Binding of Chloroquine to Whey Protein Relieves Its Cytotoxicity while Enhancing Its Uptake by Cells.

Chloroquine (CQ) is a famous medicine for treatment of diseases including malaria and pneumonia caused by COVID-19, but gastrointestinal disorder caused by its oral administration is a great concern. Milk is usually recommended to be taken with CQ to reduce such effect. However, the mechanism underlying this phenomenon remains unknown. Here, we found that ß-lactoglobulin (ß-LG), α-lactalbumin (α-LA), bovine serum albumin (BSA), and lactoferrin (LF) in whey proteins were able to interact with CQ to form complexes as suggested by fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and molecular docking. Indeed, the crystal structure revealed that ß-LG is bound to CQ through hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonding with a ratio of 1:1. Consequently, the formation of these protein-CQ complexes not only reduced the cytotoxicity of chloroquine to the stomach and gut cells but also facilitated its uptake by cells. This work gave an example to understand the relationship between food and drug.

Evaluating Policies and Incentives to Reduce Vehicle-Miles-Traveled and Air Pollutant Emissions through the Promotion of Telework and Remote Services [Project]

Telework and remote services have been discussed for a long time as a potential tool for mitigating vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic changed people’s behaviors significantly and exacerbated the pressure on congestion and environment. Therefore, there is an urgent need to quantitatively explore the relationship between telework and reduction of VMT and GHG emissions. This research proposes an integrated activity-based dynamic simulation approach to address this need. A large-scale agent-based simulation model will be integrated with an advanced emission analysis model as a testbed to evaluate the impacts of telework and remote service policies on the reduction of VMT and GHG emissions. An optimal telework plan at the individual level will be obtained by an iterative optimization approach to support the decision-making process by Caltrans. Furthermore, broadband development and expansion strategies will be developed and evaluated as an incentive to promote the telework implementation. Other policies as incentives to telework, such as income tax credits, emission credit trading, etc. will be also evaluated, along with the broadband development, to further promote telework and contribute to the reduction of VMT and GHG emissions in the post-pandemic era.

Predicting the Incident Cases of Emerging Infectious Disease Using a Bayesian Probability Model - China, February 2020.

WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT THIS TOPIC?: The exact number of incident cases of emerging infectious diseases on a daily basis is of great importance to the disease control and prevention, but it is not directly available from the current surveillance system in time. WHAT IS ADDED BY THIS REPORT?: In this study, a Bayesian statistical method was proposed to estimate the posterior parameters of the gamma probability distribution of the lag time between the onset date and the reporting time based on the surveillance data. And then the posterior parameters and corresponding cumulative gamma probability distribution were used to predict the actual number of new incident cases and the number of unreported cases per day. The proposed method was used for predicting COVID-19 incident cases from February 5 to February 26, 2020. The final results show that Bayesian probability model predictions based on data reported by February 28, 2020 are very close to those actually reported a month later. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE?: This research provides a Bayesian statistical approach for early estimation of the actual number of cases of incidence based on surveillance data, which is of great value in the prevention and control practice of epidemics.

One Hundred Days of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Prevention and Control in China.

The epidemic of novel coronavirus disease was first reported in China in late December 2019 and was brought under control after some 2 months in China. However, it has become a global pandemic, and the number of cases and deaths continues to increase outside of China. We describe the emergence of the pandemic, detail the first 100 days of China's response as a phase 1 containment strategy followed by phase 2 containment, and briefly highlight areas of focus for the future. Specific, simple, and pragmatic strategies used in China for risk assessment, prioritization, and deployment of resources are described. Details of implementation, at different risk levels, of the traditional public health interventions are shared. Involvement of society in mounting a whole country response and challenges experienced with logistics and supply chains are described. Finally, the methods China is employing to cautiously restart social life and economic activity are outlined.