SCIENTISTS DISCOVER 'CAMOUFLAGE' CORONAVIRUS ENZYME

Sky News 24 July 2020 - by Alexander Martin, technology reporter

Many workplaces require employees to possess special passes or know a code to enter the building, and the coronavirus has the same advantage when breaking into cells.

© Other Scientists have discovered 'camouflage' used by the virus. Pic: NIAID-RML

Scientists have uncovered the structure of an enzyme called nsp16 which coronavirus uses to fool the immune system and gain access to host cells, which it hijacks to replicate itself.

Understanding how nsp16 works could lead to new antiviral drugs for COVID-19 patients by inhibiting the enzyme in allowing the virus to slip past security.

The enzyme is used to modify something called the messenger RNA cap, effectively a signature which tells the cells that the proteins they're being told to produce are the right ones.

"It's a camouflage," according to Dr Yogesh Gupta of the University of Texas, the lead author of the study which is published in the journal Nature Communications

"Because of the modifications, which fool the cell, the resulting viral messenger RNA is now considered as part of the cell's own code and not foreign."

Understanding the structure of the enzyme could allow the researchers to develop drugs - new small molecules which would prevent nsp16 from making any modifications.

The immune system would then recognise the invading virus for what it was, and would be able to attack it.

"Yogesh's work discovered the 3D structure of a key enzyme of the COVID-19 virus required for its replication and found a pocket in it that can be targeted to inhibit that enzyme," said co-author Professor Robert Hromas.

"This is a fundamental advance in our understanding of the virus," Professor Hromas added.

Read More

CLAMPDOWN ON SHOPS CONVERTING TO ILLEGAL HOUSING

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 -by Bejay Browne

Paphos Street

Paphos municipality is clamping down on shop owners that are illegally converting premises and renting then to foreigners as sub-standard accommodation for a quick buck. Owners have been granted one month to ensure tenants vacate the properties.

The municipality issued a public announcement on Thursday, warning owners that enforcement notices and any necessary legal action will be taken against them if they fail to comply.

Following a meeting of the local mayors with the minister of interior, it was found that lately, serious dysfunction in towns were being caused by the actions of a significant number of shop owners who make these types of illegal conversions and rent them to foreigners as accommodation, the announcement said.

“Such an action is blatantly illegal and it is done without the required change of use licences, and poses serious risks to public health and safety, as the conversions are made with cheap materials and the living and hygiene conditions of foreigners are unacceptable to dangerous,” they said.

The Paphos municipality is warning the owners of these shops that the conversions are illegal and will proceed with a enforcement notice and/or any other legal measure against them. It also calls on landlords to make sure they alert tenants to leave illegally-rented premises within a month.

“This is a problem affecting all of the areas of Cyprus. In Nicosia there have also been a number of reports of shops being turned into mosques, and prayers and gatherings being held there, which, obviously is not permitted without special permission,” a staff member of Paphos municipality told the Cyprus Mail.

At present, Paphos municipality is gathering information from the police and the public as to where these illegal accommodations are within their boundaries, with a number being reported in the old town and around Thermopylyn Street, an area which is being renovated and upgraded.

Everyone is co-operating to tackle this problem together, they noted.

In a number of towns, it has been reported that as many as 30 foreigners can be living in a small space and that has to be stopped, the mayors said.

“It is not just to ensure that this sort of housing doesn’t spring up in more areas, but also for the well-being of the people living there, it is not healthy at all.”

Some of these tenants are illegal immigrants and they will be dealt with by the ministry of the interior, the staff member added.

“A number of shops in the old town are being used as accommodation, I have noticed this for the last ten months or so and was surprised by it. Long curtains are pulled across doorways and various people go in and out. They are foreigners and the shops look very run down and dirty,” a Paphos resident said.

However, a local volunteer stressed that getting people to leave these types of accommodation is not addressing the real problem and is just sweeping it under the carpet when the real issue is a lack of jobs, integration and support for immigrants.

“Housing is so expensive now and these sorts of accommodations are all they can afford. Where will they go now, many of them have no money and no food. And those that work barely earn enough to survive as it is,” said the volunteer.

