Covid-19 Sentry

Contents

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

From Preprints

• Pandemic Fatigue: Measurement, Correlates, and Consequences -
  With no effective treatment or vaccine widely available, most national COVID-19 response strategies have relied on people’s willingness to comply with health-protective behaviours and behavioural restrictions. Despite generally high levels of public compliance, several countries have reported a recent upsurge in the number of people who no longer sufficiently adhere to restrictions or keep themselves informed about COVID-19. This developing trend has been attributed to Pandemic Fatigue. Using quota-representative survey data from Denmark and Germany (overall n = 12,191), we introduce a psychometrically sound measure of Pandemic Fatigue, show who experiences it, identify related emotions and perceptions, and shed light on the relation between Pandemic Fatigue and four COVID-19-related health-protective behaviours. Further, based on a preregistered online experiment with US participants (n = 1,584), we establish a causal link between Pandemic Fatigue and people’s intention to comply with recommended heath-protective behaviours.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Pandemic Fatigue: Measurement, Correlates, and Consequences
• PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOR AGAINST COVID-19 AMONG VIETNAMESE PEOPLE IN THE SOCIAL DISTANCING CAMPAIGN A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY -
  In the global fight against the rapid spread of COVID-19, a variety of unprecedented preventive measures have been implemented across the globe, as well as in Vietnam. How Vietnamese people respond to threats to their health and life remains unclear. For this reason, the current study aims to examine Vietnamese people’s protective behavior and its factors. Based on 1,798 online survey respondents’ data collected on the last three days of the nationwide social distancing campaign in mid-April, it is found that gender, knowledge of COVID-19 and preventive measures, and attitudes towards the COVID-19 prevention policies are the three main factors of participants’ protective behaviors. We also find that males are less likely than females to adopt precautionary measures. People who are knowledgeable about COVID-19 may have inappropriate practices towards it. Further research is needed to examine other determinants of protective behaviors to provide more useful information for authorities, public health policy-makers, and healthcare workers to deliver the best practices to control COVID-19 in our country.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOR AGAINST COVID-19 AMONG VIETNAMESE PEOPLE IN THE SOCIAL DISTANCING CAMPAIGN A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY
• Comparative infectivity and pathogenesis of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants in Syrian hamsters -
  Within one year after its emergence, more than 108 million people contracted SARS-CoV-2 and almost 2.4 million succumbed to COVID-19. New SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VoC) are emerging all over the world, with the threat of being more readily transmitted, being more virulent, or escaping naturally acquired and vaccine-induced immunity. At least three major prototypic VoC have been identified, i.e. the UK (B.1.1.7), South African (B.1.351) and Brazilian (B.1.1.28.1), variants. These are replacing formerly dominant strains and sparking new COVID-19 epidemics and new spikes in excess mortality. We studied the effect of infection with prototypic VoC from both B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 lineages in Syrian golden hamsters to assess their relative infectivity and pathogenicity in direct comparison to two basal SARS-CoV-2 strains isolated in early 2020. A very efficient infection of the lower respiratory tract of hamsters by these VoC is observed. In line with clinical evidence from patients infected with these VoC, no major differences in disease outcome were observed as compared to the original strains as was quantified by (i) histological scoring, (ii) micro-computed tomography, and (iii) analysis of the expression profiles of selected antiviral and pro-inflammatory cytokine genes. Noteworthy however, in hamsters infected with VoC B.1.1.7, a particularly strong elevation of proinflammatory cytokines was detected. Overall, we established relevant preclinical infection models that will be pivotal to assess the efficacy of current and future vaccine(s) (candidates) as well as therapeutics (small molecules and antibodies) against two important SARS-CoV-2 VoC.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Comparative infectivity and pathogenesis of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants in Syrian hamsters
• Antibodies with potent and broad neutralizing activity against antigenically diverse and highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants -
