Covid-19 Sentry

Contents

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

From Preprints

• Mortality Classification of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients in Zambia Using Machine Learning -
  The Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has wreaked havoc globally, resulting in millions of cases and deaths. The objective of this study was to predict mortality in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Zambia using machine learning (ML) methods based on factors that have been shown to be predictive of mortality and thereby improve pandemic preparedness. This research employed seven powerful ML models that included: decision tree (DT), random forest (RF), support vector machines (SVM), logistic regression (LR), naïve bayes (NB), gradient boosting (GB), and XGBoost (XGB). These classifiers were trained on 1,433 hospitalized COVID-19 patients from various health facilities in Zambia. The performances achieved by these models were checked using accuracy, recall, F1-Score, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC_AUC), area under the precision-recall curve (PRC_AUC), and other metrics. The best performing model was the XGB which had accuracy of 92.3%, recall of 94.2%, F1-Score of 92.4%, and ROC_AUC of 97.5%. The pairwise Mann-Whitney U-test analysis showed that the second-best model (GB) and the third-best model (RF) did not perform significantly worse than the best model (XGB) and had the following: GB had accuracy of 91.7%, recall of 94.2%, F1-Score of 91.9%, and ROC_AUC of 97.1%. RF had accuracy of 90.8%, recall of 93.6%, F1-Score of 91.0%, and ROC_AUC of 96.8%. Other models showed similar results for the same metrics checked. The study successfully derived and validated the selected ML models and predicted mortality effectively with reasonably high performance in the stated metrics. The feature importance analysis found that knowledge of underlying health conditions about patients’ hospital length of stay (LOS), white blood cell count, age, and other factors can help healthcare providers offer lifesaving services on time, improve pandemic preparedness and decongest health facilities in Zambia and other countries with similar settings.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Mortality Classification of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients in Zambia Using Machine Learning
• Discovery of GS-5245 (Obeldesivir), an Oral Prodrug of Nucleoside GS-441524 that Exhibits Antiviral Efficacy in SARS-CoV-2 Infected African Green Monkeys -
  Remdesivir 1 is an amidate prodrug that releases the monophosphate of nucleoside GS-441524 (2) into lung cells thereby forming the bioactive triphosphate 2-NTP. 2-NTP, an analog of ATP, inhibits the SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase replication and transcription of viral RNA. Strong clinical results for 1 have prompted interest in oral approaches to generate 2-NTP. Here we describe the discovery of a 5’-isobutyryl ester prodrug of 2 (GS-5245, Obeldesivir, 3) that has low cellular cytotoxicity and three to seven-fold improved oral delivery of 2 in monkeys. Prodrug 3 is cleaved pre-systemically to provide high systemic exposures of 2 that overcome its less efficient metabolism to 2-NTP leading to strong SARS-CoV-2 antiviral efficacy in an African green monkey infection model. Exposure-based SARS-CoV-2 efficacy relationships resulted in an estimated clinical dose of 350-400 mg twice-daily. Importantly, all SARS-CoV-2 variants remain susceptible to 2 which supports development of 3 as a promising COVID-19 treatment.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Discovery of GS-5245 (Obeldesivir), an Oral Prodrug of Nucleoside GS-441524 that Exhibits Antiviral Efficacy in SARS-CoV-2 Infected African Green Monkeys
• Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Stratified by Transfer and COVID-19 Infection Status, on Inpatient Mortality in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients, Using a Nationally Representative Database -

