Halal logistics and supply chain management research: Recent COVID- 19 effects and future development

The global COVID-19 pandemic has created many challenges and paralysed many industries worldwide. COVID-19 has created critical stress on local and global economies, as well as creating supply chain disruption to almost every sector. Among the sectors affected are food producers, pharmaceuticals, transportation industry, logistics organization, travel and tourism, hotel providers, automotive, oil and gas, and many more. The Halal industry is also identified as an industry affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This chapter aims to explore key effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Halal economy, specifically focusing on the impact of the pandemic to the Halal industry in general, and to Halal logistics and supply chain as a main discussion. This study aims to explore how the Halal industry was affected from logistics and supply chain perspectives. This study is important to gain rich understanding on how this COVID-19 pandemic affected the Halal industry worldwide and locally. This study is among the pioneers that seeks ways to improve on the Halal supply chain and logistics context due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This study is based on generic review and content analysis on the published documents in the area of Halal supply chain and COVID-19 impacts. A number of research suggestions for future scholars are also provided. © 2022 selection and editorial matter, Nor Aida Abdul Rahman, Azizul Hassan and Hajjah Zawiah Abdul Majid;individual chapters, the contributors.

Effect of Tele-nursing Guidelines on Health Lifestyle and Self-Efficacy among Women with Gestational Diabetes during COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: Gestational Diabetes is considered to be a serious health problem among pregnant women in Egypt. The seriousness, dramatically increasing and incidence of this disease make its management more essential and need more attention. Applying Tele-nursing in healthcare is increasingly prioritized to reduce maternal mortality, morbidity and improve newborns’ survival. Aim of the study: was to evaluate the effect of Tele-nursing guidelines on health lifestyle and self-efficacy among women with gestational diabetes during COVID-19 pandemic. Research design: Quazi experimental design was adopted to carry out this study. Setting: The study was conducted at family planning and antenatal care unit in outpatient clinic, at Zagazig University Hospital. Subjects: Purposive sample of 5o pregnant women with gestational diabetes. Tools of data collection: Four tools were used for data collection. Tool I: A structured interviewing questionnaire, Tool II: Health Promotion Lifestyle Profile scale (HPLP), Tool III: Self-efficacy scale in gestational diabetes and Tool IV: An educational nursing guidelines booklet for pregnant women with gestational diabetes. Results: There was a statically significant difference regarding mean score of all domains of the health promotion lifestyle profile throughout the intervention phase (p<0.001).Also;a statistically significant relation (p<0.05) was found between post self-efficacy score and post-knowledge score through post-intervention phase, Conclusion: it was concluded that;there was a highly statistical significant improvement among the studied women regarding total knowledge, health promotion life style and self-efficacy about GDM at pre and post intervention. In addition;there was a positive correlation coefficient (r =0.336), with statistically significant p (0.017) between self-efficacy and health promotion lifestyle throughout study phases Recommendations: Tele-nursing should be programmed, implemented and applied as a part of health plan with the routine nursing care in antenatal unites.

Two novel oxetane containing lignans and a new megastigmane from Paronychia arabica and in silico analysis of them as prospective SARS-CoV-2 inhibitors.

The chemical characterization of the extract of the aerial parts of Paronychia arabica afforded two oxetane containing lignans, paronychiarabicine A (1) and B (2), and one new megastigmane, paronychiarabicastigmane A (3), alongside a known lignan (4), eight known phenolic compounds (5-12), one known elemene sesquiterpene (13) and one steroid glycoside (14). The chemical structures of the isolated compounds were constructed based upon the HRMS, 1D, and 2D-NMR results. The absolute configurations were established via NOESY experiments as well as experimental and TDDFT-calculated electronic circular dichroism (ECD). Utilizing molecular docking, the binding scores and modes of compounds 1-3 towards the SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro), papain-like protease (PLpro), and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) were revealed. Compound 3 exhibited a promising docking score (-9.8 kcal mol-1) against SARS-CoV-2 Mpro by forming seven hydrogen bonds inside the active site with the key amino acids. The reactome pathway enrichment analysis revealed a correlation between the inhibition of GSK3 and GSK3B genes (identified as the main targets of megastigmane treatment) and significant inhibition of SARS-CoV-1 viral replication in infected Vero E6 cells. Our results manifest a novel understanding of genes, proteins and corresponding pathways against SARS-CoV-2 infection and could facilitate the identification and characterization of novel therapeutic targets as treatments of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The impact of Tamarix invasion on the soil physicochemical properties (preprint)

