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13 articles from Guardian Unlimited Science

AstraZeneca vaccine may not go to older people, EU medicines chief suggests

European Medicines Agency approval could stipulate age range, says Emer CookeCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine may be authorised only for younger people in Europe, because there is insufficient data on how well it works in the over-65s, the head of the regulatory body has suggested.The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is expected to...

French self-esteem hit after Pasteur Institute abandons Covid vaccine

Politicians say project, halted after disappointing trials, a ‘national humiliation’ and a ‘sign of decline’Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageFrench politicians have reacted with dismay to news that the prestigious Pasteur Institute is abandoning its main coronavirus vaccine after disappointing test results.Researchers at the institute said clinical trials on...

Why experts say there is no basis to claims in Germany about efficacy of AstraZeneca vaccine

Analysis: Drug company and scientific partners at Oxford University have strongly pushed back against German press reportCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA row has broken out after German newspapers suggested the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine might have a lower efficacy among the over-65s. Below we take a look at the claims, and whether we should be concerned. Continue...

EU means business over Covid vaccine exports, says Von der Leyen

Commission president says firms must deliver on orders after AstraZeneca warns of shortfall Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe EU “means business”, Ursula von der Leyen has said, as the bloc doubled down on plans for tighter monitoring of vaccine exports to countries outside of the union, such as the UK.Speaking at the World Economic Forum, the president of the...

Labour attacks 'half-baked' targeted Covid quarantine policy

Party calls for blanket system for all arrivals as ministers meet to sign off on proposalsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA targeted quarantine policy is “half-baked” and leaves the UK’s vaccination programme open to as-yet unknown strains of coronavirus that could set back the country’s progress, Labour has warned.Strict new quarantine rules in hotels are...

UK Covid live: government 'confident' about vaccine supply after EU threat

Latest updates: Nadim Zahawi says UK deliveries will not be hindered after EU says it may block vaccine exportsEU vaccines threat will not affect UK deliveries, says Nadim ZahawiGerman government challenges reports on AstraZeneca vaccineEU threatens to block vaccine exports after AstraZeneca shortfallNew quarantine rules expected for arrivals to UKGlobal coronavirus updates - live 11.39am GMT...

Pharmaceutical giants not ready for next pandemic, report warns

Ten of the world’s most infectious diseases identified by the WHO not being catered for by drug firmsThe world’s biggest pharmaceutical firms are little prepared for the next pandemic despite a mounting response to the Covid-19 outbreak, an independent report has warned.Jayasree K Iyer, executive director of the Netherlands-based Access to Medicine Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation...

German government challenges AstraZeneca Covid vaccine efficacy reports

Newspaper had reported that government was expecting European regulator’s assessment to show that vaccine was only 8% effective among over-65The German government has challenged reports of a lower-than-expected efficacy rate of the AstraZeneca vaccine for older people, while reiterating concerns about the British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant’s data reporting.An article in German business daily...

Could understanding the history of anti-vaccine sentiment help us to overcome it?

Ever since Edward Jenner developed the first vaccine for smallpox there have been opportunistic people willing to spread misinformation. As the Covid-19 vaccines are administered, what’s the best way to counter them?Sarah and her brother Benjamin (not their real names) have never seen eye to eye. She’s a professional scientist, he – according to Sarah’s description – is someone who is...

Delaying the second Covid dose in the UK is controversial, but it's the right decision | Deborah Dunn-Walters

There are worries about the change in the vaccination schedule. However, a longer gap between jabs has its advantages tooCoronavirus – latest updatesDeborah Dunn-Walters is chair of the British Society for Immunology’s Covid-19 and Immunology taskforceA recent YouGov poll shows that the British are among the most willing in the world to take the Covid-19 vaccine. This is good news. But there...

You can teach an old dog new words, researchers find

Canines in Hungarian study appear to pick up unfamiliar terms through playWhether you can teach an old dog new tricks might be a moot point, but it seems some canines can rapidly learn new words, and do so through play.While young children are known to quickly pick up the names of new objects, the skill appears to be rare in animals. Continue...

What does history smell like? – podcast

What did London really smell like during the great stink of 1858? What odours wafted through the Battle of Waterloo? Were cities identifiable by the lingering aromas of the various commodities produced during the industrial revolution? It may not be possible to literally go back in time and give history a sniff, but a new project is aiming to identify and even recreate scents that would have...

Friar crushed by cart: bone analysis hints at causes of medieval deaths

Research from three Cambridge grave sites suggests poor people were at greatest risk of injury A friar crushed by a cart, another the victim of an attack by bandits: it sounds like the plot of a medieval mystery. But according to new research these are some of the possible misfortunes to have befallen those in centuries gone by.An analysis of bones from 314 individuals aged 12 or older, dating...