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COVID Risks Resurgence of a Tropical Disease

On By ModernMedia

In an article on The Conversation, Raphael Taiwo Aruleba, a PhD in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, writes that COVID is causing a dangerous setback for the battle against preventable diseases, potentially leading to the resurgence of a particular tropical disease.

One of these is the tropical disease leishmaniasis, which is caused by a parasite transmitted by sandflies in environments with open sewage. It can cause disability, social stigma and death.

Aruleba believes that COVID has reversed the progress against  leishmaniasis by ten years. Prevention is focused on controlling the insect disease vector with surveillance, insecticides and nets. However, COVID has made it difficult for researchers to assess areas and for routine spraying to be done, and resources have been diverted to fight COVID. Only 0.6% of the WHO’s research budget is for leishmaniasis.

The Leishmania parasite and SARS-CoV-2 are also potentially co-infectious, exacerbating one another. Aruleba concludes that other diseases should not be neglected in the fight against COVID.

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SA Currently Without Access to Pfizer/BioNTech’s “90% Effective” Vaccine

On By ModernMedia

Despite taking part in a recent successful vaccine trial, South Africa does not have guaranteed access to it. South Africa missed out on the first deadline to take part in the WHO-backed COVAX scheme, but is currently understood to be negotiating with COVAX and manufacturers.

Early results from the Pfizer/BioNTech two-dose vaccine’s trial showed a 90% reduction in symptomatic COVID cases over placebo, and caused a media sensation. 800 South African participants are to take part in the trial.

“This is a massive development. It’s very exciting, and the interim results are very promising. It leaves me with lots of hope as this could pave the way for a vaccine to be developed before the end of the year,” said Dr Essak Mitha, the head of the South African arm of the clinical trial who is a clinical trial specialist and owner of Newtown Clinical Research in Johannesburg.

The news was met with some caution; the decision to announce the news via a company press release instead of a peer reviewed article was controversial.

The BioNTech vaccine is based around messenger RNA (mRNA). The mRNA in the vaccine carries viral proteins, and once introduced into the body’s cells, instructs them to make copies of viral proteins. One such protein coded for is the infamous “spike” protein that SARS-CoV-2 uses to latch onto cells, and which contributes to its high infectivity. 

Source: AllAfrica

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Exenatide and Dapagliflozin Outlast Metformin for Diabetes Treatment

On By ModernMedia

An AstraZeneca-funded trial called DURATION-8 has shown a viable alternative for metformin with a combination of two medications, exenatide and dapagliflozin.

The standard treatment for type 2 diabetes is metformin, but for many patients it loses its effectiveness over time. To get around this, a combination of exenatide (a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist) and dapagliflozin (sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor) was trialled.

Originally a 28 week trial, DURATION-8 was extended to 52 weeks on the strength of its initial results.

“Many therapies in diabetes management are short-lived, which is why it is useful to test for long-term effect,” says first author Dr Serge Jabbour, director of the division of endocrinology and the Diabetes Center at Thomas Jefferson University.

The trial, with 695 participants, compared the two medications, either individually with a placebo or in combination. The combination group saw the greatest drop in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels. This was accompanied by drops in systolic blood pressure and body weight.

The authors note the need for a follow-on study to determine if there were protective effects against cardiovascular and renal events with the combination.

Source: Medical News Today

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Discovery of New Genetic Targets for Endometriosis Treatment

On By ModernMedia

Endometriosis can be a debilitatingly painful disease which can lead to infertility, and has few treatment options for more severe forms – but new treatment options are unfolding as genetic targets for drugs are discovered.

Jake Reske, a graduate student in the MSU Genetics and Genome Sciences Program, explains: “There haven’t been many successful nonhormonal therapies for this form of endometriosis that have made it to the bedside yet.”

Some severe forms of endometriosis involve a gene called ARID1A. A mutation in this gene triggers “super-enhancer” DNA which in turn allows cells to run rampant and set up outside the uterus, causing great pelvic pain.

The researchers aim to implement a novel treatment, “epigenetic therapy”, to prevent the cells from running rampant. 

