The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic: Vaccination challenges in Sudan.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Musa MB
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8522678 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has developed as a pandemic, and it created an outrageous effect on the current healthcare and economic system throughout the globe. To date, there is no appropriate therapeutics or vaccines against the disease. The entire human race is eagerly waiting for the development of new therapeutics or vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Efforts are being taken to develop vaccines at a rapid rate for fighting against the ongoing pandemic situation. Amongst the various vaccines under consideration, some are either in the preclinical stage or in the clinical stages of development (phase-I, -II, and -III). Even, phase-III trials are being conducted for some repurposed vaccines like Bacillus Calmette-Guérin, polio vaccine, and measles-mumps-rubella. We have highlighted the ongoing clinical trial landscape of the COVID-19 as well as repurposed vaccines. An insight into the current status of the available antigenic epitopes for SARS-CoV-2 and different types of vaccine platforms of COVID-19 vaccines has been discussed. These vaccines are highlighted throughout the world by different news agencies. Moreover, ongoing clinical trials for repurposed vaccines for COVID-19 and critical factors associated with the development of COVID-19 vaccines have also been described.
| S-EPMC7937508 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which can be transmitted from person to person. As of September 21, 2021, over 228 million cases were diagnosed as COVID-19 infection in more than 200 countries and regions worldwide. The death toll is more than 4.69 million and the mortality rate has reached about 2.05% as it has gradually become a global plague, and the numbers are growing. Therefore, it is important to gain a deeper understanding of the genome and protein characteristics, clinical diagnostics, pathogenic mechanisms, and the development of antiviral drugs and vaccines against the novel coronavirus to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The traditional biology technologies are limited for COVID-19-related studies to understand the pandemic happening. Bioinformatics is the application of computational methods and analytical tools in the field of biological research which has obvious advantages in predicting the structure, product, function, and evolution of unknown genes and proteins, and in screening drugs and vaccines from a large amount of sequence information. Here, we comprehensively summarized several of the most important methods and applications relating to COVID-19 based on currently available reports of bioinformatics technologies, focusing on future research for overcoming the virus pandemic. Based on the next-generation sequencing (NGS) and third-generation sequencing (TGS) technology, not only virus can be detected, but also high quality SARS-CoV-2 genome could be obtained quickly. The emergence of data of genome sequences, variants, haplotypes of SARS-CoV-2 help us to understand genome and protein structure, variant calling, mutation, and other biological characteristics. After sequencing alignment and phylogenetic analysis, the bat may be the natural host of the novel coronavirus. Single-cell RNA sequencing provide abundant resource for discovering the mechanism of immune response induced by COVID-19. As an entry receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) can be used as a potential drug target to treat COVID-19. Molecular dynamics simulation, molecular docking and artificial intelligence (AI) technology of bioinformatics methods based on drug databases for SARS-CoV-2 can accelerate the development of drugs. Meanwhile, computational approaches are helpful to identify suitable vaccines to prevent COVID-19 infection through reverse vaccinology, Immunoinformatics and structural vaccinology.
| S-EPMC8560182 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The COVID-19 pandemic has created a situation in which people have to choose between economic and health values. This raises the question of what psychological mechanisms determine people's willingness to bear economic costs to protect health? To answer this question, we examined whether such willingness is better described by compensatory or lexicographic models of decision making in situations involving risk or uncertainty. We compared decisions regarding COVID-19 and occupational diseases to establish a pandemic-independent baseline and to determine whether the mechanisms behind the trade-offs are the same in both cases. Additionally, we tested whether people's willingness to accept economic costs is related to psychological factors such as fear, feeling of control, declared knowledge about the COVID-19 pandemic, predictions concerning the expected length of the pandemic, and perceived effectiveness of actions taken to fight the coronavirus. In total, 354 Polish participants from Prolific Academic took part in this study. The results were consistent with the view that decisions are made primarily to protect sacred values and are therefore not based on compensatory models. In line with this view, participants were sensitive neither to the risk vs. uncertainty manipulation nor to the perceived effectiveness of the lockdown. Instead, their behavior was congruent with lexicographic models in which the protection of health and in particular the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic appeared to be the most important dimension, and the single criterion to be used in decision making.
| S-EPMC7653024 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) first emerged in late 2019 in China. At the time of writing, its causative agent SARS-CoV-2 has spread worldwide infecting over 9 million individuals and causing more than 460,000 deaths. In the absence of vaccines, we are facing the dramatic challenge of controlling COVID-19 pandemic. Among currently available drugs, type I Interferons (IFN-I) - mainly IFN-α and β -represent ideal candidates given their direct and immune-mediated antiviral effects and the long record of clinical use. However, the best modalities of using these cytokines in SARS-CoV-2 infected patients is a matter of debate. Here, we discuss how we can exploit the current knowledge on IFN-I system to tailor the most promising dosing, timing and route of administration of IFN-I to the disease stage, with the final aim of making these cytokines a valuable therapeutic strategy in today's fight against COVID-19 pandemic.
