Covid-19 Sentry

Contents

• From Preprints
• From Clinical Trials
• From PubMed
• From Patent Search

From Preprints

• High Work-related Stress and Anxiety Response to COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers: A Cross-Sectional Online Survey Study in South Korea -
  Background: Healthcare workers experienced severe psychological impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak. It is important to establish a process of psychological assessment and interventions for healthcare workers affected by epidemics. Objective: We investigated the risk factors associated with the psychological impact of each healthcare worker group, to help optimize psychological interventions for healthcare workers in countries affected by COVID-19. Methods: Participants (N = 1,787) from two hospitals in Korea, completed an online survey from April 14 to 30, 2020, by obtaining information on demographics, psychiatric history and the Stress and Anxiety to Viral Epidemics-9 (SAVE-9), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scales. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess contributing factors as predictor variables and healthcare workers’ depression as outcome variables. Results: Among the 1,783 healthcare workers, compared with other healthcare workers, nursing professionals had significantly higher levels of depression (PHQ-9 score; 5.5 ± 4.6 vs. 3.8 ± 4.2; P < .01), general anxiety (GAD-7 score; 4.0 ± 4.1 vs. 2.7 ± 3.6; P < .01), and virus-related anxiety symptoms (SAVE-9 score; 21.6 ± 5.9 vs. 18.6 ± 6.3; P < .01). In the nursing professionals group, single workers reported more severe depressive symptoms than married workers (PHQ-9 score ≥ 10; 20.3% vs. 14.1%; P < .01), and junior (<40 years) workers reported more anxiety about the viral epidemic (SAVE-9 anxiety score; 15.6 ± 4.1 vs. 14.7 ± 4.4; P < .01). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the hospital factor (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.45, 95% confidence interval, CI [1.06-1.99]), nursing professionals (aOR = 1.37, 95% CI [1.02-1.98]), single workers (aOR = 1.51, 95% CI [1.05-2.16]), higher stress and anxiety to the viral infection (high SAVE-9 score, aOR = 1.20, 95% CI [1.17-1.24]), and past psychiatric history (aOR = 3.26, 95% CI [2.15-4.96]) were positively associated with depression. Conclusions: Psychological support and interventions should be considered for healthcare workers, especially nursing professionals, those who are single, and those with high SAVE-9 level.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: High Work-related Stress and Anxiety Response to COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers: A Cross-Sectional Online Survey Study in South Korea
• Comparative analyses of all FDA EUA-approved rapid antigen tests and RT-PCR for COVID-19 quarantine and surveillance-based isolation -

  Rapid antigen (RA) tests are being increasingly employed to detect COVID-19 infections in quarantine and surveillance. We conducted a comparative analysis of quarantine durations, testing frequencies, and false-positive rates for all of the 18 RA tests with emergency use authorization (EUA) from the FDA, and an RT-PCR test. For each test, we employed a mathematical model of imminent infections to calculate the effective reproductive number in the context of the test used for quarantine or serial testing. We informed the model with data on test specificity, temporal diagnostic sensitivity, and COVID-19 infectiousness. Our results demonstrate that the relative effectiveness of RA and RT-PCR tests in reducing post-quarantine transmission depends on the quarantine duration and the turnaround time of testing results. For quarantines shorter than five days, RA test on entry to and on exit from quarantine reduced onward transmission more than a single RT-PCR test conducted upon exit. Conducting surveillance via serial RT-PCR testing with a 24-h turnaround time, the minimum testing frequency paired with isolation of positives that is required to suppress the effective reproduction number (R_E) below one was found to be every six days. RA tests reduce R_E below one when conducted at a minimum frequency that ranges from every six days to every eight days. Our analysis also highlights that the risk of onward transmission during serial testing increases with the delay in obtaining the results. These RA test-specific results are an important component of the tool set for policy decision- making, and demonstrate that judicious selection of an appropriate RA test can supply a viable alternative to RT-PCR in efforts to control the spread of disease.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Comparative analyses of all FDA EUA-approved rapid antigen tests and RT-PCR for COVID-19 quarantine and surveillance-based isolation
• HIV status alters disease severity and immune cell responses in beta variant SARS-CoV-2 infection wave -

