Article
Biophysics
Isabela A. Mattioli, Karla R. Castro, Lucyano J. A. Macedo, Graziela C. Sedenho, Mona N. Oliveira, Iris Todeschini, Phelipe M. Vitale, Suzete Cleusa Ferreira, Erika R. Manuli, Geovana M. Pereira, Ester C. Sabino, Frank N. Crespilho
Summary: The article introduces a graphene-based Electrical-Electrochemical Vertical Device (EEVD) point-of-care biosensor for serologic COVID-19 diagnosis. EEVD demonstrates advantages such as short analysis time (15 min), simple sample preparation, and a low limit of detection (1.0 pg mL(-1)). It meets the principles of robustness and accuracy, making it an ideal choice for pandemic control strategies.
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
David S. Kinnamon, Jacob T. Heggestad, Jason Liu, Thu Nguyen, Vo Ly, Angus M. Hucknall, Cassio M. Fontes, Rhett J. Britton, Jian-Piao Cai, Jasper Fuk-Woo Chan, Kwok-Yung Yuen, Thuy Le, Ashutosh Chilkoti
Summary: We developed a self-contained immunoassay platform that can be used in field settings with varied temperature, humidity, and blood samples. The platform has high sensitivity and accuracy in detecting analyte concentration, and a portable detection device. We also improved the microfluidic cassette for better usability and faster results. By using this platform, we successfully conducted a rapid diagnostic test for talaromycosis infection in patients, showing comparable sensitivity and specificity to laboratory tests.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Ashwin Ramanujam, Sharilyn Almodovar, Gerardine G. Botte
Summary: The need for rapid and reliable point-of-care diagnostic devices has been emphasized by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, with a demand for increased testing rates and shortage of supplies in traditional molecular diagnostic tests. A novel alternate diagnostic process is necessary to address these challenges.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Meri R. J. Varkila, Maria E. Montez-Rath, Joshua A. Salomon, Xue Yu, Geoffrey A. Block, Douglas K. Owens, Glenn M. Chertow, Julie Parsonnet, Shuchi Anand
Summary: The widespread use of at-home COVID-19 tests affects the determination of community COVID-19 incidence. A study found that wastewater metrics were associated with high case and hospitalization rates in the first quarter of 2022, but the association weakened in subsequent quarters, possibly due to underreporting, reduced testing, and the effect of vaccines and treatments. This study suggests using wastewater metrics to improve the assessment of community infection prevalence when conventional surveillance data is unreliable.
Letter
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
John Federick C. Yap, Louiegi L. Garcia, Leizel D. Yap
Summary: A correspondence highlights the impact of anticipatory grieving and loss on the lives of bereaved families during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advocacy from healthcare workers is crucial in supporting both patients and their loved ones, as they serve as a bridge between the dying patient and the grieving family.
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Rachael Dixon, Eldhose Skaria, Wing Man Lau, Philip Manning, Mark A. Birch-Machin, S. Moein Moghimi, Keng Wooi Ng
Summary: Recent infectious disease outbreaks have emphasized the importance of rapid and accurate diagnosis for effective treatment and prevention of transmission. Point-of-care microneedle diagnostic devices offer a promising solution by providing minimally invasive, real-time diagnosis. Further development in this field holds significant potential for improving infectious disease diagnostics.
ACTA PHARMACEUTICA SINICA B
(2021)
Article
Pediatrics
Ilaria Liguoro, Chiara Pilotto, Michela Vergine, Anna Pusiol, Enrico Vidal, Paola Cogo
Summary: A study revealed a significant decrease in the number of pediatric emergency department visits during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with notable changes in the distribution of children among triage categories and discharge diagnoses, with a relative increase in traumatic injuries and decrease in viral infections.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRICS
(2021)
Article
Biophysics
Chuljin Hwang, Nakkyun Park, Eun Seong Kim, Miran Kim, Su Dong Kim, Sungjun Park, Nam Young Kim, Joo Hee Kim
Summary: This study introduces a label-free DNA capacitive biosensor for SARS-CoV-2 detection, offering real-time, low-cost, and high-throughput screening of nucleic acid samples. The biosensor validates specific DNA sequences' hybridization signals through comprehensive physicochemical analytical techniques, demonstrating significant sensitivity in detecting the conserved region of the SARS-CoV-2 RdRp gene.
