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Students use AI technology to find new brain tumor therapy targets — with a goal of fighting disease faster

Glioblastoma is one of the deadliest types of brain cancer, with the average patient living only eight months after diagnosis, according to the National Brain Tumor Society, a nonprofit. 

Two ambitious high school students — Andrea Olsen, 18, from Oslo, Norway, and Zachary Harpaz, 16, from Fort Lauderdale, Florida — are looking to change that. 

The teens partnered with Insilico Medicine, a Hong Kong-based medical technology company, to identify three new target genes linked to glioblastoma and aging. 

They used Insilico’s artificial intelligence platform, PandaOmics, to make the discovery — and now, they plan to continue researching ways to fight the disease with new drugs. 

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Their findings about target genes were published on April 26 in Aging, a peer-reviewed biomedical academic journal. 

A third high school student, Christopher Ren from Shanghai, China, also contributed to the research.

Olsen, who attends Sevenoaks School in the U.K., has been studying neuroscience since 2020.

Two high-school students — Andrea Olsen, 18, from Oslo, Norway, and Zachary Harpaz, 16, from Fort Lauderdale, Florida — used Insilico Medicine’s AI tech to identify genes linked to glioblastoma and aging.  (Andrea Olsen and Zach Harpaz)

She began an internship in 2021 with Insilico, where she learned to use AI to uncover new genetic targets to treat aging and cancer.

“It was there that I started this big investigation into glioblastoma and using AI to research it,” she told Fox News Digital in an interview.

Meanwhile, at Pine Crest High School in Fort Lauderdale, Harpaz — who had been focusing on computer science and biology — was looking to get into medical research. 

“There’s definitely a way to use artificial intelligence to speed up the study.”

He chose to study glioblastoma in part because a childhood friend of his had the disease.

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“I saw how long studies like these take — in the lab, target discoveries can take five years — and I thought to myself, ‘There’s definitely a way to use artificial intelligence to speed up the study and also make an impact as a high schooler,'” he told Fox News Digital. 

Harpaz came across Insilico Medicine and reached out to the CEO, Dr. Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, in Dubai — who connected him with Olsen.

The two students began collaborating on the glioblastoma project. Ultimately, they discovered the three new target brain tumor genes — CNGA3, GLUD1 and SIRT1. 

“I think this is one of the most important uses for data — sharing diseases and making people’s lives better.”

The genes inside the brain tumors are called “targets,” which are areas that the drugs would hone in on to stop the disease.

“Basically, a target is some driving factor for a cancer or a different disease, where if you can inhibit it or turn it on or off, you can stop the cancer growth and cure the disease,” Harpaz explained.

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“That’s really awesome compared to a normal chemotherapy, where it attacks every fast-growing cell and is really damaging to other parts of the body other than the cancer.”

Zach Harpaz, 16, presented his findings at the International Forum on Research Excellence (IFoRE) in Alexandria, Virginia, in 2022. The two teenagers plan to build on their findings with continued research into new drugs to fight glioblastoma.  (Zach Harpaz)

The teens presented their findings at the Aging Research and Drug Discovery (ARDD) conference in Copenhagen last fall.

The students now plan to build on their findings with continued research into new drugs to fight the disease. 

‘Analyzing trillions of data points’

Zhavoronkov, Insilico Medicine’s CEO, explained to Fox News Digital how the PandaOmics system uses generative AI to identify therapeutic targets associated with any given disease.

Dr. Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, the CEO of Insilico Medicine, helped to connect Olsen and Harpaz in their research. (Dr. Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD)

“It finds these new disease targets by analyzing trillions of data points, including human biological data and data from scientific publications, clinical trials and grant applications,” he said.

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“It scores the targets on factors like novelty (how unique is it?), druggability (can it be easily drugged?) and safety — so scientists know immediately which targets are best to pursue.”

Insilico has used the AI system to identify new targets for cancer, fibrosis, chronic kidney disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), among other diseases, Zhavoronkov said. 

The company also has 31 AI-designed drugs in the pipeline, including one for COVID-19 and another for pulmonary fibrosis.

