw.com/en/how-japans-mask-culture-may-have-saved-lives-during-coronavirus/a-55321518 https://m.dw.com/en/how-japans-mask-culture-may-have-saved-l...
- wsc981 5y ago
  - gundmc 5y ago
    > Although multiple antiviral and host target activities have been reported for ivermectin in SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, it is still unclear if any of these activities will play a role in the prevention and treatment of the disease. The controlled clinical trials that are underway will reveal if these activities will translate into clinical efficacy.
    - wsc981 5y ago
      Clinical trials for ivermectin have been stopped at least 2 times now due to weird reasons. First one in Australia was stopped due to apparently being too few COVID infected people. In the last couple of weeks the Oxford trial was stopped because apparently there was a supply problem with ivermectin, according to Merck.
  - ck2 5y ago
    Fluvoxamine is the new off-label thing, combo sigma-1 and "ASM Functional inhibitor" https://c19fluvoxamine.com/ https://c19fluvoxamine.com/ But this time the science is a bit more solid because it works similar to the pfizer antiviral pill. The problem is SSRIs are not something to be taken casually. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.17.21268008 https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.17.21268008 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2786140 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle... https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-021-01309-5 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-021-01309-5
    - spurgu 5y ago
      A Covid treatment with happiness as a side effect? Sign me up! ;) Is there a problem with taking SSRI's for 10 days though?
      - ck2 5y ago
- washadjeffmad 5y ago
  There appears to be a genetic component in certain populations. https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Genetic-factor-may-soften-COVID-blow-for-Japanese-study https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Genetic-factor... Also, underreporting and asymptomatic rates are much higher than initially assumed.
bamboozled 5y ago
Meanwhile Japan it’s hard to get tested and they now have community transmission happening in major cities with unknown origin. Given the Japanese governments propensity to save face, they’d never admit it if they did have a problem. I’d be skeptical.
gentleman11 5y ago
Not to be pedantic, it there is a difference between a paper and a Twitter thread

nradov 5y ago

It's interesting that Japan has had far fewer cases than comparable countries. The difference can't be explained by infection control measures; there seems to be some other factor. So it's not clear how well data from Japan generalizes to the rest of the world. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/12/22/japan-covid-omicron-falling-cases/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/12/22/japan-covid-...

astonex 5y ago
As far as I've read, they undertest a lot in Japan. It also probably helps that like other asian countries they wear masks all the time, everywhere and without complaint. Japan also currently doesn't let anyone in to the country.
- chrischen 5y ago
  Masks and general do-care care attitude with regards to personal air space and sanitary space.
- Barrin92 5y ago
  Having spent time in several East-Asian countries how masks during a pandemic became some political hot topic in some places still confuses the hell out of me.
  - colechristensen 5y ago
    Japan is a very conformity based society which has plenty of its own problems, just not this one. Countries often have a broad common ethos which are quite variable around the world and each has its strengths and weaknesses. Americans quite like splitting into factions, telling the other factions what the moral imperatives of the day are, and rebelling against what other factions tell them to do. It is a part of a somewhat broken sense of anti authoritarian bent which doesn’t recognize that authoritarian actions by your own group are equally problematic. Just a signal that once quite good ideology is degrading into something a bit strange, mostly just because of how information is distributed and education done.
    - labster 5y ago
      The problem in America is that the other side really doesn’t believe in American values, but instead wants to take away our constitutional freedoms. They preach a hypocritical sense of morality while inflicting violence on those who cannot defend themselves. They use gerrymandering and political tricks to hold on to power, even when most people hate what they’re doing. Because of their incompetence, we’ve become a laughingstock on the world stage. And their response to the coronavirus could not be more misguided or dangerous. And almost all Americans agree with this, because I didn’t actually name a political party. If there’s one thing that brings Americans together, it’s knowing that the other half is pure evil.
      - SamoyedFurFluff 5y ago
        I would disagree that there is a side that doesn’t believe in American values. American values are instead being interpreted in disagreeing ways, and are being applied to different circumstances. (For example, the sovereign citizen movement clearly at least attempts to take on aspects of the American constitution, and interprets them very differently to the court system.)
        fivea 5y ago
        > I would disagree that there is a side that doesn’t believe in American values. As an outsider, one of the US's core values is democracy and the democratic process. Given the current push to undermine it, and the recent coup attempt intended to overthrow a democratically elected representative to install an authoritarian despot, and given the current level of support given to this dictatorial push, I have to say that from an outsider's perspective one side of America's political establishment clearly does not believe in American values.
- forgotmyoldname 5y ago
  Japan under-tested a lot pre-Olympics in a desperate attempt to salvage the event. After that point they had no more reason to hide the data. Tests that have been carried out since show very low positive rates, so there likely aren't too many hidden, untested cases out there.
- nradov 5y ago
  That is incorrect. Japanese people don't wear masks all the time everywhere. Please stop spreading misinformation.
  - fivea 5y ago
    > That is incorrect. Japanese people don't wear masks all the time everywhere. Please stop spreading misinformation. Can you please point out precisely which OP's point you feel classifies as "misinformation"? https://m.dw.com/en/how-japans-mask-culture-may-have-saved-lives-during-coronavirus/a-55321518 https://m.dw.com/en/how-japans-mask-culture-may-have-saved-l...
wsc981 5y ago
- gundmc 5y ago
  > Although multiple antiviral and host target activities have been reported for ivermectin in SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, it is still unclear if any of these activities will play a role in the prevention and treatment of the disease. The controlled clinical trials that are underway will reveal if these activities will translate into clinical efficacy.
  - wsc981 5y ago
    Clinical trials for ivermectin have been stopped at least 2 times now due to weird reasons. First one in Australia was stopped due to apparently being too few COVID infected people. In the last couple of weeks the Oxford trial was stopped because apparently there was a supply problem with ivermectin, according to Merck.
- ck2 5y ago
  Fluvoxamine is the new off-label thing, combo sigma-1 and "ASM Functional inhibitor" https://c19fluvoxamine.com/ https://c19fluvoxamine.com/ But this time the science is a bit more solid because it works similar to the pfizer antiviral pill. The problem is SSRIs are not something to be taken casually. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.17.21268008 https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.17.21268008 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2786140 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle... https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-021-01309-5 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-021-01309-5
  - spurgu 5y ago
    A Covid treatment with happiness as a side effect? Sign me up! ;) Is there a problem with taking SSRI's for 10 days though?
    - ck2 5y ago
washadjeffmad 5y ago
There appears to be a genetic component in certain populations. https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Genetic-factor-may-soften-COVID-blow-for-Japanese-study https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Genetic-factor... Also, underreporting and asymptomatic rates are much higher than initially assumed.

bamboozled 5y ago

Meanwhile Japan it’s hard to get tested and they now have community transmission happening in major cities with unknown origin. Given the Japanese governments propensity to save face, they’d never admit it if they did have a problem. I’d be skeptical.

gentleman11 5y ago

Not to be pedantic, it there is a difference between a paper and a Twitter thread