In silico drug repurposing using molecular docking and dynamics to target the protein interaction between the SARS-CoV-2 S-glycoprotein and the ACE2 receptor [version 2; peer review: 1 approved, 2 approved with reservations]

Background: The protein interaction between the viral surface S-glycoprotein and the host angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptor (ACE2) is key to the virulent nature of SARS-CoV-2. The potential role that effective drug repurposing strategies may have to help stem the impact of future outbreaks has been brought to light in the recent COVID-19 pandemic. This study outlines a comprehensive approach towards in-silico drug discovery which aims to identify hit agents that can be suitably translated into a clinical setting. Methods: We use two different computational platforms to analyze the viral S-glycoprotein in its bound conformational state to the ACE2 receptor. We employed a comprehensive screening approach to shortlist compounds capable of binding to the viral target interface and corroborated these findings using both Schrödinger’s Glide and AutoDock Vina. Molecular dynamic simulation studies further verified the stability of the interaction at the viral-host protein interface. Results: Lymecycline, pentagalloylglucose, polydatin, and hexoprenaline were identified as prime candidates for further studies given the robust and stable nature of their interaction at the viral-host interface and relevance for clinical testing. These agents were shown in a 100-nanosecond simulation trajectory to favorably disrupt key binding interactions at the viral-host interface and may potentially inhibit viral entry into host cells. In all hit molecules it was observed that inhibiting the interaction with the following key viral binding residues: Lys17, Gly496, Tyr 505, and key host residues: His34, Asp38, Lys353, played a critical role toward the inhibition of the viral-host protein interaction. Conclusions: Our study is unique in its comprehensive approach to identify agents that can bind to the S-glycoprotein-ACE2 interface using multiple computational platforms. Among the hit compounds shortlisted in this study, both lymecycline and hexoprenaline may be considered as candidates for preliminarily clinical studies to assess their therapeutic potential in the management of COVID-19 infections

Knowledge, attitude and practice of hepatitis (B) among healthcare workers in relation to their vaccination status in Khartoum, Sudan, 2015: a cross-sectional study

Background: Hepatitis B is a serious chronic infection of the liver and caused by hepatitis B virus. It is an endemic disease in Sudan. Healthcare workers are occupationally more prone to acquire the disease. Evaluation of their knowledge, attitude and practice and their vaccination status, are very important in the control of the disease. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practiceof healthcare workers towards hepatitis B and their vaccination status. Materials and Methods: In total, 372 healthcare workers were enrolled in the study, which was conducted at 10 public hospitals in Khartoum state during July-August 2015. After taking written informed consent from the Khartoum State Research Department, self-administrated questionnaires were distributed to the healthcareworkers. The KAP score was the sum of the three categories, which is 32 points, and the mean was then obtained. Results: The study revealed that the respondents’ mean scores of knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) were 18.4, 2.14 and 2.49, respectively. The study also showed that doctors have the highest KAP score in comparison with other occupations. Doctors are the least occupational category that uses gloves when dealing with patient’s blood. The KAP score was found higher among vaccinated healthcare workers 27.4% in comparison to unvaccinated ones, That yield to a significant the association between KAP score and vac-cination status (p-value0.007).Conclusions: This study concluded that, there is a positive association between the level of vaccination among Health care workers and their Knowledge, attitude and practice of hepatitis B virus. Further studies would be recommended on larger population

May Measurement Month 2018: a pragmatic global screening campaign to raise awareness of blood pressure by the International Society of Hypertension

Aims Raised blood pressure (BP) is the biggest contributor to mortality and disease burden worldwide and fewer than half of those with hypertension are aware of it. May Measurement Month (MMM) is a global campaign set up in 2017, to raise awareness of high BP and as a pragmatic solution to a lack of formal screening worldwide. The 2018 campaign was expanded, aiming to include more participants and countries. Methods and results Eighty-nine countries participated in MMM 2018. Volunteers (≥18 years) were recruited through opportunistic sampling at a variety of screening sites. Each participant had three BP measurements and completed a questionnaire on demographic, lifestyle, and environmental factors. Hypertension was defined as a systolic BP ≥140 mmHg or diastolic BP ≥90 mmHg, or taking antihypertensive medication. In total, 74.9% of screenees provided three BP readings. Multiple imputation using chained equations was used to impute missing readings. 1 504 963 individuals (mean age 45.3 years; 52.4% female) were screened. After multiple imputation, 502 079 (33.4%) individuals had hypertension, of whom 59.5% were aware of their diagnosis and 55.3% were taking antihypertensive medication. Of those on medication, 60.0% were controlled and of all hypertensives, 33.2% were controlled. We detected 224 285 individuals with untreated hypertension and 111 214 individuals with inadequately treated (systolic BP ≥ 140 mmHg or diastolic BP ≥ 90 mmHg) hypertension. Conclusion May Measurement Month expanded significantly compared with 2017, including more participants in more countries. The campaign identified over 335 000 adults with untreated or inadequately treated hypertension. In the absence of systematic screening programmes, MMM was effective at raising awareness at least among these individuals at risk