Andrea Olsen, 18, of Norway presented her work at the Aging Research & Drug Discovery Meeting in 2022 at the University of Copenhagen. Glioblastoma is one of the diseases for which researchers have the least amount of data, she said.  (Andrea Olsen)

‘All about the data’

To find the new therapeutic targets, the students used Insilico’s AI platform to screen data from the Gene Expression Omnibus, a repository of data that the National Center for Biotechnology Information in Bethesda, Maryland, maintains.

“It’s all about data,” Harpaz told Fox News Digital. “And I think that’s one of the most important uses for data — sharing diseases and making people’s lives better.” 

Glioblastoma is one of the diseases for which researchers have the least amount of data, said Olsen.

“That’s why it’s so hard to analyze and come up with new therapies,” she said. 

“Therefore, a really good call to action would be to get more patients to submit their medical information so that their genetic sequences can be analyzed to help prevent such diseases in the future.”

Connection between aging and cancer

Cancer disproportionately affects older people. 

More than 50% of people who have cancer are 65 or older, according to data from the World Health Organization. 

That link inspired Olsen and Harpaz to focus their efforts on target genes for both aging and glioblastoma.

Zach Harpaz, 16, from Florida presented his findings at the Aging Research & Drug Discovery Meeting in 2022 at the University of Copenhagen. “As you age, your risk for cancer grows, along with many different diseases,” he told Fox News Digital about his work.  (Zach Harpaz)

“Aging is the leading cause for tons of diseases like cancer,” Harpaz said. 

“As you age, your risk for cancer grows, along with many different diseases. So if we can figure out a way to prevent all the negative effects of aging and keep you in your prime as you age, that could prevent a lot of diseases and increase the quality of life in general.”

AI’s potential to transform health care

Insilico founder Zhavoronkov said he is optimistic that AI can transform nearly every facet of health care and medicine. 

That includes disease prediction, disease identification, target discovery and the development of new drugs, he said.

“In traditional drug discovery, it takes over 10 years and costs around $2 billion to bring one drug to market — and 90% of drug candidates fail during human trials,” he told Fox News Digital. 

“This high cost and slow speed is preventing new life-saving medications from reaching patients.”

“I expect AI to play a major role in advancing personalized medicine.”

AI is already used to help screen patients to identify diseases, to make predictions and to monitor progress, the doctor said. 

“Eventually, I expect AI to play a major role in advancing personalized medicine, in which treatments are tailored to a specific patient based on their individual profile,” he added.

‘Human scientists are essential’

Although he is optimistic about AI’s potential to improve the speed and quality of health care, Zhavoronkov recognizes that technology cannot replace humans’ contributions.

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“Even as AI can take on more tedious and repetitive work, allowing us to accelerate the pace of discovery, human scientists are essential,” he told Fox News Digital. 

Andrea Olsen, 18 (far right), attends The Longevity Forum at the University of Oxford in 2022. (Andrea Olsen)

“Humans are the real brains behind the machines.”

He also said, “There is a lot of fear and speculation about AI and robots replacing humans, but in reality, humans are harnessing the power of technology to do specific tasks more quickly and efficiently, just as we always have.”

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“The only difference is that with AI, the level of complexity of the tasks it can accomplish has increased exponentially,” said Zhavoronkov.  

Melissa Rudy is health editor and a member of the lifestyle team at Fox News Digital. 

Hong Kong reports record COVID-19 cases; movements could be restricted

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Hong Kong’s leader on Wednesday said people’s movements may be restricted during mandatory testing this month of the entire population for the coronavirus, as health officials reported a record 55,353 daily infections and over a hundred deaths.

Chief executive Carrie Lam said authorities are still refining the plan, but that there would be no “complete” lockdown that would prevent entry and exit from the city.

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“The extent of it must take into account Hong Kong’s circumstances and people’s needs,” she told reporters.

Hong Kong is planning to test its more than 7 million residents as it grapples with soaring numbers of COVID-19 cases in its worst outbreak of the pandemic, linked largely to the omicron variant.

