Environmental concerns and bioaccumulation of psychiatric drugs in water bodies - Conventional versus biocatalytic systems of mitigation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought increments in market sales and prescription of medicines commonly used to treat mental health disorders, such as depression, anxiety, stress, and related problems. The increasing use of these drugs, named psychiatric drugs, has led to their persistence in aquatic systems (bioaccumulation), since they are recalcitrant to conventional physical and chemical treatments typically used in wastewater treatment plants. An emerging environmental concern caused by the bioaccumulation of psychiatric drugs has been attributed to the potential ecological and toxicological risk that these medicines might have over human health, animals, and plants. Thus, by the application of biocatalysis-assisted techniques, it is possible to efficiently remove psychiatric drugs from water. Biocatalysis, is a widely employed and highly efficient process implemented in the biotransformation of a wide range of contaminants, since it has important differences in terms of catalytic behavior, compared to common treatment techniques, including photodegradation, Fenton, and thermal treatments, among others. Moreover, it is noticed the importance to monitor transformation products of degradation and biodegradation, since according to the applied removal technique, different toxic transformation products have been reported to appear after the application of physical and chemical procedures. In addition, this work deals with the discussion of differences existing between high- and low-income countries, according to their environmental regulations regarding waste management policies, especially waste of the drug industry.

SARS-COV-2/COVID-19: scenario, epidemiology, adaptive mutations, and environmental factors.

The coronavirus pandemic of 2019 has already exerted an enormous impact. For over a year, the worldwide pandemic has ravaged the whole globe, with approximately 250 million verified human infection cases and a mortality rate surpassing 4 million. While the genetic makeup of the related pathogen (SARS-CoV-2) was identified, many unknown facets remain a mystery, comprising the virus's origin and evolutionary trend. There were many rumors that SARS-CoV-2 was human-borne and its evolution was predicted many years ago, but scientific investigation proved them wrong and concluded that bats might be the origin of SARS-CoV-2 and pangolins act as intermediary species to transmit the virus from bats to humans. Airborne droplets were found to be the leading cause of human-to-human transmission of this virus, but later studies showed that contaminated surfaces and other environmental factors are also involved in its transmission. The evolution of different SARS-CoV-2 variants worsens the condition and has become a challenge to overcome this pandemic. The emergence of COVID-19 is still a mystery, and scientists are unable to explain the exact origin of SARS-CoV-2. This review sheds light on the possible origin of SARS-CoV-2, its transmission, and the key factors that worsen the situation.

Extensive Wastewater-Based Epidemiology as a Resourceful Tool for SARS-CoV-2 Surveillance in a Low-to-Middle-Income Country through a Successful Collaborative Quest: WBE, Mobility, and Clinical Tests

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged healthcare systems worldwide. Efforts in low-to-middle-income countries (LMICs) cannot keep stride with infection rates, especially during peaks. A strong international collaboration between Arizona State University (ASU), Tec de Monterrey (TEC), and Servicios de Agua y Drenaje de Monterrey (Local Water Utilities) is acting to integrate wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) of SARS-CoV-2 in the region as a complementary approach to aid the healthcare system. Wastewater was collected from four sewer catchments in the Monterrey Metropolitan area in Mexico (pop. 4,643,232) from mid-April 2020 to February 2021 (44 weeks, n = 644). Raw wastewater was filtered and filter-concentrated, the RNA was extracted using columns, and the Charité/Berlin protocol was used for the RT-qPCR. The viral loads obtained between the first (June 2020) and second waves (February 2021) of the pandemic were similar;in contrast, the clinical cases were fewer during the first wave, indicating poor coverage. During the second wave of the pandemic, the SARS-CoV-2 quantification in wastewater increased 14 days earlier than the COVID-19 clinical cases reported. This is the first long-term WBE study in Mexico and demonstrates its value in pandemic management.

Towards a Circular Economy of Plastics: An Evaluation of the Systematic Transition to a New Generation of Bioplastics.

