Modern trends of trade-economic relations of the countries within the COVID-19 pandemic have been systemized in the development of mutual relations in particular economy sectors have been identified Direct connection between the increase of export volume to China and Ukraine GDP growth has been established in the study based on the correlation-regression analysis Weaknesses and strengths as well as opportunities and threats of mutual relations within the pandemic have been defined The influence of the world crisis, creating a free trade area, and other factors on foreign trade circulation between Ukraine and China have been studied with the tools of empirical gravity model of international trade Foreign trade circulation up until 2022 with and without creating a Free Trade Area has been forecast based on the modelled data Perspective directions of trade-economic relations have been defined;the strategy of extending the trade-economic integration of Ukraine and China within the COVID-19 pandemic and in post-pandemic time within customs tariffs liberalization, intensification of symmetric interdependence and complementarity between the countries, within creating a free trade area, diversifying trade turnovers, overcoming the pandemic, reduction of crisis consequences, and strengthening cooperation in new industries of post-pandemic time has been grounded ? 2021 The Authors, published by EDP Sciences

PURPOSE To evaluate the preclinical efficacy of eye drops based on an extract of Artemia salina on the ocular surface of rabbits. Tear secretion, tear break-up time and corneal staining were measured. MATERIAL AND METHODS A preclinical and short-term prospective study was performed. Twenty New Zealand white rabbits were divided into 5 groups, with 4 rabbits per group, each receiving a different concentration of Artemia salina. In each rabbit, an extract of Artemia salina (2%, 4%, 6%, 8% or 10%) was randomly instilled in one eye and saline solution (negative control) in the other eye. Tear secretion, tear break-up time and corneal staining were measured before and after the instillation of 5 drops per eye (1 drop per hour) on the same day. RESULTS In tear secretion, there was an increase of 43.88 6.73% with 4% Artemia salina in comparison with its baseline measurement (P = 0.049). The rest of the groups did not show differences (P 0.05). For tear break-up time, none of the groups showed differences (P 0.05), while for corneal staining score, there was an improvement of 0.88 0.83 with 4% Artemia salina (P = 0.038) and a deterioration of 0.50 0.83 with control solution (P = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS Short-term instillation of eye drops with 4% Artemia salina produced both stimulation of tear secretion and a slight improvement of physiological corneal staining. Besides, all the doses of up to 10% Artemia salina did not produce undesirable side effects on the ocular surface. Therefore, these eye drops are presented as a possible new treatment for dry eye due to their secretagogue properties and ocular surface regeneration.

Background: Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is currently an approved treatment for recurrent and refractory Clostridioides difficile infection However, its use in ulcerative colitis is at an early stage and significant gaps remain in our understanding of the mechanisms and logistics of its practical application Methods and results: This article aims to look into specific issues which remain unsettled for use of FMT in ulcerative colitis including donor and recipient selection, route of administration, and duration of therapy We also discuss optimal ways to assess response to FMT and the current state of FMT regulations In addition, we postulate the impact of diet on the microbiome profile of the donor and recipient We also suggest a change in the nomenclature from FMT to fecal microbiome transfer Conclusion: FMT is an evolving therapy There are several considerations for its use in UC but its use and role should be directed by further clinical trials ? The Author(s) 2020

Background The novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic spread rapidly worldwide increasing exponentially in Italy. To date, there is lack of studies describing clinical characteristics of the population most at risk of infection. Hence, we aimed to identify clinical predictors of SARS-CoV-2 infection risk and to develop and validate a score predicting SARS-CoV-2 infection risk comparing it with unspecific surrogates. Methods Retrospective case/control study using administrative health-related database was carried out in Southern Italy (Campania region) among beneficiaries of Regional Health Service aged over than 30 years. For each subject with Covid-19 confirmed diagnosis (case), up to five controls were randomly matched for gender, age and municipality of residence. Odds ratios and 90% confidence intervals for associations between candidate predictors and risk of infection were estimated by means of conditional logistic regression. SARS-CoV-2 Infection Score (SIS), was developed by generating a total aggregate score obtained from assignment of a weight at each selected covariate using coefficients estimated from the model. Finally, the score was categorized by assigning increasing values from 1 to 4. SIS was validated by comparison with specific and unspecific predictors of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Results Subjects suffering from diabetes, anaemias, Parkinsons disease, mental disorders, cardiovascular and inflammatory bowel and kidney diseases showed increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Similar estimates were recorded for men and women and younger and older than 65 years. Fifteen conditions significantly contributed to the SIS. As SIS value increases, risk progressively increases, being odds of SARS-CoV-2 infection among people with the highest SIS value (SIS=4), 1.74 times higher than those unaffected by any SIS contributing conditions (SIS=1). Conclusion This study identified conditions and diseases making individuals more vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our results are a decision-maker support tool for identifying population most at risk allowing adoption of preventive measures to minimize a potential new relapse damage.

The coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) remains an extant threat against public health on a global scale. Cell infection begins when the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 binds with the human cell receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Here, we address the role of tetracycline as an inhibitor for the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein. Targeted molecular investigation show that tetracycline binds more favorably to the RBD (-9.40 kcal/mol) compared to doxycycline (-8.08 kcal/mol), chloroquine (-6.31 kcal/mol), or gentamicin (-4.83 kcal/mol) while inhibiting attachment to ACE2 to a greater degree (binding efficiency of 2.98 kcal/(mol nm2 ) for tetracycline-RBD, 5.16 kcal/(mol nm2 ) for doxycycline-RBD, 5.59 kcal/(mol nm2 ) for chloroquine-RBD, and 7.02 kcal/(mol nm2 ) for gentamicin-RBD. Stronger inhibition by tetracycline is verified with nonequilibrium PMF calculations, for which the tetracycline-RBD complex exhibits the lowest free energy profile along the dissociation pathway from ACE2. Tetracycline binds to tyrosine and glycine residues on the viral contact interface that are known to modulate molecular recognition and bonding affinity. These RBD residues also engage in significant hydrogen bonding with the human receptor ACE2. The ability to preclude cell infection complements the anti-inflammatory and cytokine suppressing capability of tetracycline; this may reduce the duration of ICU stays and mechanical ventilation induced by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.

The COVID-19 pandemic is rapidly transforming the healthcare system, with telemedicine, or virtual health, being one of the key drivers of the change. Smart glasses have recently been introduced to the public and have generated interest with healthcare professionals as demonstrated by their early adoption in clinics and hospitals. Observing procedures is essential for young interventionalist-in-training, but sometimes it is difficult for them to be able to get the volume of exposure to procedures that they need. Here, we report the first experience using smart glasses for Neurointerventional procedures, highlighting potential benefits and limitations during different scenarios including invitro and life cases. This field is novel, innovative, and may have potential to improve both patient care and patient safety in other health care settings.

Municipal sewage carries degraded and intact viral particles and RNA (ribonucleic acid) of SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2), shed by COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) patients, to sewage and eventually to wastewater treatment plants. Proper wastewater treatment can prevent uncontrolled discharges of the virus into the environment. However, the role of different wastewater treatment stages in reducing viral RNA concentrations is, thus far, unknown. Here, we quantified SARS-CoV-2 RNA in raw sewage and during the main stages of the activated sludge process from two wastewater treatment plants in Israel, on three different days during the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak. To reduce the detection limit, samples were concentrated prior to quantification by real-time polymerase chain reaction by a factor of 2-43 using ultrafiltration. On average, similar to 1 log RNA removal was attained by each of the primary and secondary treatment steps;however, >100 copies of SARS-CoV-2 RNA/ mL remained in the secondary effluents. Following chlorination, SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected only once, likely due to an insufficient chlorine dose. Our results emphasize the capabilities and limitations of the conventional wastewater treatment process in reducing the SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentration and present preliminary evidence for the importance of tertiary treatment and chlorination in reducing dissemination of the virus to the environment.

This paper analyses tail risk spillover, considering interaction of the 46 largest capitalization firms in the Eurozone over the period 9 January 2006 to 28 December 2020 (including part of the COVID-19 era) Employing the Tail-Event driven NETwork (TENET) model, our findings identify insights about the risk sender and receiver in interrelationships of systemic risk beyond contemporaneous total spillover effects First, total connectedness surged and peaked in the early months of 2020, relative to previous crises Second, industrial manufacturing and consumer products have a high degree of risk transmission Third, we determine the predictive indicators of spillover risk Finally, our results hold several policy implications

Pediatric primary care is a trusted source for treatment and information. In the 6 months after COVID-19 vaccines became available for adolescents, we administered 2,286 doses (1,270 to patients; 1,016 to household members) to 1,376 individuals (64.1% Black; 10.1% Latinx), providing opportunities to address family concerns in a familiar location.

