Assay of Fatty Acids and Their Role in the Prevention and Treatment of COVID-19

Since the emergence of COVID-19, concerted worldwide efforts have taken place to minimize global spread of the contagion. Its widespread effects have also facilitated evolution of new strains, such as the delta and omicron variants, which emerged toward the end of 2020 and 2021, respectively. While these variants appear to be no more deadly than the previous alpha, beta, and gamma strains, and widespread population vaccinations notwithstanding, greater virulence makes the challenge of minimizing spread even greater. One of the peculiarities of this virus is the extreme heath impacts, with the great majority of individuals minimally affected, even sometimes unaware of infection, while for a small minority, it is deadly or produces diverse long-term effects. Apart from vaccination, another approach has been an attempt to identify treatments, for those individuals for whom the virus represents a threat of particularly severe health impact(s). These treatments include anti-SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibodies, anticoagulant therapies, interleukin inhibitors, and anti-viral agents such as remdesivir. Nutritional factors are also under consideration, and a variety of clinical trials are showing promise for the use of specific fatty acids, or related compounds such as fat-soluble steroid vitamin D, to mitigate the more lethal aspects of COVID-19 by modulating inflammation and by anti-viral effects. Here we explore the potential protective role of fatty acids as a potential prophylactic as well as remedial treatment during viral infections, particularly COVID-19. We present a multiplexed method for the analysis of free and phospholipid bound fatty acids, which may facilitate research into the role of fatty acids as plasma biomarkers and therapeutic agents in minimizing pre- and post-infection health impacts.

Analysis of the management of the tenth Ebola virus disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo: developing a multidisciplinary response model to strengthen the healthcare system during disease outbreaks

The declaration of any public health emergency in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is usually followed by the provision of technical and organizational support from international organizations, which build a parallel and short-time healthcare emergency response centered on preventing the extension of health emergencies across the countries and over the world. Previous Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks have highlighted the need to reinforce the healthcare sector in different countries.Based on the difficulty to implement the International Health Regulations (2005) to the local level of affected countries including the DRC, this paper proposes a multidisciplinary model based on the health zones through the strengthening of preparedness and response structures to public health emergencies vis-à-vis the existing weak health systems existing in DRC. A commitment to integrating the emergency response in the existing health system should work to reduce the tension that exists between local recruitment and its impact on the quality of daily healthcare in the region affected by EVD outbreak on one hand, and the involvement of international recruitment and its impact on the trust of the population on the emergency response on the other. This paper highlights the provision of a local healthcare workforce skilled to treat infectious diseases, the compulsory implementation of training programs focused on the emergency response in countries commonly affected by EVD outbreaks including the DRC. These innovations should reduce the burden of health problems prior to and in the aftermath of any public health emergency in DRC hence increasing the wellbeing of the community, especially the vulnerable people as well as the availability of trained healthcare providers able to early recognize and treat EVD.