  There are conflicting reports on the effects of HIV on COVID-19. Here we analyzed disease severity and immune cell changes during and after SARS-CoV-2 infection in 236 participants from South Africa, of which 39% were people living with HIV (PLWH), during the first and second (beta dominated) infection waves. The second wave had more PLWH requiring supplemental oxygen relative to HIV negative participants. Higher disease severity was associated with low CD4 T cell counts and higher neutrophil to lymphocyte ratios (NLR). Yet, CD4 counts recovered and NLR stabilized after SARS-CoV-2 clearance in wave 2 infected PLWH, arguing for an interaction between SARS-CoV-2 and HIV infection leading to low CD4 and high NLR. The first infection wave, where severity in HIV negative and PLWH was similar, still showed some HIV modulation of SARS-CoV-2 immune responses. Therefore, HIV infection can synergize with the SARS-CoV-2 variant to change COVID-19 outcomes.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: HIV status alters disease severity and immune cell responses in beta variant SARS-CoV-2 infection wave
• Uniting to Advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in a Pandemic and Post-Pandemic World -
  This contribution examines the context for the newly-founded Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee of the European Association of Geochemistry. The report summarises the work to advance DEI undertaken during 2020 under conditions of the COVID-19 global pandemic, acknowledges the various impacts for community members, and takes a forward view to opportunities of a post-pandemic world.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Uniting to Advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in a Pandemic and Post-Pandemic World
• Network analysis outlines strengths and weaknesses of emerging SARS-CoV-2 Spike variants -
  The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has triggered myriad efforts to dissect and understand the structure and dynamics of this complex pathogen. The Spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2 has received special attention as it is the means by which the virus enters the human host cells. The N-terminal domain (NTD) is one of the targeted regions of the Spike protein for therapeutics and neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19. Though its function is not well-understood, the NTD is reported to acquire mutations and deletions that can accelerate the evolutionary adaptation of the virus driving antibody escape. Cellular processes are known to be regulated by complex interactions at the molecular level, which can be characterized by means of a graph representation facilitating the identification of key residues and critical communication pathways within the molecular complex. From extensive all-atom molecular dynamics simulations of the entire Spike for the wild-type and the dominant variant, we derive a weighted graph representation of the protein in two dominant conformations of the receptor-binding-domain; all-down and one-up. We implement graph theory techniques to characterize the relevance of specific residues at facilitating roles of communication and control, while uncovering key implications for fitness and adaptation. We find that many of the reported high-frequency mutations tend to occur away from the critical residues highlighted by our graph theory analysis, implying that these mutations tend to avoid targeting residues that are most critical for protein allosteric communication. We propose that these critical residues could be candidate targets for novel antibody therapeutics. In addition, our analysis provides quantitative insights of the critical role of the NTD and furin cleavage site and their wide-reaching influence over the protein at large. Many of our conclusions are supported by empirical evidence while others point the way towards crucial simulation-guided experiments.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Network analysis outlines strengths and weaknesses of emerging SARS-CoV-2 Spike variants
• Genomic evidence for divergent co-infections of SARS-CoV-2 lineages -
  Recently, patients co-infected by two SARS-CoV-2 lineages have been sporadically reported. Concerns are raised because previous studies have demonstrated co-infection may contribute to the recombination of RNA viruses and cause severe clinic symptoms. In this study, we have estimated the compositional lineage(s), tendentiousness, and frequency of co-infection events in population from a large-scale genomic analysis for SARS-CoV-2 patients. SARS-CoV-2 lineage(s) infected in each sample have been recognized from the assignment of within-host site variations into lineage-defined feature variations by introducing a hypergeometric distribution method. Of all the 29,993 samples, 53 (~0.18%) co- infection events have been identified. Apart from 52 co-infections with two SARS-CoV-2 lineages, one sample with co- infections of three SARS-CoV-2 lineages was firstly identified. As expected, the co-infection events mainly happened in the regions where have co-existed more than two dominant SARS-CoV-2 lineages. However, co-infection of two sub-lineages in Delta lineage were detected as well. Our results provide a useful reference framework for the high throughput detecting of SARS-CoV-2 co-infection events in the Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) data. Although low in average rate, the co-infection events showed an increasing tendency with the increased diversity of SARS-CoV-2. And considering the large base of SARS-CoV-2 infections globally, co-infected patients would be a nonnegligible population. Thus, more clinical research is urgently needed on these patients.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Genomic evidence for divergent co-infections of SARS-CoV-2 lineages
• Characteristics associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake among adults in England (08 December to 17 May 2021) -

