Background The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is continuously evolving and many mutant variants of the virus are circulating in the world. Recurrent waves of COVID-19 have caused enormous mortality all over the world. It is of utmost importance for a health expert to understand the demographic and clinical attributes between the first and second waves of COVID-19 induced deaths. Method This was a hospital record based comparative study of baseline demographic, clinical and laboratory parameters of the first and second wave of COVID-19 in a tertiary care hospital in Uttarakhand, India. The study included all deceased patients admitted to the hospital during the first and second wave of COVID-19, i.e., between March 2020 to January 2021 and between March 2021 to June 2021, respectively. Result The study showed that there were more casualties in the second wave compared to the first, 475 (19.8%) and 424 (24.1%) respectively. There was no significant difference in terms of age. A male preponderance of mortality was evident in both the waves. The median duration of hospital stay was 5 (3-10) days in the second wave, which is significantly different from the corresponding duration in first wave (p<o.ooo). The most common clinical manifestation among the deceased were dyspnoea in both the waves, followed by fever and cough, the difference was statistically significant for cough (p< 0.000) The most prevalent comorbidity was diabetes mellitus (DM), followed by hypertension (HTN), with significant difference for HTN (p<0.003). The most frequently deranged lab parameter was lymphopenia with a significant difference across both the waves (p<0.000). Conclusion In both the first and second COVID-19 waves, older males (>45 years) with comorbidities like HTN and DM were most susceptible for COVID-19 related mortality. The study also demonstrated that most of the baseline demographic and clinical characteristics which are attributed to the mortality were more common during the second wave of COVID-19.
Background COVID-19 vaccine acceptance is important in ensuring the widespread vaccination of the population to achieve herd immunity. Establishing the acceptance of vaccines among healthcare workers, who play a vital role immunization program success, is important. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of social trust and demographic factors on COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among healthcare workers. Methods A cross-sectional survey utilizing an electronic questionnaire inquiring about COVID-19 vaccine uptake, preferences, and concerns was distributed via email to 1,351 North Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA) healthcare workers of the following categories: medical practitioners, nursing personnel, veterinary surgeons, medical interns, dental interns, paramedics, and pharmacists. These professions were selected as they were granted power to administer COVID-19 vaccines during this period of public emergency by the President of Trinidad and Tobago and were therefore likely to be NCRHA healthcare workers directly involved in vaccine administration services. 584 participants returned a completed questionnaire. Bivariate analysis using Chi-square analysis of association was used to determine the association between the respondents’ characteristics and the acceptance of the vaccine and the association between vaccine acceptance among healthcare workers and trust. The association between the acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccines and healthcare workers’ characteristics and trust was established using multinomial logistic regression. Results A total of 584 healthcare workers took part in the study and 1.4% showed unwillingness to receive COVID-19 vaccine. The study indicates that age, profession, and the trust in international organizations and other healthcare providers predict the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among healthcare workers. However, gender of the healthcare workers does not predict vaccine acceptance. Conclusions and Relevance Efforts towards enhanced vaccine acceptance among healthcare workers should take into consideration age, profession, and the trust in international organizations and other healthcare providers. Sensitization programs should be age-specific as well as occupation-based.
Lebanon has battled the COVID-19 pandemic in the midst of an economic crisis. The evolution of the pandemic and a fragile health system have meant that public health policy has had to rely heavily on non-pharmaceutical interventions for disease control. However, changes in disease dynamics and pandemic fatigue have meant that disease control policies need to be updated. Identifying variables associated with adherence to non-pharmaceutical preventive practices, particularly for vulnerable groups, can therefore help inform and refine interventions in the face of pandemic fatigue and changing disease dynamics. Using recent and timely data on older (50 years and above) Syrian refugees in Lebanon, this paper explores the determinants of adherence to two non-pharmaceutical COVID-19 prevention measures (wearing a mask and avoiding social gatherings) among this high-risk subgroup in a vulnerable population. Among respondents who report adhering to these measures, the paper also identifies the determinants of sustained adherence over a period of 6 months. The findings suggest that older refugees and those less educated are less likely to wear a mask, and refugees living in informal tented settlements are more likely to relent on preventive practices within 6 months. Individuals with chronic diseases who initially report avoiding social gatherings are also likelier to desist than those without chronic illness. The lower continued adherence to mask wearing among residents of informal tented settlements points to factors beyond pandemic fatigue and that should be taken into consideration in devising measures for disease control: the potential for community-based norms to determine individual-level behavior. Recognizing the pivotal effect of community- based norms in settings such as informal tented settlements is essential in adapting current policy and designing future interventions.
