Potential Therapeutics Pathways in Solving the Challenges of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Therapeutic Drugs ◽

The World ◽

Health Organization ◽

Beijing Institute ◽

Tract Infections

Millions of lives throughout the globe are under threat due to the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 causes severe respiratory tract infections. In most countries COVID-19 Infections and deaths continue to soar despite the various measures put in place by the World Health Organization. These measures include limited mobility through lock down and banning international travelers. Furthermore, social distancing, wearing masks, frequent hand washing with soap and sanitizing were undertaken to slow down the rate of the virus spread. Only few countries like South Korea have been able to contain the virus to date. Our only hope is in biotechnology which have been used to develop diagnostic kits and more recently approved vaccines: vaccines by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna; AstraZeneca and Oxford University vaccine; Sputnik V vaccine; Sinopharm and the Beijing Institute of Biological Products vaccine. However, the vaccines are yet to reach the majority of the world population. Hence, there is need for concerted effort among governments and non-governmental organizations in all nations to develop the necessary infrastructures to step up vaccine production, and procurement as well as vaccination programmes. There is need for continued effort in biotechnology, to develop COVID-19 therapeutic drugs.

International Society Confronts Ebola

10.1093/oso/9780198813057.003.0007 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Jeremy Youde

Keyword(s):

Global Health ◽

World Health Organization ◽

International Society ◽

International Community ◽

World Health ◽

Easy Access ◽

The World ◽

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa exemplifies both the successes and failures of global health governance as a secondary institution within international society. On the one hand, the international community recognized the need to respond to the Ebola outbreak, contributing large sums of money and mobilizing resources on a scale never before seen. On the other hand, the World Health Organization dithered in its response, the international community did not have quick and easy access to needed funding and personnel, and few states paid attention to the warnings coming from various non-governmental organizations that were providing on-the-ground medical services. This chapter critically analyses how various global health actors responded to the Ebola outbreak, discusses the shortcomings of that response, and looks at the various proposals to reform the World Health Organization and other bodies following their mishandling of the situation.

World Health Organization

International Organization ◽

10.1017/s0020818300011711 ◽

1962 ◽

Vol 16 (4) ◽

pp. 879-880 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Keyword(s):

World Health Organization ◽

World Health ◽

Executive Board ◽

Standing Committee ◽

The World ◽

Health Organization ◽

New Applications

The Executive Board of the World Health Organization (WHO) held its 29th session in Geneva on January 15–26, 1962, under the chairmanship of Dr. A. O. Abu Shumma. The Standing Committee on Administration and Finance held eight meetings. The Standing Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations held two meetings and considered new applications from organizations for official membership, as well as carrying out a quadrennial review of the organizations in official relationship with WHO. The Standing Committee on Headquarters Accommodations also met.

Actions of the World Health Organizations (WHO) and the United Nations (UN) in Disasters

Prehospital and Disaster Medicine ◽

10.1017/s1049023x00044848 ◽

1985 ◽

Vol 1 (S1) ◽

pp. 296-299

Author(s):

S. William A. Gunn

Keyword(s):

United Nations ◽

Disaster Relief ◽

World Health ◽

The World ◽

The United Nations ◽

Health Organization ◽

Bilateral Donor

In essence, the United Nations Organization was born out of disaster to avert disaster. Be they the work of nature or of man, catastrophic emergencies are not rare occurrences and all studies indicate that they are increasing in frequency and severity.Within the international community, the UN and its component organizations is only one of the three principal partners in disaster relief. The other are the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) – including the Voluntary Agencies (VOLAGS) – and the bilateral donor countries. Collaboration among these sectors is vital if international action is to be effective.This article deals with the UN System only, and in particular with the role of the World Health Organization (WHO) in disaster relief and preparedness.

World Health Organization

International Organization ◽

10.1017/s0020818300015514 ◽

1951 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 387-389

Keyword(s):

Nursing Care ◽

World Health ◽

Executive Board ◽

Regional Office ◽

Rules Of Procedure ◽

Sixth Session ◽

The Subject ◽

During the sixth session of the Executive Board in Geneva from June 1 to June 9, 1950, it was reported that some difficulties had been encountered in the establishment of a regional office for Europe. Six member states had not replied to the request sent them on the subject, seven had expressed reservations, six had sent in negative replies, and only eight had indicated their approval. It was also proposed that rules of procedure of the Assembly be changed to permit the participation in discussions of representatives of the Executive Board in either plenary or committee meetings. During the biennial revision of the list of non-governmental organizations with which WHO maintained official relations, a total of eighteen were retained. The Executive Board also agreed that, while WHO was not an organization for sending supplies to governments, it was nonetheless true that supplies were occasionally indispensable to enable a government to carry out a specific program. A total of $100,000 had been thus distributed to Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Finland, India, Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan, Monaco, Portugal, Thailand and Yugoslavia for the control of malaria and leprosy, the improvement of nursing care and similar activities.

