Covid-19 Sentry

Contents

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

From Preprints

• The Constructive and Destructive Power of Social Norms in the Presence of Authoritative Influence -
  A randomized survey experiment (N=2,868) was conducted at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic to examine the effects of information provision on individuals’ cooperation with social distancing measures. Employing a 2 × 2 factorial design, the study examined the influence of social comparison and a powerful messenger. Using an online sample of approximately 3,000 Japanese respondents, it was found that participants demonstrated greater cooperation with social distancing measures when they perceived that they had spent a relatively long time outside the home compared with prevailing social norms in the previous week. Conversely, individuals who spent a relatively short time outside the home, exhibited the opposite effect. However, these results were observed solely in conjunction with the influence of a powerful messenger. The study also explored heterogeneous responses based on personality traits. In conclusion, the results highlight the challenges of changing behavior through informational interventions, emphasizing the role of both the characteristics of the sender and recipient of the information.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: The Constructive and Destructive Power of Social Norms in the Presence of Authoritative Influence
• Predictors of wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic: Key roles for gratitude and tragic optimism in a UK-based cohort. -
  Here we examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on wellbeing among UK-based respondents (N = 133). We explore the extent to which variables across wellbeing domains (physical activity, gratitude, tragic optimism, social support, and nature connection) contribute to wellbeing according to our previously proposed GENIAL model. Wellbeing was significantly reduced compared to both retrospective pre-lockdown measures (d=0.55) and a Scottish sample from 2018 (d=0.39). The regression model, containing wellbeing-related variables along with age, sex, and subjective socioeconomic status, accounted for up to 50% of the variance in wellbeing. While all predictor variables were significantly associated with wellbeing in zero-order correlations, only gratitude and tragic optimism contributed significantly to the regression model. These findings provide the first evidence for the contribution of these positive psychological factors to wellbeing during the COVID-19 lockdown. Implications for wellbeing at a time of great suffering and existential positive psychology (PP2.0) are discussed.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Predictors of wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic: Key roles for gratitude and tragic optimism in a UK-based cohort.
• Combined effects of P25 TiO2 nanoparticles and disposable face mask leachate on microalgae Scenedesmus obliquus: Analysing the effects of heavy metals -
  Disposable surgical masks have been extensively employed as protective medical equipment due to the widespread breakout and transmission of the COVID-19 virus across the globe. These masks were made up of plastic polymer materials that would emit microplastics after entering the environment. Therefore, their careless disposal might lead to new and bigger microplastic contamination. The impacts of plastics that seep into waterways and their subsequent interactions with aquatic life are yet largely unexplored. In this study, we determined the quantity and kind of microplastics that were discharged from disposable surgical face masks. Furthermore, we also quantified heavy metals leached from the face masks (HML). In contrast, the increasing usage of nTiO2 in consumer items has led to its ubiquitous presence in freshwater systems. Four different concentrations of nTiO2, 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 mg L-1 were mixed with face mask leachates (FML) to perform the mixture toxicity test on freshwater algae, Scenedesmus obliquus. Reduced cell viability and photosynthetic activity were noticed in the treatment groups containing nTiO2 and FML. This was accompanied by increased oxidative stress and antioxidant activities. Furthermore, the heavy metals leached from the face masks were also tested for toxicity. In addition to that, changes in the cellular morphology were also studied with the help of FE-SEM and FTIR analysis. Our study reveals that leachates from disposable surgical face masks along with nTiO2 possess a serious threat to the environment.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Combined effects of P25 TiO2 nanoparticles and disposable face mask leachate on microalgae Scenedesmus obliquus: Analysing the effects of heavy metals
• «The Future Begins in 2020»: Narratives and Speculative Imaginaries in the Latin American (Sci-Fi) Audio Drama Podcasts Caso 63 (2020) and Número Oculto (2022) -
  After international recognition from critics, the release of three seasons, and several adaptations to other languages, the fiction podcast Caso 63 (Chile, 2020) success is unprecedented for the podcasting industry produced in Spanish. Together with Número Oculto (Argentina, 2022), both are current paradigmatic cases for studying the new Latin American (sci-fi) audio drama podcasts. This paper proposes a comparative analysis of the first season of these audio series distributed by Spotify Studios to locate them as representative productions of the narratives and speculative imaginaries related to science fiction, such as post-eschatological futures, time travels, the global dominance of big tech companies, the environmental destruction (ecocide), quantum mysticism, among others. The proposal contextualizes these productions as part of the trends of audio drama produced in Spain in the last decade, the intermedial dialogues with the so-called “new Hispanic apocalyptic” literature, and the recent “awakening of podcasting” in Latin America after the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020. Finally, it concludes with a reflection on the platformization of cultural production and the future of (sci-fi) audio drama podcasts in the Hispanic world.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: «The Future Begins in 2020»: Narratives and Speculative Imaginaries in the Latin American (Sci-Fi) Audio Drama Podcasts Caso 63 (2020) and Número Oculto (2022)
• Impacts of urban stressors on freshwater biofilms -
  In urban areas, aquatic ecosystems and their communities are exposed to numerous stressors of various natures (chemical and physical), which impacts are often poorly documented. In epidemic context such as the COVID 19 pandemic, the use of biocides such as the dodecylbenzyldimethylammonium chloride (BAC 12) increased, resulting in an expectable increase in their concentrations in urban aquatic ecosystems. This compound is known to be toxic to most aquatic organisms. Besides, artificial light at night (ALAN) is increasing globally, especially in urban areas. ALAN may have a negative impact on photosynthetic cycles of periphytic biofilms, which in turn may result in changes in their metabolic functioning. Moreover, studies suggest that exposure to artificial light could increase the biocidal effect of BAC 12 on biofilms. The present study investigates the individual and combined effects of BAC 12 and/or ALAN on the functioning and structure of photosynthetic biofilms. We exposed biofilms to a nominal concentration of 30 mg.L-1 of BAC 12 and/or ALAN for 10 days. BAC 12 had a negative impact on biofilm functioning by decreasing the amount and the quality of photosynthetic pigments, resulting in a >90% decrease in photosynthetic efficiency after 2 days of exposure. We also noted a strong decrease in glycolipids that resulted in a shift in lipid profiles. We found no significant effect of ALAN on the endpoints assessed and no interaction between the two stress factors.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Impacts of urban stressors on freshwater biofilms
• Vaccine effectiveness against mild and severe disease in pregnant mothers and their infants in England. -

