Commentary: Educational Policies in Pandemic Times. A View from Latin America

Most countries in the world closed their educational centers and maintained classes online to prevent the spread of the virus SARSV-Cov-2. Latin America is not an exception. Estimates of the transmission dynamics of the pandemic indicate the application of actions that will affect educational contexts for years. This piece reflects on necessary changes in educational policies to take account of the current setting of COVID-19. We focus this reflection from a Latino American perspective, but it is not exclusive. The discussion can be useful to other countries with similar characteristics. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Latinos & Education is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Opportunistic oppression: U.S. migration restrictions and public health policy during the COVID-19 pandemic

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world in Spring 2020, the Trump administration invoked war against the coronavirus to severely restrict admission of migrants and asylum seekers into the United States. At the same time, it declined to enact national measures to control viral community spread and sharply criticised public health policies. We analyse this notable inconsistency as a case of opportunistic oppression whereby policymakers take advantage of a crisis to pursue pre-existing, and often unrelated, policy preferences. We identify how the securitisation of health and the crisis-enabled politics of enmity allowed the Trump administration to cynically erode migrant human rights protections while simultaneously failing to contain the pandemic. Opportunistic oppression represents an attractive strategy for states facing real and imagined emergencies to pursue political agendas that are not necessarily part of a coherent and effective response to the crisis at hand. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of International Journal of Human Rights is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Bringing Trauma Home: Reflections on Interviewing Survivors of Trauma while Working from Home

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home became the new normal for many professionals. While this was beneficial in managing the rapidly spreading virus, it had varying impacts on the mental health of those previously not accustomed to remote work. This paper provides a critical reflection of the researcher's experience of conducting interviews with survivors of trauma while working from home. The research aimed to understand the experiences of significant others supporting patients with severe burn injury in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). As an experienced ICU nurse, the researcher has well developed personal coping strategies for dealing with complex trauma and in working with significant others of patients with severe burn injury in hospital settings. Due to the pandemic, data collection moved from face-to-face in the hospital, as originally intended, to phone or videoconference interviews. 17 participants were recruited, with all participants given the option of videoconference (n = 3) or telephone interviews (n = 14). Interviews had an average length of 55 minutes. This paper discusses the strategies adopted to cope with the sharing of significant others' experiences of trauma while in the home environment. Careful consideration was needed for the researcher, the participants and those within the homes of both researcher and participant, in terms of psychological safety, ethical considerations and rapport building. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of International Journal of Qualitative Methods is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

COVID-19, school closures, and remote teaching: The response time of Brazilian education systems.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, physical distancing strategies entered the list of recommended non)pharmaceutical measures to inhibit the spread of the virus. In educational institutions, these measures resulted in the suspension of face-to-face classes, a process known as school closures. However, states with less capacity to face the consequences of the pandemic ended up transfiguring this transitional measure into a permanent condition, exacerbating existing educational inequalities. This was the case in Brazil, which, during a crisis of the federal pact, triggered fragmented and uncoordinated remote teaching programs. It is precisely to Brazil that this article refers, which characterizes the response time to the closure of schools in the federal education network, in the form of the Federal Institutes of Education, Science and Technology (Institutos Federais de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia), in comparison with the state network. This is an exploratory and descriptive study that uses quantitative and qualitative methods, based on document analysis. It examines the interval between school closures, the disclosure of a contingency plan, the implementation of remote teaching, and the return to face-to-face activities. It finds that, on average, the Institutes took 114 days to publish a contingency plan, in contrast to 34 days for state networks. The article posits the hypothesis that such differences are related to the autonomy of the Institutes in relation to the federal government and the polarization that resulted from president Bolsonaro's administration, aggravated by his denialist stance. (English) [ FROM AUTHOR] El distanciamiento físico implementado para evitar la propagación de la covid-19 supuso la suspensión de las clases presenciales, o sea, el cierre de las escuelas. Estados con menor capacidad para enfrentar las consecuencias de la pandemia transformaron esa medida transitoria en permanente, lo cual exacerbó las desigualdades. Ese fue el caso de Brasil que, en medio de una crisis del pacto federativo, acudió a programas de enseñanza remota fragmentados y desordenados. En este artículo se compara el tiempo de respuesta ante el cierre de las escuelas de la red federal de educación –en la figura de los Institutos Federales de Educación, Ciencia y Tecnología– con el de la red estatal. El texto se basa en un estudio exploratorio y descriptivo fundamentado en métodos cuanti cualitativos y el análisis documental. Se analiza el tiempo entre el cierre de las unidades, la divulgación de un plan de contingencia, la implementación de la enseñanza remota y el regreso a las actividades presenciales. Se constata que, en promedio, los institutos federales tardaron 114 días para divulgar un plan de contingencia frente a los 34 días que requirieron las redes estatales. Se concluye con la siguiente hipótesis: las diferencias están relacionadas con la autonomía de los institutos respecto al Gobierno federal y la polarización que generó la gestión presidencial de Bolsonaro, empeorada con su postura negacionista. (Spanish) [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Íconos. Revista de Ciencias Sociales is the property of FLACSO Ecuador (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Comparative Study On Stress Disorder Between 1st And 2nd Wave Of Covid-19 Pandemic In Indian Population