 

Read More

WANTED IN CONNECTION WITH KIDNAPPING AND ROBBERY OFFENCES

Police are wanting Jagtar Singh, a 26-year-old from India, whose photo is being published in connection with an investigation into kidnapping and robbery, offences committed yesterday 22/7/2020 in Larnaca. Today's Police Communication concerning a 33-year-old person who is absent from his home in Larnaca is relevant. 

Anyone who knows anything that can help locate the above person is kindly requested to contact Larnaca Police Station at tel. 24-804060 or with the nearest Police Station, or with the Citizen's Contact Line at 1460.

Read More

RED ALERT OVER FOREST FIRES ALL OVER CYPRUS

in-cyprus 24 July 2020 - by Maria Bitar

The Department of Forestry issued a red alert on Friday stressing that the risk of a fire breaking out and spreading fast is extremely high.

Lighting fires without permission as well as throwing cigarette butts and lit matches is strictly prohibited and constitutes an offence, the announcement also said.

The use of welding tools or agricultural equipment that produces heat is also strictly prohibited.

The offence is punishable with imprisonment of up to 10 years or a fine of up to 50,000 euro or both, it added.

Lighting a fire for the purpose of food preparation is allowed only in barbecues located in designated picnic areas on mountainous regions.

If smoke or a fire is detected, please call 1407 (Forestry Department) or 112 (Fire Department) immediately.

Source: Philenews

Read More

CYPRUS HAS HIGH NUMBER OF SCANNERS

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 -by Annette Chrysostomou

Cyprus has the second highest number of computer tomography (CT) scanners in the EU relative to the number of inhabitants, after Denmark, the latest Eurostat figures show.

While Denmark had 4 CT scanners per 100,000 in hospitals in 2018, Cyprus had 3.3 and Bulgaria 2.8. Romania had the smallest number, 0.8, followed by France (1.2), Poland, the Netherlands and Slovenia (all 1.4).

The availability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) units relative to the number of inhabitants was the highest in Finland (with 2.7 MRI units per 100,000 inhabitants), Cyprus (2.1) and Italy (1.7), while the smallest availability was in Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, all 0.4 MRI units per 100,000 inhabitants.

Between 2013 and 2018 the availability of CT scanners relative to the number of inhabitants increased in most member states. The highest increases were recorded in Portugal with an increase of 0.6 scanners per 100,000 inhabitants.

During the same period, the most notable increases in the availability of MRI units were in Finland with an increase of 0.5 units per 100,000 inhabitants.

Read More

FRIDAY JULY 24 - CORONAVIRUS GLOBAL UPDATE

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 - Reuters News Service

Belgium will tighten COVID-19 containment measures on July 25 after a rise in infections REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

The United States on Thursday recorded more than 1,100 deaths US coronavirus cases pass 4 million, deaths top 1,100 for third day in a row from COVID-19 for a third day in a row, while the head of the World Health Organization said that comments by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo questioning his independence were untrue.

DEATHS AND INFECTIONS

EUROPE
* Britain said it was guaranteeing 3.7 billion pounds ($4.72 billion) of additional funding this year to be split between Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to allow the devolved governments there to plan their coronavirus response.

* Belgium will tighten COVID-19 containment measures on July 25 after a rise in infections.

AMERICAS

* U.S. President Donald Trump said states that are currently coronavirus hot spots may need to delay reopening schools by a few weeks, but otherwise pushed for students to be able to return to classrooms en masse in the fall.

* Trump said he would no longer hold part of the Republican Party’s nominating convention in Florida in August because of a spike in coronavirus cases in the state.

* Bolivia’s general election will be pushed back until Oct. 18 as the pandemic grips the South American nation.

* Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Thursday he had lost some relatives to the novel coronavirus.

ASIA-PACIFIC

* Tokyo marked one year to go until the Olympics for the second time in a subdued 15-minute ceremony at an empty and dark National Stadium.

* Australia’s Victoria state will send in the army to question people who have tested positive for COVID-19 as it battles to control an outbreak that claimed a record number of lives on Friday.

