UHPLC/TOFHRMS analysis and anti-inflammatory effect of leaf extracts from Zizyphus jujuba in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells

Zizyphus jujube is a plant in the buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae) that has been the subject of research into antibacterial, antifungal and anti-inflammatory properties of its fruit and seed. However, few studies have investigated its leaves. In this study, the anti-inflammatory activity of ZJL (an extract of Z. jujube leaf) was evaluated to verify its potential as an anti-inflammatory agent and SARS-CoV-2 medicine, using nitric oxide (NO) assay, RT-PCR, SDS-PAGE, Western blotting, and UHPLC/TOFHRMS analysis. We found that ZJL suppresed pro-inflammatory mediators such as NO, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW264.7 cells. ZJL acted by inhibiting NF-KB and MAPK signaling pathway activity. We also confirmed that ZJL contains a phenol compound and flavonoids with anti-inflammatory activity such as trehalose, maleate, epigallocatechin, hyperoside, catechin, 3-O-coumaroylquinic acid, rhoifolin, gossypin, kaempferol 3-neohesperidoside, rutin, myricitrin, guaiaverin, quercitrin, quercetin, ursolic acid, and pheophorbide a. These findings suggest that ZJL may have great potential for the development of anti-inflammatory drugs and vaccines via inhibition of NF‐ĸB and MAPK signaling in LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells. © Korean Society for Plant Biotechnology.

Climate Change and Human Security in the Context of the Global Pandemic: Emphasising Responses that Maximise Synergies

COVID-19 has changed the way we understand risk and vulnerability. The pandemic provides a more in-depth understanding of how systemic risks work and how they affect lives, livelihoods and economies at a broader scale. Consequently, a range of impacts was observed, including loss of human health, livelihoods, loss of general wellbeing, protracted poverty and loss of developmental gains. The pandemic has exacerbated social and economic inequalities as most affected are vulnerable groups of people, including the elderly or part-time workers with low-income jobs. The impacts of the pandemic on political decision-making resulted in security consequences spanning national and regional scales. The pandemic directly affected human security as people's ability to live peacefully, free of fear and live with dignity has been severely affected. These pandemic experiences call for revisiting the concepts of human security in developmental planning. With this background in view, the chapter evaluated the nexus between human security, climate change and pandemics. It also provides essential pointers that can help identify suitable policies and practices to promote human security while mitigating climate change and pandemics. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer 2022.

Support for COVID-19 mandatory vaccination in the United States: examining the role of cultural worldviews, risk-benefit perceptions, and trust in scientists

This study sets out to understand the role of cultural worldviews, risk perceptions, and trust in scientists in impacting U.S. participants' support for COVID-19 mandatory vaccination. Results from an online survey (N = 594) suggest that stronger individualistic and hierarchical worldviews are associated with more perceived COVID-19 vaccination risks, less perceived COVID-19 vaccination benefits, and lower support for COVID-19 mandatory vaccination. Perceived benefits mediate the impact of cultural worldviews on support for COVID-19 mandatory vaccination. Trust in scientists moderates the relationship between cultural worldviews and perceived benefits of COVID-19 vaccination. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

Discovering AI-enabled convergences based on BERT and topic network

Various aspects of artificial intelligence (AI) have become of significant interest to academia and industry in recent times. To satisfy these academic and industrial interests, it is necessary to comprehensively investigate trends in AI-related changes of diverse areas. In this study, we identified and predicted emerging convergences with the help of AI-Associated research s collected from the SCOPUS database. The bidirectional encoder representations obtained via the transformers-based topic discovery technique were subsequently deployed to identify emerging topics related to AI. The topics discovered concern edge computing, biomedical algorithms, predictive defect maintenance, medical applications, fake news detection with block chain, explainable AI and COVID-19 applications. Their convergences were further analyzed based on the shortest path between topics to predict emerging convergences. Our findings indicated emerging AI convergences towards healthcare, manufacturing, legal applications, and marketing. These findings are expected to have policy implications for facilitating the convergences in diverse industries. Potentially, this study could contribute to the exploitation and adoption of AI-enabled convergences from a practical perspective. © 2023 Korean Society for Internet Information. All rights reserved.

