COVID-19 Coronavirus Research Articles

Free Institutional Internet References and the Language of Covid-19

The present paper is concerned with the inclusion in free English-language institutional internet reference works of terms used to discuss health, disease, treatments and medical breakthroughs in the context of COVID-19. The focus is on the glossaries that are available on the websites of the UK Parliament and UK Government, i.e. on credible and authoritative platforms that are in various ways intended to serve as seats for asymmetrical transfer and mediation of knowledge about their operations and services (Engberg & Luttermann, 2014): Coronavirus (Covid-19) Definitions is the online interactive glossary published by the Office of National Statistics in 2022; the COVID-19 glossary is published by the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST). Cross-verification of wordlists and lexicographical treatment in selected dictionary entries is carried out vis-à-vis free and unlocked content from the Oxford Reference platform and the English Wiktionary. Integrating insights from the Function Theory of Lexicography (Bergenholtz & Tarp, 1995), and Wiegand’s (1977 ff.) Actional-Semantic Theory of Dictionary Form, we are able to demonstrate that Coronavirus (Covid-19) Definitions and the COVID-19 Glossary provide basic answers to the queries of lay users – which is in line with the government’s social responsibility to pursue health promotion, prevention of ill health and health protection.

Optimal Control Strategy of a Mathematical Model for the Fifth Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak (Omicron) in Thailand

The world has been fighting against the COVID-19 Coronavirus which seems to be constantly mutating. The present wave of COVID-19 illness is caused by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. The vaccines against the five variants (α, β, γ, δ, and ω) have been quickly developed using mRNA technology. The efficacy of the vaccine developed for one of the strains is not the same as the efficacy of the vaccine developed for the other strains. In this study, a mathematical model of the spread of COVID-19 was made by considering asymptomatic population, symptomatic population, two infected populations and quarantined population. An analysis of basic reproduction numbers was made using the next-generation matrix method. Global asymptotic stability analysis was made using the Lyapunov theory to measure stability, showing an equilibrium point’s stability, and examining the model with the fact of COVID-19 spread in Thailand. Moreover, an analysis of the sensitivity values of the basic reproduction numbers was made to verify the parameters affecting the spread. It was found that the most common parameter affecting the spread was the initial number in the population. Optimal control problems and social distancing strategies in conjunction with mask-wearing and vaccination control strategies were determined to find strategies to give better control of the spread of disease. Lagrangian and Hamiltonian functions were employed to determine the objective function. Pontryagin’s maximum principle was employed to verify the existence of the optimal control. According to the study, the use of social distancing in conjunction with mask-wearing and vaccination control strategies was able to achieve optimal control rather than controlling just one or another.

Azerbaijani-Iranian Relations After the Second Karabakh War: Features and Trends

The study presents an analysis of bilateral relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan (RA) and the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) after the Second Karabakh War (SKW), identifying the sources of tension and new trends in their relations. On the one hand, the participation of RA and IRI in large-scale Eurasian transport and logistics projects allows both countries to play a special role in regional politics, and on the other hand, the full-fledged security of the South Caucasus region, including its current position in the system of international relations, largely depends on the level and quality of Azerbaijani-Iranian relations. The purpose of this study is to identify the features and trends of Azerbaijani-Iranian relations after the Second Karabakh War. The author analyzes the reasons for the aggravation of bilateral relations after the SKW in terms of domestic and foreign policy factors. If ethno-political and religious-ideological factors are considered as domestic political reasons, then the nature of the development of relations between Azerbaijan and Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Israel, and Iran and Armenia is assessed as a foreign policy aspect that led to the deterioration of Azerbaijani-Iranian relations. In addition, conducting military exercises by the two countries near the Azerbaijani-Iranian state border, the position of the Iranian authorities against the opening of the Zangezur corridor, and the attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran at the end of January 2023 also contributed to the deepening of the escalation between the RA and the IRI. Along with this, a new positive trend is also emerging in bilateral relations. The volume of trade turnover between the two countries has traditionally decreased during crisis situations; however, despite the fact that Azerbaijani-Iranian political relations are currently experiencing the worst period in their history, the development of relations in the trade and economic spheres is observed, which is a new trend in the interactions between Baku and Tehran. Thus, not only the problems caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus infection in the economies of the two countries, but also the intensification of work on transport projects in the South Caucasus create conditions for maintaining and increasing the level of trade and economic relations.