  Objective: To determine characteristics associated with COVID-19 vaccine coverage among individuals aged 50 years and above in England since the beginning of the programme. Design: Observational cross-sectional study assessed by logistic regression and mean prevalence margins. Setting: COVID-19 vaccinations delivered in England from 08 December 2020 to 17 May 2021. Participants: 30,624,257/ 61,967,781 (49.4%) and 17,360,045/ 61,967,781 (28.1%) individuals in England were recorded as vaccinated in the National Immunisation Management System with a first dose and a second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, respectively. Interventions: Vaccination status with COVID-19 vaccinations. Main Outcome Measures: Proportion, adjusted odds ratios and mean prevalence margins for individuals not vaccinated with dose 1 among those aged 50- 69 years old and dose 1 and 2 among those aged 70 years old and above. Results: Among individuals aged 50 years and above, Black/African/Caribbean ethnic group was the least likely of all ethnic groups to be vaccinated with dose 1 of the COVID-19 vaccine. However, among those aged 70 years and above, the odds of not having dose 2 was 5.53 (95% CI 5.42 to 5.63) and 5.36 (90% CI 5.29 to 5.43) greater among Pakistani and Black/African/Caribbean compared to White British ethnicity, respectively. The odds of not receiving dose 2 was 1.18 (95% CI 1.16 to 1.20) higher among individuals who lived in a care home compared to those who did not. This was the opposite to that observed for dose 1, where the odds of not being vaccinated was significantly higher among those not living in a care home (0.89 (95% CI 0.87 to 0.91)). Conclusions: We found that there are characteristics associated with low COVID-19 vaccine coverage. Inequalities, such as ethnicity are a major contributor to suboptimal coverage and tailored interventions are required to improve coverage and protect the population from SARS-CoV-2.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Characteristics associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake among adults in England (08 December to 17 May 2021)
• COVID-19 infection, hospitalisation and death Amongst People with Rare Autoimmune Rheumatic Disease in England. Results from the RECORDER Project. -

  Objectives: To calculate the rates of COVID19 infection and COVID19 related death among people with rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases (RAIRD) during the first wave of the COVID19 pandemic in England compared to the general population. Methods: We used Hospital Episode Statistics to identify all people alive 01 March 2020 with ICD10 codes for RAIRD from the whole population of England. We used linked national health records (demographic, death certificate, admissions and PCR testing data) to calculate rates of COVID19 infection and death up to 31 July 2020. Our primary definition of COVID19 related death was mention of COVID19 on the death certificate. General population data from Public Health England and the Office for National Statistics were used for comparison. We also describe COVID19 related hospital admissions and all cause deaths. Results: We identified a cohort of 168,680 people with RAIRD, of whom 1874 (1.11%) had a positive COVID19 PCR test. The age standardised infection rate was 1.54 (95% CI 1.50, 1.59) times higher than in the general population. 713 (0.42%) people with RAIRD died with COVID19 on their death certificate and the age sex standardised mortality rate for COVID19 related death was 2.41 (2.30, 2.53) times higher than in the general population. There was no evidence of an increase in deaths from other causes in the RAIRD population. Conclusions: During the first wave of COVID19 in England, people with RAIRD had a 54% increased risk of COVID19 infection and more than twice the risk of COVID19 related death compared to the general population. These increases were seen despite shielding policies.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: COVID-19 infection, hospitalisation and death Amongst People with Rare Autoimmune Rheumatic Disease in England. Results from the RECORDER Project.
• **Increased prevalence of AB group and FY*A red blood cell antigen in Caucasian SARS-CoV-2 convalescent plasma donors** -

  Background and Objectives The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has put significant additional pressure on healthcare systems throughout the world. The identification of at-risk population beyond age, pre-existing medical conditions and socioeconomic status has been the subject of only a small part of the global COVID-19 research so far. To this day, the extent to which the red blood cell (RBC) antigens expressed by an individual can be associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection or clearance remains unknown. Methods The phenotypes for ABO and RhD and the genotypes for 37 red blood cell (RBC) antigens were determined using high throughput platforms in 90 Caucasian convalescent plasma donors. The antigen frequencies were compared to the expected Caucasian frequencies using Z-tests for two-proportion. Results The AB phenotype and FYA allele frequency were both independently and significantly increased (1.5x, p=0.018 and 2.2x, p=0.028, respectively) in the convalescent cohort (N=90) compared to reference frequencies. The AB phenotype was also significantly overrepresented (3.2x, p=0.028) within the FYA allele expressing group (N=23). The O group was underrepresented within the cohort proportionally to the AB increase, although non-significantly (p=0.110). No other significant RBC antigen expression patterns in the convalescent Caucasian population were identified. Conclusion Our study reveals ABO and Duffy RBC antigen variation among surviving, non-hospitalized Caucasian COVID-19 patients compared to the overall Caucasian population and contributes to the global advancement in understanding COVID-19 potential risk factors.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Increased prevalence of AB group and FY*A red blood cell antigen in Caucasian SARS-CoV-2 convalescent plasma donors
• Assessing the Performance of COVID-19 Forecasting Models in the U.S. -

