Mental Health Among University Students, Using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire.

Context: To date, researchers have found that poor mental health was common during the COVID-19 epidemic. Even if they had been relatively resistant to suicidal ideation during the first three waves of the pandemic, university students may experience a delayed impact on their mental health. Objective: The study intended to measure mental health among university students in Wuhu City, China and to identify an effective approach to universities can use to prevent mental-health issues. Design: The research team performed a cross-sectional study. Setting: The study took place at Anhui polytechnic university, Wuhu, China. Participants: Participants were 2371 students at Anhui polytechnic university in Wuhu city, China. Outcome Measures: The research team used the two-item General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) to measure participants' mental health. Results: Among the 2371 participants, 1727 had poor mental health (72.84%), including 843 males (48.81%) and 884 females (51.19%). Poor mental health was significantly associated with an urban residential location (P > .01), the female gender (p>0.01), the second school year (P > .01), and the parents' education level of junior high school or below (both P > .01). Conclusions: The current study suggests that poor mental health among university students is common. Being female, from an urban area, and in the second year of school and having parents with an education of junior high school or below had poorer mental health than those who were male, from the countryside, and in the first year of school and who had parents with a higher level of education.

Long-term passaging of pseudo-typed SARS-CoV-2 reveals the breadth of monoclonal and bispecific antibody cocktails.

The continuous emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants poses challenges to the effectiveness of neutralizing antibodies. Rational design of antibody cocktails is a realizable approach addressing viral immune evasion. However, evaluating the breadth of antibody cocktails is essential for understanding the development potential. Here, based on a replication competent vesicular stomatitis virus model that incorporates the spike of SARS-CoV-2 (VSV-SARS-CoV-2), we evaluated the breadth of a number of antibody cocktails consisting of monoclonal antibodies and bispecific antibodies by long-term passaging the virus in the presence of the cocktails. Results from over two-month passaging of the virus showed that 9E12 + 10D4 + 2G1 and 7B9-9D11 + 2G1 from these cocktails were highly resistant to random mutation, and there was no breakthrough after 30 rounds of passaging. As a control, antibody REGN10933 was broken through in the third passage. Next generation sequencing was performed and several critical mutations related to viral evasion were identified. These mutations caused a decrease in neutralization efficiency, but the reduced replication rate and ACE2 susceptibility of the mutant virus suggested that they might not have the potential to become epidemic strains. The 9E12 + 10D4 + 2G1 and 7B9-9D11 + 2G1 cocktails that picked from the VSV-SARS-CoV-2 system efficiently neutralized all current variants of concern and variants of interest including the most recent variants Delta and Omicron, as well as SARS-CoV-1. Our results highlight the feasibility of using the VSV-SARS-CoV-2 system to develop SARS-CoV-2 antibody cocktails and provide a reference for the clinical selection of therapeutic strategies to address the mutational escape of SARS-CoV-2.

Mental Health Among University Students, Using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire.

Context: To date, researchers have found that poor mental health was common during the COVID-19 epidemic. Even if they had been relatively resistant to suicidal ideation during the first three waves of the pandemic, university students may experience a delayed impact on their mental health. Objective: The study intended to measure mental health among university students in Wuhu City, China and to identify an effective approach to universities can use to prevent mental-health issues. Design: The research team performed a cross-sectional study. Setting: The study took place at Anhui polytechnic university, Wuhu, China. Participants: Participants were 2371 students at Anhui polytechnic university in Wuhu city, China. Outcome Measures: The research team used the two-item General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) to measure participants' mental health. Results: Among the 2371 participants, 1727 had poor mental health (72.84%), including 843 males (48.81%) and 884 females (51.19%). Poor mental health was significantly associated with an urban residential location (P > .01), the female gender (p>0.01), the second school year (P > .01), and the parents' education level of junior high school or below (both P > .01). Conclusions: The current study suggests that poor mental health among university students is common. Being female, from an urban area, and in the second year of school and having parents with an education of junior high school or below had poorer mental health than those who were male, from the countryside, and in the first year of school and who had parents with a higher level of education.