* Kuwait will shorten its nightly curfew and reopen hotels and mosques next week in the latest relaxation of its coronavirus restrictions.

MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

* Uganda recorded its first death from the new coronavirus, making it one of the last nations in Africa to report a fatality since the pandemic reached it.

* Baghdad International Airport reopened for scheduled commercial flights after months of closure, as Iraq’s total number of infections passed 100,000.

MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS

* Quest Diagnostics Inc said it expects to cut week-long turnaround times for COVID-19 tests by more than half to get to “acceptable” levels by September.

* Fitbit and other wearable devices typically linked to exercise are being studied as ways to identify people who are potentially infected with COVID-19 before symptoms appear.

ECONOMIC FALLOUT

* Brazil’s real led Latin American currencies lower on Thursday after record daily increases in coronavirus cases and Argentina left investors scurrying for safety.

* Ireland will hand firms hit by the COVID-19 crisis more generous grants, extend a wage-subsidy scheme and aim to boost domestic tourism with “staycation vouchers”.

* A divided South African central bank cut interest rates for a fifth time this year on Thursday, trimming them to a record low.

Read More

HOW CYPRUS GOVERNMENT WILL USE €2.7 billion EU RECOVERY FUNDS

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 - by Andrew Rosenbaum

Harris Georgiades with President Anastasiades

The lion’s share of the funds provided by the EU Recovery Fund should be used for accelerating Cyprus’s digital transformation, Harris Georgiades, a former Finance Minister and Deputy Leader of the governing Democratic Rally Party told the Cyprus Mail on Thursday.

The office of the Deputy Minister for Research, Innovation and Digital Policy confirmed that a large part of the European Recovery funds would be dedicated to e-government projects.

This will drive a great change in the way our government operates, Georgiades points out. “We are talking about a major digital transformation effort supported by EU funds.”

“Digitalisation is the most promising reform of the Cypriot administration, it’s the most tangible form, something which will be felt by business and individuals who all have to interact regularly with the government. The EU funds will make all of this happen quickly as we can utilise funds from the grants as early as next year.”

Some projects are smaller, easier to implement; others are larger in scope, but also significant to improving the way business is done on the island.”

“I am aware that the Finance Ministry is already at work drafting a plan for requests for grants, as these have certain reform-oriented criteria. It’s also notable that mature projects will be favoured over new or startup projects,” Georgiades explains. “We have, since 2019, an ambitious pipeline of e-government and digital projects set up by the government.

“For example, we still have to go in person to the social security offices each month and pay our contributions. One project being promoted currently will put an end to this, and allow citizens to pay social security contributions online.”

“The other elements will be Green projects: We have a few in the pipeline involving for instance water and waste management, and these will probably be among the first ones proposed,” Georgiades adds.

In order to draw the funds in 2021 or 2022,  when most in need each Member State will have to identify and submit mature projects which will be best-received. If there is a good idea at an early stage, it probably will not be put forward.

These grants are to be paid back over a long period of time, but they have the advantage of not affecting the national debt, as they are loans taken by the EU Commission itself. The form of repayment has not yet been determined.

Cyprus Finance Minister Konstantinos Petridis will present a detailed plan for the distribution of the funds received next week.

None of this will change Cyprus’s position with regard to the main element of the EU budget, Georgiades continues.

“With regard to the medium-term financial framework, of the EU budget, what one should know is that Cyprus is in a neutral position, neither a net contributor nor beneficiary.

We are not Poland or Romania or Greece who are net beneficiaries, we are not the Netherlands or Germany who are net contributors either — we are neutral. Every year we give in through the budget a specific sum and we then receive that same amount from the EU — not a penny more or less, as we are in a neutral position. That is the core element of this $2.7 billion which is part of the seven-year budget.

Then there are the New Europe funds divided into two parts: grants and loans.

“I am not sure whether Cyprus will utilise the loan element at all – this will be decided very soon. The loans will perhaps remain on the table for the Finance Ministry to consider as we proceed into the medium-term horizon. The loans impact the debt which is already high. If it’s a loan, maybe we can also borrow more cheaply from the markets, but the objective is not to raise the debt further.”

