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During the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic, there have been concerns about the impact of vaccines on people's fertility, including the fertility of those who are currently preparing for pregnancy and those who might become pregnant in future. However, there is still a lack of research on the effect of the COVID-19 vaccine on male fertility, and it is not surprising that couples and donors have concerns regarding vaccination. In this study, a retrospective cohort study was conducted to examine semen quality before and after receipt of the inactivated COVID-19 vaccine. There were no statistically significant changes in semen parameters (volume, sperm concentration, progressive motility, and total progressive motile count) after two doses of vaccine (all P0.05). In summary, our study updates the most recent studies on the effects of the COVID-19 vaccine on male fertility, and the information from this study could be used to guide fertility recommendations for assisted reproductive technology (ART) patients and donors.

Lycorine potently inhibits flaviviruses in cell culture. At 1.2-microM concentration, lycorine reduced viral titers of West Nile (WNV), dengue, and yellow fever viruses by 10(2)- to 10(4)-fold. However, the compound did not inhibit an alphavirus (Western equine encephalitis virus) or a rhabdovirus (vesicular stomatitis virus), indicating a selective antiviral spectrum. The compound exerts its antiviral activity mainly through suppression of viral RNA replication. A Val--Met substitution at the 9th amino acid position of the viral 2K peptide (spanning the endoplasmic reticulum membrane between NS4A and NS4B proteins) confers WNV resistance to lycorine, through enhancement of viral RNA replication. Initial chemistry synthesis demonstrated that modifications of the two hydroxyl groups of lycorine can increase the compound's potency, while reducing its cytotoxicity. Taken together, the results have established lycorine as a flavivirus inhibitor for antiviral development. The lycorine-resistance results demonstrate a direct role of the 2K peptide in flavivirus RNA synthesis.

Im Tagesreport werden täglich aktuelle Kennzahlen aus dem DIVI-Intensivregister (www.intensivregister.de) berichtet. Es werden die aktuell gemeldeten Anzahlen der COVID-19 Intensivfälle sowie die gemeldeten intensivmedizinischen Behandlungskapazitäten angezeigt. Der Tagesreport liefert dabei ausschließlich einen Blick auf die Daten gemäß dem Stand des betrachteten Tages. Die Daten sind im situationsbedingten Kontext aufbereitet, damit sind verschiedene Tagesreports u.U. nicht direkt miteinander vergleichbar. Die aktuellsten Meldungen werden im gewählten Betrachtungszeitfenster über alle Meldebereiche und Standorte aufsummiert. Weitere Informationen sind zu finden unter https://www.intensivregister.de/#/faq

Abstract The Covid-19 crisis has laid bare weaknesses in the capacity of the European Union (EU) to act as a global health player. Most of those challenges have existed prior to the pandemic and are linked to a limited implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - the global agenda acknowledging interconnections between different policy fields. Despite the EU's commitment to implement the Agenda 2030 in its internal and external policies, there is a lack of visibility and sufficient reference to the SDGs on a strategic level as well as in the EU's actions and partnerships in global health. The Union has shown during the Covid-19 pandemic that it is a relevant global health actor; however, there seems to be a lack of strategic visions and resources. The poster aims to illustrate on the one hand the weaknesses and challenges of the EU global health policies in times of Covid-19 and beyond. On the other hand, it identifies advantages of the EU in the field of global health and explores future pathways. Applying a mixed-method approach I did a review of academic and grey literature; content analysis of official EU documents and statements, expert interviews and gathered insights from events such as policy dialogues. Preliminary results indicate that the EU has a strong focus on infectious disease control in its external health policies and hereby neglects the health system dimension and interlinkages with other foreign policies such as trade. Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of resilient health systems in a crisis and the interlinkages between different policies for an effective response. To pursue a genuine health-in-all-policies approach prioritising health system strengthening within a updated strategic roadmap is necessary. Moreover, efforts to ensure an equitable distribution of vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics should be pushed through the development and implementation of respective criteria. Key messages The focus of the EU in global health should shift from a narrow health security lens towards health system strengthening including disease control. The EU should prioritize and implement the health-in-all-policies approach in its global health policies through an ambitious roadmap.