  The emergence of highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOC) that are resistant to therapeutic antibodies highlights the need for continuing discovery of broadly reactive antibodies. We identify four receptor-binding domain targeting antibodies from three early-outbreak convalescent donors with potent neutralizing activity against 12 variants including the B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 VOCs. Two of them are ultrapotent, with sub-nanomolar neutralization titers (IC50 <0.0006 to 0.0102 g/mL; IC80 < 0.0006 to 0.0251 g/mL). We define the structural and functional determinants of binding for all four VOC-targeting antibodies, and show that combinations of two antibodies decrease the in vitro generation of escape mutants, suggesting potential means to mitigate resistance development. These results define the basis of therapeutic cocktails against VOCs and suggest that targeted boosting of existing immunity may increase vaccine breadth against VOCs.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Antibodies with potent and broad neutralizing activity against antigenically diverse and highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants
• Healthcare worker intentions to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and reasons for hesitancy: A survey of 16,158 health system employees on the eve of vaccine distribution -
  Healthcare workers (HCWs) have been recommended to receive first priority for limited COVID-19 vaccines. They have also been identified as potential ambassadors of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance, helping to ensure that sufficient members of a hesitant public accept COVID-19 vaccines to achieve population immunity. Yet HCWs themselves have shown vaccine hesitancy in other contexts and the few prior surveys of U.S. HCW intentions to receive a COVID-19 vaccine report acceptance rates of only 28% to 34%. However, it is unknown whether HCW acceptance remains low following mid-November announcements of the efficacy of the first COVID-19 vaccines and the issuance of two emergency use authorizations (EUA) in December. We report the results of a December 2020 survey (N = 16,158; response rate 61%) administered by a large Pennsylvania health system to determine the intentions of its employees to receive a vaccine when it is offered to them. In a mixed sample of individuals serving in patient-facing and other roles, 55% would decide to receive a COVID-19 vaccine when offered, 16.4% would not, and 28.5% reported being undecided. The distribution of responses varied little across hospital campuses, between those in patient-facing roles and other HCWs, or by area or department of work. The higher rate of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance we observe may reflect the framing and timing of our survey. Among hesitant respondents, an overwhelming majority (90.3%) reported concerns about unknown risks and insufficient data. Other commonly reported concerns included known side effects (57.4%) and wanting to wait until they see how it goes with others (44.4%). We observed a substantial increase in self-reported intent to receive a COVID-19 vaccine after an FDA advisory committee voted to recommend an EUA. Among respondents who completed the survey after that point in time, 79% intend to receive a COVID-19 vaccine (n = 1155). Although only suggestive, this trend offers hope that rates of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance may be higher among HCWs and, perhaps, the general public than more hypothetical survey results have indicated.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Healthcare worker intentions to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and reasons for hesitancy: A survey of 16,158 health system employees on the eve of vaccine distribution
• Sensing the Audience in Digital Streaming: Lessons from a Global Pandemic -
  Live performances are immersive shared experiences, traditionally taking place in designated, carefully designed physical spaces such as theatres or concert halls. As it is becoming increasingly common for audiences to experience this type of content remotely using digital technology, it is crucial to reflect on the design of digital experiences and the technology used to deliver them. This research is guided by the question: How can the design of streaming technologies support artists in creating immersive and engaging audience experiences? A series of audience studies, which took place as cultural organisations were forced to adapt and deliver their content remotely due to the COVID19 global pandemic, highlighted problems with existing streaming solutions and informed a set of design recommendations for audience experience and research.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Sensing the Audience in Digital Streaming: Lessons from a Global Pandemic
• Children’s psychological well-being and problem behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic: An online study during the lockdown period in Germany -
  As COVID-19 dramatically changes human social life, restrictive lockdown periods to slow the spread of the virus have been suggest to particularly affect the psychological well-being of children and their families. To capture lockdown-related effects on a large scale, the present study used an online questionnaire completed by parents of 3-10-year-olds during the most restrictive lockdown period in Germany thus far (N = 2,672). Parents reported their stress level, their child’s well-being, and their child’s problem behaviors among others. Results showed that most parents and children experienced lockdown-related stress. Concerning children, not being able to meet with friends and family members outside the household emerged as the primary challenge. Older children (7-10 years) evidenced more emotional symptoms as well as less conduct problems and hyperactivity than younger children (3-6 years). Children’s own and their parents’ stress level, the degree to which children missed other children, and children’s age all showed to be negatively related to children’s general life satisfaction. Single parenthood and being an only child emerged as potential risk factors for children’s well-being. Taken together, these findings shed light on the psychological situation of children and their families during governmental lockdown measures, as well as on relations of children’s coping and demographic background. They have implications for possible avenues for interventions, inter alia by encouraging policies focusing on children from single parent families, on only children as well as on families in difficult housing situations.