The exotic Tamarix species, T. ramosissima and T. chinensis, were introduced into South Africa in the early 1900s reportedly either for ornamental or soil wind erosion control purposes in the mines. They are, however, currently invading several riparian ecosystems in the country and threatening its biodiversity and proper functioning. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of the exotic Tamarix species on the soil physicochemical properties vis-à-vis the indigenous Tamarix at the Leeu River in the Western Cape Province, of South Africa where they are purvasive. Three transects were laid from the riverbank towards the outer land, where the exotic followed by the native Tamarix species predominantly occurred. Soil was sampled from three points per transect and three soil depths (0–10, 10–20 and 20–30 cm) per point in winter and summer to determine selected soil physicochemical properties. The results showed that total nitrogen (TN), total carbon (TC), Sodium (Na), Potassium (K) and Magnesium (Mg) concentrations under the native and exotic Tamarix species were significantly higher than those in the open land without Tamarix species. The salinity under the native and exotic Tamarix species was greater (P < 0.05) in the topsoils (0–10 cm) than in the deeper soils (20–30 cm) with 5.05 mS cm− 1 and 4.73 mS cm− 1, respectively. Soil electrical conductivity (EC) was higher (P < 0.05) during the winter season under the exotic Tamarix species (5.05 mS cm-1) followed by the native species (4.73 mS cm-1) and it was the lowest in the control (0.16 mS cm-1) at 0–10 cm soil depth. Similarly, sodium and sodium absorption ratios (SAR) under the native and exotic Tamarix species were significantly greater than those in the control. The highest levels (P < 0.05) of TC were recorded at the topsoil (0–10 cm soil depth) under the exotic Tamarix species (1.17%), followed by the native Tamarix (1.07%) with the control recording the lowest (0.53%). There were no significant differences (P < 0.05) in K, TC, TN and SOC concentrations at lower soil depths (20–30 cm). The soil texture was significantly affected by the Tamarix species. The soil bulk density was lower under the exotic Tamarix followed by native Tamarix species than the control soils. The soil volumetric water content was higher under the exotic Tamarix species compared to the control. This study concludes that the invasion of the exotic and native Tamarix species altered the soil properties underneath and created conducive soil conditions for their predominance.

Repurposing of anisomycin and oleandomycin as a potential anti-(SARS-CoV-2) virus targeting key enzymes using virtual computational approaches.

Despite the accelerated emerging of vaccines, development against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) drugs discovery is still in demand. Repurposing the existing drugs is an ideal time/cost-effective strategy to tackle the clinical impact of SARS CoV-2. Thereby, the present study is a promising strategy that proposes the repurposing of approved drugs against pivotal proteins that are responsible for the viral propagation of SARS-CoV-2 virus Angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2; 2AJF), 3CL-protease: main protease (6LU7), Papain-like protease (6W9C), Receptor Binding Domain of Spike protein (6VW1), Transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS-2; 5AFW) and Furin (5MIM) by in silico methods. Molecular docking results were analyzed based on the binding energy and active site interactions accomplished with pharmacokinetic analysis. It was observed that both anisomycin and oleandomycin bind to all selected target proteins with good binding energy, achieving the most favorable interactions. Considering the results of binding affinity, pharmacokinetics and toxicity of anisomycin and oleandomycin, it is proposed that they can act as potential drugs against the SARS CoV-2 infection. Further clinical testing of the reported drugs is essential for their use in the treatment of SARS CoV-2 infection.

Exploring Toxins for Hunting SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Inhibitors: Molecular Docking, Molecular Dynamics, Pharmacokinetic Properties, and Reactome Study.

The main protease (Mpro) is a potential druggable target in SARS-CoV-2 replication. Herein, an in silico study was conducted to mine for Mpro inhibitors from toxin sources. A toxin and toxin-target database (T3DB) was virtually screened for inhibitor activity towards the Mpro enzyme utilizing molecular docking calculations. Promising toxins were subsequently characterized using a combination of molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and molecular mechanics-generalized Born surface area (MM-GBSA) binding energy estimations. According to the MM-GBSA binding energies over 200 ns MD simulations, three toxins-namely philanthotoxin (T3D2489), azaspiracid (T3D2672), and taziprinone (T3D2378)-demonstrated higher binding affinities against SARS-CoV-2 Mpro than the co-crystalized inhibitor XF7 with MM-GBSA binding energies of -58.9, -55.9, -50.1, and -43.7 kcal/mol, respectively. The molecular network analyses showed that philanthotoxin provides a ligand lead using the STRING database, which includes the biochemical top 20 signaling genes CTSB, CTSL, and CTSK. Ultimately, pathway enrichment analysis (PEA) and Reactome mining results revealed that philanthotoxin could prevent severe lung injury in COVID-19 patients through the remodeling of interleukins (IL-4 and IL-13) and the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). These findings have identified that philanthotoxin-a venom of the Egyptian solitary wasp-holds promise as a potential Mpro inhibitor and warrants further in vitro/in vivo validation.

