Discovery of novel bicyclic[3.3.0]proline peptidyl α-ketoamides as potent 3CL-protease inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2.

The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 has caused global crisis on health and economics. The multiple drug-drug interaction risk associated with ritonavir warrants specialized assessment before using Paxlovid. Here we report a multiple-round SAR study to provide a novel bicyclic[3.3.0]proline peptidyl α-ketoamide compound 4a, which is endowed with excellent antiviral activities and pharmacokinetic properties. Also, in vivo HCoV-OC43 neonatal mice model demonstrated compound 4a has good in vivo efficacy. Based on these properties, compound 4a worth further SAR optimization with the goal to develop compounds with better pharmacokinetic properties and finally to realize single agent efficacy in human.

Influence Mechanism of Construction Supply Chain Information Collaboration Based on Structural Equation Model

The construction supply chain has many stakeholders and complex and diverse information, which cause various information exchange problems that diminish project management efficiency. Thus, information collaboration is an important factor in the construction supply chain. This study aims to improve the efficiency of project management by analyzing the factors hindering information collaboration in the construction supply chain in order to determine their internal influencing mechanisms. The relevant data of 281 construction employees is collected by questionnaire survey. The relationship among stakeholders (SH), information technology (IT), external stability mechanism (ESM), and information collaboration is then quantitatively evaluated based on the structural equation model (SEM). The results show that stakeholders, information technology, and the external stability mechanism have an influence on information collaboration, while stakeholders do not have a significant influence. Information technology and the external stability mechanism significantly influence information collaboration and provide a mediation role between stakeholders and information collaboration. The innovation of this work is the quantification of information collaboration influencing factors in the construction supply chain and the analysis of its potential path relationship according to the mediating effect test. Its theoretical contribution is to address the research gap in construction supply chain information collaboration and expand the research scope of construction project collaborative management regarding information collaboration. Finally, this work has a practical contribution by providing suggestions for improving the efficiency of building supply information collaboration.

Circulating SARS-CoV-2+ Megakaryocytes Associate with Severe Viral Infection in COVID-19.

Several independent lines of evidence suggest that megakaryocytes are dysfunctional in severe COVID-19. Herein, we characterized peripheral circulating megakaryocytes in a large cohort of COVID-19 inpatients and correlated subpopulation frequencies with clinical outcomes. Using peripheral blood, we show that megakaryocytes are increased in the systemic circulation in COVID-19, and we identify and validate S100A8/A9 as a defining marker of megakaryocyte dysfunction. We further reveal a subpopulation of S100A8/A9+ megakaryocytes that contain SARS-CoV-2 protein and RNA. Using flow cytometry of peripheral blood and in vitro studies on SARS-CoV-2 infected primary human megakaryocytes, we demonstrate that megakaryocytes can transfer viral antigens to emerging platelets. Mechanistically, we show that SARS-CoV-2 containing megakaryocytes are NFκB-activated, via p65 and p52, express NFκB-mediated cytokines, IL-6 and IL-1ß, and display high surface expression of TLR2 and TLR4, canonical drivers of NFκB. In a cohort of 218 COVID-19 inpatients, we correlate frequencies of megakaryocyte subpopulations with clinical outcomes and show that SARS-CoV-2 containing megakaryocytes are a strong risk factor for mortality and multi-organ injury, including respiratory failure, mechanical ventilation, acute kidney injury, thrombotic events, and ICU admission. Further, we show that SARS-CoV-2+ megakaryocytes are present in lung and brain autopsy tissues from deceased COVID-19 donors. This study offers the first evidence implicating SARS-CoV-2+ peripheral megakaryocytes in severe disease and suggests that circulating megakaryocytes warrant investigation in inflammatory disorders beyond COVID-19.

Research of the impact of economic decline on air quality in Wuhan under COVID-19 epidemic.

