Efficacy and safety of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells for COVID-19 pneumonia: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Elevated levels of inflammatory factors are associated with poor prognosis in coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). However, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have immunomodulatory functions. Accordingly, this meta-analysis aimed to determine the efficacy and safety of MSC-based therapy in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. METHODS: Online global databases were used to find relevant studies. Two independent researchers then selected and evaluated the studies for suitability while the Cochrane risk of bias tool determined the quality of all articles and Cochran's Q test and I2 index assessed the degree of heterogeneity in the principal studies. Statistical analysis was performed using Review Manager software, and the effect of each study on the overall estimate was evaluated by sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: Seven studies were included in the meta-analysis, and all MSCs used in the trials were acquired from the umbilical cord. The results of these studies (n = 328) indicated that patients with COVID-19 pneumonia who received MSCs had a 0.58 risk of death compared with controls (95% CI = 0.38, 0.87; P = 0.53; I2 = 0%). In terms of inflammatory biomarkers, MSCs reduced the levels of C-reactive protein (n = 88; MD = - 32.49; 95% CI = - 48.43, - 16.56; P = 0.46; I2 = 0%) and interferon-gamma (n = 44; SMD = - 1.23; 95% CI = - 1.89, - 0.57; P = 0.37; I2 = 0%) in severe COVID-19 patients but had no significant effect on interleukin-6 (n = 185; MD = - 0.75; 95% CI = - 7.76, 6.27; P = 0.57; I2 = 0%). A summary of the data revealed no significant differences in adverse events (n = 287) or serious adverse events (n = 229) between the MSC and control groups. CONCLUSIONS: Infusion of umbilical cord-derived MSCs is an effective strategy for treating patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, with no noticeable adverse effects.

Clinicopathological and immunological features of new onset kidney disease: a rare event after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.

The onset of various kidney diseases has been reported after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccination. However, detailed clinical and pathological features are lacking. We screened and analyzed patients with newly diagnosed kidney diseases after inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in Peking University First Hospital from January 2021 to August 2021, and compared them with the reported cases in the literature. We obtained samples of blood, urine and renal biopsy tissues. Clinical and laboratory information, as well as light microscopy, immunostaining and ultrastructural observations, were described. The SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and nucleoprotein were stained using the immunofluorescence technique in the kidney biopsy samples. SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies were tested using magnetic particle chemiluminescence immunoassay. The study group included 17 patients with a range of conditions including immune-complex-mediated kidney diseases (IgA nephropathy, membranous nephropathy and lupus nephritis), podocytopathy (minimal change disease and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis) and others (antineutrophil-cytoplasmic-antibody-associated vasculitis, anti-glomerular basement membrane nephritis, acute tubulointerstitial nephritis and thrombotic microangiopathy). Seven patients (41.18%) developed renal disease after the first dose and ten (58.82%) after the second dose. The kidney disease spectrum as well as clinicopathological features are similar across different types of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. We found no definitive evidence of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein or nucleoprotein deposition in the kidney biopsy samples. Seropositive markers implicated abnormal immune responses in predisposed individuals. Treatment and follow-up (median = 86 days) showed that biopsy diagnosis informed treatment and prognosis in all patients. In conclusion, we observed various kidney diseases following SARS-CoV-2 vaccine administration, which show a high consistency across different types of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Our findings provide evidence against direct vaccine protein deposition as the major pathomechanism, but implicate abnormal immune responses in predisposed individuals. These findings expand our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine renal safety.

Promoting social distancing and preventing panic buying during the epidemic of COVID-19: the contributions of people's psychological and behavioural factors.