Workers from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, move a corpse from the mortuary to the coffin van at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. Some hospitals in Hong Kong are currently being overloaded with possible COVID-infected patients. (AP Photo/Janice Lo)

Officials on Wednesday reported 117 deaths, taking the total number above 1,000. About 80% of the deaths have occurred since late December. Most involved elderly patients who were not fully vaccinated.

“We recorded about 55,000 infections today, which is within our expectation. Recently every two or three days the number of confirmed cases is doubling,” said Albert Au, a health officer with the Centre for Health Protection. He said cases have not yet peaked.

U.S. authorities on Wednesday warned Americans against traveling to Hong Kong, with the State Department raising its travel advisory to Level 4 — Do Not Travel — because of rising cases and restrictions imposed by the city and mainland China under their “zero-tolerance” policy toward the coronavirus.

HONG KONG ORDERS MANDATORY COVID-19 TESTS FOR ALL RESIDENTS

“We especially want to note for families considering traveling to or residing in Hong Kong that in some cases, children in Hong Kong who test positive have been separated from their parents and kept in isolation until they meet local hospital discharge requirements,” the travel advisory said.

The surge is threatening to overwhelm Hong Kong’s hospitals, with officials saying they have reached maximum bed capacity and some general wards are being converted into isolation areas.

Public mortuaries have also reached full capacity, and help is being sought from the private sector to store bodies, officials say. The Hospital Authority has also ordered refrigerated containers to temporarily store bodies, health officials said.

An aerial view shows a construction site of a new makeshift COVID-19 hospital and isolation facilities, in Tsing Yi of Hong Kong, Wednesday, March 2, 2022.   (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Supermarket shelves were wiped bare this week as residents stockpiled daily necessities after reports spread of a possible citywide lockdown. Authorities have called for calm and reassured people that food supplies are normal.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin backed Hong Kong’s virus control measures.

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Wang said the measures “are necessary, science-based and responsible to effectively prevent and control the epidemic and ensure the health of Hong Kong residents and foreigners in Hong Kong.”

“We believe that the relevant measures will further build up the international community’s confidence in Hong Kong’s epidemic control, ensure Hong Kong’s safe and orderly interaction with the international community, and provide a more secure and stable business environment for international investors in Hong Kong,” Wang said at a daily briefing Wednesday.

Joe Exotic, Assange, Snowden: Here’s who wanted a Trump pardon but didn’t get one

Although former President Donald Trump issued more than 73 pardons and 70 commutations before his departure from the White House on Wednesday, some popular names were not included on the list. 

Recipients included former White House adviser Steve Bannon, former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, and rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black.

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Bannon is awaiting trial after allegedly defrauding Trump-supporting donors, Kilpatrick has served part of a 28-year sentence on corruption charges, and Lil Wayne and Kodak Black — whose real names are Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. and Bill Kapri, respectively — have been convicted on weapons-related charges.

Although there were questions raised as to whether or not Trump would pardon himself or his family members on the way out the door, sources told Fox News that he was not expected to do so and did not before President Biden was sworn in on Wednesday afternoon.

Joe Exotic 

Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as “Joe Exotic” from Netflix’s “Tiger King” documentary series, did not receive a pardon, though his team had reported on Monday they were “confident” one would be forthcoming.

“We will be standing by waiting for President Trump’s confirmation of the Tiger King Joe Exotic,” private investigator Eric Love, who is part of Exotic’s legal team, said Tuesday. “Much love to the fans. Thank you so much for all the support. God bless. We’ll see you as soon as we get the pardon.”

Love had been waiting inside a limousine to pick Maldonado-Passage up from a Texas prison if he was pardoned, according to KFOR-TV. He said that they had brought supplies for “hair, makeup, wardrobes” in addition to a doctor and mental health expert in the event of his release.

Maldonado-Passage, 57, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for his role in a murder-for-hire plot that targeted his rival, Carole Baskin. 

