COVID-19 Associated With Psoriasis

An Emotional Analysis Method for the Analysis of Cognitive and Psychological Factors in the Change of Second Language Learning Model of Chinese Mainland Students in the Post-epidemic Era

Since the sudden outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in 2020, the second language learning patterns of students in mainland China have encountered new challenges that have had a psychological impact on mainland Chinese students. The epidemic has not only inconvenienced students’ normal second language learning but also greatly affected the second language learning patterns of mainland Chinese students. In the post-epidemic era, more and more students are becoming accustomed to studying and learning a second language online. The level of informatization of second language learning patterns of students in mainland China has increased significantly. This study first analyses the mechanisms of change in second language learning patterns and further analyses the influence of knowledge background on the perception of second language learning patterns on this basis. To design the influencing factors of second language learning patterns, a questionnaire was used to investigate the influence of knowledge background on the perception of second language learning patterns. The survey was conducted on students who were learning a second language in mainland China. Then, the survey data were statistically analyzed. In analyzing the influence of effect on second language learning behaviors of students in mainland China, observed variables were designed, including observed variables of affective factors and learning behaviors. After that, the findings of the experiment were summarized based on the results of the questionnaire survey, and the positive influence of emotional factors on second language learning behaviors of mainland Chinese students in the post-development era was concluded.

Lifetime Prediction of Non-woven Face Masks in Ocean and Contributions to Microplastics and Dissolved Organic Carbon

This study explored the degradation behavior of three types of disposable face masks in simulated seawater via the accelerated aging experiments. Microplastics (MPs) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were monitored in UV- and thermal-treated mask suspensions and their concentrations increased slowly in the early stage at 50 ℃ and 58 ℃. Owing to the high energy supply, the release rates of MPs and DOC at 76 ℃ were much faster than the above two temperatures. The time-temperature superposition principle (TTSP) was used to superpose the MPs/DOC release kinetics from other tested temperatures to the reference temperature and its applicability was verified by the similar activation energy. Then, a release kinetics model was established and fitted well with the superposed MP data (R2 ≥ 0.96). Since less than 0.1% of carbon was leached, the superposed DOC data was roughly modelled by the exponential function (R2 ≥ 0.90). According to the TTSP and the established kinetics models, about 15 years were estimated to decompose half of a certain marine mask waste, together with leaching 0.21 ± 0.02mg∙g-mask-1 of DOC. If mask consumption remains the same before 2025, they would contribute 40000-230000 tonnes of MPs and 13-97 tonnes of DOC to the ocean by 2040.

Effect of Direct Bilirubin Level on Clinical Outcome and Prognoses in Severely/Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19

Objectives We aimed to investigate how changes in direct bilirubin (DBiL) levels in severely/critically ill the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients during their first week of hospital admission affect their subsequent prognoses and mortality. Methods We retrospectively enrolled 337 severely/critically ill COVID-19 patients with two consecutive blood tests at hospital admission and about 7 days after. Based on the trend of the two consecutive tests, we categorized patients into the normal direct bilirubin (DBiL) group (224), declined DBiL group (44) and elevated DBiL group (79). Results The elevated DBiL group had a significantly larger proportion of critically ill patients (χ2-test, p < 0.001), a higher risk of ICU admission, respiratory failure, and shock at hospital admission (χ2-test, all p < 0.001). During hospitalization, the elevated DBiL group had significantly higher risks of shock, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and respiratory failure (χ2-test, all p < 0.001). The same findings were observed for heart damage (χ2-test, p = 0.002) and acute renal injury (χ2-test, p = 0.009). Cox regression analysis showed the risk of mortality in the elevated DBiL group was 2.27 (95% CI: 1.50–3.43, p < 0.001) times higher than that in the normal DBiL group after adjusted age, initial symptom, and laboratory markers. The Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (ROC) analysis demonstrated that the second test of DBiL was consistently a better indicator of the occurrence of complications (except shock) and mortality than the first test in severely/critically ill COVID-19 patients. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) combined with two consecutive DBiL levels for respiratory failure and death was the largest. Conclusion Elevated DBiL levels are an independent indicator for complication and mortality in COVID-19 patients. Compared with the DBiL levels at admission, DBiL levels on days 7 days of hospitalization are more advantageous in predicting the prognoses of COVID-19 in severely/critically ill patients.

