How Close are We to a COVID-19 Vaccine?

Identifying Drug Candidates for COVID-19 with Large-Scale Drug Screening

Papain-like protease (PL^pro) is critical to COVID-19 infection. Therefore, it is a significant target protein for drug development. We virtually screened a 26,193 compound library against the PL^pro of SARS-CoV-2 and identified several drug candidates with convincing binding affinities. The three best compounds all had better estimated binding energy than those of the drug candidates proposed in previous studies. By analyzing the docking results for the drug candidates identified in this and previous studies, we demonstrate that the critical interactions between the compounds and PL^pro proposed by the computational approaches are consistent with those proposed by the biological experiments. In addition, the predicted binding energies of the compounds in the dataset showed a similar trend as their IC₅₀ values. The predicted ADME and drug-likeness properties also suggested that these identified compounds can be used for COVID-19 treatment.

Perceptions of COVID-19 vaccines among osteopathic medical students (OMS)

BACKGROUND

Research has shown that physicians' recommendations are one of the top predictors for individuals to receive vaccines. This study examined the perceptions of new COVID-19 vaccines among the medical students at the X and the factors that influenced their opinions.

OBJECTIVE

To measure X students' perception of a new COVID-19 vaccine and the factors which drive their opinions.

METHODS

An electronic survey of 37 questions was distributed to Osteopathic Medical Students (OMS I-IV) of X in October of 2020.

RESULTS

1770 total students received the survey, and 197 responded (11%). 45% (88/197) of the respondents reported that they would receive new COVID-19 vaccines if they were available at the time of the survey, while 19% (37/197) reported that they had not yet decided. Confidence in the US healthcare system, pharmaceutical trust, the United States Food and Drug Administration's (FDA)'s minimum effectiveness level, adequate vaccine testing, additional vaccine dose, and antivaccine acquaintances were significant predictors of intended vaccine uptake.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings confirmed a low acceptance of the new COVID-19 vaccine among OMS students, which mirrored the general public's low acceptance rate. Better education of OMS about vaccination benefits and the vaccine development process may increase future immunization rates.

Predictors for Actual COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake and Intended Booster Dosage among Medical Students of an Osteopathic Medical School in New York

Exploring future physicians' attitudes toward vaccination is crucial as physicians' recommendation is the top predictor for individuals to receive vaccines. This study explored the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines and the intention for future booster dose uptake among students at the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM). Predictors for actual vaccine and intended booster uptake were also examined. An electronic survey was distributed to Osteopathic Medical Students (OMS I-IV) in the Spring of 2021. A total of 1331 students received the survey, with 316 responses received (24%). In total, 95.3% (301/316) of the respondents reported that they already received vaccines, while 3.1% (13/316) reported that they had not yet received a vaccine. Moreover, 88.9% of the respondents (281/316) were in favor of a booster dose, which was a strong predictor for actual vaccine uptake. We identified that the Asian race, pharmaceutical mistrust, building immunity via vaccines, adequate vaccine testing, and willingness to get non-U.S. manufactured vaccines are the most significant predictors for willingness to accept a booster dose. A very high COVID-19 vaccine uptake among NYITCOM OMS was found in our study. The study also observed a high acceptance of an additional dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in the future.

Preparatory phase for clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccine in Nepal

Public health data suggested a rapid rise in COVID-19-confirmed cases in Nepal along with increased deaths. There has been a wide variation in clinical outcomes of this disease. Control of this pandemic depends on the availability of vaccines or drugs for SARS-CoV-2. Thus, viral and human genetics/genomics and immunology are necessary to understand whether these factors will affect clinical trials of vaccines in Nepal.

An insight into the epitope-based peptide vaccine design strategy and studies against COVID-19

SARS-CoV-2 is a new member of the coronavirus family and caused the pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in 2020. It is crucial to design and produce an effective vaccine for the prevention of rapid transmission and possible deaths wcaused by the disease. Although intensive work and research are being carried out all over the world to develop a vaccine, an effective and approved formulation that can prevent the infection and limit the outbreak has not been announced yet. Among all types of vaccines, epitope-based peptide vaccines outshine with their low-cost production, easy modification in the structure, and safety. In this review, vaccine studies against COVID-19 have been summarized and detailed information about the epitope-based peptide vaccines against COVID-19 has been provided. We have not only compared the peptide vaccine with other types of vaccines but also presented comprehensive literature information about development steps for an effective and protective formulation to give an insight into on-going peptide vaccine studies against SARS-CoV-2.