This file photo provided by the Santa Rosa County Jail in Milton, Fla., shows Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as “Joe Exotic.” Maldonado-Passage was convicted in an unsuccessful murder-for-hire plot against Carole Baskin, the founder of Big Cat Rescue, who he has repeatedly accused of killing her husband Jack “Don” Lewis. Lewis’ unsolved 1997 disappearance and Maldonado-Passage’s accusations are the subject of new Netflix series “Tiger King.” (Santa Rosa County Jail via AP, File)

Julian Assange

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, 49, was also not on the list, though both “Baywatch” star Pamela Anderson and whistleblower Edward Snowden appealed to Trump.

The jailed publisher is being held in London following his eviction from the Ecuadorian Embassy, where he had been living in 2019.

Earlier this month, U.K. District Judge Vanessa Baraitser ruled against a request to extradite Assange to the U.S. where he faces espionage charges after publishing classified intelligence more than a decade ago. 

The charges carry a maximum sentence of 175 years in prison.

The judge cited Assange’s mental health in the decision.

“We are enormously gratified by the U.K. court’s decision denying extradition,” Barry Pollack — a Washington, D.C.-based lawyer for Assange, told Fox News in a statement. “The effort by the United States to prosecute Julian Assange and seek his extradition was ill-advised from the start.”

The U.S. Government has since lodged an appeal against the decision to block his extradition.

Assange’s mother, Christine Assange, said she was “not shocked, just disappointed” by Trump’s decision.

“Courage is not always contagious,” she tweeted.

Edward Snowden

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden also faces a sentence of up to 175 years in prison if convicted on charges of violating the Espionage Act, conspiring to hack government computers, and “unlawfully obtaining and disclosing classified documents related to the national defense.”

The 37-year-old fled the U.S. after leaking agency files in 2013 and was later given asylum in Russia.

In November, Snowden announced that he and his wife would apply for Russian citizenship for the sake of their family and ahead of the birth of their child.

Although many were opposed to a pardon for Snowden, Trump said he was considering granting clemency in August.

Following the White House’s release of the list of pardons, Snowden tweeted that he was “not at all disappointed to go unpardoned by a man who has never known a love he had not paid for.”

“But what supporters of his remain must never forgive that this simpering creature failed to pardon truth-tellers in far more desperate circumstances,” he said.

Ross Ulbricht

Ross Ulbricht, the founder of darknet website Silk Road, was reportedly considered for a pardon last month but also absent from Trump’s list. 

Silk Road reportedly enabled users to mask their identities while purchasing illegal goods. 

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-W.Va., has been a vocal advocate for pardoning both Ulbricht and Snowden.

Supporters of President Trump are confronted by U.S. Capitol Police officers outside the Senate Chamber inside the Capitol in Washington. An Arizona man seen in photos and video of the mob wearing a fur hat with horns was also charged Saturday in Wednesday’s chaos. Jacob Anthony Chansley, who also goes by the name Jake Angeli, was taken into custody Saturday, Jan. 9. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

‘QAnon Shaman’

Jacob Anthony Chansley, who goes by Jake Angeli, was also not pardoned this week — though his attorney Albert Watkins said that it would be “appropriate and honorable” to do so.

Chansley, 33, was nicknamed “QAnon Shaman” after he was pictured in viral photos storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 wearing face paint and a bearskin headdress with horns.

Last week, Chansley was charged in a federal court with civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding, disorderly conduct in a restricted building, demonstrating in a Capitol building, entering a restricted building without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

In a previous statement, Watkins said that his client had not participated in violence and had “accepted President Trump’s invitation to walk down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol.”

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Chansley is currently being held in a federal facility in Phoenix.

No one in connection with the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol received a pardon.

“No one was holding their breath on the request and, as such, there is no need to exhale,” Watkins said, according to KMOV.

Fox News’ Brie Stimson, Greg Norman and Sam Dorman contributed to this report.

NBA pulls custom gear from online store following ‘Free Hong Kong’ controversy

Customers can no longer order personalized apparel from the NBA‘s online store following major backlash the league received for not allowing “Free Hong Kong” to be printed on its gear.