A novel economic impact model is proposed by this paper to analyze the impact of economic downturn on the air quality in Wuhan during the epidemic period, and to explore the effective solutions to improve the urban air pollution. The Space Optimal Aggregation Model (SOAM) is used to evaluate the air quality of Wuhan from January to April in 2019 and 2020. The analysis results show that the air quality of Wuhan from January to April 2020 is better than that of the same period in 2019, and it shows a gradually better trend. This shows that although the measures of household isolation, shutdown and production stoppage adopted during the epidemic period in Wuhan caused economic downturn, it objectively improved the air quality of the city. In addition, the impact of economic factors on PM2.5, SO2 and NO2 is 19%, 12% and 49% respectively calculated by the SOMA. This shows that industrial adjustment and technology upgrading for enterprises that emit a large amount of NO2 can greatly improve the air pollution situation in Wuhan. The SOMA can be extended to any city to analyze the impact of the economy on the composition of air pollutants, and it has extremely important application value at the level of industrial adjustment and transformation policy formulation.

Diabetes Distress in Uninsured Patients with Diabetes During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Observational Study.

This study assessed diabetes distress (DD) and glycemic control levels through three time periods during the COVID-19 pandemic in uninsured patients with diabetes. Diabetes Distress Screening Scales 2 and 17 were utilized to identify the prevalence of DD among uninsured patients during multiple stages of the COVID-19 pandemic at the Providing Access to Healthcare (PATH) diabetes clinic at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. For the 328 uninsured diabetic patients who were screened for DD at least once, the mean age was 46 years old with a majority being Black (55.5%), male (56.1%), and non-Hispanic (89.9%). Mean scores reflecting patients' level of DD initially increased in the first 6 months of the pandemic, from 2.86 to 3.44, and then decreased after 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic to 3.09, while their mean hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) followed a similar pattern of initial increase (from 11.31 to 12.13) followed by a decline (to 10.79). Addressing patient concerns quickly through early interventions to provide alternative means of care through telehealth and accommodating safe pick-up of diabetes supplies and medications, including insulin, can reduce DD and contribute to better management of glycemic control. Understanding the potential direct correlation of DD with HbA1c in uninsured patients with diabetes is an important factor for clinicians when providing care to this vulnerable population.

Covid-19 impacts on group sports activities and social psychology / Impactos da covid-19 nas atividades esportivas de grupo e na psicologia social / Impactos del covid-19 en las actividades deportivas de grupo y en la psicología social

ABSTRACT Introduction: Sports play an important role in maintaining community health, positively impacting the immune system. Behind the scenes of COVID-19 prevention, the value of exercise has been recognized in both individual and collective health needs. Yet, a current scenario of its use and psychosocial impact has to be documented. Objective: Study the impact of COVID-19 disease on group sports activities and explore residents' social and psychological aspects. Methods: This paper adopts the online survey method by distributing relevant questionnaires to urban residents analyzing the current frequency of group sports activities, individual hobbies, and group sports activities, their distribution areas, organization, and the impacts generated by the pandemic. Results: The surveyed subjects in the study area have good physical activity habits. Male residents prefer ball games, and female residents prefer activities that explore relaxation and communication. Group sports activities have more followers. Conclusion: Despite the good habits verified in the majority of the population, it is necessary to improve outdoor facilities and indoor sports training places and establish a good system for disseminating information about the social-psychological service. Level of evidence II; Therapeutic studies - investigation of treatment outcomes.

RESUMO Introdução: Os esportes desempenham um papel importante na manutenção da saúde comunitária, com impactos positivos no sistema imunológico. Nos bastidores da prevenção da COVID-19, o valor do exercício foi reconhecido tanto nas necessidades individuais quanto coletivas de saúde, porém um cenário atual de sua utilização e seu impacto psicossocial ainda não foram documentados. Objetivo: Estudar o impacto da doença COVID-19 nas atividades esportivas em grupo e explorar os aspectos sociais e psicológicos dos moradores. Métodos: Este artigo adota o método de survey online, distribuindo questionários relevantes aos moradores urbanos analisando a frequência atual das atividades esportivas em grupo, os hobbies individuais e as atividades esportivas em grupo, bem como suas áreas de distribuição, organização e os impactos gerados pela pandemia. Resultados: Os sujeitos pesquisados na área de estudo possuem bons hábitos de atividade física. Os residentes do sexo masculino tendem a preferir jogos de bola enquanto as mulheres preferem atividades que exploram o relaxamento e a comunicação. As atividades esportivas em grupo possuem mais adeptos. Conclusão: Apesar dos bons hábitos verificados na maioria da população, faz-se necessária a necessidade de aprimorar as instalações ao ar livre e nos locais de treino esportivo interno, além de estabelecer um bom sistema de divulgação nas informações sobre o serviço psicológico social. Nível de evidência II; Estudos terapêuticos - investigação dos resultados do tratamento.