  Dozens of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) forecasting models have been created, however, little information exists on their performance. Here we examined the performance of nine oft-cited COVID-19 forecasting models, as well as equal- and performance-weighted ensembles, based on their predictive accuracy and precision, and their probabilistic 9statistical accuracy (aka calibration)9 and 9information9 scores (measures commonly employed in the evaluation of expert judgment) (Cooke, 1991). Data on observed COVID-19 mortality in eight states, selected to reflect differences in racial demographics and COVID-19 case rates, over eight weeks in the summer of 2020 and eight weeks in the winter of 2021, provided the basis for evaluating model forecasts and exploring the stability/robustness of the results. Two models exhibited superior performance with both predictive and probabilistic measures during both pandemic phases. Models that performed poorly reflected 9overconfidence9 with tight forecast distributions. Models also systematically under-predicted mortality when cases were rising and over-predicted when cases were falling. Performance-weighted ensembles consistently outperformed the equal-weighted ensemble, with the Classical Model-weighted ensemble outperforming the predictive-performance-weighted ensemble. Model performance depended on the timeframe of interest and racial composition, with better predictive forecasts in the near-term and for states with relatively high proportions of non-Hispanic Blacks. Performance also depended on case rate, with better predictive forecasts for states with relatively low case rates but better probabilistic forecasts for states with relatively high case rates. Both predictive and probabilistic performance are important, and both deserve consideration by model developers and those interested in using these models to inform policy.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Assessing the Performance of COVID-19 Forecasting Models in the U.S.
• Reduced guideline adherence and greater conspiracy belief are associated with low levels of trust and information during the COVID-19 pandemic -
  The COVID-19 pandemic is a public health crisis, and the spread of the virus needs to be curbed. We hypothesised that trust in authorities and their media is at the root of adherence to guidelines, as trust in these sources leads to reliable knowledge about COVID-19. Distrust in mainstream authorities and their media – such as purported in populism and conspiracy theories - on the other hand was hypothesised to be associated with reduced adherence to safety guidelines, mediated by the conspiracy belief that the virus has been artificially created. Through a large survey in twelve countries worldwide (N = 7,755), we show that adherence to government-generated protective guidelines is predicted by trust in scientists and non-populist governments, mediated by perceived knowledge. Distrust in these authorities, as well as trust in populist governments, was associated with misguided/self-centred behaviours (e.g., hoarding), mediated by conspiracy belief. However, conspiracy belief also predicted engagement in safety guideline behaviours, possibly because the virus can still be dangerous, even if artificially created. This idea is supported by the finding that concern and perceived risk were significantly correlated with both types of protective behaviours. Finally, conspiracy belief was associated with trust in Facebook and distrust in institutional websites (of World Health Organisation, non-populist governments and healthcare). This research shows that trust in authorities, associated with access to trustworthy information, is paramount to encourage adherence to safety guidelines and avoid conspiracy thinking during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Reduced guideline adherence and greater conspiracy belief are associated with low levels of trust and information during the COVID-19 pandemic
• 6’,6’-Difluoro-aristeromycin is a potent inhibitor of MERS-coronavirus replication -
  The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has highlighted the lack of treatments to combat infections with human or (potentially) zoonotic CoVs. Thus, it is critical to develop and evaluate antiviral compounds that either directly target CoV functions or modulate host functions involved in viral replication. Here, we demonstrate that low-micromolar concentrations of 6,6-difluoro-aristeromycin (DFA), an adenosine nucleoside analogue, strongly inhibit the replication of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in a cell-based infection assay. DFA was designed to target S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) hydrolase and, consequently, may affect intracellular levels of the methyl donor S-adenosylmethionine, which is used by two CoV methyltransferases involved in the capping of the 5 end of the viral mRNAs. Passaging of wild-type MERS-CoV in the presence of DFA selected a virus population with a ~100-fold decreased DFA sensitivity, which carried various amino acid substitutions in viral nonstructural proteins (nsps). Specifically, mutations were present in the RNA polymerase subunit (nsp12) and in nsp13, the helicase subunit containing a nucleoside triphosphate hydrolase activity that has been implicated in CoV capping. We hypothesize that DFA directly or indirectly affects viral cap methylation, either by inhibiting the viral enzymes involved or by binding to SAH hydrolase. We also evaluated the antiviral activity of DFA against other betacoronaviruses, but found it to have limited impact on their replication, while being quite cytotoxic to the Calu-3 cells used for this comparison. Nevertheless, our results justify the further characterization of DFA derivatives as an inhibitor of MERS-CoV replication.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: 6’,6’-Difluoro-aristeromycin is a potent inhibitor of MERS-coronavirus replication
• Music for hedonia and eudaimonia during pandemic social isolation -
  The pandemic spread of the novel coronavirus and associated COVID-19 disease in 2020 prompted governments around the world to pursue strict containment protocols to minimize contagion risk. Although restrictions were interpreted more strictly in some countries than in others, widespread social isolation resulted on an unseen scale, leading to severe negative mental health consequences such as loss of hope, increased anxiety, stress, depressive symptoms, and sleep disturbance. During this time, while governments were battling the health crisis, musical engagement provided key, individualized coping strategies for laypeople. This was first demonstrated anecdotally in captivating balcony music videos from Italy and Spain and later substantiated in large scale, multi-country survey studies. This chapter reviews the emerging research literature on music listening and making during pandemic lockdown to establish how music became a compensatory source of hedonic pleasure and how it satisfied the need for eudaimonic meaning in life during socially and psychologically impoverished times.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Music for hedonia and eudaimonia during pandemic social isolation
• Discovery of highly potent pancoronavirus fusion inhibitors that also effectively inhibit COVID-19 variants from the UK and South Africa -
  We report the discovery of a series of benzoic acid-based inhibitors that show highly potent pancoronavirus activity. Some compounds also show complete inhibition of CPE (IC100) at 1.25 M against an authentic SARS-CoV-2 (US_WA-1/2020). Furthermore, the most active inhibitors also potently inhibited variants initially identified in the UK and South Africa. We confirmed that one of the potent inhibitors binds to the prefusion spike protein trimer of SARS- CoV-2 by SPR. Besides, we showed that they inhibit virus-mediated cell-cell fusion. The ADME data show druglike characteristics, and in vivo PK in rats demonstrated excellent half-life (t[1/2]) of 11.3 h, mean resident time (MRT) of 14.2 h, and orally bioavailable. Despite the presence of ene-rhodamine moiety, we conclusively demonstrated that these inhibitors target the viral spike protein and are not promiscuous or colloidal aggregators. We expect the lead inhibitors to pave the way for further development to preclinical and clinical candidates.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Discovery of highly potent pancoronavirus fusion inhibitors that also effectively inhibit COVID-19 variants from the UK and South Africa
• Optimization of single dose VSV-based COVID-19 vaccination in hamsters -
  The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in global effects on human health, economic stability, and social norms. The emergence of viral variants raises concerns about the efficacy of existing vaccines and highlights the continued need the for the development of efficient, fast-acting, and cost-effective vaccines. Here, we demonstrate the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of two vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-based vaccines encoding the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein either alone (VSV-SARS2) or in combination with the Ebola virus glycoprotein (VSV-SARS2-EBOV). Intranasally vaccinated hamsters showed an early CD8+ T cell response in the lungs and a greater antigen-specific IgG response, while intramuscularly vaccinated hamsters had an early CD4+ T cell and NK cell response. Intranasal vaccination resulted in protection within 10 days with hamsters not showing clinical signs of pneumonia when challenged with three different SARS-CoV-2 variants. This data demonstrates that VSV-based vaccines are viable single-dose, fast- acting vaccine candidates that are protective from COVID-19.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Optimization of single dose VSV-based COVID-19 vaccination in hamsters