Background:- Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by SARS-COV2 and represents the causative agent of a potentially fatal disease that is of great global public health concern. Based on the large number of infected people that were exposed to the wet animal market in Wuhan City, China, it is suggested that this is likely the zoonotic origin of COVID-19. Rates of infection and consequently, mortality have risen rapidly, resulting in a global pandemic. With no evidence- based treatments available, most countries have implemented quarantine measures to mitigate the spread of the virus. The world has largely focused on the physical suffering associated with COVID-19. However, the health sequelae of the pandemic are beginning to gain deserved attention. COVID-19 poses unique challenges to population mental health, given the colossal societal impact of nationwide lockdowns and health services struggling to cope. Mental health and well-being have been adversely affected by direct exposure to the virus (eg, depression, anxiety, grief, suicidality) and from the social and economic upheaval that is occurring at an individual and population level. Aim & Objectives: - The aim of study is to assess the stress disorder between 1st and 2 nd wave of covid-19 pandemic in Indian population. Material And Methodology:- An online study that was directed utilizing google form and link was sent utilizing WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram and one to one interview was done. A self-answered questionnaire survey was utilized for the investigation. The study questionnaire took 4-5 minutes to finish. Total 461 responses were obtained in the specific time. Results & Discussion:- This study aims to understand the impact of stress disorder in COVID-19 infected patients in both the 1st and 2nd waves in India. This study reveals a high prevalence of anxiety and fear of COVID-19 among the people in India from 1 st wave to 2nd wave of pandemic. Among the risk factors, family members affected with COVID19 is one reason that has significantly increased the level of anxiety and stress in participants of the study. Conclusion:- Further analysis is required to help establish the syndrome's boundaries (e.g., are there other main aspects that must be included?) and to see if the syndrome varies significantly across cultures and populations. Additional measures must also be developed and tested. Currently, the COVID Stress Syndrome and Disorder can only be assessed using self-report measures. To enable a better understanding of COVID-19-related distress, clinician-administered question and answer session methods could be developed. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Pharmaceutical Negative Results is the property of ResearchTrentz and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Immunization with Recombinant Accessory Protein-Deficient SARS-CoV-2 Protects against Lethal Challenge and Viral Transmission.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has led to a worldwide coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite the high efficacy of the authorized vaccines, there may be uncertain and unknown side effects or disadvantages associated with current vaccination approaches. Live-attenuated vaccines (LAVs) have been shown to elicit robust and long-term protection by the induction of host innate and adaptive immune responses. In this study, we sought to verify an attenuation strategy by generating 3 double open reading frame (ORF)-deficient recombinant SARS-CoV-2s (rSARS-CoV-2s) simultaneously lacking two accessory ORF proteins (ORF3a/ORF6, ORF3a/ORF7a, and ORF3a/ORF7b). We report that these double ORF-deficient rSARS-CoV-2s have slower replication kinetics and reduced fitness in cultured cells compared with their parental wild-type (WT) counterpart. Importantly, these double ORF-deficient rSARS-CoV-2s showed attenuation in both K18 hACE2 transgenic mice and golden Syrian hamsters. A single intranasal dose vaccination induced high levels of neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 and some variants of concern and activated viral component-specific T cell responses. Notably, double ORF-deficient rSARS-CoV-2s were able to protect, as determined by the inhibition of viral replication, shedding, and transmission, against challenge with SARS-CoV-2 in both K18 hACE2 mice and golden Syrian hamsters. Collectively, our results demonstrate the feasibility of implementing the double ORF-deficient strategy to develop safe, immunogenic, and protective LAVs to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection and associated COVID-19. IMPORTANCE Live-attenuated vaccines (LAVs) are able to induce robust immune responses, including both humoral and cellular immunity, representing a very promising option to provide broad and long-term immunity. To develop LAVs for SARS-CoV-2, we engineered attenuated recombinant SARS-CoV-2 (rSARS-CoV-2) that simultaneously lacks the viral open reading frame 3a (ORF3a) in combination with either ORF6, ORF7a, or ORF7b (Δ3a/Δ6, Δ3a/Δ7a, and Δ3a/Δ7b, respectively) proteins. Among them, the rSARS-CoV-2 Δ3a/Δ7b was completely attenuated and able to provide 100% protection against an otherwise lethal challenge in K18 hACE2 transgenic mice. Moreover, the rSARS-CoV-2 Δ3a/Δ7b conferred protection against viral transmission between golden Syrian hamsters.