RESUMEN Introducción: El deporte desempeña un papel importante en el mantenimiento de la salud de la comunidad, con impactos positivos en el sistema inmunológico. Entre los antecedentes de la prevención del COVID-19, se ha reconocido el valor del ejercicio en las necesidades de salud tanto individuales como colectivas, sin embargo aún no se ha documentado un escenario actual de su uso y su impacto psicosocial. Objetivo: Estudiar el impacto de la enfermedad COVID-19 en las actividades deportivas de grupo y explorar los aspectos sociales y psicológicos de los residentes. Métodos: Este trabajo adopta el método de encuesta en línea mediante la distribución de cuestionarios pertinentes a los residentes urbanos que analizan la frecuencia actual de las actividades deportivas en grupo, las aficiones individuales y las actividades deportivas en grupo, así como sus áreas de distribución, la organización y los impactos generados por la pandemia. Resultados: Los sujetos encuestados en el área de estudio tienen buenos hábitos de actividad física. Los residentes masculinos tienden a preferir los juegos de pelota, mientras que las mujeres prefieren actividades que exploren la relajación y la comunicación. Las actividades deportivas en grupo tienen más seguidores. Conclusión: A pesar de los buenos hábitos constatados en la mayoría de la población, es necesario mejorar las instalaciones exteriores y los lugares de entrenamiento deportivo interior, además de establecer un buen sistema de difusión en la información sobre el servicio psicológico social. Nivel de evidencia II; Estudios terapéuticos - investigación de los resultados del tratamiento.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of long term physical and mental sequelae of COVID-19 pandemic: call for research priority and action.

The long-term physical and mental sequelae of COVID-19 are a growing public health concern, yet there is considerable uncertainty about their prevalence, persistence and predictors. We conducted a comprehensive, up-to-date meta-analysis of survivors' health consequences and sequelae for COVID-19. PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library were searched through Sep 30th, 2021. Observational studies that reported the prevalence of sequelae of COVID-19 were included. Two reviewers independently undertook the data extraction and quality assessment. Of the 36,625 records identified, a total of 151 studies were included involving 1,285,407 participants from thirty-two countries. At least one sequelae symptom occurred in 50.1% (95% CI 45.4-54.8) of COVID-19 survivors for up to 12 months after infection. The most common investigation findings included abnormalities on lung CT (56.9%, 95% CI 46.2-67.3) and abnormal pulmonary function tests (45.6%, 95% CI 36.3-55.0), followed by generalized symptoms, such as fatigue (28.7%, 95% CI 21.0-37.0), psychiatric symptoms (19.7%, 95% CI 16.1-23.6) mainly depression (18.3%, 95% CI 13.3-23.8) and PTSD (17.9%, 95% CI 11.6-25.3), and neurological symptoms (18.7%, 95% CI 16.2-21.4), such as cognitive deficits (19.7%, 95% CI 8.8-33.4) and memory impairment (17.5%, 95% CI 8.1-29.6). Subgroup analysis showed that participants with a higher risk of long-term sequelae were older, mostly male, living in a high-income country, with more severe status at acute infection. Individuals with severe infection suffered more from PTSD, sleep disturbance, cognitive deficits, concentration impairment, and gustatory dysfunction. Survivors with mild infection had high burden of anxiety and memory impairment after recovery. Our findings suggest that after recovery from acute COVID-19, half of survivors still have a high burden of either physical or mental sequelae up to at least 12 months. It is important to provide urgent and appropriate prevention and intervention management to preclude persistent or emerging long-term sequelae and to promote the physical and psychiatric wellbeing of COVID-19 survivors.

