ME: CDC, should I get poke if I already had Covid?

CDC: “Yes, you should be poked regardless of whether you already had COVID-19. That’s because experts do not yet know how long you are protected from getting sick again after recovering from COVID-19.”

ME: Oh, okay, we don’t know how long natural immunity lasts. Got it. So, how long does poke-induced immunity last?

CDC: “There is still a lot we are learning about COVID-19 pokes and CDC is constantly reviewing evidence and updating guidance. We don’t know how long protection lasts for those who are poked.”

ME: Okay … but wait a second. I thought you said the reason I need the poke was because we don’t know how long my natural immunity lasts, but it seems like you’re saying we ALSO don’t know how long poke immunity lasts either. So, how exactly is the poke immunity better than my natural immunity?

CDC: …

ME: Uh … alright. But, haven’t there been a bunch of studies suggesting that natural immunity could last for years or decades?

CDC: Yes.

NEWYORKTIMES: “Years, maybe even decades, according to a new study.”

ME: Ah. So natural immunity might last longer than poke immunity?

CDC: Possibly. You never know.

ME: Okay. If I get the poke, does that mean I won’t get sick?

BRITAIN: Nope. We are just now entering a seasonal spike and about half of our infections and hospital admissions are poked people.

ME: CDC, is this true? Are there a lot of people in the U.S. catching Covid after getting the poke?

CDC: We stopped tracking breakthrough cases. We accept voluntary reports of breakthroughs but aren’t out there looking for them.

ME: Does that mean that if someone comes in the hospital with Covid, you don’t track them because they’ve been poked? You only track the UN-poked Covid cases?

CDC: That’s right.

ME: Oh, okay. Hmm. Well, if I can still get sick after I get the poke, how is it helping me?

CDC: We never said you wouldn’t get sick. We said it would reduce your chances of serious illness or death.

ME: Oh, sorry. Alright, exactly how much does it reduce my chance of serious illness or death.

CDC: We don’t know “exactly.”

ME: Oh. Then what’s your best estimate for how much risk reduction there is?

CDC: We don’t know, okay? Next question.

ME: Um, if I’m healthy and don’t want the poke, is there any reason I should get it?

CDC: Yes, for the collective.

ME: How does the collective benefit from me getting poked?

CDC: Because you could spread the virus to someone else who might get sick and die.

ME: Can a poked person spread the virus to someone else?

CDC: Yes.

ME: So if I get poked, I could still spread the virus to someone else?

CDC: Yes.

ME: But I thought you just said, the REASON I should get poked was to prevent me spreading the virus? How does that make sense if I can still catch Covid and spread it after getting the poke?

CDC: Never mind that. The other thing is, if you stay unpoked, there’s a chance the virus could possibly mutate into a strain that escapes the pokes protection, putting all poked people at risk.

ME: So the poke stops the virus from mutating?

CDC: No.

ME: So it can still mutate in poked people?

CDC: Yes.

ME: This seems confusing. If the poke doesn’t stop mutations, and it doesn’t stop infections, then how does me getting poked help prevent a more deadly strain from evolving to escape the poke?

CDC: You aren’t listening, okay? The bottom line is: as long as you are unpoked, you pose a threat to poked people.

ME: But what KIND of threat??

CDC: The threat that they could get a serious case of Covid and possibly die.

ME: My brain hurts. Didn’t you JUST say that the poke doesn’t keep people from catching Covid, but prevents a serious case or dying? Now it seems like you’re saying poked people can still easily die from Covid even after they got the poke just by running into an unpoked person! Which is it??

CDC: That’s it, we’re hanging up now.

ME: Wait! I just want to make sure I understand all this. So, even if I ALREADY had Covid, I should STILL get poked, because we don’t know how long natural immunity lasts, and we also don’t know how long poke immunity lasts. And I should get the poke to keep a poked person from catching Covid from me, but even if I get the poke, I can give it to the poked person anyways. And, the other poked person can still easily catch a serious case of Covid from me and die. Do I have all that right?

…

ME: Um, hello? Is anyone there?

This isn’t a comedy routine. You make your choice As to getting the vaccine or not and live or die by that choice. No one can guarantee you that won’t get COVID, won’t get it again, won’t end up in the hospital, won’t die.

Did Ed just say what I think I read?
I've gotta have another drink now I'm really confused.

quote:

Originally posted by Floyd Staggs:
Did Ed just say what I think I read?
I've gotta have another drink now I'm really confused.