Background: Several studies have shown that SARS-CoV-2 BA.1 omicron is an immune escape variant and current vaccines and infection with pre-omicron variants provide limited protection against BA.1. Meanwhile, however, omicron BA.2 has become the dominant variant in many countries and has replaced BA.1. As BA.2 has several mutations especially in the receptor binding and the N terminal domain compared to BA.1, we analyzed whether BA.2 shows further immune escape relative to BA.1. Methods: We characterized neutralization profiles against the new BA.2 omicron variant in plasma samples from a variety of individuals with different numbers of exposures to infection/vaccination, including samples from previously virus-naive, BA.2 omicron-infected individuals. To illustrate antigenic differences of the two omicron sub-variants and pre-omicron variants we performed antigenic cartography and generated antibody landscapes. Results: Unvaccinated individuals after a single exposure to BA.2 had limited cross-neutralizing antibodies to pre-omicron variants and to BA.1. Consequently, our antigenic map, which included all Variants of Concern and both BA.1 and BA.2 omicron sub-variants, showed that both omicron sub-variants are distinct to pre-omicron variants, but that the two omicron variant are also antigenically distinct from each other. The antibody landscapes illustrate that cross- neutralizing antibodies against the whole antigenic space, as described in our maps, are generated only after three or more exposures to antigenically close variants but also after two exposures to antigenically distinct variants. Conclusions: Here, we describe the antigenic space inhabited by the relevant SARS-CoV-2 variants, the understanding of which will have important implications for further vaccine strain adaptations.
Background Against the background of the current COVID-19 infection dynamics with the rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOC), above all the Omicron VOC, the immunity of healthcare workers (HCWs) against SARS-CoV-2 continues to be of high importance. Vaccination plays a central role in reducing the severity and potentially the spread of the disease. In healthcare, this is important to prevent disease-related staff shortages. However, there is a lack of data on factors influencing the humoral immune response. Aim The aim of our study was to determine factors influencing the level of Anti-SARS-CoV-2-Spike IgG after SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination in healthcare workers. Methods 1,750 study participants were recruited who met the following inclusion criteria: age ≥ 18 years, PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccination, working in health care. Anti-SARS-CoV-2-Spike IgG titres were determined by SERION ELISA agile SARS-CoV-2 IgG. Results Mean Anti-SARS-CoV-2-Spike IgG levels increased significantly with the number of COVID-19 vaccinations (92.2 BAU/ml for single dose, 140.9 BAU/ml for two doses and 1,144.3 BAU/ml after threefold vaccination). Hybrid COVID-19 immunized respondents (after infection and vaccination) had significantly higher antibody titres compared with participants after infection only (525.4 BAU/ml vs. 105.7 BAU/ml). Anti-SARS-CoV-2-Spike IgG titres declined significantly with time after administration of the second vaccine dose. Smoking and high age were associated with lower titres. Conclusion Both recovered and vaccinated HCWs presented a predominantly good humoral immune response with decreasing antibody levels over the temporal course. Smoking and higher age limited the humoral SARS-CoV-2 immunity. This reduced immune response is an important aspect as people with these risk factors are recognized as people with an increased risk for a severe course of disease.
