Evaluation of Phobia, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice about SARS-CoV-2 Infection, a Study on Healthcare Workers and Their 1st Degree Relatives.

Background: Phobia as a psychological disorder seems to be aggravated during health crises like the current COVID-19 outbreak. On the other hand, people's knowledge about a situation can help decrease the resulting fear. Study design: This is a cross-sectional analytical study to evaluate the COVID-19 related phobia and to measure knowledge, attitude, and practice of our target Iranian population about COVID-19. Methods: In this study, DSM-5 specific phobia questionnaire, adapted to SARS-CoV2-19 infection, was used to evaluate the COVID-19 related phobia. Moreover, the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) questionnaire, specific for SARS-CoV-2 infection, was applied. Results: Phobia score was significantly higher in 1st-degree relatives of healthcare staff (20.38±5.82) than healthcare staff (18.36±5.68) (p=0.021). Females showed a significantly more severe phobia (20.27±5.41) than males (17.72±5.35, p=0.001). COVID-19 phobia was significantly more severe in those with past psy-chiatric conditions than in those without psychiatric history (p<0.05). The 1st-degree relatives of healthcare staff had a significantly lower level of knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 infection (8.19±1.65) than healthcare staff (9.08±1.28, p=0.001). Additionally, age had a positive significant correlation with knowledge and practice towards SARS-CoV-2 infection. Conclusion: Both Iranian healthcare staff and 1st-degree relatives of healthcare workers are suffering from moderate COVID-19 phobia. Females are more concerned than males about COVID-19. Phobia is more severe in people with underlying psychiatric conditions than other people. The knowledge level of Iranian healthcare workers and 1st-degree relatives of healthcare staff about COVID-19 is acceptable but it needs improvement in certain areas.

PVC membrane sensor for diclofenac: applications in pharmaceutical analysis and drug binding studies.

A PVC membrane sensor for diclofenac based on its ion pair complex with silver is prepared. The influences of membrane composition (PVC, plasticizer, and ion pair complex), pH of test solution and presence of other anions on the performance of the electrode were investigated. The optimized membrane demonstrates Nernstian response (-58.9 +/- 0.2 mV/decade) for diclofenac anions over a wide linear range from 5.2 x 10(-5) to 1.1 x 10(-2) M at 25 +/- 1 degree C. The potentiometric response is independent from pH at the range of 6.0-9.5. The advantages of the proposed sensor are: easy preparation, good selectivity and fast response time. It was successfully used for determination of diclofenac in pharmaceuticals and also in potentiometric study of interaction of diclofenac with bovine serum albumin. The results of diclofenac assay with the proposed sensor were in good agreement with the official HPLC method.

Heme degradation upon production of endogenous hydrogen peroxide via interaction of hemoglobin with sodium dodecyl sulfate.

In this study the hemoglobin heme degradation upon interaction with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was investigated using UV-vis and fluorescence spectroscopy, multivariate curve resolution analysis, and chemiluminescence method. Our results showed that heme degradation occurred during interaction of hemoglobin with SDS producing three fluorescent components. We showed that the hydrogen peroxide, produced during this interaction, caused heme degradation. In addition, the endogenous hydrogen peroxide was more effective in hemoglobin heme degradation compared to exogenously added hydrogen peroxide. The endogenous form of hydrogen peroxide altered oxyHb to aquamethemoglobin and hemichrome at low concentration. In contrast, the exogenous hydrogen peroxide lacked this ability under same conditions.