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Children’s psychological well-being and problem behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic: An online study during the lockdown period in Germany
• Clinical Science Can Address Rising Eating Disorder Psychopathology during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Comment on Gruber et al., 2020 -
  Eating disorders (EDs) are serious psychiatric disorders that affect 13-18% of young men and women. EDs are associated with substantial psychiatric and medical morbidity and mortality, indicating a critical need for improved identification and treatment. Despite the relatively high prevalence and severity of EDs, they are often omitted from discussions of mental health. This comment is in response to Gruber et al. (2020), who wrote an important article on the challenges and opportunities facing clinical scientists in the time of COVID-19. Our response article extends Gruber et al.’s (2020) paper by noting additional challenges facing people with an eating disorder during COVID-19 and recognizing opportunities for improved evidence-based assessment and treatment of this important population.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Clinical Science Can Address Rising Eating Disorder Psychopathology during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Comment on Gruber et al., 2020
• Self-reported impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, affective responding, and subjective well-being - A Swedish survey -
  A rapid stream of research confirms that the COVID-19 pandemic is a global threat to mental health and psychological well-being. It is therefore important to identify both hazardous and protective individual factors during the pandemic. The current research examined the relationships between self-reported affective responding, perceived personal consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, and subjective well-being. An online survey (N = 471) conducted in Sweden between June and September, 2020, showed that higher levels of irritability, impulsivity, and the tendency to experience and express anger were generally associated with more severe personal consequences of the pandemic, particularly in areas related to family life, work/study, and finances. While more severe impacts of the pandemic in these areas of life were directly associated with lower subjective well-being, emotion regulation through cognitive reappraisal appeared to moderate the extent to which consequences of the pandemic in other areas of life (i.e., social, free-time and physical activities) translated into decreased well-being. This suggests that cognitive reappraisal may serve to protect against some of the debilitating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health. Overall, the results indicate that the perceived consequences of the pandemic are multifaceted and that future research should examine these consequences using a multidimensional approach.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Self-reported impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, affective responding, and subjective well-being - A Swedish survey
• Reflections on running online expert advisory groups with young people with lived experience of depression -
  Service user involvement is fundamental to healthcare research, including knowledge transfer, advising on study protocols and the development of interventions. However, to date, service user involvement within child and adolescent mental health research is still uncommon and there is limited focus on best practice within the literature. Furthermore, consultations and advisory groups have traditionally been held face-to-face; however, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated a shift towards online research involvement as an alternative. This paper will examine our experience of conducting online expert advisory groups with young people (aged 14-24) with lived experience of depression and describe challenges and adaptations that need to be considered in order to make the events safe and accessible. Based on our own reflections of the process and feedback from young people taking part, we highlight the grouping of young people, facilitating pre-session nerves, intergroup communication and accessibility of online engagement. Young peoples’ reflections on the value of the advisory groups are also discussed. We conclude by offering suggestions, based on our reflections, for future online research consultations.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Reflections on running online expert advisory groups with young people with lived experience of depression
• ai-corona: Radiologist-Assistant Deep Learning Framework for COVID-19 Diagnosis in Chest CT Scans -