Multifaceted Effects and Mechanisms of N-Acetylcysteine on Intestinal Injury in a Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus-Infected Porcine Model.

SCOPE: This study investigates the potential effects of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on intestinal injury in a porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV)-infected porcine model. METHODS AND RESULTS: Thirty-two piglets are randomly assigned to one of four groups: the control, PEDV, NAC, and NAC+PEDV. Piglets in the NAC+PEDV group are orally administrated with NAC (100 mg (kg·BW)-1  day-1 ) for 4 consecutive days after 2 days of PEDV infection. The results show that NAC administration decreases the diarrhea rate and improves intestinal morphology. The concentration of diamine oxidase and intestinal fatty-acid binding protein, as well as IL-1ß, IL-8, and TNF-α in the plasma, is decreased by NAC. Intriguingly, NAC administration significantly increases the viral load in the jejunum and ileum and down-regulates the expression of interferon-related genes. Microarray and proteomic analyses show that the differentially expressed genes/proteins between NAC+PEDV and PEDV groups are highly enriched in substance transport. Furthermore, aquaporin 8/10 expression is significantly increased by NAC upon PEDV infection. CONCLUSION: NAC administration alleviates PEDV-induced intestinal injury by inhibiting inflammatory responses and improving substance transport, but promotes viral replication by inhibiting interferon signaling. These results suggest NAC exhibits multifaceted effects upon PEDV infection, and thus caution is required when using NAC as a dietary supplement to prevent viral infection.

Reciprocal Effect between Depressive Symptoms and Adolescent Non-suicidal self-injury before and after COVID-19: A Longitudinal Study (preprint)

Background Non-suicidal   self-injury (NSSI) is a common psychological and behavioral problem among   adolescents and has now become a major public health problem for adolescents.   Since the COVID-19 outbreak in 2019, it has caused various mental health   problems, such as anxiety, depression, and mental burnout, contributing to a   severe mental health crisis globally. Thus far, a few studies recorded the   temporal change in adolescents’ psychological status during the COVID-19   pandemic as well as that with the implementation of large-scale public health   intervention methods, and this study adds to the evidence. Methods Based on   the Chengdu Positive Child Development (CPCD) survey, the baseline dataset   was collected in December 2019, and the first follow-up of the CPCD was conducted   in July 2020. A total of 6,023 adolescents aged 10-19 were recruited from   five primary and middle schools. Two independent autoregressive cross-lagged   models were used to test the bidirectional relationship between NSSI and   depressive symptoms in adolescents; logistic regression analysis was used to   explore the predictors of NSSI implementation in adolescents with depressive   symptoms, which could provide an entry point for behavioral interventions to   NSSI. Results The   prevalence of depressive symptoms among our participants was 32.69% at   baseline, and 34.27% at follow-up. The occurrence rate of NSSI in adolescents   who may have depressive symptoms was 44.34%%, and that during the pandemic   was 53.44%. The difference was statistically significant (P <   0.05). The results of the binary logistic analysis showed that among   adolescents, gender, duration of the online class, depression mood, place of   residence, and self-perception of relationship with caregivers were the risk   factors for NSSI (or > 1, β> 0), and daily sleep hours positive mood   was the protective factor (or < 1, β< 0).  The lag effect of adolescent depression on   their NSSI behavior is significant, which means that based on controlling the   adolescent baseline NSSI, the deeper the adolescent depression degree, the   more frequent their NSSI behavior (β=0.26, P<0.01). At the same time,   adolescents' NSSI behavior also had a lagging effect on depressive symptoms,   and adolescents with self-injury behavior were more likely to be depressed (β=0.02, P<0.01). Depression and   NSSI are mutual(β=0.77,   P<0.05；β=0.27,   P<0.01). Conclusions The   increased depressive symptoms among adolescents exacerbated their NSSI   behaviors and hurt their mental health during COVID-19. Screening for   depression should be carried out early to serve as a warning sign in   preventing and reducing NSSI in adolescents.

