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Maria De Luca, Biagia Musio, Francesco Balestra, Valentina Arrè, Roberto Negro, Nicoletta Depalo, Federica Rizzi, Rita Mastrogiacomo, Giorgia Panzetta, Rossella Donghia, Pasqua Letizia Pesole, Sergio Coletta, Emanuele Piccinno, Viviana Scalavino, Grazia Serino, Fatima Maqoud, Francesco Russo, Antonella Orlando, Stefano Todisco, Pietro Mastrorilli, Maria Lucia Curri, Vito Gallo, Gianluigi Giannelli and Maria Principia Scavoadd
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Int. J. Mol. Sci.2024, 25(16), 8853; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25168853 (registering DOI) - 14 Aug 2024
Crohn’s disease (CD) is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affecting the gastrointestinal tract that can also cause extra-intestinal complications. Following exposure to the mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) encoding the SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S) protein, some patients experienced a lack of response to
[...] Read more.
Crohn’s disease (CD) is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affecting the gastrointestinal tract that can also cause extra-intestinal complications. Following exposure to the mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) encoding the SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S) protein, some patients experienced a lack of response to the biological drug Adalimumab and a recrudescence of the disease. In CD patients in progression, resistant to considered biological therapy, an abnormal increase in intestinal permeability was observed, more often with a modulated expression of different proteins such as Aquaporin 8 (AQP8) and in tight junctions (e.g., ZO-1, Claudin1, Claudin2, Occludin), especially during disease flares. The aim of this study is to investigate how the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine could interfere with IBD therapy and contribute to disease exacerbation. We investigated the role of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein, transported by extracellular vesicles (EVs), and the impact of various EVs components, namely, exosomes (EXOs) and microvesicles (MVs), in modulating the expression of molecules involved in the exacerbation of CD, which remains unknown.
Full article
Platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (pEVs) are emerging as pivotal players in numerous physiological and pathological processes, extending beyond their traditional roles in hemostasis and thrombosis. As one of the most abundant vesicle types in human blood, pEVs transport a diverse array of bioactive molecules,
[...] Read more.
Platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (pEVs) are emerging as pivotal players in numerous physiological and pathological processes, extending beyond their traditional roles in hemostasis and thrombosis. As one of the most abundant vesicle types in human blood, pEVs transport a diverse array of bioactive molecules, including growth factors, cytokines, and clotting factors, facilitating crucial intercellular communication, immune regulation, and tissue healing. The unique ability of pEVs to traverse tissue barriers and their biocompatibility position them as promising candidates for targeted drug delivery and regenerative medicine applications. Recent studies have underscored their involvement in cancer progression, viral infections, wound healing, osteoarthritis, sepsis, cardiovascular diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, and atherothrombosis. For instance, pEVs promote tumor progression and metastasis, enhance tissue repair, and contribute to thrombo-inflammation in diseases such as COVID-19. Despite their potential, challenges remain, including the need for standardized isolation techniques and a comprehensive understanding of their mechanisms of action. Current research efforts are focused on leveraging pEVs for innovative anti-cancer treatments, advanced drug delivery systems, regenerative therapies, and as biomarkers for disease diagnosis and monitoring. This review highlights the necessity of overcoming technical hurdles, refining isolation methods, and establishing standardized protocols to fully unlock the therapeutic potential of pEVs. By understanding the diverse functions and applications of pEVs, we can advance their use in clinical settings, ultimately revolutionizing treatment strategies across various medical fields and improving patient outcomes.
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The human community confronts a plethora of disasters, including man-made epidemics like COVID-19, environmental problems such as water and food resource depletion, biochemical warfare, and even threats from human-created artificial intelligence. Consequently, it is appropriate to term our current community a “disaster community”.
[...] Read more.