On Monday, the NBA was swept into controversy after a viral video showed that the online store could not process orders that used the text “FreeHongKong.” Hours later, the store’s operator Fanatics reversed what it suggested was a technical error that prompted the phrase to be “inadvertently prohibited.”

However, days after the incident, customers cannot find customizable apparel on both Fanatics and the NBA’s online stores. And returning to pages of specific jerseys showed that the products had been “discontinued.”

An NBA spokesperson confirmed to Fox News that ordering personalized apparel has been “disabled.”

“Based on attempts to include violent, abusive and hateful messages on personalized NBA jerseys, the personalization feature has been disabled on NBAStore.com,” the spokesperson said. “Fanatics, the operator of our online store, is conducting a further review to establish appropriate safeguards and ensure that this feature is not used to promote violence, hate or abuse of any kind.”

NBA REVERSES, ALLOWS ‘FREEHONGKONG’ TO BE PRINTED ON CUSTOM GEAR FOLLOWING BACKLASH

Some of the league’s critics previously pointed out amid the “FreeHongKong” uproar that customers were able to order gear with the text “Kill Cops” without any problem.

However, customized gear from other leagues like the NFL and MLB is still available from Fanatics and it appears customers are blocked from printing hateful messages as the page notifies “We are unable to customize this item with the text you have entered” when typing in “Kill Cops.”

The NBA did not immediately respond to Fox News’ additional request for comment.

A video shared by a Twitter user named Vince on Sunday evening went viral showing his attempt to order a custom T-shirt with text that reads “FreeHongKong” on the site Fanatics.com, which has direct ties to all major sports leagues including the NBA.

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“We are unable to customize this item with the text you have entered. Please try a different entry,” the error message reads at the bottom.

However, Vince was able to successfully request “FreeHongKonu,” changing the last letter to a “u” from a “g.”

“Whatsup @NBA @Fanatics,” Vince asked.

Fox News was able to confirm on both Fanatics and NBA’s own online store that “FreeHongKong” was not able be printed on the shirt. The custom gear only allowed 12 characters and the site did allow “Hong Kong” and “HongKongFree” to be printed.

As The Daily Caller’s Peter J. Hasson pointed out, “FreeAmerica,” “FreeCanada,” “FreeMexico,” and “FreeTaiwan” were also allowed to be printed on the gear.

The apparent ban received swift condemnation from high-profile Republicans like Senators Josh Hawley of Missouri and Rick Scott of Florida as well as Donald Trump Jr., all accusing the league of being too cozy with China.

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The subject of the NBA’s close ties to China was renewed last week after ESPN’s prominent NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski sent Sen. Hawley a profane response to the lawmaker’s criticism of the league’s decision of “pre-approved, social justice slogans” while “censoring support” for law enforcement and criticism of the Chinese Communist Party.

Wojnarowski apologized to Hawley, and ESPN later suspended the reporter.

Bradley Whitford slams NBA over lack of action in China-Hong Kong unrest

Bradley Whitford is holding the NBA accountable amid the continuing civil unrest in Hong Kong.

Last fall, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey expressed support for protesters in Hong Kong who were demonstrating opposition to a proposed law that could see citizens extradited to mainland China despite maintaining a degree of autonomy from the country at large.

The tweet caught backlash from China, where basketball is very popular, and various sponsors, leagues, partners and streaming services cut ties with the Rockets and the NBA over the message.

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In the following days, the NBA released a statement in which they noted that the tweet “deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable,” seemingly condemning Morey’s message.

Now, Whitford, 60, has condemned the NBA’s recent silence on the matter.

“Hey @NBA. Do you care about what’s happening in Hong Kong? Or the fact that the Chinese are building concentration camps for the Uighurs?” the Emmy winner tweeted on Monday. “Or do you only take principled stands if they won’t hurt your bottom line?”

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Whitford’s comments come as Hong Kong has once again entered the global spotlight after China passed a new security law with consequences similar to the previously proposed bill. The new law has been critiqued for its limitations on Hong Kong’s previously promised autonomy.

