Construction and Transcriptomic Study of Chicken IFNAR1-Knockout Cell Line Reveals the Essential Roles of Cell Growth- and Apoptosis-Related Pathways in Duck Tembusu Virus Infection.

For industrial vaccine production, overwhelming the existing antiviral innate immune response dominated by type I interferons (IFN-I) in cells would be a key factor improving the effectiveness and production cost of vaccines. In this study, we report the construction of an IFN-I receptor 1 (IFNAR1)-knockout DF-1 cell line (KO-IFNAR1), which supports much more efficient replication of the duck Tembusu virus (DTMUV), Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and gammacoronavirus infectious bronchitis virus (IBV). Transcriptomic analysis of DTMUV-infected KO-IFNAR1 cells demonstrated that DTMUV mainly activated genes and signaling pathways related to cell growth and apoptosis. Among them, JUN, MYC and NFKBIA were significantly up-regulated. Furthermore, knockdown of zinc-fingered helicase 2 (HELZ2) and interferon-α-inducible protein 6 (IFI6), the two genes up-regulated in both wild type and KO-IFNAR1 cells, significantly increased the replication of DTMUV RNA. This study paves the way for further studying the mechanism underlying the DTMUV-mediated IFN-I-independent regulation of virus replication, and meanwhile provides a potential cell resource for efficient production of cell-based avian virus vaccines.

ACUTE PERICARDITIS CAUSED BY COVID-19 INFECTION AND ITS MANAGEMENT

SESSION TITLE: Extraordinary Cardiovascular Reports SESSION TYPE: Rapid Fire Case Reports PRESENTED ON: 10/18/2022 01:35 pm - 02:35 pm INTRODUCTION: The incidence of acute pericarditis is 3.32 per 100,000 person-years (11). Patone et. Al, found that 0.001% had acute pericarditis after a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 11.9% were COVID-19 positive (11). 1.5% of patients with COVID- 19 developed new onset pericarditis and six-month all-cause mortality was 15.5% (2). CASE PRESENTATION: 48-year-old male with no known past medical history who presented with acute onset of sharp, left-sided chest pain and associated with dyspnea on exertion. He was not vaccinated for COVID-19 and denied being around any sick contacts. On physical examination he was afebrile, normotensive and saturating 99% on room air. EKG initially showed diffuse ST elevations in leads II,III, aVF, V2-V6. Initial high sensitivity trop was <6. He was incidentally found to be COVID positive. Initial echocardiogram was not suggestive of wall motion abnormalities or pericardial effusions. He was not initiated on management for COVID-19 pneumonia as he was asymptomatic and on room air. He was started on colchicine 0.6 mg BID and ibuprofen 400 TID for pericarditis treatment and symptoms resolved on follow up. DISCUSSION: COVID-19 causing pericarditis is relatively rare and our patient presented with pericarditis and no associated respiratory symptoms. The clinical signs of pericarditis include: a pleuritic or sharp chest pain relieved by leaning forwards, a pericardial friction rub auscultated near the left sternal border and EKG changes including diffuse ST elevations or PR depressions seen in the leads I,II,III, aVL, aVF and the precordial leads V2-V6 (3). The common complications seen with pericarditis are pericardial effusion, cardiac tamponade, and constrictive pericarditis (1). A common etiology for pericarditis is a viral illness which can be seen to precede the cardiac symptoms and be seen as flu-like symptoms or as gastrointestinal symptoms. Treatment is with colchicine and NSAIDs. Aspirin has been the drug of choice in patient's who present with pericarditis following a myocardial infarction, solely because the other NSAIDs have been studied and shown to interfere with myocardial healing (3)(4). NSAIDs were believed to be harmful in patient's diagnosed with COVID, due to upregulation of ACE2 receptors in multiple sites which is used by SARS-COV-2 as a point of entry into cells (9). Drake et. Al, looked at patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, and found use of NSAIDs did not play any significant role in mortality (10). First-line therapy for pericarditis is NSAIDs and colchicine. Second line therapy can be with corticosteroids and refractory therapy is generally with intravenous human immunoglobulins, Azathioprine or anti-IL1 agents such as Anakinra (12). CONCLUSIONS: COVID 19 continues to present with varying levels of comorbidities. Timely diagnosis and intervention of pericarditis precipitated by COVID-19 can lead to near complete recovery and prevent fatal outcomes. Reference #1: Dababneh E, Siddique MS. Pericarditis. [Updated 2021 Aug 11]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing;2021 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK431080/ Reference #2: Buckley BJR, Harrison SL, Fazio-Eynullayeva E, Underhill P, Lane DA, Lip GYH. Prevalence and clinical outcomes of myocarditis and pericarditis in 718,365 COVID-19 patients. Eur J Clin Invest. 2021 Nov;51(11):e13679. doi: 10.1111/eci.13679. Epub 2021 Sep 18. PMID: 34516657;PMCID: PMC8646627.1 Reference #3: Little WC, Freeman GL. Pericardial disease. Circulation. 2006 Mar 28;113(12):1622-32. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.105.561514. Erratum in: Circulation. 2007 Apr 17;115(15):e406. Dosage error in article text. PMID: 16567581. DISCLOSURES: No relevant relationships by Atika Azhar No relevant relationships by Berty Baskaran No relevant relationships by Andres Cordova Sanchez No relevant relationships by Harvir Gambhir No relevant relationships by Hanish Jai