From Clinical Trials

• High-dose Intravenous Vitamin C (HDIVC) as Adjuvant Therapy in Critical Patients With Positive COVID-19. A Pilot Randomized Controlled Dose-comparison Trial. - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: High doses of intravenous vitamin C;   Drug: Dextrose 500 mL
  Sponsor:   Hugo Galindo
  Not yet recruiting

• Developing and Testing a COVID-19 Vaccination Acceptance Intervention - Condition:   COVID-19 Vaccination
  Intervention:   Behavioral: Moving to COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance Intervention
  Sponsors:   VA Office of Research and Development;   VA Bedford Healthcare System
  Not yet recruiting

• Study on Safety and Clinical Efficacy of AZVUDINE in Initial Stage COVID-19 Patients (SARS-CoV-2 Infected) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: AZVUDINE;   Drug: AZVUDINE placebo
  Sponsors:   HRH Holdngs Limited;   GALZU INSTITUTE OF RESEARCH, TEACHING, APPLIED SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Brazil;   SANTA CASA DE MISERICORDIA DE CAMPOS HOSPITAL (SCMCH), Brazil;   UNIVERSIDADE ESTADUAL DO NORTE FLUMINENSE (UENF), Brazil
  Not yet recruiting

• Andrographis Paniculata vs Boesenbergia Rotunda vs Control in Asymptomatic COVID-19 - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Andrographis Paniculata;   Drug: Boesenbergia;   Other: Standard supportive treatment
  Sponsors:   Mahidol University;   Ministry of Health, Thailand
  Not yet recruiting