  Generation of medical assisting tools using recent artificial intelligence advances is beneficial for the medical workers in the global fight against COVID-19 outbreak. In this article we introduce ai-corona, a radiologist-assistant deep learning framework for COVID-19 infection diagnosis using chest CT scans. Our framework incorporates an Efficient NetB3-based feature extractor. We employed three independent dataset in this work named: CC-CCII, MDH, and MosMedData; all includes 7184 scans from 5693 subjects which contained pneumonia, common pneumonia (CP), non-pneumonia, normal and COVID-19 classes. We evaluated ai-corona on test sets from the CC-CCII set and MDH cohort and the entirety of the MosMedData cohort, for which it gained AUC score of 0.997, 0.989, and 0.954, respectively. We further compared our framework9s performance with other deep learning models developed on our employed data sets, as well as RT-PCR. Our results show that ai-corona outperforms all. Lastly, our framework9s diagnosis capabilities was evaluated as assistant to several experts. We demonstrated an increase in both speed and accuracy of expert diagnosis when incorporating ai-corona9s assistance.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: ai-corona: Radiologist-Assistant Deep Learning Framework for COVID-19 Diagnosis in Chest CT Scans
• Prior COVID-19 Infection and Antibody Response to Single Versus Double Dose mRNA SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination -

  The double dose regimen for mRNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 presents both a hope and a challenge for global efforts to curb the COVID-19 pandemic. With supply chain logistics impacting the rollout of population-scale vaccination programs, increasing attention has turned to the potential efficacy of single versus double dose vaccine administration for select individuals. To this end, we examined response to Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA vaccine in a large cohort of healthcare workers including those with versus without prior COVID-19 infection. For all participants, we quantified circulating levels of SARS-CoV-2 anti-spike (S) protein IgG at baseline prior to vaccine, after vaccine dose 1, and after vaccine dose 2. We observed that the anti-S IgG antibody response following a single vaccine dose in persons who had recovered from confirmed prior COVID-19 infection was similar to the antibody response following two doses of vaccine in persons without prior infection (P>0.57). Patterns were similar for the post-vaccine symptoms experienced by infection recovered persons following their first dose compared to the symptoms experienced by infection naive persons following their second dose (P=0.66). These results support the premise that a single dose of mRNA vaccine could provoke in COVID-19 recovered individuals a level of immunity that is comparable to that seen in infection naive persons following a double dose regimen. Additional studies are needed to validate our findings, which could allow for public health programs to expand the reach of population wide vaccination efforts.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Prior COVID-19 Infection and Antibody Response to Single Versus Double Dose mRNA SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination
• Linking electronic health records for research on a nationwide cohort including over 54 million people in England -

  Objectives: Describe a new England-wide electronic health record (EHR) resource enabling whole population research on Covid-19 and cardiovascular disease whilst ensuring data security and privacy and maintaining public trust. Design: Cohort comprising linked person-level records from national healthcare settings for the English population accessible within the new NHS Digital Trusted Research Environment. Setting: EHRs from primary care, hospital episodes, death registry, Covid-19 laboratory test results and community dispensing data, with further enrichment planned from specialist intensive care, cardiovascular and Covid-19 vaccination data. Participants: 54.4 million people alive on 1st January 2020 and registered with an NHS general practitioner in England. Main measures of interest: Confirmed and suspected Covid-19 diagnoses, exemplar cardiovascular conditions (incident stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) and incident myocardial infarction (MI)) and all-cause mortality between 1st January and 31st October 2020. Results: The linked cohort includes over 96% of the English population. By combining person-level data across national healthcare settings, data on age, sex and ethnicity are complete for over 95% of the population. Among 53.2M people with no prior diagnosis of stroke/TIA, 98,721 had an incident stroke/TIA, of which 30% were recorded only in primary care and 4% only in death registry records. Among 53.1M people with no prior history of MI, 62,966 had an incident MI, of which 8% were recorded only in primary care and 12% only in death records. A total of 959,067 people had a confirmed or suspected Covid-19 diagnosis (714,162 in primary care data, 126,349 in hospital admission records, 776,503 in Covid-19 laboratory test data and 48,433 participants in death registry records). While 58% of these were recorded in both primary care and Covid-19 laboratory test data, 15% and 18% respectively were recorded in only one. Conclusions: This population-wide resource demonstrates the importance of linking person-level data across health settings to maximize completeness of key characteristics and to ascertain cardiovascular events and Covid-19 diagnoses. Although established initially to support research on Covid-19 and cardiovascular disease to benefit clinical care and public health and to inform health care policy, it can broaden further to enable a very wide range of research.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Linking electronic health records for research on a nationwide cohort including over 54 million people in England
• SARS-CoV-2 serostatus of healthcare worker in the Austrian state Vorarlberg between June 2020 and January 2021 -

  Background Austria, and particularly its westernmost federal state Vorarlberg, developed an extremely high COVID-19 incidence rate in November 2020. Health care workers (HCW) may be at higher risk of contracting the disease within the working environment and therefore the seroprevalence in this population is of particular interest. Here, we analyzed SARS-CoV-2-specific antibody response in Vorarlberg HCW in a prospective cohort study. Methods A total of 395 HCW have been tested at three different time points for the prevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies specific for NP and RBD. Enrollment started in June 2020 (t1), two months after the end of the first wave. Re-testing took place between October to November at the beginning of the second wave (t2), and again at the end of the second wave in January 2021 (t3). Results At t1, 3% of HCW showed a strong IgG-specific responses to either NP or RBD. At t2, the rate increased to 4%, and after the second wave in January 2021, 14% had a strong response, which was assessed to be stable for up to ten months. The amount of HCW with anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies was 38% higher than the number of infections found by RT-PCR. Conclusion We found low numbers of SARS-CoV-2-seropositive HCW in a hotspot setting after the first wave but a very high increase during the second massive wave. Though the seroprevalence in HCW was comparable to the general population. Our findings offer support for the routine application of serological testing in management of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: SARS-CoV-2 serostatus of healthcare worker in the Austrian state Vorarlberg between June 2020 and January 2021
• Simulated identification of silent COVID-19 infections among children and estimated future infection rates with vaccination -