Sustainable Environmental Geotechnics Practices for a Green Economy

The revitalization of the global economy after the COVID-19 era presents Environmental Geotechnics with the opportunity to reinforce the need for a change in paradigm toward a green, circular economy and to promote aggressively the use and development of sustainable technologies and management practices. This paper aims to assist in this effort by concentrating on several thematic areas where sustainability solutions and future improvements are sought. These include the re-entry of construction and demolition waste, excavated material, industrial waste, and marine sediments into the production cycle and the reuse of existing foundations. Despite the recent trend in advanced countries toward recycling and waste-to-energy thermal treatment, landfills still constitute the most common municipal solid waste management practice, especially in low-and-middle-income countries, and technological solutions to improve their environmental footprint are presented. At the same time, remediation solutions are required to address the multitude of contaminated sites worldwide. Advanced developments that incorporate environmental, economic, and social dimensions are expounded, together with sustainable ground improvement solutions for infrastructure projects conducted in soft and weak soils. The topic of thermo-active geostructures concludes this paper, where, apart from their infrastructure utility, these structures have the potential to contribute as a renewable energy source. © 2021 ICE Publishing: All rights reserved.

Finding the graves: SLED Family Reunification Program.

PURPOSE: In 2015, the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) agreed to consolidate data recorded by MoHS and international partners during the Ebola epidemic and create the Sierra Leone Ebola Database (SLED). The primary objectives were helping families to identify the location of graves of their loved ones who died from any cause at the time of the Ebola epidemic and creating a data source for epidemiological research. The Family Reunification Program fulfills the first SLED objective. The purpose of this paper is to describe the Family Reunification Program (Program) development, functioning, and results. METHODS: The MoHS, CDC, SLED Team, and Concern Worldwide developed, tested, and implemented methodology and tools to conduct the Program. Family liaisons were trained in protection of the personally identifiable information. RESULTS: The SLED Family Reunification Program allows families in Sierra Leone, who did not know the final resting place of their loved ones, to be reunited with their graves and to bring them relief and closure. CONCLUSION: Continuing family requests in search of the burial place of loved ones 5 years after the end of the epidemic shows that the emotional burden of losing a family member and not knowing the place of burial does not diminish with time. As of February 2021, the Program continues and is described to allow its replication for other emergency events including COVID-19 and new Ebola outbreaks.

Cytokine profile in Egyptian children and adolescents with COVID-19 pneumonia: A multicenter study.

BACKGROUND: To date, the cytokine profile in children and adolescent with novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has not been reported. OBJECTIVES: We investigated serum levels of a panel of key cytokines in children and adolescent with COVID-19 pneumonia with a primary focus on "cytokine storm" cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, IL-17, IL-2, IL-4, IL-10, interferon (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and two chemokines interferon-inducible protein-10 (IP-10) and IL-8. We also studied whether these cytokines could be potential markers for illness severity in COVID-19 pneumonia. METHODS: Ninety-two symptomatic patients aged less than 18 years with confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia and 100 well-matched healthy controls were included in this multi-center study. For all patients, the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in respiratory fluid specimens was detected by real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. We measured serum concentrations of studied cytokines by using flow cytometry. RESULTS: Patients with COVID-19 had significantly higher median IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-17, TNF-α, and IP-10 serum levels than did control children (all p < 0.01). Patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia had significantly higher median IL-1ß, IL-6, and IP-10 serum levels as compared with those with moderate COVID-19 pneumonia; all p < 0.01. ROC analysis revealed that three of the studied markers (IL-6, IL-1ß, and IP-10) could predict severe COVID-19 pneumonia cases with the largest AUC for IL-6 of 0.893 (95% confidence interval: 0.84-0.98; p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Our study shows that pediatric patients with COVID-19 pneumonia have markedly elevated serum IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-17, TNF-α, and IP-10 levels at the initial phase of the illness indicating a cytokine storm following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, serum IL-6, IL-1ß, and IP-10 concentrations were independent predictors for severe COVID-19 pneumonia.