One-step synthesis of nanosilver embedding laser-induced graphene for H2O2 sensor.

During the novel coronavirus pandemic, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) played an important role as a disinfectant. However, high concentrations of H2O2 can also cause damage to the skin and eyes. Therefore, the quantitative and qualitative detection of H2O2 is an important research direction. In this work, we report a one-step laser-induced synthesis of graphene doped with Ag NPs composites. It directly trims screen printed electrodes (SPE). Firstly, we did the timekeeping current method (CA) test on H2O2 using a conventional platinum sheet as the counter electrode, and obtained linear ranges of 1-110 µM and 110-800 µM with a sensitivity of 118.7 and 96.3 µAmM-1cm-2 and a low detection limit of (LOD) 0.24 µM and 0.31 µM. On this basis we have also achieved a good result in CA testing using Screen printed carbon electrodes (SPCE), laying the foundation for portable testing. The sensor has excellent interference immunity and high selectivity.

The influence of college students' academic stressors on mental health during COVID-19: The mediating effect of social support, social well-being, and self-identity

COVID-19 caused harmful mental consequences to the public, and mental health problems were very common among college students during the outbreak of COVID-19. Academic stressors were the main stress for college students, and social support, social well-being, and self-identity were widely known as protective factors for mental health. Therefore, the study aimed to investigate the influence of academic stressors on mental health and the mediating effect of social support, social well-being, and self-identity among college students during the outbreak of COVID-19. With 900 college students as subjects, using the college students' academic stressors questionnaire, social support questionnaire, social well-being scale, self-identity scale, and depression anxiety stress scales (DASS-21), the results showed that: (1) academic stressors had a significantly negative correlation with social support, social well-being, and self-identity while having a significantly positive correlation with mental health;(2) academic stressors could positively predict mental health;(3) this effect was mediated by social support, social well-being, and self-identity;(4) work stressor was an important stressor during COVID-19, and had the same role as academic stressors in the structural equation model. The results of this study suggested that adjusting the academic stressors or work stressors of college students and enhancing social support could improve social well-being and self-identity, and might effectively protect their mental health under the COVID-19 pandemic environment.

Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Validation of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale for Chinese University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: fear of COVID-19 is widespread among the population, especially among college students because of their increased exposure to the media information overload of the COVID-19 outbreak. The Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCV-19 S) is a relatively short instrument used to evaluate fears surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the validity and reliability of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale have not been fully investigated in Chinese university student groups. OBJECTIVES: this study assessed the cross-cultural adaptability and reliability of the FCV-19S for Chinese university students. METHODS: a Chinese version of Fear of COVID-19 Scale (C-FCV-19S) was generated using the translation-backward translation method. Psychometric properties of the C-FCV-19S, including internal consistency, split-half reliability, construct reliability, convergent validity, and diagnostic accuracy, were evaluated. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (GAD-7) scales were also used to evaluate participants for depression and anxiety. RESULTS: the C-FCV-19S has acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha: 0.872) and satisfactory split-half reliability (correlation coefficient: 0.799). Using the exploratory factor analysis (EFA), we examined the construct reliability (KMO = 0.920). The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) confirmed that the bifactor model of scale (including general factor, factor1: the awareness of COVID-19 and physiological arousal, factor 2: fear-related thinking) had a good fit index (χ2/df =6.18, RMSEA= 0.067, SRMR = 0.028, GFI = 0.986, TLI = 0.970 and CFI= 0.988). Using depression-positive and anxiety-positive scores as reference criteria, we found that the areas under the curve were 0.70 and 0.68, respectively, and that the optimal cutoff scores of the C-FCV-19S was 17.5 (sensitivity: 66.3% and 58.7%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: the validity and reliability of C-FCV-19S are satisfactory, and the optimal cutoff point was 17.5. The C-FCV-19S can be applied adopted in Chinese university students.

Use of a Screening Protocol to Identify Asymptomatic COVID-19 in a Free Community Health Clinic in Shelby County, Alabama, October 2020-February 2021.

