The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said a vaccine for coronavirusis unlikely to be available for at least 12 months amid rising hopes that a cure could be developed by the end of the year. Teams of scientists and pharmaceutical groups across the world are racing to produce an effective ... Read More »
Coronaviruses have been causing problems for humanity for a long time. Several versions are known to trigger common colds and more recently two types have set off outbreaks of deadly illnesses: severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers). But their impact has been mild compared with ... Read More »
Are state responses to the virus shifting the balance of power between China and the west? Andrà tutto bene, the Italians have taught us to think, but in truth, will everything be better the day after? It may seem premature, in the midst of what Emmanuel Macron has described as ... Read More »
An Indonesian volcano which triggered a deadly tsunami 16 months ago has erupted again, spewing a column of ash up to 15km into the sky. Scientists said Anak Krakatau, a volcanic island between Java and Sumatra, was continuously erupting until Saturday morning, making it the longest eruption there since its devastating collapse in 2018. ... Read More »
An Oxford professor has claimed that a vaccine for Covid-19 could be ready by autumn. Sarah Gilbert is a professor of vaccinology at the University of Oxford and leads a team of researchers in developing a vaccine for the coronavirus, which has so far infected more than 1.7 million worldwide. The ... Read More »
Exclusive: multinationals write to G7 and G20 urging leaders to keep borders open to trade and avert global food crisis Food supplies across the world will be “massively disrupted” by the coronavirus, and unless governments act the number of people suffering chronic hunger could double, some of the world’s biggest ... Read More »
Even with the death toll still climbing, Europe’s home confinement measures to combat the coronavirus appear to be bearing some fruit. The initial flood of hospital admissions is starting to slow and infection rates in some countries are flattening. Some are beginning to hope that lockdowns could be eased soon. ... Read More »
It’s likely Covid-19 originated in bats, scientists say. But did it then jump to pangolins? In the public mind, the origin story of coronavirus seems well fixed: in late 2019 someone at the now world-famous Huanan seafood market in Wuhan was infected with a virus from an animal. The rest ... Read More »
A new study on mice offers hope for a vaccine against coronavirus, according to the researchers behind it. The latest research successfully protected mice against a lethal dose of Mers, a very close relative of the new coronavirus that causes Covid-19. Scientists suggest that the same delivery method could work ... Read More »
The early evidence leaves little doubt that Covid-19 poses a greater risk to men – but are the reasons biological or cultural? he coronavirus crisis seems to be placing everything under a harsh, unforgiving spotlight: economic inequality, the vulnerabilities of healthcare systems, the fragility of globalisation and the challenges of ... Read More »
Lebanese Ministry of Information