  Background Pregnant women are at increased risk of adverse outcomes following SARS-CoV-2 infection, including venous thromboembolism, admission to critical care and death. Their infants may also suffer from pre-term birth, stillbirth and severe disease. Vaccination may protect both mothers and their infants against severe COVID-19 disease. Methods We used a test-negative, case-control study design to estimate vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease and hospitalisation with the Delta and Omicron variants in pregnant women who gave birth in 2021 in England. We also estimated the protection conferred by prior infection and maternal vaccination against symptomatic disease and hospitalisation with the Delta and Omicron variants in their infants. Findings Vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease (Delta and Omicron) and against hospitalisation (Delta only) was high and similar to that observed in the general population. Maternal vaccination during and post-pregnancy as well as previous infection also provided sustained protection from symptomatic disease and hospitalisation following Delta and Omicron infection in infants up to 8 months of age, with the highest protection being observed when maternal vaccination occurred during later pregnancy. Unlike non-pregnant women, a booster dose provided sustained protection with no evidence of waning up to 15 weeks after vaccination. Interpretation Maternal vaccination prevents mild and severe disease in pregnant women and their infants up to 6-8 months after birth. Our findings support the promotion of both primary and booster vaccination for pregnant women, irrespective of prior infection status, to protect themselves and their infants. Funding. None.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Vaccine effectiveness against mild and severe disease in pregnant mothers and their infants in England.
• The Role of Vaccine Status Homophily in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey with Modeling -

