[Clinical features of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 Omicron variant infection in children: an analysis of 201 cases]. / 201ä¾‹å„¿ç«¥æ–°åž‹å† çŠ¶ç— æ¯’Omicronå˜å¼‚æ ªæ„ŸæŸ“çš„ä¸´åºŠç‰¹å¾åˆ†æž.

OBJECTIVES: To study the clinical features of children with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Omicron variant infection. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical data of 201 children with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who were hospitalized and diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection in Quanzhou First Hospital from March 14 to April 7, 2022. Among the 201 children, there were 34 children with asymptomatic infection and 167 with symptomatic infection. The two groups were compared in terms of clinical features, results of experimental examinations, and outcome. RESULTS: Of all the 201 children, 161 (80.1%) had a history of exposure to COVID-19 patients and 132 (65.7%) had a history of COVID-19 vaccination. Among the 167 children with symptomatic infections, 151 had mild COVID-19 and 16 had common COVID-19, with no severe infection or death. Among the 101 children who underwent chest CT examination, 16 had ground glass changes and 20 had nodular or linear opacities. The mean time to nucleic acid clearance was (14±4) days for the 201 children with Omicron variant infection, and the symptomatic infection group had a significantly longer time than the asymptomatic infection group [(15±4) days vs (11±4) days, P<0.05]. The group vaccinated with one or two doses of COVID-19 vaccine had a significantly higher positive rate of IgG than the group without vaccination (P<0.05). The proportions of children with increased blood lymphocyte count in the symptomatic infection group was significantly lower than that in the asymptomatic infection group (P<0.05). Compared with the asymptomatic infection group, the symptomatic infection group had significantly higher proportions of children with increased interleukin-6, increased fibrinogen, and increased D-dimer (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Most of the children with Omicron variant infection have clinical symptoms, which are generally mild. The children with symptomatic infection are often accompanied by decreased or normal blood lymphocyte count and increased levels of interleukin-6, fibrinogen, and D-dimer, with a relatively long time to nucleic acid clearance. Some of them had ground glass changes on chest CT.

Identifying Stock Prices Using an Advanced Hybrid ARIMA-Based Model: A Case of Games Catalogs

At the beginning of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world, affecting the pace of life and the economic behavioral patterns of people around the world, with an impact exceeding that of the 2008 financial crisis, causing a global stock market crash and even the first recorded negative oil prices. Under the impact of this pandemic, due to the global large-scale quarantine and lockdown measures, game stocks belonging to the stay-at-home economy have become the focus of investors from all over the world. Therefore, under such incentives, this study aims to construct a set of effective prediction models for the price of game stocks, which could help relevant stakeholders-especially investors-to make efficient predictions so as to achieve a profitable investment niche. Moreover, because stock prices have the characteristics of a time series, and based on the relevant discussion in the literature, we know that ARIMA (the autoregressive integrated moving average) prediction models have excellent prediction performance. In conclusion, this study aims to establish an advanced hybrid model based on ARIMA as an excellent prediction technology for the price of game stocks, and to construct four groups of different investment strategies to determine which technical models of investment strategies are suitable for different game stocks. There are six important directions, experimental results, and research findings in the construction of advanced models: (1) In terms of the experiment, the data are collected from the daily closing prices of game-related stocks on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, and the sample range is from 2014 to 2020. (2) In terms of the performance verification, the return on investment is used as the evaluation standard to verify the availability of the ARIMA prediction model. (3) In terms of the research results, the accuracy of the model in predicting the prices of listed stocks can reach the 95% confidence interval predicted by the model 14 days after the closing price, and the OTC stocks fall within the 95% confidence interval for 3 days. (4) In terms of the empirical study of the rate of return, the investors can obtain a better rate of return than the benchmark strategy by trading the game stocks based on the indices set by the ARIMA model in this study. (5) In terms of the research findings, this study further compares the rate of return of trading strategies with reference to the ARIMA index and the rate of return of trading strategies with reference to the monitoring indicator, finding no significant difference between the two. (6) Different game stocks apply for different technical models of investment strategies.