“It can seriously impact women’s quality of life and their ability to have a family and work,” said study supervisor Ronald Chandler, an assistant professor of obstetrics, gynaecology and reproductive biology. “It’s not easy to treat, and it can become resistant to hormone therapy. The most clinically impactful thing we found is that targeting super-enhancers might be a new treatment for this deeply invasive form of the disease.”

The compound they used targeted protein called P300, which suppressed the super-enhancers and relieving the effects of the  ARID1A mutation. This could also possibly be applied to other forms of endometriosis. The researchers plan to look for more compounds that can also target the P300 protein.  

Source: News-Medical.Net

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Aspen Shifts to SA Production of COVID Vaccines

On By ModernMedia

Aspen Pharmacare has secured a deal to manufacture the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine, in an effort to adapt to the pharmaceutical market. 

Elective surgeries being deferred due to the pandemic has reduced demand for certain medications, and the company withheld dividends for the second year running in September. However, the company does produce some medications which are currently in demand due to COVID.

Dexamethasone, one of the medications Aspen has the rights to produce, is a key treatment for COVID patients, which according to a study done in June, reduces mortality by 30%. Colchicine is another medication used to treat COVID, normally used for gout.

Tavros Nicolaou, a senior Aspen executive, said in an interview: “In February, we looked at how we best respond to this looming disaster facing us and we split it into three buckets — what we can do at a therapeutic level, what can we do at a vaccine level and what can we do to generally help society.” This positioned them “globally as a company that had a multifaceted response to this pandemic.”

The pharmaceuticals company has invested R3 billion in a Port Elizabeth plant to manufacture the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine at a rate of 300 million per year, which will help supply the rest of Africa. The need for local COVID vaccines may come sooner rather than later.

Despite peaking in July, the country’s COVID pandemic is not yet over with at least two provinces seeing increases in cases again, while on the horizon a second surge is expected in January.

Source: Moneyweb

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HIV Prophylactic Injection 9 Times More Effective than Oral Administration

On By ModernMedia

According to The Citizen, researchers have reported that pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in the form of an injection once every eight weeks was 9 times more effective than a daily oral pill in preventing HIV contraction. The daily pill is currently the standard PrEP available to the public.

Dr Sinead Delany-Moretlwe, director of research at the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute (Wits RHI), said, “We know that adherence to a daily pill continues to be challenging, and an effective injectable product such as a long-acting CAB [cabotegravir injection] is a very important additional HIV prevention option for them. We are grateful to the women who volunteered for this study and the research staff, as this study would not have been possible without their commitment to HIV prevention.”

The HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) took place over several years, measuring the effectiveness of PrEP in preventing the contraction of HIV.  3223 cisgendered women with an average age of 26 were enrolled in the study in South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda and Zimbabwe. The trial found that of 38 women who contracted HIV, four were receiving the injection while the remainder were using the oral pill.

Executive director of Wits RHI, Professor Helen Rees, said, “These results are a milestone for prevention of HIV among women at risk worldwide and especially for women in sub-Saharan Africa. If we are to turn the tide on the HIV epidemic, we will need prevention options that work for women in sub-Saharan Africa. These findings provide great hope and motivation for additional studies to show safety and acceptability in adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women.”

The game-changing medication will not be available to the public until further testing is completed. 

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Benefits of Cutting Cholesterol for Elderly Increase with Age

On By ModernMedia

A pair of new studies in The Lancet found that the effects of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) lowering agents reduced the number of serious cardiovascular events in geriatric patients.

Taking data on over 90 000 individuals in Denmark, an observational study followed patients for 7.7 years, with LDL cholesterol levels as well as first heart attacks or strokes recorded.

The researchers found that people aged 70-100 without a previous cardiovascular event benefited more from taking cholesterol-lowering medications in terms of preventable cardiovascular events.

People aged 80-100 had the highest incidence of heart attacks, at 8.5 per 1000 person-years.

Børge Nordestgaard, joint author of the first study, of the Copenhagen University Hospital, said, “Our study provides further evidence for the cumulative burden of LDL cholesterol over a person’s lifetime and the progressive increase in risk for heart attack and cardiovascular disease with age. With the proportion of people living beyond 70 years of age worldwide rapidly increasing, these data point to the huge potential for primary prevention strategies aimed at lowering LDL cholesterol levels to reduce the population burden of heart disease. The findings should guide decision making about whether older individuals will benefit from statin therapy.”