Identification of tumor antigens and immune subtypes of bladder cancer for mRNA vaccine development (preprint)

Background: Bladder cancer (BLCA) is a common malignancy from urinary tract. Although the diagnosis and treatment of bladder cancer has made great progress in the past few decades, the effects of existing treatment methods are still limited. Therefore, it is still necessary to develop new methods to assist in the disease management and treatment. Tumor antigens are tumor-specific surface molecules and are generally considered to be the main components of a typical cancer vaccine, which could initiate and active immune cells to recognize and eliminate cancer cells. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, mRNA vaccines have re-entered people's vision. Methods: The genomic and clinical data of 411 BLCA and 19 normal tissues were acquired from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and GSE13507 cohorts. Differential expression genes and mutation analysis were performed to screen out potential antigens, Kaplan-Meier curves were carried out to investigate the correlation between the level of potential antigens and OS of patients. Immuno-phenotyping of 411 tumor samples was based on the single-sample gene sets enrichment analysis (ssGSEA). The tumor immune microenvironment characteristics was explored in each immune subtype. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to clusterimmune-related genes and screen the hub genes, and pathway enrichment analyses were performed on the hub modules related to immune subtypes in the WGCNA.Results: Through genetic and transcriptional analysis on TCGA and GSE13507 datasets, we have identified 6 genes as potential candidate genes for BLCA specific tumor antigens. We also identified 3 immune subtypes of BLCA, which displayed distinct clinical, molecular and immune-related characteristics. In addition, we have constructed immune landscape to identify the immune cell components of each BLCA patient, which could predict clinical outcome of the patients, and assist in the development of personalized mRNA vaccines. Conclusions: our findings indicated that 6 genes such as PTPN6 may be potential tumor antigens, and provide a reliable reference for the further development and management of cancer vaccines.

Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in the environment and animal samples of the Huanan Seafood Market (preprint)

Emerging in December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) eventually became a pandemic and has posed a tremendous threat to global public health. However, the origins of SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19, remain to be determined. It has reported that a certain number of the early case clusters had a contact history with Huanan Seafood Market. Therefore, surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 within the market is of vital importance. Herein, we presented the SARS-CoV-2 detection results of 1380 samples collected from the environment and the animals within the market in early 2020. By SARS-CoV-2-specific RT-qPCR, 73 environmental samples tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and three live viruses were successfully isolated. The viruses from the market shared nucleotide identity of 99.980% to 99.993% with the human isolate HCoV/Wuhan/IVDC-HB-01. In contrast, no virus was detected in the animal swabs covering 18 species of animals in the market. The SARS-COV-2 nucleic acids in the positive environmental samples showed significant correlation of abundance of Homo sapiens with SARS-CoV-2. In summary, this study provided convincing evidence of the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in the Huanan Seafood Market during the early stage of COVID-19 outbreak.

Immunogenicity and Safety of an Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine in People Living with HIV-1 (preprint)

Background: It has been proven that inactivated COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective in general population with intact immunity. However, their safety and immunogenicity have not been demonstrated in people living with HIV (PLWH).Methods: 42 HIV-1 infected individuals who were stable on cART and 28 healthy individuals were enrolled in this study. Two doses of an inactivated COVID-19 vaccine (BIBP-CorV) were given 4 weeks apart. The safety and reactogenicity of the vaccine were evaluated by observing clinical adverse events and solicited local and systemic reactions. Humoral responses were measured by anti-spike IgG ELISA and surrogate neutralization assays. Cell-mediated immune responses and vaccine induced T cell activation were measured by flow cytometry.Findings: All the HIV-1 infected participants had a CD4+ T cell count of above 200 cells/μL both at baseline and 4 weeks after vaccination. No solicited adverse reaction was observed among all participants. Similar binding antibody, neutralizing antibody and S protein specific T cell responses were elicited in PLWH and healthy individuals. Further analyses showed that PLWH with low baseline CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios (<0·6) generated lower antibody responses after vaccination than PLWH with medium (0·6~1·0) or high (≥1·0) baseline CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios (P<0·01). The CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ T cell counts of PLWH decreased significantly after vaccination, but it did not lead to any adverse clinical manifestation. Moreover, we found that the general burden of HIV-1 among the PLWH cohort decreased significantly (P=0·0192) after vaccination. And the alteration of HIV-1 viral load was not significantly associated with the vaccine induced CD4+ T cell activation.Interpretation: Our data demonstrate that the inactivated COVID-19 vaccine is safe and immunogenic in PLWH who are stable on cART with unsuppressed CD4 counts.Funding: This work was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 81971559, 82041010).Declaration of Interest: None to declare. Ethical Approval: Written informed consent was obtained from all participants,and the study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Hubei CDC (approval reference number: HBCDC-AF/SC-08/02.0).