Point-of-care antigen tests are an important tool for SARS-CoV-2 detection, but they are less clinically sensitive than real-time reverse-transcription PCR (RT-PCR), impacting their efficacy as screening procedures. Our goal in this study was to see whether we could improve this sensitivity by considering antigen test results in combination with other relevant information, namely exposure status and reported symptoms. In November of 2020, we collected 3,419 paired upper respiratory specimens tested by RT-PCR and the Abbott BinaxNOW antigen test at two community testing sites in Pima County, Arizona. We used symptom, exposure, and antigen testing data to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of various symptom definitions in predicting RT-PCR positivity. Our analysis yielded 6 novel multi-symptom case definitions with and without antigen test results, the best of which overall achieved a Youden9s J index of 0.66, as compared with 0.52 for antigen testing alone. Using a random forest as a guide, we show that this definition, along with our others, does not lose the ability to generalize well to new data despite achieving optimal performance in our sample. Our methodology is broadly applicable, and we have made our code publicly available to aid public health practitioners in developing or fine- tuning their own screening rules.
Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic underlined that guidelines and recommendations must be made more accessible and more understandable to the general public, including adults, parents, and youth, to improve health outcomes. The objective of this study is to the public′s (youth, parents, and adult populations) understanding, usability, satisfaction, intention to implement, and preference for different ways of presenting COVID-19 health recommendations derived from the COVID-19 Living Map of Recommendations and Gateway to Contextualization (herein referred to as the RecMap). Methods and Analysis This is a protocol for a mixed-methods study. We will conduct a pragmatic allocation-concealed, blinded superiority randomized controlled trial (RCT) in three populations: adults (21 years of age or older), parents (18 years or above and are a parent or legal guardian of a child under 18 years old), and youth (15 to 24 years old), with at least 240 participants in each population. The trial will consist of an online survey and optional one on one interview. Prior to initiating the RCT, all PLRs were refined with relevant stakeholder input. In each population group, the intervention arm will receive a PLR format while the control arm will receive the original recommendation format as originally published by the guideline organizations (herein referred to as Standard Language Version). Our primary outcome is understanding, and our secondary outcomes are accessibility and usability, satisfaction, intended behavior, and preference for the two recommendation formats. Each population′s results will be analyzed separately. We will pool the results across populations using meta-analysis, and also explore potential interaction and subgroup effects within each population. At the end of each survey, participants will be invited to participate in a one-on-one semi-structured interview to explore reasons for their choices and learn for future research. All interviews will be analyzed using thematic analysis. Interpretation will be iterative as data coding proceeds. Ethics and Dissemination Through Clinical Trials Ontario (CTO), the Hamilton Integrated Research Ethics Board has reviewed and approved this protocol (Project ID: 3856). The University of Alberta will also be submitting for ethics approval. All potential participants will be required to provide informed consent. The findings from this study will be disseminated through open-access publications in peer-reviewed journals. Strengths and limitations of this study · We are following a mixed methods approach: randomized controlled trial and qualitative interviews. The qualitative results will supplement and help explain our quantitative findings. · This protocol is reported in accordance with the Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials (SPIRIT), which enhances transparency and completeness. The trial uses previously validated outcomes from similar trials. This will strengthen the credibility of our results. · Our study is testing an evaluated PLR format, which makes our intervention stronger, and is recruiting internationally, which ensures the inclusion of a diverse population. · Recruitment will take place online using social media, and data will be collected using an online survey. This allows for self-selection and limits accessibility to those who have no or limited digital access, which in turn limits generalizability. · While the recommendations are offered in multiple languages through the RecMap, the study is only testing English Plain Language Recommendations.
Research conducted at the outset of the pandemic shows that people are vulnerable to unrealistic optimism (UO). However, the Weinstein model suggests that this tendency may not persist as the pandemic progresses. Our research aimed at verifying whether UO persists during the second (Study 1) and the third wave (Study 2) of the pandemic in Poland, whether it concerns the assessment of the chances of COVID-19 infection (Study 1 and Study 2), the chances of severe course of the disease and adverse vaccine reactions (Study 2). We show that UO towards contracting COVID-19 persists throughout the pandemic. However , in situations where we have little influence on the occurrence of the event, the participants do not show UO . The exceptions are those who have known personally someone who has died from a coronavirus infection. These results are discussed in terms of self-esteem protection and the psychological threat reduction mechanism.
