Extracellular Disintegration of Viral Proteins as an Innovative Strategy for Developing Broad-Spectrum Antivirals Against Coronavirus

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has claimed millions of lives and caused innumerable economic losses worldwide. Unfortunately, state-of-the-art treatments still lag behind the continual emergence of new variants. Key to resolving this issue is developing antivirals to deactivate coronaviruses regardless of their structural evolution. Here, we report an innovative antiviral strategy involving extracellular disintegration of viral proteins with hyperanion-grafted enediyne (EDY) molecules. The core EDY generates reactive radical species and causes significant damage to the spike protein of coronavirus, while the hyperanion groups ensure negligible cytotoxicity of the molecules. The EDYs exhibit antiviral activity down to nanomolar concentrations, and the selectivity index of up to 20,000 against four kinds of human coronavirus, including the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, suggesting the high potential of this new strategy in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and a future "disease X."

Management of patients with liver derangement during the COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 pandemic has been affecting the whole world for more than 3 years since late 2019. It is often to encounter COVID-19 patients with abnormal liver function, either in the form of hepatitis, cholestasis or both. The clinical implication of such liver derangement may be variable in different clinical scenarios. With the growing evidence of the clinical significance of such liver derangement, it would be clinically helpful to provide practice recommendations to various common clinical scenarios of liver derangement during COVID-19 pandemic. The Asia-Pacific Working Group for Liver Derangement during the COVID-19 Pandemic was formed to systematically review the literature on specified domains of interest, with special focus on clinical management of patients who have been or are at risk of developing liver derangement during COVID-19 pandemic. This Asia-Pacific position statement reports an in-depth review and a position statement on liver derangement during COVID- 19 pandemic. Ten clinical scenarios covering the use of pharmacological treatment for COVID-19 in case of liver derangement, assessment and management of patients with chronic hepatitis B or C, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), liver cirrhosis, liver transplantation are discussed. Specifically, some treatments target the patient's dysregulated inflammatory response during COVID-19 infection and may cause hepatitis B reactivation (HBVr) in patients with current or past hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Current evidence suggests that current or past HBV infection is not associated with an increased risk of liver injury and severe disease in COVID-19 patients. Among patients who received high-dose corticosteroids, various immunosuppressive monoclonal antibodies and inhibitors of Janus kinase, the risk of HBVr exists, especially among those without antiviral prophylaxis.

Negative ageism and compassionate ageism in news coverage of older people under COVID-19: how did the pandemic progression and public health responses associate with different news themes?

Previous studies have found negative ageing narratives in the media during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, few have focused on compassionate ageism and how the news responded to the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic. We investigated (a) media themes of negative and compassionate ageism and (b) their relationships with COVID-19 parameters and the public health response. The sample included 1,197 articles relevant to COVID-19 and older people in Hong Kong published between January and December 2020. We used thematic analysis to identify themes from the news articles and structural equation modelling to explore these themes' relationship with the number of older people infected, effective reproduction number, number of COVID-19 deaths and public health response parallel in time. Pandemic-related variables were lagged for a day - the time needed to be reflected in the news. Two negative ageism themes portrayed older people as vulnerable to COVID-19 but counterproductive in combating the pandemic. Two compassionate ageism themes depicted older people as a homogenous group of passive assistance recipients. The theme blaming older people was associated with the number of confirmed infections (beta = 0.418, p = 0.002) but vulnerability of older people was not associated with pandemic-related variables. The theme helping older people was negatively associated with the percentage of older people in confirmed infections (beta = -0.155, p = 0.019). The theme resources available was negatively associated with confirmed infections (beta = -0.342, p < 0.001) but positively associated with the Containment and Health Index (beta = 0.217, p = 0.005). Findings suggested that negative and compassionate ageism were translated into narratives about older people in the media as the pandemic evolved but did not address the actual risk they faced. Media professionals should be aware of the potential negative and compassionate ageism prompted by the news agenda and promote adequate health behaviours and responses.

