Clinical and Serological Findings of COVID-19 Participants in the Region of Makkah, Saudi Arabia

Makkah in Saudi Arabia hosts the largest annual religious event in the world. Despite the many strict rules enacted, including Hajj cancellation, city lockdowns, and social distancing, the region has the second highest number of new COVID-19 cases in Saudi Arabia. Public health interventions that identify, isolate, and manage new cases could slow the infection rate. While RT-PCR is the current gold standard in SARS-CoV-2 identification, it yields false positive and negative results, which mandates the use of complementary serological tests. Here, we report the utility of serological assays during the acute phase of individuals with moderate and severe clinical manifestations of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID19). Fifty participants with positive RT-PCR results for SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled in this study. Following RT-PCR diagnosis, serum samples from the same participants were analyzed using in-house ELISA (IgM, IgA, and IgG) and microneutralization test (MNT) for the presence of antibodies. Of the 50 individuals analyzed, 43 (86%) showed a neutralizing antibody titer of >= 20. Univariate analysis with neutralizing antibodies as a dependent variable and the degree of disease severity and underlying medical conditions as fixed factors revealed that patients with no previous history of non-communicable diseases and moderate clinical manifestation had the strongest neutralizing antibody response "Mean: 561.11". Participants with severe symptoms and other underlying disorders, including deceased individuals, demonstrated the lowest neutralizing antibody response. Anti-spike protein antibody responses, as measured by ELISA, showed a statistically significant correlation with neutralizing antibodies. This reinforces the speculation that serological assays complement molecular testing for diagnostics; however, patients' previous medical history (anamnesis) should be considered in interpreting serological results.Peer reviewe

Clinical and Serological Findings of COVID-19 Participants in the Region of Makkah, Saudi Arabia

Makkah in Saudi Arabia hosts the largest annual religious event in the world. Despite the many strict rules enacted, including Hajj cancellation, city lockdowns, and social distancing, the region has the second highest number of new COVID-19 cases in Saudi Arabia. Public health interventions that identify, isolate, and manage new cases could slow the infection rate. While RT-PCR is the current gold standard in SARS-CoV-2 identification, it yields false positive and negative results, which mandates the use of complementary serological tests. Here, we report the utility of serological assays during the acute phase of individuals with moderate and severe clinical manifestations of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID19). Fifty participants with positive RT-PCR results for SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled in this study. Following RT-PCR diagnosis, serum samples from the same participants were analyzed using in-house ELISA (IgM, IgA, and IgG) and microneutralization test (MNT) for the presence of antibodies. Of the 50 individuals analyzed, 43 (86%) showed a neutralizing antibody titer of ≥20. Univariate analysis with neutralizing antibodies as a dependent variable and the degree of disease severity and underlying medical conditions as fixed factors revealed that patients with no previous history of non-communicable diseases and moderate clinical manifestation had the strongest neutralizing antibody response “Mean: 561.11”. Participants with severe symptoms and other underlying disorders, including deceased individuals, demonstrated the lowest neutralizing antibody response. Anti-spike protein antibody responses, as measured by ELISA, showed a statistically significant correlation with neutralizing antibodies. This reinforces the speculation that serological assays complement molecular testing for diagnostics; however, patients’ previous medical history (anamnesis) should be considered in interpreting serological results

Clinical and Serological Findings of COVID-19 Participants in the Region of Makkah, Saudi Arabia

Makkah in Saudi Arabia hosts the largest annual religious event in the world. Despite the many strict rules enacted, including Hajj cancellation, city lockdowns, and social distancing, the region has the second highest number of new COVID-19 cases in Saudi Arabia. Public health interventions that identify, isolate, and manage new cases could slow the infection rate. While RT-PCR is the current gold standard in SARS-CoV-2 identification, it yields false positive and negative results, which mandates the use of complementary serological tests. Here, we report the utility of serological assays during the acute phase of individuals with moderate and severe clinical manifestations of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID19). Fifty participants with positive RT-PCR results for SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled in this study. Following RT-PCR diagnosis, serum samples from the same participants were analyzed using in-house ELISA (IgM, IgA, and IgG) and microneutralization test (MNT) for the presence of antibodies. Of the 50 individuals analyzed, 43 (86%) showed a neutralizing antibody titer of ≥20. Univariate analysis with neutralizing antibodies as a dependent variable and the degree of disease severity and underlying medical conditions as fixed factors revealed that patients with no previous history of non-communicable diseases and moderate clinical manifestation had the strongest neutralizing antibody response “Mean: 561.11”. Participants with severe symptoms and other underlying disorders, including deceased individuals, demonstrated the lowest neutralizing antibody response. Anti-spike protein antibody responses, as measured by ELISA, showed a statistically significant correlation with neutralizing antibodies. This reinforces the speculation that serological assays complement molecular testing for diagnostics; however, patients’ previous medical history (anamnesis) should be considered in interpreting serological results