Plastics have become an essential part of the modern world thanks to their appealing physical and chemical properties as well as their low production cost. The most common type of polymers used for plastic account for 90% of the total production and are made from petroleum-based nonrenewable resources. Concerns over the sustainability of the current production model and the environmental implications of traditional plastics have fueled the demand for greener formulations and alternatives. In the last decade, new plastics manufactured from renewable sources and biological processes have emerged from research and have been established as a commercially viable solution with less adverse effects. Nevertheless, economic and legislative challenges for biobased plastics hinder their widespread implementation. This review summarizes the history of plastics over the last century, including the most relevant bioplastics and production methods, the environmental impact and mitigation of the adverse effects of conventional and emerging plastics, and the regulatory landscape that renewable and recyclable bioplastics face to reach a sustainable future.

Microfluidics-Based Biosensing Platforms: Emerging Frontiers in Point-of-Care Testing SARS-CoV-2 and Seroprevalence.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused the ongoing COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019) outbreak and has unprecedentedly impacted the public health and economic sector. The pandemic has forced researchers to focus on the accurate and early detection of SARS-CoV-2, developing novel diagnostic tests. Among these, microfluidic-based tests stand out for their multiple benefits, such as their portability, low cost, and minimal reagents used. This review discusses the different microfluidic platforms applied in detecting SARS-CoV-2 and seroprevalence, classified into three sections according to the molecules to be detected, i.e., (1) nucleic acid, (2) antigens, and (3) anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Moreover, commercially available alternatives based on microfluidic platforms are described. Timely and accurate results allow healthcare professionals to perform efficient treatments and make appropriate decisions for infection control; therefore, novel developments that integrate microfluidic technology may provide solutions in the form of massive diagnostics to control the spread of infectious diseases.

Food Safety Control Measures to Address Emerging Omicron SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern

The recent emergence of the novel Omicron SARS-CoV-2 Variant, first detected in Gauteng Province of South Africa in mid- November 2021, has become a global concern. Several countries witnessed rapid transmission of omicron in the past months. This variant can increase the rate of virus transmission, risk of reinfection and enable omicron to continue its spread in the community. There is no evidence that COVID-19 can spread through food, and people can catch up with this virus through food materials. This virus can not survive and multiple on the surfaces of food packaging. The main routes of this virus transmission and spread may be during close contact and directly from an infected person to a healthy person. Touching a contaminated surface and objects such as doorknobs, table surfaces, everyday use equipment, touching screens and shaking hands and then touching the mouth, nose, or eyes may also be a source of infection.1 Recent research reported that the COVID-19 virus could survive and remain viable on plastics for up to 72 hours, 4 hours on stainless steel and copper and up to 24 hours on cardboard. Since the food sector has complex processing and manufacturing processes with a series of operational steps, starting from food intake, receiving, preparation, production, processing, packaging, storage and delivery to market and customers. At each stage, food handlers are directly involved, there is a more likelihood of food handlers touching the food or food surfaces directly. In this case, food workers are not following proper food safety control and protective actions, e.g., hand washings, cleaning and disinfection, sanitization, and social distancing. If not vaccinated, it can be a possible source of omicron transmission. To prevent the potential transmission of emerging Omicron SARS-COV-2 Variant of Concern, the food sector should ensure compliance with food safety control measures and prerequisites to safe and protect food workers from omicron variants to mitigate the risks of transmission of the virus by adopting good hygienic practices (GHPs), good manufacturing practices (GMPs), appropriate cleaning and disinfection by approved chemicals and sanitizers to endure the production and consistent stream of safe food. Since all the food workers may well be aware of the precaution’s measures, it is still needed to refresh their information. The staff working in food premises should be provided with frequent refresher training, proper personal protective equipment (PPEs), and written instructions on how to contain the transmission of Omicron and COVID-19 variants.2 One of the most critical steps to restrict the spread and transmission of the COVID-19 during food service processes is to wash and sanitize frequently. Frequent hand washing should be obligatory for Food workers directly involved in food production and preparation activities. The staff should avoid touching the food contact surfaces of tables, utensils, small wares, cutting boards and knives and surfaces of food menu, kiosks, dispensers, door handles, freezers and cooler handles, tablets, computers and equipment controller surfaces, buttons, and touchpads. There is a possibility that the virus can transfer from unwashed hands to other cleaned and sanitized surfaces during food production, preparations, cooking, storage, serving to customers and then moving to other food staff and eventually to customers. Frequent disinfection and sanitization with approved sanitizer to reduce the microorganism’s loads to a safe level determined by food safety authorities and public health codes are crucial to mitigating the risk of virus transmission. Social distancing to keep a space of at least 2 meters during operation hours at food premises to limit the close staff contacts inside food preparation and production areas is critically important to limit the spread.2 It is also recommended by CDC and other food safety authorities. The staff Should avoid unnecessary gatherings and crowds during shift changes, breaks and staff training. The food premises should optim ze the number of food workers to occupy maximum capacity at food premises and ensure fewer food workers are available than normal staff to a smaller amount of COVID-19 transmission risks.3,4 The food facilities should also provide appropriate personnel protective equipments (PPEs) for staff while receiving incoming materials and during deliveries, which can enhance the staff protection from the virus. Finally, the food amenities should look for staff health and monitor the visitors, suppliers, and contractors to recognize any sick person, maximize protection, and report to related health authorities if someone's symptoms are identical to emerging COVID-19 omicron variant concern. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Pure & Applied Microbiology is the property of Dr. M. N. Khan and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Biosensors for the detection of disease outbreaks through wastewater-based epidemiology.

