scholarly journals The Effectiveness of Probiotics against Viral Infections: A Rapid Review with Focus on SARS-CoV-2 Infection

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (T1) ◽  
pp. 496-508
Author(s):  
Jehan Abdul-Sattar Salman ◽  
Nibras Nazar Mahmood ◽  
Ban Oday Abdulsattar ◽  
Hussein Adil Abid
Keyword(s):  
Viral Infections ◽  
Antiviral Agents ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
Health Benefit ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
World Health ◽  
Rapid Review ◽  
Protective Effects ◽  
Cost Effective Treatment ◽  
Health Organization

Viral infections have gained great attention following the rapid emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic around the globe. Even with the continuous research on developing vaccines and antiviral agents against various viral infections, no specific treatment or vaccine has been approved for many enteric or respiratory viral infections; in addition, the efficiency of currently available treatments is still limited. One of the most reliable and recommended strategies to control viral infections is prevention. Recently, intense studies are focusing on a promising approach for treating/preventing various viral infections using probiotics. As per the World Health Organization (WHO), probiotics can be defined as “live microorganisms which, when administered in adequate amount, confer a health benefit to the host.” The use of probiotics is a simple, cost-effective, and safe strategy to prevent viral infections, specifically; respiratory tract and intestinal ones, by different means such as stimulating the host’s immune response or modulating gut microbiota. In this rapid review, we emphasize the protective effects of probiotics against viral infections and proposed mechanisms for protection that might offer a novel and cost-effective treatment against current and newly discovered viruses like SARS-CoV-2.

scholarly journals Immunomodulators for Curtailing COVID-19: a Positive Approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3-s) ◽  
pp. 286-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shabir Ahmad Bhat ◽  
Shameem Ahmad Rather ◽  
Arsheed Iqbal ◽  
Haider Ali Qureshi ◽  
Naquibul Islam
Keyword(s):  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Viral Infections ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
The Body ◽  
World Health ◽  
The People ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Past Experiences

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is highly infectious, spreading swiftly from man to man which has not been previously recognized in humans. World Health Organization (WHO) on February 11, 2020 named the infection as COVID-19 as an acronym for ‘coronavirus disease-2019’ and on March 11, 2020 declared the outbreak as pandemic. It affects all the people without discrimination, however, older, immune compromised are more susceptible. The virus chiefly spread through droplet infection from infected person to healthy one by coughing, sneezing or with infected hands when touched to eyes, nose or mouth. Symptoms of the infection range from mild to severe ones. In severe cases (approx. 14% of cases) fever typically of high grade (104oF), breathlessness, pneumonia and severe acute respiratory syndrome may appear. So far no specific treatment or vaccine for novel coronavirus-2019 is there. From the past and recent past experiences we have learnt that herbal medicines have proven beneficial against various dreadful viral infections. Assessment of immune enhancing herbs in this paper may definitely be helpful for the body to fight COVID-19 infection. Keywords:   Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2, COVID-19, Pneumonia, Immune, Herbs

scholarly journals Introduction to the Special Issue on "The World Health Organization Choosing Interventions That Are Cost-Effective (WHO-CHOICE) Update"

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Y. Bertram ◽  
Tessa Tan Torres Edejer
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Cost Effectiveness ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Health Benefit ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
World Health ◽  
Health Coverage ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Over Time

The WHO-CHOICE (World Health Organization CHOosing Interventions that are Cost-Effective) approach is unique in the global health landscape, as it takes a "generalized" approach to cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) that can be seen as a quantitative assessment of current and future efficiency within a health system. CEA is a critical contribution to the process of priority setting and decision-making in healthcare, contributing to deliberative dialogue processes to select services to be funded. WHO-CHOICE provides regional level estimates of cost-effectiveness, along with tools to support country level analyses. This series provides an update to the methodological approach used in WHO-CHOICE and presents updated cost-effectiveness estimates for 479 interventions. Five papers are presented, the first focusing on methodological updates, followed by three results papers on maternal, newborn and child health; HIV, tuberculosis and malaria; and non-communicable diseases and mental health. The final paper presents a set of example universal health coverage (UHC) benefit packages selected through only a value for money lens, showing that all disease areas have interventions which can fall on the efficiency frontier. Critical for all countries is institutionalizing decision-making processes. A UHC benefit package should not be static, as the countries needs and ability to pay change over time. Decisions will need to be continually revised and new interventions added to health benefit packages. This is a vital component of progressive realization, as the package is expanded over time. Developing an institutionalized process ensures this can be done consistently, fairly, and transparently, to ensure an equitable path to UHC.

