Notices by Eric Topol (erictopol@mstdn.social), page 3

High vaccine protection against moderate and severe Covid in children and teens throughout the pandemic https://acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M23-1754?utm_source=cmpnr&utm_campaign=lfa_240109_1&utm_content=1&cmp=1&utm_medium=email

And lower risk of cardiac complications among the vaccinated group during Omicron periods

https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2315857121
More smoking gun evidence for the role of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in multiple sclerosis. Elevated EBV-specific lymphocytes in cerebrospinal fluid

The JN.1 variant is completing its takeover in the United States, pegged at 62% of new cases in today's
CDC update (which is about 2 weeks behind actual d/t sequencing lag). It's also globally dominant.

A new Ground Truths on the state of the pandemic

https://erictopol.substack.com/p/sotp-state-of-the-pandemic

The impact of Long Covid on healthcare resources, utilization, and costs among ~53,000 diagnosed individuals cf ~265,000 matched controls https://medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.12.21.23300305v1

Shedding of SARS-Co-V2 and infecting others is inversely related to the level of spike-specific secretory-IgA antibodies and how quickly they rise, emphasizing why mucosal immunity/nasal vaccines are essential to block spread
https://pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2314808120

The risk of getting Covid as assessed from 7 million contacts using the NHS smartphone app https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-04063-6

Evidence for the high level of protection of the XBB.1.5 ("updated") Covid vaccine vs current circulating variants from the Netherlands in advanced age groups

—71% protection vs hospitalization

—73% protection vs ICU admission

https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.12.12.23299855v1

A single-dose Covid nasal vaccine spray vaccine provided protection vs symptomatic Omicron infections
Among ~1,400 healthcare workers without prior Covid.
Not randomized. Best effectiveness data shown in 2 graphs below
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/ebiom/article/PIIS2352-3964(23)00444-9/fulltext

T-cell engineering therapy (CAR-T) may have cured 15 people with 3 different autoimmune diseases (Lupus, SS, IIM).

In drug-free remission, ~2 years after treatment

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-03968-6

While this issue has been somewhat controversial, the present study is important for showing that after infection, vaccination induces spike-specific CD8+ and CD4+ T cells

(Translation: get boosted, don't rely on prior Covid)

One of the most enthralling interviews I've ever done. Geoffrey Hinton, the Godfather of A.I., w/his views on use in healthcare, how LLMs understand & exhibit empathy, and concerns about safety going forward. w/ transcript + relevant external links

https://erictopol.substack.com/p/geoffrey-hinton-large-language-models

Vaccination after Covid does not lead to T cell exhaustion—it invigorates T cell functionality

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciimmunol.adh0687

What happens in Austria and the Netherlands doesn't stay in Austria and the Netherlands.

Unprecedented rise in wastewater SARS-CoV-2 levels Here's the rundown https://erictopol.substack.com/p/from-a-detour-to-global-dominance

Vaccination after Covid infection leads to substantial expansion of CD8+ T cells

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41590-023-01692-x

Implications of the rise of the JN.1 variant to global dominance
In the new edition of Ground Truths
https://erictopol.substack.com/p/from-a-detour-to-global-dominance

"These results robustly demonstrate pronounced cognitive slowing in people with PCC [#LongCovid] which distinguishes them from age-matched healthy individuals who previously had symptomatic COVID-19 but did not manifest Long Covid." https://medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.12.03.23299331v1

US Covid hospitalizations are on the rise, now >20,000 new admits/week, and this wave is just getting started as the JN.1 variant becomes dominant and wastewater levels surging in the Midwest with other regions to follow.
The booster protects vs JN.1!

Great to see the major upgrade in CDC wastewater dashboard tracking of SARS-CoV-2 by region, state, variants, and time https://cdc.gov/nwss/rv/COVID19-nationaltrend.html

Some good news, folks, on the booster (XBB.1.5). It induces robust levels of neutralizing antibodies vs JN.1
https://biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.11.26.568730v1
All the more reason to get it if you haven't already. JN.1 will likely become dominant here by the holidays