Articles: sars-cov-2.
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Wien. Klin. Wochenschr. · Dec 2021
Clinical characterization of hospitalized COVID-19 patients during the second wave of pandemic in the district of Rohrbach, Upper Austria : A single center retrospective study.
During the peak of the second wave of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in November 2020, the district of Rohrbach, Upper Austria, was reported to have had the highest 7‑day incidence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus‑2 (SARS-CoV-2) positive cases worldwide. In this study, we present the clinical characteristics of COVID-19 cases during the second wave of the pandemic in patients admitted to the only primary care hospital in the district of Rohrbach between October 2020 and February 2021. In total, 260 patients were hospitalized with a mean age of 72 years and a mortality rate of 14.6% and 13 patients (5%) were transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU). ⋯ These laboratory parameters might help to identify COVID-19 patients with a severe disease course. In conclusion, we could show that older, frail individuals are the most vulnerable group affected by COVID-19. Whether this trend in hospitalized patients continues with the persistence of the pandemic, the emergence of novel virus mutations, and the availability of several different vaccines is presently unclear and remains to be determined.
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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has become a global pandemic. Our laboratory initially used a two-step molecular assay, first reported by Corman et al, for SARS-CoV-2 identification (the Taiwan Center for Disease Control [T-CDC] method). As rapid and accurate diagnosis of COVID-19 is required to control the spread of this infectious disease, the current study evaluated three commercially available assays, including the TaqPath COVID-19 Combo kit, the cobas SARS-CoV-2 test, and the Rendu 2019-nCoV Assay kit, to establish diagnostic algorithms for clinical laboratories. ⋯ Based on our evaluation, two SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic algorithms, one focusing on the manual assays and the other on the automatic platforms, were proposed. Our results provide valuable information that allows clinical laboratories to implement optimal diagnostic strategies for SARS-CoV-2 testing based on their clinical needs, such as test volume, turn-around time, and staff/resource limitations.
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COVID-19 counts 46 million people infected and killed more than 1.2 million. Hypoxaemia is one of the main clinical manifestations, especially in severe cases. HIF1α is a master transcription factor involved in the cellular response to oxygen levels. The immunopathogenesis of this severe form of COVID-19 is poorly understood. ⋯ The up-regulation and participation of HIF1α in events such as inflammation, immunometabolism, and TLR make it a potential molecular marker for COVID-19 severity and, interestingly, could represent a potential target for molecular therapy. Key messages Critically ill COVID-19 patients show emergency myelopoiesis. HIF1α and its transcriptionally regulated genes are expressed in immature myeloid cells which could serve as molecular targets. HIF1α and its transcriptionally regulated genes is also expressed in lung cells from critically ill COVID-19 patients which may partially explain the hypoxia related events.
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Emerg Microbes Infect · Dec 2021
Cross-reactive antibody against human coronavirus OC43 spike protein correlates with disease severity in COVID-19 patients: a retrospective study.
Seasonal human coronaviruses (HCoVs) including HCoV-229E, -OC43, -NL63, and -HKU1 widely spread in global human populations. However, the relevance of humoral response against seasonal HCoVs to COVID-19 pathogenesis is elusive. In this study, we profiled the temporal changes of IgG antibody against spike proteins (S-IgG) of SARS-CoV-2 and seasonal HCoVs in 838 plasma samples collected from 344 COVID-19 patients. ⋯ Higher levels of HCoV-OC43 S-IgG were also observed in patients requiring mechanical ventilation. At days 1-10 PSO, HCoV-OC43 S-IgG titres correlated to disease severity in the age group over 60. Our data indicate that there is a correlation between cross-reactive antibody against HCoV-OC43 spike protein and disease severity in COVID-19 patients.