OBJECTIVES: COVID-19 disease has progressed to the level of a global pandemic. This study aimed to investigate people's psychological and behavioural responses to the COVID-19 epidemic and explore the predictors for social distancing and panic buying. METHODS: A 17-item questionnaire was developed and distributed randomly to people using social media. Descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA were used to assess people's psychological and behavioural responses. Hierarchical regression was conducted to investigate the predictive effects of psychological and behavioural variables on reports of social distancing and panic buying respectively. RESULTS: Respondents reported a low degree of risk perception and risk beliefs with regard to being outside, and had moderate psychological stress and positive safeguarding behaviours for being outside. Respondents reported high concern regarding COVID-19 and tended to keep social distancing during the epidemic. They would panic-purchase food and supplies. In addition, psychological stress emerged as a very strong predictor for reporting COVID-19 concerns and panic buying. Furthermore, reported concerns about COVID-19 information sharing had a significant predictive influence on panic buying of food. Safeguarding behaviours for being outside had a significant predictive effect on respondents reported social distancing of cancelling outings. Reported concerns about COVID-19 were stronger predictors for reported social distancing. CONCLUSION: It is important to relieve people's psychological stress and manage information sharing to control panic buying. In addition, we should promote adoption of safeguarding behaviours for being outside and emphasise the concerns with regard to COVID-19 to encourage people keep social distancing. Measures should be implemented according to the characteristics of the population.

The Relationship Between Symptoms of Anxiety and Somatic Symptoms in Health Professionals During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has posed a threat to global health. Increasing studies have shown that the mental health status of health professionals is very poor during the COVID-19 epidemic. At present, the relationship between somatic symptoms and symptoms of anxiety of health professionals during the COVID-19 has not been reported. The purpose of this study was to explore the frequency of somatic symptoms and its related factors in health professionals with symptoms of anxiety during COVID-19 in China. METHODS: A total of 606 health professionals were assessed online with the Chinese version of the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) scale, 7-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and the somatization subscale of Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90). RESULTS: The percentage of symptoms of anxiety, somatic symptoms and insomnia in all health professionals was 45.4%, 12.0%, and 32%, respectively. The frequency of somatic symptoms in health professionals with symptoms of anxiety was 22.9%. The SCL-90 somatization subscale score was significantly positively correlated with history of somatic diseases, GAD-7 score and ISI score in participants with symptoms of anxiety. CONCLUSION: During the COVID-19, symptoms of anxiety, insomnia, and somatic symptoms are commonly observed in health professionals. Insomnia and symptoms of anxiety are independently associated with somatic symptoms of health professionals with symptoms of anxiety.

The twin-beginnings of COVID-19 in Asia and Europe-one prevails quickly.

In the spread of SARS-CoV-2, there have been multiple waves of replacement between strains, each of which having a distinct set of mutations. The first wave is a group of four mutations (C241T, C3037T, C14408T and A23403G [this being the amino acid change D614G]; all designated 0 to 1 below). This DG (D614G) group, fixed at the start of the pandemic, is the foundation of all subsequent waves of strains. Curiously, the DG group is absent in early Asian samples but present (and likely common) in Europe from the beginning. European data show that the high fitness of DG1111 requires the synergistic effect of all four mutations. However, the European strains would have had no time to evolve the four DG mutations (0 to 1), had they come directly from the early Asian DG0000 strain. Very likely, the European DG1111 strain had acquired the highly adaptive DG mutations in pre-pandemic Europe and had been spreading in parallel with the Asian strains. Two recent reports further support this twin-beginning interpretation. There was a period of two-way spread between Asia and Europe but, by May 2020, the European strains had supplanted the Asian strains globally. This large-scale replacement of one set of mutations for another has since been replayed many times as COVID-19 progresses.

The high diversity of SARS-CoV-2-related coronaviruses in pangolins alerts potential ecological risks.

Understanding the zoonotic origin and evolution history of SARS-CoV-2 will provide critical insights for alerting and preventing future outbreaks. A significant gap remains for the possible role of pangolins as a reservoir of SARS-CoV-2 related coronaviruses (SC2r-CoVs). Here, we screened SC2r-CoVs in 172 samples from 163 pangolin individuals of four species, and detected positive signals in muscles of four Manis javanica and, for the first time, one M. pentadactyla. Phylogeographic analysis of pangolin mitochondrial DNA traced their origins from Southeast Asia. Using in-solution hybridization capture sequencing, we assembled a partial pangolin SC2r-CoV (pangolin-CoV) genome sequence of 22 895 bp (MP20) from the M. pentadactyla sample. Phylogenetic analyses revealed MP20 was very closely related to pangolin-CoVs that were identified in M. javanica seized by Guangxi Customs. A genetic contribution of bat coronavirus to pangolin-CoVs via recombination was indicated. Our analysis revealed that the genetic diversity of pangolin-CoVs is substantially higher than previously anticipated. Given the potential infectivity of pangolin-CoVs, the high genetic diversity of pangolin-CoVs alerts the ecological risk of zoonotic evolution and transmission of pathogenic SC2r-CoVs.