Immunogenicity and safety of an inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in people living with HIV-1 (preprint)

It has been proven that inactivated COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective in general population with intact immunity. However, their safety and immunogenicity have not been demonstrated in people living with HIV (PLWH). In this study, we compared the immunogenicity of an inactivated COVID-19 vaccine between healthy individuals (n=28) and HIV-1 infected participants stable on combined antiretroviral treatment (cART) (n=42). All the HIV-1 infected participants had a CD4+ T cell count of above 200 cells/L both at baseline and 4 weeks after vaccination. Comparable RBD binding antibody and neutralizing antibody responses were elicited in PLWH and healthy individuals after two-dose vaccination. Further analyses showed that PLWH with low baseline CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios (<0.6) responded poorly to the vaccination compared with PLWH with medium (0.6[~]1.0) or high ([≥]1.0) baseline CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratios (P<0.01). No solicited adverse reaction was observed in both cohorts. The CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ T cell counts of PLWH decreased significantly after vaccination, but it did not lead to any adverse clinical manifestation. On the contrary, we found that the general burden of HIV-1 among PLWH decreased significantly (P=0.0059) after two doses of vaccination. Collectively, our data demonstrate that the inactivated COVID-19 vaccine is safe and immunogenic in PLWH who are stable on cART with unsuppressed CD4 counts.

Effect of ORF7 of SARS-CoV-2 on the chemotaxis of monocytes and neutrophils in vitro (preprint)

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is currently the most significant public health threats in worldwide. Patients with severe COVID-19 usually have pneumonia concomitant with local inflammation and sometimes a cytokine storm. Specific components of the SARS-CoV-2 virus trigger lung inflammation, and recruitment of immune cells to the lungs exacerbates this process, although much remains unknown about the pathogenesis of COVID-19. Our study of lung type II pneumocyte cells (A549) demonstrated that ORF7, an open reading frame (ORF) in the genome of SARS-CoV-2, induced the production of CCL2, a chemokine that promotes the chemotaxis of monocytes, and decreased the expression of IL-8, a chemokine that recruits neutrophils. A549 cells also had an increased level of IL-6. The results of our chemotaxis transwell assay suggested that ORF7 augmented monocyte infiltration and reduced the number of neutrophils. We conclude that the ORF7 of SARS-CoV-2 may have specific effects on the immunological changes in tissues after infection. These results suggest that the functions of other ORFs of SARS-CoV-2 should also be comprehensively examined.

Research on Cold Chain Transport of Vaccines in Major Outbreaks

In the face of the sudden outbreak of new type of coronavirus, the virus is spreading at a faster rate than expected, which seriously threatens people’s life and health and national security. According to the World Organization, infectious diseases have been at a high incidence in the last two decades. How to transport kits and vaccines safely and efficiently to suspected cases and patients in a short period of time is related to the speed of national control of the epidemic. This paper first analyzes the scale of the pharmaceutical cold chain market in China, analyzes the policy of the pharmaceutical cold chain industry issued by the state, and analyzes the problems existing in the pharmaceutical cold chain industry;then it analyzes the influence of epidemic situation on cold chain transportation, and finally puts forward the safe and efficient transportation scheme of vaccine under epidemic situation.

