Editorial

The declaration identifies five central pillars where tourism plays a significant role, namely, sustainable economic growth, social inclusiveness and equality, environmental protection and climate change, cultural diversity and heritage, mutual understanding and peace (UNWTO, 2017). Even though some progress has been noted to reduce global poverty levels, poverty remains one of the most enduring concerns of nations affecting both developing and developed countries (World Bank, 2020). Poverty is expected to rise further following the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis that follows, with most countries being estimated to continue to experience the effects of the pandemic until 2030 (World Bank, 2020). [...]the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the food supply chains and caused a global economic slowdown, which profoundly impacts global food security (Aldao et al., 2021).

Psychological status of infertile men during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic in China: a cross-sectional investigation.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has had a widespread and profound impact on people's mental health. The factors associated with mental symptoms among men diagnosed with infertility, a disease closely related to psychological conditions, remain unclear. The aim of this study is to investigate the risk factors associated with mental symptoms among infertile Chinese men during the pandemic. RESULTS: A total of 4,098 eligible participants were recruited in this cross-sectional, nationwide study, including 2,034 (49.6%) with primary infertility and 2,064 (50.4%) with secondary infertility. The prevalence of mental health conditions was 36.3%, 39.6%, and 6.7% for anxiety, depression, and post-pandemic stress, respectively. Sexual dysfunction is associated with a higher risk with adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of 1.40 for anxiety, 1.38 for depression, and 2.32 for stress. Men receiving infertility drug therapy displayed a higher risk for anxiety (adjusted OR, 1.31) and depression (adjusted OR, 1.28) symptoms, while those receiving intrauterine insemination had a lower risk of anxiety (adjusted OR, 0.56) and depression (adjusted OR, 0.55) symptoms. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant psychological impact on infertile men. Several psychologically vulnerable populations were identified, including individuals with sexual dysfunction, respondents receiving infertility drug therapy, and those experiencing control measures for COVID-19. The findings provide a comprehensive profile of the mental health status of infertile Chinese men during the COVID-19 outbreak and provide potential psychological intervention strategies.

RéSUMé: CONTEXTE: L'épidémie de maladie à coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) a eu un impact étendu et profond sur la santé mentale des gens. Les facteurs associés aux symptômes mentaux chez les hommes diagnostiqués comme infertiles, une maladie étroitement liée aux conditions psychologiques, restent flous. L'objectif de cette étude est d'étudier les facteurs de risque associés aux symptômes mentaux chez les hommes chinois infertiles pendant la pandémie. RéSULTATS: Au total, 4 098 participants admissibles ont été recrutés dans cette étude transversale à l'échelle nationale, dont 2 034 (49,6%) présentaient une infertilité primaire et 2 064 (50,4%) une infertilité secondaire. La prévalence des problèmes de santé mentale était respectivement de 36,3 %, 39,6 % et 6,7 % pour l'anxiété, la dépression, et le stress postpandémique. La dysfonction sexuelle est associée à un risque plus élevé avec des odds ratios ajustés (OR) de 1,40 pour l'anxiété, 1,38 pour la dépression et 2,32 pour le stress. Les hommes recevant un traitement médicamenteux contre l'infertilité présentaient un risque plus élevé de symptômes d'anxiété (OR ajusté, 1,31) et de dépression (OR ajusté, 1,28), alors que ceux dont le traitement consistait à faire des inséminations intra-utérines présentaient un risque plus faible de symptômes d'anxiété (OR ajusté, 0,56) et de dépression (OR ajusté, 0,55). CONCLUSIONS: La pandémie de COVID-19 a eu un impact psychologique important sur les hommes infertiles. Plusieurs populations psychologiquement vulnérables ont été identifiées, notamment les personnes souffrant de dysfonction sexuelle, les hommes recevant un traitement médicamenteux contre l'infertilité, et ceux subissant des mesures de contrôle de la COVID-19. Les résultats fournissent un profil complet de l'état de santé mentale des hommes Chinois infertiles pendant l'épidémie de COVID-19 et fournissent des stratégies potentielles d'intervention psychologique.

