bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Incidence and Outcomes of COVID-19 in Kidney and Liver Transplant Recipients With HIV: Report From the National HOPE in Action Consortium
Authors: Mehta Sapna A. , Rana Meenakshi M. , Motter Jennifer D. , Small Catherine B. , Pereira Marcus R. , Stosor Valentina , Elias Nahel , Haydel Brandy , Florman Sander , Odim Jonah , Morsheimer Megan , Robien Mark , Massie Allan B. , Brown Diane , Boyarsky Brian J. , Garonzik-Wang Jacqueline , Tobian Aaron A.R. , Werbel William A. , Segev Dorry L. , Durand Christine M. ,   on behalf of the HOPE in Action Investigators
Published: November 2020

Background.
Transplant recipients with HIV may have worse outcomes with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to impaired T-cell function coupled with immunosuppressive drugs. Alternatively, immunosuppression might reduce inflammatory complications and/or antiretrovirals could be protective.

Methods.
Prospective reporting of all cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection was required within the HOPE in Action Multicenter Consortium, a cohort of kidney and liver transplant recipients with HIV who have received organs from donors with and without HIV at 32 transplant centers in the United States.

Results.
Between March 20, 2020 and September 25, 2020, there were 11 COVID-19 cases among 291 kidney and liver recipients with HIV (4%). In those with COVID-19, median age was 59 y, 10 were male, 8 were kidney recipients, and 5 had donors with HIV. A higher proportion of recipients with COVID-19 compared with the overall HOPE in the Action cohort were Hispanic (55% versus 12%) and received transplants in New York City (73% versus 34%, P < 0.05). Most (10/11, 91%) were hospitalized. High-level oxygen support was required in 7 and intensive care in 5; 1 participant opted for palliative care instead of transfer to the intensive care unit. HIV RNA was undetectable in all. Median absolute lymphocyte count was 0.3 × 103 cells/μL. Median CD4 pre–COVID-19 was 298 cells/μL, declining to <200 cells/μl in 6/7 with measurements on admission. Treatment included high-dose steroids (n = 6), tocilizumab (n = 3), remdesivir (n = 2), and convalescent plasma (n = 2). Four patients (36%) died.

Conclusions.
Within a national prospective cohort of kidney and liver transplant recipients with HIV, we report high mortality from COVID-19.
Organ Donation and Transplantation During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Summary of the Spanish Experience
Authors: Domínguez-Gil Beatriz , Fernández-Ruiz Mario , Hernández Domingo , Crespo Marta , Colmenero Jordi , Coll Elisabeth , Rubio Juan José 
Published: November 2020

Background.
Spain has been amongst the countries most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has posed significant challenges to the donation and transplantation program. Despite a dramatic decrease of donation and transplantation activities during the critical early weeks of the outbreak, the program has recovered and is learning to cope with COVID-19.

Methods.
We describe the 4 pillars upon which the Spanish donation and transplantation program has been rebuilt.

Results.
(1) Standards have been developed and progressively updated for the evaluation and selection of potential donors and recipients with regards to SARS-CoV-2 infection. (2) Spain has been actively generating evidence to assess the validity of our standards and to understand the natural history of the infection in transplant recipients. No case of donor-derived COVID-19 has been reported to date. COVID-19 has been more frequent and has had a more aggressive course in recipients of solid organ transplants than in the general population, but this seems largely explained by the demographics and comorbidity of transplant patients. (3) As a result of this evidence and experience, recommendations have been issued for the management of COVID-19 in solid organ transplant recipients and candidates on the waiting list. (4) Finally, concrete guidance has been issued for centers to manage the donation and transplantation programs in relation to a dynamic and heterogeneous epidemiologic scenario.

