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The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic caused dietary changes. Humans reduced social activities to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which led to increasing demand for machines to help cook. This work studies the effect of different stirrer modes on the texture of celery, asparagus, green peppers, and spinach during the cooking process and the functional loss of components in vegetables by measuring the changes in vitamin C, total polyphenols, and total flavonoids. The results showed that colour changes and loss of nutrients in each vegetable varied under different stirrer modes. Stirring was found to be the best mode for cooking all four vegetables. In addition, there was a positive correlation between the a* value and functional components during the cooking process, which means that the colour difference and nutritional loss of vegetables can be modulated together. This study provides theoretical guidance for developing the stirring unit in a cooking machine.
ABSTRACT
University is one of the most likely environments for the cluster infection due to the long-time close contact in house and frequent communication. It is critical to understand the transmission risk of COVID-19 under various scenario, especially during public health emergency. Taking the Tsinghua university's anniversary as a representative case, a set of prevention and control strategies are established and investigated. In the case study, an alumni group coming from out of campus is investigated whose activities and routes are designed based on the previous anniversary schedule. The social closeness indicator is introduced into the Wells-Riley model to consider the factor of contact frequency. Based on the anniversary scenario, this study predicts the number of the infected people in each exposure indoor location (including classroom, dining hall, meeting room and so on) and evaluates the effects of different intervention measures on reducing infection risk using the modified Wells-Riley model, such as ventilation, social distancing and wearing mask. The results demonstrate that when applying the intervention measure individually, increasing ventilation rate is found to be the most effective, whereas the efficiency of increased ventilation on reducing infection cases decreases with the increase of the ventilation rate. To better prevent COVID-19 transmission, the combined intervention measures are necessary to be taken, which show the similar effectiveness on the reduction of infected cases under different initial infector proportion. The results provide the insights into the infection risk on university campus when dealing with public health emergency and can guide university to formulate effective operational strategies to control the spread of COVID-19. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
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Mass suspension of anthropogenic activities is extremely rare, the quarantine due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) represents a natural experiment to investigate the impact of anthropogenic activities on air quality. The mitigation of air pollution during the COVID-19 lock-down has been reported from a global perspective;however, the air pollution levels vary in different regions. This study initiated a novel synthesis of multiple-year satellite observations, national ground measurements towards SO2, NO2 and O3 and meteorological conditions to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown in Beihai, a specific city in a less developed area in southwest China, to reveal the potential implications of control strategies for air pollution. The levels of the major air pollutants during the COVID-19 lockdown (LP) and during the same period of previous years (SP) were compared and a series of statistical tools were applied to analyze the sources of air pollution in Beihai. The results show that air pollutant levels decreased with substantial diversity during the LP. Satellite-retrieved NO2 and SO2 levels during the LP decreased by 5.26% and 22.06%, while NO2, SO2, PM2.5 and PM10 from ground measurements during the LP were 25.6%, 2.7%, 22.2% and 22.2% lower than during SP, respectively. Ground measured SO2 concentrations during the LP were only 2.7% lower than during the SP, which may be attributed to uninterrupted essential industrial activ-ities, such as power plants. Polar plots analysis shows that NO2 concentrations were strongly associated with local emission sources, such as automobiles and local industry. Additionally, the much lower levels of NO2 concentrations during the LP and the absence of an evening peak may highlight the significant impact of the traffic sector on NO2. The decrease in daily mean O3 concentrations during the LP may be associated with the reduction in NO2 concentrations. Indications in this study could be beneficial for the formulation of atmospheric protection policies. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
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The "One Health" concept emphasizes interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral, and cross-regional communication and cooperation to achieve unity of health for humans, animals, and the environment. The One Health strategy is designed to provide early warning and effective preventative monitoring for emerging and reemerging infectious diseases. Since the avian flu crisis in the Asia-Pacific region, the World Organization for Animal Health and the World Health Organization have been working together to provide strong leadership to endorse the One Health concept and promote interagency and intersectoral collaboration. While the COVID-19 epidemic has been a major disaster for mankind, it has also resulted in a broad consensus on the concept of One Health among governments and international organizations, emphasizing action to jointly deal with common problems facing human health. Climate change, fragmentation and pollution of habitats, and the consequent loss of biodiversity and degradation of the natural environment threaten Earth's ecosystems. These changes also drive the emergence of infectious diseases, with negative health outcomes for humans, animals, and the environment. Historically, interventions in human and agricultural health problems did not always consider wildlife or environmental health, which has led to unintended consequences. One Health recognizes the interdependence of humans, animals, and the environment, and provides a conceptual framework for the development of interventions to optimize outcomes for human-animal-environmental health. However, it is necessary to clearly articulate the core values, goals, and objectives of One Health for all relevant sectors to maximize synergies in communication, coordination, collaboration, and, ultimately, joint action on disease control and prevention. The application of systems and harm reduction methods, focusing on the socio-economic and environmental determinants of health and ensuring good governance and effective leadership, will also maximize the opportunities to create "win-win" solutions for global health and environmental challenges. These solutions will help drive One Health to achieve its full potential and optimize health outcomes for all. In recent decades, One Health has become increasingly recognized around the world-i.e., that supporting a multisectoral, collaborative One Health strategy is the best way to address health threats at the human-animal-environmental level. The One Health method is increasingly popular in the context of the growing threats of climate change, emerging zoonoses, and antimicrobial drug resistance. During the last decade, country after country has implemented the One Health method and has shown benefits;the concept of One Health has become the international standard for zoonotic disease control. This call for transdisciplinary collaboration among professionals in human, animal, and environmental health has achieved multiple successes in zoonotic disease control, surveillance, and research. This article gives an overview of the development and application of One Health in addressing current issues, including emerging infectious diseases, antibiotic resistance, environmental health, and foodborne diseases. © 2022, Science Press. All right reserved.