  Background: Vaccine homophily describes non-heterogeneous vaccine uptake within contact networks. This study was performed to determine observable patterns of vaccine homophily, associations between vaccine homophily, self-reported vaccination, COVID-19 prevention behaviours, contact network size, and self-reported COVID-19, as well as the impact of vaccine homophily on disease transmission within and between vaccination groups under conditions of high and low vaccine efficacy. Methods: Residents of British Columbia, Canada, aged ≥16 years, were recruited via online advertisements between February and March 2022, and provided information about vaccination status, perceived vaccination status of household and non-household contacts, compliance with COVID-19 prevention guidelines, and history of COVID-19. A deterministic mathematical model was used to assess transmission dynamics between vaccine status groups under conditions of high and low vaccine efficacy. Results: Vaccine homophily was observed among the 1304 respondents, but was lower among those with fewer doses (p<0.0001). Unvaccinated individuals had larger contact networks (p<0.0001), were more likely to report prior COVID-19 (p<0.0001), and reported lower compliance with COVID-19 prevention guidelines (p<0.0001). Mathematical modelling showed that vaccine homophily plays a considerable role in epidemic growth under conditions of high and low vaccine efficacy. Further, vaccine homophily contributes to a high force of infection among unvaccinated individuals under conditions of high vaccine efficacy, as well as elevated force of infection from unvaccinated to vaccinated individuals under conditions of low vaccine efficacy. Interpretation: The uneven uptake of COVID-19 vaccines and the nature of the contact network in the population play important roles in shaping COVID-19 transmission dynamics.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: The Role of Vaccine Status Homophily in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey with Modeling
• Reliability, validity and dimensionality of the GHQ-12 in South African populations: Structural equation modelling (SEM) -

  Introduction Health Care Workers (HCWs) were among the high risk groups for SARS CoV 2 infection and suffer a high burden of poor mental health including depression, anxiety, traumatic stress, avoidance and burnout. The 12 Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ 12) has showed best fit in both a one-factor structure and a multidimensional structure for the screening of common mental disorders and psychiatric well being. The aim was to test for the reliability and validity and ascertain the factor structure of the GHQ 12 in a South African HCW population. Methods Data was collected from 832 public hospital and clinic staff during the COVID 19 pandemic in Gauteng, South Africa. The factor structure of the GHQ 12 in this professional population was examined by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to identify factors, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) for construct validity and structural equation modelling (SEM). Results The GHQ 12 median score was higher (25) in women than in men (24), p=0.044. The determinant for the correlation matrix was=0.047, the Barlett test of sphericity was p<0.001, Chi square=2086.9 and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) of sampling adequacy was 0.86. The four factors identified were labelled as Social-Dysfunction (37.8%), Anxiety-Depression (35.4%) Capable (24.9%) and Self-Efficacy (22.7%). The entire sample had a Cronbach alpha of 0.85, with 0.69 for Social-Dysfunction, 0.74 for Anxiety-Depression, 0.64 for Capable and 0.52 for Self-Efficacy in orthogonal (varimax) factor loadings. Conclusions The GHQ 12 tool displayed adequate reliability and validity in measuring psychological distress in a professional group with a four factor model suggesting multidimensionality in this group rather than a unidimensional construct.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Reliability, validity and dimensionality of the GHQ-12 in South African populations: Structural equation modelling (SEM)
• Clinical course of COVID-19 patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of a tertiary care hospital in Central India -

  Background: COVID-19 pandemic also known as Corona virus pandemic, is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV 2). In India, the first case of COVID-19 was reported on 30 January 2020 while in Madhya Pradesh on 20 March 2020 and in Rewa on 27 April 2020. Nearly 95 % of people recovered fromCOVID-19, and nearly three to five percent of cases needed Intensive Care Unit care and most of them needed mechanical ventilation. Materials and Methods: This was a hospital based cross-sectional study, done among 75 clinical or RT-PCR confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection admitted to the ICU of tertiary care unit. Results: In the present study, 63% were male and maximum (35%) belonged to 41-60 years of age. The most common symptom was fever at the time of admission to the hospital. Co-morbidity was reported in 21(28%) of patients. Out of these, majority of patients recorded combination of hypertension and diabetes as the most common comorbidity. Conclusion: Delayed medical intervention, advanced age, and the presence of underlying health conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, etc., are known risk factors for severe illness and can contribute to worse outcomes and increased mortality in COVID-19 patients. Keywords: COVID -19, Covid mortality, comorbidity, ICU Outcome, Pneumonia, Tertiary care

