Establishment of a rapid diagnosis assay for SARS-CoV-2 infection based on MALDI-TOF MS

Objective: To establish a rapid, high-throughput detection assay of serum peptidome profiling for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection based on matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS).

Methylprednisolone was Associated with Reduced in-Hospital Mortality in COVID-19 Patients with Low Lymphocyte Counts: a Multicenter Retrospective Propensity Analysis (preprint)

Background: To assess the effect of methylprednisolone on the prognosis of patients with novel coronavirus pneumonia.Methods: Patients with confirmed novel coronavirus pneumonia discharged from Wuhan Third Hospital Guanggu Campus, Shouyi Campus, and Lei Shen Shan Hospital from January 31, 2020, to March 4, 2020, were included. The patients were divided into treatment and control groups according to whether methylprednisolone was used during hospitalization. Propensity score (PS) matching analysis was used to assess in-hospital mortality as the primary outcome and trends in the changes in lymphocytes and the C-reactive protein, creatinine and transaminase levels 7 days after admission (secondary outcomes).Results: A total of 2,062 patients with confirmed novel coronavirus pneumonia were included in this study. Univariate Cox regression analysis suggested that methylprednisolone treatment was associated with increased in-hospital mortality (hazard ratio (HR) 3.70, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.62-5.23, P<0.01). A total of 624 patients were included after PS matching. The patients were further subdivided into a low lymphocyte count group and a normal lymphocyte count group according to a lymphocyte count cutoff value of 0.9*109/L. Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis showed that methylprednisolone treatment reduced the risk of in-hospital death in patients with lymphocyte counts less than 0.9×109/L (P=0.022). In contrast, in the normal lymphocyte group, methylprednisolone treatment was not associated with in-hospital mortality (p=0.88).Conclusion: Treatment with methylprednisolone may be associated with reduced in-hospital mortality in coronavirus disease (COVID) patients with low lymphocyte counts.

Evaluating the different control policies for COVID-19 between mainland China and European countries by a mathematical model in the confirmed cases (preprint)

This study focuses on evaluating the different policies of controlling the outbreak of COVID-19 in mainland China and in some European countries. The study is based on mathematical model which is a modified susceptible-infected-recovered (SIR) model. The model takes death and recovery into consideration which in convenience is called the susceptible-infected-recovered-death (SIRD) model. The criterion for the recovered patients is assumed by COVID-19 nucleic acid testing negative. The mathematical model is constructed by retrospective study. Determination of the parameters in the model is based on the epidemic bulletin supplied by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China (NHC) from Jan 16 2020 to Mar 5 2020. The data cover the date when the epidemic situation is reported and the data showed that the epidemic situation is almost under control in China. The mathematical model mainly simulates the active cases and the deaths during the outbreak of COVID-19. Then apply the mathematical model to simulate the epidemic situations in Italy and Spain, which are suffering the outbreak of COVID-19 in Europe. The determination of the parameters for the 2 European countries is based on the data supplied by Worldometers. By comparing the difference of the parameters based on the same mathematical model, it is possible to evaluate the different policies in different countries. It turns out that the relatively easing control policies might lead to rapid spread of the disease.

Analysis on the layout of China’s emergency research projects during the public health emergency of COVID-19 / 中华医学科研管理杂志

Objective@#To explore the main layout and countermeasures of Scientific research projects during the public health emergency of COVID-19.@*Methods@#Literature investigation method is applied to collect information of scientific research and emergency research projects of COVID-19 funded since January 20th by different entities including national, provincial and municipal administrative departments, public health agencies, research institutes, universities and industries.@*Results@#Along with priorities identified for the emergency response and key research agendas, the national science and technology authorities at all levels and scientific research institutions have deployed a series of new science and technology projects, as well as a number of supporting policies and measures.@*Conclusions@#In the campaign of science and technology to deal with COVID-19, the leadership of Chinese government and their coordination with local agencies facilitated quick response in both R&D investment and supporting policies. Periodical achievement is recognized so far, and with the continuous development and in-depth research, the related scientific research results will be gathered into the core force of epidemic prevention. Moreover, it will improve China's capacity to deal with health emergencies and the level of medical health innovation, and better protect the health of the people.