scholarly journals Rapid Spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern 202012/01 in Southern Italy (December 2020–March 2021)

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. 4766
Author(s):  
Daniela Loconsole ◽  
Francesca Centrone ◽  
Caterina Morcavallo ◽  
Silvia Campanella ◽  
Anna Sallustio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Characteristics ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Southern Italy ◽  
Whole Genome ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Gene Target ◽  
The Third ◽  
Rapid Spread ◽  
Pharmaceutical Interventions ◽  
Over Time

Epidemiological and virological studies have revealed that SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) are emerging globally, including in Europe. The aim of this study was to evaluate the spread of B.1.1.7-lineage SARS-CoV-2 in southern Italy from December 2020–March 2021 through the detection of the S gene target failure (SGTF), which could be considered a robust proxy of VOC B.1.1.7. SGTF was assessed on 3075 samples from week 52/2020 to week 10/2021. A subset of positive samples identified in the Apulia region during the study period was subjected to whole-genome sequencing (WGS). A descriptive and statistical analysis of the demographic and clinical characteristics of cases according to SGTF status was performed. Overall, 20.2% of samples showed SGTF; 155 strains were confirmed as VOC 202012/01 by WGS. The proportion of SGTF-positive samples rapidly increased over time, reaching 69.2% in week 10/2021. SGTF-positive cases were more likely to be symptomatic and to result in hospitalization (p < 0.0001). Despite the implementation of large-scale non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), such as the closure of schools and local lockdowns, a rapid spread of VOC 202012/01 was observed in southern Italy. Strengthened NPIs and rapid vaccine deployment, first among priority groups and then among the general population, are crucial both to contain the spread of VOC 202012/01 and to flatten the curve of the third wave.

scholarly journals Reconstruction of a large-scale outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Iceland informs vaccination strategies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristjan Eldjarn Hjorleifsson ◽  
Solvi Rognvaldsson ◽  
Hakon Jonsson ◽  
Arna B Agustsdottir ◽  
Margret Andresdottir ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Sequence Data ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Viral Sequence ◽  
The Third ◽  
Population Prevalence ◽  
Working Age ◽  
Age Range ◽  
Pharmaceutical Interventions

The spread of SARS-CoV-2 is dependent on several factors, both biological and behavioral. The effectiveness of various non-pharmaceutical interventions can largely be attributed to changes in human behavior, but quantifying this effect remains challenging. Reconstructing the transmission tree of the third wave of SARS-CoV-2 infections in Iceland using contact tracing and viral sequence data from 2522 cases enables us to compare the infectiousness of distinct groups of persons directly. We find that people diagnosed outside of quarantine are 89% more infectious than those diagnosed while in quarantine, and infectiousness decreases as a function of the time spent in quarantine. Furthermore, we find that people of working age, 16-66 years old, are 47% more infectious than those outside that age range. Lastly, the transmission tree enables us to model the effect that given population prevalence of vaccination would have had on the third wave had they been administered before that time using several different strategies. We find that vaccinating in order of ascending age or uniformly at random would have prevented more infections per vaccination than vaccinating in order of descending age.

scholarly journals Detection and whole-genome sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.617.2 and B.1.351 variants of concern from Pakistan during the COVID-19 third wave

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Massab Umair ◽  
Aamer Ikram ◽  
Muhammad Salman ◽  
Nazish Badar ◽  
Syed Adnan Haider ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Whole Genome Sequencing ◽  
Genome Sequencing ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Genomic Diversity ◽  
Whole Genome ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Close Monitoring ◽  
Gene Target ◽  
Azad Kashmir