An Empirical Perception of Economic Resilience Responded to the COVID-19 Epidemic Outbreak in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Urban Agglomeration, China: Characterization and Interaction.

The COVID-19 has caused a serious impact on the global economy, and all countries are in a predicament of fighting the epidemic and recovering their economies. Aiming to discuss the impact of the COVID-19 on the economic resilience of urban agglomerations, the economic data of each quarter from June 2019 to September 2020 of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Urban Agglomeration are selected, and the economic development index (EDI) is calculated based on the entropy method. Combining the fundamental conditions of urban agglomerations and industrial policies during the COVID-19, urban economic resilience is discussed by the changing trend of the economic development index (EDI) and dividing into resistance and restoration. The results show that: (1) The economic development level of the urban agglomeration has been affected by the epidemic and has changed significantly. The change of endogenous power is the main cause of change; (2) During the outbreak of the COVID-19, the economic resilience of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei urban agglomeration shows four different development types: high resistance and restoration, high resistance but low restoration, low resistance but high restoration, low resistance and restoration cities; (3) High resistance but low restoration, low resistance but high restoration, and low resistance and restoration cities influence each other, but the relationship between cities is mainly dependent; (4) The economic restoration within the urban agglomeration forms a synergy, which promotes the economic recovery and development of the urban agglomeration during the recovery period of the COVID-19. Urban agglomerations should enhance the combined effect of resistance and increase the impact of high resistance and restoration cities on surrounding cities in the future.

Evolutionary analysis and lineage designation of SARS-CoV-2 genomes.

The pandemic due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the etiological agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has caused immense global disruption. With the rapid accumulation of SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences, however, thousands of genomic variants of SARS-CoV-2 are now publicly available. To improve the tracing of the viral genomes' evolution during the development of the pandemic, we analyzed single nucleotide variants (SNVs) in 121,618 high-quality SARS-CoV-2 genomes. We divided these viral genomes into two major lineages (L and S) based on variants at sites 8782 and 28144, and further divided the L lineage into two major sublineages (L1 and L2) using SNVs at sites 3037, 14408, and 23403. Subsequently, we categorized them into 130 sublineages (37 in S, 35 in L1, and 58 in L2) based on marker SNVs at 201 additional genomic sites. This lineage/sublineage designation system has a hierarchical structure and reflects the relatedness among the subclades of the major lineages. We also provide a companion website (www.covid19evolution.net) that allows users to visualize sublineage information and upload their own SARS-CoV-2 genomes for sublineage classification. Finally, we discussed the possible roles of compensatory mutations and natural selection during SARS-CoV-2's evolution. These efforts will improve our understanding of the temporal and spatial dynamics of SARS-CoV-2's genome evolution.

Ultrasensitive supersandwich-type electrochemical sensor for SARS-CoV-2 from the infected COVID-19 patients using a smartphone.

The recent pandemic outbreak of COVID-19 caused by a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), poses a threat to public health globally. Thus, developing a rapid, accurate, and easy-to-implement diagnostic system for SARS-CoV-2 is crucial for controlling infection sources and monitoring illness progression. Here, we reported an ultrasensitive electrochemical detection technology using calixarene functionalized graphene oxide for targeting RNA of SARS-CoV-2. Based on a supersandwich-type recognition strategy, the technology was confirmed to practicably detect the RNA of SARS-CoV-2 without nucleic acid amplification and reverse-transcription by using a portable electrochemical smartphone. The biosensor showed high specificity and selectivity during in silico analysis and actual testing. A total of 88 RNA extracts from 25 SARS-CoV-2-confirmed patients and eight recovery patients were detected using the biosensor. The detectable ratios (85.5 % and 46.2 %) were higher than those obtained using RT-qPCR (56.5 % and 7.7 %). The limit of detection (LOD) of the clinical specimen was 200 copies/mL, which is the lowest LOD among the published RNA measurement of SARS-CoV-2 to date. Additionally, only two copies (10 µL) of SARS-CoV-2 were required for per assay. Therefore, we developed an ultrasensitive, accurate, and convenient assay for SARS-CoV-2 detection, providing a potential method for point-of-care testing.