Percutaneous coronary intervention in patients admitted with acute coronary syndrome within 6 months after COVID-19 (retrospective single-center study)

BACKGROUND: Assessing clinical manifestations in patients during the period of destabilization of the course of coronary artery disease after COVID-19 coronavirus infection remains a clinical problem. Identifying features of coronary artery lesions in such patients will help to prevent the development of complications and may influence the tactics of active dynamic monitoring.
 AIM: To evaluate the structure of coronary artery lesions and clinical manifestations in patients with acute coronary syndrome that developed within 6 months after COVID-19 new coronavirus infection.
 MATERIALS AND METHODS: A comparative analysis of the results of coronary artery stenting in 157 patients admitted with acute coronary syndrome has been carried out. The 1st group included 69 patients who had COVID-19 (vaccinated — 24.6%) during the 6 months preceding acute coronary syndrome; in the 2nd — 88 patients without a history of COVID-19 (vaccinated — 42%). All the patients had drug-eluting stents implanted in the infarct-related artery. Long-term results have been observed in 151 (96.2%) patients.
 RESULTS: Before the development of acute coronary syndrome, dispnoe was more often observed in patients of the 1st group (36; 52%) than in patients of the 2nd group (13; 14.8%). There were no focal neurological symptoms in the patients of both groups. Dizziness more often preceded acute coronary syndrome in the patients of the 1st group (26; 38.2%) compared to the control group (5; 5.7%). Decreased motivation and fatigue were detected in 27 (67.5%) patients in the 1st group, which was more common than in the 2nd group (13; 32.5%). Acute coronary syndrome with ST elevation was treated in 47 % and 38.6% of the patients in the 1st groups and the 2nd, respectively. The development of acute coronary syndrome with ST segment elevation with previous clinical manifestations of post-covid syndrome in the 1st group was observed in 95.8%, whereas in the absence of post-covid syndrome in 53.3%. The mean value of LVEF in patients who had COVID-19 was 55.9 ± 14%, which was significantly lower than in the patients in the control group (63.2 ± 5.5%; р 0.001). During the course of coronavirus infection in the patients in the first group, lung damage of degrees I–II according to CT scan data was observed in 76.8% of the patients and in 23.2% of degrees III–IV. The frequency of lesions of the circumflex branch in the 1st group was 15.9%, in the 2nd — 11.4% (р = 0.403); of the right coronary artery — 33.3%, and 22.7% (р = 0.41); of the diagonal branch — 5.8%, and 3.4% (р = 0.47); of the left main coronary artery — 5.8%, and 6.8% (р = 0.79), of the left anterior descending branch — 52.2%, and 35.2% (р = 0.033), respectively. The incidence of vasospastic angina in the 1st group was 53.6%, in the 2nd — 15.9% (р 0.0001). ST segment elevation in lead AVR as a manifestation of subendocardial ischemia was registered in the 1st group — 40.6%, the 2nd — 11.4% (р 0.0001). All the patients had drug-eluting stents implanted in the infarct-related artery. Overall survival (in-hospital and long-term) was 100% for the first group and 100 % for the second one.
 CONCLUSIONS: In the structure of coronary arteries lesions after COVID-19 new coronavirus infection in patients with acute coronary syndrome, damage to the anterior interventricular artery dominates (52.2%). The likelihood of having a left anterior descending lesion during the development of acute coronary syndrome with ST segment elevation in patients who have had COVID-19 is 1.5 times higher. The structure of clinical manifestations after COVID-19 in patients before the development of acute coronary syndrome is dominated by shortness of breath (52 %) and decreased motivation and fatigue (67.5 %).