Cultivating agility and resilience over time

Since the beginning of 2020, university libraries in Hong Kong faced disruptions brought by the COVID pandemic like the rest of the world. In spring 2022, in the wake of the Omicron wave, we reflected on our responses at HKUST Library in these two and a half years. We were grateful to find that we did manage to keep the library a safe place for staff and students, and we maintained services supporting teaching and research activities. While we ruminated on this experience for lessons learned, we realized that our agile responses were grounded on organizational practices and culture which we gradually built up in the past 10 years. In this chapter, we will summarize the pandemic responses at HKUST Library and trace how agility silently grew in four areas: strategic planning and decision-making mechanisms, quality assurance systems, forward-thinking mindset in service planning, and trust within and beyond the library. We believe these strengths will make us resilient for future challenges. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Diagnosis, treatment and prevention of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection in children: Experts' consensus statement (Fourth Edition). TT -.

Since December 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS - CoV - 2) infections have raged globally for more than 2 years. China has always adopted scientific and effective prevention and control measures to achieved some success. However, with the continuous variation of SARS - CoV -2 cases and imported cases from abroad, the prevention and control work has become more difficult and complex. With the variation of the mutant strain, the number of cases in children changed, and some new special symptoms and complications were found, which proposed a new topic for the prevention and treatment of SARS - CoV - 2 infection in children in China. Based on the third edition, the present consensus according to the characteristics of the new strain, expounded the etiology, pathology, pathogenesis,and according to the clinical characteristics and experience of children's cases,and puts forward recommendaions on the diagnostic criteria,laboratory examination,treatment,prevention and control of children's cases for providing reference for further guidance of effective prevention and treatment of SARS - CoV - 2 infection in children in China.Copyright © 2022 Chinese Journal of Applied Clinical Pediatrics. All rights reserved.

Depressive Symptoms and Its Correlates in Undergraduates during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

INTRODUCTION: This study aims to investigate depressive symptoms and its association with resilience, pessimistic bias of COVID-19, lifestyle changes, and family conflicts among undergraduates in a Hong Kong university. METHODS: 1020 undergraduates in The University of Hong Kong completed the online survey between May and August 2020. Severity of depressive symptoms was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Resilience was assessed using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. Pessimistic bias was assessed using two questions on the perceived risks of contracting COVID-19 and of dying from COVID-19. Changes in lifestyles and the presence of family conflicts were measured. Multivariable and mediation analyses were performed to examine association of depressive symptoms with other variables. RESULTS: 61.7% of the respondents reported having mild to severe depressive symptoms. 18.5% of the variance in depressive symptoms was explained by resilience, pessimistic bias, changes in the frequency of sleep, studying at home, and family conflict. Pessimistic bias partially mediated the association between resilience and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: The proportion of undergraduates with mild to severe depressive symptoms during the pandemic was high. Measures to reduce family conflict, maintain healthy daily habits, adjust pessimistic bias, and enhance resilience may help to improve the mental well-being of undergraduates during the pandemic.

IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON MENTAL HEALTH IN OLDER ADULTS: COMPARISON BETWEEN 2020 AND 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on older adults' mental health, but less is known about its longer-term effect. We examined changes in depressive and anxiety symptoms among older adults between the onset and two years into the pandemic. Data were drawn from two cross-sectional telephone surveys conducted with older adults aged ≥ 60 years in Hong Kong in 2020 and 2022. Respondents were screened for depression and anxiety using Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) and General Anxiety Disorders-2 (GAD-2) and, if screened positive (i.e. scoring ≥ 3 in PHQ-2 or GAD-2), evaluated with PHQ-9 and GAD-7 for symptom severity. After case-control matching baseline age, gender, living districts, and pre-existing mental health conditions based on the respondent ratio between the two surveys (i.e. 2:1 ratio), 4095 and 2099 respondents from the 2020 and 2022 surveys were included in the analysis. Respondents' average baseline age was 75 years old, 77% were female, and 13% had a pre-existing mental health condition. There were significant increases in the proportion of older adults screened positive for depression (8.3% to 13.5%) and anxiety (6.9% to 11.4%) and a significant increase in depressive symptom severity (4.63 to 7.72) between 2020 and 2022 (p < .001). Logistic regression suggested that, over two years, older adults with pre-existing mental health conditions were 1.59 times more likely to screen positive for depression than those without such conditions. Linear regression suggested that males were associated with increased depressive (B=-2.42, p=.004) and anxiety (B=-2.49, p=.021) symptom severity than females over the years.