Conclusions.
The Spanish experience confronting the impact of COVID-19 upon donation and transplantation may help serve the needs of a broader community in other countries.
Medical Capacity Shortages Facilitated the Rapid Dissemination of COVID-19 in Wuhan, New York State, and Italy
Authors: Xu Yuehao , Zhang Cheng , Qian Lixian 
Published: November 2020

AbstractDuring the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, every public health system faced the potential challenge of medical capacity shortages. Infections without timely diagnosis or treatment may facilitate the stealth transmission and spread of the virus. Using infection and medical capacity information reported in Wuhan in China, New York State in the United States, and Italy, we developed a dynamic susceptible–exposed–infected–recovered (SEIR) model to estimate the impact of medical capacity shortages during the COVID-19 outbreak at the city, state, and country levels. After accounting for the effects of travel restrictions and control measures, we find that the number of infections in Wuhan could have been 39% lower than the actual number if the medical capacity were doubled in this city. Similarly, we find the less shortages in medical capacity in both New York state and Italy, the faster decline in the daily infection numbers and the fewer deaths. This study provides a method for estimating potential shortages and explains how they may dynamically facilitate disease spreading during future pandemics such as COVID-19.
Analytical assessment of Beckman Coulter Access anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG immunoassay
Authors: Ruscio Maurizio , D’Agnolo Elisa , Belgrano Anna , Plebani Mario , Lippi Giuseppe 
Published: November 2020

AbstractBackgroundThe approach to diagnosing, treating and monitoring severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection relies strongly on laboratory resources, with serological testing representing the mainstay for studying the onset, nature and persistence of humoral immune response. This study was aimed at evaluating the analytical performance of the novel Beckman Coulter anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG chemiluminescent immunoassay.MethodsThis analytical assessment encompassed the calculation of intra-assay, inter-assay and total imprecision, linearity, limit of blank (LOB), limit of detection (LOD), functional sensitivity, and comparison of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies values obtained on paired serum samples using DiaSorin Liaison SARS-CoV-2 S1/S2 IgG and Roche Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 total antibodies. Diagnostic performance was also tested against results of molecular testing on nasopharyngeal swabs, collected over the previous 4 months.ResultsIntra-assay, inter-assay and total imprecision of Beckman Coulter anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG were between 4.3-4.8%, 2.3-3.9% and 4.9-6.2%, respectively. The linearity of the assay was excellent between 0.11-18.8 antibody titers. The LOB, LOD and functional sensitivity were 0.02, 0.02 and 0.05, respectively. The diagnostic accuracy (area under the curve; AUC) of Beckman Coulter anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG compared to molecular testing was 0.87 (95% CI, 0.84-0.91; p<0.001) using manufacturer’s cut-off, and increased to 0.90 (95% CI, 0.86-0.94; p<0.001) with antibody titers. The AUC was non-significantly different from that of Roche Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2, but was always higher than that of DiaSorin Liaison SARS-CoV-2 S1/S2 IgG. The correlation of Beckman Coulter Access SARS-CoV-2 IgG was 0.80 (95% CI, 0.75-0.84; p<0.001) with Roche Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 and 0.72 (95% CI, 0.66-0.77; p<0.001) with DiaSorin Liaison SARS-CoV-2 S1/S2 IgG, respectively.ConclusionsThe results of this analytical evaluation of Beckman Coulter Access anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG suggests that this fully-automated chemiluminescent immunoassay represents a valuable resource for large and accurate seroprevalence surveys.
Tracking the Dynamics and Allocating Tests for COVID-19 in Real-Time: an Acceleration Index with an Application to French Age Groups and Départements*
Authors: Baunez Christelle , Degoulet Mickael , Luchini Stéphane , Pintus Patrick A. , Teschl Miriam 
Published: November 2020

AbstractAn acceleration index is proposed as a novel indicator to track the dynamics of the COVID-19 in real-time. Using French data on cases and tests for the period following the first lock-down - from May 13, 2020, onwards - our acceleration index shows that the ongoing pandemic resurgence can be dated to begin around July 7. It uncovers that the pandemic acceleration has been stronger than national average for the [59 − 68] and especially the 69 and older age groups since early September, the latter being associated with the strongest acceleration index, as of October 25. In contrast, acceleration among the [19 − 28] age group is the lowest and is about half that of the [69 − 78], as of October 25. In addition, we propose an algorithm to allocate tests among French départements, based on both the acceleration index and the feedback effect of testing. Our acceleration-based allocation differs from the actual distribution over French territories, which is population-based. We argue that both our acceleration index and our allocation algorithm are useful tools to guide public health policies as France enters a second lock-down period with indeterminate duration.JEL Classification NumbersI18; H12
Kinetics of viral load, immunological mediators and characterization of a SARS-CoV-2 isolate in mild COVID-19 patients during acute phase of infection
Authors: Anantharaj Anbalagan , Gujjar Sunil , Kumar Saurabh , Verma Nikhil , Wangchuk Jigme , Khan Naseem Ahmed , Panwar Aleksha , Kanakan Akshay , A Vivekanand , Vasudevan Janani Srinivasa , Das Asim , Pandey Anil Kumar , Pandey Rajesh , Medigeshi Guruprasad R. 
Published: November 2020

