Levy Library Blog

Each month Levy Library showcases the achievements of Mount Sinai faculty and researchers by highlighting an article and its altmetrics. Altmetrics are alternative measures of impact that capture non-traditional data like abstract views, article downloads, and social media activity. Our altmetrics data is provided by the PlumX platform. 

This month we highlight Breakthrough infections with SARS-CoV-2 omicron despite mRNA vaccine booster dose. This article was written in part by Megan L Shaw, PhD.

The most recent SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern to emerge has been named omicron. Its immune evasion potential was predicted by genomic data and has been preliminarily confirmed by observations of an increased incidence of reinfections and breakthrough infections. This has triggered calls to intensify vaccination programs including provision of vaccine booster doses. 

A group of German visitors who had received three doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, including at least two doses of an mRNA vaccine, experienced breakthrough infections with omicron between late November and early December, 2021, while in Cape Town, South Africa. The group consisted of five White women and two White men with an average age of 27·7 years (range 25–39) and a mean body-mass index of 22·2 kg/m2 (range 17·9–29·4), with no relevant medical history. Four of the individuals were participating in clinical elective training at different hospitals in Cape Town, whereas the others were on vacation. The individuals were members of two unlinked social groups and participated in regular social life in Cape Town, in compliance with applicable COVID-19 protocols. Upon arrival during the first half of November, 2021, each individual tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 by PCR and provided records of complete vaccination, including booster or third, doses administered via intramuscular injection using homologous (n=5) and heterologous (n=2) vaccination courses 

Six individuals were fully vaccinated with BNT162b2 (Comirnaty, Pfizer–BioNTech, Mainz, Germany), five of whom received a third (booster) dose of BNT162b2 in October or early November, 2021. One individual had received a full dose of CX-024414 (Spikevax, Moderna, Cambridge, MA, USA) in early October, 2021; this was not in line with the European Medicines Agency recommendations at that time, which suggested a half dose to boost healthy individuals. The seventh individual received an initial dose of ChAdOx1-S (Vaxzevria, AstraZeneca, Cambridge, UK), followed by a dose of BNT162b2 for completion of primary immunization, and a booster dose of the same vaccine. Except for the CX-024414 booster, all vaccinations were in accordance with European recommendations. The early timepoints of some individuals' primary and booster vaccinations were due to their occupation in the medical field. Nobody reported a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection...

Read more and view this article's PlumX profile here.

In honor of Pride Month, the Levy Library team has compiled a list of resources in available in our collcetion and beyond that support the health, safety, and well-being of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Plus (LGBTQ+) Individuals. Many of the books and journals listed below are available to read online right now and you can always view our entire special topics collection of LGBTQ+ Resources on our catalog or when you visit the Levy Library.

Books

• The Fenway Guide to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health
• Handbook of Evidence-Based Mental Health Practice with Sexual and Gender Minorities
• Healthcare Disparities and LGBT Population
• Pediatric Gender Identity Gender-affirming Care for Transgender & Gender Diverse Youth
• The Remedy: Queer and Trans Voices on Health and Health Care
• Transgender health : a practitioner's guide to binary and non-binary trans patient care
• Transgender Mental Health

Journals

• International Journal of Transgender Health
• Journal of Gay and Lesbian Mental Health
• Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling
• Journal of LGBT Youth
• The Journal of Sexual Medicine
• LGBT Health
• Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity
• Transgender Health

Online Resources

• CDC - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -  Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health
• CDC - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Health Considerations for LGBTQ Youth
• NIH - National Institutes of Health - Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office
• Healthypeople.gov - Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health

Publications

• 2016-2020 Strategic Plan to Advance Research on the Health and Well-being of Sexual and Gender Minorities (Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services)
• Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care for LGBTQ+ Individuals: Recent Trends and Key Challenges (Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services)
• Health Care Considerations for for Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ Indigenous Communities (Source: National LGBTQIA+ Education Center)
• Housing Health and LGBTQIA+ Older Adults | 2021 (Source: National LGBTQIA+ Education Center)
• Medical Care of Trans and Gender Diverse Adults (Source: National LGBTQIA+ Education Center)
• Measuring Sex, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation (Source: NIH - SGRMO)

Starting in June 2022, My NCBI account holders will be required to log in through one of the many listed federated account credentials. 

 If you have an My NCBI account and have not yet linked a 3rd party login to your My NCBI account, we encourage you to retire your username and password. For more information and to learn how to update your account, you can watch the My NCBI Password Retirement Update & Wizard Demonstration.

How to create/ log into your My NCBI Account

Creating or logging into an existing MyNCBI account begins with clicking the "Log In" box in the upper right-hand corner of PubMed. 

In order to create a new MyNCBI account, or to log into your existing account, you must use a "third-party login." Third party logins or federated credentials are credentials (username, password) you use on other sites such as Google, NIH, eRA Commons, ORCID, Login.gov, or Facebook. 

Existing Account: If you already have a MyNCBI account, you will be prompted to associate your account with a third-party login of your choice. Once associated, your MyNCBI username & password will be retired. 

New Account: When creating a new account, you will be asked to select from a list of third-party login options with which to associate your new account. 

ISMMS Institutional Sign-In: If you have an active ISMMS Google Suite account, you may select "more login options" at the bottom of the list and search for "Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai." You may then use your ISMMS Google account to login to your MyNCBI account. This option is only available for ISMMS users with Icahn Google Suite accounts. 

Login.gov Option: Alternatively, if you don't have an existing third party account, you can sign up for a Login.gov account which allows you to login securely across several government agency websites. Simply use select "Login.gov" from the list of third-party options and click "Create an Account." 

Once you have either created or re-authenticated your MyNCBI account with a third-party login option, you may use all of the exciting tools that MyNCBI has to offer!

For more information about NCBI account change, please visit one of the links below:

• NCBI Insights Blog: My NCBI Login Requirements
• NCBI Account Login Changes FAQs

To learn more about using NCBI, visit the library's PubMed Research Support Guide.