  Introduction: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted various aspects of healthcare, including the management of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients. Our study investigates the in-hospital outcomes and the impact of transfer and COVID-19 infection status on mortality in STEMI patients. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study to compare the inpatient outcomes of STEMI patients in 2020 with STEMI patients from 2016 to 2019 using the National Inpatient Sample database. We performed 1:1 greedy nearest neighbor matching and utilized logistic regression to compare mortality. Results: In our matched cohort, there was no difference in overall mortality between STEMI patients in 2020 and those from 2016 to 2019 (OR 1.00, 95% CI: 0.94-1.05; p = 0.87). When stratified by COVID-19 infection status, regularly admitted STEMI patients with concurrent COVID-19 infection in 2020 had 2.11 times higher odds of inpatient mortality compared to regularly admitted STEMI patients from 2016 to 2019 (OR 2.11, 95% CI: 1.55-2.87; p < 0.001). STEMI acute care transfers with concurrent COVID-19 infection in 2020 had 3.17 times higher odds of inpatient mortality than those from 2016 to 2019 (OR 3.17, 95% CI: 1.83-5.50; p < 0.001). STEMI non-acute care transfers with concurrent COVID-19 infection in 2020 had 5.13 times higher odds of inpatient mortality than those from 2016 to 2019 (OR 5.13, 95% CI: 1.87-14.06; p = 0.001). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many longstanding disparities within our healthcare system. Moving forward, it is crucial to engage in further discussions addressing the national physician shortage, the patient transfer system and healthcare in underserved regions.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Stratified by Transfer and COVID-19 Infection Status, on Inpatient Mortality in ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients, Using a Nationally Representative Database
• Quantifying the Risk of General Health and Early COVID-19 Spread in Residential Buildings with Deep Learning and Expert-augmented Machine Learning -

  Buildings9 built environment has been linked to their occupants9 health. It remains unclear whether those elements that predisposed its residents to poor general health before the two SARS pandemics also put residents at risk of contracting COVID-19 during early outbreaks. Relevant research to uncover the associations is essential, but there lacks a systematic examination of the relative contributions of different elements in one9s built environment and other non-environmental factors, singly or jointly. Hence, the current study developed a deep-learning approach with multiple input channels to capture the hierarchical relationships among an individual9s socioecology9s demographical, medical, behavioral, psychosocial, and built-environment levels. Our findings supported that 1) deep-learning models whose inputs were structured according to the hierarchy of one9s socioecology outperformed plain models with one-layered input in predicting one9s general health outcomes, with the model whose hierarchically structured input layers included one9s built environment performed best; 2) built-environment features were more important to general health compared to features of one9s sociodemographic and their health-related quality of life, behaviors, and service utilization; 3) a composite score representing built-environment features9 statistical importance to general health significantly predicted building-level COVID-19 case counts; and 4) building configurations derived from the expert-augmented learning of granular built-environment features that were of high importance to the general health were also linked to building-level COVID-19 case counts of external samples. Specific built environments put residents at risk for poor general health and COVID-19 infections. Our machine-learning approach can benefit future quantitative research on sick buildings, health surveillance, and housing design.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Quantifying the Risk of General Health and Early COVID-19 Spread in Residential Buildings with Deep Learning and Expert-augmented Machine Learning
• Inequalities in Healthcare Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic -

  The COVID-19 pandemic has led to severe reductions in non-COVID related healthcare use, but little is known whether this burden is shared equally across the population. This study investigates whether the reduction in administered care disproportionately affected certain sociodemographic strata, in particular marginalised groups. Using detailed medical claims data from the Dutch universal health care system and rich registry data that cover all residents in The Netherlands, we predict expected healthcare use based on pre-pandemic trends (2017- Feb 2020) and compare these expectations with observed healthcare use in 2020. Our findings reveal a substantial 10% decline in the number of weekly treated patients in 2020 relative to prior years. Furthermore, declines in healthcare use are unequally distributed and are more pronounced for individuals below the poverty line, females, the elderly, and foreign-born individuals, with cumulative relative risk ratios ranging from 1.09 to 1.22 higher than individuals above the poverty line, males, young, and native-born. These inequalities stem predominantly from declines in middle and low urgency procedures, and indicate that the pandemic has not only had an unequal toll in terms of the direct health burden of the pandemic, but has also had a differential impact on the use of non-COVID healthcare.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Inequalities in Healthcare Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Evaluation of the Pilot Wastewater Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 in Norway, June 2022 - March 2023 -

  Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater-based surveillance gained great international interest as an additional tool to monitor SARS-CoV-2. In autumn 2021, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health decided to pilot a national wastewater surveillance (WS) system for SARS-CoV-2 and its variants between June 2022 and March 2023. We evaluated the system to assess if it met its objectives and its attribute-based performance. Methods: We adapted the available guidelines for evaluation of surveillance systems. The evaluation was carried out as a descriptive analysis and consisted of the following three steps: (i) description of the WS system, (ii) identification of users and stakeholders, and (iii) analysis of the system attributes and performance including sensitivity, specificity, timeliness, usefulness, representativeness, simplicity, flexibility, stability, and communication. Cross-correlation analysis was performed to assess the system ability to provide early warning signal of new wave of infections. Results: The pilot WS system was a national surveillance system using existing wastewater infrastructures from the largest Norwegian municipalities. We found that the system was sensitive, timely, useful, representative, simple, flexible, acceptable, and stable to follow the general trend of infection. Preliminary results indicate that the system could provide an early signal of changes in variant distribution. However, challenges may arise with: (i) specificity due to temporary fluctuations of RNA levels in wastewater, (ii) representativeness when downscaling, and (iii) flexibility and acceptability when upscaling the system due to limited resources and/or capacity. Conclusions: Our results showed that the pilot WS system met most of its surveillance objectives. The system was able to provide an early warning signal of 1-2 weeks, and the system was useful to monitor infections at population level and complement routine surveillance when individual testing activity was low. However, temporary fluctuations of WS values need to be carefully interpreted. To improve quality and efficiency, we recommend to standardise and validate methods for assessing trends of new waves of infection and variants, evaluate the WS system using a longer operational period particularly for new variants, and conduct prevalence studies in the population to calibrate the system and improve data interpretation.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Evaluation of the Pilot Wastewater Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 in Norway, June 2022 - March 2023
• Demographic Influence on the Effectiveness of England’s SARS-CoV-2 Policies -

  Health data is key for the development of medicinal drugs, treatments, and policy-planning to control the spread of infectious diseases. However, the collection, curation, and interpretation of health data is often biased. This paper discusses England-wide impact of public policies to control the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) infections, based on the recorded per-capita infection cases between July 2020 to January 2023. The analysis presented herewith highlights the disparities across the upper local tier authorities, in the number of Covid-19 cases recorded in response to the policies. This paper further presents the correlation between the Covid-19 cases count and demographic factors, thus highlighting the key factors determining the effectiveness of the NHS policies, and therefore the need for incorporating demographic imbalance in the policy planning process. It is concluded that the upper local tier authorities comprise of three clusters of low, mid, and high prevalence of Covid-19 infections. Where the regions with high prevalence of Covid-19 cases are also the ones with higher proportions of Black/ Mixed racial groups, amongst a mid-range and low internal Migrations.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Demographic Influence on the Effectiveness of England’s SARS-CoV-2 Policies
• The impact of atypical intrahospital transfers on patient outcomes: a mixed methods study -

  Background: The architectural design of hospitals worldwide is centred around individual departments, which require the movement of patients between wards. However, patients do not always take the simplest route from admission to discharge, but can experience convoluted movement patterns, particularly when bed availability is low. Few studies have explored the impact of these rarer, atypical trajectories. Methods: Using a mixed-method explanatory sequential study design, we firstly used three continuous years of electronic health record data prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, from 55,152 patients admitted to a London hospital network to define the ward specialities by patient type using the Herfindahl-Hirschman index. We explored the impact of regular transfers between pairs of wards with shared specialities, atypical transfers between pairs of wards with no shared specialities and site transfers between pairs of wards in different hospital site locations, on length of stay, 30-day readmission and mortality. Secondly, to understand the possible reasons behind atypical transfers we conducted three focus groups and three interviews with site nurse practitioners and bed managers within the same hospital network. Results: We found that at least one atypical transfer was experienced by 12.9% of patients. Each atypical transfer is associated with a larger increase in length of stay, 2.84 days (95%CI: 2.56-3.12), compared to regular transfers, 1.92 days (95%CI: 1.82-2.03). No association was found between odds of mortality, or 30-day readmission and atypical transfers after adjusting for confounders. Atypical transfers appear to be driven by complex patient conditions, a lack of hospital capacity, the need to reach specific services and facilities, and more exceptionally, rare events such as major incidents. Conclusion: Our work provides an important first step in identifying unusual patient movement and its impacts on key patient outcomes using a system-wide, data-driven approach. The broader impact of moving patients between hospital wards, and possible downstream effects should be considered in hospital policy and service planning.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: The impact of atypical intrahospital transfers on patient outcomes: a mixed methods study
• Improving capacity for advanced training in obstetric surgery: Evaluation of a blended learning approach -

