[Emphasis on Post-ICU Syndrome].

With the development of technology and medicine, the mortality rate of intensive care unit (ICU) has declined significantly, and more and more professionals in the medical field are also aware that the disability rate of ICU survivors remains high. More than 70% of ICU survivors have Post-ICU Syndrome (PICS), which is mainly manifested by cognitive, physical, and mental dysfunction, which seriously affects the quality of life of survivors and their caregivers. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a series of problems such as shortage of medical staff, restricted family visits, and lack of personalized care, which have brought unprecedented challenges to the prevention of PICS and the care of patients with severe COVID-19. In the future, the treatment of ICU patients should change from reducing short-term mortality to improving long-term quality of life of patients, from disease-centered to health-centered, and to practice " the health promotion, the prevention, the diagnosis, the control, the treatment, and the rehabilitation " six-in-one concept to promote comprehensive health care with pulmonary rehabilitation.

The Hierarchy of News Values - A Corpus-Based Diachronic and Cross-Cultural Comparison of News Reporting on Epidemics

This study adopts a comparative keyword analysis to examine a corpus of news reports (N = 1009) published in Chinese and American newspapers on SARS and COVID-19 outbreaks to uncover the hierarchy of news values and potential differences across time and cultures. The results show that the news values of "Impact", "Superlativeness", "Proximity", and "Eliteness" are often prioritized in both newspapers. For cross-cultural differences, the Chinese newspaper prefers a constructive reporting style through emphasizing "Positivity" in terms of agency, proactive measures, and favorable outcomes in fighting the outbreaks. The American newspaper prioritizes "Proximity" in terms of relevance to its audience. For diachronic changes, the Chinese newspaper has developed a unique theme to construct "Positivity" by calling for the solidarity of the international community. The Chinese newspaper also moves away from prioritizing geographic "Proximity" and government actors in constructing "Eliteness". The American newspaper, however, changes to cover more government actors. The American newspaper also changes its exclusive economic focus in constructing "Impact" to emphasize the epidemic's impact on various aspects of people's lives. This study accounts for how the sociocultural context and the different magnitudes of SARS and COVID-19 outbreaks shape newspaper reports in China and the US.

Molecular characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 Nsp16 protein and analysis of its potential effect on male reproductive function

Objective The possibility of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) involving injury to reproductive function has attracted attention. This study analyzed the genetic characteristics, molecular structure and biological function of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Nsp16 protein, and explored potential effects of Nsp16 on germ cells following the virus′ invading testicular tissue, aiming to lay basis for studies of pathogenic mechanisms and therapeutic strategies. Methods Bioinformatic techniques and international biological databases were used to analyze nsp16 genetic variability, Nsp16 spatial structure and function, and effects on genes and proteins of germ cells. DrugBank databases were applied in screening for drugs targeted at Nsp16. Results An evolutionary tree was constructed based on the nsp16 sequences of 30 isolates of 3 coronavirus species. The nsp16 conserved property was 99% amongst SARS-CoV-2 isolates. Nsp16 is a hydrophilic protein, with a 1.9 h half-life inside cells in vitro. Nsp16 has methyltransferase activity, showing potential to regulate gene and functional protein methylation of sperm and Leydig cells. Nsp16 has both linear B cell epitopes and CTL cell epitopes, with capacity to induce immune responses and damage to testicular tissue. Two inhibitory drugs targeted at Nsp16 were found by screening the DrugBank database. Conclusions SARS-CoV-2 Nsp16 is a functional protein encoded by a highly conserved gene, may affect germ cell growth and development by promoting methylation of host cellular genes and proteins following the virus′ invasion into testis tissue through angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptors. This report presents Nsp16-targeted chemotherapeutic drugs for the first time, showing high reference value for prevention and treatment of COVID-19 and related lesions of the male reproductive system. © 2021, Publication Centre of Anhui Medical University. All rights reserved.

Association of Padua prediction score with in-hospital prognosis in COVID-19 patients.

BACKGROUND: Nearly 20% novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients have abnormal coagulation function. Padua prediction score (PPS) is a validated tools for venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk assessment. However, its clinical value in COVID-19 patients' evaluation was unclear. METHODS: We prospectively evaluated the VTE risk of COVID-19 patients using PPS. Demographic and clinical data were collected. Association of PPS with 28-day mortality was analyzed by multivariate logistic regression and Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS: Two hundred and seventy-four continuous patients were enrolled, with total mortality of 17.2%. Patients in high PPS group, with significantly abnormal coagulation, have a higher levels of interleukin 6 (25.27 vs. 2.55 pg/ml, P < 0.001), prophylactic anticoagulation rate (60.7% vs. 6.5%, P < 0.001) and mortality (40.5% vs. 5.9%, P < 0.001) when compared with that in low PPS group. Critical patients showed higher PPS (6 vs. 2 score, P < 0.001) than that in severe patients. Multivariate logistic regression revealed the independent risk factors of in-hospital mortality included high PPS [odds ratio (OR): 7.35, 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.08-16.01], increased interleukin-6 (OR: 11.79, 95% CI: 5.45-26.20) and elevated d-dimer (OR: 4.65, 95% CI: 1.15-12.15). Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated patients with higher PPS had a significant survival disadvantage. Prophylactic anticoagulation in higher PPS patients shows a mild advantage of mortality but without statistical significance (37.1% vs. 45.7%, P = 0.42). CONCLUSION: Higher PPS associated with in-hospital poor prognosis in COVID-19 patients. Prophylactic anticoagulation showed a mild advantage of mortality in COVID-19 patients with higher PPS, but it remain to need further investigation.