Identification of COVID-19 Drug Candidates through Computational Drug Repurposing

The recent outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has spread from China to the rest of the world in part because the virus has a high infection rate. The lack of a vaccine and ineffective antiviral treatments also contribute to the growing number of those who die from COVID-19. Though vaccines are on the verge of being delivered, drug treatments are still much needed because of the challenge of distributing the vaccine and the month long immunity development period where people remain vulnerable makes drug treatments essential. Drug repurposing reuses previously approved drugs to be used for another disease. Case in point are  Remdesiver and Chloroquine, drugs previously used to treat ebola and malaria, which are now being repurposed to treat COVID-19. In this study, we used a computational approach to identify potential drugs to be repurposed in COVID-19 treatment based on patient genomic data and a public gene drug database. We retrieved datasets containing COVID-19 patient RNA-seq and proteomics data and used it to determine differentially expressed genes in each dataset and their interrupted functional pathways. Through the Drug Gene Interaction database, we found the specific drugs that target each differentially expressed gene and used the evidence scores from the database to create our final network of drug gene interactions. Our network contains a total of 22 unique drugs, 10 of which have been tested in a clinical setting, while the remaining drugs need to be validated in clinical studies in the future

Re-establishing Responsiveness in a Case of Refractory Metastatic Rectal Cancer with a Personalized de novo Combination Regimen

Introduction: Encyclopedic Tumor Analysis (ETA) is multi-analyte, molecular and functional interrogation to identify latent vulnerabilities in solid tumors which can then be targeted in organ- and label-agnostic combination treatment regimens.Case Presentation: We describe here a case of metastatic rectal cancer in a 61-year-old male who was progressed on all prior Standard of Care (SoC) treatment modalities including surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. We addressed disease recurrence via personalized therapy guided by ETA which revealed characteristic molecular heterogeneity in primary and metastatic lesions in terms of single nucleotide variations (SNVs) and gene copy number variations (CNVs).  Notably, a novel TBL1XR1 (Exon1) – PIK3CA (Exon 2) gene fusion was identified in the tumor along with gene copy number gains in TERT, IGF-1R, MYC, FGFR1 and EGFR genes.Conclusion: ETA based molecular analysis with synchronous in vitro chemo-sensitivity profiling strategy helped to define de novo combinatorial therapy regimen of targeted and cytotoxic drugs which countered disease progression at each instance and led to the durable regression of primary as well as metastatic lesions

Complementary Effects of Rice husk and Nitrogen Fertilizer on the Growth, Yield and Nutrient Uptake of Cocoyam (Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott)

Cocoyam is one of the staples in the South east and South south zone of Nigeria. There is decline in cocoyam production in these areas because of inherent low fertility level of the soil occasioned by intensive agriculture with little or no fertilizer input. This work investigated the complementary effects of rice husk and nitrogen (N) fertilizer on the growth, yield and nutrient uptake (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) of cocoyam (Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott) var. cocoindia. The treatments comprised two levels of application of rice husk (0 and 15 t/ha) and three levels of nitrogen (0, 50 and 100 KgN/ha) which were factored and fitted into a randomized complete block design replicated thrice. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed in data analyses and LSD was used to partition significant means at P0.05. Rice husk application increased significantly growth, yield and P and K uptakes of cocoyam compared to the control. Nitrogen fertilization had no significant effect on cocoyam yield. However, 100 kgN/ha significantly increased leaf area index, number of suckers and nitrogen uptake over the control. Increasing nitrogen fertilizer above 50 kgN/ha decreased significantly P and K uptakes. Significantly higher yield (13.11 t/ha) was obtained with combined application of 15 t/ha rice husk plus 100 kgN/ha compared to when either rice husk (10.53 t/ha) or nitrogen fertilizer (8.82 t/ha) was applied alone or the control (6.57 t/ha). This rate, 15 t/ha rice husk + 100 kgN/ha, is therefore recommended for improved cocoyam production to enhance food security in Nigeria

Evaluation of Different Levels of Nitrogen and Zinc Fertilizer on Morphological Characters and Yield of Rapeseed

Abstract: The experiment was undertaken during rabi season, November 2011 to February 2012 to examine the effects of different levels of nitrogen and zinc fertilizer on morphology and yield of rapeseed Brassica campestris L. variety BARI sarisha 15. In this experiment, the treatment consisted of four different N levels viz. (N0: 0, N1: 60, N2:120, and N3:180 Kg N/ha) and three different levels of Zn viz. (Zn0:0, Zn1:1 and, Zn2:2 Kg/ha) using randomized complete block (RCBD) with three replications. Nitrogen showed significant variations on both morphological characters, yield contributing parameters and yield of rapeseed such as plant height, number of leaves, number of primary branches, length of inflorescence, seed yield and harvest index. Zinc did not show significant difference on morphological characters as nitrogen. But the significant differences were found on yield contributing characters and yield of rapeseed with zinc fertilization. The interaction between nitrogen and zinc showed statistical variations on all characters including morphological and yield contributing parameters and yield of rapeseed. The treatment combination, N2Zn2 (120 Kg N/ha along with 2 Kg Zn/ha) produced the highest seed yield (4.22 t/ha) whereas the lowest seed yield (0.37 t/ha) recorded from N0Zn0 treatment combination with nitrogen and zinc fertigation. Therefore, the experimental results suggested that both nitrogen and zinc have contribution to improve seed yield of rapeseed by altering reproductive characters

