The COVID-19 pandemic is a crisis that has gripped the world, causing governments and development agencies to search for critical measures to protect their people. The situation not only represents a significant health risk but has resulted in school closures that have disrupted agricultural education. This impedes the attainment of Africa's larger food security and rural transformation agendas. Six months before the advent of the pandemic, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture initiated a pilot project, Start Them Early Program (STEP) whose goal is to reinforce pathways to careers in agriculture within secondary schools in DR Congo, Kenya, and Nigeria. The project has now been forced to rethink its approach while embracing information and communication technologies due to the school closures. This paper describes the process involved in that operational pivot, particularly concerning the shift from electronic teaching by instructors towards distance electronic learning by students. Key issues addressed are the consolidation of digital applications, development of a mobile-based toolbox for use by young farmers, and constraints to device ownership. The means of addressing these concerns through working with instructors and their larger school systems are explained. Action points and resources that are recommended include the distribution of upgraded instructor workstations, a listing of relevant software applications, and the design of a mobile-based all-in-one toolkit for agriculture students and young farmers. The latter two developments have wider application in the reform of agricultural extension amongst the tech-savvy youth taking up agribusiness.

The rapid worldwide spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection has propelled the rapid development of serological tests that can detect anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. These have been used for studying the prevalence and spread of infection in different populations, helping establish a diagnosis of COVID-19, and will likely be used to confirm humoral immunity after infection or vaccination. However, nearly all lab-based high-throughput SARS-CoV-2 serological assays require a serum sample from venous blood draw, limiting their applications and scalability. Here, we present a method that enables large scale SARS-CoV-2 serological studies by combining self or office collection of fingerprick blood with an FDA-approved dried blood spot collection device (Neoteryx Mitra(R)) with a high-throughput electrochemiluminescence-based SARS-CoV-2 total antibody assay (Roche Elecsys(R)) that is EUA approved for use on serum samples and widely used by clinical laboratories around the world. We found that the Roche Elecsys(R) assay has a high dynamic range that allows for accurate detection of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in serum samples diluted 1:20 as well as contrived dried blood extracts. Extracts of dried blood from Neoteryx Mitra(R) devices acquired in a community seroprevalence study showed near identical sensitivity and specificity in detection of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies as compared to neat sera using predefined thresholds for each specimen type. Overall, this study affirms the use of Neoteryx Mitra(R) dried blood collection device with the Roche Elecsys(R) SARS-CoV-2 total antibody assay for remote or at-home testing as well as large-scale community seroprevalence studies.

The humoral innate immune response consists of multiple components, including the naturally occurring antibodies (NAb), pentraxins and the complement and contact cascades. As soluble, plasma components, these innate proteins provide key elements in the prevention and control of disease. However, pathogens and cells with altered self proteins utilize multiple humoral components to evade destruction and promote pathogy. Many studies have examined the relationship between humoral immunity and autoimmune disorders. This review focuses on the interactions between the humoral components and their role in promoting the pathogenesis of bacterial and viral infections and chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis and cancer. Understanding the beneficial and detrimental aspects of the individual components and the interactions between proteins which regulate the innate and adaptive response will provide therapeutic targets for subsequent studies.