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Clinical course of COVID-19 patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of a tertiary care hospital in Central India
• Differences in Vaccine and SARS-CoV-2 Replication Derived mRNA: Implications for Cell Biology and Future Disease -
  Codon optimization describes the process used to increase protein production by use of alternative but synonymous codon changes. In SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines codon optimizations can result in differential secondary conformations that inevitably affect a protein’s function with significant consequences to the cell. Importantly, when codon optimization increases the GC content of synthetic mRNAs, there can be an inevitable enrichment of G-quartets which potentially form G-quadruplex structures. The emerging G-quadruplexes are favorable binding sites of RNA binding proteins like helicases that inevitably affect epigenetic reprogramming of the cell by altering transcription, translation and replication. In this study, we performed a RNAfold analysis to investigate alterations in secondary structures of mRNAs in SARS-CoV-2 vaccines due to codon optimization. We show a significant increase in the GC content of mRNAs in vaccines as compared to native SARS-CoV-2 RNA sequences encoding the spike protein. As the GC enrichment leads to more G-quadruplex structure formations, these may contribute to potential pathological processes initiated by SARS-CoV-2 molecular vaccination.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Differences in Vaccine and SARS-CoV-2 Replication Derived mRNA: Implications for Cell Biology and Future Disease
• Attitudes towards science during the COVID-19 pandemic: A psychological network approach -
  A better understanding of the public attitude towards science could be crucial to tackle the spread of mis- and disinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. We here contribute to this understanding by conceptualizing and analyzing the attitude toward science as a psychological network. For this analysis, we utilized data from a German probability sample (N = 1,009), the “Science Barometer”, collected during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, our network analysis revealed that especially the perceived value of science for curbing the pandemic is central to the attitude towards science. Beliefs about this value are related to trust in science and trust in scientific information and to positive and negative evaluations of scientific controversy and complexity. Further, valuing common sense over science was related to seeking less scientific information on official websites, suggesting that this belief, in particular, may drive mis- and disinformation and could be a promising target for interventions. Finally, we found no evidence that seeking scientific information on social media had detrimental consequences for the attitude towards science. Implications for health communication and science communication, limitations, and future directions are discussed.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Attitudes towards science during the COVID-19 pandemic: A psychological network approach
• How do Good and Bad News Impact Mood During the Covid-19 Pandemic? The Role of Similarity -
  How do media reports about the Covid-19 pandemic influence our mood? Building on the social comparison theory, we predicted that reading negative news affecting a similar group would result in an impaired mood. In contrast, reading negative news about a dissimilar group should lead to improved mood. To test this, 150 undergraduate students read positive or negative news about the well-being of a similar or dissimilar group during the pandemic. As predicted, a mood assimilation effect occurred for similar groups, whilst a contrast effect occurred for a dissimilar group. The findings suggest that media reports can have a strong impact on mood. The direction of these effects, however, seems to depend strongly on social comparison processes.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: How do Good and Bad News Impact Mood During the Covid-19 Pandemic? The Role of Similarity
• The Perception of Infection Risks during the Early and Later Outbreak of COVID-19 in Germany: Consequences and Recommendations -
  In three studies (N = 1,055), we investigated the determinants and consequences of the perception of infection risks during the early and later outbreak of COVID-19 in Germany. Individuals’ perceived COVID-19 infection risk was reasonably in line with experts’ assessment but changed over time. The probability of the rare event of getting severely sick and hospitalized was overestimated. Overestimation increased in the exponential growth phase of the pandemic and later on decreased again, showing an inverse U-shaped pattern. Individuals showed biases in their risk perception concerning overconfidence and the underestimation of exponential growth of infection cases in the early phase of the pandemic. Forecasts were more accurate after the growth curve had flattened. Risk perceptions increased with perceived dread and tended to increase with perceived control over infection, the evaluation of scientific and own knowledge about the pandemic. Approval for the introduction of stricter governmental measures and acceptance of future vaccination measures was mainly influenced by rational utilitarian factors of risk perception (probabilities and utilities of outcomes). These rational influences were mediated by dread, but dread had an additional potentially irrational effect. Adherence to governmental recommendations was mainly driven by dread and positive expected long-term consequences of the measures. To a smaller degree, adherence increased with perceived personal consequences of infection and decreased with negative expected short-term consequences of these measures. Implications for theory development are discussed and recommendations to handle virus outbreaks are derived.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: The Perception of Infection Risks during the Early and Later Outbreak of COVID-19 in Germany: Consequences and Recommendations
• Prolonged viral shedding from noninfectious individuals confounds wastewater-based epidemiology -