OBJECTIVE: Community of Hope Health Clinic (CHHC), a free and charitable clinic in Shelby County, Alabama, developed a screening protocol to identify patients with asymptomatic COVID-19 with the goal of minimizing infection risk for other patients, health care providers, and staff. We sought to determine whether the use of the CHHC screening protocol identified asymptomatic carriers of SARS-CoV-2 before their scheduled clinic visits. METHODS: The CHHC screening protocol included the use of an adapted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention questionnaire via telephone 48-72 hours before a scheduled clinic appointment, coupled with a second administration of the questionnaire and a temperature check immediately before the patient's scheduled visit. Patients with positive responses to any questions or whose temperatures were greater than 100.4 °F were refused entry to the clinic, their appointments were rescheduled, and a SARS-CoV-2 test was recommended. SARS-CoV-2 laboratory testing was conducted on all patients with an appointment from October 26, 2020, through February 18, 2021, to verify whether the screening protocol was effective. RESULTS: Of 298 patient encounters, 20 patients screened positive on the SARS-CoV-2 patient screen. Another 278 patients screened negative, were seen for patient care, and received a SARS-CoV-2 test via nasal swab; 274 (98.6%) patients received a negative test result, and 4 (1.4%) patients received a positive test result. CONCLUSIONS: The CHHC SARS-CoV-2 screening protocol, as validated by SARS-CoV-2 assay, was effective in screening out asymptomatic patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 before they were seen in clinic. As clinics and office practices return to prepandemic volumes, the use of such a screening protocol can help mitigate the risk of serious COVID-19 infection, especially for unvaccinated patients, health care providers, and staff.

Rapid PCR-Based Nanopore Adaptive Sequencing Improves Sensitivity and Timeliness of Viral Clinical Detection and Genome Surveillance

Nanopore sequencing has been widely used for the real-time detection and surveillance of pathogens with portable MinION. Nanopore adaptive sequencing can enrich on-target sequences without additional pretreatment. In this study, the performance of adaptive sequencing was evaluated for viral genome enrichment of clinical respiratory samples. Ligation-based nanopore adaptive sequencing (LNAS) and rapid PCR-based nanopore adaptive sequencing (RPNAS) workflows were performed to assess the effects of enrichment on nasopharyngeal swab samples from human adenovirus (HAdV) outbreaks. RPNAS was further applied for the enrichment of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from nasopharyngeal swab samples to evaluate sensitivity and timeliness. The RPNAS increased both the relative abundance (7.87–12.86-fold) and data yield (1.27–2.15-fold) of HAdV samples, whereas the LNAS increased only the relative abundance but had no obvious enrichment on the data yield. Compared with standard nanopore sequencing, RPNAS detected the SARS-CoV-2 reads from two low-abundance samples, increased the coverage of SARS-CoV-2 by 36.68–98.92%, and reduced the time to achieve the same coverage. Our study highlights the utility of RPNAS for virus enrichment directly from clinical samples, with more on-target data and a shorter sequencing time to recover viral genomes. These findings promise to improve the sensitivity and timeliness of rapid identification and genomic surveillance of infectious diseases.

Electrochemical Oxygen Generator With 99.9% Oxygen Purity and High Energy Efficiency

Under the growing crisis of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, the global medical system is facing the predicament of an acute shortage of medical‐grade oxygen (O2, ≥ 99.5% purity). Herein, an oxygen generation device is manufactured that relies on electrochemical technology. The performance of the electrochemical oxygen generator (EOG) is remarkably improved to a practically applicable level, achieving long‐term (>200 h), stable, and quick production (>1.5 L min−1) of high purity O2 (99.9%) at high energy efficiency (496 L kW−1 h−1), via simultaneous optimization for intrinsic electrochemical reaction mechanisms, electrocatalysts, and external cell structure. The EOG also presents powerful competitiveness in user experience, which finds expression in high portability (4.7 kg), nearly instant O2 production (<1 s), and a quiet working condition (<39 dB). The EOG shows great potential to substitute commercial pressure swing adsorption O2 generation devices, which may significantly impact the traditional oxygen production industry. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Advanced Energy Materials is the property of Wiley-Blackwell 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.)

