Summary

On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, and the disease now affects nearly every country and region. Caused by SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 continues nearly 18 months later to present significant challenges to health systems and public health in both hemispheres, as well as the economies of every country. The morbidity and mortality of the infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 has been significant, and various waves of disease outbreaks initially overwhelmed many hospitals and clinics and continue to do so in many countries. This influences everyone, and public health countermeasures have been dramatic in terms of their impact on employment, social systems, and mental health. This entry collection aims to gather diverse fields about COVID-19, including in epidemiology, public health, medicine, genetics, systems biology, informatics, data science, engineering, sociology, anthropology, nursing, environmental studies, statistics, and psychology.

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Entries
Topic Review
Circulating Leukocytes in People Mildly Infected by SARS-CoV-2
Mild SARS-CoV-2 infections (n = 22), compared to those that had recovered from other mild respiratory infections (n = 11). Individuals who had experienced mild SARS-CoV-2 infections had elevated levels of C-reactive protein 1–3 months after symptom onset, and changes in phenotype and function of circulating T-cells that were not apparent in individuals 6–9 months post-symptom onset. Markers of monocyte activation, and expression of adherence and chemokine receptors indicative of altered migratory capacity, were also higher at 1–3 months post-infection in individuals who had mild SARS-CoV-2, but these were no longer elevated by 6–9 months post-infection. Perhaps most surprisingly, significantly more T-cells could be activated by polyclonal stimulation in individuals who had recently experienced a mild SARS-CoV-2, infection compared to individuals with other recent respiratory infections. These data are indicative of prolonged immune activation and systemic inflammation that persists for at least three months after mild or asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections. 
  • 319
  • 07 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Vitamin C and Multiple Pathophysiological Stages of COVID-19
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid, AA) is an essential nutrient with many biological roles that have been proven to play an important part in immune function; it serves as an antioxidant, an anti-viral, and exerts anti-thrombotic effects among many other physiological benefits. Research has proven that AA at pharmacological doses can be beneficial to patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and other respiratory illnesses, including sepsis. In addition, High-Dose Intravenous Vitamin C (HDIVC) has proven to be effective in patients with different viral diseases, such as influenza, chikungunya, Zika, and dengue. Moreover, HDIVC has been demonstrated to be very safe. Regarding COVID-19, vitamin C in addition to its antiviral properties, it can suppress the cytokine storm, reduce thrombotic complications, and diminish alveolar and vascular damage, among other benefits.
  • 616
  • 07 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Prime-Boost COVID-19 Vaccination against SARS-CoV-2
The types of these vaccines include two recombinant adenovirus vaccines (ChAdOx1-S and Ad26.COV2-S), one heterologous recombinant adenovirus vaccine (Gam-COVID-Vac), two mRNA vaccines (BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273), two inactivated virus vaccines (BBIBP-CorV and CoronaVac), and one recombinant protein vaccine (NVX-CoV2373).
  • 341
  • 07 Dec 2021
Topic Review
A Mycobacteriophage-Based Vaccine Platform for SARS-CoV-2
Bacteriophage-based vaccines can generate a protective immune response by safely introducing foreign antigens displayed on, encapsidated within, or genetically encoded by phage. Here authors describe recombinants of mycobacteriophage Bxb1 (a phage infecting Mycobacterium smegmatis) that covalently display and express antigenic peptides of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. Several of these vaccine candidates produced Spike-specific antibodies in immunized mice, but the responses were not neutralizing. This mycobacteriophage-based vaccine platform can likely be improved if delivery of larger antigens is achieved. 
  • 496
  • 06 Dec 2021
Topic Review
COVID-19 and Rheumatoid Arthritis Crosstalk
COVID-19 and RA share similar immune-inflammatory features of disease pathogenesis executed by analogous mechanistic pathways. However, the treatment of RA patients in the COVID-19 setting itself stands as a challenging task. Implementation of individualized clinical surveillance of RA patients considering the disease severity and appropriate risk-benefit study referring to the recommendations of using anti-rheumatic drugs in the COVID-19 setting by different professional rheumatology associations would stand as the optimal therapeutic strategy for effective disease control during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • 476
  • 02 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Aftermath of the COVID-19 Crisis in Saudi Arabia
Since late 2019, the number of COVID-19 patients has gradually increased in certain regions as consecutive waves of infections hit countries. Whenever this wave hits the corresponding areas, the entire healthcare system must respond quickly to curb the diseases, morbidities, and mortalities in intensive care settings. The healthcare team involved in COVID-19 patients’ care must work tirelessly without having breaks. Our understanding of COVID-19 is limited as new challenges emerge with new COVID-19 variants appearing in different world regions. Though medical therapies are finding solutions to deal with the disease, there are few recommendations for respiratory rehabilitation therapies. A group of respiratory rehabilitation care professionals in Saudi Arabia and international experts have agreed with the World Health bodies such as the World Health Organization (WHO) on the treatment and rehabilitation of patients with COVID-19. Professionals participating in COVID-19 patient treatment, rehabilitation, and recovery formulated respiratory rehabilitation guidelines based on the DELPHI Method, combining scientific research and personal practical experience. As a result, it is envisaged that the number of individuals in the region suffering from respiratory ailments due to post-COVID-19 will decrease. 
  • 432
  • 02 Dec 2021
Topic Review
BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has had a widespread impact on health, including a substantial mortality among patients with various pre-existing health conditions. Patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) are more susceptible to the development of severe COVID-19 infection. The incidence of mechanical complications of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) increased fivefold after the declaration of a state of emergency in Japan. Therefore, vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 is generally recommended in patients with CVD, as is vaccination against other infectious agents. The BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine has shown promising efficacy and safety, mainly in people without apparent pre-existing comorbidities. A nationwide mass vaccination study focused on the estimated vaccine effectiveness of patients with various comorbidities such as heart disease. No data, however, are available regarding the vaccine effectiveness in patients with CVD alone. So it's necessary to investigate the humoral response of patients with CVD to the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine compared to that in healthcare workers (HCWs).
  • 537
  • 30 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Probiotic-Produced Metabolites
Probiotic bacteria (PB) are live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host. Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria are the most common probiotics, but the yeast Saccharomyces boulardii and Bacillus species are also widely known.
  • 661
  • 30 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Nutritional Therapy
With the growing spread of COVID-19 worldwide, the appeal to nutritional therapies in conjunction with medical therapies has been heightened. Promising findings have been reported when medical treatments were complemented with nutritional interventions.
  • 403
  • 30 Nov 2021
Topic Review
COVID-19 Vaccine Approved for Public Use
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak was first reported in Wuhan, China in December 2019, and was found to be caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which is a novel pleomorphic, positive-stranded RNA virus belonging to the Coronaviridae family. Quickly, it has become a global pandemic, infecting more than 176 million people and causing the death of more than 3.8 million individuals, that we are yet to recover from. Thus, an ongoing quest is being carried out for prophylaxis/therapy to prevent the transition from infection into serious forms of COVID-19.
  • 354
  • 30 Nov 2021
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