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Trump is taking two experimental drugs for COVID-19 – what are they?
Donald Trump has been given two experimental drugs after testing positive for COVID-19.
White House doctor Sean Conley said the president was given a dose of an antibody drug being developed by Regeneron on Friday before he was taken to a military hospital where he has started remdesivir therapy.
The president appeared upbeat as he landed at the Walter Reed Military Hospital in Maryland on Friday evening despite developing fatigue symptoms and having trouble breathing, according to an adviser.
Sky News looks at what remdesivir and Regeneron’s drug do, and how effective they have been in trials.
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What is remdesivir?
A drug that once offered hope in the treatment of Ebola, remdesivir is an antiviral medicine that has not been approved anywhere in the world for any use.
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It is injected into the vein in the hope it will prevent SARS CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) from multiplying in the body, with some patients recovering faster after using it.
Gilead Sciences Inc began research on remdesivir in 2009 as part of studies into hepatitis C and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common and highly contagious respiratory virus that most children get before they turn two.
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After scientists in China determined the new pneumonia-like illness was caused by a coronavirus, Gilead provided remdesivir to China to test the drug against the virus.
Remdesivir is thought to interfere with the mechanism that certain viruses use to make copies of themselves, but scientists are still determining how that occurs.
Several clinical trials and laboratory studies have taken place since January, with some promising signs.
However, a report published in The Lancet medical journal on 3 October looking at several studies has found remdesivir “did not appear to affect rates of SARS CoV-2 viral load decline and mortality”.
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It said using remdesivir early “substantially decreased” viral loads but this effect was “completely lost” when the drug was given just eight hours after infection.
The report concluded that remdesivir “might require initiation before the peak viral replication” but that is “not feasible” in humans as they display symptoms after the virus multiplies.
It added that there is no clinical reason why remdesivir could not be administered before someone shows symptoms.
What is the experimental Regeneron treatment?
Drug maker Regeneron provided a dose of its experimental antibody treatment to the president on Friday before the decision to take him to Walter Reed was made.
Still in large-scale clinical trials, the new antiviral antibody “cocktail” works by binding to a protein on the surface of the virus.
This is meant to stop the virus from attaching to cells and replicating, while allowing the immune system to attack the virus.
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Mr Trump was given a single 8g dose, which should “last for quite a long time”, Regeneron chief executive Dr Leonard Schleifer told CNN.
Last weekend, the drug started being used in “about three hospitals in the north” of England as part of Oxford University’s national recovery trial, Professor Peter Horby told the BBC.
The specialist in emerging infectious diseases at the University of Oxford said the drug is “very promising” and “very potent”.
This class of drugs is “pretty safe and well understood” so is something he has “confidence in”, he said.
He added that about four or five hundred patients have been given it so far and there have been “no worrying safety signals”, with the plan to roll it out to another 30 to 40 UK hospitals next week.
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Prof Horby said a single dose of the treatment provides “prolonged protection” for “a month to six weeks”.
Dr Jeremy Faust, an emergency doctor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, said he would not give it to his patients because he could not say what the benefit is, or the risks.
He added that giving an unproven treatment to the president “sends a message that they’re scrambling”.
Facebook membership of anti-mask groups shoots up nearly 2000% since August
Membership to Facebook groups promoting anti-mask arguments has risen by nearly 2,000 per cent since August, new analysis has revealed.Separate analysis of data from the media tool Crowdtangle by The New York Times found that from the start of August through to 27 September, the total number of members to such groups rose from under 2,000 to over 43,000.Many of the groups are specific to individual US states or towns, while others seek to spread misinformation on a broader scale. Names for these pages include “Christians against face masks”, “Unmask America”, “Free Face Society”, and “Anti-Mask Lives Matter”. All of them appear to either push the idea that face masks are not effective at stopping the spread of Covid-19, or that coronavirus itself is a hoax. They also seem to be particularly popular among anti-vaccination and 5G conspiracy theorists.Read moreThey also share a common trait of claiming that face masks infringe on their freedom and civil liberty.“No government or tyrant should control our faces,” one group’s Facebook page states.Another states: “A mask is not a life saver, it is a sign of compliance and subservience… Facts matter and the facts prove masks don’t work.”Scientific facts actually support the effectiveness of masks in reducing the spread of respiratory viruses, with health experts advising that face masks can help prevent transmission of Covid-19 in public settings.