  Wastewater surveillance has been widely used to track and estimate SARS-CoV-2 incidence. While both infectious and recovered individuals shed virus into wastewater, epidemiological inferences using wastewater often only consider the viral contribution from the former group. Yet, the persistent shedding in the latter group could confound wastewater-based epidemiological inference, especially during the late stage of an outbreak when the recovered population outnumbers the infectious population. To determine the impact of recovered individuals9 viral shedding on the utility of wastewater surveillance, we develop a quantitative framework that incorporates population-level viral shedding dynamics, measured viral RNA in wastewater, and an epidemic dynamic model. We find that the viral shedding from the recovered population can become higher than the infectious population after the transmission peak, which leads to a decrease in the correlation between wastewater viral RNA and case report data. Furthermore, the inclusion of recovered individuals9 viral shedding into the model predicts earlier transmission dynamics and slower decreasing trends in wastewater viral RNA. The prolonged viral shedding also induces a potential delay in the detection of new variants due to the time needed to generate enough new cases for a significant viral signal in an environment dominated by virus shed by the recovered population. This effect is most prominent toward the end of an outbreak and is greatly affected by both the recovered individuals9 shedding rate and shedding duration. Our results suggest that the inclusion of viral shedding from non-infectious recovered individuals into wastewater surveillance research is important for precision epidemiology.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Prolonged viral shedding from noninfectious individuals confounds wastewater-based epidemiology
• Intragroup differences in COVID-19 vaccine attitudes among Black Americans -
  COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Black Americans threatens to further magnify racial inequities in COVID-19 related health outcomes that emerged in the earliest stages of the pandemic. Here we shed new light on attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines by considering intragroup variation. Rather than analyzing Blacks as a homogenous group, we examine the relationship between COVID-19 vaccine attitudes and the extent to which participants are aligned with African American versus White culture (i.e., level of “acculturation”). In a sample of N=997 Black Americans, we find that stronger alignment with African American culture predicts substantially more negative attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccination, above and beyond variation explained by age, gender, education, and socioeconomic status. This relationship was substantially attenuated when controlling for suspicion of the healthcare system, but not perceptions that healthcare system treats Blacks unfairly, science knowledge, or cognitive reflection. The intragroup differences among Blacks in COVID-19 vaccine perceptions uncovered here provide insights into designing interventions that provide health information that targets the relevant factors for vaccine hesitancy in differing subgroups.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Intragroup differences in COVID-19 vaccine attitudes among Black Americans

From Clinical Trials

• Extracorporeal Photopheresis as a Possible Therapeutic Approach to Adults With Severe and Critical COVID-19 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Procedure: Extracorporeal photopheresis
  Sponsor:   Del-Pest Central Hospital - National Institute of Hematology and Infectious Diseases
  Recruiting