A Study to Evaluate the Safety and Immunogenicity of Omicron COVID-19 Vaccine (Vero Cell), Inactivated in Population 18 Years Old of Age and Above - Condition: COVID-19
Intervention: Biological: Omicron COVID-19 Vaccine (Vero Cell), Inactivated
Sponsors: China National Biotec Group Company Limited; Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co Ltd.; Shulan (Hangzhou) Hospital
Recruiting
A First-In-Human Phase 1b Study of AmnioPul-02 in COVID-19 - Condition: COVID-19
Intervention: Drug: AmnioPul-02
Sponsor: Amniotics AB
Not yet recruiting
THEMBA II T-Cell Vaccine: A Phase 1/2 Study of Vaccination With saRNA COVID-19 Vaccines - Condition: COVID-19
Interventions: Biological: AAHI-SC2 Vaccine; Biological: AAHI- SC3 Vaccine; Biological: EUA or approved vaccine
Sponsor: ImmunityBio, Inc.
Recruiting
A Study of COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine (SYS6006) in Chinese Healthy Older Adults. - Condition: COVID-19
Interventions: Biological: 20 μg dose of SYS6006; Biological: 30 μg dose of SYS6006; Biological: 50 μg dose of SYS6006; Drug: Placebo
Sponsor:
CSPC ZhongQi Pharmaceutical Technology Co., Ltd.
Recruiting
Safety, Reactogenicity, and Immunogenicity Study of a Lyophilized COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine - Condition: Covid19
Interventions: Biological: A Lyophilized COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine; Biological: Placebo
Sponsor: Jiangsu Rec-Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
Not yet recruiting
A Study of COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine (SYS6006) in Chinese Healthy Adults Aged 18 -59 Years. - Condition: COVID-19
Interventions: Biological: 20 μg dose of SYS6006; Biological: 30 μg dose of SYS6006; Biological: 50 μg dose of SYS6006; Drug: Placebo
Sponsor:
CSPC ZhongQi Pharmaceutical Technology Co., Ltd.
Recruiting
The Use of Chinese Herbal Medicine and Vitamin C by Hospital Care Workers in HK to Prevent COVID-19 - Condition: COVID-19
Intervention: Drug: Chinese herbal medicine
Sponsor:
Hong Kong Baptist University
Not yet recruiting
To Evaluate SSD8432/ Ritonavir in Adults With COVID-19 - Condition: COVID-19 Patients
Interventions: Drug: SSD8432 dose 1/Ritonavir; Drug: SSD8432 dose 2
Sponsor: Jiangsu Simcere Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
Not yet recruiting
Safety, Reactogenicity, and Immunogenicity Study of a Lyophilized COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine - Condition: COVID-19 Pandemic
Interventions: Biological: A Lyophilized COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine; Biological: Placebo
Sponsor: Wuhan Recogen Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
Not yet recruiting
Home-based Exercise Program in Patients With the Post-COVID-19 Condition - Conditions: Long COVID; Post-acute COVID-19 Syndrome
Intervention: Other: Home- based physical training
Sponsor: University of Sao Paulo
Not yet recruiting
Kesuting Syrup in the Treatment of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) - Conditions: COVID-19 Pneumonia; Cough
Interventions: Drug: Kesuting syrup; Drug: LianHuaQingWen Granules
Sponsor: Guizhou Bailing Group Pharmaceutical Co Ltd
Recruiting
Immune Function in Elderly Patients With Mild to Moderate COVID-19 on Hemodialysis - Conditions: COVID-19; Hemodiafiltration
Interventions:
Dietary Supplement: Oral nutritional supplement; Behavioral: Nutrition consultation
Sponsor:
Ruijin Hospital
Not yet recruiting
Phase 2b/3 Trial of NuSepin® in COVID-19 Pneumonia Patients - Condition: COVID-19 Pneumonia
Interventions: Drug: NuSepin® 0.2 mg/kg; Drug: NuSepin® 0.4 mg/kg; Drug: Placebo
Sponsor: Shaperon
Recruiting
A Study Assessing the Safety, Tolerability, Immunogenicity of COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate PRIME-2-CoV_Beta, Orf Virus Expressing SARS-CoV_2 Spike and Nucleocapsid Proteins (ORFEUS) - Condition: SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Intervention: Drug: PRIME-2-CoV_Beta
Sponsor:
Speransa Therapeutics
Not yet recruiting
Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cell Derived Extracellular Vesicles as Early Goal Directed Therapy for COVID-19 Moderate-to-Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS): A Phase III Clinical Trial - Condition: COVID-19 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
Intervention: Drug: EXOFLO