Nasa captures image of exploding supernova five billion times brighter than the sun
An exploding supernova in a galaxy 70 million light-years away has been recorded by the Hubble Space Telescope.The rare event outshone the entire host galaxy, coming from a white dwarf star that gathered material from its companion star.A white dwarf is a degenerating star that is reaching the end of its life cycle. When it has depleted its nuclear fuel, the star expels its outer material, reaching temperatures exceeding 100,000 Kelvin.When the white dwarf reaches a critical mass, its core becomes hot enough to start a nuclear fusion reaction, turning it into a planet-sized atomic bomb.The force of this reaction tears the star apart, and in this instance the energy unleashed was the equivalent of the radiance of five billion suns, Nasa says.Read moreThis particular supernova, classified as SN 2018gv, was spotted in the spiral galaxy NGC 2525 in mid-January 2018 by amateur astronomer Koichi Itagaki.By February, it was being recorded by the Hubble telescope to help scientists track the expansion rate of the universe.In the time-lapse, scientists could see the supernova appearing as a brightly shining star near the edge of the galaxy. It quickly becomes the brightest object in the galaxy, before fading from sight.“No Earthly fireworks display can compete with this supernova, captured in its fading glory by the Hubble Space Telescope,” said Adam Riess of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) and Johns Hopkins University in a statement.Supernovae of this kind all peak at the same brightness, and as such are known as “standard candles.”This is because they act as “cosmic tape measures,” Nasa says. With information about the brightness of the supernova as constant, astronomers can calculate the distances of their host galaxies. This allows the scientists to measure the expansion rate of the universe. In May, the Hubble Space Telescope reached its 30th birthday. Its first photo was of the binary star HD96755 from its wide field camera, captured in black and white.In August, the telescope captured its first observation of a total lunar eclipse – the first time that a total lunar eclipse has been captured from a space telescope, and also the first time one has been studied in ultraviolet wavelengths.Scientists hope they can use this data to examine exoplanets, giving us a better understanding in the search for alien life and interstellar travel.
More than half of us are reusing disposable masks – and others aren't being washed much
More than half of people who wear disposable face masks to protect against coronavirus are using them multiple times, while those who opt for reusable coverings are not washing them regularly, the government’s top scientific advisers have found.
According to a report by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), only one in eight people are washing reusable face coverings correctly, with 34% using them more than four times before they clean them.
While SAGE admits there is no hard evidence showing the effectiveness of washing reusable masks, the documents from 15 September say coronavirus is “readily inactivated by soap and water”.
Regarding disposable masks, the report says those that are binned incorrectly could also pose a risk for those who handle waste, but SAGE suggests that safe handling and good hygiene can mitigate this.
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The report could prove to be important advice for Britons as face coverings become increasingly widespread, having been made mandatory across indoor spaces such as shops and museums – and on public transport.
Not wearing a face mask in such settings, without a specific exemption, could land repeat offenders with a fine of upwards of £3,200.
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SAGE’s report reiterates the importance of wearing masks to combat COVID-19.
“In most settings, extended duration of wearing is likely to have the greatest influence on reducing transmission risks relating to aerosol transmission; extended duration will reduce close range transmission for those activities that require prolonged close interaction with another person,” it says.
The group adds that there is no evidence that wearing face coverings “significantly impact on normal breathing or oxygen levels, although there are some studies that suggest a small effect during exercise”.
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It does suggest, however, that wearing masks could contribute to skin conditions such as acne – although there is no hard data on this and it can be mitigated by good facial hygiene.
Despite the efficacy of masks, SAGE also warns of the risk that they lead to people forgoing other crucial behaviours, notably social distancing.
The documents say that encouraging Britons to wear face coverings in recent months has been used as a measure to allow the two-metre rule to be relaxed in some cases.
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Anti-mask and vaccine protesters rally in London
SAGE’s findings have emerged days after thousands of people gathered in London to protest the wearing of masks, with claims it takes away civil liberties.
Many of those present at such demonstrations have also suggested COVID-19 is a hoax, which it demonstrably is not, while also peddling scientifically impossible conspiracy theories – such as it being caused by 5G masts.
It also comes on the day that one of the world’s most vocal doubters of face masks, US President Donald Trump, revealed that he had tested positive for coronavirus.