Hybrid grey assisted whale optimization based machine learning for the COVID-19 prediction

Recently, COVID-19 (coronavirus) has been a huge influence on the socio and economic field. COVID-19 cases are seriously increasing day-day and also don’t identified proper vaccine for COVID-19. Hence, COVID-19 is fast spreading virus and it causes more deaths. In order to address this, the work has proposed a machine learning (ML) scheme for the prediction of COVID-19 positive, negative, and deceased instances. Initially, the data is pre-processed by eliminating redundant and missing values. Then, the features are selected using hybrid grey assisted whale optimization algorithm (H-GAWOA). Finally, the classifier ANFIS (adaptive network-based fuzzy inference systems) is used for investigating the confirmed, survival and death rate of COVID-19. The performance is analysed on John Hopkins University dataset and the performances like MSE, RMSE, MAPE, and R2 are measured. In all the comparisons, the MSE value is very less for the proposed model. Particularly, in the deceased cases prediction, the MSE value is 0.00 for the proposed H-GAWOA-ANFIS. Finally, it is proved that the suggested model is able to generate the better results when contrast to the other approaches.

Sustainable Consumer Behavior: The Driving Force of Innovation in Retail

The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented shock to the world economy. Consumer purchase of a country’s brand and the products manufactured in their own country plays a vital role in that country’s GDP, and helps revive the country’s economy. This study focuses on understanding the factors that influence consumers’ buying behavior, and on modeling these factors to understand the causal relationship, using partial least squares structural equation modeling. The data analysis is based on the online survey carried out between 30 March 2020 and 18 April 2020. A total of 367 responses were collected during this period. The study’s findings indicate that there are changes in consumer buying behavior, and the factors that are decisive for purchasing decisions in times of social crisis are changing. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumers’ lives and the changes in their behavior during and after the crisis. Consumers’ attitudes towards traditionalism and retail innovation are essential for the sustainable development of consumer behavior. Under the influence of change and shopping constraints, unplanned- and impulse-shopping behavior has changed into a deliberate search for more sustainable options, with women shopping for sustainable food more often than men. Women are more health-conscious, and consider sustainable food healthier than conventional food. On the retail side, trusted certification of origin supports the rate of sustainable-food purchases, and, from the viewpoint of innovation, the use of digital communication with consumers across different communication channels and platforms is essential.

An Afrocentric Reflection on the Role of Civil Society in Developing Economies: Insights from South Africa During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic initially witnessed in China (Wuhan) brought unprecedented devastation in China and other countries. No country was immune to the virus, and heads of state and policymakers had to draw up and implement robust domestic policies to contain the spread of the virus. From an Afrocentric perspective, the virus had dire consequences for African states, considering that most are minor and driven by weak economies. Narrowing this down to South Africa, the virus brought significant repercussions. In South Africa's 29 years of democracy, the state still faces major social ills such as unemployment, poverty, and inequality. The virus’s arrival worsened matters for the South African government, which needed new measures for the majority black marginalised population. As the government could not do it alone, the role of third parties, such as civil society, became fundamental as civil society is of the utmost importance globally, particularly for Africa and Developing Economies. Driven by a qualitative research approach, the purpose of this article was to ponder the role of civil society in developing economies with specific reference to South Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings show that the government’s role as a single actor in dealing with the pandemic was deficient, as the pandemic crippled the health system. Civil society was pivotal in South Africa during the pandemic and assisted the government with various socio-economic activities, particularly for the marginalised population. Keywords: Afrocentric, Developing economies; Civil society; COVID-19; South Africa

Economic Performance Paths of CEE Countries and the EU-27 in 2000–2022

Abstract Research background An analysis of the similarity of countries’ economic developments can provide an important premise for both the assessment of current international economic relations and the long-term prediction of their economic development potential. Purpose The paper presents research results on the paths of economic performance of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe in 2000–2022. As a reference object the EU-27 aggregate has been considered. A supplementary analysis of the impact of the last crises on the economic situation of the CEE countries was provided. Research methodology The analysis is carried out based on the authors’ method of multivariate analysis, where two positioning criteria are applied: an object’s distance from the optimal point and an object’s heterogeneity. A comparative analysis of economic performance paths dependency is provided using a first-order correlation coefficient for time series. Results It has been found that there has been a significant improvement in the macroeconomic situation of the CEE countries over the last two decades. Changes of economic performance in these countries were very similar, while the heterogeneity of their macroeconomic indicators was diminishing, due to nominal, real and institutional convergence. The CEE countries reacted in a similar way both to the worldwide economic crisis in 2009 and to the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus in 2020. It has been confirmed that the first of these crises had a greater negative impact on the economic situation of these countries. Novelty The originality of the study carried out lies, on the one hand, in the use of the author’s research method and, on the other hand, in the presentation of the impact of economic crises on the economic situation of a selected group of countries in the long term. The added value of the study is an analysis of the correlations of paths describing the economic situation of individual countries.

THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC AND THE IMPACT OF ANTI-COVID-19 MEASURES ON THE POPULATION OF ROMANIA (MARCH 16, 2020 – MARCH 8, 2022)

The study analyses the evolution of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic during the States of Emergency and Alert in Romania between March 16, 2020, and March 8, 2022, and the impact of the measures taken by the authorities on the population, as well as on the socio-economic, education and healthcare systems. The main demographic impact is related to the mortality rate, which was high among the population over 60 years of age, increasing the pressure on the healthcare system. The socio-economic impact triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic had medium and long-term effects: the loss of jobs, the economic crisis, a high unemployment rate, a limited access of the population to medical services, which has led to an economic decline in the field of transport, as well as school closures and switching to online courses for longer periods of time, while companies switched to remote working and made investments in the digitization of services.

Indian Traditional Medicine for COVID-19

Background: A novel coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak causing infectious respiratory disorders. COVID-19 disease has no specific treatment. In traditional medicinal system, different formulations are available for infectious diseases. Objective: This review discusses the significance and utilization of Siddha and Ayurvedic herbal formulations for COVID-19 treatment and provides scientific information regarding the phytochemistry and pharmacological profiles of Indian medicinal plants used in the formulation. Method: The information on medicine and medicinal plants was collected from research papers, review papers, and books available in several electronic databases, including Google Scholar, SpringerLink, and PubMed was explored as information sources. Results: Traditional medicinal plants are potentially used in formulations due to their inevitable therapeutic properties. Phytochemistry and pharmacological properties of medicinal plants used in the formulations served as scientific proof for traditional medicine. Conclusion: The present study explored the great importance of Siddha and Ayurvedic formulations for COVID-19 treatment. Further scientific investigations are required to explore these formulations as widely acceptable.

In silico studies of anti-oxidative and hot temperament-based phytochemicals as natural inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Mpro.

Main protease (Mpro) of SARS-CoV-2 is considered one of the key targets due to its role in viral replication. The use of traditional phytochemicals is an important part of complementary/alternative medicine, which also accompany the concept of temperament, where it has been shown that hot medicines cure cold and cold medicines cure hot, with cold and hot pattern being associated with oxidative and anti-oxidative properties in medicine, respectively. Molecular docking in this study has demonstrated that a number of anti-oxidative and hot temperament-based phytochemicals have high binding affinities to SARS-CoV-2 Mpro, both in the monomeric and dimeric deposited states of the protein. The highest ranking phytochemicals identified in this study included savinin, betulinic acid and curcumin. Complexes of savinin, betulinic acid, curcumin as well as Nirmatrelvir (the only approved inhibitor, used for comparison) bound to SARS-CoV-2 Mpro were further subjected to molecular dynamics simulations. Subsequently, RMSD, RMSF, Rg, number of hydrogen bonds, binding free energies and residue contributions (using MM-PBSA) and buried surface area (BSA), were analysed. The computational results suggested high binding affinities of savinin, betulinic acid and curcumin to both the monomeric and dimeric deposited states of Mpro, while highlighting the lower binding energy of betulinic acid in comparison with savinin and curcumin and even Nirmatrelvir, leading to a greater stability of the betulinic acid-SARS-CoV-2 Mpro complex. Overall, based on the increasing mutation rate in the spike protein and the fact that the SARS-CoV-2 Mpro remains highly conserved, this study provides an insight into the use of phytochemicals against COVID-19 and other coronavirus diseases.