• A Clinical Trial on Booster Immunization of Two COVID-19 Vaccines Constructed From Different Technical Routes - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Biological: Prototype and Omicron BA.4/5 Bivalent Recombinant COVID-19 Vaccine(Adenovirus Type 5 Vector) For Inhalation;   Biological: Bivalent COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine;   Biological: Recombinant COVID-19 Vaccine (Adenovirus Type 5 Vector) For Inhalation
  Sponsors:   Zhongnan Hospital;   Institute of Biotechnology, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, PLA of China
  Recruiting

• Community-engaged Optimization of COVID-19 Rapid Evaluation And TEsting Experiences - Conditions:   COVID-19;   COVID-19 Pandemic
  Interventions:   Behavioral: COVID-19 walk-up, on-site testing strategy;   Behavioral: Community Health Worker (CHW) leading testing navigation and general preventive care reminders;   Behavioral: No-cost self-testing kit vending machines
  Sponsors:   University of California, San Diego;   San Ysidro Health Center
  Not yet recruiting

• Safety Study of COVID19 Vaccine on the Market - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Biological: Recombinant new coronavirus vaccine (CHO cell)
  Sponsors:   Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biologic Pharmacy Co., Ltd.;   Hunan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention;   Guizhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention;   Hainan Center for Disease Control & Prevention
  Recruiting

• ACTIV-6: COVID-19 Study of Repurposed Medications - Arm F (Montelukast) - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Other: Placebo;   Drug: Montelukast
  Sponsors:   Susanna Naggie, MD;   National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS);   Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  Recruiting

• ACTIV-6: COVID-19 Study of Repurposed Medications - Arm B (Fluvoxamine) - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Fluvoxamine;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsors:   Susanna Naggie, MD;   National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS);   Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  Completed

• ACTIV-6: COVID-19 Study of Repurposed Medications - Arm D (Ivermectin 600) - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Ivermectin;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsors:   Susanna Naggie, MD;   National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS);   Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  Completed

• ACTIV-6: COVID-19 Study of Repurposed Medications - Arm E (Fluvoxamine 100) - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Fluvoxamine;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsors:   Susanna Naggie, MD;   National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS);   Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  Completed

• Evaluation of Home Use COVID-19 Frequent Antigen Testing and Data Reporting - Condition:   COVID-19 Respiratory Infection
  Intervention:   Diagnostic Test: SARS CoV-2 antigen tests
  Sponsors:   IDX20 Inc;   National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
  Recruiting

• Mitoquinone/Mitoquinol Mesylate as Oral and Safe Postexposure Prophylaxis for Covid-19 - Conditions:   SARS-CoV Infection;   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: Mitoquinone/mitoquinol mesylate;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsor:   University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
  Not yet recruiting

• Pycnogenol® in Post-COVID-19 Condition - Conditions:   Post COVID-19 Condition;   Long COVID
  Interventions:   Drug: Pycnogenol®;   Drug: Placebo
  Sponsor:   University of Zurich
  Recruiting

• Efficacy of Bailing Capsule on Pulmonary Fibrosis After COVID-19 - Conditions:   Pulmonary Fibrosis;   COVID-19 Pneumonia
  Intervention:   Drug: Bailing capsule
  Sponsor:   Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University
  Not yet recruiting

• Evaluating Emetine for Viral Outbreaks (EVOLVE) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: Emetine Hydrochloride;   Drug: Placebo
  Sponsors:   Johns Hopkins University;   Nepal Health Research Council;   Bharatpur Hospital Chitwan;   Stony Brook University;   Rutgers University
  Not yet recruiting

• To Evaluate the Immunogenicity and Safety of Sequential Booster Immunization of Recombinant Novel Coronavirus Vaccine (CHO Cells) for SARS-CoV-2 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Biological: Recombinant Novel Coronavirus vaccine (CHO Cells)
  Sponsor:   Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biologic Pharmacy Co., Ltd.
  Completed

• A Study to Learn About How Loss of Liver Function Affects the Blood Levels of the Study Medicine Called PF-07817883. - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Drug: PF-07817883
  Sponsor:   Pfizer
  Not yet recruiting