ABSTRACTOver 95% of the COVID-19 cases are mild-to-asymptomatic who contribute to disease transmission whereas most of the severe manifestations of the disease are observed in elderly and in patients with comorbidities and dysregulation of immune response has been implicated in severe clinical outcomes. However, it is unclear whether asymptomatic or mild infections are due to low viral load or lack of inflammation. We have measured the kinetics of SARS-CoV-2 viral load in the respiratory samples and serum markers of inflammation in hospitalized COVID-19 patients with mild symptoms. We observed a bi-phasic pattern of virus load which was eventually cleared in most patients at the time of discharge. Viral load in saliva samples from a subset of patients showed good correlation with nasopharyngeal samples. Serum interferon levels were downregulated during early stages of infection but peaked at later stages correlating with elevated levels of T-cell cytokines and other inflammatory mediators such as IL-6 and TNF- α which showed a bi-phasic pattern. The clinical recovery of patients correlated with decrease in viral load and increase in interferons and other cytokines which indicates an effective innate and adaptive immune function in mild infections. We further characterized one of the SARS-CoV-2 isolate by plaque purification and show that infection of lung epithelial cells (Calu-3) with this isolate led to cytopathic effect disrupting epithelial barrier function and tight junctions. Finally we showed that zinc was capable of inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 infection in this model suggesting a beneficial effect of zinc supplementation in COVID-19 infection.IMPORTANCEA majority of COVID-19 patients are asymptomatic or exhibit mild symptoms despite high viral loads suggesting a key role for the acute phase innate immune response in limiting the damage and clearing the virus. Therefore, it is important to understand the early phase response to SARS-CoV-2 infection in such patients to devise strategies for clinical management of the disease. Our study shows the kinetics of immune mediators in the serum samples collected from hospitalized COVID-19 patients with mild symptoms. We further characterize a virus isolate from one of these patients and demonstrate its effect on epithelial barrier functions and show that zinc was capable of inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 infection under these conditions. Our results suggest a key role for the innate immune responses in the early phase of infection in mitigating clinical symptoms, clearing the virus and recovery from illness and suggest an antiviral role for zinc in COVID-19 infection.
Epidemiological characteristics of deaths from COVID-19: an analysis at almost three months of the first confirmed case in Peru
Authors: Ramos Willy , Arrasco Juan , De La Cruz-Vargas Jhony A. , Ordóñez Luis , Vargas María , Seclén Yovana , Luna Miguel , Guerrero Nadia , Medina José , Sandoval Isabel , Solís Edith , Loayza Manuel 
Published: November 2020