VV116 versus Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir for Oral Treatment of Covid-19.

BACKGROUND: Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir has been authorized for emergency use by many countries for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). However, the supply falls short of the global demand, which creates a need for more options. VV116 is an oral antiviral agent with potent activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). METHODS: We conducted a phase 3, noninferiority, observer-blinded, randomized trial during the outbreak caused by the B.1.1.529 (omicron) variant of SARS-CoV-2. Symptomatic adults with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 with a high risk of progression were assigned to receive a 5-day course of either VV116 or nirmatrelvir-ritonavir. The primary end point was the time to sustained clinical recovery through day 28. Sustained clinical recovery was defined as the alleviation of all Covid-19-related target symptoms to a total score of 0 or 1 for the sum of each symptom (on a scale from 0 to 3, with higher scores indicating greater severity; total scores on the 11-item scale range from 0 to 33) for 2 consecutive days. A lower boundary of the two-sided 95% confidence interval for the hazard ratio of more than 0.8 was considered to indicate noninferiority (with a hazard ratio of >1 indicating a shorter time to sustained clinical recovery with VV116 than with nirmatrelvir-ritonavir). RESULTS: A total of 822 participants underwent randomization, and 771 received VV116 (384 participants) or nirmatrelvir-ritonavir (387 participants). The noninferiority of VV116 to nirmatrelvir-ritonavir with respect to the time to sustained clinical recovery was established in the primary analysis (hazard ratio, 1.17; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01 to 1.35) and was maintained in the final analysis (median, 4 days with VV116 and 5 days with nirmatrelvir-ritonavir; hazard ratio, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.36). In the final analysis, the time to sustained symptom resolution (score of 0 for each of the 11 Covid-19-related target symptoms for 2 consecutive days) and to a first negative SARS-CoV-2 test did not differ substantially between the two groups. No participants in either group had died or had had progression to severe Covid-19 by day 28. The incidence of adverse events was lower in the VV116 group than in the nirmatrelvir-ritonavir group (67.4% vs. 77.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Among adults with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 who were at risk for progression, VV116 was noninferior to nirmatrelvir-ritonavir with respect to the time to sustained clinical recovery, with fewer safety concerns. (Funded by Vigonvita Life Sciences and others; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05341609; Chinese Clinical Trial Registry number, ChiCTR2200057856.).

Non-Fungible Token: A Systematic Review and Research Agenda

The popularity of the Non-Fungible Token (NFT) has risen rapidly since 2020, becoming one of the most popular applications in the Fintech field. However, there has so far been no attempt to perform a systematic review in this new area. Considering the items of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), this paper conducts a systematic review of the research work on NFT, published in journals indexed at the Web of Science and ScienceDirect until April 2022. The results reveal that there are 13 published articles in the targeted journals and they are mainly focused on the asset pricing area. The research gaps identified in the literature also can be the opportunity for future study. Thus, we lay down the research agenda for the future in several important but unanswered fields related to asset pricing, tokenomics, and risk and regulation.

Characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in a medium-sized city with traditional communities during the early COVID-19 epidemic in China.

The nationwide COVID-19 epidemic ended in 2020, a few months after its outbreak in Wuhan, China at the end of 2019. Most COVID-19 cases occurred in Hubei Province, with a few local outbreaks in other provinces of China. A few studies have reported the early SARS-CoV-2 epidemics in several large cities or provinces of China. However, information regarding the early epidemics in small and medium-sized cities, where there are still traditionally large families and community culture is more strongly maintained and thus, transmission profiles may differ, is limited. In this study, we characterized 60 newly sequenced SARS-CoV-2 genomes from Anyang as a representative of small and medium-sized Chinese cities, compared them with more than 400 reference genomes from the early outbreak, and studied the SARS-CoV-2 transmission profiles. Genomic epidemiology revealed multiple SARS-CoV-2 introductions in Anyang and a large-scale expansion of the epidemic because of the large family size. Moreover, our study revealed two transmission patterns in a single outbreak, which were attributed to different social activities. We observed the complete dynamic process of single-nucleotide polymorphism development during community transmission and found that intrahost variant analysis was an effective approach to studying cluster infections. In summary, our study provided new SARS-CoV-2 transmission profiles representative of small and medium-sized Chinese cities as well as information on the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 strains during the early COVID-19 epidemic in China.