Exploring the consequence of information communication technology-enabled work during non-working hours: a stress perspective

PurposeThis study aims to examine the impact of information communication technology-enabled work during non-working hours (ICT-enabled WNWHs), as a source of stress, on employee behavioral outcomes -in-role job performance, organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) that benefit organizations and OCBs that benefit individuals, through emotional responses - work exhaustion, nonwork exhaustion and organization-based self-esteem. As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdowns demonstrated that employees frequently engage in ICT-enabled WNWHs, studying stress induced by ICT-enabled WNWHs is essential for understanding employee adaptation to the work-from-home trend that emerged from COVID-19 lockdowns.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative survey comprising 1,178 employees in China was conducted, and the data reliability and validity were confirmed. Partial least squares structural equation modeling analysis was employed to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe study results empirically proved that, although ICT-enabled WNWHs had significant effects on employee behavioral outcomes, the related emotional responses were the mediators of the stress transmission mechanism that directly affected employee behavioral outcomes. Notably, work exhaustion and organization-based self-esteem partially mediate the stress transmission mechanism, while nonwork exhaustion exerts a full mediating effect.Originality/valueThis study proposes the stress transmission mechanism of ICT-enabled WNWHs and delineates emotional responses regarding the work environment attributes of ICT-enabled WNWHs, an approach rarely seen in prior IS studies. To our best knowledge, this study is the first to identify and empirically demonstrate organization-based self-esteem as one among the emotional responses to ICT-enabled WNWHs. Furthermore, it expands understanding of the holistic impacts of ICT-enabled WNWHs, which is lacking in information systems (IS) literature.

ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN COVID-19 RELATED STRESS, COVID-19 EXPERIENCES, AND MENTAL HEALTH RISKS IN OLDER PEOPLE

There is increasing recognition of the need to understand the mechanism of psychological impact brought by COVID-19. The present research used the Delphi technique to develop a COVID-19-Related Stress Scale for older people in Hong Kong (CSS-old) (study one) and examined its associations with COVID-19 experiences and mental health risks (study two). In study one, 17 helping professionals and 20 service users co-developed an 8-item CSS-old through four rounds of Delphi. In study two, a cross-sectional telephone survey was conducted between April and June 2022 among 4,921 older people (age≥60) recruited through community centres. Respondents were assessed using Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2), Generalized Anxiety Disorder 2-item (GAD-2), and CSS-old;their experiences with COVID-19 (infection, close friend/family infection) and demographical information were collected. A three-factor solution of CSS-old was identified after dropping one item (X2(df) = 83.53(11), CFI=0.996, TLI=0.993, RMSEA=0.037): (1) disruption to routines;(2) fear of infecting families/friends;and (3) concern for the community's health. Structural equation modelling analyses revealed that being female (B=0.45), having close friend/family infected (B=1.10) and having a pre-existing mental health condition (B=1.87) were positively associated with COVID-19-related stress. Infection of COVID-19 (BPHQ=0.22;BGAD=0.24) and a pre-existing mental health condition (BPHQ=0.71;BGAD=0.59) had direct associations with depressive and anxiety symptoms;COVID-19-related stress mediated the relationship between close friend/family infection with depressive (B=0.20) and anxiety symptoms (B=0.21, all p < 0.05). These results suggest that older people's COVID-19-related stress is beyond infection of the disease, and different experiences with COVID-19 may increase depression and anxiety risks through different pathways.

DIFFERENTIAL ROLES OF COVID-19-RELATED STRESSORS IN MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS: A NETWORK APPROACH

COVID-19-related stress is heterogeneous and associated with increased mental health conditions in older adults. This study is to investigate relationships between different stressors and how different stressors may increase risks for mental health conditions through a network approach. A telephone survey was conducted among 4,921 older adults (age≥60) from April to June 2022 during the biggest community outbreak of COVID-19 in Hong Kong. The validated 8-item COVID-19-Related Stress Scale (CSS-old) (Cronbach's α: 0.91) was used to investigate the different stressor for older people in Hong Hong. Respondents were screened for depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2), anxiety using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 2-item (GAD-2), and stressors with the CSS-old, 4708 responded to all questions. A regularized partial correlation network via graphical LASSO procedure was computed to analyze the relationship between 8 stressors;a directed acyclic graph (DAG) via a Bayesian hill-climbing algorithm was generated from CSS-old and comorbidity network with PHQ-2 and GAD-2 items. Network analyses identified CSS-old item 6 (families or friends infected), item 3 (daily life interrupted), item 5 (fear of infection affecting the family), and item 8 (worry for community's health) as the core stressors. DAG analysis found a key triggering role for item 1 (suspension of community services), and the activation of the mental health problems occurred through item 1, which bridged the COVID-19-related stress and mental health problems. These findings suggested that providing support for families with COVID-19 patients and alternative services during community service suspension may reduce mental health problems risks.