Russia responsible for over half of all state-sponsored hacking, Microsoft says
Russia is responsible for over half of all state-sponsored hacking, vastly more than any other state, according to a new report from Microsoft.It is followed by Iran, which makes up 25 per cent of the attacks monitored.China is responsible for 12 per cent of attacks, while North Korea and other states make up the final 11 per cent.The majority of their targets have been in the United States, which is targeted 69 per cent of the time. The United Kingdom is the next most popular victim, receiving 19 per cent of attacks, followed by Canada, South Kora, and Saudi Arabia.Read moreWhile there has been much concern over recent years that countries’ criticial national infastructure – such as the national grid of financial services – could be targeted by hackers, Microsoft says that is not the most common target.According to the software giant, 90 per cent of attacks from nation-states have been focused on “nongovernmental organisations (NGOs), advocacy groups, human rights organizations and think tanks focused on public policy, international affairs or security.”The company suggests that nation-states are hoping to influence government policy through subtler means, rather than targeting infrastructure directly.Other motivations of the hackers, Microsoft says, include attacking areas that are criticial to the stability, prosperity, and survival of opposing countries.“Microsoft observed 16 different nation-state actors either targeting customers involved in the global COVID-19 response efforts or using the crisis in themed lures to expand their credential theft and malware delivery tactics,” Microsoft corporate VP Tom Burt said in a blog post about the report.“These COVID-themed attacks targeted prominent governmental health care organizations in efforts to perform reconnaissance on their networks or people. Academic and commercial organizations involved in vaccine research were also targeted.”This includes using spear-phishing via Microsoft Word documents, and used unique credentials by imitating an American fast-food chain’s email about the coronavirus, as well as fake online coupons.It was one of 18 million attempted scam messages per day related to Covid-19.Hackers from China have been targeting medial institutions in the United States and Asia, attempting to steal proprietary information during the coronavirus pandemic, the report alleges.As the coronavirus pandemic continues, hackers from Iran and South Korea have focused on global health institutions.It is believed that vaccine research facilities at Oxford University and Imperial College London are among institutions targeted by the hackers, who are thought to operate by exploiting weaknesses in VPN and external mail services used by researchers.This form of attack is explicitly mentioned in Microsoft’s report, which states that the most common tactics of the hackers include gathering information, such as the passwords and addresses of email accounts, infecting systems with malware, and “consistently targeting and frequently compromising outdated and unpatched VPN infrastructure”.This week, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a global non-aggression pact on cyberwarfare, suggesting that the United States and other countries should not make cybersecurity a “hostage of political disagreement”.Microsoft had said last month that the Russian hacking group Strontium has attacked over 200 organizations including political campaigns, advocacy groups, parties and political consultants ahead of the presidential election in November.
Head of MI6 launches Twitter recruitment drive
The new head of the Secret Intelligence Service has said he will try and persuade some of his Twitter followers to work for MI6.
Richard Moore, formerly the British ambassador to Turkey, was an active Twitter user under his old account – tweeting more than 18,000 times since joining in November 2013.
Tweeting from @ChiefMI6 at the end of his first day in the office, Mr Moore said he was “immensely privileged to lead such talented and committed public servants”.
I plan to keep tweeting, but obviously can neither confirm nor deny how often. I’ll also try to persuade some of you to come and work for #MI6. #Bond or #Smiley need not apply. They’re (splendid) fiction but actually we’re #secretlyjustlikeyou 2/2
— Richard Moore (@ChiefMI6) October 1, 2020
He also told his 93,000 followers that he would “try to persuade some of you come and work for MI6”, although warned that the agency wasn’t looking for candidates inspired by the world of fiction.
Referencing the novels and cinematic depictions from Ian Fleming and John le Carre, he wrote: “Bond or Smiley need not apply. They’re (splendid) fiction but actually we’re secretly just like you.”
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Image: The MI6 headquarters on the River Thames
Mr Moore’s appointment was announced in the summer, when he left his role as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s political director to succeed Sir Alex Younger as the SIS chief.
He had previously held directorial roles in MI6 and was deputy national security adviser in the Cabinet Office.
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The dominant concerns as he enters office are growing tensions between Russia and the West, particularly following allegations that the Kremlin supported the poisoning of one of its most high-profile critics in Alexei Navalny.
A father-of-two, Mr Moore was born in Libya, speaks fluent Turkish and is a keen golfer who enjoys watching cricket and rugby. His interests are also said to include Turkish carpets and porcelain, and visiting historical sites.
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