Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors in Glial Cells as Molecular Target for Parkinson's Disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by resting tremor, bradykinesia, rigidity, and postural instability that also includes non-motor symptoms such as mood dysregulation. Dopamine (DA) is the primary neurotransmitter involved in this disease, but cholinergic imbalance has also been implicated. Current intervention in PD is focused on replenishing central DA, which provides remarkable temporary symptomatic relief but does not address neuronal loss and the progression of the disease. It has been well established that neuronal nicotinic cholinergic receptors (nAChRs) can regulate DA release and that nicotine itself may have neuroprotective effects. Recent studies identified nAChRs in nonneuronal cell types, including glial cells, where they may regulate inflammatory responses. Given the crucial role of neuroinflammation in dopaminergic degeneration and the involvement of microglia and astrocytes in this response, glial nAChRs may provide a novel therapeutic target in the prevention and/or treatment of PD. In this review, following a brief discussion of PD, we focus on the role of glial cells and, specifically, their nAChRs in PD pathology and/or treatment.

COVID-19, measles, and yellow fever: The need to reinforce vaccination in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The immunization programs have been jeopardized all over the world due to the stay-at-home constraints imposed, to mitigate the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This has directly or indirectly placed the global health care system in peril, resulting in an overlapping public health crisis. With this commentary, we aim to accentuate the need to reinforce vaccination in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in lieu of the intersecting COVID-19, measles, and yellow fever outbreak, besides, providing recommendations so as to help alleviate the situation.

Viral hepatitis amidst COVID-19 in Africa: Implications and recommendations.

Hepatitis, a significant cause of mortality worldwide, results in around 1.34 million deaths each year globally. Africa is not exempt from the plague of Hepatitis. Around 100 million estimated individuals are infected with Hepatitis B or C. Egypt has the highest prevalence of cases of Hepatitis followed by Cameroon and Burundi. The continent is severely affected by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the virus has added an additional burden on the already fragile continent. With the pandemic, it is presumable that Hepatitis like other viral diseases will pose a threat to collapsing healthcare system. Therefore, for Africa to become more resilient in the face of such menaces, including Hepatitis, further prevention policies are required to be implemented.

HIV/AIDS among children in Ratodero, Pakistan amidst the COVID-19 pandemic: Challenges, efforts, and recommendations.

In Pakistan, HIV has increased at an alarming rate in recent decades, and the death toll has risen. It is a public health challenge amidst the COVID-19 pandemic that is not being given due importance. The present article looks at the challenges and efforts being made to deal with HIV among children in Ratodero, Pakistan, and addresses measures that can be taken to control the disease in the child population epidemiologically.

Viral infections amidst COVID-19 in Africa: Implications and recommendations.

Viral infections have been on the rise for the past decades. The impact of the viruses worsened amidst the pandemic burdening the already overwhelmed health care system in African countries. This article sheds light on how the coronavirus together with the already existing viral infections, some of which re-emerged, impacted the continent. The strategies in place such as immunization, education, will have to be strengthened in all African countries to reduce the burden. Furthermore, governments can further collaborate with other countries in creating guidelines to reduce co-infection of the diseases.