Cocreating food experience “delivered” from iconic local restaurants

Purpose>This study aims to explore an emerging phenomenon – gourmet meal kits delivered to out-of-towners from iconic local restaurants. This study explores the interplay of goal framing and basic needs and their effects on customer intentions. This study also examines the underlying mechanism of experience cocreation and the moderating effect of food involvement.Design/methodology/approach>This study develops a framework that combines the self-determination theory (SDT) and customer experience cocreation. Two online experimental studies involving 478 US consumers were conducted to examine the underlying mechanism of customers’ decision-making on purchasing gourmet meal kits (Study 1) and visiting destination restaurants after receiving the meal kit (Study 2).Findings>Intrinsic goal-framing leads to stronger intentions to purchase gourmet meal kits and to visit destination restaurants that sell meal kits. In contrast, extrinsic goal-framing enhances the positive influence of perceived relatedness and competence on behavioral intentions. The effects of goal framing and basic needs on behavioral intentions are moderated by food involvement and mediated by experience cocreation to varying degrees.Originality/value>To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is among the first to empirically examine an emerging business model – delivering restaurants’ food experiences to out-of-towners. The study also expands the application of the SDT by incorporating customer cocreation as the underlying mechanism.

Uncovering crowdsourcing in tourism apps: A grounded theory study

Even though crowdsourcing emerges as a new business principle of many successful tourism apps, its underlying mechanism in tourism remains unexplored. This research note explores this topic with a qualitative design through interviews with stakeholders involved in a crowdsourcing tourism app, Gold Medal Tour Guide. Applying the grounded theory, researchers propose a framework of crowdsourcing in tourism apps consisting of six themes and 15 subthemes. The framework identifies the drive of crowdsourcing and discusses the complexities and contradictions in multi-stakeholder collaboration. The contextual impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the crowdsourcing phenomenon are also examined. The findings provide practical implications for tourism destinations to take advantage of the crowdsourcing mechanism for sustainable operation and development.

Broad-spectrum virucidal activity of bacterial secreted lipases against flaviviruses, SARS-CoV-2 and other enveloped viruses (preprint)

Viruses are the major aetiological agents of acute and chronic severe human diseases that place a tremendous burden on global public health and economy; however, for most viruses, effective prophylactics and therapeutics are lacking, in particular, broad-spectrum antiviral agents. Herein, we identified 2 secreted bacterial lipases from a Chromobacterium bacterium, named Chromobacterium antiviral effector-1 (CbAE-1) and CbAE-2, with a broad-spectrum virucidal activity against dengue virus (DENV), Zika virus (ZIKV), severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and herpes simplex virus (HSV). The CbAEs potently blocked viral infection in the extracellular milieu through their lipase activity. Mechanistic studies showed that this lipase activity directly disrupted the viral envelope structure, thus inactivating infectivity. A mutation of CbAE-1 in its lipase motif fully abrogated the virucidal ability. Furthermore, CbAE-2 presented low toxicity in vivo and in vitro, highlighting its potential as a broad-spectrum antiviral drug.

Analysis of dynamic disturbance in blood coagulation function of 261 patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (preprint)

Background: With the spread of SARS-CoV-2 around the world, a rising number of studies have been conducted on the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of COVID-19. However, studies about the effect of SARS-CoV-2 on coagulation function are rare. Hence, we aimed to assess the differences and dynamic changes of blood coagulation function in ordinary, severe and critical patients with COCID-19. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted. Clinical information, including age, routine blood and blood coagulation function, was collected from medical records of COVID-19 patients from January 24 to March 25, 2020 in Huangshi, Hubei Province. According to new pneumonia diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 (trial version seventh), the patients were divided into ordinary, severe and critical groups. Results: 261 COVID-19 patients (186 ordinary, 45 severe and 30 critical ones) were enrolled. Average age in critical group (71.47±11.48 years) was the oldest of three subgroups. At admission, statistically differences could be observed for D-dimer, FDP, Platelet and lymphocyte count among three subgroups (P<0.05). During hospitalization, the peak values of coagulation and valley values of blood routine were monitored, and there were significant differences among ordinary, severe and critical patients in D-dimer (0.26±0.46, 1.39±1.51 and 2.89±1.68 mg/L), FDP (3.29±5.52, 23.68±39.07 and 56.11±49.94 μg/ml), platelet [(164±55.53), (171±69.96) and (84±57.80) ×109/L)] and lymphocyte counts [(1.10±0.46), (0.65±0.35) and (0.55±0.31) ×109/L)], respectively (P<0.001). In the critical group, D-dimer and FDP were significantly increased, while platelet count and lymphocyte count were obviously decreased. D-dimer and FDP in the course of disease in severe/critical groups showed a first upward and then downward trend. Conclusions: Close monitoring of coagulation function could help predict the severity of COVID-19, and guide treatment.