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With the outbreak of COVID-19, how to mitigate and suppress its spread is a big issue to the government. Department of public health need powerful models to analyze and predict the trend and scale of such pandemic. And models that could evaluate the effect of the public policy are also essential to the fight with COVID-19. A main limitation of existing models is that they can only evaluate the policy by calculating R-0 after infection happens instead of giving observable index. To tackle this, based on the transmission characteristics of the COVID-19, we propose a novel framework Spatial-Temporal-Susceptible-Infected-Removed (STSIR) model. In particular, we combine both intra-city and inter-city mobility indices with the traditional SIR dynamics and make it a dynamic system. And we prove that the STSIR system is a closed system which makes the system self-consistent. And finally we proposed a Multi-Stage Simulated Annealing (MSSA) algorithm to find the optimal parameters of the system. In our experiments, based on Baidu Mobility dataset [1], and China pandemic dataset provided by Dingxiangyuan [2], our model can effectively predict the total scale of the pandemic and also give clear policy analysis with the observable index.
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Objective: To analyze the echocardiographic manifestations and clinical features of 98 patients with COVID‑19, and to explore whether there is potential myocardial injury in COVID‑19 patients. Methods: Patients diagnosed with COVID‑19 in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University were retrospectively investigated. Echocardiography was performed on all the patients. Diameters of chamber, thickness of ventricular wall were measured routinely to explore whether there were structural changes, while left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) were assessed for function evaluation. Signs of pericardial effusion and pulmonary hypertension were also focused on in our study. At the same time, clinical data related to the myocardial injury was collected, including Troponin I (cTnI), creatine kinase‑MB (CKMB), and N‑terminal pro‑brain natriuretic peptide (NT‑pro BNP). Patients were divided into the severe group and the non‑severe group, and the differences of ultrasound results and clinical data between the two groups were analyzed. Results: No typical echocardiographic signs of viral myocarditis were observed in our study, such as ventricular enlargement, thickening of the ventricular wall and cardiac dysfunction. Positive findings in echocardiography observed mainly included signs of pericardial effusion and pulmonary hypertension. By comparing the clinical data of the two groups, the age of the severe group was significantly older (median age 66.0 years [IQR: 56.0‑77.0] vs 59.0 years [IQR: 42.0‑69.0], P=0.02), and the levels of CRP, procalcitonin and D‑Dimer were significantly increased in the severe group. Conclusion: Although the echocardiography of patients with COVID‑19 had no typical manifestations, the level of myocardial markers was significantly increased in severe patients, suggesting the potential myocardial injury. © 2021, Editorial Board of Medical Journal of Wuhan University. All right reserved.
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Objective: To analyze the clinical characteristics and control methods of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) complicated with venous thromboembolism(VTE), and to provide scientific basis for disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Methods: We retrospectively studied the cases of COVID-19 complicated with VTE in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from January 30, 2020 to March 19, 2020, and their clinical features, results of exmaninations, treatment methods, complications, and prognosis were reviewed. Results: Among the 1 448 COVID-19 patients, 17(1.17%) were VTE positive, 60-69 years old patients were more common. The main clinical types were critical (64.7%) and severe (35.7%) types. The main clinical symptoms were lower extremity swelling (70.6%) and pain (35.7%);58.8% of the patients had a history of high risk factors related to VTE. Most VTE patients were peripheral (58.8%) and involved bilateral limbs (41.2%). The proportion of neutrophils, D-dimer and fibrin degradation products at the last examination were lower than those on admission to the hospital, while the total number and proportion of lymphocytes were higher. Of the 17 VTE cases, 64.7% received venous catheterization, 58.8% received endotracheal intubation or tracheotomy, and 2 patients received extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). The rate of bleeding was as high as 53%, and the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular accidents was very high;the prognosis of the patients was poor, and the mortality rate was 23.5%. The cure rate was 17.6%, and the improvement rate was 47.1%. Two patients were still in critically ill. Conclusion: Venous thromboembolism was common in elderly COVID-19 patients with severe types and critical types. Most patients were male and characterized by atypical symptoms, and the early active VTE risk assessment and prevention procedures should be adopted. The risk for bleeding and cardiovascular/cerebrovascular accidents was high, although most cases had good outcomes after active treatment. © 2021, Editorial Board of Medical Journal of Wuhan University. All right reserved.
