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The coronavirus outbreak has resulted in unprecedented measures, forcing authorities to make decisions related to establishing lockdowns in areas most affected by the pandemic. Social Media have supported people during this difficult time. On November 9, 2020, when the first vaccine with an efficacy rate over 90% was announced, social media reacted and people around the world began to express their feelings about this vaccination. This paper aims to analyze the dynamics of opinion on COVID-19 vaccination, in which the civil society is highly manifested in the vaccination process. We compared classical machine learning algorithms to select the best performing classifier. 4,392 tweets were collected and analyzed. The proposed approach can help governments create and evaluate appropriate communication tools to provide clear and relevant information to the general public, increasing public confidence in vaccination campaigns. © 2022 Copyright for this paper by its authors.
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Ionizable amino lipids are a major constituent of the lipid nanoparticles for delivering nucleic acid therapeutics (e.g., DLin-MC3-DMA in ONPATTRO , ALC-0315 in Comirnaty , SM-102 in Spikevax ). Scarcity of lipids that are suitable for cell therapy, vaccination, and gene therapies continue to be a problem in advancing many potential diagnostic/therapeutic/vaccine candidates to the clinic. Herein, we describe the development of novel ionizable lipids to be used as functional excipients for designing vehicles for nucleic acid therapeutics/vaccines in vivo or ex vivo use in cell therapy applications. We first studied the transfection efficiency (TE) of LNP-based mRNA formulations of these ionizable lipid candidates in primary human T cells and established a workflow for engineering of primary immune T cells. We then adapted this workflow towards bioengineering of CAR constructs to T cells towards non-viral CAR T therapy. Lipids were also tested in rodents for vaccine applications using self-amplifying RNA (saRNA) encoding various antigens. We have then evaluated various ionizable lipid candidates and their biodistribution along with the mRNA/DNA translation exploration using various LNP compositions. Further, using ionizable lipids from the library, we have shown gene editing of various targets in rodents. We believe that these studies will pave the path to the advancement in nucleic acid based therapeutics and vaccines, or cell gene therapy agents for early diagnosis and detection of cancer, and for targeted genomic medicines towards cancer treatment and diagnosis.
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Background: The COVID-19 outbreak in 2019 has presented in the form of pneumonia of unknown etiology in Wuhan. The complete clinical profile including the prevalence of different clinical symptoms of COVID-19 infection among Indian patients who develop a severe disease is largely unknown. This study is aimed to provide a detailed clinical characterization of the cohort of patients who visited our institute with signs and symptoms of COVID-19. Material(s) and Method(s): This was for inpatient hospital (inpatient) based prospective cohort study involving 520 COVID-19 patients admitted to the hospital. The adverse outcome included death and mechanical ventilation. Result(s): Total 520 participants enrolled in the study, (6.9%) participants died, (8.3%) participants required ICU and (5.5%) participants required mechanical ventilation. only signs and symptoms suggestive of severe respiratory system involvement or widespread infection were associated with adverse outcomes, T presence of dyspnoea, cyanosis and hypoxia. The most common chronic disease among patients with adverse outcomes were diabetes, hypertension and pre-existing respiratory disease, personal habit both smoking, and alcoholism was also associated with adverse clinical outcome. Conclusion(s): The adverse clinical outcome among COVID-19 patients is determined by several factors including advanced age, multi-morbidities, and the presence of severe respiratory symptoms.Copyright © 2023, Dr Yashwant Research Labs Pvt Ltd. All rights reserved.