Extraction, Characterization, and Usage of Turmeric Curcumin for Color Coating of Metronidazole Tablets

Curcumin is a chemical compound produced by Curcuma longa plants that is widely used as a coloring agent and a dietary supplement and has some therapeutic activity. Our aim is to evaluate the use of curcumin as color coating material for metronidazole tablets. Curcumin was extracted at higher yields from three different samples of turmeric plants. The extract obtained was characterized by Infrared Red Spectroscopy (IR), Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) and ash content and melting point (MP). The curcumin produced has an MP content ranging from 182 ° C to 184 ° C and an ash content ranging from 1.5 to 3.17 %. Curcumin material was used as a colorful agent for the coating of metronidazole tablet pills using spray coating technology. Experimental results have shown that curcumin-coated metronidazole tablets exhibit strong color stability even at higher temperatures, and that the taste of bitterness in metronidazole pills has been reduced or has disappeared entirely.</jats:p

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Caregivers among Epileptic Pediatric Patients in Jaafer Ibn Auf Hospital-Khartoum-Sudan

Introduction: The most common neurological disorder that affects more than 50 million people worldwide is epilepsy, especially in childhood, adolescence, and the elderly. . It has a prevalence rate of 2.8–19.5/1000 of the general population and is more prevalent in the early years of life. Methodology: Descriptive, cross-sectional hospital-based study design. Result: most of respondents had average to poor knowledge about epilepsy (59%) and poor knowledge about management by (53.5%). caregivers who were not educated were 17(13.4% participants, primary school level in 34(26.8%) participants, secondary school level 43(33.9%) participants, and high graduation level in 33(26%) participants, and (6.3%) of the respondents think that epilepsy is a supernatural disease. Conclusion: Our community still has some misconceptions regarding epilepsy, most of the misconceptions have been due to relating epilepsy to super-natural disease or causes.</jats:p

Use of Rapid COVID-19 Antibody Testing to Evaluate Relative Risk of Infection in Campus Versus Non-campus Residents at a Government Institution in Saudi Arabia: a Cohort Study

Abstract Background: The World Health Organization confirmed in January 2020 that SARS-CoV-2 has become a pandemic infection. The first case in Saudi Arabia was reported on March 2, 2020. The Saudi Ministry of Health has authorized the use of anti-SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin M/immunoglobulin G (IgM/IgG) antibody testing, but serological test evaluations are still ongoing. Methods: The primary study aim was to determine whether living on a government institution campus, thus limiting contact with the general public, protects against SARS-CoV-2 infection. A study population of 763 employees of the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) in Saudi Arabia and their family members were asked about their age, nationality, residency on or off the KACST campus, chronic conditions, previous COVID-19 symptoms, exposure to infected individuals, and COVID-19 PCR test results. After informed consent was obtained, the VivaDiagTM COVID-19 IgM/IgG Rapid Test was administered. Statistical analysis was conducted of Pearson correlation coefficients for, and generalized linear regression model fitting for predictive ability of, several independent variables versus IgG status. Results: While the study population was skewed towards male, Saudi nationality, and younger individuals, the age distribution was similar between on-campus residents and off-campus residents. Of the 763 study individuals 91.1% were non-campus residents and 8.9% were campus residents. Discussion: As expected, being IgG+ strongly positively correlated with having the COVID-19 symptom of loss of smell (r = 0.417052483). On-campus residency weakly or somewhat correlated with being IgG positive (IgG+; r = 0.187990064) or IgM positive (IgM+; r= 0.242302626), indicating that residing on campus actually increased the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Consistent with this, residency status was highly statistically significantly predictive (p = 0.00002) of IgG status, second only to contact with a COVID19 infected individual (p = 0.00000), and living on campus increased the likelihood of being IgG+. Blood type (p = 0.01069), loss of sense of smell (p = 0.01079); hypertension (p = 0.01871), nationality (p = 0.02324), and PCR test status (p = 0.04243) also statistically significantly predicted IgG status.Conclusions: Contrary to the hypothesis, living on campus actually increased the risk of testing positive for IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 infection.</jats:p