Voclosporin (Lupkynis

AbstractBackgroundAn exploratory household transmission study was nested in SPECTRA, the phase 2/3 efficacy study of the adjuvanted recombinant protein-based COVID-19 vaccine SCB-2019. We compared the occurrence of confirmed COVID-19 infections between households and household contacts of infected SPECTRA placebo or SCB-2019 recipients.MethodsSPECTRA participants at 8 study sites in the Philippines who developed real-time reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR)–confirmed COVID-19 were contacted by a study team blinded to assignment of index cases to vaccine or placebo groups to enroll in this household transmission study. Enrolled households and household contacts were monitored for 3 weeks using rRT-PCR and anti–SARS-CoV-2 N-antigen IgG/IgM testing to detect new COVID-19 infections.ResultsOne hundred fifty-four eligible COVID-19 index cases (51 vaccinees, 103 placebo) were included. The secondary attack rate per household for symptomatic COVID-19 infection was 0.76% (90% CI: .15–3.90%) if the index case was an SCB-2019 vaccinee compared with 5.88% (90% CI: 3.20–10.8%) for placebo index cases, a relative risk reduction (RRR) of 79% (90% CI: −28% to 97%). The RRR of symptomatic COVID-19 per household member was similar: 84% (90% CI: 28–97%). The impact on attack rates in household members if index cases were symptomatic (n = 130; RRR = 80%; 90% CI: 7–96%) or asymptomatic (n = 24; RRR = 100%; 90% CI: −76% to 100%) was measurable but the low numbers undermine the clinical significance.ConclusionsIn this prospective household contact study vaccination with SCB-2019 reduced SARS-CoV-2 transmission compared with placebo in households and in household members independently of whether or not index cases were symptomatic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a massive global crisis. The adverse impacts on Asian women, including Hong Kong Chinese women, have been considerable. The pressure on Hong Kong women is immense due to cultural, social, familial, and personal responsibilities. This study aims to illustrate the health impacts and life challenges for Hong Kong Chinese Women during the pandemic. An interpretive phenomenological approach with purposive sampling was adopted. Semi-structured, face-to-face, in-depth interviews were conducted from August 2020 to January 2021. Twenty-five women participated in the interviews, lasting an average of 48 min. The transcribed interviews were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The core theme identified was “Perceived family caregiving as paramount self-obligation in times of the pandemic”, in the context of the role of daughter, wife, or mother (or a combination). Three interconnected themes have been identified in individual, relational, and external contexts: deterioration of personal health, unfavorable to family relationships, and adaptation to social challenges. Eight subthemes have emerged related to health impacts and life challenges. The pandemic has increased women’s perception of their caregiver roles in the family, but it has diminished their quality of life. The promotion of strategies and activities that could enhance women’s physical, psychological, emotional and social quality of life is recommended.

Progress in combatting zoonoses that emerge from wildlife is often constrained by limited knowledge of the biology of pathogens within reservoir hosts. We focus on the host-pathogen dynamics of four emerging viruses associated with bats: Hendra, Nipah, Ebola, and Marburg viruses. Spillover of bat infections to humans and domestic animals often coincides with pulses of viral excretion within bat populations, but the mechanisms driving such pulses are unclear. Three hypotheses dominate current research on these emerging bat infections. First, pulses of viral excretion could reflect seasonal epidemic cycles driven by natural variations in population densities and contact rates among hosts. If lifelong immunity follows recovery, viruses may disappear locally but persist globally through migration; in either case, new outbreaks occur once births replenish the susceptible pool. Second, epidemic cycles could be the result of waning immunity within bats, allowing local circulation of viruses through oscillating herd immunity. Third, pulses could be generated by episodic shedding from persistently infected bats through a combination of physiological and ecological factors. The three scenarios can yield similar patterns in epidemiological surveys, but strategies to predict or manage spillover risk resulting from each scenario will be different. We outline an agenda for research on viruses emerging from bats that would allow for differentiation among the scenarios and inform development of evidence-based interventions to limit threats to human and animal health. These concepts and methods are applicable to a wide range of pathogens that affect humans, domestic animals, and wildlife.