Progress in Traditional Chinese Medicine Against Respiratory Viruses: A Review.

Respiratory viruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-1, SARS-CoV-2, influenza A viruses, and respiratory syncytial virus, pose a serious threat to society. Based on the guiding principles of "holism" and "syndrome differentiation and treatment", traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has unique advantages in the treatment of respiratory virus diseases owing to the synergistic effect of multiple components and targets, which prevents drug resistance from arising. According to TCM theory, there are two main strategies in antiviral treatments, namely "dispelling evil" and "fu zheng". Dispelling evil corresponds to the direct inhibition of virus growth and fu zheng corresponds to immune regulation, inflammation control, and tissue protection in the host. In this review, current progress in using TCMs against respiratory viruses is summarized according to modern biological theories. The prospects for developing TCMs against respiratory viruses is discussed to provide a reference for the research and development of innovative TCMs with multiple components, multiple targets, and low toxicity.

Assessing risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients presenting with symptoms in Shanghai, China: a multicentre, observational cohort study.

Background: The outbreak of COVID-19 has led to international concern. We aimed to establish an effective screening strategy in Shanghai, China, to aid early identification of patients with COVID-19. Methods: We did a multicentre, observational cohort study in fever clinics of 25 hospitals in 16 districts of Shanghai. All patients visiting the clinics within the study period were included. A strategy for COVID-19 screening was presented and then suspected cases were monitored and analysed until they were confirmed as cases or excluded. Logistic regression was used to determine the risk factors of COVID-19. Findings: We enrolled patients visiting fever clinics from Jan 17 to Feb 16, 2020. Among 53 617 patients visiting fever clinics, 1004 (1·9%) were considered as suspected cases, with 188 (0·4% of all patients, 18·7% of suspected cases) eventually diagnosed as confirmed cases. 154 patients with missing data were excluded from the analysis. Exposure history (odds ratio [OR] 4·16, 95% CI 2·74-6·33; p<0·0001), fatigue (OR 1·56, 1·01-2·41; p=0·043), white blood cell count less than 4 × 109 per L (OR 2·44, 1·28-4·64; p=0·0066), lymphocyte count less than 0·8 × 109 per L (OR 1·82, 1·00-3·31; p=0·049), ground glass opacity (OR 1·95, 1·32-2·89; p=0·0009), and having both lungs affected (OR 1·54, 1·04-2·28; p=0·032) were independent risk factors for confirmed COVID-19. Interpretation: The screening strategy was effective for confirming or excluding COVID-19 during the spread of this contagious disease. Relevant independent risk factors identified in this study might be helpful for early recognition of the disease. Funding: National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Epidemic Situation of Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia in China mainland (preprint)

[Objective] Analyze the occurrence of novel coronavirus pneumonia(NCP) in China mainland, explore the epidemiological rules, and evaluate the effect of prevention and control. [Methods] From December 1, 2019 to March 4, 2020, Analysis of 80,409 confirmed cases of NCP in China mainland. [Results] From December 1, 2019 to March 4, 2020, a total of 80,409 cases of NCP were confirmed in China mainland, a total of 67,466 cases were confirmed in Hubei Province, a total of 49,671 cases were confirmed in Wuhan city. From December 1, 2019 to March 4, 2020, a total of 3,012 cases of NCP deaths in China mainland, the mortality was 3.75% (3012/80,409); A total of 52045 cases of cured in China mainland; The turning point of the epidemic have been reached since February 18.2020 in China mainland; The spread index of NCP gradually declined since January 27. 2020, and the extinction index of NCP rose little by little since January 29, 2020. [Conclusion] From December 1, 2019 to March 4, 2020, NCP is under control, and the trend of the epidemic will eventually disappearThe turning point of an epidemic that I've created is a great indicator that can calculate the turning date of an outbreak and provide a basis for scientific prevention.