Many followers expressed support for Whitford’s sentiments in their comments on his post.

Protesters against the new national security law gesture with five fingers, signifying the “Five demands – not one less” on the anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China from Britain in Hong Kong, Wednesday, July. 1, 2020. Hong Kong marked the 23rd anniversary of its handover to China in 1997, and just one day after China enacted a national security law that cracks down on protests in the territory. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

“They only care for the money, not the human rights,” wrote one Twitter user. “That should have been clear when they threw Rockets GM Morey under the bus for supporting the HK protests last year.”

“Let’s be real, they don’t care and don’t want to be involved,” stated another.

A third added: “Thank you. I amazed that no one speaks on the fact that they are being enslaved, raped, reprogrammed all the while companies like @nike, @Apple and the @nba turn a blind eye. It’s always about the bottom line. I stopped supporting the NBA last year when they defended China.

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Reports recently surfaced stating that the NBA’s relationship with China’s state-run TV is still on the rocks.

Reps for the NBA did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.

Coronavirus lockdown measures should not be lifted until vaccine found, study says

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A new study says that despite stay-at-home measures being successful in flattening the curve of the coronavirus pandemic, any easing of restrictions could be counterintuitive prior to a vaccine being discovered.

“The first wave of COVID-19 outside of Hubei has abated because of aggressive non-pharmaceutical interventions,” the researchers wrote in the study. “However, given the substantial risk of viral reintroduction, particularly from overseas importation, close monitoring of [reproduction number] and [confirmed case-fatality risk] is needed to inform strategies against a potential second wave to achieve an optimal balance between health and economic protection.”

The research was published in the scientific journal The Lancet.

A passenger wearing a face mask and protective suit, amid concerns of the COVID-19 coronavirus, talks on his phone in the arrivals hall at Hong Kong International Airport on April 4, 2020. (Photo by DALE DE LA REY/AFP via Getty Images)

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The reproduction number is the number of people that one person can infect, which the authors found has dropped from between two and three to “below [one].”

The confirmed case-fatality risk, also known as the case-fatality risk, is defined as the “proportion of deaths within a defined population of interest,” measuring “the severity of the disease that causes death.”

A similar study published last month said a “second wave” could come in China if social distancing was ended too soon in Wuhan.

The research, also published in The Lancet, notes that keeping the social distancing measures in place until early April could delay the “second wave” until early October. If the ban were lifted too soon, it could happen as soon as August.

China lifted the lockdown on Wuhan, a city with more than 11 million residents, on Wednesday. Fox News previously reported that travel restrictions were relaxed in the city.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently told Fox News the decline in deaths can be attributed to social distancing, but that “you don’t want to let up at a time that’s premature.”

He added that progress for a “safe” COVID-19 vaccine would take over one year. “The vaccine as I’ve been saying over the past several weeks, we got into a clinician trial faster than ever,” Fauci said, adding a couple of other candidates are in phase 1 trials.

“It’s going to take about a year to a year and a half,” Fauci added. “In general, if you want to do it correctly, it takes about a year to a year and a half.”

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Currently, there is no known scientific cure for the disease known as COVID-19 that is ravaging the globe. There are, however, a multitude of different attempts to treat it, including various vaccines in different stages of testing.

Othe experimental measures, including drugs approved for other use cases and plasma transfusion from recovered COVID-19 patients, are also being researched.

As of Thursday morning, more than 1.49 million coronavirus cases had been diagnosed worldwide, including more than 432,000 in the U.S., the most impacted country in the world.

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Hong Kong coronavirus battle includes banning all tourist arrivals, halting alcohol sales at bars, restaurants

All tourist arrivals to the global financial center of Hong Kong will be banned from entering for two weeks amid a spike of imported cases of coronavirus as officials took additional steps Monday to contain the spread of the virus.

The semi-autonomous Chinese territory announced Monday that foreign non-residents will be barred from entering for 14 days, starting on Wednesday.