Amygdala connectivity as a predisposing neural feature of stress-induced behaviour during the COVID-2019 outbreak in Hubei (preprint)

The amygdala plays an important role in the regulation of stress and anxiety. However, little is known about the relationship between amygdala connectivity and subsequent stress-induced behavior. The current study investigated whether amygdala connectivity measured before experiencing stress is a predisposing neural feature of subsequent stress-induced behavior while individuals face an emergent and unexpected event like the COVID-19 outbreak. Using an fMRI cohort established before the pandemic in Wuhan, Hubei, we found that resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the right amygdala with the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) was negatively correlated with the stress-induced behavior of these volunteers during the COVID-2019 outbreak in Hubei. Furthermore, the self-connection of the right amygdala, inferred using dynamic causal modeling, was negatively correlated with stress-induced behavior in this cohort. A significant correlation between the right amygdala-dmPFC rsFC and self-connection of the right amygdala was found. Additionally, after three months of the COVID-19 outbreak in Hubei when the stressor weakened - and in another cohort collected in regions outside Hubei where the individuals experienced a lower level of stress - the relationship between the amygdala-dmPFC rsFC and the stress-induced behavior disappeared. Our findings support that amygdala connectivity is a predisposing neural feature of stress-induced behavior in the COVID-19 outbreak in Hubei, suggesting the amygdala connectivity before stress predicts subsequent behavior while facing an emergent and unexpected event. And thus our findings provide an avenue for identifying individuals vulnerable to stress using intrinsic brain function before stress as an indicator.

The homology analysis of ACE2 gene and its distinct expression in laboratory and wild animals (preprint)

Angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2) has been recognized as an entry receptor of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) into the host cells while bats has been suspected as natural host of SARS-CoV-2. However, the detail of intermediate host or the route of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is still unclear. In this study, we analyze the conservation of ACE2 gene in 11 laboratory and wild animals that live in close proximity either with Bats or human and further investigated its RNA and protein expression pattern in wild bats, mice and tree shrew. We verified that the wild-bats and mice were belonged to Hipposideros pomona and Rattus norvegicus, respectively. ACE2 gene is highly conserved among all 11 animals species at the DNA level. Phylogenetic analysis based on the ACE2 nucleotide sequences revealed that wild bat and Tree shrew were forming a cluster close to human. We further report that ACE2 RNA expression pattern is highly species-specific in different tissues of different animals. Most notably, we found that the expression pattern of ACE2 RNA and protein are very different in each animal species. In summary, our results suggested that ACE2 gene is highly conserved among all 11 animals species. However, different relative expression pattern of ACE2 RNA and protein in each animal species is interesting. Further research is needed to clarify the possible connection between different relative expression pattern of ACE2 RNA and protein in different laboratory and wild animal species and the susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Urinary SARS-CoV-2 RNA is An Indicator For The Progression and Prognosis of COVID-19 Disease (preprint)

Background: We aimed to analyse clinical characteristics and find potential factors predicting poor prognosis in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods: We analyzed the demographic and clinical data of COVID-19 patients and detected SARS-CoV-2 RNA in urine sediments collected from 53 COVID-19 patients enrolled in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from January 31, 2020 to February 18, 2020 with qRT-PCR analysis, and then classified those patients based on clinical conditions (severe or non-severe syndrome) and urinary SARS-CoV-2 RNA (URNA- or URNA+). Results: We found that COVID-19 patients with severe syndrome (severe patients) showed significantly higher positive rate (11 of 23, 47.8%) of urinary SARS-CoV-2 RNA than non-severe patients (4 of 30, 13.3%, p = 0.006). URNA+ patients or severe URNA+ subgroup exhibited higher prevalence of inflammation and immune discord, cardiovascular diseases, liver damage and renal disfunction, and higher risk of death than URNA- patients. To understand the potential mechanisms underlying the viral urine shedding, we performed renal histopathological analysis on postmortems of patients with COVID-19 and found that severe renal vascular endothelium lesion characterized by increase of the expression of thrombomodulin and von Willebrand factor, markers to assess the endothelium dysfunction. We proposed a theoretical and mathematic model to depict the potential factors determining the urine shedding of SARS-CoV-2. Conclusions: This study indicated that urinary SARS-CoV-2 RNA detected in urine specimens can be used to predict the progression and prognosis of COVID-19 severity. 