I doubt Ed is saying he has received the vaccine, he has made his stance on that pretty clear.

Every action has a consequence and it’s up to us to weigh the benefits vs risks… but at the end of the day we must accept ownership of our own actions

Look at leaders we've followed...

Look at the lies we've swallowed...

The way we've always done before...

Usually pharmaceutical companies spend Billions of dollars researching meds. A lot of that money is is fighting the Feds. That certainly didn't happen here. I wonder how much the Feds are making per dose and are any of our congressmen invested in the dose? Are they invested in 3M? Do they have alternative motives for us having a DNA marker drug injected in our bodies and wearing masks that don't do anything to stop a covid virus?

We're getting f'd and don't know whos kissing us.

How is the vaccine a DNA marker and what does that even mean?

I'm rooting for the virus. I really hope we can finally get a variant named after the USA.

quote:

Originally posted by CURTIS REED:
How is the vaccine a DNA marker and what does that even mean?

Hope you can follow.

Koo reported an arch-shaped, multi-target sensor device for the identification of target nucleic acids from several infectious pathogens such as MERS-CoV. The sensor consisted in a silicon microring resonator (SMR) with immobilized isothermal amplification enzyme and oligonucleotides. For multiple-target sensing, four microrings (one used as reference) were connected to a standard input and separate dedicated output waveguides. The use of long primers covalently bound to the SMR sensor and containing nonspecific poly dT spacers at high concentration (> 50 base pair, 5 µM) led to the formation of an arch shape on the sensor surface in addition to an increase in rate and detection sensitivity of the system. A recombinase polymerase amplification-reverse transcription (RPA-RT) enzyme mixture was employed to obtain recombinase/primers complexes bound to the double-stranded target cDNA. After D-loop formation, the immobilized primers were extended and amplified by a polymerase on the sensor surface, forming an arch-shaped amplification complex. Resonance wavelength shift changes were monitored for up to 30 min. Koo valuated the detection sensitivity of the arch-shaped multiple-target sensing platform using RNA (at 10–2.5 × 102 copies/reaction) of MERS-CoV from nasopharyngeal samples; in addition to RNA transcripts from other pathogens such as the Zika virus, Ebola virus, and SARS-CoV-1, which resulted 10–100 fold higher than those obtained from quantitative RT-PCR and RPA assays (103 copies/reaction). In addition, RNA from clinical nasopharyngeal samples of 11 MERS-CoV patients and 9 SARS-CoV-1 patients were analyzed into individual sensing rings with either MERS-CoV or SARS-CoV-1 immobilized primers. The wavelength shifted to higher values in the MERS-CoV sensing ring, but not in the SARS-CoV-1 sensing ring when RNA of MERS-CoV patients was added. This approach is advantageous in terms of quickness (<20 min), label-free detection, sensitivity, and specificity in clinical samples.

Microfluidic platforms have been used for the detection of viruses using the rolling circle amplification (RCA) method. Previously, Lee reported a platform named DNA hydrogel formation by Isothermal amplification of complementary targets (DhITACT) in microfluidic channels for the detection of viral and bacterial pathogens. In this device, single-stranded (ss) rolling circle amplification (RCA) products are generated on the surface of microfluidic channels by the isothermal amplification process; producing an in-situ, self-assembled DNA hydrogel. The padlock template contains a primer binding site, a pathogen binding site, and a self-assembly region; generating a molecular dumbbell shape. After hybridization with sequences of the target pathogens, an asymmetric dumbbell-shape template can be ligated to form a closed-circular template to conduct the RCA process (carried out by the Phi 29 polymerase). Complementary long ss DNA strands generated by the RCA process and multiple tandem repeats of self-assembled dumbbells can form along the linear DNA chains and produce a dense networked chain structure. During the incubation period the volume of DNA hydrogel increases and blocks the channels, which can be observed by the operator using a simple on/off optical detection.

Based on the previous DhITACT system, Jung reported a DhITACT-TR (Trial) system for the diagnosis of MERS-CoV in pseudo-serum conditions. The new system required the addition of isolated RNA strands into the device channel and the visual or optical fluorescence detection was accomplished within 20 min. In the DhITACT-TR platform, the gelation process was accelerated by subsequent secondary polymerase reaction using small amounts of short DNA primers, which bound to the amplified DNA products. This approach leads to a more rapid and condensed hydrogel formation due to the strong base-pair hybridization. Pseudo-serum samples were prepared by combining RNA strands isolated from saliva and blood human samples with synthetic targets of MERS RNA strands (noncoding region upstream envelope gene in MERS-CoV) and the detection was carried out by fluorescence and naked-eye. The results showed that at least a 10 nt long target RNA strand was required for stable hybridization. The limit of quantification (LOQ) of the new device was improved up to 100 times (6 × 107 copies per device) when compared to the DhITACT system. The DhITACT-TR device showed comparable analytical sensitivity with reduced detection time when compared to the conventional RT-PCR analysis (109 copies as LOQ).