The human community confronts a plethora of disasters, including man-made epidemics like COVID-19, environmental problems such as water and food resource depletion, biochemical warfare, and even threats from human-created artificial intelligence. Consequently, it is appropriate to term our current community a “disaster community”. This paper delves into the issue of diaspora, intrinsically linked to the fragmentation problem in the disaster community, where each subgroup tends to focus solely on its own community. This issue is scrutinized by categorizing the diaspora into larger and smaller categories, with cases from both the international and domestic levels examined respectively within each category. Among the many Daoist philosophical concepts, this paper focuses on the Daoist principle of interconnectedness. In examining Daoist thought on interconnectedness, it also confirms that the notion of interconnectedness is being increasingly emphasized in modern society and across various academic disciplines. This perspective affirms the pluralistic nature of existence, while also underscoring the fundamental interconnectedness that underpins the myriad forms and phenomena. It provides a framework for addressing the challenges faced by the disaster community, particularly in relation to issues of diaspora, by emphasizing the need for coexistence and collective responsibility within a web of mutual relations. The philosophy innovatively applied from Daoism emphasizes “recognizing diversity based on Dao, while acknowledging that each existence is interconnected”. Here, “recognition of diversity based on Dao” underpins pluralism, and “interconnectedness of all existence” forms the fundamental solution to the diaspora problem. This approach could be extended as a strategic response to various disasters that the human community encounters. Therefore, this paper assesses the current state of the disaster community, the severity of the diaspora issue, and some cases both between and within nations. It also discusses the core of Daoist philosophy and its creative application to overcome these challenges. The disaster community should transition towards a sustainable and open community, and on this journey, by acknowledging our interconnectedness, we can find solutions to not only the disasters we confront but also to the diaspora problem.
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Ruth M. Grajeda-Rosado, Elia M. Alonso-Guzmán, Roberto I. Ponce de la Cruz-Herrera, Gerardo M. Ortigoza-Capetillo, Wilfrido Martínez-Molina, Max Mondragón-Olán and Guillermo Hermida-Saba
This study takes a unique approach, using satellite remote sensing to analyze the land surface temperature (LST) in seven coastal cities located at latitudes between 18° and 22° and longitudes between 106° and 91°. The methodology consists of obtaining the LST on two
[...] Read more.
This study takes a unique approach, using satellite remote sensing to analyze the land surface temperature (LST) in seven coastal cities located at latitudes between 18° and 22° and longitudes between 106° and 91°. The methodology consists of obtaining the LST on two selected days, one in July 2019 and one in July 2020, to determine how the temperature was modified by the atypical mobility caused by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and social distancing. Using these data, we determine the representative surface temperature that tended to rise (RHST) and the representative surface temperature that tended to decrease (RLST), depending on the affected area. This approach allows us to comprehensively compare how mobility modified the four variables studied: territorial extension, population, types of soil (paving), and vegetation. We concluded that, among the factors analyzed, the types of paving and vegetation were those that generated a more significant decrease in temperature; the variables of territorial extension and the number of inhabitants had a smaller impact. This study paves the way for a discussion of the significant influence of mobility on the behavior of the LST.
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The United States had one of the worst outcomes in the management of COVID-19 risk, with a death rate in the 94th percentile of all countries. Setting aside the obvious politicized nature of COVID-19 public health recommendations and mandates, we argue that best
[...] Read more.
The United States had one of the worst outcomes in the management of COVID-19 risk, with a death rate in the 94th percentile of all countries. Setting aside the obvious politicized nature of COVID-19 public health recommendations and mandates, we argue that best practices in financial risk management provide parallels that could have served as valuable guidance. We demonstrate here that considerable signals were missed that would have required very little effort and would have been consistent with sound risk management. We also identify examples of misleading information such as that COVID-19 was particularly hard on the elderly. The data actually show that it had a much greater marginal impact on those not elderly. We show here that financial economists and risk managers have a strong knowledge base of how to process vast quantities of data to distinguish signals from noise and have much to teach the public health establishment.
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Coronaviruses (CoVs) are a class of respiratory viruses with the potential to cause severe respiratory diseases by infecting cells of the upper respiratory tract, bronchial epithelium, and lung. The airway cilia are distributed on the surface of respiratory epithelial cells, forming the first
[...] Read more.
