Assistant Professor, School of Public Health, HKU
Hong Kong
Joined July 2012
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Tim Tsang retweeted
【Latest Research】A recent study led by Dr @BingyiY, Research Assistant Professor of #HKUSPH has analysed 200,000 hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) titrations from ferret models. This research reveals critical insights about influenza immune evasion. 🦠💡
🔍 Key Findings:
✔️ Breath of Influenza A viruses cross-reactivity varies by the isolation interval
✔ A(H3N2) has a narrower cross-reactivity compared to A(H1N1)
✔ Repeated exposures to the virus further broaden the cross-reactivity to contemporary viruses
This study provides a framework for predicting immune evasion in other rapidly evolving pathogens, making a major step for pandemic preparedness.
📄Paper now published in Nature Microbiology: rdcu.be/eqjg1
📹Featured on This Week in Virology (TWiV): bit.ly/45ZEt3l
@bencowling88
#HKU #HKUMed #HKUSPH #HKUPublicHealth #PublicHealth #Research #evolution #influenzavirus #Vaccineprotection #antibody
Tim Tsang retweeted
【Latest Research】A team led by @BingyiY, Research Assistant Professor of #HKUSPH has revealed that neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) serve as a key immune correlate for COVID-19 vaccine protection.
🔍 Key Findings:
✔️ Neutralizing antibody (nAbs) levels and vaccine efficacy / effectiveness (VE) against mild Omicron infections decline significantly after >180 days
✔️ VE against severe or fatal COVID-19 stays >75% even when nAbs hit assay limits
✔️ Detectable nAb titers are not always sensitive enough to fully predict protection against severe disease and death from SARS-CoV-2
This study provides critical insights for long-term immunity understanding, booster strategies, and future vaccine development.
📄Paper now published in Nature Communications: bit.ly/4dMZCPR
@TimkTsang @bencowling88
#HKU #HKUMed #HKUSPH #HKUPublicHealth #PublicHealth #Research #vaccine #COVID19 #VaccineResearch #NeutralizingAntibodies
Tim Tsang retweeted
(1/5) I would like to highlight one very interesting secondary observation about the impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions, from the data collected in the CENTERSTONE trial ...
Just out at NEJM - our report with @arnold_monto and other collaborators on the CENTERSTONE trial nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NE… provides the first robust evidence that an influenza antiviral treatment (baloxavir marboxil) can curb the spread of influenza within households. This double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial enrolled 1,457 influenza-positive index cases and 2,681 household contacts across 15 countries from 2019 to 2024. The index cases, aged 5 to 64 years, were assigned to receive either baloxavir or a placebo within 48 hours of symptom onset. The primary endpoint was laboratory-confirmed influenza transmission to household contacts by day 5. Treatment with baloxavir reduced the odds of untreated household members contracting the virus by 32%.
An adaptive weight ensemble approach to forecast influenza activity in an irregular seasonality context dlvr.it/TF1bn0 #MachineLearning #Fluforecast
Tim Tsang retweeted
Amazing review of studies defining burden of RVI in South Africa - developed to inform vaccine policy updates from Cheryl Cohen @nicd_sa @options2024
Tim Tsang retweeted
Watching @AubreeGordonPhD give a fantastic talk on the dynamics of flu infections in her extensive pediatric cohorts. Answering important questions about the length of infection-associated protection (infection protects better and longer than vaccination—hope for better vaccines!
Tim Tsang retweeted
Age and fever symptoms can help identify highly contagious influenza patients. Our research at #HKUSPH helps control and prevent flu transmission. Check it out👉🌍Original source:
orientaldaily.on.cc/content/…
Tim Tsang retweeted
Our recent study reassessed the lift of universal masks mandate suggested no evidence that such lift reduced SARS-CoV-2 transmission in schools. However, we revealed a significant difference when using incidence or transmissibility as outcome measurement. academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/a…
Reconstructing household transmission dynamics to estimate the infectiousness of asymptomatic influenza virus infections | PNAS pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pna…
Tim Tsang retweeted
Fantastic opening to our 3-day international conference this morning #immunity2023 with many excellent presentations including opening talks by Malik Peiris and Maria Van Kerkove
Tim Tsang retweeted
our Cobovax study observed similar incidences of omicron BA.2 infection across diff vaccination groups despite weak neutralising antibodies to BA.2 in 3rd-dose CoronaVac recipients, suggesting nAbs may not be appropriate correlates of protection for inactivated COVID-19 vaccines
New research article>
Comparative antibody and cell-mediated immune responses, reactogenicity, and efficacy of homologous and heterologous boosting with CoronaVac and BNT162b2 (Cobovax): an open-label, randomised trial
thelancet.com/journals/lanmi…
#COVID19
ALT Background Few trials have compared homologous and heterologous third doses of COVID-19 vaccination with inactivated vaccines and mRNA vaccines. The aim of this study was to assess immune responses, safety, and efficacy against SARS-CoV-2 infection following homologous or heterologous third-dose COVID-19 vaccination with either one dose of CoronaVac (Sinovac Biotech; inactivated vaccine) or BNT162b2 (Fosun Pharma–BioNTech; mRNA vaccine). … Interpretation Similar levels of incidence of, presumably, omicron BA.2 infections were observed in each group despite very weak antibody responses to BA.2 in the recipients of a CoronaVac third dose. Further research is warranted to identify appropriate correlates of protection for inactivated COVID-19 vaccines.
Tim Tsang retweeted
How should we interpret recent patterns of SARS-CoV-2 evolution, from EG.5 to the new BA.2 descendent? What can we learn from other viruses? And where might things being heading next? I discuss some of the key ideas and research: kucharski.substack.com/p/wha…
Tim Tsang retweeted
A #HKUSPH research observes high mortality during the Omicron BA.2 wave in Hong Kong due to lower vaccine coverage (42%) among adults ≥65 years old.
⬆ in antiviral usage & vaccination uptake over time in 2022 was associated with ⬇ case fatality risks.
medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/…
Tim Tsang retweeted
A subset of individuals with SARS-CoV-2 are three times more likely to spread the virus to other individuals than the average person. elifesciences.org/articles/8…
ALT A woman wearing a blue surgical facemask
Tim Tsang retweeted
A #HKUSPH & @UChicago research on childhood immune imprinting studied data in Hong Kong and finds:
▪those imprinted to H1N1/H2N2 ➡17% lower risk of getting H1N1
▪if imprinted to H3N2 ➡12% lower risk
@TimkTsang @sarahcobey @bencowling88
@JIDJournal:bit.ly/3Xvml9M
Tim Tsang retweeted
JMIR Public Health: Monitoring School Absenteeism for #Influenza-Like Illness #Surveillance: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis dlvr.it/Sgk59n
Tim Tsang retweeted
Association between population-level factors and household secondary attack rate of SARS-CoV-2: A systematic review and meta-analysis
✅ Just Accepted
🔓 Open Access
🔗 bit.ly/3WdxQ5A
Tim Tsang retweeted
The impact of ending ‘zero COVID’ in China.
World View from @bencowling88, @HKUniversity
nature.com/articles/d41591-0…
Tim Tsang retweeted
Our new Fluscape work is out @eLife. We reported long term intrinsic cycles in individual antibody responses against 21 A(H3N2) strains that were isolated between 1968 and 2014. doi.org/10.7554/eLife.81457