• Enhancing COVID Rehabilitation With Technology - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Behavioral: NexJ Connected Wellness;   Other: Usual Care
  Sponsors:   University of Ottawa;   Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR);   Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
  Not yet recruiting

• Treatment of Covid-19 With a Herbal Compound, Xagrotin - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Combination Product: Xagrotin
  Sponsors:  
  Biomad AS;   Directorate of health of Sulaimani, Iraq -KRG
  Completed

• Evaluation of Clinical and Antibody Response to Covid-19 Vaccination Strategy in TBRI, Egypt - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Biological: Astrazenica vaccine
  Sponsor:  
  Samia Hassan El-Shishtawy
  Recruiting

• Evaluation of Safety and Immunogenicity of a Novel Vaccine for Prevention of Covid-19 in Adults Previously Immunized - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Biological: A vaccine composed of a recombinant S1 antigen
  Sponsors:   Hospital do Coracao;   Farmacore Biotecnologia Ltda
  Withdrawn

• Comparison of Detection of SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19) Between Nasopharyngeal Swab Specimens and Those Obtained by Salivary Sputum - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Diagnostic Test: Salivary test for COVID19
  Sponsor:   Centre Hospitalier de Cayenne
  Active, not recruiting

• Menstrual Blood Stem Cells in Severe Covid-19 - Conditions:   Covid19;   Cytokine Storm
  Interventions:   Biological: Allogeneic human menstrual blood stem cells secretome;   Other: Intravenous saline injection
  Sponsors:   Avicenna Research Institute;   Tehran University of Medical Sciences
  Completed

• Public Health Emergency: SOLIDARITY TRIAL Philippines - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Remdesivir;   Drug: Hydroxychloroquine;   Drug: Lopinavir / Ritonavir;   Drug: Interferon beta-1a;   Drug: Acalabrutinib
  Sponsor:  
  University of the Philippines
  Active, not recruiting

• Tazemetostat for the Treatment of Moderate to Severe COVID-19 Infection - Conditions:   COVID-19 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome;   Cytokine Release Syndrome
  Intervention:   Drug: Tazemetostat
  Sponsor:   Ciprian Gheorghe
  Not yet recruiting

• Sexual Functions and Covid-19 - Conditions:   Covid19;   Sexual Behavior
  Intervention:   Behavioral: Women sexual dysfunctions were screened using Female Sexual Functioning Index (FSFI)
  Sponsor:  
  Gaziosmanpasa Research and Education Hospital
  Completed

• Evaluation of the Safety and Immunogenicity of SII Vaccine Constructs Based on the SARS-CoV-2 Variant in Adults - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Biological: SII B.1.351;   Biological: SII Bivalent;   Biological: SII B.1.617.2
  Sponsor:   Novavax
  Not yet recruiting

• Effect of Vojta Therapy on Covid-19 Respiratory Disease - Condition:   COVID-19 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
  Intervention:  
  Other: Respiratory physiotherapy
  Sponsors:   NUMEN Foundation;   Hospital de Emergencias Enfermera Isabel Zendal de Madrid
  Not yet recruiting

From PubMed

• Real Nano “Light Vaccine” Will Benefit to COVID-19 Pandemic Control - This highlight presents a recent technique of “Light Vaccine” for COVID-19 pandemic control. Though this technique has the germicidal advantage to SARS-CoV-2, its shortcomings will limit the wide and in-depth application. We make a perspective of real nano light vaccine, which will play an important role in the prevention and control of COVID-19. Briefly, This flow chart described the MWCNT was fabricated with strong acid and base conditional mixture in order to achieve the p-WCNT (chemical…

• The Mechanisms of the Growth Inhibitory Effects of Paclitaxel on Gefitinib-resistant Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Cells - CONCLUSION: Paclitaxel may be a promising anticancer drug and offer a new therapeutic strategy for managing gefitinib- resistant NSCLC during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• An overview of the anti-SARS-CoV-2 properties of Artemisia annua, its antiviral action, protein-associated mechanisms, and repurposing for COVID-19 treatment - Artemisia annua and its phytocompounds have a rich history in the research and treatment of malaria, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and other diseases. Currently, the World Health Organization recommends artemisinin-based combination therapy as the first-line treatment for multi-drug-resistant malaria. Due to the various research articles on the use of antimalarial drugs to treat coronaviruses, a question is raised: would A. annua and its compounds provide anti-severe acute…