Objective: To analyze the symptom characteristics of Coronavirus Disease 2019(COVID-19) and to improve its prevention by using big data. Methods: Using Baidu Index Platform (http://index.baidu.com) and the website of Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention as data resources, we obtained the search volume (SV) of keywords for symptoms associated with COVID-19 from January 1 to February 20 in each year from 2017 to 2020, in Hubei province and other top 10 impacted provinces in China and the epidemic data. Data of 2020 were compared with the previous three years. Data of Hubei province were compared with confirmed cases. The differences and characteristics of the SV of COVID-19-related symptoms, and the correlation between the SV of COVID-19 and new confirmed or suspected cases were analyzed and the hysteresis effects were discussed. R3.6.2 software was used to analyze the data. Results: Compared the data from January 1 to February 20, 2020, with the SV for the same period of previous three years, Hubei's SV for cough, fever, diarrhea, chest tightness, dyspnea and other symptoms were significantly increased. The total SV of lower respiratory symptoms was significantly higher than that of upper respiratory symptoms (P<0.001). The SV of COVID-19 in Hubei province was significantly correlated with new confirmed or suspected cases (r(confirmed)=0.723, r(suspected)=0.863, all P<0.001). The results of the distributed lag model suggested that the patients who retrieved relevant symptoms on the internet may begin to see a doctor in 2-3 days later and be diagnosed in 3-4 days later. Conclusions: The total SV of lower respiratory symptoms is higher than that of upper respiratory symptoms, and the SV of diarrhea also increases significantly. It warns us to pay attention to not only the symptoms of lower respiratory tract, but also the gastrointestinal symptoms, especially diarrhea in patients with COVID-19. There is a relationship between internet retrieval behavior and the number of new confirmed or suspected cases. Big data have a certain role in the early warning of infectious diseases.

BACKGROUND: Chronic mucous hypersecretion (CMH or chronic bronchitis) per se or when associated with chronic inflammatory airway diseases such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has several adverse clinical consequences. The sputum fluid phase has several candidate proteins including mucins which have the potential of being therapeutic targets, but has not yet been explored in-depth. This study aimed at exploring the profile of sputum proteins in various airway diseases. METHODS: Sputum from thirty-one patients with various airway diseases was collected and the fluid phase analyzed by LC-MS/MS and subsequently by sequential window acquisition of all theoretical fragments ion spectra (SWATH) (n = 15) for protein quantitation. Hierarchical clustering and functional grouping were performed. RESULTS: A total of 185 proteins were quantitated by SWATH of which 21 proteins were identified which could distinguish between the clinical phenotypes by hierarchical clustering. Functional protein clustering revealed 4 groups: those that are inflammation related, oxidative stress related, mucin related and a cytoskeletal and calcium related group. The levels of eight proteins (Azurocidin1, Neutrophil defensin 3, Lactotransferrin, Calmodulin 3, Coronin1A, Mucin 5B, Mucin 5AC and BPI fold containing family B1) were significantly altered (relative to mean) in exacerbator prone subjects compared to nonexacerbators. Another simple but useful metric which emerged from this study was total protein concentration in sputum which was significantly higher in frequent exacerbators. CONCLUSION: Sputum proteins can detect the various airway disease clinical phenotypes. Total protein concentration and eight other proteins are biomarkers for frequent exacerbators. The clinical and therapeutic implications of the functional groups of proteins need further evaluation.

OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in health professionals facing unprecedented challenges and changes in practice. Responding to humanitarian crises involves saving lives and reducing suffering and as such, palliative care is an essential component of the response to COVID-19. This study aimed to explore health professionals perspectives of the role of palliative care during the COVID-19 pandemic by analyzing their views and experiences expressed in articles and blogs located via Twitter. METHOD: Qualitative content analysis of 33 online articles and blogs written by health professionals from 1 February 2020 to 30 June 2020. Online articles and blogs were included if the URL was posted on Twitter. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) guided data collection and reporting. RESULTS: The health professionals whose viewpoints were analyzed were from Europe, North America, Oceania and Asia. The themes derived from content analysis were (a) the recognized value of palliative care during the pandemic, (b) positioning palliative care as every health professionals responsibility and (c) specialist palliative care supporting and guiding health professionals CONCLUSIONS: This study utilizes a unique approach to exploring the perspectives of health professionals from several countries during a global pandemic. The study emphasizes the value of palliative care and identifies gaps in end-of-life care provision including resource allocation. This brings to light the urgent need to equip all health professionals with palliative care knowledge and skills, including discussing and planning care. Specialist palliative care teams are well placed to support health professionals to provide quality care.