Nanocomposite Material for Supercapacitor Application

Nanocarbon-derived supercapacitors have been focused owing to high surface area, chemical stability, electrical conductivity, and thermal constancy. The nanocarbon materials have been amalgamated with conducting polymers to form supercapacitor electrodes. The nanocarbon fillers may act as pseudocapacitive material to dramatically enhance the electrode performance especially the specific capacitance and energy density. Development of new nanocomposite nanostructures mayovercome the performance challenges posed by low energy density of supercapacitors.Future research progress for nanocarbon-derived supercapacitors depends on understanding the mechanism, design innovation, fabrication, and achievement of high performance materials

Relationship between Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

Due to the significant benefits of business, growing research in all areas of its ethics and corporate social responsibility has recently emerged. It is in this context that the present research work lies to explore the concepts of business ethics and corporate social responsibility with a perspective to clarify the relationship that may exist between them

Bioaccumulation of heavy metals concentration in some selected cereals grown near illegal mine Sites at Poyentanga in Wa of the Upper West Region, Ghana

The contamination of cereals by heavy metals due to illegal mining activities in most farming communities has been a major challenge to food production in Ghana. The research is thus to examine bio-accumulation of heavy metals (Cadmium (Cd), Arsenic (As), Iron (Fe), Lead (Pd) and Zinc (Zn)) concentration in Maize and Millet grown near illegal mining sites at Poyentanga. The study area was divided into five farming zones (farm 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5) and soil and crop samples were taken from each of the zones to the laboratory for analysis using the Atomic Absorption Spectrometer and the results compared to World Health Organization (WHO) permissible limits. The results indicate presence of the selected heavy metals in the cereals and soils sampled from the community. Cd, Pb and Fe concentrations in the cereals were found to be above the WHO permissible limits whereas As and Zn concentrations were below. The soil concentrations of all the five heavy metals were extremely below the WHO permissible limits. It was also observed that farms near the mining sites have higher concentrations with the concentration in the maize being lower than that of Millet. The contamination levels in both cereals are as follows: Zn As Fe Pb Cd. The bioaccumulation ratio indicated that Cd, As and Pb levels were higher in Millet whereas Fe and Zn were highest in the Maize. These results therefore show that the consumption of these cereals for a very long time could have adverse health effect on the community and an indication that activities of illegal mining could thus affect the quality and safety of food produced in many farming communities. The research was concluded with recommendations to improve agricultural activities in such communities

Prolonged Survival of the Patient with Head and Neck Cancer with Squamous Cell Carcinoma treated with Cetuximab: A Case Report

Introduction: Cetuximab, an epidermal growth factor (EGFR) inhibitor has radio sensitizing activity for locoregionally, advanced head and neck cancer (LAHNC). The drug is either used in combination with radiotherapy or in combination with other chemotherapeutic drugs.Case Presentation: A 35-year-old male patient diagnosed with cancer of tongue atloco regional stage who had previously undergone hemiglossectomy was treated with TPF (docetaxel, cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil) as induction therapy(ICT)followed by concurrent local radiation therapy (RT) and cetuximab for 6weeks.The first recurrence appeared 4 years after the surgery, which was treated with RT along with standard treatment with cetuximab for 6weeks.Second recurrence was treated with cetuximab in combination with cisplatin and docetaxel. The patient survived for 8 years since he began his treatment.Conclusion: Cetuximab in combination with RT and other chemotherapeutic drugs can offer a longer survival in patients with both recurrent, locally advanced and metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck cancer

Advanced Satellite Communications

Applications of satellite communications has broader usage; for instance voice, video calling, internet, fax, television, and radio communications. There are abundant and various types of satellites that has applications from amplification of radio telecommunications to military applications and most importantly its application are globally and it also allows transmission of high amount of data.In this paper various types of advanced satellites are discussed; some of them are quantum communication through satellites, metamaterials for better satellite antennas, National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) laser communications, ZigBee based inter-satellite communications, quantum encryption network through satellit

Rectal Carcinoma Metastasis to the Thyroid Gland - the Role of Radiotherapy: A Case Report

Introduction: To date,  a very rare occurrence of thyroid metastases from rectal cancer is described  in the literature. Although there are no treatment standards for this condition, surgery still has a major role in the treatment of these patients. However, radiotherapy has a controversial role and its significance is rather palliative.Case Presentation: We presented a male patient with metastatic rectal carcinoma to the thyroid gland who has been treated with surgery and palliative radiotherapy in our institution.Conclusion: Although thyroid metastases from rectal cancer are rare, we recommend to think on their potential occurrence what could enable early diagnosis and more successful treatment