• Polyketone metabolites isolated from Rhodiola tibetica endohytic fungus Alternaria sp. HJT-Y7 and their SARS-CoV-2 virus inhibitory activitives - Six new polyketone metabolites, compounds (1-6) and seven known polyketone compounds (7-13) were isolated from Rhodiola tibetica endophytic fungus Alternaria sp. The structural elucidation of five new polyketone metabolites were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic including 2D NMR and HRMS and spectrometric analysis. Inhibition rate evaluation revealed that compounds 1(EC(50) = 0.02 mM), 3(EC(50) = 0.3 mM), 6(EC(50) = 0.07 mM), 8(EC(50) = 0.1 mM) and 9(EC(50) = 0.04 mM) had inhibitory…

• Development of ACE2 autoantibodies after SARS-CoV-2 infection - CONCLUSIONS: Many patients with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection have antibodies specific for ACE2. Patients with ACE2 antibodies have lower activity of soluble ACE2 in plasma. Plasma from these patients also inhibits exogenous ACE2 activity. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that ACE2 antibodies develop after SARS-CoV-2 infection and decrease ACE2 activity. This could lead to an increase in the abundance of Ang II, which causes a proinflammatory state that triggers symptoms of…

• Ethacridine inhibits SARS-CoV-2 by inactivating viral particles - The respiratory disease COVID-19 is caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Here we report the discovery of ethacridine as a potent drug against SARS-CoV-2 (EC50 ~ 0.08 μM). Ethacridine was identified via high-throughput screening of an FDA- approved drug library in living cells using a fluorescence assay. Plaque assays, RT-PCR and immunofluorescence imaging at various stages of viral infection demonstrate that the main mode of action of ethacridine is through inactivation of viral particles,…

• Correction to: HD5 and LL-37 Inhibit SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 Binding to Human ACE2 by Molecular Simulation - No abstract

• SGLT2-Inhibition reverts urinary peptide changes associated with severe COVID-19: An in-silico proof-of-principle of proteomics-based drug repurposing - Severe COVID-19 is reflected by significant changes in urine peptides. Based on this observation, a clinical test predicting COVID-19 severity, CoV50, was developed and registered as in vitro diagnostic in Germany. We have hypothesized that molecular changes displayed by CoV50, likely reflective of endothelial damage, may be reversed by specific drugs. Such an impact by a drug could indicate potential benefits in the context of COVID-19. To test this hypothesis, urinary peptide data from…

• Engineering of 2D nanomaterials to trap and kill SARS-CoV-2: a new insight from multi-microsecond atomistic simulations - In late 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS- CoV-2). Spike protein is one of the surface proteins of SARS-CoV-2 that is essential for its infectious function. Therefore, it received lots of attention for the preparation of antiviral drugs, vaccines, and diagnostic tools. In the current study, we use computational methods of chemistry and biology to study the interaction between spike protein and its receptor in the body,…

• COVID-19 in Patients with Atopic Dermatitis Treated with Dupilumab: Three Cases and a Literature Review - There are limited clinical data on the impact of the SARS-CoV2 infection on patients with dermatological conditions treated with biologics. Dupilumab is a recombinant human IgG(4) human monoclonal antibody that inhibits IL4 and IL13 signaling, and is used for moderate-severe atopic dermatitis treatment. We present three patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) treated with dupilumab who contracted COVID-19. In all patients, the infection had a mild course, and only in one, as documented by SCORAD,…

• Patchy signals: capturing women’s voices in mobile phone surveys of rural India - Phone surveys are a rapid and cost-effective way to collect primary data for research, monitoring and evaluation purposes. But for these data to be precise, reliable and unbiased, women’s perspectives must be accurately represented. Throughout 2020, we conducted seven household surveys in rural India to understand households’ experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic and contemporaneous relief programmes. Given social distancing protocols, we conducted these surveys over the phone, using household…

• Synthesis of novel calcium channel blockers with ACE2 inhibition and dual antihypertensive/anti-inflammatory effects: A possible therapeutic tool for COVID-19 - Hypertension has been recognized as one of the most frequent comorbidities and risk factors for the seriousness and adverse consequences in COVID-19 patients. 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H) ones have attracted researchers to be synthesized via Beginilli reaction and evaluate their antihypertensive activities as bioisosteres of nifedipine a well-known calcium channel blocker. In this study, we report synthesis of some bioisosteres of pyrimidines as novel CCBs with potential ACE2 inhibitory effect as…

• In-silico immunoinformatic analysis of SARS-CoV-2 virus for the development of putative vaccine construct - COVID-19 (CoronaVirus disease 2019) is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus 2). SARS-CoV-2 virus is highly contagious and affects the human respiratory tract resulting in symptoms such as high fever, body ache, cough, dysfunctions of tastebuds and smelling sense of body. The objective of the present study involves immunoinformatic analysis to predict COVID-19 protein for vaccine construct based on the genomic information SARS-CoV-2 virus. At present, as…

