Plan will accelerate a new approach to coronavirus vaccines research and development, to protect against COVID-19 variants and future pandemic threats from new coronaviruses

Scientists may have solved the question of why Ashkenazi Jews are significantly more susceptible to a rare genetic disorder known as Gaucher disease – and the answer may help settle the debate about whether they are less susceptible to tuberculosis (TB).

COVID-19 vaccinations that combine two or more distinct variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus could offer protection against both current and future ‘variants of concern’, say scientists at the University of Cambridge and Medical University of Innsbruck.

A drug used to reduce the risk of blood clots does not help patients recovering from moderate and severe COVID-19, despite this approach being offered to patients, a UK-wide trial, led by Addenbrooke’s Hospital and the University of Cambridge has found.

Cambridge scientists have used synthetic biology to create artificial enzymes programmed to target the genetic code of SARS-CoV-2 and destroy the virus, an approach that could be used to develop a new generation of antiviral drugs.

Cambridge is among 12 institutions across the UK that will be working together to tackle the monkeypox outbreak, developing better diagnostic tests, identifying potential therapies and studying vaccine effectiveness and the virus’ spread.

Referrals to Cambridge’s long COVID clinic fell dramatically in the period August 2021 to June 2022, which researchers say is likely due to the successful rollout of the vaccine.