  Introduction Significant differences in outcomes for mothers and babies following obstetric surgical interventions between low- and middle-income countries and high-income settings have demonstrated a need for improvements in quality of care and training of obstetric surgical and anaesthetic providers. To address this a five-day face-to-face training intervention was developed. When the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted its roll-out, the course was redesigned for delivery by blended learning. Methods This 3-part blended-learning course (part-1: 15 hours self-directed online learning, part-2: 13 hours facilitated virtual workshops and part-3: 10 hours face-to-face delivery), was conducted in Kenya. We assessed the completion rate of part-1 (21 assignments), participation rate in parts 2 and 3, participant satisfaction, change in knowledge and skills and compared the cost of the blended delivery compared to the 5-day face-to-face delivery, in GB Pounds.   Results 65 doctors took part in part 1, 53 completing at least 90% of the assignments. 60 doctors participated in part 2, and 53 participated in part 3. Participants completing an evaluation reported (n=53) attending the training was a good use of their time (each of parts-1 and 3: 98%, part-2: 94%) and would recommend this to other colleagues (part-1 and 3: 98%, part-2: 90%). Mean (SD) knowledge score improved from 64% (7%) to 80% (8%) and practical skills from 44% (14%) to 87% (7%). The blended course achieved a cost-saving of £207 per participant compared to the 5-day face-to-face delivery approach. Conclusion We have demonstrated that a blended learning approach to clinical training in a low resource setting is feasible, acceptable and more cost effective. More studies are required to investigate the effectiveness of this approach on health outcomes.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Improving capacity for advanced training in obstetric surgery: Evaluation of a blended learning approach
• Needlestick Injuries in Healthcare, Research and Veterinary Environments in a Sample Population in British Columbia and their Economic, Psychological and Workplace Impacts -

