COVID-19 & other Diseases

"This genome analysis revealed 773 truncated, discontiguous and absent genes in the NRRL3631 strain. We also examined phenotypic traits resulting in reduced heat stress tolerance, chitosan content and lower susceptibility to toxic compounds (calcofluor white and sodium dodecyl sulphate) in the virulent strain, suggesting the influence of cell wall on pathogenesis. Based on these results, we focused on studying extracellular protein-coding genes by gene deletion and further pathotype characterization of mutants in murine models of pulmonary and systemic infection. Deletion of gene ID112092, which codes for a hypothetical extracellular protein of unknown function, resulted in significant reduction of virulence. Although pathogenesis is a multifactorial process, these findings highlight the crucial role of surface and secreted proteins"

{Links to several papers on mucormycosis}

Doctors say India's battle with COVID-19 has led to an unprecedented rise in mucormycosis, a rare but dangerous fungal infection that preys on people with weakened immune systems.

" This article considers reasons why studies of mold exposure after the hurricane do not show a greater health impact."

At midnight on April 17, as a deadly new wave of the coronavirus overwhelmed India, Mumbai’s Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal learned that six hospitals in his city would run out of oxygen within hours -- putting the lives of 168 patients at risk.

Rhinocerebral mucormycosis is a life-threatening infection caused by saprophytic fungi seen almost exclusively in immunocompromised patients.The objec…

OVERVIEW: What every clinician needs to know Pathogen name and classification Mucormycosis is a general term for infections caused by a group of filamentous fungi belonging to the class Glomeromycetes, which because of recent taxonomic reclassification has replaced the former class name Zygomycetes.

Information on risk of fungal diseases in patients with severe COVID-19; information about fungal co-infection with COVID-19.

Although considered to be a rare infection, mucormycosis (zygomycosis) has emerged as the second most common invasive mould infection. Despite the advent of newer antifungal agents, mortality rate of...

2020 "COVID-19 patients, especially severely ill or immunocompromised, have a higher probability of suffering from invasive mycoses. Aspergillus and Candida infections in COVID-19 patients will require early detection by a comprehensive diagnostic intervention (histopathology, direct microscopic examination, culture, (1,3)-β-d-glucan, galactomannan, and PCR-based assays) to ensure effective treatments. We suggest it is prudent to assess the risk factors, the types of invasive mycosis, the strengths and limitations of diagnostic methods, clinical settings, and the need for standard or individualized treatment in COVID-19 patients. We provide a clinical flow diagram to assist the clinicians and laboratory experts in the management of aspergillosis, candidiasis, mucormycosis, or cryptococcosis as co-morbidities in COVID-19 patients."

The majority of opportunistic oral mucosal fungal infections are due to Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus species. Mucor and Cryptococcus also have a major role in causing oral infections, whereas Geotrichum, Fusarium, Rhodotorula, Saccharomyces ...

2004. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) [**** Not the same as SARS-CoV-2] synthesizes several putative viral envelope proteins, including the spike (S), membrane (M), and small envelope (E) glycoproteins. Although these proteins likely are essential for viral replication, ...

Research team at Nankai University finds the new virus SARS-CoV-2 has mutated gene similar to those found in HIV and Ebola which makes it is far more likely to bond to human cells than Sars.The mutation could not be found in Sars, Mers or Bat-CoVRaTG13, the bat coronavirus that was considered to be the original […]

Instructions: search for your need type (e.g. plasma, oxygen, beds, food…) and for cities refer to “locations” column.

Background. Health care workers continued to contract severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), even after barrier precautions were widely implemented

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a life-threatening disease caused by a novel coronavirus termed SARS-CoV. Due to the severity of this dise…

**** {Effects of Prilosec/omeprazole} "the pH of normal gastric acid is generally between 1.5 and 3.5. The SARS-CoV-1 virus is inactivated at a pH  12.0 [5]. Assuming these inactivation levels are similar for SARS-CoV-2, gastric acid will not inhibit all the viruses in the stomach (and some viruses will be hidden in food boluses). However, the inhibition that does occur may be enough to decrease the viral load entering the small intestine. In many older adults, the gastric acid pH is higher than normal, either because of atrophic gastritis or because of antacid and acid-reducing medications. One oral dose of a proton pump inhibitor raises the gastric acid pH from 2.0 to over 6.0, which will not inhibit the virus" "abdominal pain was associated with a near fourfold increased odds of severe disease," "many intubated patients are given acid-reducing drugs and gastrointestinal feeding may be continuous rather than intermittent. Such factors could result in a gastric pH of around 4.0 or 5.0. This would not inactivate these viruses, which might then pass into the small intestine where the relevant ACE2 receptors are abundant."