Coronaviruses (CoVs) are a class of respiratory viruses with the potential to cause severe respiratory diseases by infecting cells of the upper respiratory tract, bronchial epithelium, and lung. The airway cilia are distributed on the surface of respiratory epithelial cells, forming the first point of contact between the host and the inhaled coronaviruses. The function of the airway cilia is to oscillate and sense, thereby defending against and removing pathogens to maintain the cleanliness and patency of the respiratory tract. Following infection of the respiratory tract, coronaviruses exploit the cilia to invade and replicate in epithelial cells while also damaging the cilia to facilitate the spread and exacerbation of respiratory diseases. It is therefore imperative to investigate the interactions between coronaviruses and respiratory cilia, as well as to elucidate the functional mechanism of respiratory cilia following coronavirus invasion, in order to develop effective strategies for the prevention and treatment of respiratory viral infections. This review commences with an overview of the fundamental characteristics of airway cilia, and then, based on the interplay between airway cilia and coronavirus infection, we propose that ciliary protection and restoration may represent potential therapeutic approaches in emerging and re-emerging coronavirus pandemics.
Full article
submission deadline 20 Aug 2024
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Keywords: COVID-19; pathogenesis; SARS-CoV-2 receptors; drug repurposing; drug targets and potential treatments; prevention of post-COVID syndrome; thrombosis; kidney disease
submission deadline 31 Aug 2024
| 98 articles
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Submission Open
Keywords: functioning of states; activities of state groupings; functioning of public and private enterprises; e-commerce markets; courier services markets; operation of retail enterprises; logistics; including storage and transport of goods; supply chains; trade and services; construction sector; functioning of passenger transport; including urban transport; the energy sector in a pandemic; functioning of the tourism and catering industry; banking sector; sustainability of farms; functioning of the labor market; including remote work; public finance sector; the functioning of society in the COVID-19 pandemic; functioning of social groups; sustainability of professional groups; functioning of education and remote education; sustainability in the activities of universities; differences in the lives of urban and rural residents
The first webinar in the series, held on 17 April 2020, saw both Prof. Dr. Antoine Flahault, Director of the Institute of Global Health, University of Geneva, Switzerland, and Prof. Dr. Evelyne Bischof, Associate Professor, Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Shanghai, China and Research physician, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland speak on this topic.
The second webinar in the series, entitled “Coronaviruses: history, replication, innate immune antagonism”, saw Prof. Dr. Susan R. Weiss, Professor of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania speak on this topic.
WEBINAR 3: Could the COVID-19 Crisis be the Opportunity to Make Cities Carbon Neutral, Liveable and Healthy
The third webinar in this series was presented by Prof. Dr. Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, a world leading expert in environmental exposure assessment, epidemiology, and health risk/impact assessment with a strong focus and interest on healthy urban living.
WEBINAR 4: COVID-19 - Global Supply Chains and the SDGs
For the fourth webinar of this series, Prof. Dr. Max Bergman, Dr. Dorothea Schostok and Prof. Dr. Patrick Paul Walsh gave a presentation on Global Supply Chains and the SDGs.
WEBINAR 5: The New Role of Family Physicians in Times of COVID-19
The fifth webinar of the COVID-19 Series saw Prof. Dr. Christos Lionis discuss the new role of family physicians that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic.
WEBINAR 6: Survey on Symptoms/Signs, Protective Measures, Level of Awareness and Perception Regarding COVID-19 Outbreak among Dentists
In the sixth webinar of this series, Prof. Dr. Guglielmo Campus and Prof. Dr. Maria Grazia present and discuss the risk and the preventions that can and should be taken by dentists during this pandemic.
WEBINAR 7: Living with COVID-19: An Early Intervention Therapeutic Strategy to Control the Pandemic
The seventh webinar of the COVID-19 series, Dr. Hamid Merchant discussed the different therapeutic strategies that can be adopted in the early stages of the infection.
WEBINAR 8: Impact of COVID-19 on Routine Immunization, Reproduction and Pregnancy Outcome
For the eighth COVID-19 webinar, Prof. Dr. Jon Øyvind Odland discussed the effect that COVID-19 seems to have on pregnant women; whereas Prof. Dr. Giovanni Gabutti discussed the role of routine immunization as a way of fighting COVID-19.