Real-world study of the effectiveness of BBIBP-CorV (Sinopharm) COVID-19 vaccine in the Kingdom of Morocco (preprint)

The Kingdom of Morocco approved BBIBP-CorV (Sinopharm) COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use on 22 January 2021 in a two-dose, three-to-four-week interval schedule. We conducted a case-control study to determine real-world BBIBP-CorV vaccine effectiveness (VE) against serious or critical hospitalization of individuals RT-PCR-positive for SARS-CoV-2 during the first five months of BBIBP-CorV use in Morocco. The study was conducted among adults 18-99 years old who were tested by RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 infection between 1 February and 30 June 2021. RT-PCR results were individually linked with outcomes from the COVID-19 severe or critical hospitalization dataset and with vaccination histories from the national vaccination registration system. Individuals with partial vaccination (<2 weeks after dose two) or in receipt of any other COVID-19 vaccine were excluded. Unadjusted and adjusted VE estimates against hospitalization for serious or critical illness were made by comparing two-dose vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals in logistic regression models, calculated as (1-odds ratio) * 100%. There were 348,190 individuals able to be matched across the three databases. Among these, 140,892 were fully vaccinated, 206,149 were unvaccinated, and 1,149 received homologous BBIBP-CorV booster doses. Unadjusted, full-series, unboosted BBIBP-CorV VE against hospitalization for serious or critical illness was 90.2% (95%CI: 87.8% - 92.0%). Full-series, unboosted VE, adjusted for age, sex, and calendar day of RT-PCR test, was 88.5% (95%CI: 85.8% - 90.7%). Calendar day- and sex-adjusted VE ranged from 93.9% to 100% for individuals <60 years, and was 53.3% for individuals 60 years and older. There were no serious or critical illnesses among BBIBP-CorV-boosted individuals. Effectiveness of Sinopharm's BBIBP-CorV was consistent with phase III clinical trial results. Two doses of BBIBP-CorV was highly protective against COVID-19-associated serious or critical hospitalization in working-age adults under real-world conditions and moderately effective in older adults. Booster dose VE should be evaluated, as booster doses of BBIBP-CorV are recommended and are being used.

The epidemiology and etiologies of respiratory tract infection in Northern Taiwan during the early phase of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) manifests symptoms as common etiologies of respiratory tract infections (RTIs). During the pandemic of COVID-19, identifying the etiologies correctly from patients with RTI symptoms was crucial in not only disease control but preventing healthcare system from collapsing. By applying sensitive PCR-based molecular assays, we detected the etiologic agents and delineated the epidemiologic picture of RTIs in the early phase of COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: From December 2019 to February 2020, we screened patients presented with RTIs using multiplex PCR-based diagnostic assays. Data from pediatric and adult patients were compared with different months and units in the hospital. RESULTS: Of all 1631 patients including 1445 adult and 186 pediatric patients screened, 8 viruses and 4 bacteria were identified. Positive rates were 25% in December, 37% in January, and 20% in February, with pediatric patients having higher positive rates than adults (Ps < 0.001). In pediatric patients, RhV/EnV was the most commonly detected, followed by parainfluenza viruses. Most Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection occurred in pediatric patients. RhV/EnV was the most commonly detected agent in pediatric patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs), while influenza accounted for the majority of adult cases with critical illness. Noticeably, seasonal coronavirus ranked second in both adult and pediatric patients with ICU admission. CONCLUSION: While we focused on the pandemic of COVID-19, common etiologies still accounted for the majority of RTIs and lead to severe diseases, including other seasonal coronaviruses.

The clinical manifestations and interval changes of reverse-transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reactions among different specimens of coronavirus disease 2019 patients.