Hydrochloric acid or HCl is made in the stomach. It can be a very helpful chemical. Too much or too little acid or HCl in the wrong place can cause problems, however.

*****!!!!*****!!!!***** 2020 July "What scientists know about the inner workings of the pathogen that has infected the world."

Correspondence from The New England Journal of Medicine — Aerosol and Surface Stability of SARS-CoV-2 as Compared with SARS-CoV-1

" In this decision analytical model of multiple scenarios of proportions of asymptomatic individuals with COVID-19 and infectious periods, transmission from asymptomatic individuals was estimated to account for more than half of all transmissions."

LitCovid is a curated literature hub for tracking up-to-date scientific information about the 2019 novel Coronavirus.

CDC - Blogs - NIOSH Science Blog – Research Questions for Aerosol Scientists Addressing COVID-19 and the Workplace -

{Coronavirus destroyed best in dry environment, etc} "the virus in droplets of saliva survives best indoors and in dry conditions. The virus does not survive as well in droplets of saliva — and that’s important, because a lot of testing being done is not necessarily being done, No. 1 with the Covid-19 virus, No. 2, with saliva or respiratory fluids. And third, the virus dies the quickest in the presence of direct sunlight under these conditions,” "

"Via activation of NFKB, ROS may activate viral replication, but oxidants are believed to contribute also to the loss of CD4 T cells by apoptosis. Antioxidants, together with agents interfering with the harmful effects of cytokines and lipid mediators, may have a role in the treatment of viral diseases" "enhanced ROS production during the course of influenza infection in mice. Analysis of major antioxidants (α-tocopherol, ascorbate and glutathione) revealed no changes in the redox status, but the overall concentrations of these antioxidants decreased during the course of influenza."

"Reactive species (RS), generally known as reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS), are produced during regular metabolism in the host and are required for many cellular processes such as cytokine transcription, immunomodulation, ion transport, and apoptosis. Intriguingly, both RNS and ROS are commonly triggered by the pathogenic viruses and are famous for their dual roles in the clearance of viruses and pathological implications. Uncontrolled production of reactive species results in oxidative stress and causes damage in proteins, lipids, DNA, and cellular structures. In this review, we describe the production of RS, their detoxification by a cellular antioxidant system, and how these RS damage the proteins, lipids, and DNA." "Innate immune cells are activated in all the viral infections, causing the production of ROS and prooxidant cytokines and enhancing the iron uptake of a mononuclear phagocytic system (reticuloendothelial system) [79]. Viruses enhance the production of oxidants such as superoxide and NO and prevent the synthesis of CAT, SOD, and GPx resulting in the disruption of the redox balance." "During viral infections, production of ROS is increased from the granulocytes and macrophages and exerts antimicrobial action against many pathogens [6]. Failure to ROS production leads to many opportunistic pathogens including Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Serratia marcescens, and Aspergillus spp. [80–83]. The direct antimicrobial action includes oxidation of DNA, protein, and lipid peroxidation [84]. Upon viral infection, ROS triggers a different pathway to kill or spread viral infections, including autophagy [85], apoptosis [86], and inhibition of mammalian target of rapamycin [87]. Moreover, ROS also interfere with the antigen presentation by innate immune cells, T cell polarization, and adaptive immune responses [84]. At the same time, research also supports the immunosuppressive effects of ROS which may also facilitate the viral infection and evolution" "Administration of antioxidants including vitamin E, vitamin C, N-acetyl-L-cysteine, pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate, glutathione, resveratrol, ambroxol, isoquercetin, and quercetin decreases the pathological effects caused by the influenza virus"

Stay up to date on the latest COVID-19 research as it happens, get help and support others, and contribute to the research the international community is using to combat the current crisis.

The global crisis surrounding the novel coronavirus 2019–nCoV, commonly known as the COVID-19 coronavirus, is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. It has affected the lives and the work of people around the world, including chemists. Yet chemists are also at the forefront of the fight to understand, contain, treat, and eventually defeat the disease. […]