The viral lineages reflecting variants of concern have emerged worldwide and among them B.1.1.7 (Alpha), B.1351 (Beta) and B.1.617.2 (Delta) variants are the most significant ones and merit close monitoring. In Pakistan, very limited information is available on the circulation of these variants and only the alpha variant has been reported as the main circulating lineage. The objective of this study was to detect and explore the genomic diversity of B.1.351 and B.1.617.2 during the third wave in the indigenous population. During the current study, a total of 2274 samples were tested on real-time PCR for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 from May 14 to May 31, 2021, and among these, 17% were spike positive, whereas 83% of samples had the spike gene target failure (SGTF). From these spike positive samples, 22 samples were processed for whole-genome sequencing. Among VOCs, 45.5% (n=10) belonged to B.1.351 followed by B.1.617.2, 36% (n=8). The delta variant cases were reported mostly from Islamabad (n = 5; 63%) followed by Peshawar and Azad Kashmir (n = 1; 13% each). Beta variant cases originated from Islamabad (n=5; 56%), Peshawar (n=2; 22%), Azad Kashmir and Rawalpindi (n=1; 11% each). The mutation profile of delta variant isolates reported significant mutations, L452R, T478K, P681R, and D950N. The beta variant isolates reported characteristic mutations, D215G, K417N, E484K, N501Y, and A701V. Notably, a characteristic mutation, E484Q was also found in delta variant, B.1.617.2. Our current findings suggest detection of these VOCs from the local population and warrants large-scale genomic surveillance in the country. In addition, it provides timely information to the health authorities to take appropriate actions.

scholarly journals Pandemic Fatigue: A Challenge in Combatting against COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Rohaizat Hassan ◽  
Syed Sharizman Syed Abdul Rahim ◽  
Mohammad Saffree Jeffree
Keyword(s):  
Third Wave ◽  
Psychological Consequences ◽  
The Third ◽  
Social Structural ◽  
The World ◽  
Protective Behaviours ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Simple Definition

  The COVID -19 pandemic has hit the world for a period of a year and a half; it has been a triple crisis, with medical, economic, and psychological consequences. After 18 months of going through a pandemic, this includes not only facing the transmission of SARS CoV-2 virus but also restricted movements. Communities are now facing pandemic fatigue starting as early as the third wave of increased cases in September 2020. Pandemic fatigue is the stage when the initial enthusiasm and eagerness to tackle the crisis is replaced by feelings of exhaustion. In a simple definition, pandemic fatigue is understood as demotivation to follow recommended protective behaviours. It is a natural and expected reaction to sustained and unresolved adversity in people’s lives, evolving gradually over time and affected by several emotions, experiences, and perceptions as well as the cultural, social, structural, and legislative environment.

Party Systems in Latin America

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Wills-Otero
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Party System ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
The Third ◽  
Voter Preferences ◽  
Political Configuration ◽  
American Party ◽  
Over Time

Since the beginning of the third wave of democratization in the late 1970s, Latin American party systems have confronted several challenges, and they have frequently been transformed. There have been various types of changes. While some systems collapsed in the 1990s (e.g., Venezuela and Peru), others realigned (Colombia, Chile, and Uruguay), or expanded (Argentina and Mexico), or were able to become consolidated and ensure their stability over time (e.g., Brazil). What factors explain the transformations in party systems during the past three decades, and how can Latin American party systems be classified according to their attributes? In trying to answer these questions, scholars of Latin America have undertaken studies that are both theoretically and empirically rich. Their work has increased our knowledge of the party systems and representative democracies in the region. Different factors have been highlighted in order to explain the changes these systems have undergone since the third wave of democratization. Some works emphasize the importance of institutional reforms introduced by politicians or by constitutional assemblies. The questions they address are the following: What political reforms have been introduced into Latin American political systems, and what effects have they had on the party systems in different countries? The researchers do not limit their attention to reforms of electoral systems. For example, some of them also study decentralization processes and their effects on party systems. From a different perspective, other authors focus on changes in electoral preferences and their effects on the configuration of political power, exploring how regional economic, political, and social changes have affected voter preferences and the political configuration of party systems. Still others consider the crises of democratic representation in these countries, underlining the decline in the programmatic character of parties as an explanatory variable for the crises and noting that the level of institutionalization of a party system declines when parties abandon this distinctive feature and become clientelistic or personalistic instead. On the other hand, in order to describe party systems and to observe the changes they have undergone, academics have proposed a set of concepts and measurements that make it possible to identify their levels of institutionalization (i.e., stability vs. volatility), nationalization, and programmatic structuration, among other aspects. The operationalization of these concepts has provided researchers with useful data for describing, comparing, and analyzing the party systems of the region transversely over time. Understanding the transformation and characteristics of Latin American party systems over time sheds light on both the progress democratic regimes have made and the setbacks they have suffered within specific countries and in the region at large.