INTRODUCTION: Linfection SARS-Coronavirus-2 (COVID-19) est une pandmie touchant des milliers de personnes et fait lobjet de nombreuses publications du fait de ses prsentations cliniques multiples. EXAMEN CLINIQUE: Nous rapportons le cas dun homme de 51 ans prsentant depuis 1 mois une douleur thoracique vocatrice de pricardite suivie dune altration de ltat gnral et dune dyspne au moindre effort. Il prsente comme antcdent un asthme deffort et un tabagisme actif. Le 01/04/2020, il est pris en charge aux urgences. Son examen clinique retrouve une tension artrielle 106/60 mmHg, une frquence cardiaque 108 battements par minute, une temprature corporelle 36 et une saturation 94 % en air ambiant (AA). La biologie objective une insuffisance rnale aigue avec ure 10,1 mmol/L, cratinine 172 micromol/L (DFG-CKD-EPI 39 mL/min/m(2)), un syndrome inflammatoire avec une CRP 223 mg/L et une polynuclose neutrophiles (11,8 G/L) et une cholestase 2 fois la normale. Le pic de troponine HS est 919 ng/L (norme < 78,5). La gazomtrie artrielle en AA retrouve une hypoxmie isole 62 mmHg. LECG inscrit un microvoltage associ un sus-dcalage diffus du segment ST. Le scanner thoracique (Fig. 1) montre une atteinte typique modre COVID-19 et un panchement pricardique circonfrentiel, mesur 22 millimtres et compressif lchocardiographie trans-thoracique. Au dcours du scanner, le patient prsente une dtresse respiratoire motivant une oxygnothrapie 10 L/min et une ponction pricardique sous-xipho?dienne en urgence. Cette dernire retire 800 mL de liquide sro-hmatique. Lvolution clinico-biologique est rapidement favorable avec disparition des douleurs thoraciques et normalisation de la biologie. Le patient rentre domicile J7 sous traitement par COLCHICINE (0,5 mg 2 fois par jour) introduite J3. Les srologies (VIH, VHB, VHC, EBV, CMV, Adenovirus, Picornavirus, Parvovirus B19) et le frottis naso-pharyng COVID-19 sont ngatifs. Lpanchement pricardique est un exsudat avec de rares lymphocytes sans cellules malignes. On note une contamination Propionibacterium Acnes. Une IRM cardiaque J7 objective une pricardite sans myocardite associe (Fig. 2, Fig. 3, Fig. 4). Nous concluons une tamponnade avec tableau de choc compliquant une myo-pricardite aigue COVID-19. Aprs revue de la littrature, nous retrouvons un cas similaire en Italie [1] galement mal tolr avec ncessit de ponction en urgence. La mauvaise tolrance et lvolution vers ce tableau clinique pourraient tre expliques par la dcharge cytokinique inflammatoire lie au virus. Latteinte pricardique semble rare mais reste non quantifie, ce jour. Les diffrentes tudes radiologiques relvent des panchements pricardiques peu frquents [2]. Sur le plan thrapeutique, lintroduction danti-inflammatoire non stro?diens semble contre-indique compte tenu du risque daggravation respiratoire. La Colchicine a une place reconnue dans le traitement des pricardites et pourrait reprsenter une thrapeutique intressante par le blocage de lassemblage des inflammasomes NLRP3 et de la libration des cytokines [3]. Les limites de ce case report sont labsence de confirmation diagnostique de COVID-19 au frottis naso-pharyng (sensibilit de 59 % [4]) et labsence danalyse virologique du liquide pricardique. CONCLUSION: Toute dgradation inexplique de ltat hmodynamique dun patient COVID-19 doit faire rechercher une myo-pricardite, notamment par chocardiographie trans-thoracique.

The goal of achieving enhanced diagnosis and continuous monitoring of human health has led to a vibrant, dynamic and well-funded field of research in medical sensing and biosensor technologies. The field has many sub-disciplines which focus on different aspects of sensor science; engaging engineers, chemists, biochemists and clinicians, often in interdisciplinary teams. The trends which dominate include the efforts to develop effective point of care tests and implantable/wearable technologies for early diagnosis and continuous monitoring. This review will outline the current state of the art in a number of relevant fields, including device engineering, chemistry, nanoscience and biomolecular detection, and suggest how these advances might be employed to develop effective systems for measuring physiology, detecting infection and monitoring biomarker status in wild animals. Special consideration is also given to the emerging threat of antimicrobial resistance and in the light of the current SARS-CoV-2 outbreak, zoonotic infections. Both of these areas involve significant crossover between animal and human health and are therefore well placed to seed technological developments with applicability to both human and animal health and, more generally, the reviewed technologies have significant potential to find use in the measurement of physiology in wild animals. This article is part of the theme issue 'Measuring physiology in free-living animals (Part II)'.