South Korea in 2021: A Noisy and Murky Presidential Race, Unstoppable COVID-19, and the Ongoing Globalization of Hallyu

The two biggest stories of 2021 in South Korea were a cutthroat presidential nomination and the nationwide outcry over soaring housing prices. Both the ruling and opposition parties had gone through a noisy and murky nomination process. In 2021, housing prices continued to rise, causing citizens’ anxiety and anger to reach their peak, and the president apologized for the failure of the real estate policy. Despite the maladministration, president Moon Jae-in, unlike previous presidents, did not become a lame duck. Meanwhile, the popularity of Hallyu, or the Korean Wave, continued with the success of the movie Minari, K-pop band BTS, and the Netflix drama series Squid Game.

COVID-19: Impact Analysis on Power Sector (A Comprehensive Review on Demand Change)

The novel Coronavirus which was probably detected in a South East Asian country has caused wide unrest throughout the world, even though the source of the virus is not yet confirmed in any kind of document. It was declared a Pandemic on March 11, 2020. Under this circumstance, the most affected sector seems to be the Electricity sector. In this paper, we will analyze how this pandemic affects the Utility sector and how the threats posed were overcome to regain resiliency. The power demand in India has seen a huge shift since the imposition of Lockdown in India on March 25, 2020, due to which the power demand for the Industrial sector as well as the residential load has changed significantly. Residential load has increased although there is a decline in the overall energy demand. The power demand change and uncertainty in demand change have given new challenges and pressure to the system operator. The change in load pattern has also hugely affected the electricity market. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence and Barriers at a Private University