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COVID-19 onslaught has led to widespread morbidity and mortality globally. Another major concern, especially in developing countries like India, has been the development of fungal superinfection and colonization of other pathogens in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Even though an armamentarium of repurposed, antiviral, anticytokine, and antifungal drugs is available to manage the disease progression, no single drug and/or therapy has provided positive clinical outcomes with efficacy and affordability. Therefore, it is imperative to explore innovative approaches for standalone treatment and/or adjunct therapeutic regimes based on our current understanding of disease prognosis. Low-income and emerging economies have less resources to protect themselves against the COVID-19-induced health and economic crisis. With the continuously evolving nature of coronavirus, a cost-effective strain independent mechanism that could be delivered easily even in a nonhealthcare setting is an urgent need of the hour. Methylene blue appears an apt candidate as it is an FDA-approved safe drug that is economically viable and easily available. Since MB has a long-standing history of being used in clinical setup for diverse medical applications and possesses intrinsic anti-inflammatory, anticytokine, and antifungal properties, this study analyzes prospects of its use in the management of COVID-19. Paradox and prospects of MB applications for the management of COVID-19, with or without fungal superinfections, are also discussed. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023.
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Nanofibers are a type of nanomaterial with a diameter ranging from ten to a few hundred nanometers with a high surface-to-volume ratio and porosity. They can build a network of high-porosity material with excellent connectivity within the pores, making them a preferred option for numerous applications. This review explores nanofibers from the synthesis techniques to fabricate nanofibers, with an emphasis on the technological applications of nanofibers like water and air filtration, photovoltaics, batteries and fuel cells, gas sensing, photocatalysis, and biomedical applications like wound dressing and drug delivery. The nanofiber production market has an expected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6% and should reach around 26 million US $ in 2026. The limitations and potential opportunities for large-scale applications of nano-fibrous membranes are also discussed. We expect this review could provide enriched information to better understand Electrospun Polymer Nanofiber Technology and recent advances in this field. © 2023 Bentham Science Publishers.
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Background: Ever since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, physicians started investigating the clinical features and lab markers that can assist in predicting the outcome among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Aim(s): This study aimed to investigate the association between initial chest CT scan findings and adverse outcomes of COVID-19. Material(s) and Method(s): This was a single centre;hospital (inpatient) based prospective cohort study involving 497 COVID-19 patients admitted to the hospital. The adverse outcome included death and mechanical ventilation. We collected data about 14 identifiable parameters available for the HRCT scan. Result(s): Among 14 studied parameters, only 8 features differed significantly among the patients who had favourable and unfavourable outcomes. These features included number of lobes of lungs involved (3 versus 5, p = 0.008), CT Severity score (16 versus 20, p = 0.004), air bronchogram (p=0.003), crazy paving (p=0.029), consolidation (p=0.021), and pleural effusion (p=0.026). We observed that high CT scores coupled with the diffuse distribution of lung lesions were responsible for poor prognosis in most patients. Conclusion(s): Several features of HRCT when combined can accurately predict adverse outcomes among participants and help in triaging the patient for admission in ICU.Copyright © 2023, Dr Yashwant Research Labs Pvt Ltd. All rights reserved.
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Coronaviruses is a broad group of viruses that has the potential to cause mild or severe respiratory infections. Currently, there is no specific treatment for the treatment of COVID-19. The symptomatic treatment is generally given on case-to-case basis along with basic life supportive measures for management of COVID-19. There is an acute urgency of evaluating the pre-existing drugs to develop a convincing treatment for COVID-19 or at least to reduce its severity. 2-DG being inhibitor of both glycolysis and glycosylation appears as a promising therapeutic option. In the present chapter, the rationale of repurposing of 2-DG as a potential treatment option for the management of COVID-19 has been discussed. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023.
