SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Induces Enhanced Mucosal Interferon Response Compared to other Variants of Concern, Associated with Restricted Replication in Human Lung Tissues.

SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant has been characterized by decreased clinical severity, raising the question of whether early variant-specific interactions within the mucosal surfaces of the respiratory tract could mediate its attenuated pathogenicity. Here, we employed ex vivo infection of native human nasal and lung tissues to investigate the local-mucosal susceptibility and innate immune response to Omicron compared to Delta and earlier SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOC). We show that the replication of Omicron in lung tissues is highly restricted compared to other VOC, whereas it remains relatively unchanged in nasal tissues. Mechanistically, Omicron induced a much stronger antiviral interferon response in infected tissues compared to Delta and earlier VOC-a difference, which was most striking in the lung tissues, where the innate immune response to all other SARS-CoV-2 VOC was blunted. Notably, blocking the innate immune signaling restored Omicron replication in the lung tissues. Our data provide new insights to the reduced lung involvement and clinical severity of Omicron.

Telepsychiatry for Patients with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder During the COVID-19 Outbreak.

Purpose: The novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, emerged from Wuhan, China, causing a pandemic. Access to outpatient psychiatric care was limited. We conducted a pilot study of telepsychiatry during a national shutdown. Adult patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) participated via Zoom. Patient preference comparing televisits to face-to-face visits was assessed. Recent findings: Telemedicine has emerged as new technological tool in the evolution of the patient-physician relationship, changing the way we interact. Physicians and patients now have access to the electronic medical record, remote point-of-care testing, and each other. The present epidemic allows us to test the limits of technology in combating limited access to care for patients with psychiatric illness. Summary: Twenty (90% male) patients with PTSD participated. Most (90 %) were moderately to severely depressed, and 50% used medical cannabis and increased their dosage during the study period. Patients preferred face-to-face meetings for its ease of use (p < .01) and general satisfaction from therapy (p < .01). However, given continued outbreak-limiting access to care, most patients stated they would continue with telepsychiatry. While most patients preferred face-to-face visits, telepsychiatry can be used during times of outbreak-limiting access to care. Future research and development should be directed at improving technological ease of use.

Homeopathic Treatment for COVID-19-Related Symptoms: A Case Series.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute respiratory syndrome due to coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) is a novel infectious disease, which has quickly developed into a pandemic. The spectrum of COVID-19 symptoms is broad, ranging from a mild, self-limiting respiratory tract illness to severe progressive pneumonia, multi-organ failure and possible death. Despite much effort and multiple clinical trials, there are, to date, no specific therapeutic agents to treat or cure the coronavirus infection. CASE REPORTS: The present paper presents 5 cases of patients with moderate to severe COVID-19 infections, 2 of them hospitalized in the intensive care unit, who were successfully treated with homeopathy. RESULTS: All 5 patients responded to homeopathic treatment in an unexpectedly short time span, improving both physically and mentally. CONCLUSION: The present case series emphasizes the rapidity of response among moderate to severely ill patients to homeopathic treatment, when conventional medical options have been unable to relieve or shorten the disease. The observations described should encourage use of homeopathy in treating patients with COVID-19 during the acute phase of the disease.

Adjunctive homeopathic treatment of hospitalized COVID-19 patients (COVIHOM): A retrospective case series.

BACKGROUND: and purpose. COVID-19 is a novel viral disease causing worldwide pandemia. The aim of this study was to describe the effect of adjunctive individualized homeopathic treatment delivered to hospitalized patients with confirmed symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. PATIENT PRESENTATION: Thirteen patients with COVID-19 were admitted. Mean age was 73.4 ± 15.0 (SD) years. Twelve (92.3%) were speedily discharged without relevant sequelae after 14.4 ± 8.9 days. A single patient admitted in an advanced stage of septic disease died in hospital. A time-dependent improvement of relevant clinical symptoms was observed in the 12 surviving patients. Six (46.2%) were critically ill and treated in the intensive care unit (ICU). Mean stay at the ICU of the 5 surviving patients was 18.8 ± 6.8 days. In six patients (46.2%) gastrointestinal disorders accompanied COVID-19. CONCLUSION: The observations suggest that adjunctive homeopathic treatment may be helpful to treat patients with confirmed COVID-19 even in high - risk patients especially since there is no conventional treatment of COVID-19 available at present.