The Asian financial hub will also ban travelers from mainland China, along with the nearby Chinese region of Macao and the self-governing island of Taiwan that is claimed by Beijing, if they have visited foreign countries over the past two weeks.

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As of Monday morning, Hong Kong had 356 confirmed COVID-19 cases and four deaths according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Of the 356 cases, 252 are still active while some 100 people have recovered, according to the tally.

Passengers wear protective suits and face masks as they arrive at the Hong Kong airport, Monday, March 23, 2020.
(AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who pledged to “fight the battle seriously and have confidence to win one day,” also said the government would amend the law to suspend the sale of alcohol in licensed bars and restaurants in the city.

Passengers wear protective suits and face masks to protect themselves from possibly contracting the coronavirus after arriving at the Hong Kong airport, Monday, March 23, 2020.
(AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

“In restaurants, meals can still be served [without alcohol] … But in bars, people sometimes get intimate after drinking, and this will raise the risk of cross-infection,” Lam said Monday, according to the South China Morning Post.

People wearing face masks walk at a downtown street in Hong Kong Monday, March 16, 2020.
(AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

Lam’s did not have a specific date when the new regulations would be implemented, but health officials told the Morning Post that nine of the COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong were known to have visited bars and restaurants in the city’s nightlife district.

CORONAVIRUS IN ITALY SPURS HARDEST-HIT REGION TO SET STRICT DISTANCE LIMIT ON DOG WALKING

Hong Kong is not the only place in the region to enact travel restrictions as the coronavirus outbreak has spread to Europe and the U.S.

Taiwan said on Monday it will ban airline passenger transits through the country starting Tuesday through April 7.

Taiwan confirmed 26 more COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the island to 195.

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With the crisis easing in China, where it began late last year, only the area around the city of Wuhan was still considered high-risk, with people asked to stay inside.


 


Worldwide, nearly 350,000 people have been infected and 15,000 have died from the virus. Over 100,000 people have recovered, mostly in China.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Dog tests ‘weak positive’ for coronavirus in Hong Kong, first possible infection in pet

The pet dog of a coronavirus patient was placed in quarantine on Wednesday after testing “weak positive” for the virus in Hong Kong, according to a government press release on Friday.

If confirmed, it would mark the first case of the virus in a pet animal, as infected numbers topped 82,000 worldwide on Friday and sent U.S. stock markets to their biggest daily drop in history yesterday.

“At present, the AFCD [Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department] does not have evidence that pet animals can be infected with COVID-19 virus or can be a source of infection to people,” a department spokesman said.

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A woman pushes a stroller with two dogs [both not the “weak positive” dog] wearing masks along a street in Shanghai on February 19, 2020. (Photo by NOEL CELIS / AFP) (Photo by NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

AFCD staff picked up the dog from an apartment in the city and sent it to an animal keeping facility where oral, nasal and rectal samples were collected — that tested positive for low levels of COVID-19. The dog doesn’t have any symptoms of the virus, but the virus can reportedly spread without them showing up.

Further samples will be collected by the AFCD to confirm if the dog really was infected or if the positive test was a result of “environmental contamination” of the animal’s mouth and nose, the spokesman said. The pet will be closely monitored.

The department “strongly advise[d]” that the pets of patients infected with the virus should be placed in quarantine for 14 days — COVID-19’s reported incubation period.

SOME CALIFORNIA HEALTH WORKERS HELD IN ISOLATION, QUARANTINE AFTER EXPOSURE TO CORONAVIRUS PATIENT, OFFICIALS SAY

The news brings more uncertainty over the virus, as officials have yet to determine its origin or understand how an infected person could be determined healthy and later test positive — like the recent case in Japan on Thursday.

Pet owners are advised to maintain a good habit of hygiene and wash their hands “thoroughly” with soap or alcohol sanitizer after touching their animals.

“If there are any changes in the health condition of the pets, advice from veterinarians should be sought as soon as possible,” the spokesman said.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE  CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

No other animals are currently at the facility, according to the AFCD release.

