Targeting host cell proteases as a potential treatment strategy to limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the respiratory tract.

As the death toll of Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) continues to rise worldwide, it is imperative to explore novel molecular mechanisms for targeting SARS-CoV-2. Rather than looking for drugs that directly interact with key viral proteins inhibiting its replication, an alternative and possibly add-on approach is to dismantle the host cell machinery that enables the virus to infect the host cell and spread from one cell to another. Excellent examples of such machinery are host cell proteases whose role in viral pathogenesis has been demonstrated in numerous coronaviruses. In this review, we propose two therapeutic modalities to tackle SARS-CoV-2 infections; the first is to transcriptionally modulate the expression of cellular proteases and their endogenous inhibitors and the second is to directly inhibit their enzymatic activity. We present a nonexhaustive collection of clinically investigated drugs that act by one of these mechanisms and thus represent promising candidates for preclinical in vitro testing and hopefully clinical testing in COVID-19 patients.

Impact of test anxiety on pharmacy students' performance in Objective Structured Clinical Examination: a cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between test-related anxiety and pharmacy students' performance in the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among Year-5 Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students enrolled at a public university in Saudi Arabia. Students completed Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI), a 20-item validated questionnaire used to assess test-related anxiety, prior to the commencement of a summative OSCE. TAI has two subscales: TAI-Emotionality (TAI-E) and TAI-Worry (TAI-W). The overall maximum possible total score (TAI-T) is 80, with a minimum possible score of 20. KEY FINDINGS: All 25 students, 10 males and 15 females completed the survey. The overall mean scores for TAI-E, TAI-W and TAI-T were 20.2, 19.6 and 50.2, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences between males and females with respect to the TAI-E score (P = 0.43), TAI-W score (P = 0.25) and TAI-T score (P = 0.34). Females had higher marks in the OSCE compared with males (P = 0.01), however. After adjusting for gender, multiple linear regression analysis showed a statistically significant negative association between TAI-W score and marks obtained in OSCE (P = 0.02; 95% CI = -0.42, -0.03). CONCLUSION: Assessment-related worry may negatively affect students' scores in performance-based examination and could lead to overall underperformance.

Effectiveness of pharmacist-led medication review in chronic pain management: systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of pharmacist-led medication review in chronic pain management. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Six electronic databases (Medline, Embase, PsycInfo, CINHAL, CENTRAL, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts) reference lists of retrieved articles and relevant websites were searched for randomized controlled trials published in the English language involving adults with chronic pain. Studies were included if one of the intervention arms had received pharmacist-led medication review independently or as part of a multidisciplinary intervention. Risk of bias was assessed for all the included studies. RESULTS: The search strategy yielded 583 unique articles including 5 randomized controlled trials. Compared with control, meta-analysis showed that participants in the intervention group had: a 0.8-point reduction in pain intensity on a 0 to 10 numerical rating scale at 3 months [95% confidence interval (CI), -1.28 to -0.36] and a 0.7-point reduction (95% CI, -1.19 to -0.20) at 6 months; a 4.84 point (95% CI, -7.38 to -2.29) and -3.82 point (95% CI, -6.49 to -1.14) improvement in physical functioning on a 0- to 68-point function subscale of Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index at 3 and 6 months, respectively; and a significant improvement in patient satisfaction equivalent to a "small to moderate effect." DISCUSSION: Pharmacist-led medication review reduces pain intensity and improves physical functioning and patient satisfaction. However, the clinical significance of these findings remain uncertain due to small effect size and nature of reported data within clinical trials that limits recommendation of wider clinical role of pharmacist in chronic pain management.

