ABSTRACT
Vaccines are the most economical and effective means to protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection. Adjuvants are able to enhance antigen-specific immune responses, reduce antigen doses and vaccination times, and reshape adaptive immune responses, which are crucial to improving the protective efficacy of vaccines. In this article, we review the mechanisms and advantages/disadvantages of the adjuvants used in COVID-19 vaccines that have been authorized for emergency use or are undergoing clinical trials around the world, and analyze the issues that must be considered in the application of adjuvants to COVID-19 vaccines. In addition, we put forward suggestions for future research strategies for COVID-19 vaccine adjuvants: (1) adjuvants for immunocompromised people, (2) adjuvants for inducing T cell responses, (3) novel mucosal immune adjuvants, and (4) the rational design of combination adjuvant. © 2022 Editorial Office of Journal of Third Military Medical University. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Vaccines are the most economical and effective means to protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection. Adjuvants are able to enhance antigen-specific immune responses, reduce antigen doses and vaccination times, and reshape adaptive immune responses, which are crucial to improving the protective efficacy of vaccines. In this article, we review the mechanisms and advantages/disadvantages of the adjuvants used in COVID-19 vaccines that have been authorized for emergency use or are undergoing clinical trials around the world, and analyze the issues that must be considered in the application of adjuvants to COVID-19 vaccines. In addition, we put forward suggestions for future research strategies for COVID-19 vaccine adjuvants: (1) adjuvants for immunocompromised people, (2) adjuvants for inducing T cell responses, (3) novel mucosal immune adjuvants, and (4) the rational design of combination adjuvant. © 2022 Editorial Office of Journal of Third Military Medical University. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
A large number of people got infected and many lost their lives due to COVID-19. The increased volume and source-shuffling of the waste generated during the pandemic have challenged the current waste management facilities. The major sources of infectious waste not only include hospitals but also houses and quarantine facilities that lack in source-management thereby increasing the spread of the virus. This article focuses on waste collection and disposal techniques as major aspects of COVID-19 waste management. Also, it discusses the various waste disinfection technologies along with waste management strategies formulated by different organisations. The non-pharmaceutical intervention strategies have also been identified. Alongside this, various challenges and opportunities in COVID-19 waste management are reviewed. Accordingly, recommendations to achieve efficient waste management are stated. Waste management in case of such a pandemic requires proper segregation, storage, collection and treatment. Usage of multiple processes like pyrolysis, chemical treatment, microwave and radio wave is needed to be found for treatment of infectious waste. Increased amount of mixed waste creates the need to have method that is flexible enough. Large amount of PPE waste needs to be taken care of. Development of materials that can provide hygiene and have recyclability is essential. © 2023 Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers.
ABSTRACT
The health risks of socially vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, the sick, and the disabled, are significantly elevated under the COVID-19 epidemic. Therefore, the different factors affecting the use of information technology by socially vulnerable groups under COVID-19 are explored at the level of the use of emerging information technology. The impact on the information behavior of socially vulnerable groups under COVID-19 is also explored at the level of information behavior, including health information needs, the digital divide phenomenon, and the utilization of public information services. Based on the above findings, the current status of information behavior research for socially vulnerable groups is combined. Future research directions of information technology and information behavior for socially vulnerable groups are proposed. First, to improve the research theory of information behavior of socially vulnerable groups regarding information technology. Second, to apply big data technology and data analysis technology to explore the information technology adoption behavior of socially vulnerable groups in-depth. Third, to construct the information behavior model of socially vulnerable groups based on empirical research cases. Fourth, to use information technology for socially vulnerable groups according to information technology and the barriers faced by socially vulnerable groups in using information technology, and to provide strategies for using information technology that meet the needs of socially vulnerable groups. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
Artificial intelligence (AI), a new branch of research in computer science, has been applied to a variety of fields in recent years and has received increasing attention from research scholars. Since the outbreak of the new epidemic, AI has played an extremely important role in the diagnosis of the epidemic, the development of drugs, and the mental health of patients. This paper summarises some of the current applications of AI technology during the epidemic, to contribute to the control of the epidemic and the development of AI technology. © 2022 ACM.