BACKGROUND: Since December 2019, a number of cases and deaths due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic have been reported worldwide. In spite of clinical manifestations similar to the SARS-CoV epidemic in 2003, affected organs and severity are yet to be defined. Moreover, viral load alterations and viral shielding among different specimens remained scarce. Therefore, clarifying clinical presentations and correlations among viral loads, disease severity, and viral shielding of SARS-CoV-2 infection is crucial in the disease prevention. METHODS: The clinical courses of SARS-CoV-2 cases were presented through Gantt charts. Laboratory examinations and reverse-transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reactions (RT-qPCR) among different specimens were tested periodically. Cycle thresholds (CT) were recorded and presented as viral loads. RESULTS: From March 2020 to April 2020, 4 SARS-CoV-2 cases were presented, of which, cases 1 and 2 manifested the symptoms severer than cases 3 and 4, along with higher serum lactate dehydrogenase levels and graded for lymphocytopenia. Case 4 initially exhibited anosmia but recovered within a short period. Curves of the CT of all the cases, except case 2, concaved upward after prescribing hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and azithromycin. Except for case 4, the CT in most stool specimens remained undetectable; however, none of the cases presented gastrointestinal symptoms. Surprisingly, the CT values of the saliva specimens were inconsistent with those of the nasopharyngeal swabs and sputum. CONCLUSION: SARS-CoV-2 manifests various symptoms. Sudden onset of central nervous system symptoms should be considered. The timing of HCQ and azithromycin administration might be a key factor in the viral load reduction. Positive prediction values of RT-qPCR of different specimens should be tested carefully to prevent false-negative results.

Identification of COVID-19-relevant transcriptional regulatory networks and associated kinases as potential therapeutic targets (preprint)

Identification of transcriptional regulatory mechanisms and signaling networks involved in the response of host to infection by SARS-CoV-2 is a powerful approach that provides a systems biology view of gene expression programs involved in COVID-19 and may enable identification of novel therapeutic targets and strategies to mitigate the impact of this disease. In this study, we combined a series of recently developed computational tools to identify transcriptional regulatory networks involved in the response of epithelial cells to infection by SARS-CoV-2, and particularly regulatory mechanisms that are specific to this virus. In addition, using network-guided analyses, we identified signaling pathways that are associated with these networks and kinases that may regulate them. The results identified classical antiviral response pathways including Interferon response factors (IRFs), interferons (IFNs), and JAK-STAT signaling as key elements upregulated by SARS-CoV-2 in comparison to mock-treated cells. In addition, comparing SARS-Cov-2 infection of airway epithelial cells to other respiratory viruses identified pathways associated with regulation of inflammation (MAPK14) and immunity (BTK, MBX) that may contribute to exacerbate organ damage linked with complications of COVID-19. The regulatory networks identified herein reflect a combination of experimentally validated hits and novel pathways supporting the computational pipeline to quickly narrow down promising avenue of investigations when facing an emerging and novel disease such as COVID-19.

Experience of Clinical Management for Pregnant Women and Newborns with Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia in Tongji Hospital, China.

Based on the New Diagnosis and Treatment Scheme for Novel Coronavirus Infected Pneumonia (Trial Edition 5), combined with our current clinical treatment experience, we recently proposed a revision of the first edition of "Guidance for maternal and fetal management during pneumonia epidemics of novel coronavirus infection in the Wuhan Tongji Hospital". This article focused on the issues of greatest concern of pregnant women including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection diagnostic criteria, inspection precautions, drug treatment options, indications and methods of termination of pregnancy, postpartum fever, breastfeeding considerations, mode of mother-to-child transmission, neonatal isolation and advice on neonatal nursing, to provide valuable experience for better management of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnant women and newborns.

The Application of Films in Advanced Chinese Language Courses: A Cooperative-Collaborative Learning Model

This article focuses on the use of films, teaching platforms, and teaching models in a fourth-year Chinese language class. Using the film Dying to Survive and the documentary short film A City with Zero New Cases of COVID-19 as examples, the authors demonstrate the effectiveness of using films as major course materials, and using Google Docs, Google Sheets and Douban as sharing and interactive platforms in language courses. The article also highlights the advantages and disadvantages of cooperative and collaborative learning models, shedding light on the versatility of teaching methods in advanced Chinese language courses.