Wastewater-Based Epidemiology (WBE) is a novel community-wide monitoring tool that provides comprehensive real-time data of the public and environmental health status and can contribute to public health interventions, including those related to infectious disease outbreaks (e.g., the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic). Nonetheless, municipalities without centralized laboratories are likely still not able to process WBE samples. Biosensors are a potentially cost-effective solution to monitor the development of diseases through WBE to prevent local outbreaks. This review discusses the economic and technical feasibility of eighteen recently developed biosensors for the detection and monitoring of infectious disease agents in wastewater, prospecting the prevention of future pandemics.

Nanostructures for drug delivery in respiratory diseases therapeutics: Revision of current trends and its comparative analysis.

Respiratory diseases are leading causes of death and disability in developing and developed countries. The burden of acute and chronic respiratory diseases has been rising throughout the world and represents a major problem in the public health system. Acute respiratory diseases include pneumonia, influenza, SARS-CoV-2 and MERS viral infections; while chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma and, occupational lung diseases (asbestosis, pneumoconiosis) and other parenchymal lung diseases namely lung cancer and tuberculosis are examples of chronic respiratory diseases. Importantly, chronic respiratory diseases are not curable and treatments for acute pathologies are particularly challenging. For that reason, the integration of nanotechnology to existing drugs or for the development of new treatments potentially benefits the therapeutic goals by making drugs more effective and exhibit fewer undesirable side effects to treat these conditions. Moreover, the integration of different nanostructures enables improvement of drug bioavailability, transport and delivery compared to stand-alone drugs in traditional respiratory therapy. Notably, there has been great progress in translating nanotechnology-based cancer therapies and diagnostics into the clinic; however, researchers in recent years have focused on the application of nanostructures in other relevant pulmonary diseases as revealed in our database search. Furthermore, polymeric nanoparticles and micelles are the most studied nanostructures in a wide range of diseases; however, liposomal nanostructures are recognized to be some of the most successful commercial drug delivery systems. In conclusion, this review presents an overview of the recent and relevant research in drug delivery systems for the treatment of different pulmonary diseases and outlines the trends, limitations, importance and application of nanomedicine technology in treatment and diagnosis and future work in this field.

Sources of antibiotics pollutants in the aquatic environment under SARS-CoV-2 pandemic situation

During the last decades, the growth of concern towards different pollutants has been increasing due to population activities in large cities and the great need for food production by the agri-food industry. The effects observed in specific locations have shown the impact over the environment in air, soil and water. Specifically, the current pandemic of COVID-19 has brought into the picture the intensive use of different medical substances to treat the disease and population intensive misuse. In particular, the use of antibiotics has increased during the last 20 years with few regulations regarding their excessive use and the disposal of their residues from different sources. Within this review, an overview of sources of antibiotics to aquatic environments was done along with its impact to the environment and trophic chain, and negative effects of human health due prolonged exposure which endanger the environment, population health, water, and food sustainability. The revision indicates the differences between sources and its potential danger due toxicity, and accumulation that prevents water sustainability in the long run.

