Implementation of SARS-CoV-2 testing at Medical Research Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago

The HIV Clinic at the Medical Reserch Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago (MRFTT) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MoH) supports national level diagnostic efforts by conducting HIV viral load testing using the Abbott m2000 real time poymerase chain reation (PCR) platform installed at the MRFTT Laboratory. The MRFTT is strategically poised to scale up diagnostic PCR testing for SARS-CoV-2. In August 2020, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Trinidad and Tobago was categorized as having community spread. To support the government's efforts to rapidly scale up testing and reduce the turn around time whie delivering quality results, an agreement was reached with MoH to expand diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2 at the MRFTT laboratory. Goals: 1. Support the efforts of government to rapidly scale up testing for SARS-CoV-2 2. Integrate SARS-CoV-2 testing at a Regional HIV Care and Treatment Site.

Systemic administration of the di-apocarotenoid norbixin (BIO201) is neuroprotective, preserves photoreceptor function and inhibits A2E and lipofuscin accumulation in animal models of age-related macular degeneration and Stargardt disease.

Atrophic A\age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and Stargardt disease (STGD) are major blinding diseases affecting millions of patients worldwide, but no treatment is available. In dry AMD and STGD oxidative stress and subretinal accumulation of N-retinylidene-N-retinylethanolamine (A2E), a toxic by-product of the visual cycle, causes retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and photoreceptor degeneration leading to visual impairment. Acute and chronic retinal degeneration following blue light damage (BLD) in BALB/c mice and aging of Abca4-/- Rdh8-/- mice, respectively, reproduce features of AMD and STGD. Efficacy of systemic administrations of 9'-cis-norbixin (norbixin), a natural di-apocarotenoid, prepared from Bixa orellana seeds with anti-oxidative properties, was evaluated during BLD in BALB/c mice, and in Abca4-/- Rdh8-/- mice of different ages, following three experimental designs: "preventive", "early curative" and "late curative" supplementations. Norbixin injected intraperitoneally in BALB/c mice, maintained scotopic and photopic electroretinogram amplitude and was neuroprotective. Norbixin chronic oral administration for 6 months in Abca4-/- Rdh8-/- mice following the "early curative" supplementation showed optimal neuroprotection and maintenance of photoreceptor function and reduced ocular A2E accumulation. Thus, norbixin appears promising as a systemic drug candidate for both AMD and STGD treatment.

Common CX3CR1 alleles are associated with a reduced risk of headaches.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the chemokine receptor CX3CR1 in headaches and migraine. METHODS: Distribution of 2 polymorphisms of the chemokine receptor CX3CR1 (V249I and T280M) was determined in a population-based sample of 1179 elderly individuals. RESULTS: Heterozygotes for both CX3CR1 polymorphisms had a reduced risk of recurrent headaches, with an odds ratio (OR) of 0.64 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.46-0.90) for the I249 allele and 0.55 (95% CI = 0.38-0.81) for the M280 allele. Haplotype analysis showed that carriers of the rarer CX3CR1 I249-M280 haplotype had a reduced risk of recurrent headaches, with an OR of 0.57 (95% CI = 0.41-0.80, P = .001). This association was seen for both nonmigraine headaches (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.28-0.79, P = .004) and migraine (OR = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.43-0.98, P = .041). CONCLUSIONS: These results need to be replicated but suggest that the chemokine receptor CX3CR1 may play a role in recurrent headaches.