The „Third Wave”. Reborn of social activity, and a social inclusion, among young Poles

2020 ◽  
Vol XI (1 (30)) ◽  
pp. 139-162
Author(s):  
Filip Nalaskowski ◽  
Dagna Dejna
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Social Activity ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Political Activities ◽  
The Third ◽  
Post War ◽  
In The Beginning

The phenomenon of the „Third Wave", which is a reborn of civic activity among a youth and social inclusion of young Poles is widely descripted from the historical perspective. In the beginning the historical overview focuses on the "First Wave", - the period between 1945 and 1989, where the involvement of young people in social and political activities was mainly confrontational. The very first thought we have when it comes to the political and social activities of the emerging generation in post-war Poland are not a pro-systemic but anti-systemic activities. First of all the year 1968 - identified as the beginning of the large-scale opposition movement of the People's Republic of Poland. The "Second Wave" is the generation crossing a borderline of 1989 as a children and youth. In general, it can be assumed that they were born between 1970 and 1985. The youngsters in this Wave were openly not-interested in the politics (ex. the record breaking low rate of participation in elections); disappointed with III RP, frustrated with a great social problems (unemployment, scandals on a large scale) were rather focused on personal and social issues on a micro scale (WOŚP, partys' youth wings). The "Third Wave"- the period we are witnessing, is a dawn of youth activity. We are just at the beginning of the rising curve, which shows the a rise of active civic attitude among young people. The phenomenon of this rebirth, inclusion, is the result of several factors, which are a subject of article are presented in detail. We are witnessing a great increase in the activity of young people, the demonstration of their power, the efficiency, and the influence. Its direction and force depend strongly on current trends, popularity and communication skills. The young Poles and theirs mood are the main factors which are choosing the members of The Polish Parliament, creating a demand for products and creating cultural phenomena. The Internet has become a land of communication and organization of young people's activities. In the article, the reader will find detailed reconstructions of the most important and popular activities of young Poles, the "Third Wave", their interpretation and explanations.

scholarly journals Emergence and Spread of B.1.1.7 Lineage in Primary Care and Clinical Impact in the Morbi-Mortality among Hospitalized Patients in Madrid, Spain

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 1517
Author(s):  
Laura Martínez-García ◽  
Marco Antonio Espinel ◽  
Melanie Abreu ◽  
José María González-Alba ◽  
Desirèe Gijón ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Death Rate ◽  
Clinical Impact ◽  
Replacement Rate ◽  
Gene Target ◽  
The Third ◽  
Rapid Spread ◽  
Alpha Variant ◽  
Time Spread ◽  
Pandemic Wave

In December 2020, UK authorities warned of the rapid spread of a new SARS-CoV-2 variant, belonging to the B.1.1.7 lineage, known as the Alpha variant. This variant is characterized by 17 mutations and 3 deletions. The deletion 69–70 in the spike protein can be detected by commercial platforms, allowing its real-time spread to be known. From the last days of December 2020 and over 4 months, all respiratory samples with a positive result for SARS-CoV-2 from patients treated in primary care and the emergency department were screened to detect this variant based on the strategy S gene target failure (SGTF). The first cases were detected during week 53 (2020) and reached >90% of all cases during weeks 15–16 (2021). During this period, the B.1.1.7/SGTF variant spread at a rapid and constant replacement rate of around 30–36%. The probability of intensive care unit admission was twice higher among patients infected by the B.1.1.7/SGTF variant, but there were no differences in death rate. During the peak of the third pandemic wave, this variant was not the most prevalent, and it became dominant when this wave was declining. Our results confirm that the B.1.1.7/SGTF variant displaced other SARS-CoV-2 variants in our healthcare area in 4 months. This displacement has led to an increase in the burden of disease.