Association of Molnupiravir and Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir with preventable mortality, hospital admissions and related avoidable healthcare system cost among high-risk patients with mild to moderate COVID-19

Background Real-world data is currently limited on the association between oral antiviral therapy and healthcare system burden in patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19. This study aims to evaluate the clinical and cost effec-tiveness of Molnupiravir and Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir use in reducing mortality in this population. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study involving 54,355 COVID-19 patients during February 22-March 31,2022 in Hong Kong. Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) was used to adjust patient characteristics. Our exposure of interest was Molnupiravir/Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir prescription, with all-cause mortality as the pri-mary outcome. IPTW-adjusted multivariate regressions were used to estimate treatment impact on clinic re -atten-dance and unplanned admissions. Finally, attributed cost and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICER) were estimated. Findings In the outpatient cohort (N = 33,217, 61.1%), 16.1% used Molnupiravir and 13.4% used Nirmatrelvir-Ritona-vir, while in the inpatient cohort (N = 21,138, 38.9%), 3.8% used Molnupiravir and 1.3% used Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir. IPTW-adjusted Cox model estimated that Molnupiravir (hazard ratio (HR)(95%CI)=0.31 (0.24-0.40), P< 0.0001) and Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir (HR=0.10 (95%CI 0.05-0.21), P< 0.0001) were significantly associated with a reduced mortality hazard. In the outpatient cohort, both antiviral prescriptions were associated with reduced odds for unplanned hospital admissions (Molnupiravir: odds ratio (OR) =0.72 (0.52-0.98), P=0.039;Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir: OR=0.37 (0.23-0.60), P<0.0001). Among hospitalised patients, both antiviral prescriptions were associated with sig-nificant reductions in the odds ratios for 28-days readmission (Molnupiravir: OR=0.71 (0.52-0.97), P=0.031;Nirma-trelvir-Ritonavir: OR=0.47 (0.24-0.93), P=0.030). ICERs for death averted for Molnupiravir stood at USD493,345.09 in outpatient settings and USD2,629.08 in inpatient settings. In outpatient settings, Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir cost USD331,105.27 to avert one death, but saved USD5,502.53 to avert one death in comparison with standard care. Interpretation In high-risk patients in Hong Kong with mild-to-moderate COVID-19, Molnupiravir and Nirmatrel-vir-Ritonavir prescriptions were associated with reduced all-cause mortality and significant cost savings.

Epidemiological characteristics of diabetes mellitus in Korea

Background: The estimated prevalence of diabetes mellitus has increased and become a burden among non -communicable diseases due to the accelerated aging population worldwide and the increased prevalence in low-income countries. In Korea, diabetes has become a serious public health concern.Current Concepts: There are four major concerns in diabetes epidemiology. First, the increased obesity rate is associated with increased diabetes prevalence. Second, a more than 40% increase in men and women with prediabetes has been observed. Prediabetes is not only a risk factor for diabetes but can also have pathophysiological effects. Third, one in three patients did not know that they had the disease. Three in four persons with diabetes experienced uncontrolled blood glucose even with treatment. Moreover, the treatment and awareness rates among people with diabetes in their 30s and 40s were lower than 50%. Unhealthy habits such as smoking, alcohol drinking, and inadequate physical activity persist in patients undergoing treatment. Finally, it has recently been found that the risk of developing diabetes is high among cancer survivors and patients recovering from coronavirus disease 2019.Discussion and Conclusion: A strategy should be developed to improve early detection and treatment rate in young people. We need to emphasize the seriousness of the increasing number of people with prediabetes and examine the effects of drug intervention for prediabetes, on the basis of academic research. We should also pay attention to patients who recovered from the newly emerging coronavirus disease 2019 and cancer survivors at risk of developing diabetes.