Human Nasal and Lung Tissues Infected Ex Vivo with SARS-CoV-2 Provide Insights into Differential Tissue-Specific and Virus-Specific Innate Immune Responses in the Upper and Lower Respiratory Tract.

The nasal mucosa constitutes the primary entry site for respiratory viruses, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). While the imbalanced innate immune response of end-stage coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been extensively studied, the earliest stages of SARS-CoV-2 infection at the mucosal entry site have remained unexplored. Here, we employed SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus infection in native multi-cell-type human nasal turbinate and lung tissues ex vivo, coupled with genome-wide transcriptional analysis, to investigate viral susceptibility and early patterns of local mucosal innate immune response in the authentic milieu of the human respiratory tract. SARS-CoV-2 productively infected the nasal turbinate tissues, predominantly targeting respiratory epithelial cells, with a rapid increase in tissue-associated viral subgenomic mRNA and secretion of infectious viral progeny. Importantly, SARS-CoV-2 infection triggered robust antiviral and inflammatory innate immune responses in the nasal mucosa. The upregulation of interferon-stimulated genes, cytokines, and chemokines, related to interferon signaling and immune-cell activation pathways, was broader than that triggered by influenza virus infection. Conversely, lung tissues exhibited a restricted innate immune response to SARS-CoV-2, with a conspicuous lack of type I and III interferon upregulation, contrasting with their vigorous innate immune response to influenza virus. Our findings reveal differential tissue-specific innate immune responses in the upper and lower respiratory tracts that are specific to SARS-CoV-2. The studies shed light on the role of the nasal mucosa in active viral transmission and immune defense, implying a window of opportunity for early interventions, whereas the restricted innate immune response in early-SARS-CoV-2-infected lung tissues could underlie the unique uncontrolled late-phase lung damage of advanced COVID-19. IMPORTANCE In order to reduce the late-phase morbidity and mortality of COVID-19, there is a need to better understand and target the earliest stages of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the human respiratory tract. Here, we have studied the initial steps of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the consequent innate immune responses within the natural multicellular complexity of human nasal mucosal and lung tissues. Comparing the global innate response patterns of nasal and lung tissues infected in parallel with SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus, we found distinct virus-host interactions in the upper and lower respiratory tract, which could determine the outcome and unique pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Studies in the nasal mucosal infection model can be employed to assess the impact of viral evolutionary changes and evaluate new therapeutic and preventive measures against SARS-CoV-2 and other human respiratory pathogens.

The Hydra-Headed Coronaviruses: Implications of COVID-19 for Homeopathy.

Successful homeopathic prescriptions are based on careful individualization of symptoms, either for an individual patient or collectively in the case of epidemic outbreaks. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic was initially represented as a severe acute respiratory illness, with eventual dramatic complications. However, over time it revealed to be a complex systemic disease with manifestations derived from viral-induced inflammation and hypercoagulability, thus liable to affect any body organ or system. As a result, clinical presentation is variable, in addition to variations associated with several individual and collective risk factors. Given the extreme variability of pathology and clinical manifestations, a single, or a few, universal homeopathic preventive Do not split medicine(s) do not seem feasible. Yet homeopathy may have a relevant role to play, inasmuch as the vast majority of patients only exhibit the mild form of disease and are indicated to self-care at home, without standard monitoring, follow-up, or treatment. For future pandemics, homeopathy agencies should prepare by establishing rapid-response teams and efficacious lines of communication.

Will We Miss the Opportunity Again?

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by a new coronavirus, first appeared in late 2019. What initially seemed to be a mild influenza quickly revealed itself as a serious and highly contagious disease, and the planet was soon faced with a significant morbidity and mortality associated with this pathogen. For homeopathy, shunned during its 200 years of existence by conventional medicine, this outbreak is a key opportunity to show potentially the contribution it can make in treating COVID-19 patients. This should be done through performance of impeccably controlled, prospective, randomized clinical trials, with publication of their findings in well-ranked conventional medicine journals. If the homeopathy community fails to take advantage of this rare opportunity, it might wait another century for the next major pandemic.