  Abstract Introduction: Needle-stick injuries (NSIs) are defined as the sharp point of a needle puncturing human skin. This article examines the risk and illustrates the burden of NSIs for workers in the healthcare, veterinary and research industries, and includes a sample survey population of workers in workplaces using needles. Methods: For the review component of this article, PubMed and Google Scholar were queried within the date range of 1998-2022, retrieving 1,437 results. A publicly available sample population dataset was and analyzed from British Columbia (n=30) on workplace needlestick injuries. The OSHA, WHO, and NIEHS guidelines were reviewed, and the WorkSafe BC injury database was searched using FIPPA requests. Discussion: Recapping remains a common practice despite decades of guidelines recommending against recapping. NSI research is underpowered and underrepresented in non-healthcare settings. NSIs lead to heightened anxiety, depression, and PTSD in workers and exposure to pathogens, toxic chemicals and permanent tissue damage. NSI annual reporting is likely an underestimate due to chronic underreporting, and the financial impact including work-loss and healthcare costs continues to rise. Current NSI prevention devices have limited uptake and thus, more affordable, versatile and efficient NSI-prevention devices are needed. Relevance: Due to COVID-19, healthcare workers are at a higher risk of receiving NSIs. Emphasis on safe needle handling practices is necessary to maintain workers physical and psychological safety, to protect workers using COVID-19 PPE on long shifts, and to deliver the high volume of vaccinations required to inoculate the global population. Conclusion: NSIs are detrimental to healthcare workers wellbeing, chronically underreported, and poorly surveyed. Areas of future research include determining more effective solutions to reduce NSIs, assessing the validity of NSI reporting systems, and integrating solutions with COVID-19 prevention and vaccination protocols.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Needlestick Injuries in Healthcare, Research and Veterinary Environments in a Sample Population in British Columbia and their Economic, Psychological and Workplace Impacts
• Impaired potency of neutralizing antibodies against cell-cell fusion mediated by SARS-CoV-2 -
  The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants have dominated the pandemic due to their high transmissibility and immune evasion conferred by the spike mutations. The Omicron subvariants can spread by cell-free virus infection and cell-cell fusion, the latter of which is more effective but has not been extensively investigated. In this study, we developed a simple and high-throughput assay that provides a rapid readout to quantify cell-cell fusion mediated by the SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins without using live or pseudotyped virus. This assay can be used to identify variants of concern and to screen for prophylactic and therapeutic agents. We further evaluated a panel of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and vaccinee sera against D614G and Omicron subvariants, finding that cell-cell fusion is substantially more resistant to mAb and serum inhibition than cell-free virus infection. Such results have important implications for the development of vaccines and antiviral antibody drugs against cell-cell fusion induced by SARS-CoV-2 spikes.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Impaired potency of neutralizing antibodies against cell-cell fusion mediated by SARS-CoV-2
• Immunogenicity and safety in pigs of PHH-1V, a SARS-CoV-2 RBD fusion heterodimer vaccine candidate -
  The continuing high global incidence of COVID-19 and the undervaccinated status of billions of persons strongly motivate the development of a new generation of efficacious vaccines. We have developed an adjuvanted vaccine candidate, PHH-1V, based on a protein comprising the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the Beta variant of SARS-CoV-2 fused in tandem with the equivalent domain of the Alpha variant, with its immunogenicity, safety and efficacy previously demonstrated in mouse models. In the present study, we immunized pigs with different doses of PHH-1V in a prime-and-boost scheme showing PHH-1V to exhibit an excellent safety profile in pigs and to produce a solid RBD-specific humoral response with neutralising antibodies to 7 distinct SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, with the induction of a significant IFN{gamma}+ T-cell response. We conclude that PHH-1V is safe and elicits a robust immune response to SARS-CoV-2 in pigs, a large animal preclinical model.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Immunogenicity and safety in pigs of PHH-1V, a SARS-CoV-2 RBD fusion heterodimer vaccine candidate
• COVID-19-related changes in adolescents’ daily-life social interactions and psychopathology symptoms -
  Early findings on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents, suggest that – despite being at the lowest physical health risk – both their mental health and day-to-day social lives are strongly affected. In this longitudinal study, we assessed changes in adolescent psychopathology symptoms, the quality and quantity of daily-life social interactions, and the relationship between social interactions and psychopathology symptoms before and during the pandemic. A sample of n=173 Flemish adolescents (mean age=16.0 at latest measurement; 89% girls) from the SIGMA cohort was tested between January 2018 - June 2019; and between April 27th - May 10th 2020. Subclinical psychopathology was assessed using the Brief Symptom Inventory-53; daily social interactions were assessed in six-day experience sampling periods with ten daily questionnaires. Multilevel linear and logistic regression analyses indicated lower general psychopathology and anxiety symptoms, beyond age effects; fewer face-to-face social interactions, more online social interactions; and higher-quality face-to-face interactions during the pandemic than before. Negative associations between psychopathology and the quality of face-to-face peer and family interactions were stronger during the pandemic than pre-pandemic. The observed decrease and stability in psychopathology symptoms is surprising and potentially reflects resilience. Although digital communication may buffer much of the quarantine-induced distress, the current results imply that high-quality face-to-face interactions with family and peers may have been more powerful in keeping adolescents resilient. As restrictions are lifted and adolescents’ daily lives and social worlds change, it is crucial to learn more about the longer-term effects of the experienced social deprivation.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: COVID-19-related changes in adolescents’ daily-life social interactions and psychopathology symptoms
• Stent For Life Initiative in Portugal: progress through years and Covid-19 Impact -