Iodization of table salt and attitudes and habits in relation to the use of salt in general population

Srpski arhiv za celokupno lekarstvo ◽

10.2298/sarh1004225s ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 138 (3-4) ◽

pp. 225-229

Author(s):

Gorica Sbutega-Milosevic ◽

Zorica Djordjevic ◽

Zoran Marmut ◽

Boban Mugosa

Keyword(s):

Rural Areas ◽

Iodine Content ◽

World Health ◽

Nutritional Deficiencies ◽

World Population ◽

Table Salt ◽

Salt Iodization ◽

The World ◽

Domestic Use ◽

Introduction. Combating nutritional deficiencies of micronutrients, such as iodine, represents a priority task of health care organizations. In 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO) published the publication: Global Prevalence of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD), according to which some 2,2 billion people live in areas poor in naturally occurring iodine. Approximately 13% of the world population suffer from goitre - one of the IDD. The recommended iodine content in table salt is 20-40 mg/kg, which should satisfy the daily iodine requirements of an adult. Objective. The authors sought to ascertain whether iodization of table salt in Montenegro was carried out in accordance with the existing legislature. An assessment was also carried out of the attitudes and habits of the population regarding the use of salt in nutrition and the level of awareness in relation to the relevance of table salt iodization. Methods. The research was carried out in 2004 and was sponsored by UNICEF. A sample of 594 homes from the municipalities of Bar and Podgorica was chosen: 354 homes from urban and 240 from rural areas. The participants completed a questionnaire related to the daily use and intake of salt, as well as their understanding of the relevance of table salt iodization. Iodine content was tested in 15 samples of table salt at production level, 170 samples at retail level and 126 samples taken from domestic use. Results. The analysis of table salt samples showed an optimal iodine level in 73.3% of samples from production, in 81.2% from retail, and in 73.0% from domestic use. A lower level of iodine was found in 8.8% retail samples and 15.1% samples from home use. A greater concentration of iodine was found in 26.7% production, 10.0% retail and 11.9% samples from domestic use. Conclusion. Although the application of the WHO programme has led to an improvement in iodization of table salt in Montenegro, both at production and retail levels, this still falls short of the standards recommended by WHO to combat IDD. The levels of iodine in table salt in domestic use also fail to comply with the WHO criteria for elimination of IDD.

The Central Role of Non-Structural Protein 1 (NS1) in Influenza Biology and Infection

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms21041511 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (4) ◽

pp. 1511 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Nícia Rosário-Ferreira ◽

António J. Preto ◽

Rita Melo ◽

Irina S. Moreira ◽

Rui M. M. Brito

Keyword(s):

Viral Disease ◽

Influenza Viruses ◽

World Health ◽

World Population ◽

Structural Protein ◽

Human Respiratory Tract ◽

Host Interactions ◽

The World ◽

Influenza (flu) is a contagious viral disease, which targets the human respiratory tract and spreads throughout the world each year. Every year, influenza infects around 10% of the world population and between 290,000 and 650,000 people die from it according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Influenza viruses belong to the Orthomyxoviridae family and have a negative sense eight-segment single-stranded RNA genome that encodes 11 different proteins. The only control over influenza seasonal epidemic outbreaks around the world are vaccines, annually updated according to viral strains in circulation, but, because of high rates of mutation and recurrent genetic assortment, new viral strains of influenza are constantly emerging, increasing the likelihood of pandemics. Vaccination effectiveness is limited, calling for new preventive and therapeutic approaches and a better understanding of the virus–host interactions. In particular, grasping the role of influenza non-structural protein 1 (NS1) and related known interactions in the host cell is pivotal to better understand the mechanisms of virus infection and replication, and thus propose more effective antiviral approaches. In this review, we assess the structure of NS1, its dynamics, and multiple functions and interactions, to highlight the central role of this protein in viral biology and its potential use as an effective therapeutic target to tackle seasonal and pandemic influenza.

Fighting Strategies Against the Novel Coronavirus Pandemic: Impact on Global Economy

Frontiers in Public Health ◽

10.3389/fpubh.2020.606129 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Bapi Gorain ◽

Hira Choudhury ◽

Nagashekhara Molugulu ◽

Rajani B. Athawale ◽

Prashant Kesharwani

Keyword(s):

Disease Transmission ◽

Global Economy ◽

World Health ◽

World Population ◽

Mortality And Morbidity ◽

Short Period ◽

The World ◽

Treatment Measures ◽

Novel Coronavirus ◽

Sudden outbreak of a new pathogen in numbers of pneumonic patients in Wuhan province during December 2019 has threatened the world population within a short period of its occurrence. This respiratory tract–isolated pathogen was initially named as novel coronavirus 2019 (nCoV-2019), but later termed as SARS-CoV-2. The rapid spreading of this infectious disease received the label of pandemic by the World Health Organization within 4 months of its occurrence, which still seeks continuous attention of the researchers to prevent the spread and for cure of the infected patients. The propagation of the disease has been recorded in 215 countries, with more than 25.5 million cases and a death toll of more than 0.85 million. Several measures are taken to control the disease transmission, and researchers are actively engaged in finding suitable therapeutics to effectively control the disease to minimize the mortality and morbidity rates. Several existing potential candidates were explored in the prevention and treatment of worsening condition of COVID-19 patients; however, none of the formulation has been approved for the treatment but used under medical supervision. In this article, a focus has been made to highlight on current epidemiology on the COVID-19 infection, clinical features, diagnosis, and transmission, with special emphasis on treatment measures of the disease at different stages of clinical research and the global economic influence due to this pandemic situation. Progress in the development on vaccine against COVID-19 has also been explored as important measures to immunize people. Moreover, this article is expected to provide information to the researchers, who are constantly combating in the management against this outbreak.