scholarly journals New Approaches and Repurposed Antiviral Drugs for the Treatment of the SARS-CoV-2 Infection

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 503
Author(s):  
Bauso Luana Vittoria ◽  
Chiara Imbesi ◽  
Gasparo Irene ◽  
Gabriella Calì ◽  
Alessandra Bitto
Keyword(s):  
Monoclonal Antibodies ◽  
Viral Infections ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
Antiviral Drugs ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
World Health ◽  
Therapeutic Approaches ◽  
Small Molecule Drugs ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Key Questions

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The outbreak of this coronavirus was first identified in Wuhan (Hubei, China) in December 2019, and it was declared as pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020. Today, several vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 have been approved, and some neutralizing monoclonal antibodies are being tested as therapeutic approaches for COVID-19 but, one of the key questions is whether both vaccines and monoclonal antibodies could be effective against infections by new SARS-CoV-2 variants. Nevertheless, there are currently more than 1000 ongoing clinical trials focusing on the use and effectiveness of antiviral drugs as a possible therapeutic treatment. Among the classes of antiviral drugs are included 3CL protein inhibitors, RNA synthesis inhibitors and other small molecule drugs which target the ability of SARS-COV-2 to interact with host cells. Considering the need to find specific treatment to prevent the emergent outbreak, the aim of this review is to explain how some repurposed antiviral drugs, indicated for the treatment of other viral infections, could be potential candidates for the treatment of COVID-19.

scholarly journals Potential of CRISPR/Cas13 System in Treatment and Diagnosis of COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Khodavirdipour ◽  
Motahareh Piri ◽  
Sarvin Jabbari ◽  
Mohammad Khalaj-kondori
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Tool ◽  
Human Kidney ◽  
World Health ◽  
Rapid Review ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Rapid Action ◽  
Antiparasitic Drug ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Treatment And Diagnosis

AbstractThe novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) belongs to coronaviridae families, like sarbecovirus (SARS), and causes pyrexia, pertussis, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in major. Started from Wuhan, China now forced the World Health Organization (WHO) to call it a pandemic. These dreadful figures elevate the need for rapid action for a rapid diagnostic tool, an efficacious therapy, or vaccine for such widespread disease. Here we reviewed all the latest research and trials including conventional antiviral medicines that have a narrow and finite effect on COVID-19. Recently, some advances have been made by a nucleotide/nucleoside analogues (NUC) inhibitor (remdesivir), ivermectin (antiparasitic drug), and convalescent plasma, the later one has more recently been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In addition, a clinical-grade soluble human angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE2), named hrsACE2, was able to inhibit the infection of human blood vessel organoids, as well as the human kidney organoids, by the virus. As of now, innovative therapeutics based on the CRISPR/Cas13d might overcome the challenge of COVID-19 either as a treatment option or precise and rapid diagnostic tool due to its rapid and precise nature. In this updated comprehensive rapid review, we try to cover all recent findings in terms of genomics, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.

scholarly journals Improving the Role and Contribution of Pharmacokinetic Analyses in Antimalarial Drug Clinical Trials

2014 ◽  
Vol 58 (10) ◽  
pp. 5643-5649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Kay ◽  
Eva Maria Hodel ◽  
Ian M. Hastings
Keyword(s):  
Antimalarial Drug ◽  
Theoretical Data ◽  
Drug Efficacy ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
World Health ◽  
Efficacy Trials ◽  
Drug Concentrations ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Study Designs

ABSTRACTIt is now World Health Organization (WHO) policy that drug concentrations on day 7 be measured as part of routine assessment in antimalarial drug efficacy trials. The rationale is that this single pharmacological measure serves as a simple and practical predictor of treatment outcome for antimalarial drugs with long half-lives. Herein we review theoretical data and field studies and conclude that the day 7 drug concentration (d7c) actually appears to be a poor predictor of therapeutic outcome. This poor predictive capability combined with the fact that many routine antimalarial trials will have few or no failures means that there appears to be little justification for this WHO recommendation. Pharmacological studies have a huge potential to improve antimalarial dosing, and we propose study designs that use more-focused, sophisticated, and cost-effective ways of generating these data than the mass collection of single d7c concentrations.

scholarly journals An IoT Architecture for Assessing Road Safety in Smart Cities

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abd-Elhamid M. Taha
Keyword(s):  
Road Safety ◽  
Markov Models ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Dynamic Assessment ◽  
Route Planning ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
World Health ◽  
Road Users ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Impact