Impact of COVID-19 on the Human Personality: An Analysis Based on Document Modeling Using Machine Learning Tools

Coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) has affected the globe terribly. The rapid spread of this virus and the precautionary measures to prevent it have impacted the lives of all human beings around the world in all dimensions. The anxieties over the virus along with the social restrictions have challenged the mental health and might have acute psychological consequences. In this study, our aim is to analyze whether COVID-19 has done any significant changes to very well-known five-factor personality traits of all the humans all over the world from social media text, such as Twitter. We first train and validate five machine learning models on the benchmark essays dataset and then those models are tested on the preprocessed Twitter dataset, consisting of pre_covid and post_covid tweets. The novelty of this study is to analyze and establish the fact that in this short period of time, COVID-19 cannot make very significant changes in the human personality all over the world. We have compared the performances of five machine learning models and what we have found is that the result provided by one model is also justified by the other models. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Computer Journal is the property of Oxford University Press / USA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Legislative Behaviour of MPs in the Czech Republic in Times of Covid-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic has affected almost every aspect of our lives. While millions of people fought with the disease, economies, societies and institutions faced side-effects of government measures resisting the spread of the virus. This article describes the effects of the pandemic on the legislative behaviour of MPs in one of the worst-hit countries in the world, the Czech Republic. The results show that the number of bill proposals and roll calls substantially increased during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic times. Since the start of the outbreak, a third of roll calls and a half of bill proposals concerned the pandemic. Nonetheless, the outbreak did not substantially affect the voting unity of parliamentary party groups nor the opposition became more supportive of the cabinet. Still, while the liberal Pirates became more cooperative during the pandemic than the pre-pandemic period, the rightist antisystem party Freedom and Direct Democracy receded from the rest of the parties on the pandemic issues. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Parliamentary Affairs is the property of Oxford University Press / USA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Weather, mobility and the evolution of the Covid-19 pandemic