Why People Became Hostile during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploring the Role of Social Media Use, Blame Attribution, and Collective Efficacy

After the breakout of COVID-19, people debated whether the Trump administration or foreign countries (e.g., China and some European countries) were responsible for the global pandemic. The aim of the current study was to examine, based on attribution theory, why people blamed different actors and showed hostility toward them during the pandemic. Scholars have found that information obtained during a crisis could lead people to blame specific targets and that this blame attribution could influence people to show hostility toward those targets. We explored these relationships and tested the moderating roles of political orientation and collective efficacy. Using online survey data, we found that the more people use social media to obtain information, the more they blamed the federal government. Moreover, blaming the federal government positively related to hostility toward the federal government, and we found a stronger association between blame attribution and hostility toward the federal government among individuals with low collective efficacy. However, we found no significant relationship between social media use and hostility toward foreign countries nor any moderating role of political orientation. We found that the positive association between blaming foreign countries and hostility toward them was stronger among individuals with high collective efficacy. © 2022 Mass Communication & Society Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

Risk factors for the deterioration of patients with mild COVID-19 admitted to a COVID-19 community treatment center

Background: The rapid increase in the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients led to the operation of COVID-19 facilities for patients with mild COVID-19 in South Korea. We analyzed the correlation and effect of risk factors associated with the worsening of patients with mild COVID-19 leading to their transfer from a community treatment center to a hospital. Methods: This retrospective cohort observational study included 1,208 COVID-19 patients with mild symptoms who were admitted to the Namsan Community Treatment Center between June 2020 and January 2021. A chi-square test was performed to examine the differences in the transfer rate by age, sex, nationality, presence of symptoms at admission, and season, and a multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association of variables to the hospitalization rate. Results: Of the 1,208 patients, 212 (17.5%) were transferred to a hospital due to clinical deterioration. Increasing odds of hospital transfer were associated significantly with higher age and presentation in autumn, whereas sex and symptomatic illness at admission did not show a statistically significant association. Conclusion: The findings indicate the importance of the initial risk classification of COVID-19 patients based on thorough assessment and close monitoring, timely allocation of appropriate resources to high-risk groups that are likely to develop severe disease, and reduction of medical resource wastage and limiting of administrative force to ensure that patients receive the best treatment.

Experiences and Perceptions of Distance Learning among Early Childhood Pre-service Teachers in Korea during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the experiences and perceptions of distance learning among early childhood pre-service teachers in Korea during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has been spreading worldwide since early 2020. A total of 196 early childhood pre-service teachers with experience in distance learning participated in the survey, and the results of the survey are as follows. While early childhood pre-service teachers perceived a difference between face-to-face (inperson) classes and distance learning, they expressed a high willingness to take part in distance learning in the post-COVID-19 era. Convenience and usefulness were mentioned as key advantages of distance learning, while difficulties in interaction and concentration were emphasised as disadvantages. To improve the quality of distance learning in the future, they suggested that students should increase participation, while instructors should strengthen their distance learning-related capabilities and universities should enhance support through system development. The implications of this study were discussed based on these results. © 2022. by THE PACIFIC EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION RESEARCH ASSOCIATION

Usability, acceptability, and feasibility of an online, real-time home CPR training solution (HEROS-remote) during the COVID-19 pandemic