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Introduction: SARS-CoV-2 replicates primarily in the airways but generates a systemic immune response mediated by Type I interferons (IFN-I). Pernio is a rare skin manifestation of disorders characterized by excessive IFN-I signalling. Although pernio increased in incidence during the pandemic, the relationship to SARS-CoV-2 remains controversial. Because of the pivotal nature of interferons in COVID-19 outcomes, pernio offers a window to investigate the biology underlying host resiliency to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Method(s): To further assess COVID-associated pernio, we characterized clinical samples from affected patients across 4 waves of the pandemic and investigated mechanistic feasibility in a rodent model. Patients were followed longitudinally with banking of blood and tissue. Golden hamsters were mock-treated or intra-nasally infected with SARS-CoV-2 and harvested at 3-and 30-days post-infection. Result(s): In affected tissue, immunophenotyping utilizing multiplex immunohistochemistry profiled a robust IFN-1 signature characterized by plasmacytoid dendritic cell activation. Viral RNA was detectable in a subset of cases using in situ hybridization for the SARS-CoV-2 S gene transcript. Profiling of the systemic immune response did not reveal a durable type 1 interferon signature. Consistent with previous literature, antibody and T-cell specific responses to SARS-CoV-2 were not detected. Nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 inoculation in hamsters resulted in rapid dissemination of viral RNA and the generation of an IFN-I response that were both detectable in the paws of infected animals. Conclusion(s): Our data support a durable local IFN signature, with direct evidence of viral SARS-CoV-2 RNA in acral skin and suggest that COVID-associated pernio results from an abortive, seronegative SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a highly contagious infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has had a devastating effect on world demographics and emerged as a significant global health emergency since the influenza pandemic of 1918. It emphasized the significance of international cooperation in battling SARS-CoV-2 efficiently ever since the discovery and publication of the virus's genome in January 2020. The world took significant steps to combat the disease, ranging from increasing personal protective equipment production and emphasizing the importance of social distancing/masking to the Emergency Use Authorization of remdesivir/therapeutic antibodies. Despite significant advances in clinical research that have led to a better understanding of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 management, limiting the virus's and its variants' spread, has become a growing concern as SARS-CoV-2 continues to cause chaos around the world, with many countries experiencing a second or third wave of outbreaks attributed primarily due to the emergence of mutant virus variants. Considering the potential threat of this global outbreak, scientist and medics have rushed to identify possible treatment regimens and effective therapeutic drugs and vaccinations. As a matter of fact, several COVID-19 vaccines candidate have been researched, created, tested, and reviewed at a breakneck pace. Finding patents, examining relevant patents for current research activities and assessing them plays a key part for the best possible research and development before establishing and executing a trading strategy, especially with recent technology advancements. Therefore, to support current research and development we have evaluated patents relevant to various COVID-19 vaccine technology platforms. The aim of the present research work is to map the existing work through an analysis of patent literature in the field of Coronaviruses, particularly COVID-19 vaccines which will subsequently help the organization launch campaigns, as well as academics and research-driven institutions with the aid of patent literature information for a range of initiatives to combat this circulating demon.
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The occurrence of Cryptosporidium species infection and its risk factors in neonatal goats is less explored. Also it is due to the fact that diseases like colibacillosis and neonatal viral enteritis complex caused by Group A rotaviruses and Bovine corona viruses can co-exist with Cryptosporidium and can lead to mixed infections and the latter is often overlooked. Therefore, in the current research we explored the cryptosporidial occurrence in neonatal goats of Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. In this study, a total of 644 faecal samples were collected from neonatal goats at different villages and certain organized farms of Mathura district age-wise, season-wise and breed-wise, and were examined for Cryptosporidium based on modified Ziehl-Neelsen technique, conventional 18SSU rRNA nested PCR assay. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection in goats based on microscopy was 36.80% (237/644;p value <0.0001) and 18SSU rRNA nested PCR 52.95% (341/644;p value <0.0001) respectively. Cryptosporidium species typing was also done using 18SSU rRNA nested PCR-RFLP product using enzymes Mbo-II, Ssp-I and Vsp-I, which revealed species including C. parvum C. bovis, C. ryanae, C. hominis and C. andersoni. Also the infection was clinically associated based on age, gender and seasons to identify the causal relationships that precipitate the cryptosporidial infection in goat kids. Since mZN microscopy based screening requires expertise and may sometimes be confuse with other weak acid fast bodies and also due to low sensitivity, combination of diagnostic tests are used in this study to identify the best test combination that yields best statistical fit in terms of kappa-agreement and McNemar's test. Cryptosporidiosis is caused by an enteric protozoan parasite and the first report in sheep and goat was observed in early 1980s, with other important etiological agents for neonatal diarrhoea, mortality and morbidity in neonatal kids and lambs, responsible for economic losses.Copyright © 2023 Indian Veterinary Assocaition. All rights reserved.