A separate review and meta-analysis revealed that cholesterol-lowering therapies are as effective as preventing heart attacks in older patients as they are in younger ones. Analysing data from 29 randomised controlled trials, they found that for every reduction of 1mmol/L of HDL cholesterol, the relative risk of major cardiovascular events in patients over 75 years was reduced by 26%. For patients under 75 years, the reduction was 15% per 1mmol/L of HDL-cholesterol.

Source: HCP Live

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Exoskeleton Technology Evaluated for Nursing Care

On By ModernMedia

A new article from the journal Ergonomics in Design reported on research by Tampere University into how exoskeleton technology can help reduce the physical burden of nurses.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow Tuuli Turja said, “This message from the field led us to investigate what conditions exoskeletons would need to meet in order to reform nursing. Currently, exoskeletons are mainly used in manufacturing and logistics. Isn’t it high time to introduce exoskeletons in female-dominated sectors, where musculoskeletal disorders are rampant?” she continues. “However, in our study, a very different type of mobile and light exoskeleton was worn by nurses in patient care.”

Two studies evaluated the Laevo Exoskeleton, which is a “passive” device designed to distribute loads across the body via interconnected pads on the back, chest and thighs. According to the manufacturer, it is designed to reduce lower back strain by 40 to 50%. For the first study, pairs of nurses helped elderly patients to wheelchairs from their hospital beds, with and without use of the exoskeleton. In the second study, seven nurses wore the exoskeleton in a real care environment.

The results show that although the nurses were amenable to their use, exoskeletons need specific designs when it comes to the challenges of patient care, such as comfort, interactive features and safety to help them through hectic workloads.

Source: Science Daily

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New Plasma Jet Sterilises Surfaces but Doesn’t Get Hot

On By ModernMedia

Researchers at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have developed a novel way to sterilise surfaces – using a jet of glowing plasma.

The team created a tool which emits plasma, generated from an electric arc and a supply of harmless argon, but only at room temperature. However, their study, testing the plasma jet on a series of different materials, has shown that it can sterilise surfaces of the COVID virus within 30 seconds

Unlike other sterilisation solutions, such as chemicals or UV light, the plasma is completely harmless, with the only inputs being electricity and air – argon makes up 1% of the air we breathe. It was even able to sterilise surfaces such as cardboard, which would be difficult to sterilise with traditional chemicals without slightly damaging it.  

A relatively new technology, “cold” plasma has been used in a variety of medical applications, including cancer surgery, dentistry and wound healing.

Author Richard E. Wirz said the results show that plasma has a great role to play in potentially breaking the transmission of COVID/

“This is only the beginning. We are very confident and have very high expectations for plasma in future work. In the future, a lot of answers for the scientific community will come from plasma,” said Wirz.

Source: Phys.org

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COVID Vaccines May Lose Potency as Virus Evolves

On By ModernMedia

Looking to a time beyond the development of COVID vaccines, researchers are attempting to determine how long the SARS-CoV-2 virus will take to develop resistance to those vaccines.

David Kennedy, assistant professor of biology at Pennsylvania State University said, “A COVID-19 vaccine is urgently needed to save lives and help society return to its pre-pandemic normal,” said David Kennedy, assistant professor of biology. “As we have seen with other diseases, such as pneumonia, the evolution of resistance can quickly render vaccines ineffective. By learning from these previous challenges and by implementing this knowledge during vaccine design, we may be able to maximise the long-term impact of COVID-19 vaccines.”

The researchers recommend that vaccines be designed to create multiple immune responses, making it harder for the vaccine to survive the immune system’s attack, much the way multiple antibiotics are used to suppress bacterial infections, by forcing the virus to have multiple mutations to survive.

Strongly suppressing virus transmission through the host is key to minimising the amount of mutation and thereby the lifespan of the vaccine’s  effectiveness.

“According to the World Health Organization, at least 198 COVID-19 vaccines are in the development pipeline, with 44 currently undergoing clinical evaluation,” said Kennedy. “We suggest that the risk of resistance be used to prioritise investment among otherwise similarly promising vaccine candidates.”

Source: SciTech Daily