The pathogenicity of COVID-19 and the role of pentraxin-3: An updated review study.

In recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic has become one of the most crucial scientific issues in the world, and efforts to eradicate the disease are still ongoing. The acute inflammatory reaction associated with this disease is associated with several complications such as cytokine storm, multiple organ damage, lung fibrosis, and blood clots. PTX3, as part of the humoral innate immune systems, is one of the acute-phase proteins that perform various functions, such as modulating inflammation, repairing tissue, and recruiting immune cells. PTX3 is increased in people with SARS-CoV-2, and its level decreases with proper treatment. Therefore, it can be regarded as a suitable marker for the prognosis of the COVID-19 and evaluating the effectiveness of the treatment method applied. However, some studies have shown that PTX3 can be a double-edged sword and develop tumors by providing an immunosuppressive environment.

Combined therapy with ivermectin and doxycycline can effectively alleviate the cytokine storm of COVID-19 infection amid vaccination drive: A narrative review.

An unprecedented global health crisis has developed due to the emergence of the mysterious coronavirus-2 of the severe acute respiratory syndrome, which has resulted in millions of deaths around the globe, as no therapy could control the 'cytokine storm'. Consequently, many vaccines have been developed and several others are being developed for this infection. Although most of the approved vaccines have been highly effective, many developing, and economically poor countries are still deprived of vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 due to the unequal distribution of vaccines worldwide. Furthermore, the uncertainty about the effectiveness of the available vaccines against the emerging mutants and variants also remains a matter of concern. Due to the multistep pathogenesis and unique features, combination therapy using safe immunomodulatory and antiviral drugs should be considered as the most effective and acceptable therapeutic regimen for this infection. Based on a thorough assessment of the literature, it was determined that it would be interesting to study the therapeutic potential of ivermectin and doxycycline, given their roles in several biological pathways involved in SARS CoV-2 pathogenesis. Following that, a comprehensive literature search was undertaken using Scopus, Web of Science, and Pubmed, depending on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The present study provides a mechanism and comprehensive report, highlighting the role of combined therapy with ivermectin and doxycycline in alleviating the 'cytokine storm' of COVID-19 infection.

Systemic Risk Measures and Regulatory Challenges

This paper discusses different definitions of systemic risk and identifies the challenges regulators face in addressing this phenomenon. We conducted a systematic literature review of 4,859 s to categorise the various methodologies developed to measure systemic risk. In total, 60 systemic risk measures proposed post-2000 have been critically appraised to inform academics and regulators of their practical applications and model vulnerabilities. This review suggests that most of these methods focus on individual financial institutions rather than system stability. Those methodologies directly reflect the current regulations, which aim to ensure individual institutions’ soundness. As macro-prudential regulation evolves, policy-makers face the issues of understanding contagion and how regulations should be implemented. This paper also discusses new systemic risk and regulatory challenges resulting from the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Withdrawal Notice: Fatal Outcomes from COVID-19 in Diabetes Patients and its Management: Impact of Diabetes and Other Comorbidities in COVID-19

The article has been withdrawn at the request of the authors and editor of the journal Current Diabetes Reviews, due to incoherent content.Bentham Science apologizes to the readers of the journal for any inconvenience this may have caused.The Bentham Editorial Policy on Article Withdrawal can be found at https://benthamscience.com/editorial-policies-main.php. BENTHAM SCIENCE DISCLAIMER: It is a condition of publication that manuscripts submitted to this journal have not been published and will not be simultaneously submitted or published elsewhere. Furthermore, any data, illustration, structure or table that has been published elsewhere must be reported, and copyright permission for reproduction must be obtained. Plagiarism is strictly forbidden, and by submit-ting the article for publication the authors agree that the publishers have the legal right to take appropriate action against the authors, if plagiarism or fabricated information is discovered. By submitting a manuscript, the authors agree that the copyright of their article is transferred to the publishers if and when the article is accepted for publication.

Impact of nationwide lockdown on cancer care during COVID-19 pandemic: A retrospective analysis from western India.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: COVID-19 has impacted healthcare system worldwide including cancer case. Aim of this study was to describe the experience of lockdown on cancer care concerning patient's visit and reception of treatment in western India. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study conducted in patients with cancer attending a tertiary care center pre-lockdown and during lockdown (from January to May 2020). Data related to demographic parameters, type of tumor, type of treatment received and functional status of patients were retrieved from hospital medical records of patients. RESULTS: Of the 5258 patients included, 4363 visited hospital pre-lockdown (median age, 50 years) and 895 visited during the lockdown period (median age, 47 years). A total of 1168 and 106 patients visiting hospital before and during lockdown, respectively, had comorbidities. Breast cancer (25.6% and 29.7%), head and neck cancer (21.3% and 16.9%) were the most common type of solid tumors; leukemia (58.0% and 73.0%), lymphoma (18.8% and 13.5%) and multiple myeloma (18.6% and 12.2%) were the most common type of hematological malignancies observed in patients visiting pre-lockdown and during lockdown, respectively. Chemotherapy was most commonly received treatment (pre-lockdown, 71.8%; during lockdown, 45.9%). Other therapies reported includes supportive/palliative, targeted, hormonal, and immunotherapy. The majority of patients who visited the hospital pre-lockdown (68.4%) and during lockdown (62.8%) had 0 or 1 Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score. CONCLUSION: Overall observations highlight a substantial impact of an imposed nationwide lockdown during COVID-19 pandemic on cancer care of patients in terms of reduced patient visits and number of treatments received.