Alteration in innate immune cues assessed by analyzing peripheral blood immune system in post-covid patients

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has led to global morbidity and mortality. Some patients fully recover from COVID-19, whereas around 45% subjects suffer from various persistent symptoms (fatigue, cognitive impairment, impaired thermoregulation, skin diseases, etc.) for at least four months after SARS-CoV-2 infection regardless of disease severity. Such persistent post-infection effects are known as long-COVID, post-acute effects of COVID-19, or post-COVID state. SARS-CoV-2 infection is accompanied by damage to the innate immune system. Considering the role of natural killer cells and the activation of the complement system in COVID-19 as well as the regulatory properties related to CD46 and its potential involvement in cell virus entry, we found necessary to study immune system parameters associated with impairment of these innate immune cues on various leukocyte subpopulations in post-COVID patients. We studied 92 immune system parameters, including: pan-leukocyte markers for gated lymphocytes, phenotyping of T cells, T-helper inducers, cytotoxic T-lymphocytes, NK- and TNK-cells, T-regulatory cells/suppressors, B-lymphocytes, including B-memory cells, activated helpers, early activation of lymphocytes, activated T-lymphocytes, and late lymphocyte activation markers. Levels of total IgM, IgG, IgA, specific IgM, IgG to coronavirus COVID-19, C1-inhibitor, C3a, and C5a complement components were measured by enzyme immunoassay using Multiscan FC Thermoscientific enzyme immunoassay analyzer (China) and Vector Best reagent kits (Russia). A complete blood count was conducted to study 25 parameters: leukocyte, erythrocyte, and platelet hematopoietic lineages as well as the quantitative and qualitative composition of hematopoietic lineages. Our study results showed that in some patients, six months after suffering from COVID-19, there was a decrease in the level of NK cells (48%) and CD46+pan-leukocyte marker cells (64.5%). A decrease in NK cell levels was accompanied by increased level of total T- and B-lymphocytes, and altered platelet and erythroid hematopoietic lineages. In patients with reduced CD46 expression on T-lymphocytes, both their total count and NK cell count were significantly reduced. Our data also suggest that CD46 might be potentially involved in development of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the post-COVID state. Thus, in 50–65% of patients who have experienced SARS-CoV-2 infection, damage to the innate immune system persists after six months being accompanied by impaired erythroid and platelet hematopoietic lineages. The data obtained indicate a need for using immunocorrective therapy in such patients.

Prevalence of Covid-19 and Associated Co-Morbidities at a Tertiary Hospital in Eastern Nepal

Introduction: COVID-19 (coronavirus disease) manifests as asymptomatic, mild, or severe pneumonia-like symptoms. COVID-19 patients with diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cardiovascular disease (CVD), hypertension, malignancies, HIV, and other comorbidities could develop a life-threatening condition.
 Objectives: To identify the various comorbid illnesses in COVID-19-positive patients along with its baseline characteristics in a tertiary hospital in eastern Nepal.
 Methodology: A one-month observational study carried out in RT-PCR positive COVID-19 patients in Birat Medical College and Hospital (BMCTH) Molecular Laboratory from June to July 2021. All the data was entered in a pre-structured proforma. The data was then further entered and analyzed by using Microsoft Excel 2014.
 Result: There were 354 (22.77%) RT-PCR positive COVID-19 cases and 1200 (77.22%) RT-PCR negative COVID-19 cases. More than half of the COVID-19 positive patients were males 211(59.60%). The most common symptoms were fever (92.3%), cough (83.5%) and tiredness (81.23%). Psycho-social stress such as anxiety, depression and insomnia 123 (34.74%) were common comorbidities followed by diabetes 91(25.70%) and hypertension 72(20.33%).
 Conclusion: COVID-19 patients were mostly between the 20-30 years of age group. Fever, cough, and throat pain were the commonest presenting symptoms.