  Background: During Stent for Life Initiative in Portugal lifetime, positive changes in ST elevation myocardial infarction treatment were observed, by the increase of Primary Angioplasty numbers and improvements in patients’ behaviour towards myocardial infarction, with an increase in those who called 112 and the lower proportion attending non primary percutaneous coronary intervention centres. Despite public awareness campaigns and system educational programmes, patient and system delay did not change significantly over this period. The aim of this study was to address the public awareness campaign effectiveness on peoples’ behaviour facing STEMI, and how Covid-19 has affected STEMI treatment. Methods: Data from 1381 STEMI patients were collected during a one-month period each year, from 2011 to 2016, and during one and a half month, matching first lockdown in Portugal 2020. Four groups were constituted: Group A (2011); Group B (2012 & 2013); Group C (2015 & 2016) and group D (2020). Results: The proportion of patients who called 112, increased significantly (35.2% Group A; 38.7% Group B; 44.0% Group C and 49.6% Group D, p=0.005); significant reduction was observed in the proportion of patients who attended healthcare centres without PPCI (54.5% group A; 47.6% Group B; 43.2% Group C and 40.9% Group D, p=0.016), but there were no differences on groups comparison. Total ischemic time, measured from symptoms onset to reperfusion increased progressively from group A [250.0 (178.0-430.0)] to D [296.0 (201.0 – 457.5.8)] p=0.012, with statistically significant difference between group C and D (p=0.034). Conclusions: During the term of SFL initiative in Portugal, patients resorted less to primary health centres and called more to 112. These results can be attributed the public awareness campaign. Nevertheless, patient and system delays did not significantly change over this period, mainly in late years of SFL, probably for low efficacy of campaigns and in 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Stent For Life Initiative in Portugal: progress through years and Covid-19 Impact
• Leveraging Machine Learning for Effective Public Health Policies: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Future Directions in Global Health -
  The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the vulnerabilities of global health systems and highlighted the need for rapid, data-driven decision-making in public health. Machine learning (ML) has the potential to provide valuable insights and contribute to improved health outcomes. In this paper, we aim to explore the role of ML in global health, identify its limitations, and discuss strategies to overcome these challenges while maximizing its benefits. We conduct a comprehensive literature review and analyze case studies from the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings indicate that ML has played a significant role in the COVID-19 response, particularly in areas such as disease modeling, drug discovery, and resource allocation. However, several limitations, including data quality and accessibility, hinder the full potential of ML in global health. We propose strategies to overcome these limitations, such as promoting data-sharing collaborations, ensuring data privacy, and fostering interdisciplinary research. This paper contributes to the ongoing conversation on the applications and limitations of ML in global health, providing insights and recommendations for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers to effectively leverage ML for improved public health outcomes.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Leveraging Machine Learning for Effective Public Health Policies: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Future Directions in Global Health

From Clinical Trials

• A Study of mRNA-1283.222 Injection Compared With mRNA-1273.222 Injection in Participants ≥12 Years of Age to Prevent COVID-19 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Biological: mRNA-1283.222;   Biological: mRNA-1273.222
  Sponsor:   ModernaTX, Inc.
  Recruiting

• Evaluation of the RD-X19 Treatment Device in Individuals With Mild COVID-19 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Device: RD-X19;   Device: Sham
  Sponsor:   EmitBio Inc.
  Recruiting

• Postoperative Sugammadex After COVID-19 - Conditions:   General Anesthesia;   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: Sugammadex Sodium;   Drug: neostigmine 50µg/kg + glycopyrollate 0.01mg/kg
  Sponsor:   Korea University Ansan Hospital
  Not yet recruiting

• A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase 2/3 Study to Determine the Safety and Effectiveness of Azeliragon in the Treatment of Patients Hospitalized for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: Azeliragon;   Drug: Placebo
  Sponsor:   Salim S. Hayek
  Recruiting

• Cognitive-behavioral Therapy for Mental Disorder in COVID-19 Survivors - Condition:   Post Acute COVID-19 Syndrome
  Intervention:   Behavioral: mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
  Sponsor:   Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale di Lecco
  Recruiting

• A Coping and Resilience Intervention for Adolescents - Condition:   COVID-19 Pandemic
  Interventions:   Behavioral: Coping and Resilience Intervention for Adolescents;   Other: Printing materials of Coping and Resilience Intervention for Adolescents
  Sponsor:   Taipei Medical University
  Enrolling by invitation

• Effectiveness of Modified Diaphragmatic Training for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease Post Covid-19 - Conditions:   GERD;   Post COVID-19 Condition;   Diaphragm Issues
  Interventions:   Other: modified diaphragmatic training;   Other: standard diaphragmatic training
  Sponsor:   Indonesia University
  Completed

• Effect of Telerehabilitation Practice in Long COVID-19 Patients - Conditions:   Long COVID-19;   Long COVID;   Post COVID-19 Condition;   Post-COVID-19 Syndrome;   Post-COVID Syndrome
  Interventions:   Behavioral: Telerehabilitation;   Behavioral: Standard rehabilitation care
  Sponsor:   Indonesia University
  Recruiting

• The Safety, Tolerability and Pharmacokinetics Study of RAY1216 in Healthy Adult Participants - Condition:   COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019)
  Interventions:   Drug: RAY1216 dose 1;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 2;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 3;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 4 &ritonavir   Drug: RAY1216 dose 5;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 6;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 7;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 8;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 9;   Drug: RAY1216 dose 10
  Sponsor:   Guangdong Raynovent Biotech Co., Ltd
  Completed