  Importance: A significant proportion of COVID-19 transmission occurs silently during the pre-symptomatic and asymptomatic stages of infection. Children, while being important drivers of silent transmission, are not included in the current COVID-19 vaccination campaigns. Objective: To investigate the benefits of identifying silent infections among children as a proxy for their vaccination. Design: This study used an age-structured disease transmission model, parameterized with census data and estimates from published literature, to simulate the synergistic effect of interventions in reducing attack rates over the course of one year. Setting: A synthetic population representative of the United States (US) demographics. Participants: Six age groups of 0-4, 5-10, 11-18, 19-49, 50-64, 65+ years based on US census data. Interventions: In addition to the isolation of symptomatic cases within 24 hours of symptom onset, vaccination of adults was implemented to reach a 40%-60% coverage over the course of one year with an efficacy of 95% against symptomatic and severe COVID-19. Main Outcomes and Measures: The combinations of proportion and speed for detecting silent infections among children which would suppress future attack rates below 5%. Results: In the base-case scenarios with an effective reproduction number Re = 1.2, a targeted approach that identifies 11% and 14% of silent infections among children within 2 or 3 days post-infection, respectively, would bring attack rates under 5% with 40% vaccination coverage of adults. If silent infections among children remained undetected, achieving the same attack rates would require an unrealistically high vaccination coverage (at least 81%) of this age group, in addition to 40% vaccination coverage of adults. The effect of identifying silent infections was robust in sensitivity analyses with respect to vaccine efficacy against infection and reduced susceptibility of children to infection. Conclusions and Relevance: In this simulation modeling study of a synthetic US population, in the absence of vaccine availability for children, a targeted approach to rapidly identify silent COVID-19 infections in this age group was estimated to significantly mitigate disease burden. Without measures to interrupt transmission chains from silent infections, vaccination of adults is unlikely to contain the outbreaks in the near term.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Simulated identification of silent COVID-19 infections among children and estimated future infection rates with vaccination

From Clinical Trials

• Study to Evaluate a Single Dose of STI-2020 (COVI-AMG™) in Hospitalized Adults With COVID-19 - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Biological: COVI-AMG;   Drug: Placebo
  Sponsor:   Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc.
  Not yet recruiting

• COVID-19 Antithrombotic Rivaroxaban Evaluation - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Drug: Rivaroxaban 10 mg
  Sponsors:   Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz;   Bayer;   Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein;   Hospital do Coracao;   Hospital Sirio-Libanes;   Hospital Moinhos de Vento;   Brazilian Research In Intensive Care Network;   Brazilian Clinical Research Institute
  Recruiting

• The Safety and Efficacy of FB2001 in Healthy Subjects and Patients With COVID-19 Infection - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: FB2001;   Drug: FB2001 Placebo
  Sponsor:   Frontier Biotechnologies Inc.
  Not yet recruiting

• A Safety and Efficacy Study of Human Monoclonal Antibodies, BRII-196 and BRII-198 for the Treatment of Patients With COVID-19 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: BRII-196 and BRII-198;   Drug: Placebo
  Sponsor:   Brii Biosciences, Inc.
  Not yet recruiting

• Effect of Prone Position onV/Q Matching in Non-intubated Patients With COVID-19 - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Other: prone position
  Sponsor:   Southeast University, China
  Not yet recruiting

• Safety & Efficacy of Low Dose Aspirin / Ivermectin Combination Therapy for Treatment of Covid-19 Patients - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Drug: 3-dayIVM 200 mcg/kg/day/14-day 75mgASA/day + standard of care (intervention 1)
  Sponsors:   Makerere University;   Ministry of Health, Uganda;   Mbarara University of Science and Technology;   Joint Clinical Research Center
  Not yet recruiting

• Protecting Native Families From COVID-19 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Behavioral: Motivational Interviewing;   Behavioral: COVID-19 Symptom Monitoring System;   Behavioral: Motivational Interviewing and COVID-19 Symptom Monitoring System;   Other: Supportive Services
  Sponsor:   Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  Not yet recruiting

• Honey and Nigella Sativa in COVID-19 Prophylaxis - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Honey;   Drug: Nigella sativa seed;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsor:   Sohaib Ashraf
  Recruiting