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Enrique Valera, Aaron Jankelow, Jongwon Lim, Victoria Kindratenko, Anurup Ganguli, Karen White, James Kumar, Rashid Bashir
Summary: There is an urgent need for decentralized, rapid, sensitive, low-cost COVID-19 infection detection technologies globally. The field of COVID-19 POC diagnostics has rapidly evolved with many technologies approved for commercialization in the past 10 months. The advances made during the pandemic are likely to be utilized for predicting future outbreaks and pandemics.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ran Liu, Yuansheng Hu, Ying He, Tian Lan, Jingjing Zhang
Summary: Home testing is an emerging strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and prevent healthcare resource overload. Current diagnostic technologies for SARS-CoV-2 have drawbacks in terms of sensitivity, usability, and costs, making the tests unaffordable for most users at home. To address these limitations, a target-responsive CRISPR-PGM system has been proposed for translating SARS-CoV-2 detection into a glucose test, offering a potential single-device solution for monitoring multiple COVID-19 biomarkers at home.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Marte Kjollesdal, Karin Magnusson
Summary: This study aimed to assess the impact of occupational factors on the burden of COVID-19 among immigrants in Norway. The results showed that, although immigrants had a higher risk of COVID-19 in certain occupational groups, occupation itself was not the main driver of the high rates of COVID-19 among immigrants from Somalia, Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Turkey.
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Biophysics
Chang Yeol Lee, Ismail Degani, Jiyong Cheong, Jae-Hyun Lee, Hyun-Jung Choi, Jinwoo Cheon, Hakho Lee
Summary: CODA is a portable system for fast, on-site diagnosis of COVID-19, with high signal-to-noise ratio that can complete testing within 20 minutes and has a low limit of detection.
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Mohamed Ghaith Al-Kuwari, Mariam Ali AbdulMalik, Asma Ali Al-Nuaimi, Jazeel Abdulmajeed, Hamad Eid Al-Romaihi, Sandy Semaan, Mujeeb Kandy
Summary: The study shows that COVID-19 infections are prevalent among healthcare workers in Qatar, particularly among outsourced non-clinical positions. Factors influencing infection rates may include environmental factors and compliance with preventative measures.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Yumi Matsushita, Tetsuji Yokoyama, Kayoko Hayakawa, Nobuaki Matsunaga, Hiroshi Ohtsu, Sho Saito, Mari Terada, Setsuko Suzuki, Shinichiro Morioka, Satoshi Kutsuna, Tetsuya Mizoue, Hisao Hara, Akio Kimura, Norio Ohmagari
Summary: Former smoking, but not current smoking, was associated with increased risk of severe COVID-19 in both men and women, suggesting that smoking cessation may reduce the risk of severe COVID-19 by preventing smoking-related comorbidities.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Hanbi Kim, Hyeonseek Park, Doo Ryeon Chung, Taekyung Kim, Eunkyoung Park, Minhee Kang
Summary: We have developed a portable and user-friendly blood plasma-separation device that can be used with rapid diagnostic test kits. This device allows for quick separation of plasma samples and enables blood testing through connected assay kits.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xintong Zhang, Yanhong Liu, Wei Liu, Liqing Chen, Mingji Jin, Zhonggao Gao, Wei Huang
Summary: This study developed a macrophage-hitchhiking gene delivery system for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. The system demonstrated excellent targeting ability and nuclear entry ability, leading to efficient transfection of interleukin-10 in macrophages and alleviation of inflammation symptoms. This research provides a novel strategy for gene therapy and gene delivery system design for rheumatoid arthritis and other similar inflammatory diseases.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Richard K. Cross, Dave Spurgeon, Claus Svendsen, Elma Lahive, Simon Little, Frank von der Kammer, Frederic Loosli, Marianne Matzke, Teresa F. Fernandes, Vicki Stone, Willie J. G. M. Peijnenburg, Eric A. J. Bleeker
Summary: Even small changes in physicochemical properties of nanoforms (NFs) can influence their environmental fate and hazard. Testing and characterizing each individual NF will not be feasible due to the large number of new materials being developed. Targeting the most relevant form of the NF for a given exposure is important for efficient risk assessment. In aquatic systems, functional fate processes play a key role in determining the exposure relevant form of NFs. Grouping of NFs and read-across based on functional fate pathways can be justified by considering the shared fate and hazard profile. A new Integrated Approaches to Testing and Assessment (IATA) is presented, focusing on dissolution, dispersion stability, chemical transformations, and the contribution to toxicity from particles and dissolved components. This IATA can be used as a template for future in vivo kinetic assessments.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Minhui Lu, Xiaoxuan Zhang, Lijun Cai, Jingjing Gan, Jinglin Wang, Yu Wang, Yuanjin Zhao
Summary: Researchers have proposed a novel black phosphorus-loaded hydrogel inverse opal microneedle patch that exhibits photothermal responsive capacity and vivid structural color screening for psoriasis treatment. With improved materials, structures, and functions, the microneedle patch enables intelligent drug delivery and enhances drug loading and controllable release.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Qianyun Tang, Dandan Wang, Jinhui Cui, Yiheng Zhang, Junyang Mei, Jing Du, Anyue Xia, Qian Sun, Dan Luo, Baosan Han, Mingzhe Gan, Peifeng Liu
Summary: This study presents a novel microfluidic platform for precise and flexible control of oxygen concentrations in microbial suspension culture. The platform demonstrates unique capabilities for spatiotemporal gas control and detection, allowing for applications in screening, studying, and culturing industrial or niche-specific environmental microbiomes.