Introduction: Limited research is available regarding vaccine attitudes among students in higher education. While pharmacy students play a vital role in vaccine administration, little is known about their attitudes toward vaccination. The Vaccine Confidence Scale (VCS) is a validated scoring system, ranging 0-10 to quantify general confidence, including subscales for harms, benefits, and trust related to vaccination. Research Question or Hypothesis: To characterize vaccine confidence regarding COVID-19 vaccines in a University population and compare VCS between pharmacy and other students. Study Design: Cross sectional quantitative survey of COVID-19 Vaccine confidence Methods: A survey regarding vaccine confidence was available to Drake University's population from January to February 2021 (Phase 1a/1b of vaccine availability). Participants were recruited biweekly through campus-wide email announcements. The survey consisted of 26 questions related to demographics, VCS, and COVID-19 experiences. VCS and subscales were tabulated. Comparisons were conducted in SPSS v25 using ANOVA, t-tests, or chi-square. Results: Response rate was ~26%. There were 1184 completed surveys;139 (11.8%) were pharmacy students. Of these, 16.3% had already received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, 71% planned to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, 7.1% planned not to, and 5.6% were unsure. Mean VCS scores were higher among those that had received or planned to receive a vaccine, than those that were unsure, or would not receive a vaccine (8.88 vs 7.30 vs 5.55, P<0.001). Pharmacy students were more likely than other students to have received or plan to receive a vaccine (96.4% vs 85.2%, P=0.002). VCS was higher among pharmacy students than others (8.71 vs 8.52, P=0.05). Harm and Trust subscores were not different, but Benefits subscores were higher among pharmacy students (9.17 vs 8.79, P<0.001). Conclusion: Vaccine confidence was high at private university early in COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Pharmacy student VCS was slightly higher than other students with higher impact of vaccine benefits.

Isolation and pathogenic characterization of duck adenovirus 3 mutant circulating in China.

Duck adenoviruses (DAdVs) include serotype 1 (DAdV-1) in the genus Atadenovirus and serotypes 2-4 (DAdV-2, 3, and 4) in the genus Aviadenovirus. DAdV-3 was initially isolated from Chinese Muscovy ducks in 2014, whereby the infected ducks exhibited yellowing and hemorrhaging in the liver, along with slight pericardial effusion, swelling, and hemorrhaging in the kidneys. In recent years, duck adenovirus infections have appeared in Muscovy duck farms in Fujian, Zhejiang, Anhui, Guangdong, and other places in China. They have an incidence rate of 40 to 55% and a mortality rate of 35 to 43%, resulting in great losses to the duck breeding industry. In this study, 7 DAdV-3 strains, designated as TZ193, FJPT20161124, GX20170519, FJZZ, GDMM, AHAQ, and GDHS were isolated from Muscovy ducks in different provinces of China during 2016-2019, and their complete genomics were sequenced. Their genomes all exhibited significant deletions in ORF67, which also had G to A transitions at the 41st and 977th nt positions, resulting in a stop codon. The pathogenicity of TZ193, a novel isolate of DAdV-3, was investigated in Muscovy ducks. TZ193 caused characteristic lesions of swelling as well as hemorrhagic liver and kidney in the infected ducklings. Moreover, the mortality rate of TZ193 in 5-day-old domestic ducks was 100%. Our data provide concrete evidence for the identification of the DAdV-3 novel variant mutant in China, which effects increased mortality in ducks. This highlights the necessity for monitoring the specific molecular epidemiology of novel DAdV-3 mutants and the development of new vaccines in the future.

Lack of Susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 and MERS-CoV in Poultry.

We challenged chickens, turkeys, ducks, quail, and geese with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 or Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus. We observed no disease and detected no virus replication and no serum antibodies. We concluded that poultry are unlikely to serve a role in maintenance of either virus.

Electrochemical investigations for COVID-19 detection-A comparison with other viral detection methods.

Virus-induced infection such as SARS-CoV-2 is a serious threat to human health and the economic setback of the world. Continued advances in the development of technologies are required before the viruses undergo mutation. The low concentration of viruses in environmental samples makes the detection extremely challenging; simple, accurate and rapid detection methods are in urgent need. Of all the analytical techniques, electrochemical methods have the established capabilities to address the issues. Particularly, the integration of nanotechnology would allow miniature devices to be made available at the point-of-care. This review outlines the capabilities of electrochemical methods in conjunction with nanotechnology for the detection of SARS-CoV-2. Future directions and challenges of the electrochemical biosensors for pathogen detection are covered including wearable and conformal biosensors, detection of plant pathogens, multiplexed detection, and reusable biosensors for on-site monitoring, thereby providing low-cost and disposable biosensors.