The impact of Virtual Individual Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (V-iCST) on cognition, quality of life, mood, and communication in dementia: a feasibility randomized controlled trial

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the suspension of community-based dementia services worldwide, where evidence-based interventions for dementia, like Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST), were delivered. Treatment access is paramount during the pandemic and beyond for people with dementia to maintain functioning and well-being. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a virtual, 14-session program of Individual Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (V-iCST) in the UK. Method(s): A single-blind feasibility randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted in the UK. Thirty-four people with mild to moderate dementia were recruited from dementia organizations and networks. Seventeen were randomly assigned to receive V-iCST (14, 45-min sessions) and 17 to treatment as usual (TAU) over seven weeks. Feasibility and acceptability data, for example, recruitment, attrition, attendance, adverse effects, and fidelity, were collected. Outcome measures on cognitive function, quality of life (QoL), mood, and communication were collected pre and post-test. Analysis of covariance was used to compare changes in V-iCST and TAU. Result(s): We have successfully completed recruitment. Results on feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy will be available at the conference. Conclusion(s): We hypothesize that V-iCST is feasible and acceptable and will have positive effects on cognitive, QoL, mood, and communication. Findings will be available at the conference. Copyright © 2022 the Alzheimer's Association.

Diagnosis, treatment and prevention of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection in children: Experts' consensus statement (Fourth Edition)

Since December 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS - CoV - 2) infections have raged globally for more than 2 years. China has always adopted scientific and effective prevention and control measures to achieved some success. However, with the continuous variation of SARS - CoV -2 cases and imported cases from abroad, the prevention and control work has become more difficult and complex. With the variation of the mutant strain, the number of cases in children changed, and some new special symptoms and complications were found, which proposed a new topic for the prevention and treatment of SARS - CoV - 2 infection in children in China. Based on the third edition, the present consensus according to the characteristics of the new strain, expounded the etiology, pathology, pathogenesis,and according to the clinical characteristics and experience of children's cases,and puts forward recommendaions on the diagnostic criteria,laboratory examination,treatment,prevention and control of children's cases for providing reference for further guidance of effective prevention and treatment of SARS - CoV - 2 infection in children in China. © 2022 Chinese Journal of Applied Clinical Pediatrics. All rights reserved.

Using social mobile learning to stimulate idea generation for collective intelligence among higher education students

The importance of social networks has increased in recent decades, yet the use of social learning in higher education is nascent. Little is known how to foster high levels of social learning discourse among students in higher education classrooms. To address this gap, the present study analyses the use of a mobile application (Soqqle) for sharing student-generated content and peer to-peer communication. Students from Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Indonesia uploaded videos linked to assessments and received feedback from their instructors and peers through social engagement features (e.g., comments, likes). The majority of students reported that the social learning experience promoted idea generation, increased creativity, and improved attention. These results indicate that integrating online platforms and mobile applications can promote social learning. The findings have important implications for educational practice because many educational institutions have adopted online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 Hong Kong Bao Long Accounting And Secretarial Limited. All rights reserved.

Using Student Generated Videos to Facilitate Discussion for Collaborative Flipped Classrooms

The purpose of this study is to incorporate a collaborative flipped classroom technique using student-generated videos to increase classroom participation. Traditional flipped classroom methods depend on educators to spend resources to produce video content. However, there is uncertainty whether a scalable and sustainable method with student-generated content can be used. Student-generated videos may provide opportunities for increasing collaboration and online engagement. The lack of knowledge and evidence has motivated this pilot study for which students record short reflective videos prior or after class using a private social media application, Soqqle. This was performed across three classes of differing modules in Hong Kong and Thailand. Evaluation and analysis of the classes differ, between participation and learning improvements, although having a similar teaching method of using student-generated videos. Results were mixed. In some cases, the predictors of correlational analysis were contradicting. In one group, results show a 64.2% increase in participation compared to the COVID-19 period. In another group, a regression analysis was able to predict learning performance with 41.2% accuracy (p= <. 001), using the number of videos watched and average duration as predictors. A teaching and learning framework for using the collaborative flipped classroom model is proposed and can be adapted by future researchers. Suggestions to further enhance the model are discussed. © 2022 IEEE.