• Safety and Efficacy of Thymic Peptides in the Treatment of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients in Honduras - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Biological: Thymic peptides
  Sponsors:   Universidad Católica de Honduras;   Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile
  Recruiting

• Safety, Tolerability, and Immunogenicity of the COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate (VBI-2902a) - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Biological: VBI-2902a;   Biological: Placebo
  Sponsor:   VBI Vaccines Inc.
  Not yet recruiting

• Safety and Immunogenicity Study in Adults of AZD1222 and rAd26-S Administered as Heterologous Prime Boost Regimen for the Prevention of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Biological: AZD1222;   Biological: rAd26-S
  Sponsors:   R-Pharm;   AstraZeneca
  Not yet recruiting

• Trial Efficacy of Saisei Pharma Dietary Supplements MAF Capsules, 148 mg and M Capsules, 148 mg in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Dietary Supplement: MAF capsules 148 mg;   Dietary Supplement: M capsules 148 mg;   Other: Standard of care
  Sponsor:   Saisei Pharma
  Active, not recruiting

• Impact of Colchicine and Low-dose Naltrexone on COVID-19 - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Colchicine 0.6 mg;   Drug: Naltrexone
  Sponsors:   HealthPartners Institute;   Park Nicollet Foundation
  Enrolling by invitation

• THE EFFECT OF BREATHING EXERCISE AFTER COVID-19 PNEUMONIA: A Randomised Controlled Study - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Other: Breathing exercise with the phone application;   Other: Breathing exercise
  Sponsor:   Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University
  Not yet recruiting

• The RAPID COVID Study - Application of Point-of-Care COVID-19 Testing - Condition:   Covid19
  Intervention:   Diagnostic Test: Spartan COVID-19 Platform
  Sponsor:   Ottawa Heart Institute Research Corporation
  Not yet recruiting

From PubMed

• In vivo structural characterization of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA genome identifies host proteins vulnerable to repurposed drugs - Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Understanding of the RNA virus and its interactions with host proteins could improve therapeutic interventions for COVID-19. By using icSHAPE, we determined the structural landscape of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in infected human cells and from refolded RNAs, as well as the regulatory untranslated regions of SARS-CoV-2 and six other coronaviruses. We validated several…

• Inhibition of anti-viral stress granule formation by coronavirus endoribonuclease nsp15 ensures efficient virus replication - Cytoplasmic stress granules (SGs) are generally triggered by stress-induced translation arrest for storing mRNAs. Recently, it has been shown that SGs exert anti-viral functions due to their involvement in protein synthesis shut off and recruitment of innate immune signaling intermediates. The largest RNA viruses, coronaviruses, impose great threat to public safety and animal health; however, the significance of SGs in coronavirus infection is largely unknown. Infectious Bronchitis Virus (IBV)…

• Breadth and function of antibody response to acute SARS-CoV-2 infection in humans - Serological and plasmablast responses and plasmablast-derived IgG monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) have been analysed in three COVID-19 patients with different clinical severities. Potent humoral responses were detected within 3 weeks of onset of illness in all patients and the serological titre was elicited soon after or concomitantly with peripheral plasmablast response. An average of 13.7% and 13.0% of plasmablast-derived MAbs were reactive with virus spike glycoprotein or nucleocapsid,…

• Bromelain inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection via targeting ACE-2, TMPRSS2, and spike protein - No abstract

• Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 replication using calcineurin inhibitors: are concentrations required clinically achievable? - No abstract

• Severe SARS-CoV-2 infection inhibits fibrinolysis leading to changes in viscoelastic properties of blood clot: A descriptive study of fibrinolysis - BACKGROUND: Accumulating evidence indicates towards an association between SARS-CoV-2 infection and procoagulatory state in blood. Thromboelastographic investigations are useful point-of-care devices to assess coagulation and fibrinolysis.

• Plant-Derived Food Grade Substances (PDFGS) Active Against Respiratory Viruses: A Systematic Review of Non-clinical Studies - Human diet comprises several classes of phytochemicals some of which are potentially active against human pathogenic viruses. This study examined available evidence that identifies existing food plants or constituents of edible foods that have been reported to inhibit viral pathogenesis of the human respiratory tract. SCOPUS and PUBMED databases were searched with keywords designed to retrieve articles that investigated the effect of plant-derived food grade substances (PDFGS) on the activities…

• Adverse Outcomes Associated With Corticosteroid Use in Critical COVID-19: A Retrospective Multicenter Cohort Study - Corticosteroid is commonly used to reduce damage from inflammatory reactions in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We aim to determine the outcomes of corticosteroid use in critically ill COVID-19 patients. Ninety six critically ill patients, hospitalized in 14 hospitals outside Wuhan from January 16 to March 30, 2020 were enrolled in this study. Among 96 critical patients, 68 were treated with corticosteroid (CS group), while 28 were not treated with corticosteroids (non-CS group)….