scholarly journals Towards dynamic genome-scale models

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 1167-1180 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Gilbert ◽  
Monika Heiner ◽  
Yasoda Jayaweera ◽  
Christian Rohr
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Dynamic Behaviour ◽  
Reaction Rates ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Tool Support ◽  
Whole Genome ◽  
Scale Models ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Genome Scale ◽  
Over Time

Abstract The analysis of the dynamic behaviour of genome-scale models of metabolism (GEMs) currently presents considerable challenges because of the difficulties of simulating such large and complex networks. Bacterial GEMs can comprise about 5000 reactions and metabolites, and encode a huge variety of growth conditions; such models cannot be used without sophisticated tool support. This article is intended to aid modellers, both specialist and non-specialist in computerized methods, to identify and apply a suitable combination of tools for the dynamic behaviour analysis of large-scale metabolic designs. We describe a methodology and related workflow based on publicly available tools to profile and analyse whole-genome-scale biochemical models. We use an efficient approximative stochastic simulation method to overcome problems associated with the dynamic simulation of GEMs. In addition, we apply simulative model checking using temporal logic property libraries, clustering and data analysis, over time series of reaction rates and metabolite concentrations. We extend this to consider the evolution of reaction-oriented properties of subnets over time, including dead subnets and functional subsystems. This enables the generation of abstract views of the behaviour of these models, which can be large—up to whole genome in size—and therefore impractical to analyse informally by eye. We demonstrate our methodology by applying it to a reduced model of the whole-genome metabolism of Escherichia coli K-12 under different growth conditions. The overall context of our work is in the area of model-based design methods for metabolic engineering and synthetic biology.

Contacts with Police Officers and Changes in Police Legitimacy Perceptions Among Brazilian Adolescents Over Time

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-252
Author(s):  
André V. Komatsu ◽  
Renan Theodoro ◽  
Mariana Chies-Santos ◽  
Marcos C. Alvarez
Keyword(s):  
Police Officers ◽  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Police Legitimacy ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Legal Socialization ◽  
The Third ◽  
Perception Of Police ◽  
Main Factors ◽  
Second Wave ◽  
Over Time

AbstractGrowing research indicates that police legitimacy is a strong predictor of whether people behave respecting or violating rules. Perceptions of legitimacy are an output of socializing processes through which individuals develop their values and orientations toward authorities and the legal system. Legal socialization studies show that encounters with legal authorities are critical “teachable moments” in this process. The present study verifies whether direct or vicarious negative contacts with police officers affect changes in the perception of the legitimacy of police authority by adolescents over time. The adolescents were classified according to whether or not they had witnessed or experienced any negative contact or experience with the police during the period before the interview, composing two group trajectories at the first wave, four at the second wave, and eight at the third wave. Then the trajectories were compared in terms of the extent to which they agree with statements about police legitimacy, allowing the quantification of changes of opinion after negative contacts with the police. Results show that three main factors diminish the perception of police legitimacy: having negative contact with the police; having more than one negative contact; and having a recent negative contact. These findings have important implications for police patrolling and approach strategies.

One-month recovery experience of a disaster relief team functioning as an outpatient clinic following Super Typhoon Haiyan: Changes in distribution of trauma patients and required medical components

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 147-152
Author(s):  
Seongyup Kim, PhD ◽  
Jin Sil Moon, MS ◽  
Yong Won Kim, MD
Keyword(s):  
Outpatient Clinic ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Disaster Relief ◽  
Central Area ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Trauma Patients ◽  
The Third ◽  
Super Typhoon ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Over Time