We report the treatment of a 21-year-old female Covid-19 patient by a novel combination of minocycline and a guanosine-restricted diet. Minocycline is an antibiotic with well documented broad spectrum anti-viral effects, including evidence of activity against SARS-CoV-2. Deprivation of guanosine has been documented as an effective anti-viral modality in vitro and in animal models, and specific in vitro activity against CoV-SARS-2 has been reported. The patient's symptoms resolved rapidly.

The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused an enormous strain on healthcare systems and society on a global scale. We report a new phenomenon of medical care avoidance among patients with acute coronary syndrome, which is due to concerns about contracting severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection during hospital stay, ultimately leading to dire clinical outcomes. (Level of Difficulty: Beginner.)

Introduction: All over Europe, occupational safety and health (OSH) gained importance during the Covid-19 pandemic. Most companies adapted many different OSH measures to cope with the risk of infection. Thereby, in German companies, the adoption of infection control and OSH measures highly depends on different company characteristics. Materials and Methods: We employ data from the 2nd and the 16th survey round of the study Establishments in the Covid-19 crisis (BeCovid), a German representative establishment survey of approximately 2,000 companies in several branches. Both survey rounds, conducted in August/September 2020 and August 2021, focus on infection control measures and health and safety regulations. The latter further includes questions concerning future challenges for OSH. Results: The results show that a large variety of different measures helped to provide infection control and OSH during the crisis. Larger companies not only adopted more measures, but also were more likely to implement measures also concerning psychological health of employees. While the majority of all companies plan to consider OSH in future management decisions, again mainly larger companies are going to invest in digital tools to provide OSH in the future. Conclusions: The covid-19 crisis raised awareness on OSH. It is important to use this awareness and work towards safer and healthier workplaces in the long term.

INTRODUCTION: SARS-CoV-2 was declared a pandemic by the WHO on March 11th, 2020. Public protective measures were enforced in every country to limit the diffusion of SARS-CoV-2. Its transmission, mainly by droplets, has been measured by the effective reproduction number (Rt) that counts the number of secondary cases caused in a population by an average infectious individual at time t. Current strategies to calculate Rt reflect the number of secondary cases after several days, due to a delay from symptoms onset to reporting. We propose a complementary Rt estimation using supervised machine learning techniques to predict short term variations with more timely results. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Our primary goal was to predict Rt of the current day in the twelve provinces of Lombardy with the highest possible accuracy, and with no influence of the local testing strategies. We gathered data about mobility, weather, and pollution from different public sources as a proxy of human behavior and public health measures. We built four supervised machine learning algorithms with different strategies: the outcome variable was the daily median Rt values per province obtained from officially adopted algorithms. RESULTS: Data from 243 days for every province were presented to our four models (from February 15th, 2020, to October 14th, 2020). Two models using differential calculation of Rt instead of the raw values showed the highest mean coefficient of determination (0.93 for both) and residuals reported the lowest mean error (-0.03 and 0.01) and standard deviation (0.13 for both) as well. The one with access to the value of Rt of the day before heavily relied on that feature for prediction, while the other one had more distributed weights. DISCUSSION: The model that had not access to the Rt value of the previous day and used Rt differential value as outcome (FDRt) was considered the most robust according to the metrics. Its forecasts were able to predict the trend that Rt values would have developed over different weeks, but it was not particularly accurate in predicting the precise value of Rt. A correlation among mobility, atmospheric, features, pollution and Rt values is plausible, but further testing should be performed.