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges and led to the massive closure of in-person CPR trainings globally. We developed a mobile application-based real-time CPR training solution named HEROS-Remote, which combines instructors, learners, training contents, and CPR feedback in just one app. In this study, we investigated the usability, acceptability, and feasibility of the HEROS-Remote CPR training solution among community lay people.MethodFrom August to November 2021, HEROS Remote pilot study was conducted in Seoul, Korea. During the study period, 164 learners participated in 22 HEROS-Remote sessions. Before the training, CPR training material, including Little Anne QCPR manikin, was delivered to the individual learner. After one-hour chest compression-only HEROS Remote online training, the learners participated in-depth survey on their experiences of HEROS Remote online training.ResultsA total 152 learners (92.7%) responded to the survey. Overall, 88.1% of the learners were satisfied with the HEROS Remote training and 85.5% responded that they would recommend online training to others. Majority of the learners (37.3% strongly agree;41.3% agree) also agreed with the easiness of using the HEROS Remote app. Manikin delivery service was highly satisfactory (97%). However, major challenge for this online solution was that the quality of the training highly depended on internet connectivity.ConclusionThis study provides evidence of the feasibility and acceptability of a novel online, real-time CPR training solution. Further research is needed to investigate the effectiveness of online CPR training versus face-to-face training.Conflict of interestSYJK, HM, TSB are employees of Laerdal Medical.FundingSeoul Metropolitan Government.

South Korean college freshmen students' perceptions of happiness during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020

Happiness is an important factor influencing academic performance, and many college freshmen have experienced adjustment difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic. We applied Q methodology to explore South Korean freshmen students' perceptions of happiness in 2020. Participants were divided into three groups according to perceptions of happiness: (a) those who considered relationships as vital for happiness, (b) those who considered freedom to have new experiences as vital for happiness, and (c) those who considered setting and achieving goals as vital for happiness. These findings can serve as basic data for the development of curricula and programs to help college freshmen adapt to college life. © 2021 Scientific Journal Publishers Limited. All Rights Reserved

Erythema annulare centrifugum induced by COVID-19 vaccination.

With the expansion of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, an increasing number of adverse effects are surfacing. A 74-year-old woman presented with multiple erythematous and itchy patches on several sites. She had no relevant medical history, apart from the first AZD1222 vaccination 1 month previously. Microscopically, epidermal changes, including mild spongiosis and parakeratosis, were observed. Tight perivascular lymphocytic infiltration (coat-sleeve pattern) was also observed in the dermis. The final diagnosis was erythema annulare centrifugum (EAC) induced by SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. Based on this report, dermatologists should be aware of the possibility of EAC from the AZD1222 vaccination.

Hit Harder, Recover Slower? Unequal Employment Effects of the COVID-19 Shock

The destructive economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was distributed unequally across the population. A worker's gender, race and ethnicity, age, education, industry, and occupation all mattered. We analyze the initial negative effect and its lingering effect through the recovery phase, across demographic and socioeconomic groups. The initial negative impact on employment was larger for women, minorities, the less educated, and the young whether or not we account for the industries and occupations they worked in. By February 2021, however, the differential effects across groups had gotten much smaller overall and had entirely vanished once the different industries and occupations they work in are taken into account. In particular, the differential effects between men and women vanished with or without the industry and occupation compositions taken into account, indicating that women's progress in the labor market over the past decades has not been wiped out by the pandemic. Across race and ethnicity, Hispanics and Asians were the worse hit but made up most of the lost ground, while the initial impact on Blacks was smaller but their recovery was slower.

The Challenge of Digital Education and Equality in Taiwan

2020 has been a year full of changes and challenges to all teachers, students, and even parents. Because of the outbreak of COVID-19, school systems at all levels have been forced to modify their ways of educating students and many turned in-person teaching to online education. Before the pandemic, distance or online learning was treated by many teachers as an alternative or complementary method for the conventional classroom education;however, it has now become a necessity and seemingly the most feasible way to continue education, as long as schools remain closed because of the pandemic. Yet, the more the demand for distance or online learning grows, the more apparent the problem of digital divide would be. A nationwide coverage of the network transmission or the digital infrastructure does not guarantee digital equality among all citizens. Social, economic, political and even racial discrepancies should also be taken into consideration. This paper will begin by discussing the challenge of education in this digital era we have in Taiwan, and how to “bridge” the digital divide to achieve digital equality in our society. © 2021, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.