Clinical and Serological Findings of COVID-19 Participants in the Region of Makkah, Saudi Arabia

Makkah in Saudi Arabia hosts the largest annual religious event in the world. Despite the many strict rules enacted, including Hajj cancellation, city lockdowns, and social distancing, the region has the second highest number of new COVID-19 cases in Saudi Arabia. Public health interventions that identify, isolate, and manage new cases could slow the infection rate. While RT-PCR is the current gold standard in SARS-CoV-2 identification, it yields false positive and negative results, which mandates the use of complementary serological tests. Here, we report the utility of serological assays during the acute phase of individuals with moderate and severe clinical manifestations of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID19). Fifty participants with positive RT-PCR results for SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled in this study. Following RT-PCR diagnosis, serum samples from the same participants were analyzed using in-house ELISA (IgM, IgA, and IgG) and microneutralization test (MNT) for the presence of antibodies. Of the 50 individuals analyzed, 43 (86%) showed a neutralizing antibody titer of ≥20. Univariate analysis with neutralizing antibodies as a dependent variable and the degree of disease severity and underlying medical conditions as fixed factors revealed that patients with no previous history of non-communicable diseases and moderate clinical manifestation had the strongest neutralizing antibody response “Mean: 561.11”. Participants with severe symptoms and other underlying disorders, including deceased individuals, demonstrated the lowest neutralizing antibody response. Anti-spike protein antibody responses, as measured by ELISA, showed a statistically significant correlation with neutralizing antibodies. This reinforces the speculation that serological assays complement molecular testing for diagnostics; however, patients’ previous medical history (anamnesis) should be considered in interpreting serological results. Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; ELISA; micro-neutralization assay; IgM; IgA; IgG ELISA; Makkah; Saudi Arabi

Formulation of fortified instant weaning food from Musa paradisiaca (banana) and Eleusine coracana

Weaning food is a soft, easily digestible type of food other than breast milk for infants aged 6 to 24 months. The present study was conducted to develop cereal-fruit-based complementary foods for infants and evaluate the nutritional quality of such types of foods. Few researchers have focused on formulating weaning foods from locally available, nutritious, and rich ingredients without nutrient loss to reduce malnutrition and infant morbidity rates. In this study, the formulated infant food was prepared from Musa paradisiaca (Nendran banana) and Eleusine coracana (ragi). Formulated weaning food was analyzed using various standard methods, demonstrating that it could provide adequate nutrients to growing infants for their proper growth and development. The shelf life of the weaning food was also studied for a period of 3 months at ambient conditions in two different packaging materials: aluminum and plastic (low-density polyethylene or LDPE), with the aluminum foil pouch exhibiting the best shelf life. This ready-to-serve food, which is formulated and fortified with natural ingredients containing essential macronutrients and micronutrients, could be regarded as highly effective supplementary food for infants. Furthermore, this development has the potential to introduce an affordable weaning product specifically targeted at low socioeconomic groups

Echinacoside ameliorates hepatic fibrosis and tumor invasion in rats with thioacetamide-induced hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) affects approximately 800,000 individuals globally each year. Despite advancements in HCC treatments, there is still a pressing need to identify new drugs that can combat resistance. One potential option is echinacoside, a natural caffeic acid glycoside with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, and antidiabetic properties. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the ability of echinacoside to exhibit antitumor activity against HCC in rats through ameliorating hepatic fibrosis and tumor invasion. Rats were given thioacetamide to induce HCC, and some were given 30 mg/kg of echinacoside twice a week for 16 weeks. The liver impairment was assessed by measuring serum α-fetoprotein (AFP) and examining liver sections stained with Masson trichrome or anti-transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 antibodies. The hepatic expression of mRNA and protein levels of TGF-β1, β-catenin, SMAD4, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9), phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3K), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), connective tissue growth factor 2 (CCN2), E-Cadherin, platelets derived growth factor (PDGF)-B and fascin were also analyzed. Echinacoside improved the survival rate of rats by decreasing serum AFP and the number of hepatic nodules. Examination of micro-images indicated that echinacoside can reduce fibrosis. It also significantly decreased the expression of TGF-β1, β-catenin, SMAD4, MMP9, PI3K, mTOR, CCN2, PDGF-B, and fascin while enhancing the expression of E-Cadherin. In conclusion, echinacoside exhibits a protective effect against HCC by increasing survival rates and decreasing tumor growth. It also acts as an inhibitor of the hepatic tissue fibrosis pathway by reducing the expression of TGF-β1, β-catenin, SMAD4, PI3K, CCN2, PDGF-B and mTOR. Additionally, it prevents tumor invasion by suppressing MMP9 and fascin, and increasing the expression of E-Cadherin