Omicron s escape to vaccine-induced systemic antibody responses has been shown in several studies in Omicron-infected patients and vaccine controls. In the present study we compared mucosal antibody response to Omicron to mucosal antibody response to ancestral strain and Delta variant. This was done on nasal epithelial lining fluid (NELF) prospectively collected in 84 otherwise healthy healthcare workers who had never exhibited PCR-documented COVID-19 and had received three doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 mRNA vaccine. NELF was collected prior to Omicron detection in the geographical area of inclusion. We show that NELF antibodies from vaccinated individuals were less efficient at inhibiting the binding of the Omicron Spike protein to ACE-2 compared to those of Delta or the ancestral strain. These findings may explain the increased risk of onward transmission of Omicron, consistent with its successful global displacement of Delta in countries with a high vaccination coverage.

Since the nineteenth century, access to and the development of natural resources became an important element of national and international politics. Resource security emerged as an issue vital to national security; and resource competition and crises gave rise to international tensions as well as to technological innovation and new modes of transnational cooperation.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of sleep quality and mental disturbances of medical staff and identify the effects of region, epidemic stage, and demographic characteristics during the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Method: Self-administered questionnaire were sent to health care workers (HCWs) in China from 30 Jan to 2 March, 2020. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Patient Health Questionare-9, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 and the Impact of Event Scale were used to assess sleep quality, depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) of HCWs, respectively. The influencing factors of psychological and sleep disturbances were identified by univariate analysis and multiple regression. Result The incidence of people getting depression, anxiety or PTSD symptoms were 11.6%,13.3%, 14.3%, respectively. HCWs in Hubei province experienced significantly poorer sleep quality (t=5.034, P<0.001). The predictors of sleep quality among HCWs were COVID-19 stage 2 (=.135, p=.014) and 3 (=.184, p=.001), female (=.141, p=.003) and older age (=.160, p=.001).Not working in Hubei province (=-.264, P<0.001) showed to be a protective factor of sleep quality. The risk factors of depression symptoms were not working in Hubei province (OR=4.318, P<0.001), administrative and logistic staff and others (OR=3.538, p=.011), and higher PSQI score (OR=1.282, P<0.001). Having children (under-age: OR=.292, p=.001, grown-up: OR=.293, p=.042) was identified as a protective factor of having depression symptoms. Poor sleep quality showed to be the risk factor of anxiety and PTSD symptoms as well (both p<.001). Furthermore, administrative and logistic staff and others (OR=3.399, p=.006) were found to be the risk factor of PTSD symptoms among HCWs. Conclusion: HCWs had poorer sleep quality on stage 2and 3 of the outbreak. HCWs in Hubei had poorer sleep quality but lighter depression condition. gender, age, occupation and status of having children were associated with sleep and mental health. Mental health programs should be considered for HCWs especially those with specific characteristics. Key words COVID-19, Depression, Anxiety, PTSD, Sleep quality, Health care workers

The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) convened a writing group to address the current evidence and knowledge gaps regarding preparticipation evaluation of athletes during the SARS-CoV2 pandemic The writing group held a series of meetings beginning in April 2020 The task force reviewed the available literature and used an iterative process and expert consensus to finalize this guidance statement that is intended to provide clinicians with a clinical framework to return athletes of all levels to training and competition during the pandemic The statement is not intended to address treatment, infection control principles, or public health issues related to SARS-CoV2 The AMSSM task force acknowledges the clinical uncertainty, evolving public health objectives, and the limited data currently available to create this guidance statement

Scrub typhus is a mite-borne, acute febrile illness caused by the bacterium Orientia tsutsugamushi. It is a re-emerging infectious disease of the tsutsugamushi triangle. Scrub typhus is transmitted through bites of contaminated chiggers (larval stage). Diagnosis of scrub typhus is challenging as its symptoms mimic with other acute febrile illnesses. Several methods are effectual for diagnosis of scrub typhus that includes enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), immunofluorescence assay (IFA), immunochromatographic test (ICT), WeilCFelix, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). WeilCFelix test was initially used for the diagnosis of scrub typhus in underdeveloped countries but not preferred due to a lack of both specificity and sensitivity. Other immuno-based methods like IFA and ELISA are most outrank for detection of scrub typhus due to their higher sensitivity and specificity, but not vigorous to lay bare the infection at early stages and need the convalescent sampling for verification of positive samples. On another deed, PCR based methods becoming acceptable over era due to its dexterity of early-stage diagnosis with higher specificity and sensitivity but lack its applicability in circumstances of scrub typhus due to the variegated genetic makeup of Orientia tsutsugamushi among its serotypes. The present review focused on various detection methods along with their advantages and disadvantages used in the diagnosis of scrub typhus. A comparison between available methods of diagnosis with challenges in the detection of scrub typhus is also summarized.