SUMMARYOBJECTIVETo determine the epidemiological characteristics of deaths from COVID-19 in Peru from March 28 to May 21, 2020, 85 days after the report of the first confirmed case.MATERIAL AND METHODSCase series type study. Deaths from various sources were investigated, including the COVID-19 Epidemiological Surveillance and the National System of Deaths. Deaths that met the definition of a confirmed case and had a positive (reactive) result of RT-PCR or rapid test were considered for the analysis. From these sources, epidemiological variables were obtained and a time analysis was performed, defining as the pre-hospital time the time from the onset of symptoms to the date of hospitalization and hospital time from the date of hospitalization to the date of death.RESULTS3,244 confirmed deaths were included in the study. Deaths were more frequent in males (71.8%), elders (68.3%), residents of the department of Lima (41.8%), and others from the coast (37.7%). In 81.3% of cases, the death occurred in a public hospital, 16.0% died at home, shelter, penitentiary institution, public highway, or in transit to a hospital, and 31.1% had some comorbidity.Statistical difference was observed in pre-hospital time according to age group (p <0.001) and gender (p = 0.037), being significantly higher in adults, elders, and women. There was a statistically significant difference in hospital time according to geographic area, showing a significantly shorter time in the departments of the coast (p <0.001) and Andean region (p = 0.014) compared to Lima. The cases that were seen in private clinics (p = 0.001) survived longer than those seen in public hospitals.CONCLUSIONDeaths from COVID-19 occur mainly in male, elders, on the coast, with considerable deaths at home, in shelters, penitentiaries, public roads, or in transit to a hospital. Pre-hospital time is affected by age group and gender; while, hospital time is also influenced by the region of origin and the health care provider.
Multiplexed, quantitative serological profiling of COVID-19 from a drop of blood by a point-of-care test
Authors: Heggestad Jacob T. , Kinnamon David S. , Olson Lyra B. , Liu Jason , Kelly Garrett , Wall Simone A. , Fontes Cassio M. , Joh Daniel Y. , Hucknall Angus M. , Pieper Carl , Naqvi Ibtehaj A. , Chen Lingye , Que Loretta G. , Oguin Thomas , Nair Smita K. , Sullenger Bruce A. , Woods Christopher W. , Sempowski Gregory D. , Kraft Bryan D. , Chilkoti Ashutosh 
Published: November 2020

AbstractHighly sensitive, specific, and point-of-care (POC) serological assays are an essential tool to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. Here, we report on a microfluidic, multiplexed POC test that can profile the antibody response against multiple SARS-CoV-2 antigens—Spike S1 (S1), Nucleocapsid (N), and the receptor binding domain (RBD)—simultaneously from a 60 µL drop of blood, plasma, or serum. We assessed the levels of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in plasma samples from 19 individuals (at multiple time points) with COVID-19 that required admission to the intensive care unit and from 10 healthy individuals. This POC assay shows good concordance with a live virus microneutralization assay, achieved high sensitivity (100%) and specificity (100%), and successfully tracked the longitudinal evolution of the antibody response in infected individuals. We also demonstrated that we can detect a chemokine, IP-10, on the same chip, which may provide prognostic insight into patient outcomes. Because our test requires minimal user intervention and is read by a handheld detector, it can be globally deployed in the fight against COVID-19 by democratizing access to laboratory quality tests.
COVID-19 isolation and containment strategies for ships: Lessons from the USS Theodore Roosevelt outbreak
Authors: Stoddard Madison , Johnson Kaitlyn , White Doug , Nolan Ryan , Hochberg Natasha , Chakravarty Arijit 
Published: November 2020

AbstractThe control of shipborne disease outbreaks represents a vexing but entirely predictable challenge at the start of any pandemic. Passenger ships, with large numbers of people confined in close quarters, can serve as incubators of disease, seeding the pandemic across the globe as infected passengers return home. Short-term steps taken by local authorities can exacerbate this problem, creating humanitarian crises and worsening the scale of the outbreak. In this work, we have undertaken a model-based examination of the USS Theodore Roosevelt outbreak to understand the dynamics of COVID-19 spread aboard the aircraft carrier. We have used a series of counterfactual “what-if” analyses to better understand the options available to public health authorities in such situations. The models suggest that rapid mass evacuation and widespread surveillance testing can be effective in these settings. Our results lead to a set of generalizable recommendations for disease control that are broadly applicable to the current COVID-19 crisis as well as to future pandemics.
Biological Perspective of Balur Therapy: A Network Pharmacology Study
Authors: Aristyani Sherry , Subagjo Saraswati , Rahayu Tintrim , Sumitro Sutiman Bambang 
Published: November 2020

