ABSTRACT
Several countries have weakened the carbon emission objectives to immediately revive the economy in the post-COVID-19 era. Therefore, it is a challenge worth addressing to readjust the economic development and carbon emissions after the COVID-19 pandemic. From the perspective of China's carbon emissions, this study shapes a multi-objective dynamic optimization model based on the material capital input and R&D support aspects. The proposed model imitates China's economic development, energy consumption, and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The model provides theoretical suggestion for the government to revive economic development and reduce carbon emissions. In addition, this research paper compares the evolutionary path of carbon peak under the two scenarios. The first scenario requires maintaining the pre-epidemic development state and pace of carbon emission reduction, referred to as the baseline scenario (BS). The second scenario is termed the optimal scenario (OS) based on the model calculation. The study findings exhibit that China is not able to accomplish the 2030 CO2 emission peak objective, under the BS. However, China under the OS shall expectedly accomplish the 2030 carbon peak objective ahead of schedule, while the peak CO2 emissions shall be around 11.28 billion tons. Reportedly, at least 788 million tons of CO2 reduction contrasted with the BS. Further, there is an 80.35% decline in energy intensity as compared to 2005. Consequently, the study results contribute theoretical guidance for the "green recovery" of China's economy and the adjustment of carbon emission reduction’s path after the COVID-19 epidemic. Consistent with this, the research method also contributes to the theoretical research on carbon emissions at the national level while extending a new research perspective for the economic- and environmental fields.
Subject(s)
COVID-19ABSTRACT
Safety and immunogenicity of MVC-COV1901, a recombinant COVID-19 protein vaccine, containing S-2P protein adjuvanted with CpG 1018 and aluminium hydroxide, was assessed for people living with HIV (PWH). A total of 57 PWH of ≥ 20 years of age who are on stable antiretroviral therapy were compared with 882 HIV-negative participants. Participants received 2 doses of MVC-COV1901 28 days apart. No vaccine-related serious adverse events (SAEs) were recorded. Seroconversion rates (SCRs) of 100% and 99.8% were achieved in PWH and comparators, respectively, 28 days after second dose. After adjusting for sex, age, BMI category, and comorbidity, the adjusted GMT ratio of comparator/PWH was 3.2 (95% CI 2.5-4). A higher CD4/CD8 ratio was associated with a higher GMT (R = 0.27, p = 0.039). MVC-COV1901 has shown robust safety but elicited weaker immune responses in PWH. As a result, a third dose or booster doses of MVC-COV1901 may be appropriate for PWH. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT04695652.
Subject(s)
HIV Infections , COVID-19ABSTRACT
ObjectivesTo provide data on the immune response to COVID-19 vaccines in people living with HIV (PWH), MVC-COV1901, a recombinant protein vaccine containing S-2P protein adjuvanted with CpG 1018 and aluminium hydroxide, was assessed. MethodsA total of 57 PWH of [≥] 20 years of age who are on stable antiretroviral therapy and with CD4+ T cell [≥] 350 cells/mm3 and HIV viral load < 103 copies/ml were compared with 882 HIV-negative participants. Participants received 2 doses of MVC-COV1901 28 days apart. Safety and the immunogenicity were evaluated. ResultsNo vaccine-related serious adverse events (SAEs) were recorded. Seroconversion rates (SCRs) of 100% and 99.8% were achieved in people living with HIV (PWH) and comparators, respectively, 28 days after second dose. The geometric mean titers (GMTs) (95% confidence interval [CI]) against wild type SARS-CoV-2 virus were 136.62 IU/mL (WHO Standardized International Unit) (95% CI 114.3-163.3) and 440.41 IU/mL (95% CI 421.3-460.4), for PWH and control groups, respectively, after adjusting for sex, age, BMI category, and comorbidity, and the adjusted GMT ratio of comparator/PWH was 3.22 (95% CI 2.6-4.1). A higher CD4/CD8 ratio was associated with a higher GMT (R=0.27, p=0.039). ConclusionsMVC-COV1901 has shown robust safety but weaker immunogenicity responses in PWH. As a result, a third dose or booster doses of MVC-COV1901 may be appropriate for PWH.