Early Treatment Effect of Chinese Herbal Medicine Formula Huashibaidu Granule on Mild COVID-19 Patients in Fangcang Hospital: An Unblinded, Cluster-Randomized Clinical Trial (preprint)

BACKGROUND: Previous study suggested that Chinese Herbal Medicine (CHM) Formula Huashibaidu granule might shorten disease course of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. Our research aims to investigate the early treatment effect of Huashibaidu granule in mild COVID-19 patients under well clinical management.METHODS: An unblended cluster-randomized clinical trial was conducted at the Dongxihu FangCang hospital. 2 cabins were randomly allocated to CHM or control group, with 204 randomly sampled mild COVID-19 patients in each cabin. All participants received a 7-day conventional treatment, and CHM group cabin used additional Huashibaidu granule 10g twice daily. Participants were followed up until they met clinical endpoint. The primary outcome was patient become worsening before clinical endpoint occurred. The secondary outcomes was discharge with cure before clinical endpoint occurred and relief of composite symptoms after 7 days treatment.FINDINGS: All 408 participants were followed up to meet clinical endpoint and included in statistical analysis. The baseline characteristics were comparable between 2 groups. The number of worsening patients in the CHM group was 5 (2.5%), and that in the control group was 16 (7.8%). There was a significant difference between groups (P=0.014). 8 foreseeable mild adverse events occurred without statistical difference between groups.INTERPRETATION: 7-day early treatment with Huashibaidu granule reduced worsening conversion of mild COVID-19 patients. Our study supports Huashibaidu Granule as an active option for early treatment of mild COVID-19 in similar medical locations with well management.TRIAL REGISTRATION: The Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR2000029763.FUNDING: This study was supported by “National Key R&D Program of China” (No.2020YFC0841500).DECLARATION OF INTERESTS: The authors guaranteed that there existed no competing interest in this paper.ETHICS APPROVAL STATEMENT: Ethics Review Committee of Institute of Basic Research in Clinical Medicine, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Approval of Ethical Review Acceptance Number: S2020-001; Approval Number: P20001/PJ01.

Risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure among hospital healthcare workers in relation to patient contact and type of care (preprint)

AimWe aimed to assess the risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in a large cohort of healthcare workers (HCWs). MethodsFrom May 11 until June 11, 2020, 3,981 HCWs at a large Swedish Emergency Care hospital provided serum samples and questionnaire data. Exposure was measured by assaying IgG antibodies to SARS-CoV-2. ResultsThe total seroprevalence was 17.7% and increased during the study period. Among the seropositive HCWs, 10.5% had been entirely asymptomatic. Participants who worked with COVID-19 patients had higher odds for seropositivity: ORadj 1.96 (95% CI 1.59 - 2.42). HCWs from three of the departments managing COVID-19 patients had significantly higher seroprevalences, whereas the prevalence among HCWs from the Intensive Care Unit (also managing COVID-19 patients) was significantly lower. ConclusionHCWs in contact with SARS-CoV-2 infected patients had a variable, but on average higher, likelihood for SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Chinese medicine (Q-14) in the Treatment of Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Single-center, Open label, Randomised Controlled Trial (preprint)

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Chinese medicine (Q-14) plus standard care compared with standard care alone in adult with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Study DESIGN Single-center, open label, randomised controlled trial. SETTING Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China, February 27 to March 27, 2020. PARTICIPANTS 204 patients with laboratory confirmed COVID-19 were randomised in to treatment group and control group, which was 102 patients each group. INTERVENTIONS In treatment group, Q-14 was administrated at 10g (granules), twice daily for 14 days and plus standard care. In control group, patients were given standard care alone for 14 days. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE The primary outcome was conversion time of SARS-CoV-2 viral assay. Adverse events were analyzed in the safety population. RESULTS Among 204 patients, 195 were analyzed according to the intention to treat principle. There were 149 patients (71 vs. 78 in treatment group and control group respectively) turning to negative via SARS-CoV-2 viral assay. No statistically significance showed in conversion time between treatment group and control group (FAS: Median (IQR): 10.00 (9.00-11.00) vs. 10.00 (9.00-11.00); Mean rank: 67.92 vs. 81.44; P=0.051.). Time to recovery of fever was shorter in treatment group as compared in control group. The disappearance rate of symptom in cough, fatigue, chest discomfort was significantly higher in treatment group. In chest computed tomography (Chest CT) examinations, overall evaluation of chest CT examination after treatment compared with baseline showed more patients improved in treatment group .There were no significant differences in the other outcomes. CONCLUSION Administration of Q-14 on standard care for COVID-19 was useful for improvement of symptoms (such as fever, cough, fatigue and chest discomfort), while did not result in a significantly higher probability of negative conversion of SARS-CoV-2 viral assay. No serious adverse events were reported. TRIAL REGISTRATION ChiCTR2000030288

Differences in the clinical characteristics and outcomes of COVID-19 patients in the epicenter and peripheral areas of the pandemic from China: a retrospective, large-sample, comparative analysis (preprint)