Effects of Lockdown Restrictions and Impact of Anxiety and Depression Symptoms in People With Chronic Pain During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A 13-Wave Longitudinal Study

In early 2020, countries across the world imposed lockdown restrictions to curb the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. Lockdown conditions, including social and physical distancing measures and recommended self-isolation for clinically vulnerable groups, were proposed to disproportionately affect those living with chronic pain, who already report reduced access to social support and increased isolation. Yet, empirical evidence from longitudinal studies tracking the effects of prolonged and fluctuating lockdown conditions, and potential psychological factors mediating the effects of such restrictions on outcomes in chronic pain populations, is lacking. Accordingly, in the present 13-wave longitudinal study, we surveyed pain intensity, pain interference, and tiredness in people with chronic pain over the course of 11 months of the Covid-19 pandemic (April 2020–March 2021). Of N = 431 participants at baseline, average completion rate was ∼50% of time points, and all available data points were included in linear mixed models. We examined the impact of varying levels of lockdown restrictions on these outcomes and investigated whether psychological distress levels mediated effects. We found that a full national lockdown was related to greater pain intensity, and these effects were partially mediated by depressive symptoms. No effects of lockdown level were found for pain interference and tiredness, which were instead predicted by higher levels of depression, anxiety, pain catastrophising, and reduced exercise. Our findings are relevant for improving patient care in current and future crises. Offering remote management options for low mood could be particularly beneficial for this vulnerable population in the event of future implementation of lockdown restrictions. PerspectiveThis longitudinal study demonstrates the impact of Covid-19 lockdown restrictions on people with chronic pain. Findings suggest a complex interaction of psychosocial factors that impacted various aspects of pain experience in patients, which offer the potential to inform clinical strategies for remote medicine and future crises.

A study on the sustainability of traditional culture through the use of media platforms

Some changes have occurred due to the era of COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease), which has resulted in a change in consumer culture behavior. In particular, the use of Over-the-top platforms, and low-cost pay-TV services has increased. Also, K-Dramas (Korean-Dramas) are related to the specificity and closeness of East Asia, where the Korean Wave first appeared and caused cultural proximity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the spread of traditional culture and the economic effect of traditional culture. This article aimed to propose a different way of looking at culture. The study tried to analyze the correlation between the squid game and the K-drama Over-the-top platform, with questionnaires, and storytelling, with 143 participants. The results indicate the rapid evolution of individual media use as a result of the expansion of other Over-the-top platforms. Keywords: Cheoyongmu; Korean wave; media platform; squid game; traditional culture

Social Effects of Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic on Local Artisan Livelihood in Iringa District, Tanzania

Social Effects of Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic on Local Artisan Livelihood in Iringa District, Tanzania

Working conditions of medical workers of the infectious diseases hospital during the pandemic of the novel coronavirus infection

pandemic of a new coronavirus infection (NCS) or COVID-19, announced by the World Health Organization in 2020, led to large-scale changes in the activities of all medical organizations in our country, which were forced to concentrate all their efforts to combat this infectious disease. There is an urgent need to convert most medical institutions into infectious diseases hospitals (IG) to treat patients with a new coronavirus infection. The developed federal and regional regulations for the work of medical organizations during a pandemic, including taking into account the experience of other countries, have made it possible to develop effective methods of combating infection and properly organize the work process. Studies have shown that the distribution of patient flows during hospitalization and the treatment process in the hospital can prevent excessive infection of medical workers. The working conditions of medical specialists of the infectious diseases hospital during this period corresponded to the harmful class 3 degree (class 3.3.). The leading harmful factor of the production environment and the most significant in terms of hygienic significance was the biological factor, which was represented by pathogenic microorganisms of groups II–IV. An analysis of the maps of a special assessment of working conditions (SUT) during this period showed that there was an underestimation of the class of working conditions according to the factors of the labor process — severity and tension, which were rated as within acceptable values (class 2), which clearly did not correspond to the true indicators. The survey showed that the medical workers of the hospital, working in a full set of personal protective equipment, experienced pronounced discomfort and pathological changes in the cardiovascular and respiratory systems by the end of the shift. Studies indicate the need for SATS during a pandemic, taking into account higher indicators of both the biological factor (extreme working conditions — class 4) and other production factors (severity, tension, microclimate).