Current scenario of COVID-19 vaccinations and immune response along with antibody titer in vaccinated inhabitants of different countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic challenges have been only partially addressed so far. The pathogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 is considered the combination of severe and high infectivity. Herdimmunity is attained when a critical proportion of the population is immune, providing the virus with fewer chances to spread locally. To overcome the rising tide of the COVID-19 pandemic, efficacious and safe vaccines providing defensive and long-lasting immunity responses are urgently needed.Vaccines that induce virus-neutralizing antibodies with great affinity can optimally fight against infection. Worldwide, over 120 novel vaccine candidates, including live-attenuated, inactivated, viral-vectored nonreplicating and replicating, peptide- and protein-based, and nucleic acid-based approaches are in the process of preclinical and clinical trials (phase 1-4). In addition to comprehensive safety assessments and immune responses, precise clinical management is also important for trials of vaccines. The recent emergence of different variants of SARS-CoV-2 is becoming a new threat for the world and a challenge for scientists to introduce the most influential vaccine against COVID-19. The possibility of natural and vaccine-induced immunity in variants finds it necessary to establish next-generation vaccines, which generate general neutralization against existing and future variants. Here, we summarize the cellular and humoral responses of SARS-CoV-2, current progress in vaccination development, the antibody titer response of available phase 4 vaccinations in vaccinated populations of different countries worldwide, and the success and challenges ahead of vaccine development.

Risk management strategies and therapeutic modalities to tackle COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2.

The recent emergence of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) triggered by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has resulted in substantial mortality worldwide. Presently, there is no approved treatment for COVID-19. Consequently, the clinical, scientific, and regulatory authorities have joint efforts to reduce the severe impact of COVID-19. To date, there is minimal arsenal with no definite curative drugs, licensed-vaccines, or therapeutic conducts to combat the COVID-19 infections. Keeping in view the threats of this pandemic, various global organizations, physicians, researchers, and scientists, are trying to recognize the epidemiological characteristics and pathogenic mechanisms of COVID-19 to discover potential treatment regimens, vaccines, and therapeutic modes for future anticipation. Herein, we summarize a contemporary overview of curative invasions and vaccines for COVID-19 based on the earlier information and considerate of similar earlier RNA coronaviruses. The information reviewed here establishes a paramount intellectual basis to promote ongoing research to develop vaccines and curative agents. Thus, this review suggests the furthermost accessible frontiers in the vaccine development to tackle or combat the COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2.

Antidepressants surveillance in wastewater: Overview Extraction and Detection

The COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the biggest challenges worldwide. The psychological disorders associated with the pandemic causing depression, insomnia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety reduce emotional stability. Different antidepressant drugs with several mechanisms of action are used with a prescription. The excretion of the compounds and their metabolites reach municipal wastewaters and enter sewage treatment plants with a low rate of remotion of pharmaceutical compounds and the releasing on the environment. Several effects on aquatic species exposed to antidepressants have been reported as the impact in gene transcription, reproduction cycles, predator defense, and motility. The aim of this work is to resume the common antidepressants detected in wastewater around the world and show the increment of its use during SARS-CoV-2 crisis.

SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in water and wastewater: A critical review about presence and concern.

The presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in water and wastewater has recently been reported. According to the updated literature, the stools and masks of the patients diagnosed with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were considered as the primary route of coronavirus transmission into water and wastewater. Most coronavirus types which attack human (possible for SARS-CoV-2) are often inactivated rapidly in water (i.e., the survival of human coronavirus 229E in water being 7 day at 23 °C). However, the survival period of coronavirus in water environments strongly depends on temperature, property of water, concentration of suspended solids and organic matter, solution pH, and dose of disinfectant used. The World Health Organization has stated that the current disinfection process of drinking water could effectively inactivate most of the bacterial and viral communities present in water, especially SARS-CoV-2 (more sensitive to disinfectant like free chlorine). A recent study confirmed that SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in inflow wastewater (but not detected in outflow one). Although the existence of SARS-CoV-2 in water influents has been confirmed, an important question is whether it can survive or infect after the disinfection process of drinking water. To date, only one study confirmed that the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 in water for people was null based on the absence of cytopathic effect (CPE) in infectivity tests. Therefore, further studies should focus on the survival of SARS-CoV-2 in water and wastewater under different operational conditions (i.e., temperature and water matrix) and whether the transmission from COVID-19-contaminated water to human is an emerging concern. Although paper-based devices have been suggested for detecting the traces of SARS-CoV-2 in water, the protocols and appropriate devices should be developed soon. Wastewater and sewage workers should follow the procedures for safety precaution against SARS-CoV-2 exposure.