Background: There is limited information on the difference in epidemiology, clinical characteristics and outcomes of the initial outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Wuhan (the epicenter) and Sichuan (the peripheral area) in the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study was conducted to investigate the differences in the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with COVID-19 between the epicenter and peripheral areas of pandemic and thereby generate information that would be potentially helpful in formulating clinical practice recommendations to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The Sichuan & Wuhan Collaboration Research Group for COVID-19 established two retrospective cohorts that separately reflect the epicenter and peripheral area during the early pandemic. The epidemiology, clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients in the two groups were compared. Multivariate regression analyses were used to estimate the adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with regard to the outcomes. Results: The Wuhan (epicenter) cohort included 710 randomly selected patients, and the peripheral (Sichuan) cohort included 474 consecutive patients. A higher proportion of patients from the periphery had upper airway symptoms, whereas a lower proportion of patients in the epicenter had lower airway symptoms and comorbidities. Patients in the epicenter had a higher risk of death (aOR=7.64), intensive care unit (ICU) admission (aOR=1.66), delayed time from illness onset to hospital and ICU admission (aOR=6.29 and aOR=8.03, respectively), and prolonged duration of viral shedding (aOR=1.64). Conclusions: The worse outcomes in the epicenter could be explained by the prolonged time from illness onset to hospital and ICU admission. This could potentially have been associated with elevated systemic inflammation secondary to organ dysfunction and prolonged duration of virus shedding independent of age and comorbidities. Thus, early supportive care could achieve better clinical outcomes.

SARS-CoV-2 microbiome dysbiosis linked disorders and possible probiotics role.

In December 2019, a pneumonia outbreak of unknown etiology was reported which caused panic in Wuhan city of central China, which was later identified as Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by a novel coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and WHO. To date, the SARS-CoV-2 spread has already become a global pandemic with a considerable death toll. The associated symptoms of the COVID-19 infection varied with increased inflammation as an everyday pathological basis. Among various other symptoms such as fever, cough, lethargy, gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms included diarrhea and IBD with colitis, have been reported. Currently, there is no sole cure for COVID-19, and researchers are actively engaged to search out appropriate treatment and develop a vaccine for its prevention. Antiviral for controlling viral load and corticosteroid therapy for reducing inflammation seems to be inadequate to control the fatality rate. Based on the available related literature, which documented GI symptoms with diarrhea, inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) with colitis, and increased deaths in the intensive care unit (ICU), conclude that dysbiosis occurs during SARS-COV-2 infection as the gut-lung axis cannot be ignored. As probiotics play a therapeutic role for GI, IBD, colitis, and even in viral infection. So, we assume that the inclusion of studies to investigate gut microbiome and subsequent therapies such as probiotics might help decrease the inflammatory response of viral pathogenesis and respiratory symptoms by strengthening the host immune system, amelioration of gut microbiome, and improvement of gut barrier function.

The Role of On-Demand Delivery Platforms in Restaurants during Disruption: Evidence from the Coronavirus Pandemic (preprint)

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has interrupted many industries, with restaurants being one of the hardest-hit businesses. On-demand delivery platforms such as DoorDash, Grubhub, and Uber Eats have been a valuable option for consumers, but whether and to what extent these platforms benefit restaurants remain under-investigated. This paper studies the impact of delivery platforms on restaurant demand and staffing. Empirical analysis shows that restaurants that are on delivery platforms are less negatively affected by the pandemic: both consumer demand and restaurant staffing are higher than restaurants that are not on these platforms. However, such positive platform effects are substantially heterogeneous across different types of restaurants: the demand enhancement effect for fast-food chains is four times larger than that of independent restaurants. This disparity suggests that delivery platforms can widen the performance gap between national chains and independent restaurants, which may drive more independent restaurants to close. Further, we find that changes in customers’ price sensitivity may explain why fast-food chains disproportionally benefit from delivery platforms. While the use of delivery platforms increases during the pandemic, consumers on these platforms are more price sensitive as these platforms reduce geographic frictions and facilitate price comparisons. Therefore, consumers on the platforms are more likely to choose the relatively low-priced fast-food chains over independent restaurants. These findings deepen our understanding of the effects of delivery platforms on restaurants and have implications for restaurants and policy makers.