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Introduction: The clinical outcomes of COVID-19 infection in children with cancer have been variable worldwide. Therefore, we aimed to collect data from all regions in India through a national collaborative study and identify factors that cause mortality directly related to COVID-19 infection. Method(s): Data was collected prospectively on children across India on cancer therapy and diagnosed with COVID-19 infections from 47 centers from April 2020 to October 2021. Information was recorded on the demographics, the number of children that required intervention, and the outcome of the infection. In addition, we analyzed the impact of the delta variant in 2021. Result(s): A total of 659 children were studied, of whom 64% were male and 36% were female. The data from the eastern region was sparse, and this was a collection bias. COVID-19 infection was predominantly seen in children less than five years. The delta variant had a higher impact in the southern region, and this was statistically significant. Of the 659 children, 30 children died (4.5%), however only 7 of the deaths were directly attributed to COVID-19 infection (1%). Conclusion(s): The study reports the largest nationally representative cohort of children with cancer and COVID-19 to date in India. We identified demographic and clinical factors associated with increased all-cause mortality in patients with cancer. Complete characterization of the cohort has provided further insights into the effects of COVID-19 on cancer outcomes. The low mortality allows us to recommend that specific cancer treatments be continued without delays in therapy.Copyright © 2022
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The recent studies have indicated the requisite of computed tomography scan analysis by radiologists extensively to find out the suspected patients of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). The existing deep learning methods distribute one or more of the subsequent bottlenecks. Therefore, a straight forward method for detecting COVID-19 infection using real-world computed tomography scans is presented. The detection process consists of image processing techniques such as segmentation of lung parenchyma and extraction of effective texture features. The kernel-based support vector machine is employed over feature vectors for classification. The performance parameters of the proposed method are calculated and compared with the existing methodology on the same dataset. The classification results are found outperforming and the method is less probabilistic which can be further exploited for developing more realistic detection system.Copyright © 2023 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.
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Case Report: West Nile Virus (WNV) was first isolated from the West Nile district of Northern Uganda in 1937, but was first detected in the United States well over half a century later in 1999. The arthropod-borne virus has since persisted, with 2,401 cases reported to the CDC on average annually. The infection typically causes a nonspecific acute systemic febrile illness with occasional gastrointestinal and skin manifestations;however, in less than 1% of infected patients, it can cause severe and potentially fatal neuroinvasive disease, presenting as meningitis, encephalitis or acute flaccid paralysis. Immunosuppression is one of the risk factors associated with the development of neuroinvasive disease, and chemotherapy thus places patients at risk. Uterine leiomyosarcoma is a rare gynecological malignancy. Palliative chemotherapy is common in late stage disease, but may predispose patients to conditions that present as neutropenic fever, leading to a diagnostic conundrum. This is the first case report where patient with neutropenic fever was found to have West Nile neuroinvasive disease, so it is important to include West Nile disease in the differential diagnosis. Case Description: This is a case of a 45-year-old female with history of diabetes, hypothyroidism and recently diagnosed uterine leiomyosarcoma status post tumor debulking with metastasis on palliative chemotherapy with gemcitabine that presented to the Emergency Room for a fever of 103.8 degrees Fahrenheit. Given the history of advanced leiomyosarcoma, the patient was admitted for neutropenic fever with an absolute neutrophil count of 1000. During the hospitalization, the patient became acutely altered and confused. CT head without contrast and lumbar puncture were performed. Due to clinical suspicion of meningitis, she was started on broad spectrum antibiotics. Lumbar puncture revealed leukocytosis of 168 with lymphocytic predominance and elevated protein level in the cerebrospinal fluid, therefore acyclovir was started due to high suspicion of viral meningoencephalitis. An EEG showed severe diffuse encephalopathy as the patient was persistently altered. A broad workup of infectious etiology was considered including HIV, syphilis, hepatitis A, B, C, COVID-19, adenovirus, pertussis, influenza, WNV, HHV6, coccidiomycosis, aspergillus, and tuberculosis. Patient was ultimately found to have elevated IgM and IgG titers for West Nile Virus. Discussion(s): It is important to consider a broad spectrum of diagnosis in patients with metastatic carcinoma presenting with new-onset fever and acute encephalopathy. This includes working up for other causes of altered mental status including cardiac, neurologic, psychiatric, endocrine, metabolic, electrolyte, drug, and infectious etiology. While uncommon in the healthy population, WNV encephalitis should be on the radar for any patient who is immunocompromised or on immunosuppressive therapy, especially those who present with a neutropenic fever.