• How Family’s Support of Perseverance in Creative Efforts Influences the Originality of Children’s Drawing During the Period of COVID-19 Pandemic? - This study points out that families’ support of perseverance in creative efforts will increase children’s originality of creative drawing through children’s persistence in information searching. Data analysis based on 134 Chinese young children’s creative drawings and survey supports the above hypothesis. Moreover, children’s exposure to COVID-19 pandemic positively moderates the relationship between supporting perseverance and children’s search persistence, such that high exposure to COVID-19…

• Impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on roadside traffic-related air pollution in Shanghai, China - The outbreak of COVID-19 has significantly inhibited global economic growth and impacted the environment. Some evidence suggests that lockdown strategies have significantly reduced traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) in regions across the world. However, the impact of COVID-19 on TRAP on roadside is still not clearly understood. In this study, we assessed the influence of the COVID-19 lockdown on the levels of traffic-related air pollutants in Shanghai. The pollution data from two types of…

• Neutrophil Extracellular Traps in Coronavirus Disease-19-Associated Ischemic Stroke: A Novel Avenue in Neuroscience - Ischemic stroke is one of the catastrophic neurological events that are being increasingly recognized among Coronavirus Disease (COVID)-19 patients. The recent studies have revealed about a possible connection among COVID-19, ischemic stroke, and excessive Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) formation. This paper establishes an overview of coronaviruses and NETs, NETs in pathogenesis of COVID-19 induced-ischemic stroke, and future directions using related recent literatures. NETs are normally…

• Antiviral Bafilomycins from a Feces-Inhabiting Streptomyces sp - A new bafilomycin derivative (1) and another seven known bafilomycins (2-8) were isolated from feces-derived Streptomyces sp. HTL16. The structure of 1 was elucidated by 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic analysis. Biological testing demonstrated that these bafilomycins exhibited potent antiviral activities against the influenza A and SARS-CoV-2 viruses, with IC(50) values in the nanomolar range, by inhibiting the activity of endosomal ATP-driven proton pumps.

• Ca(2+)-dependent mechanism of membrane insertion and destabilization by the SARS-CoV-2 fusion peptide - Cell penetration after recognition of the SARS-CoV-2 virus by the ACE2 receptor, and the fusion of its viral envelope membrane with cellular membranes, are the early steps of infectivity. A region of the Spike protein (S) of the virus, identified as the “fusion peptide” (FP), is liberated at its N-terminal site by a specific cleavage occurring in concert with the interaction of the receptor binding domain of the Spike. Studies have shown that penetration is enhanced by the required binding of…

• Interleukin-6 Receptor Inhibition in Covid-19 - Cooling the Inflammatory Soup - No abstract

• A pilot double-blind safety and feasibility randomised controlled trial of high-dose intravenous zinc in hospitalised COVID-19 patients - CONCLUSION: Hospitalised COVID-19 patients demonstrated zinc deficiency. This can be corrected with HDIVZn. Such treatment appears safe, feasible and only associated with minimal peripheral infusion site irritation. This pilot study justifies further investigation of this treatment in COVID-19 patients. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

From Patent Search

• Sars-CoV-2 vaccine antigens - - link

• SARS-COV-2 BINDING PROTEINS - - link

• Compositions and methods for detecting SARS-CoV-2 spike protein - - link

• 一种3-羟基丁酰化修饰蛋白质药物及其制备方法和应用 - 本发明涉及医药技术领域，公开了一种3‑羟基丁酰化修饰蛋白质药物（例如抗体）及其制备方法和应用，特别是一种3‑羟基丁酰化修饰抗体及其制备方法和应用。发明人经过大量实验发现，3‑羟基丁酸及其类似物修饰蛋白质药物（例如抗体）后，可以显著提高蛋白质药物的热稳定性、对蛋白酶水解的抗性，降低蛋白质药物的等电点，并显著延长其在受试者体内的半衰期，进而提高其药效。修饰后所得蛋白质药物在科研和临床方面具有广阔的应用前景和较高的商业价值。 - link

