Investigation of outbreak cases infected with the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.640 variant in a fully vaccinated elderly population, Normandy, France, November to December 2021.

Three confirmed infections with the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.640 variant under monitoring were reported in Normandy, north-western France in late November 2021. Investigations led to the identification of two events linked to the same cluster. A total of 75 confirmed and probable B.1.640 cases were reported. All had completed the primary vaccination series. Sixty-two cases were older than 65 years. Fifty-six cases had symptoms and four were hospitalised. This investigation provides preliminary results concerning a variant with limited information currently available.

2D:4D digit ratio as a potential marker for prostate cancer risk.

BACKGROUND: The second-to-fourth digit ratio (2D:4D) is thought to reflect prenatal exposure to sex steroids. We investigated the relationship between 2D:4D and odds of prostate cancer. METHOD: Data were collected in PROtEuS, a population-based case-control study conducted in Montréal, Canada (2005-2012), including 1931 incident prostate cancer cases aged < 76 years and 1994 population controls. In-person interviews elicited information on potential risk factors. Digit lengths were measured by interviewers applying a standard protocol. Odds ratios (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using unconditional logistic regression adjusting for potential confounders. RESULTS: The OR of prostate cancer for a standard deviation increase in 2D:4D was 0.91 (95 % CI: 0.85-0.98). For less and more aggressive cancers, ORs were 0.93 (95 % CI: 0.87-1.00) and 0.85 (95 % CI: 0.77-0.93), respectively. There was an interaction with ancestry (p=0.04), whereas the OR among men of African descent was 1.23 (95 % CI: 0.96-1.57, based on 128 cases). CONCLUSION: Findings suggest an inverse association between 2D:4D and odds of overall prostate cancer, more pronounced for aggressive cancers. This supports the notion that high levels of testosterone in utero, estimated by a low 2D:4D ratio, are associated with a higher risk of prostate cancer. Contrastingly, a high digit ratio was associated with greater cancer odds among participants of African descent. Upon replication, 2D:4D could prove to be an easily measured marker of prostate cancer risk.