From PubMed

• Applications of advances in mRNA-based platforms as therapeutics and diagnostics in reproductive technologies - The recent COVID-19 pandemic led to many drastic changes in not only society, law, economics, but also in science and medicine, marking for the first time when drug regulatory authorities cleared for use mRNA-based vaccines in the fight against this outbreak. However, while indeed representing a novel application of such technology in the context of vaccination medicine, introducing RNA into cells to produce resultant molecules (proteins, antibodies, etc.) is not a novel principle. It has been…

• Biotransformation and brain distribution of the anti-COVID-19 drug molnupiravir and herb-drug pharmacokinetic interactions between the herbal extract Scutellaria formula-NRICM101 - The aim of this study was to explore the effects of herbal drug pharmacokinetic interactions on the biotransformation of molnupiravir and its metabolite β-D-N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC) in the blood and brain. To investigate the biotransformation mechanism, a carboxylesterase inhibitor, bis(4-nitrophenyl)phosphate (BNPP), was administered. Not only molnupiravir but also the herbal medicine Scutellaria formula-NRICM101 is potentially affected by coadministration with molnupiravir. However, the…

• Dicoumarol is an effective post-exposure prophylactic for SARS-CoV-2 Omicron infection in human airway epithelium - Repurposing existing drugs to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection in airway epithelial cells (AECs) is a quick way to find novel treatments for COVID-19. Computational screening has found dicoumarol (DCM), a natural anticoagulant, to be a potential SARS-CoV-2 inhibitor, but its inhibitory effects and possible working mechanisms remain unknown. Using air-liquid interface culture of primary human AECs, we demonstrated that DCM has potent antiviral activity against the infection of multiple Omicron…

• Binding properties of selective inhibitors of P323L mutated RdRp of SARS-CoV-2: a combined molecular screening, docking and dynamics simulation study - Since 2019 the SARS-CoV-2 and its variants caused COVID-19, such incidents brought the world in pandemic situation. This happened due to furious mutations in SARS-CoV-2, in which some variants had high transmissibility and infective, this led the virus emerged as virulent and worsened the COVID-19 situation. Among the variants, P323L is one of the important mutants of RdRp in SARS-CoV-2. To inhibit the erroneous function of this mutated RdRp, we have screened 943 molecules against the P323L…

• Identification of Flavonoids from Scutellaria barbata D. Don as Inhibitors of HIV-1 and Cathepsin L Proteases and Their Structure-Activity Relationships - Scutellaria barbata D. Don (SB, Chinese: Ban Zhi Lian), a well-known medicinal plant used in traditional Chinese medicine, is rich in flavonoids. It possesses antitumor, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral activities. In this study, we evaluated the inhibitory activities of SB extracts and its active components against HIV-1 protease (HIV-1 PR) and SARS-CoV2 viral cathepsin L protease (Cat L PR). UPLC/HRMS was used to identify and quantify the major active flavonoids in different SB extracts, and…

• Docking-Based Evidence for the Potential of ImmunoDefender: A Novel Formulated Essential Oil Blend Incorporating Synergistic Antiviral Bioactive Compounds as Promising Mpro Inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2 - Essential oils (Eos) have demonstrated antiviral activity, but their toxicity can hinder their use as therapeutic agents. Recently, some essential oil components have been used within safe levels of acceptable daily intake limits without causing toxicity. The “ImmunoDefender,” a novel antiviral compound made from a well-known mixture of essential oils, is considered highly effective in treating SARS-CoV-2 infections. The components and doses were chosen based on existing information about their…

• Luteolin Isolated from Juncus acutus L., a Potential Remedy for Human Coronavirus 229E - The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2, addressed the lack of specific antiviral drugs against coronaviruses. In this study, bioguided fractionation performed on both ethyl acetate and aqueous sub-extracts of Juncus acutus stems led to identifying luteolin as a highly active antiviral molecule against human coronavirus HCoV-229E. The apolar sub-extract (CH(2)Cl(2)) containing phenanthrene derivatives did not show antiviral activity against this coronavirus. Infection tests on Huh-7 cells,…

• Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Prostaglandins and Cytokines in Humans: A Mini Review - Inflammation has been described for two millennia, but cellular aspects and the paradigm involving different mediators have been identified in the recent century. Two main groups of molecules, the prostaglandins (PG) and the cytokines, have been discovered and play a major role in inflammatory processes. The activation of prostaglandins PGE2, PGD2 and PGI2 results in prominent symptoms during cardiovascular and rheumatoid diseases. The balance between pro- and anti-inflammatory compounds is…

• Free Light Chains κ and λ as New Biomarkers of Selected Diseases - Diagnostic and prognostic markers are necessary to help in patient diagnosis and the prediction of future clinical events or disease progression. As promising biomarkers of selected diseases, the free light chains (FLCs) κ and λ were considered. Measurements of FLCs are currently used in routine diagnostics of, for example, multiple myeloma, and the usefulness of FLCs as biomarkers of monoclonal gammopathies is well understood. Therefore, this review focuses on the studies concerning FLCs as new…

• Eupatin, a Flavonoid, Inhibits Coronavirus 3CL Protease and Replication - The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused more than six million deaths worldwide since 2019. Although vaccines are available, novel variants of coronavirus are expected to appear continuously, and there is a need for a more effective remedy for coronavirus disease. In this report, we isolated eupatin from Inula japonica flowers and showed that it inhibits the coronavirus 3 chymotrypsin-like (3CL) protease as well as viral replication. We showed that eupatin treatment inhibits…

• Efficacy of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound for the treatment of viral pneumonia: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial - BACKGROUND: Viral pneumonia has always been a problem faced by clinicians because of its insidious onset, strong infectivity, and lack of effective drugs. Patients with advanced age or underlying diseases may experience more severe symptoms and are prone to severe ventilation dysfunction. Reducing pulmonary inflammation and improving clinical symptoms is the focus of current treatment. Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) can mitigate inflammation and inhibit edema formation. We aimed to…

• Dihydroisocoumarins of Hydrangea macrophylla var. thunbergia inhibit binding of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to ACE2 - Binding of the spike protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 to the cognate angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor is the initial step in the viral infection process. In this study, we screened an in-house extract library to identify food materials with inhibitory activity against this binding using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and attempted to ascertain their active constituents. Hydrangea macrophylla var. thunbergia leaves were identified as candidate materials. Its…

• Upgrading nirmatrelvir to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 Mpro via DeepFrag and free energy calculations - The first oral drug for the treatment of COVID-19, Paxlovid, has been authorized; however, nirmatrelvir, a major component of the drug, is reported to be associated with some side effects. Moreover, the appearance of many novel variants raises concerns about drug resistance, and designing new potent inhibitors to prevent viral replication is thus urgent. In this context, using a hybrid approach combining machine learning (ML) and free energy simulations, 6 compounds obtained by modifying…

• Multiscale Simulations of the Covalent Inhibition of the SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease: Four Compounds and Three Reaction Mechanisms - We report the results of computational modeling of the reactions of the SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M^(Pro)) with four potential covalent inhibitors. Two of them, carmofur and nirmatrelvir, have shown experimentally the ability to inhibit M^(Pro). Two other compounds, X77A and X77C, were designed computationally in this work. They were derived from the structure of X77, a non-covalent inhibitor forming a tight surface complex with M^(Pro). We modified the X77 structure by introducing warheads…

• Alpha-1-antitrypsin antagonizes COVID-19: a review of the epidemiology, molecular mechanisms, and clinical evidence - Alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT), a serine protease inhibitor (serpin), is increasingly recognized to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection and counter many of the pathogenic mechanisms of COVID-19. Herein, we reviewed the epidemiologic evidence, the molecular mechanisms, and the clinical evidence that support this paradigm. As background to our discussion, we first examined the basic mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 infection and contend that despite the availability of vaccines and anti-viral agents, COVID-19 remains…

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