Associations of habitual glucosamine use with SARS-CoV-2 infection and hospital admission and death with COVID-19: Evidence from a large population based cohort study.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a fundamental number of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Glucosamine was indicated to help prevent and control RNA virus infection preclinically, while its potential therapeutic effects on COVID-19-related outcomes are largely unknown. To assess the association of habitual glucosamine use with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, hospital admission, and mortality with COVID-19 in a large population based cohort. Participants from UK Biobank were reinvited between June and September 2021 to have SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing. The associations between glucosamine use and the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection were estimated by logistic regression. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for COVID-19-related outcomes were calculated using COX proportional hazards model. Furthermore, we carried out propensity-score matching (PSM) and stratified analyses. At baseline, 42 673 (20.7%) of the 205 704 participants reported as habitual glucosamine users. During median follow-up of 1.67 years, there were 15 299 cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection, 4214 cases of COVID-19 hospital admission, and 1141 cases of COVID-19 mortality. The fully adjusted odds ratio of SARS-CoV-2 infection with glucosamine use was 0.96 (95% CI: 0.92-1.01). The fully adjusted HR were 0.80 (95% CI: 0.74-0.87) for hospital admission, and 0.81 (95% CI: 0.69-0.95) for mortality. The logistic regression and Cox proportional hazard analyses after PSM yielded consistent results. Our study demonstrated that habitual glucosamine use is associated with reduced risks of hospital admission and death with COVID-19, but not the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Analysis of Nutritional Supplements' Price Change in Turkiye

Objectives: Nutritional supplements are products prepared in various forms to supplement daily nutrition, with a daily intake dose. COVID-19 pandemic increased the use of supplements which may reflect the increase of price. In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the changes in the prices of nutritional supplements containing antioxidant, fish oil, glucosamine, collagen, probiotic, probiotic and vitamin-mineral in the last 1 year during COVID-19 pandemic for Turkiye. Method(s): In this study, the price changes of the top 24 most sold products belonging to 7 subgroups of the nutritional supplements group were examined in Turkiye. The data of the study were obtained from the websites (www.akakce.com;www.cimri.com) where the prices of nutritional supplements are presented. The price changes of 7 subgroups determined during the evaluation between 08.04.2021 and 08.04.2022 were analyzed. For these price changes, calculations were conducted for each group and general price change rates were calculated. The analyzes of the study were conducted through the Microsoft Office Excel program. Result(s): As a result of the analysis, the highest price change rate was observed for glucosamines with 49.80%, while the lowest average price change rate was observed for collagen with 4.47% in Turkiye. The average price change of the groups, except for the collagen, fish oil and propolis groups, increased by more than 30%. The average price change rate of 7 different groups taken as a basis is 29.41%. Conclusion(s): As a result of the analysis, it is seen that a price increase is present in all nutritional supplement groups examined in Turkiye. For the price increase between the determined dates, it is thought that people prefer food supplements to protect and strengthen their immune system due to the COVID-19 pandemic which influences the whole world. Copyright © 2022

Alterations in heparan sulfate proteoglycan synthesis and sulfation and the impact on vascular endothelial function.

The glycocalyx attached to the apical surface of vascular endothelial cells is a rich network of proteoglycans, glycosaminoglycans, and glycoproteins with instrumental roles in vascular homeostasis. Given their molecular complexity and ability to interact with the intra- and extracellular environment, heparan sulfate proteoglycans uniquely contribute to the glycocalyx's role in regulating endothelial permeability, mechanosignaling, and ligand recognition by cognate cell surface receptors. Much attention has recently been devoted to the enzymatic shedding of heparan sulfate proteoglycans from the endothelial glycocalyx and its impact on vascular function. However, other molecular modifications to heparan sulfate proteoglycans are possible and may have equal or complementary clinical significance. In this narrative review, we focus on putative mechanisms driving non-proteolytic changes in heparan sulfate proteoglycan expression and alterations in the sulfation of heparan sulfate side chains within the endothelial glycocalyx. We then discuss how these specific changes to the endothelial glycocalyx impact endothelial cell function and highlight therapeutic strategies to target or potentially reverse these pathologic changes.

Post-COVID pain syndrome: a review of international observations

The novel coronavirus infection is commonly referred to as COVID-19, sometimes by the name of the causative agent of a respiratory viral infection, as SARS-CoV-2. Frequently, the course of COVID-19 is divided into three main periods: acute COVID-19 (up to 4 weeks), post-acute COVID-19 (from 4 to 12 weeks), post-COVID (post-COVID;from 12 weeks to 6 months). If a more protracted course of COVID (over 6 months) is discussed, the term “long-COVID” is used. All observations demonstrated a high incidence of pain syndromes of various localization in the post-COVID period and long-COVID. According to survey data, 92.3% of patients with COVID-19 reported musculoskeletal problems at the time of admission. Pain syndrome is observed in 56.3% of cases 1 month after hospitalization. Three months after COVID-19, myalgia was observed in 40.55% of cases, joint pain in 39.18%, back pain in 31.62%, and lower back pain in 24.74%. After 6 months, joint pain continues to be observed in 18.59% of patients, myalgia - in 15.09%, back pain - in 14.39%, lower back pain - in 11.23%. In 50.8% of cases, patients reported new-onset pain, of which 38.5% had pain of moderate severity (≥3 points on the visual analog scale). Patients with new-onset pain during COVID had worse quality of life indicators and a negative correlation with the pain syndrome severity, which significantly hampered recovery. Data from a meta-analysis that included 47,910 patients with long-COVID and with a protracted course of COVID indicate that 19% of them had pain in the joints of various localization. The direct cytopathic effect of SARS-CoV-2 and the systemic immune inflammation that occurs in response to infection cause damage to the joint tissue. According to the Guidelines for the Treatment of Patients with the Consequences of COVID-19, it is recommended to use slow acting structure-modifying drugs - SYSADOA - in the pharmacological treatment regimen for patients with osteoarthritis, among which parenteral forms of pharmaceutically standardized drugs - chondroitin sulfate (CS) and glucosamine sulfate (GS) are preferred. GS and CS are inhibitors of the signaling cascade of the nuclear factor NF-κB, which is involved in the realization of biological effects of a pro-inflammatory cytokine (tumor necrosis factor α), the excessive activity of which is associated with the cytokine storm in COVID-19.

Nutraceutical Strategies for Suppressing NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation: Pertinence to the Management of COVID-19 and Beyond.

Inflammasomes are intracellular protein complexes that form in response to a variety of stress signals and that serve to catalyze the proteolytic conversion of pro-interleukin-1ß and pro-interleukin-18 to active interleukin-1ß and interleukin-18, central mediators of the inflammatory response; inflammasomes can also promote a type of cell death known as pyroptosis. The NLRP3 inflammasome has received the most study and plays an important pathogenic role in a vast range of pathologies associated with inflammation-including atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, the complications of diabetes, neurological and autoimmune disorders, dry macular degeneration, gout, and the cytokine storm phase of COVID-19. A consideration of the molecular biology underlying inflammasome priming and activation enables the prediction that a range of nutraceuticals may have clinical potential for suppressing inflammasome activity-antioxidants including phycocyanobilin, phase 2 inducers, melatonin, and N-acetylcysteine, the AMPK activator berberine, glucosamine, zinc, and various nutraceuticals that support generation of hydrogen sulfide. Complex nutraceuticals or functional foods featuring a number of these agents may find utility in the prevention and control of a wide range of medical disorders.