Role of L- glutamine and crizanlizumab in sickle cell anaemia painful crisis reduction

BackgroundPatients with sickle cell disease, frequently ‎ suffer from intense painful episodes. Till recently hydroxyurea was the only available medical therapy that approved for reduction of painful episodes.AimsTo summarize the available data from randomized controlled trials that aim to evaluate the efficacy of newly approved L-‎glutamine‎ (alters redox state of red blood cells ‎‎[RBCs]) ‎and ‎crizanlizumab (‎(anti-P-selectin)‎)‎ ‎on vaso-occlusive episodes in Sickle cell disease ‎ patients.Methods PubMed, ‎Google Scholar, and EBSCO ‎ databases were ‎‎systematically search for relevant articles. The terms ‎ ‎ ‎ L-glutamine, sickle cell disease, sickle cell ‎anaemia,‎ ‎‎crizanlizumab ‎and vaso-occlusive episodes‎ were used.Results Out of Four-hundred seventy-two records, only three fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Two trials were aimed to evaluate the efficacy of L-glutamine therapy on the frequency of painful crises in sickle cell anaemia patients. Both studies showed that L-glutamine therapy significantly reduce the frequency of VOEs. Only one trial examined the ability of crizanlizumab on VOEs reduction, and showed crizanlizumab successful reduce the occurrence of VOEs.‎ConclusionNewer agent ‎with different mechanism of action, such as ‎L-glutamine, ‎and crizanlizumab may consider if ‎hydroxyurea not effective or not ‎tolerable

Humoral Immunogenicity and Efficacy of a Single Dose of ChAdOx1 MERS Vaccine Candidate in Dromedary Camels

MERS-CoV seronegative and seropositive camels received a single intramuscular dose of ChAdOx1 MERS, a replication-deficient adenoviral vectored vaccine expressing MERS-CoV spike protein, with further groups receiving control vaccinations. Infectious camels with active naturally acquired MERS-CoV infection, were co-housed with the vaccinated camels at a ratio of 1:2 (infected:vaccinated); nasal discharge and virus titres were monitored for 14 days. Overall, the vaccination reduced virus shedding and nasal discharge (p = 0.0059 and p = 0.0274, respectively). Antibody responses in seropositive camels were enhancedby the vaccine; these camels had a higher average age than seronegative. Older seronegative camels responded more strongly to vaccination than younger animals; and neutralising antibodies were detected in nasal swabs. Further work is required to optimise vaccine regimens for younger seronegative camels

Nano-formulations composed of cell membrane-specific cellular lipid extracts derived from target cells: physicochemical characterization and in vitro evaluation using cellular models of breast carcinoma

Abstract Highly selective drug targeting is an important goal in the development of cancer nanotechnologies. In an effort to improve tumor targeting a method was developed to formulate cell membrane lipid-extracted nanoliposomes (CLENs). The main ingredients were extracted directly from the membrane of cancer cells. For this study we used three different breast cancer cell lines (4 T1, BT-20, and SK-BR-3). As controls for the normal breast and cancer tissue environments we employed the normal breast fibroblast (CRL-2089) and ovarian cancer (SK-OV-3) cell lines, respectively. We evaluated physicochemical properties, efficiency of drug loading, cellular uptake, and cytotoxicity. The mean diameter and zeta potential values for the 5 different CLENs were 202 ± 38 nm and − 15 ± 3.8 mv, respectively. Doxorubicin hydrochloride (5 mol%) increased the size of 4 T1-CLENs from 158 ± 2 nm to 212 ± 59 nm, with no significant change in the negatively-charged surface potential. Percent of drug loaded ranged from 40 to 93%, varying according to the ratio of lipid extract to conventional components employed. The additional inclusion of cholesterol and DPPE-PEG5000 increased drug loading in CLENs, similar to Doxil preparations. The most promising cellular uptake and cytotoxicity profiles were observed when the lipid ingredients were derived from the eventual target cell. Given the ability of CLENs to better recognize target cells compared to nanosystems consisting of non-specific lipid extracts or conventional liposome ingredients alone, CLENs has demonstrated early promise as a nano-delivery system for cancer treatment