What remains is the grants element which Member States must repay over a long period. The grants stem from a loan drawn by the Commission itself, and which does not impact the Member States’ budgets.

The European Recovery Fund was approved by ministers from the 27 Member States on 21 July. The € 2.7 billion was allocated to Cyprus, and the country will receive €1.451 billion as part of the EU budget plan for 2021-2027.

For Cyprus, the €2.7 billion is almost 12 per cent of GDP. The funds are intended to help Member States’ economies recover from the damage done by the pandemic.

 

Read More

CHURCH BELLS TO TOLL FOR FIVE MINUTES AS PRAYERS HELD AT HAGIA SOPHIA

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 - by Evie Andreou

Church bells in Cyprus will toll in a funereal tone for five minutes on Friday at noon to mark the conversion of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul into a mosque.

The first prayers after the recent decision to turn the centuries-old monument into a mosque will be held on Friday in the presence of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The Cypriot Archbishopric said in a statement that church bells all over Cyprus will toll for five minutes “in view of the arbitrary, unacceptable and criminal conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque by the Turks.”

The same move will take place in Greece in addition to all flags flying half-mast.

Turkey’s decision unleashed a torrent of criticism from church leaders, who said the conversion to exclusively Muslim worship risked deepening religious divisions. Turkey says the site will remain open for visitors and its Christian artworks will be protected.

The Christian frescoes and mosaics adorning the dome and central hall of Hagia Sophia, a Christian Byzantine cathedral for 900 years before it was seized by Ottoman conquerors and served as a mosque until 1934, will be concealed by curtains during Muslim prayer times but remain on display for the rest of the time.

Read More

NUMBER OF SOCIAL INSURANCE CHEATS RUNS JUST OVER 4,000

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 - by Elias Hazou

Some 4,000 criminal cases involving cheating on social insurance contributions were pending at the end of April this year, the Social Insurance Services said in a statement on Thursday.

Of these, 1,456 cases related to employers and 2,557 cases to self-employed persons.

The Social Insurance Services also announced that it is currently assessing a series of applications filed for benefits and pensions.

For instance, currently under review are applications for those persons whose employment was terminated, and their period of unemployment began on April 3, 2020.

On the sickness benefit, the applications now being assessed are those filed up to April 4, and for disability pension those applications filed in March and April this year.

Also being assessed are applications for a statutory pension for those persons who became potentially eligible in March 2020; for the social pension (old-age pension), the applications examined concern those persons becoming potentially eligible in February and March 2020.

 

Read More

CORONAVIRUS - 'PEOPLE NEED TO REGAIN CONFIDENCE IN AIR TRAVEL'

Cyprus Mail 24 July 2020 - by Annette Chrysostomou

Passengers need to regain confidence in travelling by air, Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said on Thursday.

“The passenger must not only be safe but also feel safe,” he told his EU counterparts during a teleconference.

In his speech, the minister said it is very important to restore air connectivity of the member states as soon as possible and that corrective measures should be taken which will allow the public to feel safe to travel with the airlines again.

At the moment there is no uniformity within the European Union in terms of travel measures taken, as each country has its own criteria and procedures, which complicate the efforts of both travellers and airlines, slowing done the recovery in the aviation sector, Karousos pointed out.

“Cyprus has already developed and implemented an electronic platform for passengers wishing to travel to the island by issuing the so-called Cyprus Flight Pass. The passenger, before traveling to Cyprus, must complete a questionnaire, which is posted on the platform in question, stating some information related to the conduct of his trip.”

However, with a view to the safe movement of passengers to and from member states’ airports, he suggested a pan-European flight card system, the EU Flight Pass, “to facilitate the conduct of travel throughout the European Union.”

He also suggested diagnostic tests for the coronavirus should be performed at departure airports.

“Therefore, investments should be made in new technology equipment to perform a quick coronavirus test at all airports. Boarding of passengers on aircraft will only take place if the test result is found to be negative. These laboratory analyses can be combined with innovation and technology, such as blockchain, for better control and certification of results,” the minister concluded.

Read More