Blue Biotechnology: Computational Screening of Sarcophyton Cembranoid Diterpenes for SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Inhibition.

The coronavirus pandemic has affected more than 150 million people, while over 3.25 million people have died from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). As there are no established therapies for COVID-19 treatment, drugs that inhibit viral replication are a promising target; specifically, the main protease (Mpro) that process CoV-encoded polyproteins serves as an Achilles heel for assembly of replication-transcription machinery as well as down-stream viral replication. In the search for potential antiviral drugs that target Mpro, a series of cembranoid diterpenes from the biologically active soft-coral genus Sarcophyton have been examined as SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitors. Over 360 metabolites from the genus were screened using molecular docking calculations. Promising diterpenes were further characterized by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations based on molecular mechanics-generalized Born surface area (MM-GBSA) binding energy calculations. According to in silico calculations, five cembranoid diterpenes manifested adequate binding affinities as Mpro inhibitors with ΔGbinding < -33.0 kcal/mol. Binding energy and structural analyses of the most potent Sarcophyton inhibitor, bislatumlide A (340), was compared to darunavir, an HIV protease inhibitor that has been recently subjected to clinical-trial as an anti-COVID-19 drug. In silico analysis indicates that 340 has a higher binding affinity against Mpro than darunavir with ΔGbinding values of -43.8 and -34.8 kcal/mol, respectively throughout 100 ns MD simulations. Drug-likeness calculations revealed robust bioavailability and protein-protein interactions were identified for 340; biochemical signaling genes included ACE, MAPK14 and ESR1 as identified based on a STRING database. Pathway enrichment analysis combined with reactome mining revealed that 340 has the capability to re-modulate the p38 MAPK pathway hijacked by SARS-CoV-2 and antagonize injurious effects. These findings justify further in vivo and in vitro testing of 340 as an antiviral agent against SARS-CoV-2.

Municipal solid waste management under Covid-19: Challenges and recommendations

Covid-19 is proving to be an unprecedented disaster for human health, social contacts and the economy worldwide. It is evident that SARS-CoV-2 may spread through municipal solid waste (MSW), if collected, bagged, handled, transported or disposed of inappropriately. Under the stress placed by the current pandemic on the sanitary performance across all MSW management (MSWM) chains, this industry needs to re-examine its infrastructure resilience with respect to all processes, from waste identification, classification, collection, separation, storage, transportation, recycling, treatment and disposal. The current paper provides an overview of the severe challenges placed by Covid-19 onto MSW systems, highlighting the essential role of waste management in public health protection during the ongoing pandemic. It also discusses the measures issued by various international organisations and countries for the protection of MSWM employees (MSWEs), identifying gaps, especially for developing countries, where personal protection equipment and clear guidelines to MSWEs may not have been provided, and the general public may not be well informed. In countries with high recycling rates of MSW, the need to protect MSWEs' health has affected the supply stream of the recycling industry. The article concludes with recommendations for the MSW industry operating under public health crisis conditions. © 2021 ICE Publishing: All rights reserved.

Post Covid-19 water and waste water management to protect public health and geoenvironment

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has posed severe threats to humans and the geoenvironment. The findings of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (Sars-CoV-2) traces in waste water and the practice of disinfecting outdoor spaces in several cities in the world, which can result into the entry of disinfectants and their by-products into storm drainage systems and their subsequent discharge into rivers and coastal waters, raise the issue of environmental, ecological and public health effects. The aims of the current paper are to investigate the potential of water and waste water to operate as transmission routes for Sars-CoV-2 and the risks of this to public health and the geoenvironment. Additionally, several developing countries are characterised by low water-related disaster resilience and low household water security, with measures for protection of water resources and technologies for clean water and sanitation being substandard or not in place. To mitigate the impact of the pandemic in such cases, practical recommendations are provided herein. The paper calls for the enhancement of research into the migration mechanisms of viruses in various media, as well as in the formation of trihalomethanes and other disinfectant by-products in the geoenvironment, in order to develop robust solutions to combat the effects of the current and future pandemics. © 2021 ICE Publishing: All rights reserved.