The Safe System (SS) approach to road safety emphasizes safety-by-design through ensuring safe vehicles, road networks, and road users. With a strong motivation from the World Health Organization (WHO), this approach is increasingly adopted worldwide. Considerations in SS, however, are made for the medium-to-long term. Our interest in this work is to complement the approach with a short-to-medium term dynamic assessment of road safety. Toward this end, we introduce a novel, cost-effective Internet of Things (IoT) architecture that facilitates the realization of a robust and dynamic computational core in assessing the safety of a road network and its elements. In doing so, we introduce a new, meaningful, and scalable metric for assessing road safety. We also showcase the use of machine learning in the design of the metric computation core through a novel application of Hidden Markov Models (HMMs). Finally, the impact of the proposed architecture is demonstrated through an application to safety-based route planning.

scholarly journals Motion – Screening and Surveillance of Barrett’s Epithelium Is Practical and Cost Effective: Arguments against the Motion

2002 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 541-545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naoki Chiba
Keyword(s):  
Cost Effective ◽  
World Health ◽  
Endoscopic Screening ◽  
Effective Screening ◽  
Screening And Surveillance ◽  
Screening Protocol ◽  
Surveillance Programs ◽  
Prolongation Of Life ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Very High

The issue of whether to screen individuals for Barrett’s esophagus (BE) to prevent esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) is highly controversial. Important considerations are that BE is not highly prevalent in the general population and that not many patients with BE develop or die from EAC. Studies that suggest an improved prognosis from surveillance programs are susceptible to lead-time bias. Most of the principles for effective screening, as outlined by the World Health Organization, are not met by endoscopic screening and surveillance protocols. The diagnosis of BE (and dysplasia) is often unclear. Most patients with BE are not identified by screening, and few deaths would be prevented by surveillance. A decision analysis found that the most cost effective screening protocol would be every five years, but the costs associated with prolongation of life are very high, even if a group at high risk for EAC could be identified.

scholarly journals Novel Antiviral Activities of Obatoclax, Emetine, Niclosamide, Brequinar, and Homoharringtonine

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petter I. Andersen ◽  
Klara Krpina ◽  
Aleksandr Ianevski ◽  
Nastassia Shtaida ◽  
Eunji Jo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Influenza A ◽  
Rift Valley Fever Virus ◽  
Antiviral Agents ◽  
Viral Disease ◽  
World Health ◽  
Valley Fever ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Hiv 1

Viruses are the major causes of acute and chronic infectious diseases in the world. According to the World Health Organization, there is an urgent need for better control of viral diseases. Re-purposing existing antiviral agents from one viral disease to another could play a pivotal role in this process. Here we identified novel activities of obatoclax and emetine against herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1), echovirus 1 (EV1), human metapneumovirus (HMPV) and Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) in cell cultures. Moreover, we demonstrated novel activities of emetine against influenza A virus (FluAV), niclosamide against HSV-2, brequinar against HIV-1, and homoharringtonine against EV1. Our findings may expand the spectrum of indications of these safe-in-man agents and reinforce the arsenal of available antiviral therapeutics pending the results of further in vivo tests.

Probiotics in Dental Caries Prevention

2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Padmapriya Ramanujam ◽  
Saravanan Poorni ◽  
Manali Ramakrishnan Srinivasan ◽  
Nivedhitha Malli Sureshbabu
Keyword(s):  
Dental Caries ◽  
Dental Health ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Health Benefit ◽  
Potential Method ◽  
Caries Prevention ◽  
World Health ◽  
Oral Diseases ◽  
Chewing Gums ◽  
Health Organization

The prevalence of oral diseases is increasing and is becoming a major concern in the society. Treatment without prevention is simply unsustainable. One such preventable disease is dental caries. Several strategies for caries prevention have been developed over the years. Bacteriotherapy is one potential method. With better understanding on the importance of a well balanced oral microbial environment for maintaining good dental health, probiotics has gained great momentum in dentistry. The World Health Organization along with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations defined probiotics as “Live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host”. Several probiotic strains have been identified for caries prevention through various experimental studies. However, identifying the right vehicle for administration of probiotics on everyday basis is the need of the hour. Toothpastes, mouthrinses, powders, tablets, lozenges, chewing gums are some probiotic vehicles that have been studied. This paper would throw light on the microbial strains, mechanism of action, forms and future for probiotics in caries prevention.

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