Purpose: The authors investigate the effect of weather and mobility on the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: The authors first estimate the effective reproduction number (Rt) as a proxy of the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and then study the relationship between the latter and weather and mobility in a panel data framework. The authors use US daily infections data between February and September of 2020 at the county level. Findings: The authors find that lower temperatures are associated with a higher Rt, and this effect is greater at temperatures below 0°C. In addition, mobility reductions related to certain types of locations (retail and recreation, transit stations and workplaces) are effective at reducing Rt, but it is an increase in the time spent in parks that most helps reduce the spread of the pandemic. Originality/value: The estimates imply that a 20°C fall in temperature from summer to winter would increase Rt by +0.35, which can be the difference between a well-controlled evolution and explosive behavior of the spread of the virus. Applying these coefficients estimated with US county data to aggregate series from other countries helps explain the resurgence of the pandemic in the Northern Hemisphere during the winter of 2020. The results show that mobility reduction and social distance are best policies to cope with the Covid-19 outbreak. This strong policy lesson will help facing similar outbreaks in the future. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Economic Studies is the property of Emerald Publishing Limited and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Animal experiments on respiratory viruses and analogous studies of infection factors for interpersonal transmission.

Air pollution caused by SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses in human settlements will have a great impact on human health, but also a great risk of transmission. The transmission power of the virus can be represented by quanta number in the Wells-Riley model. In order to solve the problem of different dynamic transmission scenarios, only a single influencing factor is considered when predicting the infection rate, which leads to large differences in quanta calculated in the same space. In this paper, an analog model is established to define the indoor air cleaning index RL and the space ratio parameter. Based on infection data analysis and rule summary in animal experiments, factors affecting quanta in interpersonal communication were explored. Finally, by analogy, the factors affecting person-to-person transmission mainly include viral load of infected person, distance between individuals, etc., the more severe the symptoms, the closer the number of days of illness to the peak, and the closer the distance to the quanta. In summary, there are many factors that affect the infection rate of susceptible people in the human settlement environment. This study provides reference indicators for environmental governance under the COVID-19 epidemic, provides reference opinions for healthy interpersonal communication and human behavior, and provides some reference for accurately judging the trend of epidemic spread and responding to the epidemic.

Prediction of Infection and Death Ratio of COVID-19 Virus in Turkey by Using Artificial Neural Network (ANN)

Background: For the first time in December 2019, as reported in the Wuhan city of China, COVID-19 deadly virus spread rapidly around the world and the first cases were seen in Turkey on March 11, 2020. On the same day, a pandemic was declared by the World Health Organization due to the rapid spread of the disease throughout the world. Method(s): In this study, a multilayered perception feed-forward back propagation neural network has been designed for predicting the spread and mortality rate of the COVID-19 virus in Turkey. COVID-19 data from six different countries were used in the design of the artificial neural network, which has 15 neurons in its hidden layer. 70% of these optimized data were used for training, 20% for validation, and 10% for testing. Result(s): The simulation results showed that the COVID-19 virus in Turkey, between day 20 and 37, was the fastest to rise. The number of cases for the 20th day was predicted to be 13.845. Conclusion(s): As for the death rate, it was predicted that a rapid rise would start on the 20th day and a slowdown around the 43rd day and progress towards the zero case point. The death rate for the 20th day was predicted to be 170 and for the 43rd day it was 1,960s.Copyright © 2021 Bentham Science Publishers.

COVID-19 in children: what did we learn from the first wave?

A pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome - coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has caused high rates of mortality, predominantly in adults. Children are significantly less affected by SARS-CoV-2 with far lower rates of recorded infections in children compared to adults, milder symptoms in the majority of children and very low mortality rates. A suspected late manifestation of the disease, paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome - temporally associated with SARS-CoV-2 (PIMS-TS), has been seen in small numbers of children and has a more severe disease course than acute SARS-CoV-2. The pandemic has meant that children around the world have been kept off school, isolated from their extended family and friends and asked to stay inside. The UK has been declared as being in an economic recession and unemployment rates are increasing. These indirect effects of SARS-CoV-2 are likely to have a significant impact on many children for years to come. Consolidating the knowledge that has accumulated during the first wave of this pandemic is essential for recognising the clinical signs, symptoms and effective treatment strategies for children; identifying children who may be at increased risk of severe SARS-CoV-2 infection; planning the safe delivery of healthcare and non-health related services that are important for childrens' wellbeing; and engaging in, and developing, research to address the things that are not yet known. This article summarises the evidence that has emerged from the early phase of the pandemic and offers an overview for those looking after children or planning services.