ABSTRACT
In September 2021, the Biden administration issued an executive order requiring companies that enter into federal contracts to require and verify that their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19. The executive order has since been challenged in multiple federal district courts. As of the date of submission, six preliminary injunctions have been issued, temporarily ceasing enforcement of the order. This paper is an analysis and summary of the arguments presented and legal reasoning of the courts based on the published court opinions. The key issue common among all six cases was whether the executive order exceeded the scope of authority granted under the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act. The courts reached slightly different conclusions on this issue and had different reasoning, but all issued temporary injunctions. Although most of the injunctions were limited to the plaintiff states, the most notable preliminary injunction was issued by the Southern District of Georgia and was the only one to be issued nationwide. The inclusion of the Associated Builders and Contractors as a plaintiff in that case played a key role in the scope of the injunction being issued on a nationwide scale. Appeals are pending in all cases but given the broad scope of the mandate and the current status of the pandemic, the government faces a difficult appeal. © 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
ABSTRACT
Social media is emerging as a popular platform for health communication and has gained an even stronger impetus since the COVID-19 pandemic. With conversations about mental health slowly building momentum in recent times even in developing countries like India, this study sought to understand the current status of mental health communication on social media in the country. The factors predicting these communication behaviours were explored as well. The data comprised 421 participants (Mean age = 28.26 years) hailing from metros, urban and semi-urban areas. Almost 64% of participants reported having used social media for mental health communication. The extent of mental health knowledge and empathy emerged as the most consistent predictors of indulging in mental health communication behaviours on social media. Almost 92% of participants reported that they observed an increase in these communication behaviours among people, as a result of the pandemic. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
The need for online meetings increased drastically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wearing headphones for this purpose makes it difficult to know when a headphone wearing person is available or in a meeting. In this work, we explore the design possibilities of headphones as wearable public displays to show the current status or additional information of the wearer to people nearby. After two brainstorming sessions and specifying the design considerations, we conducted an online survey with 63 participants to collect opinions of potential users. Besides the preference of the colors red and green as well as using text to indicate availability, we found that only 54 % of our participants would actually wear headphones with public displays attached. The benefit of seeing the current availability status of a headphone-wearing person in an online meeting or phone call scenario were nonetheless mentioned even by participants that would not use such headphones. © 2022 ACM.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a loss of the sense of financial security among employees. The consequence is decreased productivity, affecting employers who also suffer related costs. Actions to support employees’ financial wellness are therefore important and necessary, especially in the case of those working in the strategic sector ensuring national energy security. The main aim of the article is to present, from the theoretical and practical point of view, the essence and role of Employee Financial Wellness Programs (EFWPs) in the creation of an effective incentive system in energy sector companies in Poland during the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The following research methods were used: Critical analysis of source literature, comparative analysis of existing data and the descriptive method with elements of deductive reasoning. In order to collect primary data, the indirect survey method was used, namely, the CAWI Internet survey technique, which was addressed to the main energy generation sector entities in the country. The research has shown that financial wellness instruments are new to the Polish market, where they have been in limited operation since 2021. It was confirmed that some companies in the energy sector are using such innovative tools, but they also show the need and interest to implement more extensive and comprehensive Employee Financial Wellness Programs that will reduce the financial stress of employees while motivating them to work more efficiently during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
ABSTRACT
The CMS experiment has an ambitious Phase-II upgrade plan, which includes nearly all parts of the detector. Key aspects include increased channel count and associated bandwidth, improved radiation hardness, and the addition of precision timing. An overview of the upgrade along with a discussion on the current status and recent progress is presented. Overall, excellent progress has been made in the past year, although some delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic were inevitable. © Copyright owned by the author(s) under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
ABSTRACT
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was first reported in China (Wuhan) at the end of 2019. It has rapidly spread over 216 countries, including the USA, UK, Europe, Russia, and many Asian countries. It has affected more than 4.5 million people, and around 0.3 million deaths have been reported globally. Many preventive measures have been adopted worldwide to mitigate its spread. The government of Pakistan has also taken many preventive measures to combat the COVID-19 outbreak, such as rapid response by governance, continuous monitoring of the pandemic spread in the affected areas, and integration of resources from multiple sectors, including health, education, defense, and media. According to global statistics, the number of COVID-19 cases in the country remained remarkably lower than the expected number for the first 169 days, as compared to other countries. A total of 286,674 confirmed cases, including 16,475 active, 6,139 deaths, and 264,060 (92%) recoveries were reported. The study finds that strict adherence to national policies, effective governance, and unity at the national level resulted in better outcomes. Hence, the preventive measures, rapid responses, and strategies adopted for combating the challenges could be adopted as a learning tool for other countries having similar work environments and financial constraints. This paper can help and guide governance/public actions in response to the possible rebound of coronavirus this fall/winter.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/epidemiology , COVID-19/mortality , Government , Leadership , COVID-19/transmission , Developing Countries , Female , Health Resources , Humans , Pakistan/epidemiology , SARS-CoV-2ABSTRACT
Recently, the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) pneumonia outbroke in Wuhan and rapidly spread to all over China and even the world. Because of the strong infectivity and various clinical symptoms, it has brought certain difficulties to the epidemic prevention and control. Currently there is no specific drug for 2019-nCoV. Previous drugs used to treat other coronaviruses may be effective, but further clinical trials remain needed. We reviewed literature on the epidemiology, etiology, clinical manifestations, imaging manifestations, laboratory examination, diagnosis, complications, treatment and outcome of 2019-nCoV pneumonia.