• 新冠病毒重组融合蛋白、其制备方法和应用 - 本发明提供一种新冠病毒重组融合蛋白、其制备方法和应用。本发明通过对新冠病毒S和N重组融合蛋白的基因序列进行设计，选择最优的片段进行整合，再通过人源HEK293细胞系统重组表达融合蛋白，经过纯化后对融合蛋白的分子量、纯度进行检测，最后利用融合蛋白制成新冠病毒抗体胶体金检测试纸条/试剂盒。与单独使用S蛋白或N蛋白制备的胶体金检测试纸条相比，该重组融合蛋白制备的胶体金检测试纸条具有更高的灵敏度和更低的漏检率。此外，本发明提供的新冠病毒重组融合蛋白可广泛应用于不同平台技术的新冠抗体检测试剂盒开发，如胶体金、荧光免疫层析、化学发光和酶联免疫等。 - link

• 稳定的冠状病毒重组蛋白二聚体及其表达载体 - 本发明公开了稳定的冠状病毒重组蛋白二聚体及其表达载体，冠状病毒重组蛋白，由冠状病毒S蛋白S‑RBD、冠状病毒N蛋白的CTD区N‑CTD和将二者偶联的连接子构成。本发明一些实例的冠状病毒重组蛋白，可以形成并维持稳定的二聚体结构，避免单体S‑RBD降解，有利于提高冠状病毒重组蛋白的免疫原性，有望用于制备检测试剂原料、疫苗、抗体、预防或治疗性药物。本发明一些实例的冠状病毒重组蛋白二聚体，具有很好的免疫原性。在疫苗开发领域具有广阔的应用前景。本发明一些实例的表达载体，易于表达冠状病毒重组蛋白二聚体且表达量高。 - link

• SELF-CLEANING AND GERM-KILLING REVOLVING PUBLIC TOILET FOR COVID 19 - - link

• 一种新冠病毒S1蛋白的灌流生产系统及方法 - 本发明涉及细胞生物学技术领域，提供了一种新冠病毒S1蛋白的灌流生产系统及方法，包括：细胞反应器，用于培养表达S1蛋白的细胞株；灌流系统，包括过滤装置、出液管、回液管和第一循环泵，所述过滤装置的主体内设有孔径为0.1‑0.2μm的中空纤维柱，用于过滤透出液，截留细胞培养液中的S1蛋白；所述出液管的两端分别与所述细胞反应器和所述中空纤维柱的下端相连通；所述回液管的两端分别与所述细胞反应器和所述中空纤维柱的上端相连通；所述第一循环泵设置于所述出液管与所述中空纤维柱相连的管路中。本发明系统投入成本低且S1蛋白产量高。 - link

• 检测新冠病毒的方法及试剂盒 - 本发明公开了一种检测新冠病毒的方法及试剂盒。其中，该方法包括以下步骤：1）采集样本；2）采用核酸释放剂提取核酸；3）采用LAMP扩增进行检测，其中，核酸释放剂包括：热敏蛋白酶1000U/L~10000U/L、Tris‑HCl 5~50 mmol/L、曲拉通X‑100体积百分比0.05%_{0.5%和金属离子螯合剂0.1}0.5mmol/L，其余为无菌水，热敏蛋白酶为≥55℃加热5~10分钟会完全失活的蛋白酶。应用本发明的检测新冠病毒的方法及试剂盒，检测新冠病毒，检测周期短，操作简单方便，检测结果通俗易懂，检测特异性高，检测成本低。 - link

• 一种新型冠状病毒拉曼光谱数据中心的构建方法 - 本发明公开了一种新型冠状病毒拉曼光谱数据中心的构建方法，该方法包括以下步骤：S1.构建新冠病毒结构蛋白拉曼光谱数据库；S2.构建新冠病毒核酸拉曼光谱数据库；S3.构建新冠病毒颗粒拉曼光谱数据库；S4.构建新冠病毒临床检测样本拉曼光谱数据库；将各新型冠状病毒拉曼光谱数据库存入新型冠状病毒拉曼光谱检测服务器构成新型冠状病毒拉曼光谱数据中心。本发明有效建立了一套完整的新型冠状病毒拉曼光谱数据库，为新冠病毒拉曼检测技术提供可靠的标准数据支撑，有效提高检测结果的准确性及置信度。 - link