72 research outputs found
A Systematic Review on the Potency and How Safe Chloroquine is for the Treatment of COVID-19
No full textCoronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) is a global health emergency of serious health concern. However, there is no current medical treatment, although it is much needed for patient contracting the severe form of the disease. This systematic review was to explain the information regarding chloroquine for the treatment of COVID-19 via the data obtain from PubMed and other three trial Registries which were searched for review and the use of chloroquine in patients with COVID-19. Four articles were included (one narrative letter, one in-vitro study, one commentary and one editorial) and review on other 14 ongoing clinical trials in China. Chloroquine seems to have great potential in reducing the replication of SARS-CoV-2 (virus causing COVID-19) in vitro. There is high chance, pre-clinical evidence of effectiveness and information of safety from long-time clinical use for other indications to describe the clinical research on Chloroquine in patients with COVID-19. However, clinical description should either adhere to the Monitored Emergency Use of Unregistered Interventions (MEURI) framework or be ethically approved as a trial as stated by the World Health Organization. Safety data and data from high-quality clinical trials are urgently needed
COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN WEST AFRICA-REVIEW
No full textThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak which started in the Hubei province of China in 2019, has now spread to all continents, affecting 203 countries by May 2020. Successful efforts in containing the COVID-19 virus in Asia resulted in WHO declaring Europe as the epicenter of the disease on March 13. Whether warmer temperatures will slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS
COVID-19 Pandemics: Effects and Prevention
No full textA new class of corona virus, known as SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) has been found to be responsible for occurrence of this disease. As far as the history of human civilization is concerned there are instances of severe outbreaks of diseases caused by a number of viruses. According to the report of the World Health Organization (WHO as of June 5, 2020), the current pandemic of COVID-19 has affected 6,749,371 people, 3,277, 596 recovered and killed 394,527 people in 215 countries throughout the world. Till now there is no report of any clinically approved antiviral drugs or vaccines that are effective against COVID-19. It has rapidly spread around the world, posing enormous health, economic, environmental and social challenges to the entire human population. The coronavirus outbreak is severely disrupting the global economy. Almost all the nations are struggling to slow down the transmission of the disease by testing and treating patients, quarantining suspected persons through contact tracing, restricting large gatherings, maintaining complete or partial lock down etc. This paper describes the effects of COVID-19 on society and global environment, and the possible ways in which the disease can be prevented or controlled
The Change in Attitude of Nigerians towards COVID-19
No full textSince the discovery of COVID-19 in March 2020 in Nigeria different behavioural change has been observed amidst the citizens of the country towards the pandemic. At first, people were afraid of the pandemic and this was confirmed through their response to the measures given by the National Centre for Disease Control which include social distance, use of nose masks and sanitizers, curfew, and lockdown of crowded places. These measures have been effective in curbing the transmission of the disease in the country. In Nigeria, as at June 26th have 23,298 cases, 8,253 discharged cases and 554 deaths caused by COVID-19. Of recent, change in the attitude of people towards the pandemic has been observed as they no longer fear the impacts of the pandemic. People now go out without using their facemasks, churches are opening and some are even spreading false information about the pandemics. Pitifully, the number of cases in Nigeria has increased drastically in the past 3 weeks
Bioinformatics proficiency among African students
No full textCopyright © 2024 Akintola, Aborode, Hamza, Amakiri, Moore, Abdulai, Iyiola, Sulaimon, Effiong, Ogunyemi, Dosunmu, Maigoro, Lawal, Raheem and Hwang. cc-byBioinformatics, the interdisciplinary field that combines biology, computer science, and data analysis, plays a pivotal role in advancing our understanding of life sciences. In the African context, where the diversity of biological resources and healthcare challenges is substantial, fostering bioinformatics literacy and proficiency among students is important. This perspective provides an overview of the state of bioinformatics literacy among African students, highlighting the significance, challenges, and potential solutions in addressing this critical educational gap. It proposes various strategies to enhance bioinformatics literacy among African students. These include expanding educational resources, fostering collaboration between institutions, and engaging students in research projects. By addressing the current challenges and implementing comprehensive strategies, African students can harness the power of bioinformatics to contribute to innovative solutions in healthcare, agriculture, and biodiversity conservation, ultimately advancing the continent’s scientific capabilities and improving the quality of life for her people. In conclusion, promoting bioinformatics literacy among African students is imperative for the continent’s scientific development and advancing frontiers of biological research
Immunoinformatics analysis to design novel epitope based vaccine candidate targeting the glycoprotein and nucleoprotein of Lassa mammarenavirus (LASMV) using strains from Nigeria
No full textLassa mammarenavirus (LASMV) is responsible for a specific type of acute viral hemorrhagic fever known as Lassa fever. Lack of effective treatments and counter-measures against the virus has resulted in a high mortality rate in its endemic regions. Therefore, in this study, a novel epitope-based vaccine has been designed using the methods of immunoinformatics targeting the glycoprotein and nucleoprotein of the virus. After numerous robust analyses, two CTL epitopes, eight HTL epitopes and seven B-cell epitopes were finally selected for constructing the vaccine. All these most promising epitopes were found to be antigenic, non-allergenic, nontoxic and non-human homolog, which made them suitable for designing the subunit vaccine. Furthermore, the selected T-cell epitopes which were found to be fully conserved across different isolates of the virus, were also considered for final vaccine construction. After that, numerous validation experiments, i.e. molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulation and immune simulation were conducted, which predicted that our designed vaccine should be stable within the biological environment and effective in combating the LASMV infection. In the end, codon adaptation and in silico cloning studies were performed to design a recombinant plasmid for producing the vaccine industrially. However, further in vitro and in vivo assessments should be done on the constructed vaccine to finally confirm its safety and efficacy. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma
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