CARDIAC MUSCLE INJURY AND RIGHT VENTRICULAR ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC CORRELATIONS IN PATIENTS WITH COVID-19

Background Cardiac muscle injury has been described as a known consequence of coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) with poor clinical outcome. We aim to study the correlation between myocardial muscle injury and specific echocardiographic findings and, hence the association with mortality. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort at the University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas, under IRB of L20-172. We included COVID-19 patients from March 2020 until July 2020 who had transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) during their hospital admission. Myocardial muscle injury was defined by elevated troponin. Results A total of 101 patients were included. The mean age was 60 years, and 69.3 % were males. A total of 66 patients had a myocardial injury. Patients with myocardial injury had higher mortality than those without myocardial injury with a P-value of < 0.05, and this value remained significant after running a multiple regression analysis model. Only 4 patients had an ejection fraction of less than 40%. 11 patients had pericardial effusion. Only 4 patients had tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE)<1.5 cm. The mortality rate was 29.7%, and only 6 patients developed acute myocardial infarction. No difference was found between the two groups regarding the different echocardiographic findings. Conclusion Patients with COVID-19 and myocardial injury had higher mortality than those without myocardial injury with no difference regarding the different echocardiographic findings. [Formula presented]

Rutin and flavone analogs as prospective SARS-CoV-2 main protease inhibitors: In silico drug discovery study.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new pandemic characterized by quick spreading and illness of the respiratory system. To date, there is no specific therapy for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Flavonoids, especially rutin, have attracted considerable interest as a prospective SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro) inhibitor. In this study, a database containing 2017 flavone analogs was prepared and screened against SARS-CoV-2 Mpro using the molecular docking technique. According to the results, 371 flavone analogs exhibited good potency towards Mpro with docking scores less than -9.0 kcal/mol. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, followed by molecular mechanics-generalized Born surface area (MM/GBSA) binding energy calculations, were performed for the top potent analogs in complex with Mpro. Compared to rutin, PubChem-129-716-607 and PubChem-885-071-27 showed better binding affinities against SARS-CoV-2 Mpro over 150 ns MD course with ΔGbinding values of -69.0 and -68.1 kcal/mol, respectively. Structural and energetic analyses demonstrated high stability of the identified analogs inside the SARS-CoV-2 Mpro active site over 150 ns MD simulations. The oral bioavailabilities of probable SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitors were underpinned using drug-likeness parameters. A comparison of the binding affinities demonstrated that the MM/GBSA binding energies of the identified flavone analogs were approximately three and two times less than those of lopinavir and baicalein, respectively. In conclusion, PubChem-129-716-607 and PubChem-885-071-27 are promising anti-COVID-19 drug candidates that warrant further clinical investigations.

Validation of sars-cov-2 serological essay, bahrain experience

Background: The standard test for diagnosing Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test. Since the start of the pandemic, there has been a rush in the development of tests that can detect the presence of antibodies produced by COVID-19 cases as a response to the exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Objective: To evaluate the validity of the serology tests for detecting SARS-CoV-2 protective IgG antibodies. Design: Cross-Sectional Prospective Study. Setting: COVID-19 Testing and Caring Facilities, Kingdom of Bahrain. Method: From 22 June to 1 July 2020, healthcare workers, non-national laborers, symptomatic and asymptomatic patients were included in the study. All patients underwent PCR and serology tests. The presence of IgG antibodies among participants were measured. The sensitivity and specificity of the serology tests were evaluated. Result: Three hundred eighty-eight participants were included in the study, the mean age was 40±13 years. Two-hundred thirty-two (59.7%) were males and 242 (62.3%) were Bahrainis. Seventy-three (18.8%) were healthcare workers, 87 (22.4%) were non-national laborers, 109 (28.1%) were symptomatic and 119 (30.7%) were asymptomatic. One hundred sixty-four (42.2%) participants were COVID-19 positive. Ninety-six (24.7%) had a positive serology test with IgG level >1.4. The sensitivity of the serology test at <7 days was 28% (CI: 19.4%-38.4%), at 7-13 days was 77.8% (CI: 60.9%-89.9%) and >14 days was 84.4% (CI: 67.2%-94.7%). The specificity of the test was 93.3% (CI: 89.2%-96.2%). Conclusion: The sensitivity of the serology test to detect the IgG antibodies 14 days after testing positive with COVID-19 was 84% and the specificity was 93.3%. The result supports the use of the test in a serosurvey study. © 2020, Bahrain Medical Bulletin. All rights reserved.