Subject(s)
HIV Infections , Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions , COVID-19ABSTRACT
Background: This was a phase 1, dose-escalation open-label trial to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of MVC-COV1901, a SARS-CoV-2 S-2P protein vaccine adjuvanted with aluminum hydroxide and CpG 1018.Methods: 45 healthy adults from 20 to 49 years of age were to be administered two vaccinations of MVC-COV1901 in doses of 5 μg, 15 μg, or 25 μg of spike protein at 28 days apart. There were 15 participants in each dose group; all were followed for 28 days after the second vaccination at the time of the interim analysis. Adverse events (AEs) and laboratory data were recorded for the safety evaluation. Blood samples were collected for wild-type SARS-CoV-2 and pseudovirus neutralization assays, SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG), and cellular immune response at various time points.Findings: Solicited adverse events were mostly mild and similar in all three dose groups. No subject experienced fever. After the second vaccination, serum neutralizing activity for wild-type virus was detected in all participants of the 15 μg and 25 μg dose groups with geometric mean values (76•3 [95% CI: 53•75 ~108•33], and 167•4 [95% CI: 122.05 ~229.61]) 1•8 to 3•9 times those of a panel of control convalescent serum specimens (42•7, [95%CI: 26•38~69•04]). The cellular immune response induced by MVC-COV1901 demonstrated substantially higher numbers of IFN-γ- than IL-4- producing cells in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, suggesting a Th1-skewed immune response.Interpretation: The MVC-COV1901 vaccine was well tolerated and elicited robust immune responses especially in the 15 μg and 25 μg dose groups and is suitable for further development.Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT 04487210Funding: Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corporation.Conflict of Interest: Szu-Min Hsieh, Shan-Chwen Chang, Wang-Da Liu, Yu-Shan Huang declared that they have no knowncompeting financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper; Yi-Jiun Lin, Erh-Fang Hsieh, Wei-Cheng Lian, Charles Chen, I-Chen Tai are employee ofMedigen Vaccine Biologics Corporation and reported grants from Taiwan Centers for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Welfare, during the conduct of the study. In addition, Yi-Jiun. Lin and Charles Chen have a patent US63/040,696 pending. Robert Janssen is an employee of Dynavax Technologies Corporation.Ethical Approval: The trial protocol and informed consent form were approved by the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration and the ethics committee at the site. The trial was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki and Good Clinical Practice. An independent data and safety monitoring board (DSMB) was established to monitor safety data and the trial conduct.
Subject(s)
FeverABSTRACT
Design This is a phase 1, dose-escalation open-label trial to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of MVC-COV1901, a recombinant stabilized prefusion SARS-CoV-2 spike (S-2P) protein vaccine with adjuvant of aluminum hydroxide and CpG 1018. Methods We enrolled 45 healthy adults from 20 to 49 years of age to be administered with two vaccinations of MVC-COV1901 in a low dose (LD), middle dose (MD), and high dose (HD) of spike protein at 28 days apart. There were 15 participants in each dose group, and all of them were followed up for 28 days after the second vaccination at the time of interim analysis. Adverse events (AEs) and laboratory data were recorded for safety evaluation. Blood samples were collected for wild-type SARS-CoV-2 and pseudovirus neutralization assays as well as SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) at various times. Overall, the study duration will be 7 months. Results Solicited events were mostly mild and similar in the participants of all three dose groups. No subject experienced fever. There were no serious nor adverse events of special interest at the time point of this interim report. After the second vaccination, the SARS-CoV-2 spike specific IgG titers increased with peak geometric mean titers at 7178.245 (LD), 7746.086 (MD), and 11220.58 (HD), respectively. Serum neutralizing activity was detected by two methods in all participants of MD and HD groups, with geometric mean values generally comparable to those of a panel of control convalescent serum specimens. All of the participants in the MD and HD groups were seroconverted after the second vaccination. Conclusions The MVC-COV1901 vaccine is safe and elicits remarkable immune responses especially in the MD and HD groups.
Subject(s)
Fever , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome , Infarction, Middle Cerebral ArteryABSTRACT
The complex structure of supply chains makes them vulnerable to risk, so enhancing their resilience is an important goal. In particular, fashion supply chain research has identified two important issues that need to be addressed: sustainability and risk. However, investigation of these issues is relatively sparse and has primarily been independent with little combinatory research. Therefore, it is crucial to develop a risk mitigation method that can maximize the resilience of sustainable supply chains for fashion companies. The objective of this study is to develop an integrated quality function deployment approach and to mitigate supply chain risk by deploying resilience capabilities and resilience-enhancing features, thus ultimately providing the fashion industry with a useful approach for the development of resilient, sustainable supply chains. Using a fashion company as an example, the practicability of the proposed approach is verified. To strengthen resilience and thus mitigate key risks, it is found that the most urgent tasks are to reallocate the company’s resources, to carry out the real-time monitoring of risk on the spot, to share the risk responsibility, and to establish an incentive system. When these features are strengthened, agility and adaptability can be improved, and finally, the risks of supplier delays, natural disasters, political instability, and problematic supplier materials with the greatest impact can be alleviated. This study provides a new strategy for the fashion industry for the implementation of resilient, sustainable supply chains to mitigate risks.
ABSTRACT
The recent emerging coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has been rapidly and widely spread and causing an ongoing viral pneumonia outbreak worldwide. It has been observed that SARS-CoV-2 patients show a rather long and asymptomatic incubation time. We characterized the abilities to induce and to response to IFN{beta}/IFN{lambda}1 of two or our clinical isolates, SARS-CoV-2/NTU01/TWN/human/2020 and SARS-CoV-2/NTU02/TWN/human/2020, which exhibit only two amino acid differences over the [~]30kb viral genome. We found that both isolates may infect Huh7, A549 and Calu-3 cells, yet the RIG-I-like receptor-dependent antiviral signaling was poorly induced in these cells in the early infections. Unexpectedly, we found that the intracellular vRNA levels of these isolates were sustained upon to type I/III IFN treatments, and this phenotype was more pronounced in the Taiwan/NTU01/2020 isolate. The type I/III IFN responses are antiviral but partially proviral in the case of SARS-CoV-2 infections. Poor induction and response to innate immunity may contribute to destitute neutralization index of the antibody produced, and indeed we found that the patient serum could not efficiently neutralize SARS-CoV-2 virions. With better understandings of the interplay between SARS-CoV-2 and the host antiviral innate immunity, our report may provide new insights for the regimen of therapies for SARS-CoV-2 infected patients.