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Rivers are our country's lifeline;however, we have done enough destruction to them which leads to deterioration in water quality. Fortunately, COVID-19 lockdown has brought new life to nature. This encouraged us to outline present review article which discusses pilot impacts of lockdown on six Indian rivers. Few rivers including Ganga showed major improvement at few sites in the assessed parameters such as pH, BOD, DO, FC, etc. The Ganga water at Haridwar and Rishikesh was investigated `fit for drinking' (Class A) while at Kanpur was found fit for `outdoor bathing' (Class B). These improvements can be attributed to strict restriction on human activities during lockdown as there were no or minimum industrial discharge, tourism activities, mass bathing and commercial events near rivers. However, after upliftment of lockdown, these activities will return to their previous state and most likely pollutants will eventually reappear in the water bodies. So, in this review we have reviewed government's existing water pollution control schemes, analysed their limitations and recommended several scopes for improvement. Further research directions in this area have also been highlighted. We believe that plans and actions described in the article, if implemented, will lead to fruitful outcomes in managing water resources.
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Technology is being leveraged worldwide to deliver services to citizens in all domains, including healthcare. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed everyone to embrace digital transformation and reconsider current healthcare trends. In response to the emerging need for digitization of healthcare in India, the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission was launched in September 2021. It creates and uses Digital Public Goods in increasing the availability, accessibility, affordability and acceptability of health care through different building blocks. The purpose of this mission is to establish a national digital health ecosystem that is integrated, effective and inclusive. The interoperable frameworks, open protocols and consent artefact enable citizens, public and private healthcare providers, digital innovations and other stakeholders to come together and drive equitable digitization of healthcare across the country.
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Purpose: The main objective of the present research is to depict the experience of challenges and opportunities for virtual accreditation peer review team (PRT) visits. COVID-19 has changed higher education delivery. Higher education accreditation and PRT visits have become online. The lockdown forced schools and accreditation agencies to cancel or change visit arrangements. PRT visits could not be stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic, but accrediting agencies needed to review programme quality to meet standards. Design/methodology/approach: Eight former and present accreditation specialists were interviewed. The researchers described the challenges and opportunities in virtual accreditation visits (VAV). Also, the authors have explained their own experience of coordinating on-site and virtual accreditation visits. Using the NVIVO tool, the experts' replies are transcribed and categorised as challenges and opportunities. Findings: The findings will help the professionals and academicians better prepare for, plan and execute virtual PRT visits for accreditation agencies and schools. The results revealed that the evaluation and accreditation outcomes are similar for virtual and physical accreditation visits. Finally, the findings suggest that accreditation agencies and schools need to adopt a hybrid site visit model for accreditation visits. Practical implications: The school can prepare better for virtual PRT visits by identifying the challenges and opportunities ahead of time. The finding may motivate authorities to schedule meetings in different time zones, prepare document evidence rooms, save money, time, and travel time, and benefit the environment by eliminating paper printing, fuel use, and paper printing. Originality/value: This research is unique and noteworthy since accreditation organisations, PRT members and schools are uncertain about virtual visits. This may be the first paper in this domain to assist accreditation organisations and institutions review accreditation visits online or in hybrid mode. © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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Candidemia is the most common recorded invasive fungal infection worldwide. During the last couple of years, the world has been struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus (SARS-CoV-2), during which an increase in the incidence of candidemia and Candida auris cases were reported by several researchers. This study aimed to address how the entire landscape evolved during the downslide of the COVID-19 pandemic over the study period that spanned five years, including the pre-pandemic, peak, and waning of the COVID-19 pandemic. This retrospective observational study was conducted on a cohort of 1450 tertiary care cases in a University hospital in Jaipur, India, from