Health News Roundup: Top scientists join forces to study leading theory behind long COVID; China's Chengdu city extends COVID lockdown in most of its districts and more

The Covid Treatment Quick Start Consortium, set up by organizations including Duke University and the Clinton Health Access Initiative with support from the pharmaceutical company, said it is working with ministries of health in 10 countries to set up national test-and-treat programmes. New bird flu wave in France raises fears deadly virus here to stay The island of Rouzic's windswept clifftops should be teeming with gannets, but an unseasonal wave of bird flu on the French Atlantic coast this summer has devastated their numbers, alarming conservationists and poultry farmers.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Top scientists join forces to study leading theory behind long COVID

Top scientists from leading academic centers are banding together to answer a key question about the root cause of long COVID - whether fragments of the coronavirus persist in the tissues of some individuals. The effort, known as the Long Covid Research Initiative, aims to streamline research and quickly pivot to clinical trials of potential treatments. By sharing diverse skill sets and resources, the group hopes to uncover the scientific underpinnings of the disease and use that to design evidence-based trials.

China's Chengdu city extends COVID lockdown in most of its districts

Chengdu, the capital of the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan, extended a lockdown in most of its districts on Thursday, hoping to stem further transmission of COVID-19 cases in the city of 21.2 million people. The mega-city, which has most recently battled with heat waves, power cuts and an earthquake, was locked down on Sept. 1 after detecting a number of cases, becoming the largest Chinese metropolis to be slapped with the curbs since Shanghai earlier this year.

Walmart, UnitedHealth to offer preventive healthcare program for seniors

Walmart and healthcare giant UnitedHealth Group are planning to team up to provide preventive care for people aged 65 and up, and virtual healthcare services for all age groups, the companies said on Wednesday. The 10-year partnership represents Walmart's latest push into healthcare and could help the retail giant better compete with CVS Health and Walgreens Boots Alliance.

Pfizer donates Paxlovid to group targeting COVID in poorer countries

Pfizer has donated 100,000 courses of its COVID-19 antiviral treatment Paxlovid to a new group aiming to improve access to the drug in low and middle-income countries. The Covid Treatment Quick Start Consortium, set up by organizations including Duke University and the Clinton Health Access Initiative with support from the pharmaceutical company, said it is working with ministries of health in 10 countries to set up national test-and-treat programs.

New bird flu wave in France raises fears deadly virus here to stay

The island of Rouzic's windswept clifftops should be teeming with gannets, but an unseasonal wave of bird flu on the French Atlantic coast this summer has devastated their numbers, alarming conservationists and poultry farmers. Thousands of seabirds have perished along France's western shores in past weeks because of the viral infection, which usually strikes during autumn and winter months, raising fears it may have become a year-round risk and endemic to French wildlife.

Gilead's Trodelvy extends breast cancer survival by 3.2 months -study

Gilead Sciences Inc's Trodelvy extended by 3.2 months the survival of patients with advanced stages of a common type of breast cancer, according to data released ahead of a presentation at a European cancer meeting on Friday. Put another way, the Gilead drug reduced the risk of death by 21% in the Phase III trial.

Oxford malaria vaccine data bodes well for effort to combat the deadly disease

Encouraging new data on a malaria vaccine from Oxford University bodes well for the global effort to combat the mosquito-borne disease that kills a child every minute, its makers said on Wednesday. After decades of work, the only approved malaria vaccine, Mosquirix, made by British drugmaker GSK, was recently endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO).

New York State ends mask mandates on trains, transit

New York state on Wednesday ended a 28-month-old COVID-19 mandate requiring masks on trains, buses and other modes of public transit, as well as at airports and in ride-share vehicles, Governor Kathy Hochul said. "Starting today masks will be optional," Hochul said at a news conference, citing recently revised guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "We have to restore some normalcy to our lives... Masks are encouraged but optional."

Amylyx's ALS drug gets U.S. FDA panel's backing in rare turnaround

Amylyx Pharmaceuticals Inc's drug for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) on Wednesday secured the support of external advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, months after the panel rejected it over issues with trial data. In a rare second meeting, the FDA panel voted 7 to 2 in favor of the oral drug, AMX0035, citing the unmet need for more treatments against the fatal neurodegenerative condition commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Texas judge deems Obamacare HIV prevention drug mandate unlawful

A requirement under the U.S. law known as Obamacare that private insurance plans cover drugs that prevent HIV infection at no cost to patients violates both federal law and the Constitution, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday, siding with conservative lawyers who had challenged the measure on religious grounds. Ruling in Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor found that the HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, mandate stemmed from a recommendation by an advisory body formed in violation of constitutional requirements and could infringe upon the rights of employers under a law called the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The mandate is part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), as Obamacare is formally called.