The SARS-CoV-2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus has caused a worldwide pandemic because of the virus's ability to transmit efficiently human-to-human. A key determinant of infection is the attachment of the viral spike protein to the host receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Because of the presumed zoonotic origin of SARS-CoV-2, there is no practical way to assess the susceptibility of every species to SARS-CoV-2 by direct challenge studies. In an effort to have a better predictive model of animal host susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2, we expressed the ACE2 and/or transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2) genes from humans and other animal species in the avian fibroblast cell line, DF1, that is not permissive to infection. We demonstrated that expression of both human ACE2 and TMPRSS2 genes is necessary to support SARS-CoV-2 infection and replication in DF1 and a non-permissive sub-lineage of MDCK cells. Titers of SARS-CoV-2 in these cell lines were comparable to those observed in control Vero cells. To further test the model, we developed seven additional transgenic cell lines expressing the ACE2 and TMPRSS2 derived from Felis catus (cat), Equus caballus (horse), Sus domesticus (pig), Capra hircus (goat), Mesocricetus auratus (Golden hamster), Myotis lucifugus (Little Brown bat) and Hipposideros armiger (Great Roundleaf bat) in DF1 cells. Results demonstrate permissive replication of SARS-CoV-2 in cat, Golden hamster, and goat species, but not pig or horse, which correlated with the results of reported challenge studies. Cells expressing genes from either bat species tested demonstrated temporal replication of SARS-CoV-2 that peaked early and was not sustained. The development of this cell culture model allows for more efficient testing of the potential susceptibility of many different animal species for SARS-CoV-2 and emerging variant viruses.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is having a profound effect on mental health and it is therefore fundamental to evaluate individual psychological responses to COVID-19. The 7-item Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) assesses different aspects of the fear of coronavirus and has been applied worldwide. This study aimed to translate and validate the FCV-19S in the Portuguese population. The scale was administered to a convenience sample of 1203 Portuguese adults. Exploratory factor analysis was carried out on the initial model proposed by the authors of the FCV-19S. Further analysis revealed that the Portuguese version has good psychometric properties.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had a devastating impact around the world. With high rates of transmission and no curative therapies or vaccine yet available, the current cornerstone of management focuses on prevention by social distancing. This includes decreased health care contact for patients. Patients with lung cancer are a particularly vulnerable population, where the risk of mortality from cancer must now be balanced by the potential risk of a life-threatening infection. In these unprecedented times, a collaborative and multidisciplinary approach is required to streamline but not compromise care. We have developed guidelines at our academic cancer center to standardize management of patients with lung cancer across our health care system and provide guidance to the larger oncology community. We recommend that general principles of lung cancer treatment continue to be followed in most cases where delays could result in rapid cancer progression. We recognize that our recommendations may change over time based on clinical resources and the evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic. In principle, however, treatment paradigms must continue to be individualized, with careful consideration of risks and benefits of continuing or altering lung cancer-directed therapy.

BACKGROUND: Big events (i.e., unique historical disruptions) like the COVID-19 epidemic and its associated period of social distancing can transform social structures, social interactions, and social norms. Social distancing rules and the fear of infection have greatly reduced face-to-face interactions, increased loneliness, reduced ties to helping institutions, and may also have disrupted the opioid use behaviors of people who use drugs. This research used Reddit to examine the impact of COVID-19 on the social networks and social processes of people who use opioids. METHODS: Data were collected from the social media forum, Reddit.com. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. (March 5, 2020, to May 13, 2020), 2,000 Reddit posts were collected from the two most popular opioid subreddits (r/OpiatesRecovery, r/Opiates). Posts were reviewed for relevance to COVID-19 and opioid use resulting in a final sample of 300. Thematic analysis was guided by the Big Events framework. RESULTS: The COVID-19 pandemic was found to create changes in the social networks and daily lives among persons who use opioids. Adaptions to these changes shifted social networks leading to robust social support and mutual aid on Reddit, including sharing and seeking advice on facing withdrawal, dealing with isolation, managing cravings, and accessing recovery resources. CONCLUSIONS: Reddit provided an important source of social support and mutual aid for persons who use opioids. Findings indicate online social support networks are beneficial to persons who use opioids, particularly during big events where isolation from other social support resources may occur.

Abstract Partially purified preparations of mouse hepatitis virus type 3 (MHV3) agglutinated fowl, day-old chick, ferret, hamster and human O erythrocytes at 4, 20 and 37C and mouse erythrocytes at C.