A Cross-Sectional Study on the Assessment of Knowledge and Methods Practiced in Disinfecting and Disposal of Facemasks among the General Public

Objectives: The vast amount of facemasks generated as waste should be disposed of appropriately and responsibly to prevent adverse effects on health and the environment. This study aims to assess the knowledge and methods commonly practiced by the public to disinfect and dispose of used facemasks. Method(s): A cross-sectional study was conducted from June 2021 to December 2021 in the South Part of Karnataka using a face-validated questionnaire. The questionnaire included subject demographic details and methods to disinfect and dispose of masks. The data were recorded and analyzed using Microsoft Excel. Result(s): A total of (n=501) participants took part in the study. This study observed that the most commonly practiced method was to wash the masks with specific cleaners (n=259, 53%). We also assessed knowledge regarding the methods of disposal of a mask. The majority of the participants in our study are aware of the correct method for disposal of used masks(n=342, 68.26%), while (n=159, 31.73%) of subjects are not aware of the right facemask disposal method. Subjects who are educated (p=0.008) and regular mask users (p=0.011) are aware of the right method for mask disposal. Conclusion(s): Many people are unaware of the correct disposal methods. Hence, Manufacturers and Scientists should identify an effective way to disinfect and dispose of used masks and educate the public to practice the proper method of facemask disposal.Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Innovare Academic Sciences Pvt Ltd.

Olfactory dysfunction: A plausible source of COVID-19-induced neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Olfactory dysfunction and neuropsychiatric symptoms are commonly reported by patients of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a respiratory infection caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Evidence from recent research suggests linkages between altered or loss of smell and neuropsychiatric symptoms after infection with the coronavirus. Systemic inflammation and ischemic injury are believed to be the major cause of COVID-19-related CNS manifestation. Yet, some evidence suggest a neurotropic property of SARS-CoV-2. This mini-review article summarizes the neural correlates of olfaction and discusses the potential of trans-neuronal transmission of SARS-CoV-2 or its particles within the olfactory connections in the brain. The impact of the dysfunction in the olfactory network on the neuropsychiatric symptoms associated with COVID-19 will also be discussed.

Breastfeeding provides a protective hug and the benefits have outweighed the risks during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mothers have been very hesitant about breastfeeding when they have COVID-19 infection or vaccinations. Maternal milk protects neonates through its high biological value, immune factors and anti-infectious molecules and this review shows that the virus that causes COVID-19 is not transmitted through breast milk. COVID-19 vaccines induce anti-spike antibodies with neutralising capacity, and phagocytosis, and no vaccine particles or messenger ribonucleic acid have been detected in breast milk. Most drugs used for maternal COVID-19 infections are safe for breastfed infants. CONCLUSION: The clear benefits of breastfeeding by far outweigh the very low risk of infant infections from COVID-19.

Both simulation and sequencing data reveal coinfections with multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants in the COVID-19 pandemic.

SARS-CoV-2 is a single-stranded RNA betacoronavirus with a high mutation rate. The rapidly emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants could increase transmissibility and diminish vaccine protection. However, whether coinfection with multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants exists remains controversial. This study collected 12,986 and 4,113 SARS-CoV-2 genomes from the GISAID database on May 11, 2020 (GISAID20May11), and Apr 1, 2021 (GISAID21Apr1), respectively. With single-nucleotide variant (SNV) and network clique analyses, we constructed single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) coexistence networks and discovered maximal SNP cliques of sizes 16 and 34 in the GISAID20May11 and GISAID21Apr1 datasets, respectively. Simulating the transmission routes and SNV accumulations, we discovered a linear relationship between the size of the maximal clique and the number of coinfected variants. We deduced that the COVID-19 cases in GISAID20May11 and GISAID21Apr1 were coinfections with 3.20 and 3.42 variants on average, respectively. Additionally, we performed Nanopore sequencing on 42 COVID-19 patients and discovered recurrent heterozygous SNPs in twenty of the patients, including loci 8,782 and 28,144, which were crucial for SARS-CoV-2 lineage divergence. In conclusion, our findings reported SARS-CoV-2 variants coinfection in COVID-19 patients and demonstrated the increasing number of coinfected variants.

