• COVID-19
• CA close
• IE close
• COVID-19 close

We consider a general mathematical model for protein subunit vaccine with a focus on the MF59-adjuvanted spike glycoprotein-clamp vaccine for SARS-CoV-2, and use the model to study immunological outcomes in the humoral and cell-mediated arms of the immune response from vaccination. The mathematical model is fit to vaccine clinical trial data. We elucidate the role of Interferon-𝛾 and Interleukin-4 in stimulating the immune response of the host. Model results, and results from a sensitivity analysis, show that a balance between the T𝐻 1 and T𝐻 2 arms of the immune response is struck, with the T𝐻 1 response being dominant. The model predicts that two-doses of the vaccine at 28 days apart will result in approximately 85% humoral immunity loss relative to peak immunity approximately 6 months post dose 1.

Abstract On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a new coronavirus infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus as a pandemic, making it the 11th pandemic of the 20th and 21st centuries. This study investigated the clinical and laboratory results (D-dimer, conventional coagulation, and HbA1c biomarker concentrations) of 150 patients (75 male and 75 female) with confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia and 50 controls (25 male and 25 female). For disease diagnosis, all COVID-19 patients were given a Real-Time Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction Assay (RT-PCR). The findings revealed that D-dimer and HbA1c levels in COVID-19 patients were significantly higher (P 0.001) at the time of admission; In COVID-19 patients, there was also a strong correlation between D-dimer levels and HbA1c levels (P 0.001). In conclusion, COVID-19 patients are more likely to have a poor prognosis if their D-dimer and HbA1c levels remain uncontrolled over a lengthy period. To lower the likelihood of a bad prognosis in COVID-19, patients with higher levels of D-dimer and HbA1c should be continuously monitored.

Abstract: COVID-19, or SARS-CoV-2, is an extremely deadly virus that is responsible for over half a million deaths of people in the world. This virus originated in China in December 2019 and rapidly spread worldwide in 2-3 months, and affected every part of the world. Its life-threatening nature forced governments in all countries to take emergency steps of lockdown that affected the entire world's education, health, social and economic aspects. Due to the implementation of these emergencies, the population is facing psychological, social and financial problems. Additionally, this pandemic has significantly influenced the health care systems as all the resources from governments of all countries were directed to invest funds to discover new diagnostic tests and manage COVID-19 infection. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the education and social life of the population is described in this article. Additionally, the diagnosis, management, and phytoremediation to control the spread of COVID-19 and traditional medicinal plants' role in managing its mild symptoms have been discussed.

Introduction: Reactive arthritis (ReA) is a joint inflammation that follows an infection at a distant site, often in the gastrointestinal or urogenital tract. Since the emergence of COVID-19 in January 2020, several case reports have suggested a relation between reactive arthritis and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2), due to the novelty of the disease, most findings were reported in the form of case reports or case series, and a comprehensive overview is still lacking. Methods: We searched PubMed/Medline and Embase to identify studies addressing the association between ReA and COVID-19. The following terms were used: (“Reactive Arthritis” OR “Post-Infectious Arthritis” OR “Post Infectious Arthritis”) AND (“COVID-19” OR “SARS-CoV-2” OR “2019-nCoV”). Results: A total number of 35 reports published up to February 16th, 2022, were included in this study. A wide range of ages was affected (mean 41.0, min 4 max 78), with a higher prevalence of males (61.0%) from 16 countries. The number and location of the affected joints were different in included patients, with a higher prevalence of polyarthritis in 41.5% of all cases. Cutaneous mani-festations and visual impairments were found as the most common associated symptoms. Most pa-tients (95.1%) recovered, with a mean recovery time of 24 days. Moreover, arthritis induced by COVID-19 seems to relieve faster than ReA, followed by other infections. Conclusion: ReA can be a possible sequel of COVID-19 infection. Since musculoskeletal pain is a frequent symptom of COVID-19, ReA with rapid onset can easily be misdiagnosed. Therefore, cli-nicians should consider ReA a vital differential diagnosis in patients with post-COVID-19 joint swelling. Additional studies are required for further analysis and to corroborate these findings.

Abstract: Metformin has been used as an oral anti-hyperglycaemic drug since the late 1950s; however, following the release in 1998 of the findings of the 20-year United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS), metformin use rapidly increased and today is the first-choice anti-hyperglycaemic drug for patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Metformin is in daily use by an estimated 150 million people worldwide. Historically, the benefits of metformin as an anti-diabetic and cardiovascular-protective drug have been linked to effects in the liver, where it acts to inhibit gluconeogenesis and lipogenesis, as well as reduce insulin resistance and enhance peripheral glucose utilization. However, direct protective effects on the endothelium and effects in the gut prior to metformin absorption are now recognized as important. In the gut, metformin modulates the glucagon-like peptide- 1 (GLP-1) - gut-brain axis and impacts the intestinal microbiota. As the apparent number of putative tissue and cellular targets for metformin has increased, so has the interest in re-purposing metformin to treat other diseases that include polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and COVID-19. Metformin is also being investigated as an anti-ageing drug. Of particular interest is whether metformin provides the same level of vascular protection in individuals other than those with T2D, including obese individuals with metabolic syndrome, or in the setting of vascular thromboinflammation caused by SARS-CoV-2. In this review, we critically evaluate the literature to highlight clinical settings in which metformin might be therapeutically repurposed for the prevention and treatment of vascular disease.

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the academic performance of colleges and Kotebe Metropolitan University students in terms of the Internet access, resource availability, and students’ perception of e-learning. The study also described the concerns of students, parents, and teachers related to the circumstances caused by social isolation and the perspectives of teachers and parents with regard to remote or online learning. This study adopted a mixed research design. For data collection, survey questionnaires, which were conducted on a total population of n=350, and semi-structured interviews were used with department heads and stream heads. In addition, simple random sampling was used for all instructors from the college, university, and students from the college of teachers’ education. According to the study’s findings, there was a lack of the Internet access, a lack of ICT resource availability, and a lack of online competency among students and teachers throughout the epidemic. The findings of this study confirm the readiness and motivation of teachers to advance their knowledge and skills, as well as to contribute with the aim of improving the quality of education. The findings also confirmed that COVID-19 comes with both challenges and opportunities for the Ethiopian education system.