Notices by Hilda Bastian (hildabast@mastodon.online)

Canada aced it 🇨🇦. Now it's our turn 🦘

If the polls are right, Australia understands the assignment. 🙏 🇦🇺

#AustraliaVotes

Major funding cuts to the vaccine pipeline announced in the US, but important advances for mucosal Covid vaccines globally:

- 10th mucosal vax reaches phase 2 (in Canada)
- Another human challenge trial as prep for mucosal trials started in Singapore
- Trial results, including one for intranasal vax in kids in China

And lots more in my latest next generation Covid vaccine update now online @PLOS

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/03/31/mucosal-covid-vaccine-trials-progress-us-rd-funding-cuts-nextgen-update-27/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19

A big news month for next generation Covid vaccines! Exciting news from Europe - - and roadblocks in the US.

- Kostaive self-amplifying mRNA authorized in Europe & a burning question answered! It generates more mRNA from a lower dose, but it is transient, too.

- France taking the lead for intranasal Covid vaccine?

- With all the roadblocks now in the US, what do prospects for nextgen vax look like there?

All this & more in my new @PLOS post:
https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/02/28/exciting-news-from-europe-and-roadblocks-in-the-us-nextgen-covid-vax-update-26/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19

Oh good. @sciencefeedback has a fact check on that measles has longterm benefits nonsense:

https://science.feedback.org/review/no-evidence-measles-prevents-cancer-heart-disease-can-lead-long-term-health-problems-instead/

In fact, it can cause longterm health problems eg hearing loss and neurological damage.

Hate that it has come to this, but it's time to consider PubMed vulnerable to enshittification. My latest post @PLOS discusses the lines we need to fight to hold – and alternatives we can rely on internationally:

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/02/14/what-if-we-cant-rely-on-pubmed/

#medlibs

Want some good news? Sure you do!

Check out my update on next generation Covid vaccines this month @PLOS

* Another intranasal Covid vax went into clinical trial in Europe - it's the 32nd mucosal vax in trials

* An oral Covid vax trial got the green light to start recruiting thousands across the US

* More preclinical research showing reduced transmission

* International funding for a pancoronavirus vax in Canada

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/01/31/another-intranasal-covid-vaccine-trial-more-good-news-update-25/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19

Some Good News, At Least, for the Start of the Year

Last year ended with some good news for Covid vaccination: The European Medicines Agency recommended authorization for its first next generation Covid vaccine. Authorization for 30 European countries should follow in January or February. And manufacturers plan to apply for approvals in the UK and US this year as well – and perhaps elsewhere, too. The vaccine is the self-amplifying mRNA vaccine developed by the US…

https://hildabastian.wordpress.com/2025/01/03/some-good-news-at-least-for-the-start-of-the-year/

Huge Covid vax milestone: The first next generation Covid vax has passed its European Medicines Agency review! 🎉 And an application to the US FDA is planned.

The Arcturus self-amplifying RNA vaccine is on track for EU authorization in 30 countries in the next few weeks: Happy New Year, Europeans!

All this & more in my latest monthly update @PLOS ... 1/2

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/12/31/authorization-milestone-for-first-nextgen-covid-vaccine-in-europe-and-more-news-update-24/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19

...A bonus in this ⬆️ post: I got to know a science fact-checking project that I can * highly * recommend!

Science Feedback is an international science project, based in France. They publish systematic, referenced fact checks in health, climate, and energy. In English & French. Heroic!

Sadly not on Mastodon, but you can subscribe to their newsletter. (& on BlueSky.)

https://science.feedback.org/

Ever wonder about the basis for fear-mongering & conspiracy theories about mRNA vaccine? Wish you had a place to go when someone cites "proof"?

I've got you covered! In my latest post @PLOS, I buckle up for the waves of anti-vax claims likely to come at us in 2025 :

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/12/28/getting-ready-for-more-mrna-vaccine-fear-mongering-a-compendium/

#Vaccines #Covid

It was a *bumper* month for next generation Covid vax development! 🎉

– New data from 7 clinical trials! Another vax outperformed the BNT/Pfizer vaccine, this time in people with suppressed immune systems

– A major milestone for Project NextGen

– News on regulators' plans for pancoronavirus vax applications

– Human challenge study group news

– Plus 12 reports of preclinical research

Post @PLOS https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/12/03/a-bumper-month-for-trial-results-of-nextgen-covid-vaccines-update-23/
#Covid #Covid19 #Vaccines

"Look at the world! See it aching! It’s got so many problems—I promise you, there’s one with your name on it."

Lovely piece from Adam Mastroianni on underrated ways to change the world:

https://www.experimental-history.com/p/underrated-ways-to-change-the-world

This is the graduating class of 1916, chemistry division, Tohoku Imperial University.

There, at the end of the 2nd row, is the first woman to achieve a bachelor of science in Japan.

Her name was 黒田チカ, Chika Kuroda (1884-1968) & she was the daughter of a samurai...1/6

#WomenInSTEM #tbt

Kicked my Twitter account to the kerb. Very satisfying. Can recommend.

Hope.

#Bloomscrolling

Spam comments on blogs have always veered odd. But holy moly, in the "AI" era it's gotten verbose and overblown....

"...The fun and euphoria were unexpected but welcomed. It enhanced my sensory intuition and sparked a newfound appreciation in place of music and art..."

Yeah, nah – not my posts! 🤣 🤣 🤣

This is Shyamala Gopalan Harris, Kamala Harris' scientist mother. 🥥

When her daughters spoke glowingly of her influence on them at the DNC, I was one of the 300,000 people who flocked to her Wikipedia page to find out more.

It left me curious about her life as a scientist & sent me down a rabbit hole. My new @PLOS post is what I learned:

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/08/29/some-context-of-what-came-before-shyamala-gopalan-harris-scientist-life/

#WomenInSTEM #tbt

Latest nextgen Covid vax update:

- Encouraging preclinical results for an intranasal pancoronavirus vaccine from the Uni of Houston;

- And then there were 30 ... mucosal vaxes reaching clinical trial - with some new clinical results;

- Preclinical results for an intranasal vax that held a high immune response for at least 15 months;

- News from Project NextGen, including 1st of their trials beginning recruitment;

& more at @PLOS

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/07/31/more-signs-of-broad-protection-from-next-generation-covid-vaccines-update-19/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19

There's been a mini-surge of new clinical trials for next generation Covid vax:

- an intranasal vaccine from the NIAID going into phase 1;

- another intranasal vaccine got a US Project NextGen-funded big phase 2 trial - & so did an encouraging nextgen vax for people with immunosuppression;

- another vax designed to improve protection for people with immunosuppression is in phase 1 in Australia.

All this & more in my new update post @PLOS

https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/06/30/a-mini-surge-of-clinical-trials-and-advances-for-people-with-immunosuppression-nextgen-covid-vax-update-18/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19

Trial results for longer-lasting Covid vaccines & more news - Next Generation Update 17.

3 sets of trial results: 1 is the first full report of a pancoronavirus vaccine, and it did pretty well, giving developers lots to go on for this ambitious type of vaccine.

18 new preclinical study reports - including another 2 showing intranasal vaccination reduced transmission among animals sharing the same air.

New @PLOS
https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2024/05/31/trial-results-for-longer-lasting-covid-vaccines-and-more-next-generation-update-17/

#Vaccines #Covid #Covid19