• Computerized Training of Attention and Working Memory in Post COVID-19 Patients With Cognitive Complaints - Conditions:   COVID-19;   Cognitive Impairment;   Cognition Disorder;   Memory Disorders;   Attention Deficit;   Memory Impairment;   Memory Loss;   Attention Impaired
  Intervention:   Device: RehaCom
  Sponsor:   Erasmus Medical Center
  Not yet recruiting

• Strategies and Treatments for Respiratory Infections &Amp; Viral Emergencies (STRIVE): Immune Modulation Strategy Trial - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Drug: abatacept infusion;   Drug: Placebo group
  Sponsor:   University of Minnesota
  Not yet recruiting

• A Study of Silmitasertib (CX-4945) in Healthy Subject - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Drug: CX-4945
  Sponsor:   Senhwa Biosciences, Inc.
  Active, not recruiting

• Evaluation of the Efficacy and Safety of Nano-S1 - Condition:   COVID-19 Pneumonia
  Intervention:   Drug: NANOS1 , argent colloïdal ,
  Sponsor:   General Administration of Military Health, Tunisia
  Completed

• Digital Mental Health Care for COVID-19 High-Risk Populations - Phase 2 - Conditions:   Stigma, Social;   Help-Seeking Behavior
  Interventions:   Other: Adjusted Content Intervention;   Other: Non-Adjusted Intervention Video
  Sponsors:   Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, Inc.;   Columbia University
  Not yet recruiting

• Research of the Long-COVID-19 Syndrome in the Children - Condition:   Long COVID
  Intervention:   Other: Device
  Sponsor:   Samara State Medical University
  Enrolling by invitation

From PubMed

• Robust SARS-CoV-2-specific and heterologous immune responses in vaccine-naïve residents of long-term care facilities who survive natural infection - We studied humoral and cellular immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in 152 long-term care facility staff and 124 residents over a prospective 4-month period shortly after the first wave of infection in England. We show that residents of long-term care facilities developed high and stable levels of antibodies against spike protein and receptor-binding domain. Nucleocapsid-specific responses were also elevated but waned over time. Antibodies showed stable…

• Sulfated endospermic nanocellulose crystals prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and HIV-1 - Biomaterials with antimicrobial activity are gaining attention due to their biodegradability and efficacy in interacting with a wide range of microorganisms. A new cellulose nano-biomaterial, endospermic nanocellulose crystals (ENC) obtained from parenchymal tissue of ivory nut endosperm, has a natural capacity as a universal binder. This feature is enhanced when it is chemically functionalized, and can be exploited in the fight against microbes. We tested the ability of sulfated ENC in aqueous…

• MasitinibL shows promise as a drug-like analog of masitinib that elicits comparable SARS-Cov-2 3CLpro inhibition with low kinase preference - SARS-CoV-2 infection has led to several million deaths worldwide and ravaged the economies of many countries. Hence, developing therapeutics against SARS-CoV-2 remains a core priority in the fight against COVID-19. Most of the drugs that have received emergency use authorization for treating SARS-CoV-2 infection exhibit a number of limitations, including side effects and questionable efficacy. This challenge is further compounded by reinfection after vaccination and the high likelihood of…

• Recuperative herbal formula Jing Si maintains vasculature permeability balance, regulates inflammation and assuages concomitants of “Long-Covid” - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a worldwide health threat that has long-term effects on the patients and there is currently no efficient cure prescribed for the treatment and the prolonging effects. Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) have been reported to exert therapeutic effect against COVID-19. In this study, the therapeutic effects of Jing Si herbal tea (JSHT) against COVID-19 infection and associated long-term effects were evaluated in different in vitro and in vivo models. The…

• Fourteen immunomodulatory alkaloids and two prenylated phenylpropanoids with dual therapeutic approach for COVID-19: molecular docking and dynamics studies - The pandemic outbreak of COVID-19 caused by the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is a global health burden. To date, there is no highly effective antiviral therapy to eradicate the virus; as a result, researchers are racing to introduce new potential therapeutic agents. Alternatively, traditional immunity boosters and symptomatic treatment based on natural bioactive compounds are also an option. The 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CL^(pro)) crystal structure, the…