As the distribution of trauma and non-trauma patients changes with time following a large-scale disaster, the required medical resources change commensurately. An understanding of these changes is necessary to provide effective medical support. Super Typhoon Yolanda, one of the strongest recorded tropical cyclones, struck the central area of the Republic of the Philippines on November 8, 2013. The current authors worked together on one of the disaster relief medical teams from the Republic of Korea. The authors investigated differences in medical components provided to trauma and non-trauma patients and analyzed changes in the distribution of trauma patients over time in the Tacloban area affected by Super Typhoon Yolanda.The authors retrospectively reviewed patients admitted to an outpatient clinic established by our Korean Disaster Relief Team (KDRT) located in Tacloban City, Republic of the Philippines, between November 16 and December 13, 2013. Medical records were reviewed to collect patient information, including date of admission, sex, age, patient categorization as trauma or non-trauma, types of medical resource provided to patients, and times at which patients were transferred to other hospitals or clinics.During the study period, 5,827 patients were admitted to the KDRT clinic. Of these, 1,378 (23.6 percent) were trauma patients and 4,449 (76.4 percent) were non-trauma patients. The total patient number per week increased from the second to third weeks (1,553 to 2,426) and rapidly decreased from the third to fifth weeks (2,426 to 757) following the disaster. Trauma patients were consistently present, and the proportion of trauma patients rapidly increased from the third to fifth weeks (18 to 39 percent) following the disaster.Certain patient factors were significantly related to trauma, including patient age [OR (95% CI): 1.01 (1.01-1.01)], male sex [OR (95% CI): 2.12 (11.88-2.40)], frequency of laboratory tests [OR (95% CI): 0.19 (0.12- 0.29)], required electrocardiography [OR (95% CI): 0.28 (0.14-0.50)], required ultrasound [OR (95% CI): 0.32 (0.21-0.47)], required invasive procedures [OR (95% CI): 53.50 (44.17-65.18)], required short-term monitoring [OR (95% CI): 1.25 (1.05-1.50)], and required prescriptions for medication [OR (95% CI): 0.33 (0.29-0.38)]. Other factors (eg, X-ray radiography and transfer from the clinic) were not associated with trauma. The proportions of trauma patients increased over time after disaster. The medical requirements for effective patient care were different between non-trauma and trauma patients.

scholarly journals Mortality trends and lengths of stay among hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Ontario and Québec (Canada): a population-based cohort study of the first three epidemic waves

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiqing Xia ◽  
Huiting Ma ◽  
David L Buckeridge ◽  
Marc Brisson ◽  
Beate Sander ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hospital Mortality ◽  
Mortality Risk ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Mortality Trends ◽  
Mortality Risks ◽  
The Third ◽  
Icu Stay ◽  
Over Time

AbstractBackgroundEpidemic waves of COVID-19 strained hospital resources. We describe temporal trends in mortality risk and length of stay in intensive cares units (ICUs) among COVID-19 patients hospitalized through the first three epidemic waves in Canada.MethodsWe used population-based provincial hospitalization data from Ontario and Québec to examine mortality risk and lengths of ICU stay. For each province, adjusted estimates were obtained using marginal standardization of logistic regression models, adjusting for patient-level characteristics and hospital-level determinants.ResultsUsing all hospitalizations from Ontario (N=26,541) and Québec (N=23,857), we found that unadjusted in-hospital mortality risks peaked at 31% in the first wave and was lowest at the end of the third wave at 6-7%. This general trend remained after controlling for confounders. The odds of in-hospital mortality in the highest hospital occupancy quintile was 1.2 (95%CI: 1.0-1.4; Ontario) and 1.6 (95%CI: 1.3-1.9; Québec) times that of the lowest quintile. Variants of concerns were associated with an increased in-hospital mortality. Length of ICU stay decreased over time from a mean of 16 days (SD=18) to 15 days (SD=15) in the third wave but were consistently higher in Ontario than Québec by 3-6 days.ConclusionIn-hospital mortality risks and lengths of ICU stay declined over time in both provinces, despite changing patient demographics, suggesting that new therapeutics and treatment, as well as improved clinical protocols, could have contributed to this reduction. Continuous population-based monitoring of patient outcomes in an evolving epidemic is necessary for health system preparedness and response.

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