• Differential plasmacytoid dendritic cell phenotype and type I Interferon response in asymptomatic and severe COVID-19 infection - SARS-CoV-2 fine-tunes the interferon (IFN)-induced antiviral responses, which play a key role in preventing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) progression. Indeed, critically ill patients show an impaired type I IFN response accompanied by elevated inflammatory cytokine and chemokine levels, responsible for cell and tissue damage and associated multi-organ failure. Here, the early interaction between SARS-CoV-2 and immune cells was investigated by interrogating an in vitro human peripheral…

• Participation of nitrogen oxide and its metabolites in the genesis of hyperimmune inflammation in COVID-19 - Despite the success in the tactics of treating COVID-19, there are many unexplored issues related to the development and progression of the process in the lungs, brain, and other organs, as well as the role of individual elements, in particular, nitric oxide (NO), and in the pathogenesis of organ damage. Based on the analyzed literature data, we considered a possible pathophysiological mechanism of action of NO and its derivatives in COVID-19. It can be noted that hyperimmune systemic…

From Patent Search

• A HERB BASED COMPOSITION ANTI VIRAL MEDICINE FOR TREATMENT OF SARS COV 2 AND A METHOD FOR TREATING A PERSON INFECTED BY THE SARS COV 2 VIRUS - A Herbal composition, viz., PONNU MARUNTHU essentially comprising of ALLUIUM CEPA extract. [concentrated to 30%] 75%, SAPINDUS MUKOROSSI - extract [Optimised] 10%, CITRUS X LIMON - extract in its natural form 05 TRACYSPERMUM AMMI (L) – extract 07%,ROSA HYBRIDA - extract 03%, PONNU MARUNTHU solution 50 ml, or as a capsulated PONNU MARUNTHU can be given to SARS cov2 positive Patients, three times a day that is ½ an hour before food; continued for 3 days to 5 days and further taking it for 2 days if need be there; It will completely cure a person. When the SARS cov2 test shows negative this medicine can be discontinued. This indigenous medicine and method for treating a person inflicted with SARS COV 2 viral infection is quite effective in achieving of much needed remedy for the patients and saving precious lives from the pangs of death and ensuring better health of people. - link

• Anti-Sars-Cov-2 Neutralizing Antibodies - - link

• Expression Vector for Anti-Sars-Cov-2 Neutralizing Antibodies - - link

• DEVELOPMENT OF CNN SCHEME FOR COVID-19 DISEASE DETECTION USING CHEST RADIOGRAPH - - link

• SARS-COV-2 BINDING PROTEINS - - link

• A PROCESS FOR PREPARING MONTELUKAST SODIUM FOR TREATING COVID 19 PATIENTS - - link

• IDENTIFICATION OF ANTI-COVID 19 AGENT SOMNIFERINE AS INHIBITOR OF MPRO & ACE2-RBD INTERACTION - - link

• 一种脂质化合物及包含其的脂质载体、核酸脂质纳米粒组合物和药物制剂 - 本发明属于基因治疗技术领域，具体涉及一系列脂质化合物及包含其的脂质载体、核酸脂质纳米粒组合物和药物制剂。本发明提供的具有式（I）结构的化合物，可与其它脂质化合物共同制备脂质载体，展现出pH响应性，对核酸药物的包封效率高，大大提升了核酸药物在体内的递送效率；而且，可根据核酸药物需要富集的器官而选用特定结构的脂质化合物作为脂质载体，具有良好的市场应用前景。 - link

• 一种联合检测IgG、IgM和中和抗体的试纸条及其制备方法、试剂盒 - 本申请涉及生物医学检测技术领域，具体涉及一种联合检测IgG、IgM和中和抗体的试纸条及其制备方法、试剂盒。所述试纸条包括第一检测部和第二检测部，均包括有底板以及设置在底板上并依次连接的样品垫、结合垫、检测垫和吸水垫；所述第一检测部的结合垫上包被有胶体金标记的N抗原和S抗原，所述第一检测部的检测垫上设有第一检测线和第二检测线；所述第二检测部的样品垫上包被有ACE2，所述第二检测部的结合垫上包被有胶体金标记的S‑RBD抗原，所述第二检测部的检测垫上设置有第三检测线。本申请能实现现场高准确度快检，检测人员只需要使用一个试纸条就可以准确测定机体中IgG、IgM和中和抗体。 - link

• Deep Learning Based System For Detection of Covid-19 Disease of Patient At Infection Risk. - - link