July, 2017 to November, 2021. During the study period, all blood cultures of the suspected sepsis cases were screened for candidemia. Identification and antifungal susceptibility testing of Candida isolates were carried out using the standard assays. A consistent increase in the prevalence of candidemia has been observed during the current study period. Despite this, the prevalence of Non albicans Candida has remained almost steady. A sharp increase in C. auris candidemia during the COVID-19 pandemic was observed. The waning of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought the epidemiology of candidemia back to the pre-pandemic times, and C. tropicalis has become the predominant clinical isolate again. There is a slight fall in resistance to fluconazole. Echinocandins, which is considered as a remedy till few years back, has also showed first signs of emerging resistance in patients attending to Mahatma Gandhi University of Medical Sciences & Technology (MGUMST), Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. Due to the extreme overlapping of the associated disease/ risk factors observed between COVID-19 and candidemia, these two disease entities have definitely influenced the epidemiology of each other's. However, how the landscape will evolve in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic is yet to be detected. © 2022, Egyptian Association for Medical Mycologists (EAMM). All rights reserved.
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Health is an indispensable part of human life, but we realize its importance when we face health issues. Technology can play an important role in the healthcare sector. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries used technology to control the situation. Internet of Things-based wearable devices can change the whole scenario of diagnosing the disease. The physiological features collected using wearables can be used for pre-symptomatic prediction of disease. In this study, from the cohort of 185 participants, data of 36 participants are analyzed to predict COVID-19 before symptoms begin using the machine learning model. Our findings suggest that heart rate, BPM, SDNN, and steps features can be used to detect the COVID-19 before the symptoms appear. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
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Technology is being leveraged worldwide to deliver services to citizens in all domains, including healthcare. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed everyone to embrace digital transformation and reconsider current healthcare trends. In response to the emerging need for digitization of healthcare in India, the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission was launched in September 2021. It creates and uses Digital Public Goods in increasing the availability, accessibility, affordability and acceptability of health care through different building blocks. The purpose of this mission is to establish a national digital health ecosystem that is integrated, effective and inclusive. The interoperable frameworks, open protocols and consent artefact enable citizens, public and private healthcare providers, digital innovations and other stakeholders to come together and drive equitable digitization of healthcare across the country.
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Background: Medical students are at higher risk of adverse mental health outcomes, with higher risk of developing substance & behavioural addictions which stem from maladaptive coping behaviours to stress. Considering the dearth in literature regarding internet addiction in this population, this study was undertaken to understand its associations with various psychological determinants. Methodology: An online survey was conducted among undergraduates at a government medical college using snowballing technique for sampling during COVID pandemic. Assessment tools included Young's Internet Addiction Test, WHO ASSIST V 3.0, DASS-21, MSPSS, UCLA Loneliness Scale, fear of Coronavirus-19 scale and 2 others. The objectives were to estimate prevalence of problematic internet usage, internet addiction with compulsive substance abuse in this population and to assess its psychological determinants. Data was analysed using SPSS v27.0 Grad Pack. Result(s): Of the 106 study participants, 40 (37.7%) screened positive for moderate to severe internet addiction. Internet addiction was found to have significant positive association with tobacco use (p=0.04), depression (0.03) & stress (p=0.03) significant negative association with perceived social support from family (p=0.02) and friends (p=0.038). Stepwise multiple linear regression was done to derive predictive model which included substance use, fear of COVID perceived social support and time management & performance domain;that explained 78.5% change in internet addiction. Conclusion(s): The findings suggest significant co-occurrence of substance & behavioural addictions which speaks to common vulnerabilities underlying addictions. The identification of risk factors for internet addiction will help screening & their redressal may influence the outcomes in vulnerable individuals. Keyword: Internet addiction, risk factors, medical students, COVID-19.