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jiaen Wu, Hao Chen, Jiawei Xu, Muhammad Saif Ur Rahman, Shengmei Li, Jie Wang, Shifen Huang, Charles C. Han, Shanshan Xu, Ying Liu
Summary: This review categorizes the potential health risks of microplastic pollution by focusing on the three primary pollution sources. It provides an in-depth analysis of the pharmacokinetics, toxicity potential, and biological mechanism of microplastics in the human body. The review aims to fill knowledge gaps about the toxicity of microplastics on human health and provide ideas for repairing the damage caused by microplastics.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Fanshu Ma, Yi Cao, Jincong Yan, Zhongzhong Lu, Lina Sun, Zahid Hussain, Zheng Wang, Li Wang, Renjun Pei
Summary: This study proposes a simple yet powerful method to create multifunctional hybrid nanovesicles that combine the characteristics of oncolytic viruses and pyroptosis, leading to enhanced tumor targeting and improved immune response. The results demonstrate excellent tumor inhibition efficacy against melanoma and pulmonary metastasis.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Fangmian Wei, Johannes Karges, Siyuan Gao, Lili Wang, Xiting Zhang, Xing-Can Shen, Liangnian Ji, Hui Chao
Summary: This study presents the coordination of Ru(II) polypyridine complexes to graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets for oxygen-self-sufficient two-photon photodynamic immunotherapy. The conjugates were found with strong two-photon absorption and could generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) to induce cell death and inhibit tumor growth through immune system activation.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Weiwei Zheng, Shun-Yu Yao, Haijun Hu, Xiping Chen, Zhefeng Qian, Wenxing Liu, Yang Zhu, Zhengwei Mao, Dong-Sheng Guo, Changyou Gao
Summary: In this study, a hypoxia-responsive self-assembled peptide hydrogel was prepared for ischemic stroke treatment. The hydrogel showed the ability to release drugs and effectively improve motor function, reduce infarct volume, and alleviate inflammation.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Qianqian Qiao, Jinyu Wang, Kai Long, Linwei Li, Jiahao Chen, Yuhao Guo, Ziqiang Xu, Ying Kuang, Tianjiao Ji, Cao Li
Summary: This study developed a catalytic system using titanium-based MXene nanosheets to load enzymes and anticancer drugs. The nanosheets demonstrated catalase-like activity and photothermal capability, enabling enhanced cancer treatment through starvation therapy and alleviation of hypoxia. In vitro and in vivo studies confirmed the effective anticancer capability of this enzyme cascade system.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Shiyang Wu, Yan He, Ruiqi Zhou, Chunlin Chen, Dawei Chen, Haiyang Hu
Summary: In this research, LDHA@MIP-DSD nanoparticles were designed to enhance the effectiveness of immunogenic cell death (ICD) in cancer immunotherapy. LDHA@MIP-DSD improved the accessibility of nanodrugs to cancer cells by surface imprinting LDHA and induced autophagy with SLN. The combination of these two effects resulted in optimal immune stimulation and antitumor efficiency.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xu Zhang, Kejian Shi, Jiahui Mao, Kerou Mao, Yangrui Jia, Jiakun Zhang, Qingzhen Wang, Ru Bai, Fene Gao, Shihui Liu, Mengyu Guo, Fenglan Qin, Shengmin Li, Chunying Chen, Huige Zhou, Jing Liu, Fulin Chen
Summary: Compared with vein injection, oral administration is a preferred non-invasive and self-help treatment option for cancer therapy. However, the harsh gastrointestinal tract and biological barriers limit the stability and efficiency of oral drug delivery systems. To overcome these challenges, researchers have developed Cyssome, a drug delivery platform that can maintain stability in harsh environments, penetrate biological barriers, and improve drug release and bioavailability.