Dog tests ‘weak positive’ for coronavirus in Hong Kong, first possible infection in pet

The pet dog of a coronavirus patient was placed in quarantine on Wednesday after testing “weak positive” for the virus in Hong Kong, according to a government press release on Friday.

If confirmed, it would mark the first case of the virus in a pet animal, as infected numbers topped 82,000 worldwide on Friday and sent U.S. stock markets to their biggest daily drop in history yesterday.

“At present, the AFCD [Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department] does not have evidence that pet animals can be infected with COVID-19 virus or can be a source of infection to people,” a department spokesman said.

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A woman pushes a stroller with two dogs [both not the “weak positive” dog] wearing masks along a street in Shanghai on February 19, 2020. (Photo by NOEL CELIS / AFP) (Photo by NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

AFCD staff picked up the dog from an apartment in the city and sent it to an animal keeping facility where oral, nasal and rectal samples were collected — that tested positive for low levels of COVID-19. The dog doesn’t have any symptoms of the virus, but the virus can reportedly spread without them showing up.

Further samples will be collected by the AFCD to confirm if the dog really was infected or if the positive test was a result of “environmental contamination” of the animal’s mouth and nose, the spokesman said. The pet will be closely monitored.

The department “strongly advise[d]” that the pets of patients infected with the virus should be placed in quarantine for 14 days — COVID-19’s reported incubation period.

SOME CALIFORNIA HEALTH WORKERS HELD IN ISOLATION, QUARANTINE AFTER EXPOSURE TO CORONAVIRUS PATIENT, OFFICIALS SAY

The news brings more uncertainty over the virus, as officials have yet to determine its origin or understand how an infected person could be determined healthy and later test positive — like the recent case in Japan on Thursday.

Pet owners are advised to maintain a good habit of hygiene and wash their hands “thoroughly” with soap or alcohol sanitizer after touching their animals.

“If there are any changes in the health condition of the pets, advice from veterinarians should be sought as soon as possible,” the spokesman said.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE  CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

No other animals are currently at the facility, according to the AFCD release.

Coronavirus panic led to Hong Kong toilet paper theft at knifepoint: police

Two masked thieves in Hong Kong were arrested Monday after holding a delivery man at knifepoint and stealing hundreds of rolls of toilet paper, as panic over a lack of supplies grows in the world financial hub currently fending off the widespread outbreak of the coronavirus on the Chinese mainland.

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A group of three men wearing masks approached a delivery man around 6 a.m. local time outside the Wellcome Supermarket in Hong Kong’s Mong Kok district. One man wielded a knife. They then stole more than 600 rolls of toilet paper worth about $130 from the delivery truck, police said.

Two of the men were later arrested, police said. Hong Kong authorities said they also recovered the stolen toilet paper. Police are still searching for a third man involved. The robbery took place in an area of Hong Kong known for its history of “triad” crime gangs, BBC News reported.

People queue up to buy face masks in Hong Kong, Friday, Feb. 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

According to local officials, there have been 58 confirmed cases of the novel strain of coronavirus, known as COVID-19, in Hong Kong. Authorities have tried to quiet fears over a lack of supplies in the city and have urged residents not to buy supplies like toilet paper in bulk. One person died in Hong Kong last week after becoming ill with the virus – the first death in the city.

Social media images showed Hong Kong residents hoarding supplies in their small apartments, the New York Post reported. The supermarket where the robbery occurred denounced the “senseless” toilet paper heist, assuring residents that recent, temporary shortages were caused by people overbuying.

“We want to emphasize that we have sufficient toilet roll supply to meet demand,” Wellcome Supermarket said in a statement. “The temporary shortage was caused by the sudden and unusual surge in demand.”

At least five people have died outside of mainland China from the virus. In total, more than 70,500 people in China have been infected with COVID-19 and 1,770 have died on the mainland, Chinese officials said.

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On Monday, China’s National Health Commission announced 105 new deaths over the past 24 hours. Most of those deaths were in the Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak, but three new deaths were recorded in neighboring Henan Province and two in Guangdong, the province next to Hong Kong.