A sentiment analysis method for COVID-19 network comments integrated with semantic concept

In recent years, the new coronavirus COVID-19 has brought great disaster and loss to the world and is still spreading around the world. The situation in China is generally well controlled, and the lockdown has been removed, but the comments and messages about the epidemic persist online. For people working and living normally in China, their attitudes and views toward COVID-19 directly reflect the current situation of the pandemic. This paper collected Chinese microblogs, forums, and online comments, identified the latest comments about COVID-19, and conducted a sentiment analysis of them. Specifically, we proposed a new sentiment analysis method that integrated the semantics of words with the text analyzed. Different from the traditional sentiment analysis method which only relied on sentiment words, the proposed method extended the semantic concepts of affective words by integrating the semantic conceptual information about the affective words from the context of the comments and thus, provided information to support the final judgment of the affective opinions. The proposed approach incorporated the part-of-speech embedding information along with word embedding and relies on semantic concepts to enhance the emotional expression of words in context. The experimental results showed that by integrating the semantics of words, the accuracy of sentiment analysis is substantially improved, and it also reflected that different semantics of the same word have different influences on sentiment analysis. On several benchmark datasets, there was a 3–6% improvement in accuracy.

Lipid and cholesterols modulate the dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 viral ion channel ORF3a and its pathogenic variants

SARS-CoV-2 accessory protein, ORF3a is a putative ion channel which immensely contributes to viral pathogenicity by modulating host immune responses and virus-host interactions. Relatively high expression of ORF3a in diseased individuals and implication with inflammasome activation, apoptosis and autophagy inhibition, ratifies as an effective target for developing vaccines and therapeutics. Herein, we present the elusive dynamics of ORF3a-dimeric state using all-atoms molecular dynamics (MD) simulations at μ-seconds scale in a heterogeneous lipid-mimetic system in multiple replicates. Additionally, we also explore the effect of non-synonymous pathogenic mutations on ORF3a ion channel activity and viral pathogenicity in different SARS-CoV-2 variants using various structure-based protein stability (ΔΔG) tools and computational saturation mutagenesis. Our study ascertains the role of phosphatidylcholines and cholesterol in modulating the structure of ORF3a, which perturbs the size and flexibility of the polar cavity that allows permeation of large cations. Discrete trend in ion channel pore radius and area per lipid arises the premise that presence of lipids might also affect the overall conformation of ORF3a. MD structural-ensembles, in some replicates rationalize the crucial role of TM2 in maintaining the native structure of ORF3a. We also infer that loss of structural stability primarily grounds for pathogenicity in more than half of the pathogenic variants of ORF3a. Overall, the effect of mutation on alteration of ion permeability of ORF3a, proposed in this study brings mechanistic insights into variant consequences on viral membrane proteins of SARS-CoV-2, which can be utilized for the development of novel therapeutics to treat COVID-19 and other coronavirus diseases.

To Assess The Knowledge And Perceptions Regarding Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) During The First Surge Among Healthcare Workers Of Banke District, Nepal

Background: Human Coronaviruses (HCoVs), a large family of single-stranded RNA viruses in humans causes mainly respiratory tract infections. The current outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 has emerged as pandemic causing severe public health issue of international concern. This study aims to assess the knowledge and perception regarding novel coronavirus (COVID-19) during first wave of pandemic among healthcare workers working at various Health care institutions. Method: This web-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 174 health care workers of Banke district, Nepal between May-July 2020 during first wave of COVID-19 pandemic using an online self-administered questionnaire. A 35-item self-administered survey instrument was developed using WHO course materials on emerging respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, and covered the domains of HCWs characteristics, knowledge, and perceptions of HCWs related to COVID-19. Descriptive statistics were reported as proportion and frequencies. Bivariate analysis was performed using chi-square test to assess the association of level of knowledge, and perception about COVID-19 with participants’ characteristics. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. All the statistical analysis was performed using IBM SPSS software, version 23. Findings: Most of the participants (94.8%) had known about the virus from news (70.1%) and social media (68.4%). Among them only 36.2% participants had the opportunities to attend lectures, discussions, and training about the virus COVID-19. Overall, 55.7%, and 52.9% of the HCWs had adequate knowledge, and positive perception about COVID-19, respectively. Bivariate analysis showed no significant association of knowledge regarding COVID-19 among health care worker with participants characteristics whereas, the variables such as gender, occupation, working department showed significant association of perception regarding COVID-19 among health care worker. Conclusion: This study revealed lower level of knowledge and positive perception regarding COVID-19 and infection control measures among HCWs. There is a need of adequate training to enhance the knowledge and perception about covid-19 and safety measures to the HCWs.