AbstractBalur is an integrative topical medication from Indonesia using herbal medicines:Moringa oleifera,Nicotiana tabacum, andCoffea arabica. Balur can be applied to treat various diseases including chronic diseases and autism because it performs to scavenge free radicals and release electron of heavy metals. However, the complexity of the balur mechanism as medical therapy needs a comprehensive understanding. Not only from a modern physics perspective but also from a biological perspective to explore the effect of active compounds on the human body. In this study, we proposed the computational study to understand balur therapy from a biological perspective though the molecular mechanism. Active compounds of 3 herbal medicines Balur were collected from Dr. Duke’s Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases. Proteins target related to active compounds were obtained from SwissTargetPrediction and PharmMapper Server. Gene Ontology (GO) was conducted to verify the potential mechanism. Moreover, network analysis was conducted with Cytoscape. We found that the active compounds were contributed to the therapeutic effectiveness through a molecular mechanism. This study demonstrated the multi-compounds and multi-target of balur’s herbal medicines to treat disease.
Healthcare strain and intensive care during the COVID-19 outbreak in the Lombardy region: a retrospective observational study on 43,538 hospitalized patients
Authors: Trentini Filippo , Marziano Valentina , Guzzetta Giorgio , Tirani Marcello , Cereda Danilo , Poletti Piero , Piccarreta Raffaella , Barone Antonio , Preziosi Giuseppe , Arduini Fabio , Della Valle Petra Giulia , Zanella Alberto , Grosso Francesca , del Castillo Gabriele , Castrofino Ambra , Grasselli Giacomo , Melegaro Alessia , Piatti Alessandra , Andreassi Aida , Gramegna Maria , Ajelli Marco , Merler Stefano 
Published: November 2020

ABSTRACTBackgroundDuring the spring of 2020, the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic has caused significant resource strain in hospitals of Lombardy, Italy, with the demand for intensive care beds for COVID-19 patients exceeding the overall pre-crisis capacity. In this study, we evaluate the effect of healthcare strain on ICU admission and survival.MethodsWe used data on 43,538 patients admitted to a hospital in the region between February 20 and July 12, 2020, of which 3,993 (9.2%) were admitted to an ICU. We applied logistic regression to model the probability of being admitted to an ICU and the probability of survival among ICU patients. Negative binomial regressions were used to model the time between hospital and ICU admission and the length of stay in ICU.ResultsDuring the period of highest hospital strain (March 16 – April 22), individuals older than 70 years had a significantly lower probability of being admitted to an ICU and significantly longer times between hospital and ICU admission, indicating elective admission due to constrained resources. Healthcare strain did not have a clear effect on mortality, with the overall proportion of deaths declining from 52.1% (95%CI 49.8-54.5) for ICU patients admitted to the hospital before March 16, to 43.4% (95%CI 41.5-45.6) between March 16 and April 22, to 27.6% (95%CI 20.0-35.2) after April 22.ConclusionsThese data demonstrate and quantify the adoption of elective admission to ICUs during the peak phase of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Lombardy. However, we show that for patients admitted to ICUs, clinical outcomes progressively improved despite the saturation of healthcare resources.
Increasing frequency of hospital admissions for retinal detachment and vitreo-retinal surgery in England 2000-2018
Authors: Madi Haifa A , Keller Johannes 
Published: November 2020

AbstractObjectivesTo analyse the changes in reported frequency of retinal detachment admissions and vitreo-retinal surgery procedures performed between 2000-2018 in England. To obtain information useful to contribute towards the planning of service delivery.MethodsAnalysis of England’s Hospital Episode Statistics from the Health and Social Care Information Centre and population data from the United Kingdom’s Office for National Statistics.ResultsEpisodes of “retinal detachments with breaks” increased year on year from 3,447 (7.0/100M) in 2000 to 10,971 (19.7/100M) in 2018 (p<0.001), whereas records of “tractional retinal detachment” increased from 290 (0.6/100M) to 910 (1.6/100M) in the same period (p<0.0001). The number of reported pars plana vitrectomies irrespective of indication increased over fourfold from 5,761 to 26,900 (p<0.0001), while the number of scleral buckling records decreased by two thirds from 2,897 to 780 (p<0.0001). During the same period the population of England increased from 49.2 million-55.6 million, proportionally at a slower rate than that for recorded hospital episodes.ConclusionsThe frequency of admissions to hospital for surgically treated retinal detachment seems to have been increasing significantly since 2000. This effect is more marked in cases of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. This may be partially explained by repeat surgery in cases of recurrent retinal detachment. Other possible explanations may be increased incidence of disease (due to increased rates of cataract surgery, increasing longevity and rates of myopia), improvements in patient access, and increased public awareness. It is possible that this observation is due in part to local changes in methodology of hospital coding.