Nano COVID-19 Vaccines: the firsts RNA lipid nanoparticle vaccines being approved from history - Review

Research Society and Development ◽

10.33448/rsd-v9i12.11123 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (12) ◽

pp. e20191211123

Author(s):

Thyago José Arruda Pacheco ◽

Victor Carlos Mello da Silva ◽

Danielle Galdino de Souza

Keyword(s):

World Health ◽

World Population ◽

Phase 3 ◽

Vaccine Candidates ◽

The Third ◽

The World ◽

Proven Efficacy ◽

Pros And Cons ◽

Health Organization ◽

Collaborative Efforts

A new coronavirus, identified in Wuhan, China, has spread globally, infecting millions of people and causing significant morbidity and mortality. The pandemic state, declared by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020, transformed the world and made people adapt to social distance to control the spread of the virus. The race against time in search of therapeutic solutions has become essential, and nanotechnology may be able to make vaccines available in record time to stimulate the immunization of individuals. Since the beginning of 2020, scientists and companies are rapidly advancing to make vaccine candidates available at a different rate compared to other pandemics that have existed. This review briefly presents the pros and cons of the third generation vaccines, Moderna / NIAID and Pfizer - BioNTech, which are in phase 3 tests, based on lipid RNA nanoparticles. Great collaborative efforts are being invested so that soon the world population will receive doses of vaccines with proven efficacy and enable increased survival, since the pandemic has already caused many irreversible losses.

The Great Masquerader: Tuberculosis Presenting as Community-Acquired Pneumonia

Seminars in Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine ◽

10.1055/s-0040-1710583 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 41 (04) ◽

pp. 592-604

Author(s):

Keertan Dheda ◽

Edson Makambwa ◽

Aliasgar Esmail

Keyword(s):

Community Acquired Pneumonia ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

World Health ◽

Limited Data ◽

Common Cause ◽

The World ◽

Diagnostic Approaches ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Health Organization ◽

Tract Infections

AbstractAccording to World Health Organization estimates, tuberculosis (TB) and lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) are both among the top 10 global causes of death. TB and community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), if mortality estimates are combined, would rank as the third most common cause of death globally. It is estimated that each year there are approximately 10 million new cases of TB that are associated with approximately 1.2 million deaths, and almost 450 million new episodes of LRTI (synonymous with CAP) with approximately 4 million associated deaths. Globally, Streptococcus pneumoniae remains the most common cause of CAP. However, although well documented, it is not widely appreciated that in several parts of the world, including sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and South America, Mycobacterium tuberculosis is an important cause of CAP, if not the most common organism isolated in such settings. Thus, CAP due to M. tuberculosis is not uncommon in some parts of the world with up to a third of cases being attributable to M. tuberculosis. Consequently, TB remains an important clinical entity in the intensive care unit in these settings. Despite its frequency and importance, there are very limited data about TB CAP. In this review we discussed the epidemiology, immunopathogenesis, clinical presentation, diagnosis, management, prognosis, and prevention of TB CAP. The utility of newer diagnostic approaches is highlighted.

Opinion of the Polish Paediatric Dentistry Association (PTSD), Section of Paediatric Dentistry of the Polish Dental Association, Polish Branch of Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (ACFF) and the National Consultant in Paediatric Dentistry concerning preventive dental recommendations for patients with disabilities

Nowa Stomatologia ◽

10.25121/ns.2018.23.1.32 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 23 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Karolina Gerreth ◽

Dorota Olczak-Kowalczyk ◽

Maria Borysewicz-Lewicka

Keyword(s):

Dental Caries ◽

Dental Treatment ◽

Dental Health ◽

Paediatric Dentistry ◽

World Health ◽

World Population ◽

Treatment Needs ◽

The World ◽

The problem of treatment of patients with special health needs resulting from the presence of deficits in intellectual, motor or sensory functions, also in dentistry, has not been comprehensively solved. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 15% of the world population has some form of disability. Patients with disabilities are considered to have greater dental treatment needs in comparison to healthy individuals. High incidence and intensity of dental caries as well as frequent gum diseases are observed in this environment. Often the situation is related, among other, to the presence of systemic diseases and the treatment used, limitations in shaping proper dental health behaviors, insufficient knowledge of parents about oral health or barriers in access to dental care. The development of recommendations for parents/caregivers as well as medical staff is required to improve the health of these patients and quality of their life. The document contains information on the etiology and epidemiology of dental caries in patients with disabilities but also prophylactic recommendations for this population of patients and their parents/caregivers and dentists.