Another approach based on a microfluidic platform is reported by Na et al. [25]. These authors developed a microfluidic device in which the RCA process occurs at the surface of microbeads packed in microchannels; leading to DNA hydrogel formation. The increase in surface area for the RCA reaction could shorten the detection time by up to 15 min. Primers immobilization on the surface of beads was confirmed by fluorescent probes. As mentioned in the previous reports, the pathogen template consists of a primer binding site, a pathogen-binding site, and a self-assembly region that generates a molecular dumbbell shape. When the template on the microbead encounters a target pathogen; they hybridize and the opened template can be ligated to form a closed-loop template (with help from a ligase), which is ready to undergo the RCA process. As time progresses, complementary ssDNA strands are elongated with the dumbbell shape by the Phi 29 polymerase during the RCA process, and the dumbbell-shaped long DNAs tend to aggregate and generate a gel. The microfluidic platform was used to perform multiplex analysis for the detection of MERS-CoV nucleic acid, achieving a LOD of 0.1 pM.

Commercial RT-PCR kits (e.g. VIASURE MULTIPLEX (CerTest Biotec) and RealStar (Altona Diagnostics)) have a LOD of 10 and 9.3 copies per reaction, respectively. Even though the LOD offered by nucleic acid-based biosensors is higher than that offered by commercial kits, the former is advantageous in terms of analysis time, portability, and multiple detection capability.

Announcement from my wife's work today.

quote:

To finally end the scourge of Covid and to keep our employees safe, we need a higher vaccination rate and additional testing. Beginning Monday, September 13, unvaccinated county employees will be required to provide their supervisor verification of a negative covid test on a weekly basis in order to report to work. Our Department of Health’s testing and vaccination clinics are free of charge to employees and additional pop up clinics, conveniently located for county employees, will be available throughout August and September.

We all want to move on to a post-Covid future, but the Delta variant has made the need for additional vaccinations and masking an imperative. As a result, both the masking and the weekly testing policy will include progessive discipline, up to and including suspension without pay. All of these actions are intended to get us back to the lives we lived before the pandemic.

First, this is a ridiculous policy meant to inconvenience people and use scare tactics to force employees to get a vaccine they may not want.

Second, why does this start Sept 13th? I mean, if it is a legitimate threat right now, why not start now? I guess they can see the future with their crystal balls.

quote:

Announcement from my wife's work today.

That's her reward for being a government employee. I trust she will submit.

My neighbor works security at he ParkMGM here in Vegas, and he is/was a die hard antivaxer till his company said get the shots or else pay 15.00 a week to get a mandatory negative test to come to work, plus up to three additional tests randomly at 15.00 each. He and his wife and son went and got their first shot, he showed up to work the next monday with his card showing he had started the shots, they said go get tested and continue getting tested till you get both. A lot of are clamping down here due to the rise of cases daily.

quote:

Originally posted by qtrrcr:
My neighbor works security at he ParkMGM here in Vegas, and he is/was a die hard antivaxer till his company said get the shots or else pay 15.00 a week to get a mandatory negative test to come to work, plus up to three additional tests randomly at 15.00 each. He and his wife and son went and got their first shot, he showed up to work the next monday with his card showing he had started the shots, they said go get tested and continue getting tested till you get both. A lot of are clamping down here due to the rise of cases daily.

Wouldn’t be surprised to see insurance companies come out and say they will not pay for covid related illness unless the vaccine has been received

Good point. We had a soccer match here at the new Allegiant stadium this past weekend. 15000 in the stands, very few masks. The new mask mandate went into effect last Friday. I would venture a guess the numbers are going to blossom in a couple of weeks because of it.

Obama is hosting his 60th birthday this coming weekend with 500 guests and no masks and NO JOE! What the Heck!

quote:

Originally posted by Larry Scarth:
Obama is hosting his 60th birthday this coming weekend with 500 guests and no masks and NO JOE! What the Heck!

He Skeered!