Evaluation of breast cancer awareness among female university students in Malaysia / Evaluación del conocimiento sobre cáncer de mama entre estudiantes universitarias en Malasia

Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the leading cause of cancer death among women of all ethnic and age groups in Malaysia. Objective: The objectives of this study were to evaluate the knowledge of breast cancer risk factors, symptoms and methods of screening among female university students and their perception towards the disease treatment outcomes. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from February to March 2008 at University Sains Malaysia. Two hundred participants from 10 randomly selected faculties were interviewed face to face by a trained pharmacist using a validated questionnaire. In addition to their demographic characteristics, participants were required to answer 22 questions concerning knowledge of breast cancer and five questions related to their perception of breast cancer management and treatment outcomes. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 15. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 26.7 (SD=1.9) years. The results showed that the vast majority of the female university students had inadequate knowledge of breast cancer. The mean total knowledge score of the students was 60.7%. Indian students had significantly less knowledge of breast cancer compared to their Chinese and Malay counterparts (p<0.05). However, more than two third of the students were aware of breast self examination (BSE) and clinical breast examination (CBE) recommendations. Furthermore, the students had positive perceptions towards the treatment outcomes of breast cancer. Conclusion: This study has highlighted the need of a breast cancer awareness campaign, which should also stress the importance of early detection and reporting of breast cancer (AU)

El cáncer de mama es el cáncer más común y la mayor causa de muerte entre jóvenes de todos los grupos étnicos y edad en Malasia. Objetivo: Los objetivos de este estudio fueron evaluar el conocimiento sobre los factores de riesgo de cáncer de mama, los síntomas y los métodos de rastreo entre estudiantes universitarias y su percepción hacia los resultados del tratamiento de la enfermedad. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio transversal de febrero a marzo e 2008 en la Universidad Sains Malaysia. Un farmacéutico entrenado entrevistó cara a cara a 200 participantes entre las 10 facultades aleatoriamente seleccionadas utilizando un cuestionario validado. Además, de sus características demográficas e les pidió que respondiesen 22 preguntas relativas al conocimiento del cáncer de mama y 5 relativas a su percepción sobre los resultados de su gestión y tratamiento. Los datos se analizaron utilizando el SPSS versión 15. Resultados: La media de edad de los respondentes era de 26,7 (DE=1,9) años. Los resultados mostraron que la gran mayoría de las estudiantes universitarias tenían conocimientos inadecuados sobre el cáncer de mama. La media de puntuación total fue del 60,7%. Las estudiantes indias tenían significativamente menos conocimiento que sus colegas chinas y malayas (p<0,05). Sin embargo, más de dos tercios de las estudiantes conocían las recomendaciones de auto-exámenes de cáncer de mama y de exámenes clínicos de mama. Incluso, las estudiantes tenían una percepción positiva sobre los resultados del tratamiento del cáncer de mama. Conclusión: Este estudio indicó la necesidad de una campaña de concienciación sobre el cáncer de mama, que también debería remarcar la importancia de la detección temprana y la comunicación del cáncer de mama (AU)

Evaluation of breast cancer awareness among female university students in Malaysia.

UNLABELLED: Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the leading cause of cancer death among women of all ethnic and age groups in Malaysia. OBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study were to evaluate the knowledge of breast cancer risk factors, symptoms and methods of screening among female university students and their perception towards the disease treatment outcomes. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from February to March 2008 at Universiti Sains Malaysia. Two hundred participants from 10 randomly selected faculties were interviewed face to face by a trained pharmacist using a validated questionnaire. In addition to their demographic characteristics, participants were required to answer 22 questions concerning knowledge of breast cancer and five questions related to their perception of breast cancer management and treatment outcomes. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 15. RESULTS: The mean age of the respondents was 26.7 (SD=1.9) years. The results showed that the vast majority of the female university students had inadequate knowledge of breast cancer. The mean total knowledge score of the students was 60.7%. Indian students had significantly less knowledge of breast cancer compared to their Chinese and Malay counterparts (p<0.05). However, more than two third of the students were aware of breast self examination (BSE) and clinical breast examination (CBE) recommendations. Furthermore, the students had positive perceptions towards the treatment outcomes of breast cancer. CONCLUSION: This study has highlighted the need of a breast cancer awareness campaign, which should also stress the importance of early detection and reporting of breast cancer.