The Discharge Medicines Review (DMR) referral system, Refer-to-Pharmacy (RTP), PharmOutcomes and Help for Harry are UK transfer of care systems that aim to reduce the risks associated with hospital discharge. These systems use technology to facilitate the transmission of discharge information to community pharmacy, allowing community pharmacists to provide an adherence-support service. Despite the evidence that these systems benefit patient safety, there is a paucity of literature on their use. This study aimed to describe, compare and contrast these systems to highlight areas that could inform good practice recommendations. A rapid literature review was completed, and from the twenty-six sources of literature that were synthesised, three themes were identified for further exploration in semi-structured interviews with key informants: implementation, system attributes and stakeholder engagement. The key informants were purposively sampled for their role in the development and/or strategic implementation of each transfer of care system (n = 4). Audio recordings were transcribed ad verbatim and analysed both deductively and inductively. One interview was undertaken for each of the DMR, RTP and PharmOutcomes systems. Although all systems shared the same aim, differences were identified such as automated feedback for referrals, marketing strategies and practitioner accountability. Good practice recommendations suggested in this study could be applied to the future development of such systems.

BACKGROUND: Seasonal influenza leads to significant morbidity and mortality. Rapid self-tests could improve access to influenza testing in community settings. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of a mobile app-guided influenza rapid self-test for adults with influenza like illness (ILI), and identify optimal methods for conducting accuracy studies for home-based assays for influenza and other respiratory viruses. METHODS: This cross-sectional study recruited adults who self-reported ILI online. Participants downloaded a mobile app, which guided them through two low nasal swab self-samples. Participants tested the index swab using a lateral flow assay. Test accuracy results were compared to the reference swab tested in a research laboratory for influenza A/B using a molecular assay. RESULTS: Analysis included 739 participants, 80% were 25C64 years of age, 79% female, and 73% white. Influenza positivity was 5.9% based on the laboratory reference test. Of those who started their test, 92% reported a self-test result. The sensitivity and specificity of participants interpretation of the test result compared to the laboratory reference standard were 14% (95%CI 5C28%) and 90% (95%CI 87C92%), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: A mobile app facilitated study procedures to determine the accuracy of a home based test for influenza, however, test sensitivity was low. Recruiting individuals outside clinical settings who self-report ILI symptoms may lead to lower rates of influenza and/or less severe disease. Earlier identification of study subjects within 48 h of symptom onset through inclusion criteria and rapid shipping of tests or pre-positioning tests is needed to allow self-testing earlier in the course of illness, when viral load is higher. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12879-021-06314-1.

Paper-and-pencil measures of inductive reasoning and verbal memory administered in-person are well-established methods for measuring cognitive ability in adults. However, given recent increases in the use of online surveys, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic when in-person research with older adults became difficult, we investigated whether these cognitive measures could be administered effectively online and whether older adults performance on these measures of inductive reasoning and verbal memory might differ by education level. Data were collected online between mid-May and mid-June of 2020 from 292 individuals aged 66-90 years (M=69.1, SD=3.3). The sample was primarily White (91%) and had more women (62%) than men; 83 participants had a graduate-level education (masters/doctoral degree), 101 had an associates or bachelors degree, and 108 had less than an associates degree. Three measures of inductive reasoning (Number Series, Letter Sets, and Word Series) and two measures of verbal memory (Immediate Recall and Delayed Recall of a list of 20 words) were completed by participants on an online platform. One-way MANOVA found a significant main effect for education group on the inductive reasoning measures (Wilks lambda=.93, p=.001). However, follow-up univariate ANOVAs indicated significant differences by education group only for Number Series, with Tukey post hoc tests showing that the graduate-level and college-degree groups performed significantly better than the group with less than an associates degree. Factorial repeated-measures ANOVA found a significant decline between immediate and delayed recall (p<.001) and that this difference varied by education group (p=.003). Implications of these findings will be discussed.