• Protecting the public interest while regulating health professionals providing virtual care: A scoping review - Technology is transforming service delivery in many health professions, particularly with the rapid shift to virtual care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Health profession regulators must navigate legal and ethical complexities to facilitate virtual care while upholding their mandate to protect the public interest. The objectives of this scoping review were to examine how the public interest is protected when regulating health professionals who provide virtual care, discuss policy and practice…

• Anti-spike protein to determine SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels: Is there a specific threshold conferring protection in immunocompromised patients? - CONCLUSION: We suggest specific adjusted thresholds (BAU/ml) for the four commercial antibody assays that are used to assess pre-exposure prophylaxis in immunocompromised patients.

• MicroRNA-598 inhibition ameliorates LPS-induced acute lung injury in mice through upregulating Ebf1 expression - Acute lung injury is a critical acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) with high morbidity and mortality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been demonstrated to play important roles regulating acute lung injury development. In this study, we found that the expression of miR-598 was significantly upregulated in the lung tissues of mice with lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury. Both loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies were performed to evaluate the function of miR-598 in acute…

• Regulatory approval pathway for COVID-19 vaccine in USA, Europe and India - The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has confused everyone, including healthcare experts, physicians and frontline workers. Monoclonal antibodies, anticoagulants and immunomodulatory therapy were initially used to treat COVID-19. However, they can only inhibit the virus from replicating, which is not enough to provide a lasting cure. As each month passes, a growing number of companies are working on vaccinations that will aid in the development of resistance against the corona virus….

• Discovery of Highly Potent Small Molecule Pan-Coronavirus Fusion Inhibitors - The unprecedented pandemic of COVID-19, caused by a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, and its highly transmissible variants, led to massive human suffering, death, and economic devastation worldwide. Recently, antibody-evasive SARS-CoV-2 subvariants, BQ and XBB, have been reported. Therefore, the continued development of novel drugs with pan-coronavirus inhibition is critical to treat and prevent infection of COVID-19 and any new pandemics that may emerge. We report the discovery of several highly…

• The Flavonoid Cyanidin Shows Immunomodulatory and Broad-Spectrum Antiviral Properties, Including SARS-CoV-2 - New antiviral treatments are needed to deal with the unpredictable emergence of viruses. Furthermore, vaccines and antivirals are only available for just a few viral infections, and antiviral drug resistance is an increasing concern. Cyanidin (a natural product also called A18), a key flavonoid that is present in red berries and other fruits, attenuates the development of several diseases, through its anti-inflammatory effects. Regarding its mechanism of action, A18 was identified as an IL-17A…

• Efficacy of Plant-Made Human Recombinant ACE2 against COVID-19 in a Golden Syrian Hamster Model - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel infectious respiratory disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. We evaluated the efficacy of a plant-based human recombinant angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hrACE2) and hrACE2-foldon (hrACE2-Fd) protein against COVID-19. In addition, we analyzed the antiviral activity of hrACE2 and hrACE2-Fd against SARS-CoV-2 using real-time reverse-transcription PCR and plaque assays. The therapeutic efficacy was detected using the Golden Syrian hamster model infected with…

• Inhibition of Rab1B Impairs Trafficking and Maturation of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein - Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) utilizes cellular trafficking pathways to process its structural proteins and move them to the site of assembly. Nevertheless, the exact process of assembly and subcellular trafficking of SARS-CoV-2 proteins remains largely unknown. Here, we have identified and characterized Rab1B as an important host factor for the trafficking and maturation of the spike protein (S) after synthesis at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Using confocal…

• Perspectives Associated with Human Papillomavirus Vaccination in Adults: A Qualitative Study - CONCLUSION: Both intrinsic and extrinsic factors play a role in influencing HPV vaccine uptake, and such considerations can guide efforts to improve the odds of HPV vaccination in working-age adults.

• An Oral Galectin Inhibitor in COVID-19-A Phase II Randomized Controlled Trial - CONCLUSION: PL-M is safe and effective for clinical use in reducing viral loads and promoting rapid viral clearance in COVID-19 patients by inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 entry into cells through the inhibition of Gal-3.

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