Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

UK starts new trial to examine if people get reinfected with coronavirus

UK starts new trial to examine if people get reinfected with coronavirus

BRITISH scientists on Monday (19) launched a trial which will deliberately expose participants who have already had Covid-19 to the coronavirus again to examine immune responses and see if people get reinfected.

In February, Britain became the first country in the world to give the go-ahead for so-called "challenge trials" in humans, in which volunteers are deliberately exposed to Covid-19 to advance research into the disease caused by the coronavirus.


The study launched on Monday differs from the one announced in February as it seeks to reinfect people who have previously had Covid-19 in an effort to deepen understanding about immunity, rather than infecting people for the first time.

"The information from this work will allow us to design better vaccines and treatments, and also to understand if people are protected after having COVID, and for how long," said Helen McShane, a University of Oxford vaccinologist and chief investigator on the study.

She added that the work would help understanding of what immune responses protect against reinfection.

Scientists have used human challenge trials for decades to learn more about diseases such as malaria, flu, typhoid and cholera, and to develop treatments and vaccines against them.

The first stage of the trial will seek to establish the lowest dose of the coronavirus needed in order for it to start replicating in about 50 per cent of participants, while producing few to no symptoms. A second phase, starting in the summer, will infect different volunteers with that standard dose.

In phase one, up to 64 healthy participants, aged 18-30, who were infected with coronavirus at least three months ago will be reinfected with the original strain of SARS-CoV-2.

They will then quarantine for at least 17 days and be monitored, and anyone who develops symptoms will be given Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment.

More For You

​Dilemmas of dating in a digital world

We are living faster than ever before

AMG

​Dilemmas of dating in a digital world

Shiveena Haque

Finding romance today feels like trying to align stars in a night sky that refuses to stay still

When was the last time you stumbled into a conversation that made your heart skip? Or exchanged a sweet beginning to a love story - organically, without the buffer of screens, swipes, or curated profiles? In 2025, those moments feel rarer, swallowed up by the quickening pace of life.

Keep ReadingShow less
sugary drinks and ice cream

Researchers from the UK and US analysed data from American households between 2004 and 2019

iStock

Global warming may drive higher consumption of sugary drinks and ice cream, study warns

Highlights:

  • Hotter days linked to greater intake of sugary drinks and frozen desserts
  • Lower-income households most affected, research finds
  • Climate change could worsen health risks linked to sugar consumption
  • Study based on 15 years of US household food purchasing data

Sugary consumption rising with heat

People are more likely to consume sugary drinks and ice cream on warmer days, particularly in lower-income households, according to new research. The study warns that climate change could intensify this trend, adding to health risks as global temperatures continue to rise.

Sugar consumption is a major contributor to obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, and has surged worldwide in recent decades. The findings, published in Nature Climate Change, suggest that rising heat could be nudging more people towards high-sugar products such as soda, juice and ice cream.

Keep ReadingShow less
Camellia Panjabi's cookbook elevates
vegetables from sides to stars

Camellia Panjabi (Photo: Ursula Sierek)

Camellia Panjabi's cookbook elevates vegetables from sides to stars

RESTAURATEUR and writer Camellia Panjabi puts the spotlight on vegetables in her new book, as she said they were never given the status of a “hero” in the way fish, chicken or prawns are.

Panjabi’s Vegetables: The Indian Way features more than 120 recipes, with notes on nutrition, Ayurvedic insights and cooking methods that support digestion.

Keep ReadingShow less
Spotting the signs of dementia

Priya Mulji with her father

Spotting the signs of dementia

How noticing the changes in my father taught me the importance of early action, patience, and love

I don’t understand people who don’t talk or see their parents often. Unless they have done something to ruin your lives or you had a traumatic childhood, there is no reason you shouldn’t be checking in with them at least every few days if you don’t live with them.

Keep ReadingShow less
HH Guruji performed the Dhwaja Ritual at Ambaji Temple

HH Guruji performed the Dhwaja Ritual at Ambaji Temple

Mahesh Liloriya

The holy town of Ambaji witnessed a spiritually significant day on Sunday as His Holiness Siri Rajrajeshwar Guruji, head of the International Siddhashram Shakti Centre, London, performed the Dhwaja ritual at the historic Ambaji Temple in Gujarat, one of the most revered Shakti Peeths of India.

Keep ReadingShow less