| S-EPMC7334951 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and objectivesThe SARS-CoV‑2 pandemic and the different manifestations of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are a major challenge for health systems worldwide. Medical personnel have a special role in containing the pandemic. The aim of the study was to investigate the SARS-CoV‑2 IgG antibody prevalence in extraclinical personnel depending on their operational area in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsOn May 28 and 29, 2020, serum samples were taken from 732 of 1183 employees (61.9%) of the professional fire brigade and aid organizations in the city area and tested for SARS-CoV‑2 IgG antibodies. The employees were divided into four categories according to their type of participation. category 1: decentralized PCR sampling teams, category 2: rescue service, category 3: fire protection, category 4: situation center. Some employees participated in more than one operational area.ResultsSARS-CoV‑2 IgG antibodies were detected in 8 of 732 serum samples. This corresponds to a prevalence of 1.1%. A previous COVID-19 infection was known in 3 employees. In order to make a separate assessment of the other employees possible and to diagnose unknown infections, a corrected collective of 729 employees with 6 SARS-CoV‑2 antibody detection was considered separately. The prevalence in the corrected collective is 0.82%. After subdividing the collective into areas of activity, the prevalence was low (1: 0.77%, 2: 0.9%, 3: 1.00%, 4: 1.58%).ConclusionsThe seroprevalence of SARS-CoV‑2 in the study collective is low at 1.1% and 0.82%, respectively. There is an increased seroprevalence in operational areas with a lower risk of virus exposure in comparison to operational areas with a higher risk.
| S-EPMC8507503 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We report our experience of COVID-19 disease burden among patients aged 0-21 years at two tertiary care institutions in the Northeast and Midwest from New Jersey and Iowa. Our results showed that during the initial surge (March to August 2020) at both geographic locations, majority of COVID-19 disease burden occurred in adolescents and that they were more likely to be hospitalized for COVID-related illnesses, as well as develop severe disease needing intensive care. The study results emphasize the need for providing more targeted interventions toward this group to help prevent disease acquisition and transmission.
| S-EPMC8552549 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic outbreak in 2019 resulted in the need to search for an effective and safe strategy for treating infected patients, relieving symptoms, and preventing severe disease. SARS-CoV-2 is an RNA virus that can cause acute respiratory failure and thrombosis, as well as impair circulatory system function. Permanent damage to the heart muscle or other cardiovascular disorders may occur during or after the infection. The severe course of the disease is associated with the release of large amounts of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Due to their documented anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antiviral effects, reactive sulfur compounds, including hydrogen sulfide (H2S), lipoic acid (LA), N-acetylcysteine (NAC), glutathione (GSH), and some other lesser-known sulfur compounds, have attracted the interest of scientists for the treatment and prevention of the adverse effects of diseases caused by SARS-CoV-2. This article reviews current knowledge about various endogenous or exogenous reactive sulfur compounds and discusses the possibility, or in some cases the results, of their use in the treatment or prophylaxis of COVID-19.
| S-EPMC9220020 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has led to the infection of many people across the globe, over six million deaths, and has placed an unprecedented burden on public health worldwide. The pandemic has led to the high-speed development and production of vaccines against the COVID-19, as vaccines can end the pandemic. At the beginning of the program, vaccinations were initially targeted only at high-risk groups, such as the elderly, those with comorbidities, or healthcare workers. Although most of the mentioned populations have received the two recommended doses, limited resources have left many authorities with an effective vaccine undersupply. Therefore, policies have been implemented to manage the available doses of the vaccines more efficiently. As there is no universally agreed consensus on this topic, we discuss the different recommendations and guidelines regarding the time interval between the two vaccine doses and explain the different scenarios for applying the two doses.
| S-EPMC9302531 | biostudies-literature
Project description:OBJECTIVE:To apply the THOR 2 multi-criteria support system to select the Brazilian navy's most suitable hospital care vessel (NAsH) to support the fight against the covid-19 pandemic. METHODS:We used the first three stages of the Soft Systems Methodology for structuring and modeling of the problem. For the evaluation and ordering of alternatives, we used the Thor 2 multi-criteria support system, comparing four classes of NAsH in the light of their operational and hospital criteria: "Dr. Montenegro," "Soares Meirelles," "Oswaldo Cruz" and "Tenente Maximiano." The chosen ship would support the amazon hospital system, which has an increasing number of cases of covid-19. RESULTS:After the application of the methods, we analyzed three distinct scenarios of ordering the alternatives, which allowed a robust sensitivity analysis, conferring greater transparency and reliability to the decision-making process. The NAsH "Oswaldo Cruz" was selected to be used in the fight against the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS:This study brings valuable contribution to academia and society, since it represents the application of a multi-criteria decision-aid method in the state of the art to contribute to the solution of a real problem that affects millions of people in Brazil and worldwide.
| S-EPMC7416598 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ObjectiveAnalyzing the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on meningococcal C conjugate vaccination in Brazil.MethodsEcological study, based on interrupted time series, carried out with data collected through the Information System of the National Immunization Program (IS-NIP). Collected data refer to the number of meningococcal C conjugate vaccine doses administered from March 2019 to December 2020.ResultsIn total, 14,832,054 meningococcal C conjugate vaccine doses were administered throughout the investigated period; 66.30% of them, from March 2019 to February 2020 and 33.70%, from March to December 2020. Statistically significant steps were observed, i.e., the COVID-19 pandemic had negative impact on the number of MenC vaccine doses administered in the North and South regions (26,98% and 41.47%, respectively) and in the eleven Brazilian States.ConclusionThe current study has shown that the COVID-19 pandemic had negative impact on the number of MenC vaccine doses administered in the Northern and Southern Brazil, and in eleven Brazilian states. Among all challenges experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, one finds reduced MenC vaccine coverage, which, consequently, may lead to increased meningococcal infection rates in Brazil.
| S-EPMC8933283 | biostudies-literature