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Compared with adults, children tend to have lower incidence rate, hospitalization rate, and mortality rate of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), while the cause of such age-based differences in disease severity remains unclear. An investigation of pathogenesis in children may help to analyze the therapies for the high-risk population. Human angiotensin-converting enzyme II is the main receptor of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 and can limit pulmonary capillary leakage and inflammation mediated by angiotensin 2 and exert a protective effect against acute lung injury. Its expression decreases with age. Regular vaccination and frequent upper respiratory virus infection in children can lead to regular immune activation, and its combination with strong innate immunity can help to achieve virus clearance in the early stage of infection in children with COVID-19. Meanwhile, there are strong regeneration and repair abilities of alveolar epithelial cells in children, which may help with the early recovery of infection. In addition, risk factors, such as underlying cardiopulmonary diseases, obesity, and smoking, are relatively uncommon in children. Social factors, including home quarantine and timely closure of schools, may help to reduce the infection rate in children. However, children with immunodeficiency are a high-risk population and should be closely monitored. Further studies are needed to investigate the immune and protection mechanisms against COVID-19 in children.
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The novel SARS-CoV-2 infection responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to have an adverse effect onthe progression of multiple cancers, including prostate cancer, due to the ensuing cytokine storm associatedoncogenic signaling. A better understanding of the host cell factors and their regulators will help identify potentialtherapies to block SARS-CoV-2 infection at an early stage and thereby prevent cancer progression. Host cellinfection by SARS-CoV-2 requires the binding of the viral spike S protein to ACE2 receptor and priming by theserine protease TMPRSS2-encoded by a well-known androgen response gene and highly expressed in patientsdiagnosed with prostate cancer. Epidemiologic data showing increased severity and mortality of SARS-CoV-2disease in men suggest a possible role for androgen in the transcriptional activation of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 in thelungs and other primary infection sites. Here, by performing in vivo castration in mice, RT-PCR, immunoblotting, Co-IP, and pseudovirus infection assays in multiple cell lines, we present evidence for the transcriptional regulation ofTMPRSS2 and ACE2 by androgen, their endogenous interaction, as well as a novel combination of drugs inblocking viral infection. In adult male mice, castration led to a significant loss in the expression of ACE2 andTMPRSS2 at the transcript and protein levels in the lung, heart, and small intestine. Intriguingly, castrated micedisplayed a substantial increase in ACE2 in the kidney, which could potentially be due to the low blood pressureresulting from androgen deprivation. Endogenous TMPRSS2 and ACE2 were found to be physically interacting, asobserved by reciprocal immunoprecipitation followed by immunoblotting. Importantly, along with full-length zymogenform, a prominent novel small isoform of TMPRSS2 was found to be associated with ACE2 in lung and prostatecells. In an overexpression system, camostat-a serine protease inhibitor specific to TMPRSS2-inhibited thecleavage of spike S, suggesting a direct role of this serine protease in priming the viral spike S protein, aprerequisite for an active infection. Furthermore, a combination of camostat, antiandrogen, and epigenetic drugs atsublethal concentrations blocked SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus infection in multiple cell types. Together, our preclinicaldata provide a strong rationale for clinical evaluation of TMRPSS2 inhibitors, antiandrogens, and epigenetic drugcombinations along with antiviral drug remdesivir as early as clinically possible to prevent progression to pneumoniaand multiorgan failure as a result of hyperinflammatory responses in COVID-19 patients.
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Few studies have reported the implications of performing endotracheal intubation for critically ill COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). Therefore, this study aimed to summarize the outcomes of COVID-19 patients in the ICU following endotracheal intubation and provide a clinical reference for the high-risk procedure. From February 1 to February 18, 2020, we enrolled 59 critically ill COVID-19 patients who received emergency endotracheal intubation in the ICUs of Tongji Hospital. We recorded demographic information, laboratory parameters, comorbidities, changes in vital signs pre- and post-intubation, the airway grade, intubation success rate using three types of laryngoscopes, and the experience of intubators. Follow-up evaluations were performed for all proceduralists to monitor nosocomial infections. The majority of the patients requiring intubation were elderly and had at least one comorbidity. Of the patients, 86.4% developed hypoxia before intubation. The first and second attempts of successful endotracheal intubation with the Macintosh laryngoscope (70.0% and 83.3%), Airtraq videolaryngoscope (93.5% and 80%), and UE videolaryngoscope (88.9% and 100%) were performed. Notably, SpO(2) <93% and hypotension were observed 3 min after intubation in 32.2% and 39% patients, respectively. With the proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE), no nosocomial infections were observed among proceduralists. Full PPE increased the occurrence of fogging on goggles and myopia glasses. Overall, a higher success rate of intubation was achieved by senior intubators using a videolaryngoscope. Although inconvenient, appropriate ensembles of PPE could prevent nosocomial infections.