Sponsor: Direct Biologics, LLC
Not yet recruiting
Known data on CoVid-19 infection linked to type-2 diabetes - It is of interest to document the known data on CoVid-19 infection linked to type-2 diabetes. Hyperglycemia, inhibition of neutrophil chemotaxis, altered cytokine synthesis, phagocytic cell dysfunction, impaired T cell-mediated immune responses, and inadequate microbia were all seen in people with Diabetes. Individuals with diabetes have also been shown to elevate levels of the proinflammatory cytokine, especially IL-1, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and different markers…
A review of the characteristic properties of selected tobacco chemicals and their associated etiological risks - OBJECTIVES: Despite the quantum of research findings on tobacco epidemic, a review on the formation characteristics of nicotine, aldehydes and phenols, and their associated etiological risks is still limited in literature. Accordingly, knowledge on the chemical properties and free radical formation during tobacco burning is an important subject towards unravelling the relationship between smoking behaviour and disease. This review investigates how scientific efforts have been advanced towards…
Molecular dynamic simulations reveal anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of mitocurcumin by potentially blocking innate immune evasion proteins NSP3 and NSP16 - The coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is affecting human life in an unprecedented manner and has become a global public health emergency. Identification of novel inhibitors of viral infection/replication is the utmost priority to curtail COVID-19 progression. A pre-requisite for such inhibitors is good bioavailability, non-toxicity and serum stability. Computational studies have shown that curcumin can be a candidate…
Multivalent 9-O-Acetylated-sialic acid glycoclusters as potent inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2 infection - The recent emergence of highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants illustrates the urgent need to better understand the molecular details of the virus binding to its host cell and to develop anti-viral strategies. While many studies focused on the role of the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor in the infection, others suggest the important role of cell attachment factors such as glycans. Here, we use atomic force microscopy to study these early binding events with the focus on the role of…
VMP1 and TMEM41B are essential for DMV formation during β-coronavirus infection - β-coronaviruses reshape host cell endomembranes to form double-membrane vesicles (DMVs) for genome replication and transcription. Ectopically expressed viral nonstructural proteins nsp3 and nsp4 interact to zipper and bend the ER for DMV biogenesis. Genome-wide screens revealed the autophagy proteins VMP1 and TMEM41B as important host factors for SARS- CoV-2 infection. Here, we demonstrated that DMV biogenesis, induced by virus infection or expression of nsp3/4, is impaired in the VMP1 KO or…
A glucose-like metabolite deficient in diabetes inhibits cellular entry of SARS-CoV-2 - The severity and mortality of COVID-19 are associated with pre-existing medical comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus. However, the underlying causes for increased susceptibility to viral infection in patients with diabetes is not fully understood. Here we identify several small-molecule metabolites from human blood with effective antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2, one of which, 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol (1,5-AG), is associated with diabetes mellitus. The serum 1,5-AG level is significantly…
Immunobiology of tubercle bacilli and prospects of immunomodulatory drugs to tackle tuberculosis (TB) and other non- tubercular mycobacterial infections - The COVID-19 pandemic has set back progress made on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Without urgent re-focus, we risk slowing down drug discovery and providing treatment for drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Unique in its immune evasion, dormancy and resuscitation, the causal pathogens of tuberculosis (TB) have demonstrated resistance to antibiotics with efflux pumps and the ability to form biofilms. Repurposing drugs is a prospective avenue for finding new anti-TB drugs. There are many…
SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant Decreases Nanobody Binding and ACE2 Blocking Effectivity - The Delta variant spreads more rapidly than previous variants of SARS-CoV-2. This variant comprises several mutations on the receptor-binding domain (RBD(Delta)) of its spike glycoprotein, which binds to the peptidase domain (PD) of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors in host cells. The RBD-PD interaction has been targeted by antibodies and nanobodies to prevent viral infection, but their effectiveness against the Delta variant remains unclear. Here, we investigated RBD(Delta)-PD…
Serine Protease Inhibitors Restrict Host Susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 Infections - The coronavirus disease 2019, COVID-19, is a complex disease with a wide range of symptoms from asymptomatic infections to severe acute respiratory syndrome with lethal outcome. Individual factors such as age, sex, and comorbidities increase the risk for severe infections, but other aspects, such as genetic variations, are also likely to affect the susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and disease severity. Here, we used a human 3D lung cell model based on primary cells derived from multiple…
Plant-derived active compounds as a potential nucleocapsid protein inhibitor of SARS-CoV-2: an in-silico study - The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by SARS-CoV-2. This virus has a high mismatch repair proofreading ability due to its unique exonuclease activity, making it knotty to treat. The nucleocapsid protein can serve as a potential antiviral drug target, as this protein is responsible for multiple captious functions during the viral life cycle. Herein, we have investigated the potential to repurpose active antiviral compounds of plant origins for treating the SARS-CoV-2 infection. In…
Green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles using Anoectochilus elatus, and their biomedical applications - Zinc and its derivatives requirement increased to enhance human immunity against the different pandemics, including covid-19. Green synthesis is an emerging field of research. Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles have been prepared from Anoectochilus elatus and characterized using absorption, vibrational and electron microscope analysis. They were carried for antibacterial, inflammatory control tendency, and potential antioxidant activities. The brine shrimp lethal assay tested the biologically…
Neutralizing Effect of Synthetic Peptides toward SARS-CoV-2 - The outbreak caused by SARS-CoV-2 has taken many lives worldwide. Although vaccination has started, the development of drugs to either alleviate or abolish symptoms of COVID-19 is still necessary. Here, four synthetic peptides were assayed regarding their ability to protect Vero E6 cells from SARS-CoV-2 infection and their toxicity to human cells and zebrafish embryos. All peptides had some ability to protect cells from infection by SARS-CoV-2 with the D614G mutation. Molecular docking predicted…
Transient but recurrent complete heart block in a patient after COVID-19 vaccination - A case report - CONCLUSION: COVID-19 vaccination may transitorily interfere with cardiac conduction system even in subjects without known underlying heart disease.
Loneliness is not a homogeneous experience: An empirical analysis of adaptive and maladaptive forms of loneliness in the UK - Understanding loneliness is pivotal to informing relevant evidence-based preventive interventions. The present study examined the prevalence of loneliness in the UK, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the association between loneliness, mental health outcomes, and risk and protective factors for loneliness, after controlling for the effects of social isolation. It was estimated that 18.1% of the population in our study experienced moderately high to very high loneliness. We also found that…
Biological activity of interferons in the novel coronavirus infection COVID-19 - CONCLUSION: The obtained data on deficiency of the functional biologically active IFN confirm the hypothesis about the predominant role of impaired IFN production of different types in the immunopathogenesis of the novel coronavirus infection.