Topic Review
Immune Responses against SARS-CoV-2—Questions and Experiences
Understanding immune reactivity against SARS-CoV-2 is essential for coping with the COVID-19 pandemic. Herein, we discuss experiences and open questions about the complex immune responses to SARS-CoV-2. Some people react excellently without experiencing any clinical symptoms, they do not get sick, and they do not pass the virus on to anyone else (“sterilizing” immunity). Others produce antibodies, develop memory T cells, and do not get COVID-19 but transmit the virus to others (“protective” immunity). Some people get sick but recover. A varying percentage develops respiratory failure, systemic symptoms, clotting disorders, cytokine storms, or multi-organ failure; they subsequently decease. Some develop long COVID, a new, controversioal pathologic entity similar to fatigue syndrome or autoimmunity. In reality, COVID-19 is considered more of a systemic immune–vascular disease than a pulmonic disease, involving many tissues and the central nervous system. To fully comprehend the complex clinical manifestations, a profound understanding of the immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 is a good way to improve clinical management of COVID-19. Although neutralizing antibodies are an established approach to recognize an immune status, cellular immunity plays at least an equivalent or an even more important role. However, reliable methods to estimate the SARS-CoV-2-specific T cell capacity are not available for clinical routines. This deficit is important because an unknown percentage of people may exist with good memory T cell responsibility but a low number of or completely lacking peripheral antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. Apart from natural immune responses, vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 turned out to be very effective and much safer than naturally acquired immunity. Nevertheless, besides unwanted side effects of the currently available vector and mRNA preparations, concerns remain whether these vaccines will be strong enough to defeat the pandemic. Altogether, discussing important questions, and try to give answers based on the current knowledge and preliminary data from our laboratories. 
  • 436
  • 30 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Non-Pharmacological Interventions for Wandering in Patients with Dementia
Aberrant motor behaviour or wandering refers to aimless movement without a specific purpose. Wandering is common in patients with dementia and leads to early institutionalization and caregivers’ burden. Non-pharmacological interventions should be also considered as a first-line solution for the wandering because current pharmacological treatment has serious side-effects. 
  • 436
  • 20 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Therapeutic Aquatic Exercise in Pregnancy
Aquatic physical exercise aimed at pregnant women has proliferated in recent years, thanks to the benefits provided by the aquatic environment, such as a decrease in gravitational pull, an improved sense of physical comfort, improved mobility and flexibility, reduction of post-exercise pain and an improvement of venous return due to the increased hydrostatic pressure.
  • 436
  • 29 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Cannabis Use
Cannabis is a natural drug that humans have been consuming for over 4000 years for medicinal, industrial and ritual purposes. More than 400 chemical compounds can be found in the cannabis plant, of which at least 144 are cannabinoids. Among the cannabinoid compounds, the most important one is tetrahydrocannabinol or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC or Δ9-THC), the main psychoactive component of cannabis. Recently, the increase in its use, both medicinal and recreational, its progressive legalization and the change in the cannabis market have caused a greater interest in the research of this drug.
  • 436
  • 28 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Military Relevance of Vaccine-Preventable Infectious Diseases
The military worldwide have always been challenged with the issue of infectious diseases, which may deeply influence the outcome of battles/wars. The military are particularly exposed to the risk of infectious diseases for a series of reasons, including the community life, often in precarious environmental conditions regarding the hygiene of water and food supply, sanitation, the traumatism with contaminated wounds, and the possibility to be exposed to extreme temperatures and to diseases unknown in their country of origin, for which no natural immunization has, therefore, been developed.
  • 436
  • 31 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Anti-Uterine Fibroids Diet
Uterine fibroids (UFs) are common tumors in women of reproductive age. It is imperative to comprehend UFs’ associated risk factors to facilitate early detection and prevention. Simple relying on surgical/pharmacological treatment of advanced disease is not only highly expensive, but it also deprives patients of good quality of life (QOL). Nutrition plays a crucial role in the management of UFs, adopting a personalized dietary regimen that includes specific foods, supplements, and vitamins can help reduce the risk of UFs, prevent their further growth, and alleviate symptoms. In accordance with the ESCAPE protocol, the incorporation of vitamin D (4000 IU/day), Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG) (800 mg/day), and the use of endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC)-free products can be regarded as both safe and effective. These options also present an economically viable approach, particularly for women who have undergone myomectomy to deter fibroid recurrence, as well as for those exhibiting early symptoms and evident findings on imaging.
  • 436
  • 19 Dec 2023
Topic Review
Children Health and Air Pollution
The developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD) hypothesis links adverse fetal exposures with developmental mal-adaptations and morbidity later in life. Short- and long-term exposures to air pollutants are known contributors to health outcomes. Air pollution is an established risk factor for morbidity and mortality that affects the general population. The developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD) hypothesis states that adverse fetal, infant, and childhood growth patterns are causally linked to disease development in adulthood. The literature on cardiovascular and metabolic, respiratory, allergic, and neuropsychological health outcomes, from prenatal development through early childhood, associated with early-life exposures to outdoor air pollutants, including traffic-related and wildfire-generated air pollutants are summarized.
  • 435
  • 26 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Low-Energy Diet in the Treatment of Psoriasis
Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease. Immunological, genetic, and environmental factors, including diet, play a part in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Metabolic syndrome or its components are frequent co-morbidities in persons with psoriasis. A change of eating habits can improve the quality of life of patients by relieving skin lesions and by reducing the risk of other diseases. A low-energy diet is recommended for patients with excess body weight. Persons suffering from psoriasis should limit the intake of saturated fatty acids and replace them with polyunsaturated fatty acids from the omega-3 family, which have an anti-inflammatory effect. In diet therapy for persons with psoriasis, the introduction of antioxidants such as vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, carotenoids, flavonoids, and selenium is extremely important. Vitamin D supplementation is also recommended.
  • 435
  • 14 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Common Vaccines against COVID-19
To date, multiple COVID-19 vaccines have been granted emergency use authorization, including inactivated vaccines, adenovirus-vectored vaccines, and nucleic acid vaccines. These vaccines have different technical principles, which will necessarily lead to differences in safety and efficacy.
  • 435
  • 21 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Detection Techniques of SARS-CoV-2
The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, also known as the disease-causing agent for COVID-19, is a virulent pathogen that may infect people and certain animals. The global spread of COVID-19 and its emerging variation necessitates the development of rapid, reliable, simple, and low-cost diagnostic tools. Many methodologies and devices have been developed for the highly sensitive, selective, cost-effective, and rapid diagnosis of COVID-19. The diagnosis platforms into four groups: imaging, molecular-based detection, serological testing, and biosensors was organized. Each platform’s principle, advancement, utilization, and challenges for monitoring SARS-CoV-2 are discussed in detail. In addition, an overview of the impact of variants on detection, commercially available kits, and readout signal analysis has been presented. This would expand our understanding of developing advanced diagnostic approaches to evolve into susceptible, precise, and reproducible technologies to combat any future outbreak.
  • 435
  • 30 Jun 2022
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