Why Xi Jinping Reversed His Zero-Covid Policy in China

The rare display of public anger, with some protesters directly criticizing Mr. Xi and the Communist Party, alarmed Mr. Xi and his inner circle, the officials and advisers said. Keywords: leder;wsjworld;photo-news;Political/General News;Respiratory Tract Diseases;Global/World Issues;Health;Medical Conditions;Outbreaks/Epidemics;Politics/International Relations EN leder wsjworld photo-news Political/General News Respiratory Tract Diseases Global/World Issues Health Medical Conditions Outbreaks/Epidemics Politics/International Relations N.PAG N.PAG 1 01/11/23 20230105 NES 230105 A wave of protests coupled with urgent pleas from many corners of the government finally prodded the leader to scrap the strict lockdown system he had touted throughout the pandemic BEIJING - By the end of an otherwise triumphant Communist Party Congress for Xi Jinping in October, it was growing harder for China's leader to argue that his zero-Covid policy was working. [Extracted from the article] Copyright of Wall Street Journal (Online) is the property of Dow Jones & Company Inc and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Health Matters

But the move is a sign that leading health experts are eager to simplify the confusing COVID-19 immunization schedule and better keep up with the constantly evolving virus. SENIOR HEALTH CORRESPONDENT The way Americans get vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19 may soon get simpler. On Jan. 26, an advisory committee of vaccine experts, convened by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), unanimously voted to streamline the current COVID-19 vaccine regimen so the makeup of the primary vaccines matches that of the boosters. [Extracted from the article] Copyright of TIME Magazine is the property of TIME USA, LLC and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Health Matters

On Jan. 26, an advisory committee of vaccine experts, convened by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), unanimously voted to streamline the current COVID-19 vaccine regimen so the makeup of the primary vaccines matches that of the boosters. But the move is a sign that leading health experts are eager to simplify the confusing COVID-19 immunization schedule and better keep up with the constantly evolving virus. If the FDA adopts the committee's recommendations, every COVID-19 shot going forward would target the same virus strains. [Extracted from the article] Copyright of Time International (Atlantic Edition) is the property of TIME USA, LLC and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Transmission of viruses and other pathogenic microorganisms via road dust: Emissions, characterization, health risks, and mitigation measures

Road dust pollution is a complex atmospheric issue that poses a significant ecotoxicological threat to human health and the environment. The presence of viruses in road dust can put humans at risk of infection, as airborne viral particles are a potential synergist to respiratory infirmities, leading to widespread mortality and morbidity. This corroborates the increasing number of desk-based studies on the effects of road dust. However, the role of road dust in the spread and pathogenicity of viruses has scarcely been explored, and there is still no certainty regarding whether road dust participates in viral transmission or causes infectious diseases. Therefore, the current knowledge and mechanisms of road-dust-associated viruses and other pathogenic microorganisms are critically reviewed, highlighting the importance of keeping an eye out for road-dust-associated viruses, as they represent hotspots for viral transmission. In this overview, we evaluate the emissions, associated contaminants, and public health implications of exposure to road-dust-associated viruses. A summary of potential mitigation measures is also presented, highlighting critical knowledge gaps, challenges, and future research directions that require urgent draconian measures. This overview is intended to serve as a seminal reference and management pivot for enhancing global pollution mitigation policies, development of analytical models/methods, periodic monitoring of road dust-associated viruses, and the transport of other pathogenic microorganisms.