Micronutrient Level Is Negatively Correlated with the Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio in Patients with Severe COVID-19

Aim To explore the potential relationship between NLR and micronutrient deficiency in patients with severe COVID-19 infection. Methods Sixteen patients were categorized into the mild group (mild COVID-19) and severe group (severe COVID-19) based on the guideline of the management of COVID-19. The lactate dehydrogenase (LDH);superoxide dismutase (SOD), the inflammatory markers (neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR)), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), c-reactive protein (CRP), selenium (Se), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), and manganese (Mn) were measured in the blood. Results Compared to the mild group, the NLR (P < 0.05) and the level of Se (P < 0.01), Fe (P < 0.05), and Zn (P < 0.05) were significantly decreased in the severe group. The level of Se, Fe, and Zn was significantly correlated to NLR levels. Furthermore, close positive correlation was found between NLR and severity of COVID-19. Conclusion The micronutrient deficiency in the blood is associated with NLR in the severity of COVID-19 patients.

Web-Based Independent Versus Laboratory-Based Stop-Signal Task Performance: Within-Subjects Counterbalanced Comparison Study.

BACKGROUND: Considered a facet of behavioral impulsivity, response inhibition facilitates adaptive and goal-directed behavior. It is often assessed using the Stop-Signal Task (SST), which is presented on stand-alone computers under controlled laboratory conditions. Sample size may consequently be a function of cost or time and sample diversity constrained to those willing or able to attend the laboratory. Statistical power and generalizability of results might, in turn, be impacted. Such limitations may potentially be overcome via the implementation of web-based testing. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate if there were differences between variables derived from a web-based SST when it was undertaken independently-that is, outside the laboratory, on any computer, and in the absence of researchers-versus when it was performed under laboratory conditions. METHODS: We programmed a web-based SST in HTML and JavaScript and employed a counterbalanced design. A total of 166 individuals (mean age 19.72, SD 1.85, range 18-36 years; 146/166, 88% female) were recruited. Of them, 79 undertook the independent task prior to visiting the laboratory and 78 completed the independent task following their laboratory visit. The average time between SST testing was 3.72 (SD 2.86) days. Dependent samples and Bayesian paired samples t tests were used to examine differences between laboratory-based and independent SST variables. Correlational analyses were conducted on stop-signal reaction times (SSRT). RESULTS: After exclusions, 123 participants (mean age 19.73, SD 1.97 years) completed the SST both in the laboratory and independently. While participants were less accurate on go trials and exhibited reduced inhibitory control when undertaking the independent-compared to the laboratory-based-SST, there was a positive association between the SSRT of each condition (r=.48; P<.001; 95% CI 0.33-0.61). CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest a web-based SST, which participants undertake on any computer, at any location, and in the absence of the researcher, is a suitable measure of response inhibition.

Relationship between perceived stress and depression in Chinese front-line medical staff during COVID-19: A conditional process model.

BACKGROUND: Sustained stress during COVID-19 may be associated with depression in front-line medical staff, which would expose them to severe threats. This study aimed to examine whether the relationship between perceived stress and depression is mediated by insomnia, and whether this mediation is moderated by resilience. METHODS: For front-line medical staff, this study used online questionnaire to evaluate their perceived stress, depression, insomnia and resilience. A conditional process model was performed to examine the relationship between perceived stress and depression, as well as the mediating effect of insomnia and the moderating effect of resilience. RESULTS: A total of 606 front-line medical staff completed the survey. Higher level of perceived stress was significantly positively related to severe insomnia and depression. In addition, insomnia was positively related to depression, while resilience could moderate the effect of perceived stress on depression by direct and indirect paths. LIMITATIONS: The causality among perceived stress, depression, insomnia and resilience is difficult to be verified. CONCLUSIONS: Perceived stress is positively related to depression, and insomnia can mediate the effect of perceived stress on depression. In addition, the effect of perceived stress on depression, whether direct or indirect, is moderated by resilience, which is a protective factor for mental health.