Inside the story about the research and development of COVID-19 vaccines

The ongoing coronavirus threat from China has spread rapidly to other nations and has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). The pandemic has resulted in over half of the world's population living under conditions of lockdown. Several academic institutions and pharmaceutical companies that are in different stages of development have plunged into the vaccine development race against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The demand for immediate therapy and potential prevention of COVID-19 is growing with the increase in the number of individuals affected due to the seriousness of the disease, global dissemination, lack of prophylactics, and therapeutics. The challenging part is a need for vigorous testing for immunogenicity, safety, efficacy, and level of protection conferred in the hosts for the vaccines. As the world responds to the COVID-19 pandemic, we face the challenge of an overabundance of information related to the virus. Inaccurate information and myths spread widely and at speed, making it more difficult for the public to identify verified facts and advice from trusted sources, such as their local health authority or WHO. This review focuses on types of vaccine candidates against COVID-19 in clinical as well as in the preclinical development platform.

Association of Serum Bilirubin with Acute Ischemic Stroke – An Observational Study

@#Introduction: Stroke is a common cause of mortality and morbidity and has an increasing prevalence across the world.1 Bilirubin is now being considered an antioxidant which increases in response to diseases associated with increased oxidative stress. Hence the present observational study was undertaken to assess the bilirubin levels with the outcome of acute ischemic stroke. Methods: This observational study was conducted from January 2018 to December 2018 on 64 ischemic stroke patients admitted at KLE’S Dr. Prabhakar kore hospital at Belagavi, Karnataka. All adult patients above 18 years of age presenting with cerebrovascular accident and proved as ischemic stroke on CT scan or MRI scan were included. The patients were empirically divided into different Groups based on the bilirubin level. They were then analysed with their NIHSS scores for assessing stroke severity. Results: A total of 64 patients were included in the final analysis. The mean total bilirubin level in the patients was 0.68±0.34 mg/dl ( mean±SD). 34.3% (22) of ischemic stroke patients in the study had serum total bilirubin levels 0.7 mg/dl or more. Mean NIHSS Score for Group 1(Low) total bilirubin group was 9.37 and for Group 2(High) bilirubin group was 10.9, which was statistically not significant. This indicates that there was no significant correlation between total bilirubin and severity of symptoms at the time of admission.There was no statistically significant correlation between NIHSS and direct bilirubin levels Conclusion: The current study has documented no association between the bilirubin levels and stroke severity and prognosis.

Popliteal pterygium syndrome: case report from rural India

The popliteal pterygium syndrome is a congenital malformation that includes orofacial, musculoskeletal and genitourinary anomalies. It is also known as faciogenitopopliteal syndrome. It is autosomal dominant disorder. It has highly variable expressivity and incomplete penetrance. The incidence of the popliteal pterygium syndrome is 1/300000, which makes it an extremely rare condition. The most striking characteristic of this syndrome is popliteal pterygium, which consists of a net of connective tissue spreading from the ischial tuberosity to the calcaneus.In this study, authors present the case of a 1 day old male patient with cleft upper lip, cleft palate, bifid scrotum, popliteal pterygium and congenital talipes equinovarus (CTEV).

Coexistent ampullary squamous cell carcinoma with adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic duct

Primary squamous cell carcinoma [SCC] of ampulla has seldom been reported. However, metastatic SCC to ampulla of Vater is well known. We report a case of primary SCC of ampulla of Vater coexistent with well-differentiated adenocarcinoma of the distal pancreatic duct. A 50-year-old female presented with evidence of obstructive jaundice. Endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography revealed bulging papilla with ulcero-infiltrative growth at the ampulla of Vater. An initial endoscopic biopsy of the ampullary mass showed a well-differentiated SCC. The patient underwent Whipple's operation. Thorough sampling of the dilated portion of the pancreatic duct showed presence of well-differentiated adenocarcinoma of the distal pancreatic duct. Immunohistochemical study with synaptophysin and chromogranin was done with negative result, ruling out neuroendocrine differentiation. Also, a detailed clinical, endoscopic and radiological examination was carried out, that excluded the presence of primary SCC elsewhere