Recent advances in therapeutic modalities and vaccines to counter COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2.

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly spread across the world. This resulted an alarming number of fatalities with millions of confirmed infected cases, pretending severe public health, economic, and social threats. There is no specific therapeutic drugs or licensed vaccines or treatments to fight against lethal COVID-19 infections. Given the significant threats of COVID-19, the global organizations are racing to identify epidemiological and pathogenic mechanisms of COVID-19 to find treatment regimens and effective therapeutic modalities for future prevention. Herein, we reviewed the therapeutic interventions and vaccines for COVID-19 based on the existing knowledge and understanding of similar coronaviruses, including MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV. The information constitutes a paramount intellectual basis to sustenance ongoing research for the discovery of vaccines and therapeutic agents. This review signifies the most available frontiers in the viral vaccine development approaches to counter the COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2.

Food Safety and COVID-19: Precautionary Measures to Limit the Spread of Coronavirus at Food Service and Retail Sector

Coronavirus pandemic has drastically upended the daily life routines of human beings and has wide wide-ranging effects on entire sectors of society. The food sector is also susceptible and substantially harmed by the influence of intensive effects of coronavirus. To ensure food safety and limit the spread of coronavirus at food services and retail sector has become a challenge where delicate and fresh food items are served and delivered to the customers, which have passed through a series of operational steps from order taking, food receiving, preparation of food, packing, delivery to customers. At each step, there is a possibility of food handlers to touch the food surface or food directly and if food handler is not following appropriate precautionary measures e.g. hand hygiene, sanitization and disinfection, social distances, and is touching, then it can be a possible source of coronavirus spread. Since there is no evidence that food is a coronavirus transmission route but during the food operations, improper sanitization and disinfection of key touchpoints, food contact, nonfood contact, equipment and cleaning tools surfaces and close contact of food handlers with staff and customers not only can put themselves on risk but can also be a risk for customers. Food services and the retail sector should make sure proper hand hygiene, approved sanitizers and disinfectants in use, follow social distances at workstations and while interacting with the customers. Finally, the business should be vigilant to monitor the temperature of staff and incoming guests to identify if there may any sick person to avoid from further spread of coronavirus and shall report to concerned health authorities if anyone symptoms matching with COVID-19

Correlation Between Temperature and COVID-19 (Suspected, Confirmed and Death) Cases based on Machine Learning Analysis

Currently, the whole world is struggling with the biggest health problem COVID-19 name coined by the World Health Organization (WHO). This was raised from China in December 2019. This pandemic is going to change the world. Due to its communicable nature, it is contagious to both medically and economically. Though different contributing factors are not known yet. Herein, an effort has been made to find the correlation between temperature and different cases situation (suspected, confirmed, and death cases). For a said purpose, k-means clustering-based machine learning method has been employed on the data set from different regions of China, which has been obtained from the WHO. The novelty of this work is that we have included the temperature field in the original WHO data set and further explore the trends. The trends show the effect of temperature on each region in three different perspectives of COVID-19 - suspected, confirmed and death.

Water matrices as potential source of SARS-CoV-2 transmission – An overview from environmental perspective

Evidently, the emergence of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly blowout across the world. Since, the presence of coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2 in the fecal specimens and anal swabs of some infected patients, has raised emerging concern with the likelihood of fecal-based spread must be inspected and clarified. Therefore, herein, an effort has been made to spotlight the current scenarios and possible solutions to better understand the risks associated with the wastewater matrices as a potential source of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the environment. The information reviewed here constitutes a paramount intellectual basis to sustenance ongoing research to tackle the SARS-CoV-2 issue. Thus, this overview indicates the most accessible frontiers related to the detection, quantification, and possible transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in the environment through water routes. The regulatory authorities and policymakers must assure the society via dissemination of evidence-based guidelines that the water matrices, including groundwater and drinking water resources are safe. Finally, we have identified and enlisted a number of pressing questions concerning the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 transmission or COVID-19 emergence issue that must be carefully answered to put further and deeper insight into SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 in future studies.