Seroepidemiology of pertussis in the east of China: Estimates of incidence of infection in adolescents and adults pre- and post-COVID-19.

Introduction: The dramatic decrease in the number of reported cases of pertussis during COVID-19 pandemic has been underestimated. The objective was to compare the estimated incidence rate of pertussis in populations pre- and post-COVID-19 pandemic by analyzing the anti-pertussis toxin (anti-PT) IgG and anti-filamentous hemagglutininant (anti-FHA) IgG antibodies in healthy Chinese population from 2018 to 2021. Methods: All serum samples (N = 1,000) were collected from healthy population (aged ≥ 15 years) who attended an annual monitoring project of antibody levels in Jiangsu province in 2018-2021 were measured by ELISA. Results: The positive rates of anti-PT IgG and anti-FHA IgG antibodies were 11.4% (114/1,000) and 20.2% (202/1,000) (≥40 IU/ml), the GMC were 17.25 (95% CI: 15.49-19.03) IU/mL and 24.94 (95% CI: 22.73-27.16) IU/mL in the study population, respectively. The percentage of participants with anti-PT IgG antibodies higher than 40 IU/mL was 5.20% (11/212) in 2018, 5.5% (19/348) in 2019, 21.2% (46/217) in 2020 and 17.0% (38/223) in 2021, respectively. The non-detectable rate (<5 IU/mL) of anti-PT IgG antibodies was 16.9, 17.7, 28.1, and 37.3% in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021, respectively. We assumed that the infection occurred within 58.6 days, and based on the overall proportion (2.9%) of individuals with anti-PT IgG antibody ≥100 IU/ml, the incidence rate (/100) was estimated by the formula to be 18.08 (95% CI: 12.40-26.11). In addition, the estimated incidence of Post-COVID-19 was higher than that of Pre-COVID-19 (36.33/100 vs. 12.84/100), and the difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Our results suggest a high rate of under-reporting of pertussis in Jiangsu Province both pre- and post-COVID-19 pandemic, and there are a large number of adults of childbearing age who are susceptible to pertussis. It seems imperative that vaccination of adolescents and adults should be considered for inclusion in vaccination programs.

Epidemiological monitoring to ascertain if SARS-CoV-2 infects dogs and cats

2019 novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is a new strain of coronavirus that has never been found in humans. SARS-CoV-2 is a beta coronavirus. whereas the coronaviruses infecting pet dogs and cats arise mainly from a-coronaviruses. Whether SARS-CoV-2 infects cats, dogs and other pets is an important public-health issue during this time. In the present study, respiratory-tract symptoms in 20 pet cats and 4 pet dogs (especially with obvious fever and cough symptoms) in Beijing, China, were detected by fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of SARS-CoV-2 and established diagnostic methods. Throat swabs were collected to detect the nucleic acids of SARS-CoV-2 using fluorescence quantitative PCR and to detect other pathogens. The nucleic acids of SARS-CoV-2 were not present in the 24 pets that we evaluated.

Tea Ingredients Have Anti-coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Targets Based on Bioinformatics Analyses and Pharmacological Effects on LPS-Stimulated Macrophages.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that caused millions of deaths and lacks treatment. Although several studies have focused on the major component of green tea, epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG), which is efficient in preventing COVID-19, systemic analyses of the anti-COVID-19 potential of green tea remain insufficient. Here, we co-analyzed the target genes of tea ingredients and COVID-19 signature genes and found that epigallocatechin 3-acetalbehyde was capable of reversing the major molecular processes of COVID-19 (MAPK and NF-κB activation). These findings were further supported by Western blotting (WB), immunofluorescence, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) in LPS-stimulated macrophages. Moreover, using molecular docking analysis, we identified three tea ingredients ((-)-catechin gallate, D-(+)-cellobiose, and EGCG) that may interact with the vital SARS-CoV-2 protein, 5R84, compared with the qualified 5R84 ligand WGS. Thus, our results indicated that tea ingredients have the potential to treat COVID-19 by suppressing the COVID-19 signature genes and interacting with the vital SARS-CoV-2 protein.

Chinese expert brief consensus on newborn screening of inherited metabolic disorders during the novel coronavirus infection epidemic.

Novel coronavirus (2019-nCov) infection (COVID-19) rapidly spread across China and 25 countries in the worldwide, which infected not only adults but also children, even neonates. Each year, about 15 million newborns are delivered in China. Newborn screening (NBS) helps effectively prevent some mental retardation, premature death, and adverse outcomes in the early stage of baby, which could detect some inherited metabolic disorders (IMDs). During this COVID-19 epidemic, how to balance the risk of infected 2019-nCov and the risk of disability and teratogenesis of IMDs. Expert members of NBS extra quality assessment in National Clinical Center of Laboratory (NCCL) give a brief consensus for NBS of IMDs in the COVID-2019 epidemic, hoping that the brief consensus could be reference for NBS of IMDs in the other epidemic areas or periods all over the world.