Aims/Objectives/Background Homelessness is on the rise in the UK The problem identified specific to homeless patient care was clinician understanding of the homeless person's social needs to form an adequate discharge plan as well as completing their legal duty to refer such patients to the local housing authority Methods/Design This quality improvement project (QIP) aimed to reduce the reattendance rate of homeless patients presenting to the Homerton University Hospital (HUH) Emergency Department (ED) by 20% from November 2019 to April 2020 This would be done by improving social history taking, signposting of patients to appropriate resources, and performing the legal duty to refer Using the PDSA cycle method, interventions included a week of presentations to inform clinicians of the process measures;an advertising campaign;and a defined flowchart process for the duty to refer Results/Conclusions The QIP yielded the following results in terms of median baselines: social history taking 60% to 88%, signposting to resources 30% to 67%, and duty to refer 0 to 41% There was no change to the outcome measure of reattendance rate, maintained at 40% throughout the project and hence the QIP did not meet its SMART aim However this may have been the result of the decision to cut short data collection time due to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic which saw overall reduction in ED patient attendance Most street homeless persons were put up in temporary hotels in the government funded scheme 'Everybody In', lockdown meant the hidden homeless should stay indoors, and a ban on court evictions has been extended until 23 August 2020 Nonetheless, work to improve quality of care continued with a new pathway for safe discharge of homeless patients with suspected COVID-19 Planning ahead for post pandemic times has brought about a new standard operating procedure, which will ensure sustainability of the QIP

BACKGROUND In the subcategorization of atypical glandular cells (AGCs), origin of cells should be mentioned to estimate lesion sites for diagnosis. However, cases without subcategorization are often encountered due to limited reproducibility. We evaluated whether the subcategorization of AGC based on the Bethesda terminology can estimate lesion sites. METHODS We retrospectively investigated cases whose cervical smears were interpreted as AGC and underwent pathological assessment at our institution between June 2009 and September 2017. AGC was subcategorized based on the Bethesda System. Not-otherwise-specified (NOS) was subcategorized into endocervical cells (NOS-EC), endometrial cells (NOS-EM), or glandular cells (NOS-G). Favor neoplastic (FN) was subcategorized into endocervical cells (FN-EC) or glandular cells (FN-G). FN-G was further subcategorized into endometrial cells (FN-EM) or unknown origin (FN-UO). Clinicopathological data were retrieved from the medical records. RESULTS Of 88 AGC cases, there were 30 NOS-EC (34.1%), 2 NOS-EM (2.3%), 25 FN-EC (28.4%), 22 FN-EM (25.0%), and 9 FN-UO (10.2%). A significantly higher proportion of neoplastic lesions occurred in FN than in NOS (P <.001). The concordance of AGC subclass and lesion site was 88.0%, 70.7%, and 77.3% in FN-EC, FN-G, and FN-EM, respectively. The concordance of FN-EM and lesion site increased to 88.9% in patients aged >50 years. Of nine cases of FN-UO, six experienced nonendometrioid endometrial cancer and extrauterine malignancy. CONCLUSION Subcategorization of NOS and FN would be useful in estimating neoplastic lesions. Further subcategorization into FN-EC, FN-EM, and FN-UO would similarly be beneficial in estimating the lesion site, especially for small endometrial and extrauterine lesions.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the effects and ways to confront the devastating effects of the COVID-19 crisis and develop a theoretical framework to facilitate understanding of these aspects from the perspective of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) In doing so, the fundamental insights of entrepreneurial self-efficacy, bricolage and improvisation are considered Design/methodology/approach: The study draws on data from 56 business owners-managers operating in eight different nations and representing three geographical regions;the data were gathered through an online questionnaire Findings: Various differences in responses from participants operating in the featured geographical settings were revealed For instance, whereas a higher percentage of South American participants acknowledged financial impacts, they and their European counterparts were also more engaged Originality/value: The study provides various original and valuable elements First, by gathering data from business owners-managers operating in different countries and geographical regions, it provides an international perspective concerning ways in which business operators confront an extreme event Second, and related to the previous point, the study focusses on a business group (MSMEs), which is fundamental for many nations economies Moreover, the experiences of MSMEs could be timely and insightful to industry and business stakeholders Third, the proposed theoretical framework highlights various emerging dimensions associated with adaptation and responsiveness, with both theoretical and practical implications ? 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited

The new coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19, has resurrected a number of historical and sociological problems associated with blaming collectives for the origin or transmission of infectious disease. The default example of the false accusation has been the case of the fourteenth century charge of well poisoning against the Jews of Western Europe causing the pandemic of the Black Death. Yet querying group actions in times of pandemics is not solely one of rebutting false attributions. What happens when a collective is at fault and how does the collective respond to the simultaneous burden of both false, stereotypical accusations and appropriate charges of culpability? The case study here is of Haredi communities and the 2020 outbreak of COVID-19.

PURPOSE: Computed tomography (CT) has been utilized as a diagnostic modality in the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19), while some studies have also suggested a prognostic role for it. This study aimed to assess the diagnostic and prognostic value of computed tomography (CT) imaging in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: This was a retrospective study of fifty patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. Twenty-seven patients survived, while 23 passed away. CT imaging was performed in all of the patients on the day of admission. Imaging findings were interpreted based on current guidelines by two expert radiologists. Imaging findings were compared between surviving and deceased patients. Lung scores were assigned to patients based on CT chest findings. Then, the receiver operating characteristic curve was used to determine cutoff values for lung scores. RESULTS: The common radiologic findings were ground-glass opacities (82%) and airspace consolidation (42%), respectively. Air bronchogram was more commonly seen in deceased patients (p = 0.04). Bilateral and multilobar involvement was more frequently found in deceased patients (p = 0.049 and 0.014, respectively). The mean number of involved lobes was 3.46 1.80 lobes in surviving patients and 4.57 0.60 lobes in the deceased patients (p = 0.009). The difference was statistically significant. The area under the curve for a lung score cutoff of 12 was 0.790. CONCLUSION: Air bronchogram and bilateral and multilobar involvement were more frequently seen in deceased patients and may suggest a poor outcome for COVID-19 pneumonia.

BACKGROUND: Validated depression and anxiety symptom screeners are commonly used in clinical settings. How results from different brief depression and anxiety symptom assessment tools compare to each other is not well established, especially in real world healthcare settings. This study aimed to compare the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 Depression scale (DASS-Depression) and Anxiety (DASS-Anxiety) scale to the Patient Health Questionnaire 8 (PHQ-8) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7) respectively, in a real-world virtual behavioral healthcare setting. METHODS: This was a retrospective comparison study of clinical data from a population of adults who completed a consultation via telephone or secure video with a licensed therapist as part of a standardized, evidence-based, virtual behavioral therapy program for individuals with comorbid medical and behavioral health conditions. The joint distributions and correlations between scores yielded by each depression and anxiety scale were assessed using descriptive and Spearman correlation statistics. RESULTS: The DASS-Depression and PHQ-8 were highly correlated (r = .71; p=<.001); the DASS-Anxiety and GAD-7 correlation was also high (r = .61; p=<.001). The PHQ-8 categorized more individuals as having above-threshold depression scores versus the DASS-Depression (71.5% vs. 43.5%; p < .001). The GAD-7 categorized more individuals as having above-threshold anxiety scores versus the DASS-Anxiety (59.0% vs. 45.0%; p < .001). LIMITATIONS: This study compared results yielded by validated screeners, precluding conclusions related to the validity of screener results. CONCLUSIONS: The DASS-Depression and PHQ-8 and the DASS-Anxiety and GAD-7 similarly ranked symptom severity. The PHQ-8 and GAD-7 were more likely than the DASS-21 Depression or Anxiety scales to classify individuals as having above-threshold symptom severity.