CT COVID positivity rate leaps to 3 percent

Here are the most important things to know about the coronavirus in Connecticut:

CT positivity rate leaps to 3.0 percent

On Tuesday, the state announced 434 new cases, five more deaths and 22 new hospitalizations. The positivity rate (the percentage of total tests that are positive) has jumped to 3 percent from 1.7 percent on Oct. 19. This is the highest the rate has been since June.

Vaccine may be ready for approval by December

The CEO of pharmaceutical manufacturer Moderna said a coronavirus vaccine should be ready for approval by December. Stéphane Bancel, speaking to the Wall Street Journal, said that authorization might not happen until early next year. Moderna is one of four drugmakers in late- stage coronavirus vaccine trials.

Straits Times: University developing breathalyzer test

The National University of Singapore is developing a COVID- 19 breathalyzer test, the Straits Times reported. There’s only been a pilot of 180 patients so far, but the test returned results in less than a minute and was shown to be 90 percent accurate. "Results are generated in real time, making it an attractive solution for mass screening, especially in areas with high human traffic,” one researcher said.

Study: Nasal, oral rinses may deactivate virus

Results from a Penn State College of Medicine study suggest that some nasal and oral rinses may inactivate coronaviruses. Listerine, for example, actually reduced the viral load under laboratory conditions, as did CVS Antiseptic Mouth Wash and others. The key may be how long you rinse your mouth, researchers said. One minute or more actually made a significant difference. “Most of the common over- the- counter mouth washes/gargles tested demonstrated at least a 90 percent reduction in infectious virus at one minute of contract time with the majority of products showing increasing virucidal activity with longer contact times,” the study said.

UK vaccine trial moves toward ‘human challenge trial’

A UK vaccine trial announced it will begin a COVID- 19 “human challenge trial” in January, the journal Nature reported. The trial is aimed at accelerating COVID- 19 vaccine development in hopes of potentially ending the

pandemic. “But the prospect of deliberately infecting people — even those at low risk of severe disease — with SARSCoV- 2, a deadly pathogen that has few proven treatments, is uncharted medical and bioethical territory,” the journal stated.

Taimy Alvarez / Associated Press -University of Miami Miller School of Medicine lab tech Sendy Puerto processes blood sample in the specimen processing lab from study participants who volunteered to take part in testing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in Miami, Fla., on Sept. 2. Moderna said Tuesday a coronavirus vaccine should be ready for approval by December.